The Portland daily press., 1881-08-01
Aquatic.
Saturday Wallace Ross issued the following
challenge:

Aquatic.
Saturday Wallace Ross issued the following
challenge:
PORTLAND Me-, July 30. 1881.
To the Editor of the Boston Herald: hereby
challenge Edward Hanan to row me four or five
mile race for $4,000 a side and tie championship of
case of non-acceptance of this challenge / shall
claim the championship. WALLACE Ross.
There can be no mistaking the language of
the above challenge. Ross wants a race, and
Hanlan will be obliged to defend this title
which tho New Brunswick sculler seeks. Han
Ian has already stated that he intends to row
two races this fall one of which will be with
Ross. He knows that Ross means business,
and he intends to accommodate him; so it may
safely be said that there will be Ia match race
between these great scullers.
The regatta on Toronto bay, in connection
with the exhibition of 1881, will be quite an
important affair. The money prizes aggregate
e45OO, and, in addition, the winner of the sin
gle-scull race will receive an elegant gold
medal from the mayor of the city. This sim
glescull race will be rowed in heats, the trials
to occur one day, and the final heat between
winners of the trials on the following day.
The purse is Ss2475, Of which the winner gets
91500 and second man 5000. Hanlan has sig
nifed his determination to start against all
corners, and Ross, Hosmer, Trickett, Kenne-
dy, Gaudaur, Ten Eyck and Riley will be in.
An effort will be made to revive four-oar she'll
racing, and, with that end in view, purse of
$3.50 has been offered, of which $500 goes to
This race will also be rewed on the first day of
the regatta.
Ross, Kennedy, Davis and fourth man
(either Plaisted or Ten Eyck) will in all proba-
bility be among the entries-indeed, four crews
must start or but two prizes will be awarded,
and if only three start there will be only two
prizes. Should only two crews offer to start
the race will be declared off On the second
day there will be double-scull race for purse
of $500, and also consolation race for oars
men who fail to win in the single-scull event.
An entrance fee of $50 will be charged for
fours, $25 for doubles, and $40 for singles, to
be returned to all starters. The distance in
the four-oar race will be four miles with
turn; in the single-scull race two miles with a
turn, and in the double-scull race three miles
with turn. The event is fixed for Sept. Z
and 8, and entries will be received up to Aug.
25th.
be grand one. At present Davis and Kenne-
dy have the reputation of being the best pair
in the world at this style of rowing, but it is
not probable that this feature of the program
of races was put on the card for the benefit of
the Portland scullers On the contrary, Han
Ian will keep at home as much of the $500 in
prizes as possible. It is more than probable
that in the double he will take either Gaudaur
or a man from Boston. This information is
semi-official. Who lthe Boston man will be
may be Judged from the fact that the cham
pion and George Hosmer team up'' very well
together, that they are very much alike in
build and action, and that Hanlan thinks very
favorably of the West end oarsman. Should
they row together in the double-scull event at
Toronto, and Davis and Kennedy be starters in
the same race, there would be music all over
the course.
Ross received a new shell from Ruddick of
Boston, the past week, which is of the same
dimensions as the "W. j. Innes," the boat in
which he won the Ottawa race, only half
inch deeper. He names it the civilian
Spencer in honor of Jan English oars
man who has shown him many courtesies
on his visit to the old country.