The Sun.
London, England, 1864-08-10 00:00:00

Of these the Volante only did not start. The rest took
up the moorings assigned to them, and with mainsails loose
and headsails down awaited the signal, At 10 a,m. the
preparatory gun was fired, and the signal made to first
proceed to the eastward, the course being better known as
the Victoria course; from off Ryde pier by the Noman
and Warner to the Nab lightvessel, thence westward
to the buoy of the Middle off Cowes Roads, and
thence in to the starting post off Rydo pierhead, twice
round. The Nab lightship and the west buoy of the
Middle to be left on the port hand. On the signal being
I given from the starting gun, the Albertine, Emi.y,
Marina, and Galatea were first away, and ranning to the
eastward before a strong westerly gale, in the order in
whi7.ll they are named, skirting the edge of the Ryde Sands
for the Noman. About three cables' length astern next
came the Amulet, followed closely by the Mine, Madcap,
Andax, and Columbine. Next followed, at some distance
and by themselves, the Osprey and Columbine, and at a
still greater distance and astern of all, tho whipper-in of
the fleet, the new cutter Alarte, which had lain for some
time in a most unaccountable manner with her jib sheet off
slack and her main sheet taut in before filling and joining
in the race. In nearing the Nab she housed her topmast,
and those sailing her evidently thought she would stand 731;
none too stiff unler her canias when she felt the full force
of the breeze in reaching back to the westward. There was
but little time to notice the bearing of the several yachts in
the run down, for the Nab Light vessel was soon reached
and jibed round on the port hand by the respective yachts
in the following order and ti

H. M. s
Afinp
Aibertine
Wale%

Marina .. 10 38

Madcap

Emily lO 3S 30

LCS :

M. 8.
Auden lO ;-;;) 5
GAutubirte
Amulet
thzFrey
Alert

The Alert, what with her loss of time in starting, and in
the run down to the Nab, was placed 9 min. 13 sec. behind
the leading vessel at the time she jibed round the lightship.
In standing up for the Noman from the Nab the Aline
housed her topmasts, the Albertine for some time keeping
her jibheaded maintopsail set, as also did the Galatea. Lord
Londesborough's schooner, on passing the Warner, was
hanging on close in the wake of the commodore's Aline,
with Mr Broadwood's famous Galatea a good third, the
Marina cutter leading the remainder of the competing ves-
sels at nearly a mile astern of the Galatea, and drawing
ahead into a good fourth place with the schooners had there
been any chance of working down the west part of the
course by short tacks. The wind was W.S.W. out in the
open by the Nab light vessel, but inside the Warner light
it was as nearly due W. as was possible, and the schooners
had it in their power to make one leg down, and then by a
short tack weather the west. buoy—the extreme west point
of the course. Under these circumstances the cutters
stood but a small chance, especially as the wind was fresh-
ening, and it evidently became " all Lombard-street to a
China orange" on the schooners. The Noman was passed
in reaching up from the Nab thus :

M
Aline
Albertine lO 54 50
Galatea
Marina .. 11 150
Madcap
Emily ll 311
As the three schooners led the way past the Sturbridge,
the Albertine had followed the example of her leader in send-
ing down her maintopsail and housing her topmast to enable
her the better to meet the squall which was probably about
to burst out from the darkness looming up westward. The
Aline, with her powerful hull, carried her canvas on a
more upright keel than did either of her two accompanying
rivals, and evidently fared much better in the fierce squalls
which every now and then swept across, than did any other
craft in the race. As the three leading schooners reached
down through Stokes Bay with their white canvas
gleaming out sharply against the darkness of the coast-
line and atmosphere, they formed a really beautiful
and effective marine picture. The Marina cutter followed
into the bay under her whole mainsail, foresail, working jib
and jib-headod topsail, and was about the only cutter that
carried her canvas otherwise than on the broadside. No
cutter could have stood up under sail in a strong wind better
than the Marina did yesterday; but, the race was for the
schooners. A short distance astern of the Marina came the
Madcap, carrying both her topsails, and about three or four
cables astern of Madcap came Audax with Columbine,
Osprey, Amulet, Emily and Alberte in her wake. The Au-
dax's star was paling before the performance of the Marina,
while others of the cutters with their topsails rent on deck,
and a reef in their mainsail showed they had got as much
as they could carry, and were altogether overpowered by
their large competitors, owing to the force and position of
the wind. The North Star about this time gave up and
hauled down liar flag. At 11 30 the Galatea's mainsail
came down by the run, the throat halliards having appa-
rently given way, and she lay thus partially crippled for
some considerable time and lost all chance of the prize, the
contest for which now really lay between the Commodore
Thelluson's Aline and Lord Londesborough's Albertine.
The latter kept her mach for the west buoy of the Middle,
the eastern extremity of the course, while the Aline, from
some undiscoverable cause, kept more away, and;went about,
at llh. 45m., having apparently mistaken the course. The
Albertine went about three minutes after the Aline, both
standing for the buoy of the Middle. This was rounded as
follows by the leading vessels, the Albertine taking the
lead from the commodore

IL M. S.
Audax ll 330
Columbine
Amulet
Osprey
Alerts

H. M. S. 11. M. S.
Albertine
Aline ..... 11 51 48 Marina l2 240
The three seheoners only had to make one short tack to the
southward after their own reach, but the Marina lulled
clear round.
The Aline had lost the lead by going out of her course,
but as soon as she got round the buoy and felt the pressure
of the wind in her immense sail she luffed on the Aiber-
tine's weather quarter and by downright superior force
again wrested the lead from her. Some very amusing
mancemvring ensued between the two vessels as they ap-
proached Ryde pier to complete the first rounds of the
course, which was accomplished by the whole in the fol-
lowing times. First round completed :

H. M. B. M. M. s.
Aline
Albertine ...... 12 12 40 Amulet l2 32 42
Galatea .... •• 12 20 53 Aler e
Marina........ 12 25 58 Emily
Andes ...... 12 28 43 , Columbine

__. • • •
The Madcap, in running along the edge of the Motherbank
for the mark vessel off Ryde Pier and astern of the Osprey,
carried away her ferniest about Sft. above the deck, mid