Do You Know . . . ?
A series of occasional articles documenting some olde bowles curiosities and little-known facts
No. 1 - Do You Know Who Bowl-Boys Were?
Information on bowl-boys from readily available sources such as books and the Internet is sparse and photographs are rare. The period of bowls history in which they operated is difficult to establish with certainty, but we do know that they were in evidence in the late 1800s and early 1900s and the three photographs below were almost certainly taken during this period. Although not common to all the photos, note the use of aprons, caps and cloths. The third picture is particularly intriguing as it shows a measure being taken with a rod and the use of the outside of the right hand as a sliding measure. Magnification of the picture reveals the words 'Gt Yarmouth' on the board at the back which places the scene in Federation Bowls country. Today a two metre stick is used as a measure in this version of bowls to eliminate from the count any bowl further than this distance from the jack.
Click on any photo to enlarge it
So who were bowl-boys? Roughly speaking they were the equivalent to bowls of what today's Wimbledon ball-boys are to tennis, but their duties were more extensive as we'll see. In describing their role I can do no better than draw on the work of Edward Ayers, a bowls historian of the day (Ayers 1907), and enjoy his sometimes quaint Edwardian turn of phrase:
In all my researches I found little reference to the lads (from ten to thirteen years) employed to pick up, clean, and hand to the players their bowls in due order*, and rewarded by payment of a penny each evening from every player, amounting to a fair sum during the season.† The boys are very important items, however, saving the players much searching and stooping for bowls, and it is amusing to notice how they are at times carried away with the excitement of the game, and accurately estimate the capacities of the players. Very recently one of our members, accustomed to say what he thinks, rather warmly proclaimed to his fellow-players that he would bet ten pounds to one shilling to get his bowl in. The boy attending him promptly interjected, 'I'll take it!' causing much laughter. The boy's conjecture was correct, my friend failing altogether in his attempt.
Some lads are capital helps, others only display their activity in collecting the pence. Most of them, however, learn here much of practical life at an early age, and later on make good business men. If a lad shirks his work or negligently performs it, such as handing up a wrong bowl or dropping one on a player's 'tom toe' or tenderest corn, etc, he is sure quickly to 'catch it' and his wits are accordingly sharpened, or his services dispensed with.
To encourage 'our boys', we usually take two of them with us when we play a match from home, and are amply rewarded in watching the signs of joy and excitement in their faces at the prospect of a day's outing. Don't they stow away ginger-beer and buns on the way and their meat tea after the play is over? Overhearing on one occasion the landlady remark, 'Well, I've seen boys eat before, but never sich [sic] boys as them.' I went to their table, and could not but admire the rapid action of their jaws and the generally 'full' appearance they all had, and I think their repast was only cut short by the arrival of the time of departure for home. I always make the shrewdest lad responsible for seeing that all the necessary bowls, trigs‡ and jacks, are taken in the box provided for that purpose, and brought home again, furnishing him with a list of the players, and strictly charging him (on pain of 'decapitation') never to lose sight of the box until the return home.
Bowl-boys were not confined to this country and for many of those overseas their duties were more extensive. John Monro, Official Historian of the Royal Victorian Bowls Association in Australia, in the third edition of his comprehensive Bowls Encyclopaedia (Monro 1958) had this to say about them:
Bowl-boys or caddies are employed on bowling greens in South Africa, Malaya, India, Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Egypt for the purpose of picking up the bowls of the players employing them; wiping, moistening and polishing the bowls; and handing them to the players. At Singapore the chokras¶ lay the mat and straighten the jack. In South Africa the native boys also bring out the drinks, teas, etc, to the players on the green. When the game is over, the bowls, etc, left on the banks are collected by the bowl-boys, cleaned, and returned to the lockers in the bowls room.
John Monro also refers to bowl-boys at the Lewes Bowling Green Society in Sussex - a Society which celebrated its 250th anniversary in 2003. Membership is limited to 50 and is by invitation only. Both green and bowls are quite different to those used in the traditional flat and crown green games, as are the rules. The author gives us no clue as to when the bowl-boys were employed, but here's his brief description of their duties:
At Lewes (Sussex) the Lewes Bowling Society engaged two boys to mark each game. One boy wiped the bowls and handed them to the players, while the other carried a wooden board suspended from his neck and showing two clocks, one painted white, the other black, to record the state of the game. The clock-boy also carried a two-yard measuring stick.
Bowl-boys were a small but fascinating cog in the rich wheel of bowls history and their brief appearance may have gone unrecorded but for the likes of bowls historians such as Edward Ayers and John Monro; we owe them a debt of gratitude.
References
Ayers, Edward T. (1907), The Bowling Green
Monro, John P. (1958), Bowls Encyclopaedia 3rd edn.
Footnotes
Other articles in this series
No.2. Click W G Grace
