(_WITH EXAMPLES._)
_Prefatory Note._--It is a common mistake to suppose that the present
generation frowns upon the literary achievements of the descriptive
reporter who chronicles the great deeds of athletes, oarsmen,
pugilists, and sportsmen generally. On the contrary, if we may pretend
to judge from a wide and long-continued study, we should say that
the _vates sacer_ of the present day, though he may not rival his
predecessors in refinement and classical allusion, is by no means
inferior to them in wealth of language and picturesque irrelevancy.
Sporting reporting, in fact, was never more of a fine art, and on the
whole has rarely been better paid, than it is at the present day. In
the hope that many a young journalist may be helped in his struggle
for fame and fortune, _Mr. Punch_ proposes to publish a short manual
of sporting reports, with examples and short notes, that may explain
the _technique_ of the business to the aspirant.
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