The Sun.
London, England, 1852-05-31 00:00:00

.
ever,ind the Thames swarms with. p
all sizes, forms, and rig, which tack
throngh the panorama of ;bar' coal: ,ial 'Marine, per,.
petnally moving up and doyen the river with a diA.te.ity
and-abrillianey.4lA-03108-admirableiniLanipriang:: onlse
a fortnight ago the Royal Thames Yacht Club held its
• first race for the year, and we had to record how, with a
smart gale of wind" bltiviitigitlielVolante dame off the
winner, the Mosquito getting disabled at the sore, and
the two new boats started being: both; eignilly beaten.
The day was very agreeably :.apeat,atiad so far the club
maybe considerid to., be an excellent eaede of ;eking.
several • ' hundTed.. -ladies and ' gent:en:ten' : 'aiiittla :the
influence of sift air, reminding' them by 'dig'.
sight of the fligebip , at the,: Ncire: that -.Errs,
Lauda rides the --Waves, giving them eri excuse for
indet iiLiz) Ja_a_few reild_rapratic_foppries; arid' sending
them home to digest-as best they reaßthe,awful quanr-
titles of lobster salad that they have eonsava4l. 'dee-
doubtedly this is something to effect, but yacht clubs
have more to do now. They have a purpose of great
public utility 10 serve, one which touches nesily the
sources of. our maritime power, and which tilerefetethfl- -
mast not' be permitted to lose sight of. The scienee Of
naval architecture still remains among us its a most nn- •
certain. and , unsatisfactory state, and we can best hope
to arrive at a knowledge of its true principles by the
experimental advantages which yacht brildeneral nekte
°labs place within our grksp. A'l our yacht:, the Vottitte -
included, were beaten to sticks last year by it e America;
yet; after the. lapse of many months, the Volaiate is
still the hest boat in the fleet of the Royiel Thames
guca...reffilli *3erT:eds.t.l3reinsenili:t. lai
'Yacht Club. Fortunately, this club is'opt.•the only
One: that our litter boaits 'Of; and, unless ita;eapnibert
a ,leae
(pretentiOns footing
exert theMSelves, younger and more vigorous'. coin- .
petitors-t. will take ' its place in publiere• 'es lima-
tido.. The time has gone by when tlie welfare of this •
nationalamnsement ban be coasidered'at all'clopend,\ht . ,
"°ture which-U
-1i
. -----L-pore:::vehle4ll9'
utc?tearistocratic patronage or upon'the toadying ar:t!
which that dependence too often entails. A. practical`
illuitration of this took place on Saturday,' itliio the
.Royal London_Yacht Club held a match--thsfirif athe
aeon--fora purse of 20 sovereigns. This 0141);!nhioh i•
freadY numbers 240 members, has been established OD _
ab ei rwe activ
Club is foundedbUtred that
hence of great names, and its, usefulness not disdaining
valueiltlc:l)-exPetidti of itlheliii:plidreteilritiPsup6363les
Yacht When citi boats f the "smallest =pure
Ittiee for that ea thh'elf3,2lffOr4 thelargeer 1.004-; -•,.
certainly very tette "-
class of recognized 0
0 weey aat,„
tseunrdeedt,riapn
cthhare
ascp:erri.t ofl
The weather on will
rd
vourable for the occasion, partaking, owners•' ' -
wider surface, and at a greatly din :a stimulated over a
than
ttuhes nibshOat .cfrilostilSl.: its
throughout the day, and the memhets-ot the
eo,fitinitously
their friends were anything but a dashing and-'41i113-g
y and
pauy, as in the Meteor they steamed down to wall- Cain-
nese the
mateh. Sou,westers, dreadnoughts, and ever
of India-rubber and oilskin integument formezoleariety
veiling costume on the occasion, and, SQ ,tae, there wrse;
sufficiently striking muster of Dirk Hetteraik- looking
figures, and pilots that appeared prepifild to weather
any number of storms without allowing their "cheerful-
ness to be disturbed thereby. Some thin, light, muslin. -
dresses might be detected at intervals, and there were on
boards few io insensible to aquatic proprieties as to
aport umbrellas. The start took place from Erith, in
which pretty reach the following flotilla of yachts was
gracefully ranged:—
Traveller ... ... 10 tons—G. H. Jackson.
Julia ... ... ... 8 „ —W. Bain.
Waterwitch ... ... 8 „ —W. H. Campbell.
-Romp ...• ... ... 9 „ —R. and J. Knight.
Valentine ... ... 8 „ —B. Wallis. . •
it
Werean: -..gailjiagmatal appreciated.
becomesrßde cdP iraavtio:::sdr:, ) :II
plea-
sure 1 1:::
Britannia ... . ... 7 ~ —C. Legg._ -

Kitten': ... 10 „ —T. Harvey, set.
-Calliope ... 3 „ —W. Tuckwell.
When the signal was given at half-past twelve o'clock,
by the Commodore the tiny little vessels spread' their
sails like so many lapwings, and away they went down
the river, running keenly on the wind, which was
coming up to theni briskly from the sea. They were
accompanied in their course by many yachts of larger
tonnage, and among them the Volento, the Avalon, the
Eclipse, the Will-o'-the Wisp, the Marina, the Phantom,
the Fleur de Lis, the Frolic, and the Mouse, so that the
reader may easily eoneieve what a pretty animated scent,
the match formed. From the outset the struggle for victory
lay between the Romp and Kitten. Th,e latter took
the lead at first, bat did not hold it long. The 'Romp
passing to the windward of her opposite Greenhithe,
and manifesting remarkable weatherly qualities, which
excited general admiration. While beating down the
river against a bead wind it was observed that her sails
were as flat as a board, and that, notwithstanding the
height of her mast, she passed lightly, steadily, and up-
rightly along. There was no headlong plunging through
the water, but a firmness of pace which gave her the
fall benefit of her lines. It was then ascertained that

her sails were out upon a new prineiplerpatented by Mr.
Gilbert, the seams graduating in such a manner as to
produce the effect obtained in the America by lacing.
The Lower Hope was the turning point of the race, sod
its practical interest terminated there, as the return was
beiore the wind, and, therefore, a less effective tout of
sp,cd. The rounding of the buoy there took place in
the following order:-
1

Rump
Kitten
Britannia
Julia
Valentine

M. S.
2 50 45
... 2 55 10
... 3 4 30
... 3 4 50
3 1 1 50

On tea way back the Kittgn; took the lead at Cole-
henqe Point, and 122 aintuiued it to the close of the mach,
which she would have won by halt a minute, allowing a
minute per ton for difference of tonnage. By a stupid
blunder, however, instead of steering inside the buoy,
she passed outside, and before she could retrieve this
Leta! mistake, the Romp had made such progress to-
wards the winning-post that she was declared the victor.
The owner, Mr. Knight, on receiving the purse of sove-
reigns, acknowledged that his success was due to Gil-
bert's sails. Notwithstanding the wetness of the day,
all who had the courage to attend the match appeared to
oujoy themselves thoroughly. The Royal Artillery
band, as the weather permitted, played above decks or
below for the amusement of the company, and Mr. Gore,
the Suer of the river, had as usual provided an inex-
haustible supply of cold lamb, chickens, pigeon-pies, and
lobster salads.