To the Editor.
The game of billiards at its best, as it should be played, and, as I believe—in a great measure thanks to the helpful encouragement of The Billiard Monthly—it is now played in a rapidly-increasing number of private houses, depends very much upon the tools which players find to their hands (as all billiard players will acknowledge) and one of the most important of these is the cue.
In most private billiard rooms the owner has provided a first class table; the balls are true and correct in size and weight: rests and full and half butts are excellent; and the lighting is all that can be desired. But in many—too many cases the cue rack offers a wretched collection of cues to the owner's guests. Here are often to be found plain ash slicks without balance and many of them badly bent, with perhaps a butted cue thrown in, but all carelessly bought and fined down very often until the tip is no thicker than a pencil. There are cues bought for half a guinea which have neither stiffness nor balance.
The host uses his own carefully-chosen cue which cost him a guinea and placing his own game expects his guest to play his with the common cue that he provides for him.
Surely just as great a duly is laid upon us who are fortunate enough to possess a billiard table to provide a carefully- selected set of cues for our guests for the enjoyment of their game in our billiard room, as to provide a good cigar or glass of wine for their enjoyment in our dining room.
In the case of outdoor games our guests bring their own racquets or whatever implements are required, but it is quite the exception to see an invited guest bring his own cue and we should recognise this and provide for it. Many of our guests have never possessed a cue of their own and probably never will.
One not infrequently hears the remark in a billiard room "Oh, any stick will do for me," and we have all, I think, noticed a somewhat general tendency to belittle the importance of the cue no doubt from a mistaken dislike to appear over fastidious. It may be that there is, as yet, a lack of appreciation of a well-made cue among players which will right itself as the game becomes more and more popular, and playing improves in quality.
I believe that carelessness in the provision of good cues is the result of thoughtlessness rather than of any desire to avoid expense, and therefore I wish to bring this subject before your readers in the hope and belief that those of us who may feel that the cap fits us will examine our cues and think a little for our guests.
Anyone of our well-known firms of billiard table makers will quickly choose and supply a good selection of cues varying in weight and balance to suit all players. Some of these firms will take the greatest trouble to supply what we require and at a cost that is trifling to anyone who can afford to buy a billiard table.
There is really, therefore, no excuse for the absence of.
say, half-a-dozen well-made cues from our cue racks, and the presence or absence of these makes all the difference in the world to a guest's enjoyment of an evening in one's billiard room.
A CONSTANT READER.