Sport - Including Horse Racing, Cricket , Rugby, Game Sports etc | Archive

Thirty-Seven Years of Big Game Shooting in Cooch Behar, the Suras and Assam – The Maharajah of Cooch Behar.

A facsimile of this scarce book originally published in Bombay in 1908. This edition by Wolfe Publishing of Prescott, Arizona published in 1993. Described as a “quality limited edition”.

Thick large “Royal” octavo, 461 pages, illustrated as the original, large folding map of the region at rear. Bound nicely in faux burgundy morocco, gilt embellishments and title, all edges richly gilt, headbands and silk page marker. A nice production in “as new” condition.

Described as a “rough diary” covering the period from 1871 to 1907. Set out in XXIX chapters, each dealing with specific expedition or encounters. Precise records of prizes bagged, and the various blunt instruments used carefully listed near the rear.

Nowadays, not everyone’s “cup of tea” but we consider an important relic of the era and a super travel account of the region.

For those geographically limited Cook Behar is in the North of West Bengal in the foothills of the Eastern Himalaya.

The sport of the Maharajah of Cooch Behar.

$70.00

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Hunting and Shooting in Ceylon – Harry Storey

A facsimile of another colonial hunting book – not for the faint-hearted.

Originally published by Longmans, London in 1907; this by Asian Educational of Delhi etc in 1998.

Octavo, 366 pages, illustrations as in the original. Faux leather binding, gilt embellishment, some occasional marks, still a pretty good copy.

Lots of contributions from his gunpowder loving friends and the whole gambit of Ceylonese wildlife put at risk. Forgive our implied – actually a very good book of its type – honest and fulsome. Nicely written with an “in the moment” narrative and images couldn’t be better chosen – some coverage of ancient ruins – such as the impressive Polonnaruwa.

Banging on in Ceylon with Harry.

$30.00

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Peaks and High Places [Tasmania] – Ian Boss-Walker

Well it had to be a “Walker” to put together such an amazing book.

Published in 1950 by the “Scenery Preservation Board” in 1950. Soft cover with a striking period style front cover, internally many charts of tracks and images from period photographs of the mountain scenes along the way.

For anyone planning a nowadays hike this would make an interesting reference to support you iphone or whatever. We particularly like when the mountain huts are listed we are given information on who built, them when and why …

Hiking in among the Tasmanian Peaks

$25.00

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The Southern Cross – Australia’s 1974 Challenge for America’s cup – Hugh Whall

Bondy won the Cup for Australia in 1984 … it had been a long haul … this the book about the mighty effort made in 1974.

Published by Admiralty Publishing, Maryland, USA in 1974, a first edition.

Octavo, 172 pages, finished with the “Basic 12 metre formula”… learn it by heart. Nicely illustrated throughout from photographs taken along the way. Very nice copy.

The author a sailor of note, ex Fastnet, Sydney Hobart etc. From Rhode Island where he kept his hand in. Bondy … well we all know about Bondy.

A super book with good concentration on the design development and the desire to win at all costs.

The America’s Cup maybe the best thing invented in America..

$25.00

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Illustrated Games of Patience – Lady Adelaide Cadogan – 1880

Card games of all sorts were all the rage in Victorian times among all classes. Here we have none other than Lady Cadogan the leading expert on the many many variations of a card game generally known as Patience.

This is fourth more glamorous edition published by Sampson Low, London in 1880. Quarto, strangely paginated around the description both in narrative and pictorially of each game. The images are truly delightful a feature that is carried over to the decorated green cloth binding. A very good copy of a scarce form.

The names of the various game forms points to the French derivations .. La Belle Lucie; Le Cadran; La Quinzaine; La Loi Salique; Les Quatre Coins; Le Moulin; Le Shah etc although ending with the rather drearily named “the British Constitution”

Patience is a blessing .. let’s have more of it!

$80.00

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Unpublished Work – “The Dream and the Reality” – Single Handed Transatlantic Yacht Race 1968 – Brian Cooke.

A unique item, the typescript account of Brian Cooke relating to his participation in the 1968 Single-handed Trans-Atlantic Race (STAR) east to west from Plymouth to Newport Rhode Island.

182 pages of foolscap, corrected in manuscript. Having read through it all … it is an exceptional account ready for the press … we are not sure why he did not follow through with the publication.

Cooke was very much an amateur before this event and he states clearly in his Preface that the book has been written “to indicate the way in which the dream of crossing the Ocean became a reality to me … what is involved for the ordinary person … to know first hand that it is quite a feasible proposition and a very worthwhile challenge …”.

We like the way the book proper starts … “It was 1949, when I was walking down St James’s Street, London one lunchtime. I looked in a Bookshop window. One of the books on display was by Allcard describing the Atlantic voyage he had made. It was the dust cover that took my eye. On it was a photograph of Allcard, at sea, sailing his yacht single-handed, looking up at his sails, which conveyed to me a most vivid picture of satisfaction and achievement”

The first sixty eight pages are taken up with establishing and preparing for the dream. First the yacht that had been commissioned to be built by an acquaintance with the wherewithal connected to his work at the Westminster Bank. The first trials, the personal training, the qualifying voyages etc all very interesting. At page sixty nine we have the race start proper. What follows is a very detailed account of the events of the race, nothing tedious in our view. Cooke came in sixth, out of 48, many had to turn back. Those ahead were either trimarans or larger boats, on any handicap system he may have won.

The appendices are good for perspective and emphasise his comments in the Preface that preparation is key. We have the “sailing instructions” from the Royal Western, Plymouth. The list of yachts by nation, rig, length, hull, and rating where available. Daily records of sailing achievements and sail changes. Provisions of all sorts … we are amused to see Mars Bars, Steak and kidney puddings, HP sauce etc.

Yachting treasure unpublished major single-handed yacht race

$380.00

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Sport – Including Horse Racing, Cricket , Rugby, Game Sports etc

Thirty-Seven Years of Big Game Shooting in Cooch Behar, the Suras and Assam – The Maharajah of Cooch Behar.

Hunting and Shooting in Ceylon – Harry Storey

Peaks and High Places [Tasmania] – Ian Boss-Walker

The Southern Cross – Australia’s 1974 Challenge for America’s cup – Hugh Whall

Illustrated Games of Patience – Lady Adelaide Cadogan – 1880

Unpublished Work – “The Dream and the Reality” – Single Handed Transatlantic Yacht Race 1968 – Brian Cooke.

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