Finally then the majority of those members of the School who have not yet felt the delight of seeing their names in print, have now an opportunity by referring to the table of weights and measures; remembering at the same time, that by obtaining for themselves a copy of the Report, they not only interest themselves, but shew their desire to assist a good school institution, and help to cheapen the Report for all.

Art Society.

THE first meeting of this term was held on Thursday, Feb. 10th. Two prizes were announced as open to all members of the Society for competition, the subject to be shown up to the President by the last Saturday in March. I. An illustration of "any scene from English History." 11. "An Essay on any Art subject," to be read, if passed, at the last meeting of the term.

F. E. Hulme, Esq., then delivered a most interesting and instructive discourse on "Architecture from Thebes, to 300, Harley-Street." With the exception of a slight sketch over the whole subject he really had not time to get much further than Thebes. However that was well made up for by the capital description he gave of Egyptian architecture.

Owing to the fact that it was a very rainy night we missed a good many of our usual audience, especially the ladies. There were present 30 pe sons, including 13 school members, and 14 school visitors.

The Rifle Corps.

£139 10 G

The Town Corps, per Major Merriman, have most generously subscribed £10 towards the improvements of the range, and we take this opportunity of expressing our thanks.

MARLBOROUGH COLLEGE REGISTER.

The New Edition of the above, published last term, with all the latest information, may be obtained by sending a P.0.0. for 5s. 6d. to W. P. Sellick, Esq., the College, Marlborough.

Printed by C. PERKINS & SON, at their General Printing Office, Waterloo House, Marlborough.

FOOTBALL SEASON, 1880-1881.

Let it be understood, that in his comments on the play of last term and this, the writer of this notice is simply expressing his own individual opinion, which for all he knows may not be shared by anyone here, and that he has accordingly contrary to custom affixed his signature to the article, because he wishes. to accept the entire responsibility of it, and because he does not wish those who are interested in Marlborough Football to attach that importance to the views herein expressed that they might be tempted to do, if they supposed that the article was written by one who had in any way a claim to be considered an authority on the subject. It is for old Marlburians who have had experience of the game in London and at the Universities and whose opinion is therefore worth having, to say whether it is possible for us to improve our style of play without too violently breaking with the past.

As in 1879 so in 1880, the House Matches produced some tremendous struggles. Baker's were known to have deserved success by faithful adherence to tradition during the preceding Easter Term and to be able to put a very strong XX in the field, and

Way's, besides having a powerful team on paper, were known to possess a Captain who had the heaven-born gift of getting the maximum of work out of his men. And so at starting public opinion declared that the chances of victory were pretty evenly balanced between these two houses, and it was not until a week or two had gone by that the School began to realize that there was another House which was turning out a team which had a something about it that was felt to be a little wanting elsewhere-a team which with one brilliant exception was without a brilliant player, but in which the backs were dogged, and the forwards as a body were certainly the fastest and most dangerous in the school. Well did Cotton House justify the good opinion they then gradually won. Of the other Houses Sharp's was decidedly above the average and might have done even better than they did, had they believed in themselves a little more. Horner's, or rather Mahon, made a most gallant stand-and Gould's showed some promise behind the squash. The matches themselves are too fresh in the minds of all to require to have their story retold. The Cup at last went to the Crescent, but had it fallen to Baker's or to Cotton House, all would have admitted that it had gone to a team which had thoroughly deserved to win it.

From the House Football we turn to the far more important question of that of the School. Including this term in the period of the season we have played five matches, and won none. We lost our first match against the old Fellows by 2 tries to three; our match with Cirencester was drawn, neither side scoring. The Nomads beat us by a goal and 2 tries against our one goal; Clifton by a goal to a try; and Keble-well Keble got into something like double figures in the way of tries.

Such are the facts, and in the face of the facts we venture to assert that our XV was a good one. In Hardy we had a captain who was as hard-working a forward as we could wish for, and who possessed besides the tact, judgment, coolness, and doggedness which go far to insure success. In Hawkins we had a very fast three-quarters back, who made a run which the Nomads will remember, and who could collar. Behind the squash Mahon, Fox, Hill, Swann, Martyn, Nott, and Lascelles at a pinch, will compare favourably with their predecessors in byegone days, in dodging, running, collaring, and weight. And no XV can be considered weak forward which could boast of such men as Turner, Tanqueray, Stanton, Carey, and Davies.

If the School then was so strong, it may reasonably be asked, why did it never win a match? We might say that luck was against us-that we only just lost -that the Cirencester match was on a very greasy day-that Mahon did then morally get a touch-down -that against the O.M's we were supreme till Swann got hurt that we played the Nomads and Clifton with 5 of our men away-that Keble took us by surprise in more senses than one. We might say all this -but we don't-because in the first place we don't like this kind of excuse; and in the second place we believe that we had it in our power to have won substantial advantages in spite of these accidental obstacles. We hold that we should have done better if our play had been of a different kind.

In the first place only one of our regular "behind" players, Nott, could drop. We are not in favour of indiscriminate dropping; but independently of the occasional goal which falls to the clever foot, there are in every match moments when a well-timed drop long or short will land the ball in the enemies' quarters, or afford momentary, but none the less real relief to the forwards. Martyn more than once when playing back for Hill showed what could be done in this

direction. Again how seldom is the drop-kick followed up by the man who has made it. Of course where there is only one back player there is obvious danger in such a course, but this objection does not hold in the case of the half and three-quarters backs. In the second place, and this seems to us the root of the matter, are we not behind the age? Close order fighting in the army is a thing of the past, and has not the idea that the whole duty of a football player is to make one in a squash had its day? We seem to accept the fact by gradually lessening the numbers of players in School and House Matches, but have we altered our play sufficiently to meet the new conditions of the game? Have we realized that to be one of XV throws more responsibility on the individual than when he is one of XXV? The Nomads each year that they come down teach us some new thing and continually get the better of us by the exercise of individual judgment. Each man plays more "for his own hand," but not to the detriment of the interest of his side. Keble the other day fairly "rushed" us, and while our forwards were steadily forming for the time-honoured squash, they had the ball down at once and were 20 yards away. It may be that the old-fashioned game is the more enjoyable in the minds of many, but can we afford to go on playing it against teams which have adopted the "open order," if such a term may be allowed? It is a question which we may fairly ask, but which others have the power and the right of answering. H. RICHARDSON.

CHARACTERS OF THE FIFTEEN. J. F. L. HARDY (Captain, cap 1879), 11st. 1lb. Forward. Has made an excellent captain both in the field and elsewhere. A fine forward with great strength and energy. Collars well. (Has left).

A. H. HAWKINS (cap 1879), 9st. 11lb. Threequarters. His great pace makes him most formidable when once he gets off; but he is too slow in starting. Good collar. (Has left).

F. W. S. STANTON (cap 1880), 11st. 9 lb. Forward. An honest hardworking forward of great weight. (Has left).

F. J. HILL (cap 1880), 9st. 13 lb. Three-quarters. Unfortunately disabled early in the term, but showed great promise and thoroughly deserved his place. (Has left).

A. H. TANQUERAY (cap 1880), 11st. 1lb. Forward. His untiring energy made him one of our most useful forwards, being always on the ball. Captain for 1881.

A. LL. DAVIES (cap 1880), 10st. 61b. Forward. A player who came on greatly during the season. Good at dribbling and catching the ball when thrown in.

S. SWANN (cap 1880), 12st. 24lb. Three-quarters. Another victim of an accident, whose great strength and power of shoving off made him a serious loss to the team. (Has left).

F. H. Fox (cap 1880), 9st. 21b. Half-back. A small but unflagging half-back, good collar, and himself very "slippery" to tackle.

H. M. CAREY (cap 1880), 10st.

Forward. Does

W. G. G. STOKES (cap 1880), 9st. 4lb. Forward. An invisible but none the less useful forward. Collars well.

H. J. NOTT (cap 1880), 9st. 71b. Back. Good drop and collar; at times brilliant. (Has left). G. R. LASCELLES (cap 1880), 10st. 4lb. Dribbles and collars well. Useful half-back in case of need. (Average weight of the forwards, 10st. 101lb.; of the whole XV, 10st. 7lb.)

The above Characters will be inserted in "Alcock's Football Annual for the Season."

RAVENNA.*

A man once told me that he considered Ravenna "the most interesting city in Europe." But this is clearly a somewhat ambiguous expression, because a city may be interesting from so many points of view; its architecture, or antiquity; its influence on art, *Read at the Meeting of the Art Society on Feb. 24th.

letters, or science; its connection with the rise and progress, the decline and fall of kingdoms; the birthplace of great men; the scene of great actions in the history of the world; or in regard to the aids which it has furnished towards the development of the human spirit. A city is usually spoken of as "interesting" from the traveller's point of view; that is to say in respect of its architecture, picture galleries, and museums. Both as illustrating Christian and Byzantine Art during the first period of the middle ages; "between the days of the latest Roman and earliest Teutonic powers; " and from its connection with Theodoric and other Gothic kings, and with Dante, Boccaccio, and Byron, Ravenna may vie with most cities in interest. Still I should scarcely venture to place it first. Surely Athens must always head the list, and Rome come next to it. Florence may perhaps be placed third, Ravenna fourth, Nuremburg fifth, and Granada sixth. Opinions differ somewhat on this question. An authority on the subject, with whom the matter was discussed, placed Athens first, and bracketed Rome and Ravenna second. Another placed Rome first, and claimed a place for Venice among the six. Another could not possibly imagine why London and Paris had been omitted.

But reverting to our order of Athens, Rome, Florence, Ravenna, Nuremberg, Granada. I need not say one word in favour of the claims of the city in which "the greatest generals, statesmen, poets, orators, artists, historians, and philosophers that the world can boast, were produced in the short space of a century and a half;" and which at the same time created the most perfectly artistic edifices that the world has ever seen. Neither need I justify the position of Rome. The very fact that scores of hours of our young life arc devoted to the histories of these cities, speaks for itself as to their influence on the destinies of the human race. Regarding the third place assigned to Florence, there will be some difference of opinion. It is true that it does not go back to any remote antiquity, but we must remember how profoundly it influenced the world during the Renaissance, and the proud position which it occupies in the history of literature, art, and science. It suffices alone to mention Dante, Boccaccio, Machiavelli, Galileo, Orcagna, Cimabue, Fra Angelico, Leonardo da Vinci, Michael Angelo, and Fra

Bartollomeo. Florence still contains magnificent records of some of her sons:-Giotto's Campanile, Brunelleschi's dome, Michael Angelo's David, and multitudes of fine pictures. Of Nuremberg, we may think as the best existing type of a rich mediaval city, full of quaint Gothic buildings of the 13th, 14th, and 15th centuries; nor may we forget the men who made it famous :-Albert Dürer, Adam Krafft, Peter Vischer, and Hans Sachs. And what can we say of Granada with its sumptuous Moorish remains? its Alhambra, in which you enter court after court, each one lovelier than the last, adorned with a profusion of delicate sculpture, among which is inwoven maxims from the Koran, and most often the words of the victorious Ibu-el-Ahmar-" There is no conqueror but God." A thousand other things delight one in Granada:-its splendid position, on an acropolis overlooking a fertile plain, its Zacatin, its Capilla de los Reyes; its fountains, and hedges of myrtle, and groves alive with nightingales.

These then are the cities, fourth among which we have placed Ravenna. What Athens is in connection with the development of Greco-Assyrian, and pure Greek Art; Rome with Graeco-Roman, Roman and the earliest Christian art; Florence with the art of the Renaissance; Nuremberg with Gothic; and Granada with the art of the Moors: such is Ravenna in connection with the art of that period of transition from Roman to medieval times, and in this respect Mr. Freeman remarks "it is absolutely, unique in its character and interest."

Ravenna has been called "piu antica città d'Italia." It is said to have existed 640 years before Rome. There is no doubt that it was founded at a very early date by the Pelasgi, and that it afterwards came into the possession of the Umbrians. The Emperor Augustus made it one of his two naval ports, and the head quarters of the Adriatic fleet. A town called Portus Classis soon arose on the sea shore, and it was connected with Ravenna by a canal; while a new quarter called Cæsaréa sprang up between the city and the port. Ravenna then stood in the midst of a vast lagune like Venice, surrounded by low fertile islands, and connected with the mainland by a causeway. But the harbour in time became filled up by the deposits of rivers: Portus Classis and Cæsaréa fell into decay, while Ravenna remained the Capital of the Province. In

the 6th century A.D., the sea had retreated to such an extent that dry land existed where the ships of Augustus had ridden at anchor, and great groves of pines began to appear along the shores,-the parents of the mighty Pineta, in which Dante, Boccaccio, and Byron found so much inspiration. In 402 A.D. the Emperor Honorius left Rome, and took up his abode in Ravenna on account of its great strength. After the fall of the Western Empire, the City was taken by Odoacer, and in 493 by Theodoric, King of the Ostrogoths. For 59 years it was the capital of the Gothic Kings, and it then became the residence of the Exarchs of the Greek Emperors, until in 752 the Lombard Astulphus drove out Eutychius, the last Exarch, and took possession of the town. Astulphus in his turn was soon afterwards dispossessed of the city by Pepin, King of the Franks, who gave it to the Pope. Ravenna afterwards underwent many changes of government in 1275 the Polentas became chief magistrates; in 1318 it began to be governed by Dukes, and in 1440 it fell into the hands of the Venetians. Sixty-nine years later it was conquered by Pope Julius II, and it continued to form a part of the states of the Church till the treaty of Tolentino in 1797. It now forms a part of United Italy.

At an early period (44 A.D. it is said) Ravenna was Christianized by S. Apollinare, a disciple of St. Peter, who became its first bishop. In 438 it became an archiepiscopal see, and it has always been a very important place in connection with early Church history. The Church architecture, and the mosaics which serve to illustrate the early progress of Christian art, are altogether unique.

The oldest mosaics in Ravenna are in the Baptistery, an octagonal building adjoining the cathedral. They date from the 5th century, and represent the baptism of our Lord,surrounded by figures of the twelve apostles. The dome itself is formed of terra cotta tubes. The building was founded by St. Orsus, who died in 396, and it is appropriately dedicated to St. John the Baptist. Below the dome there is a series of mosaics; and in the centre, a large octagonal font of white marble dating from the 5th century, which still serves for the baptism of the Ravennese. the summit of the dome there is a bronze cross, dating from 688. The building is very small compared with the baptisteries of Florence and Pisa: from

On