# Handball codes compared, 1889

The rules in force in 1889, one column per code. Each cell is the code's newest edition on or before 1889.

- American four-wall: Four-wall (The Sun, New York, 1889)
- One-wall, small ball: no edition yet
- Three-wall: no edition yet
- Wallball, big ball: no edition yet
- Irish 60x30 hardball: no edition yet

## Concepts

- **Appeals and finality**: American four-wall: rule 24: All disputed balls decided by the referee; decision final in all cases; One-wall, small ball: no edition yet; Three-wall: no edition yet; Wallball, big ball: no edition yet; Irish 60x30 hardball: no edition yet
- **Ball hits an opponent before reaching the wall**: American four-wall: rule 10: Receiver's ball striking the server or his partner = 'hinder', played over; One-wall, small ball: no edition yet; Three-wall: no edition yet; Wallball, big ball: no edition yet; Irish 60x30 hardball: no edition yet
- **Ball hits the hitter or his partner**: American four-wall: rule 22: Server striking himself or his partner with the serve: receiver may call a hinder; One-wall, small ball: no edition yet; Three-wall: no edition yet; Wallball, big ball: no edition yet; Irish 60x30 hardball: no edition yet
- **Ball: specification**: American four-wall: rule 1: Ball about 2 in diameter, 1 1/3 oz [1889 adds '1 1/3 ounces in weight'; Spalding 1886 gives no weight]; One-wall, small ball: no edition yet; Three-wall: no edition yet; Wallball, big ball: no edition yet; Irish 60x30 hardball: no edition yet
- **Catching or stopping the ball**: American four-wall: rule 8, 9: Server or partner intentionally stopping the ball (on the way to, or off the front wall before it bounds) = hand out; One-wall, small ball: no edition yet; Three-wall: no edition yet; Wallball, big ball: no edition yet; Irish 60x30 hardball: no edition yet
- **Change of serve**: American four-wall: rule 6, 7, 8, 9: 'Hand out' is the penalty for the serving side's faults; the term is not defined; One-wall, small ball: no edition yet; Three-wall: no edition yet; Wallball, big ball: no edition yet; Irish 60x30 hardball: no edition yet
- **Court: service zone**: American four-wall: rule 4: Serve from inside the ace line (the front half of the court); One-wall, small ball: no edition yet; Three-wall: no edition yet; Wallball, big ball: no edition yet; Irish 60x30 hardball: no edition yet
- **Court: short line (minimum serve length)**: American four-wall: rule 4: One 'ace line', 'supposed to be in the centre of the court'; One-wall, small ball: no edition yet; Three-wall: no edition yet; Wallball, big ball: no edition yet; Irish 60x30 hardball: no edition yet
- **Doubles: serving order and first hand**: American four-wall: rule 3: Toss winner has one hand only in the first inning; One-wall, small ball: no edition yet; Three-wall: no edition yet; Wallball, big ball: no edition yet; Irish 60x30 hardball: no edition yet
- **First service (toss)**: American four-wall: rule 3: Toss for first hand in every match, double or single [1889 omits '(after entering the court)']; One-wall, small ball: no edition yet; Three-wall: no edition yet; Wallball, big ball: no edition yet; Irish 60x30 hardball: no edition yet
- **Forfeits for no-show, late start and defaults**: American four-wall: rule 16: Failing to respond to the call of time loses the match; One-wall, small ball: no edition yet; Three-wall: no edition yet; Wallball, big ball: no edition yet; Irish 60x30 hardball: no edition yet
- **Game length**: American four-wall: rule 1: 21 aces ('twenty-one aces'); One-wall, small ball: no edition yet; Three-wall: no edition yet; Wallball, big ball: no edition yet; Irish 60x30 hardball: no edition yet
- **Game types: singles, doubles, cutthroat**: American four-wall: rule 2: Single-hand game (two persons) and double game (four persons); One-wall, small ball: no edition yet; Three-wall: no edition yet; Wallball, big ball: no edition yet; Irish 60x30 hardball: no edition yet
- **Obstruction: penalised (intentional / avoidable) interference**: American four-wall: rule 14: Opponent jostling or intentionally getting in the way = ace or hand out; One-wall, small ball: no edition yet; Three-wall: no edition yet; Wallball, big ball: no edition yet; Irish 60x30 hardball: no edition yet
- **Officials: who officiates**: American four-wall: rule 24: A referee chosen by the players; One-wall, small ball: no edition yet; Three-wall: no edition yet; Wallball, big ball: no edition yet; Irish 60x30 hardball: no edition yet
- **Rally: ball landing out**: American four-wall: rule 23: Courts with boundary lines and no side walls: ball rebounding outside the side boundary line = foul, hand out; One-wall, small ball: no edition yet; Three-wall: no edition yet; Wallball, big ball: no edition yet; Irish 60x30 hardball: no edition yet
- **Rally: failure to return**: American four-wall: rule 15: Receiver failing to return service = ace for the server (stated for the receiver only); One-wall, small ball: no edition yet; Three-wall: no edition yet; Wallball, big ball: no edition yet; Irish 60x30 hardball: no edition yet
- **Rally: one touch only**: American four-wall: rule 13: Ball struck with the foot and assisted by the hand = foul; One-wall, small ball: no edition yet; Three-wall: no edition yet; Wallball, big ball: no edition yet; Irish 60x30 hardball: no edition yet
- **Rally: play before the second bounce**: American four-wall: rule 15: Served ball must be struck on the fly or first bound; One-wall, small ball: no edition yet; Three-wall: no edition yet; Wallball, big ball: no edition yet; Irish 60x30 hardball: no edition yet
- **Scoring: who scores and the unit**: American four-wall: rule 5: Aces credited 'by service or return' (only the serving side is shown scoring: R11, R14, R15); One-wall, small ball: no edition yet; Three-wall: no edition yet; Wallball, big ball: no edition yet; Irish 60x30 hardball: no edition yet
- **Serve hits a player**: American four-wall: rule 22: Serve striking the server or his partner and going over the ace line: receiver's option, may be called a hinder; One-wall, small ball: no edition yet; Three-wall: no edition yet; Wallball, big ball: no edition yet; Irish 60x30 hardball: no edition yet
- **Serve: faults on the rebound (walls, ceiling, out of court)**: American four-wall: rule 18: Serve going over the back board or striking the gallery before bounding = foul [1889 omits 'on the floor' after 'bounding']; One-wall, small ball: no edition yet; Three-wall: no edition yet; Wallball, big ball: no edition yet; Irish 60x30 hardball: no edition yet
- **Serve: faults that lose the serve**: American four-wall: rule 6: Three failures in succession to serve over the ace line = hand out; One-wall, small ball: no edition yet; Three-wall: no edition yet; Wallball, big ball: no edition yet; Irish 60x30 hardball: no edition yet
- **Serve: how it is put in play**: American four-wall: rule 4: Bounce the ball on the floor and strike it with the hand against the front wall; One-wall, small ball: no edition yet; Three-wall: no edition yet; Wallball, big ball: no edition yet; Irish 60x30 hardball: no edition yet
- **Serve: must hit the front wall first**: American four-wall: rule 7: Serve striking either side wall before the front wall = hand out; One-wall, small ball: no edition yet; Three-wall: no edition yet; Wallball, big ball: no edition yet; Irish 60x30 hardball: no edition yet
- **Serve: playing a fault serve**: American four-wall: rule 11, 12, 20: Short serve may be played with hand or foot (hand miss = ace; foot miss = no score; foot return: server may stop the ball); a foul ball stays foul whether played or not [1889 omits 'for the striker' after 'does not score']; One-wall, small ball: no edition yet; Three-wall: no edition yet; Wallball, big ball: no edition yet; Irish 60x30 hardball: no edition yet
- **Serve: positions of the other players**: American four-wall: rule 17: Server's partner, back against a side wall inside the ace line, until the ball leaves the front wall; else foul; One-wall, small ball: no edition yet; Three-wall: no edition yet; Wallball, big ball: no edition yet; Irish 60x30 hardball: no edition yet
- **Serve: receiver's position**: American four-wall: rule 19: Receivers outside (behind) the ace line before the serve; One-wall, small ball: no edition yet; Three-wall: no edition yet; Wallball, big ball: no edition yet; Irish 60x30 hardball: no edition yet
- **Serve: server's position**: American four-wall: rule 4: Server stands inside (in front of) the ace line; One-wall, small ball: no edition yet; Three-wall: no edition yet; Wallball, big ball: no edition yet; Irish 60x30 hardball: no edition yet
- **Serve: short**: American four-wall: rule 4, 6: Serve must go to the receivers beyond the ace line; One-wall, small ball: no edition yet; Three-wall: no edition yet; Wallball, big ball: no edition yet; Irish 60x30 hardball: no edition yet
- **Striking: hand only**: American four-wall: rule 11, 13, 21: Hand or foot only (any other part of the person = ace or hand out); foot assisted by the hand = foul [1889 omits 'for the striker' (R11) and the 'a' in 'under a forfeit' (R21)]; One-wall, small ball: no edition yet; Three-wall: no edition yet; Wallball, big ball: no edition yet; Irish 60x30 hardball: no edition yet
- **Time between games**: American four-wall: rule 16: Prize matches: one minute for refreshments between games; One-wall, small ball: no edition yet; Three-wall: no edition yet; Wallball, big ball: no edition yet; Irish 60x30 hardball: no edition yet
- **Time between rallies and service delay**: American four-wall: rule 19: Server must call time and wait until the receivers are outside the line; One-wall, small ball: no edition yet; Three-wall: no edition yet; Wallball, big ball: no edition yet; Irish 60x30 hardball: no edition yet

## What the codes share

- Shared (0): none
- Converging (0): none
- Unique (33): Appeals and finality (American four-wall); Ball hits an opponent before reaching the wall (American four-wall); Ball hits the hitter or his partner (American four-wall); Ball: specification (American four-wall); Catching or stopping the ball (American four-wall); Change of serve (American four-wall); Court: service zone (American four-wall); Court: short line (minimum serve length) (American four-wall); Doubles: serving order and first hand (American four-wall); First service (toss) (American four-wall); Forfeits for no-show, late start and defaults (American four-wall); Game length (American four-wall); Game types: singles, doubles, cutthroat (American four-wall); Obstruction: penalised (intentional / avoidable) interference (American four-wall); Officials: who officiates (American four-wall); Rally: ball landing out (American four-wall); Rally: failure to return (American four-wall); Rally: one touch only (American four-wall); Rally: play before the second bounce (American four-wall); Scoring: who scores and the unit (American four-wall); Serve hits a player (American four-wall); Serve: faults on the rebound (walls, ceiling, out of court) (American four-wall); Serve: faults that lose the serve (American four-wall); Serve: how it is put in play (American four-wall); Serve: must hit the front wall first (American four-wall); Serve: playing a fault serve (American four-wall); Serve: positions of the other players (American four-wall); Serve: receiver's position (American four-wall); Serve: server's position (American four-wall); Serve: short (American four-wall); Striking: hand only (American four-wall); Time between games (American four-wall); Time between rallies and service delay (American four-wall)