Sports & Recreation
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American Big-Game Hunting
The first book published by The Boone and Crockett Club founded by Theodore Roosevelt and George Grinnell, who declared in their Editors Note: “Hunting big game in the wilderness is, above all things, a sport for a vigorous and masterful people. The rifle-bearing hunter, whether he goes on foot or on horseback, whether he voyages in a canoe or travels with a dog-sled, must be sound of body and firm of mind, and must possess energy, resolution, manliness, self-reliance, and capacity for hardy self-help. In short, the big-game hunter must possess qualities without which no race can do its life-work well; and these are the very qualities which it is the purpose of this Club, so far as may be, to develop and foster.” A bit outdated as to the equipment they used, this book is nevertheless an intense look at the west in early days, and at the beginnings of the conservationist movement in America. Each chapter focuses on a different animal, from buffalo, mountain goat, elk, pronghorn sheep, grizzlies, etc., indigenous peoples, different areas like the Rockies and Yellowstone, and it still captures the essence of the spirit of the hunt. The book ends with a list of the club’s original 100 members, a veritable Who’s Who of Generals, Colonels, Doctors, Senators and Representatives, amongst them that most illustrious Gen’l William T. Sherman. ( ~ Michele Fry, read by LibriVox Volunteers)
Amid the High Hills
A regular contributor to magazines and periodicals on outdoor pursuits, in this work, Fraser discusses salmon fishing, deer stalking, fauna in the forest, high hills and more. – Summary by Lynne Thompson
An Angler’s Hours
One of the classic British books about angling. The author?s love was fly fishing???while there are trout, life is worth living?? but he was no snob. An Angler?s Hours includes several chapters about coarse fishing (grayling, dace, chub, etc.) as well as a surprising account of the Japanese tenkara method as used in England. Sheringham’s style is similar to that of the much-loved B.B. (Denys Watkins-Pitchford) with a dash of P.G. Wodehouse. He doesn?t bore us with technical details but writes of the simple joys of angling?”a man who gazes at the wares in a tackle-shop on a sunny day in April has certainly a fishing expedition in prospect??not forgetting the pleasure of a nice pot of tea at the end of the day. Hugh Tempest Sheringham (1876 – 1930) was angling editor of The Field (London) and considered one of the premier British authors on freshwater angling both for his knowledge of the subject and readable style. – Summary by Adrian Praetzellis
Short Works on Sports Collection 01
A miscellany of poetry and short works of fact and fiction on the topic of sports from North America, Great Britain and Australasia. The collection includes pieces on baseball, cricket, lacrosse, cycling, athletics, fishing, polo, fencing, marbles and three kinds of football, by authors including Arnold Bennett, Zane Grey, Banjo Paterson, and P. G. Wodehouse. (Summary by Phil Benson)
The Birth of Professional Rugby League in Australia: A selection from the Sydney Morning Herald (1907-08)
In early 1907 the world of Australian rugby was rocked by the news that a professional New Zealand All Blacks team was set to tour the northern counties of Engliand, where professional rugby had been a reality for more than a decade. The professionalization of Australian rugby was unthinkable, but within a few months the unthinkable had come to pass. The professional All Blacks had played a hastily formed New South Wales team, the great Dally Messenger had joined the New Zealand tour of England, and by 1908 a professional league was formed in Sydney, with several of the teams that play in the NRL today. This selection from the Sydney Morning Herald’s coverage of the fierce debate that ensued, shows how concerns for the welfare of the game and players were mingled with class-interest, colonial ideologies and greed for profit. – Summary by Phil Benson