Jottings of the Month

• Playing an amateur (Mr. J. G. Symes) at Tunbridge Wells, Inman conceded 400 in 800 and was just beaten by 10 points.
• Among the holiday attractions at the Anglo-American Exposition at Shepherd's Bush is stated to be a monkey that, among other attainments, can play billiards.
• After having made several breaks exceeding 600 with ivory balls, Gray managed to get into the 700 when playing Newman at the Holborn Hall on June 4. Of the total of 704 points 693 were made off the red, which constitutes a new ivory ball record.
• The result of the Newman-Gray match at the Holborn Hall was a draw with the figures standing as follow: Gray, 17,664; Newman (rec. 2,000), 17,503. In the Inman-Smith match at the Grand Hall, Leicester Square, the result was: Inman, 17,000; Smith (rec. 2,500), 16.919.
• Playing Newman level at Bristol, Smith scored 8,000 to 7,751, and again meeting the same player at Darlington Smith just managed to win by 8,000 to 7,962. It seems clear that the eyes of the billiard world will be much upon these young men and George Gray in the course of the next few years.
• In the final of the Inter-Clubs competition for the Challenge Cup presented by the Council of the Billiards Control Club, the Junior Constitutional Club retained possession of the Cup for another year by beating the Sports Club by 311 points. The winners were C. H. Mortimer and V. Perrett with 500 each, against A. G. Tonks 466 and R. A. Hill 223.
• Inman leaves on Saturday, July 11, for the United States, where, and in Canada, he will play Hoppe a series of three matches both in the American and British style. The first encounter will be in New York, the second in Chicago, and the third in Canada. Half of each game will be English pocket billiards and half American 18.2 baulk line billiards. The matches in America will be of 6,000 up and last a week each, and that in Canada will be 12,000 up and last 12 days.
• Three representatives of the motor trade will meet three representatives of the London Press in a billiard tournament at Burroughes Hall, Soho Square, on the afternoon of Saturday, July 11. The games will be 500 up. The Press team will consist of Messrs. C. V. Diehl, S. Felsted, and A. Ornstein, while the Motor Trade will be represented by Messrs. J. S. Stafford, Edgar de Normanville, and Berkeley Omerod. Valuable cups are being presented.
• In the Gray-Newman match at the Holborn Hall, the spot boy failed to restore the red ball quite accurately to the spot on two or three occasion, so Newman took the matter in hand and showed the boy how it ought to be done. He was then about to make his stroke when Gray said he thought that the spot boy ought to have the last handling of the ball, and this was accordingly done. There is more art in putting the red ball on the spot than many imagine, and that it is usually done clumsily is best proved by the almost invariable circle that is found to be worn in the cloth around the ball caused by finger tips which ought never to touch the cloth at all. Another essential is that the hand should never be moist with heat, and it is, of course, to obviate this that spot boys in important games wear gloves.
• At Burroughes Hall, Soho Square, at the end of May the West End Markers' Handicap was won by F. Bass, Constitutional Club, who beat J. Jevons, Royal Automobile Club. Scores: Bass (rec. 10) 1,000; Jevons (rec. 70) 915.
• Gray, both of whose recent matches with Newman ended in a draw in the former player's favour, will shortly pay his first visit to Canada, for which country he leaves about the middle of August. A tour, which will occupy about six weeks, his been arranged by Messrs. Burroughes and Watts.
• In a match of 8,000 up at Margate, Gray, conceding 1,500 points, beat Falkiner by 8,000 to 7.369.
• The Fulham Temperance Billiard Hall team of nine players has played nine matches during the season, consisting of 77 games, of which it has won 50 and lost 27, scoring 17,867 points to 16,102. The Hall championship was won by F. Farrar with six games and the other results were: Couper, Phillips, and Knight 5 each, Bell 4, Harvey 2, Bacher 1, and Leadbetter 0.