The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1875-07-10
The College Regatta.
Letter from the Bowdoin Crew-The
frnining-etc., etc.
SARATOGA LAKE. July G. 1879.

SARATOGA LAKE, July G, 1875.
To the Editor of the Press.
From the shady vineclad piazza Of James
Riley's the boys send greeting to their friends
in Maine and to those who are watching the
papers for news from the '.Baufins'' as they
are SO often called by these unsophisticated
people of the Middle States. Indeed, so great
has been the difficulty that one of the late Sara
toga papers undertook to remedy the prevail
ing trouble by spelling the botherng word as
it should be pronounced.
After disagreeable journey caused by sud-
den change in the programe Of travel and rail-
road passes; and because of which, the boss
went by the Ftchburg and the boat fresh from
Blakie's shop in Cambridge by the Boston s.
Albany, the scattered forces were found at
Congress H all Saratoga, early on Sunday morn
ing, July 4th. After hasty breakfast they
came down to their quarters on the lake. As
we sit writing we take an occasional glance up
and around. Directly across the lake the bold
wooded bluff of Snake Hill looms up and on
the summit floats the red and white of Cornell
Farther to the south can be seen the white ho-
tel and cottages of the White Sulphur Springs
near which the Harvard men are quartered
and here and there, scattered along the shore,
half hidden by the surrounding trees can be
seen the lighthouses of Union, Hamilton,
Princeton and Columbia. While the Wesleyan
is our nearest neighbor just over the hill to the
north at Ramsdells.
The high wind of Sunday rolled the waters of
the lake into combers that looked fit for
young ocean, eliciting the grim remark from
Capt. Hall who was attentively watching the
situation: "That we could row as well as any
body ifthis was the water they had" All hands
were down early Monday morning to get the
new boat ''rigged"; and the accustomed per-
versity of inanimate matter was most clearly
made manifest; but patience and Yankee ex-
pedients brought the offending seats into
their proper places, fitted the riggers and
brought the short boats-and they are
always sEort-into respectable degree of
rightness. And now things are settled into
the regular routine of daily work and enjoy
ment for this is when "the fun of the thing" is
to be had; and tie daily pulls, the watching
aud criticizing the passing crews, and the
reading the reporters accounts of them which
are truly surprising at times, then the many
teams which drive over from Balston and
Saratoga, all this with the free, uniqne way of
living, give zest to rowing thot once expert
enced is never forgotten.
The boys are all well and undismayed as yes
and the effects of their summers trainin
shows in their clean cut brown faces and bright
eyes, while the vim which they put into their
pulls and runs, banishes all suspicion of astale
crew.
All the old men of the Springfield regatta
being out of college, our '75 crew is made up of
new men and has many of the difficulties Incl.
dental to new state of things; but it is rapidly
getting into shape and pulls strong and in good
form and the boys are reasonably expecting to
win fair place in the race.
We hope that there may be good number of
their friends come on to the race and that they
will come right down to "Jim's'' to stop with
US. BowDoN