The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1885-06-15
THE FASTEST CRAFT AFLOAT.

swer for you, though some of you be never SO
silent.
THE FASTEST CRAFT AFLOAT.
The Famous Mary Powell Challenged and
Beaten by an Insignificant Little Boat.
New York Sun.
When the big steamboat Mary Powell shot up
to the foot of West Twenty third street yester-
day afternoon, her stokers and engineers were
laughing, and her purser was so tickled that he
could hardly make change. A big crowd which
gathered on the wharf seemed much amused also,
and SO did all the passengers, because a little
boat which was darting around out in the river
had challenged the Powell to a race. and had
vowed to beat her. For a long time past no boat
around these waters has dared to challenge the
swift Mary Powell, and the idea OF her being
beaten by a little thing which could have been
put in her cabin only made her crew laugh and
advise the passengers to get back towards the
stern if they wanted to have a good view of the
race.
In the midst of all this derision the small boat
kept dashing around gallantly, putting out of it's
small smoke-stack arrogantly and exhibiting
to the four points of the compass it's name,
"Stiletto," painted in white letters on a black
background. She was only 95 feet long, with III
feet of beam, and was shaped like a double.
pointed wedge. Her general appearance was
like that OF a lead pencil sharpened at both ends,
and old sailors, who never saw a boat shaped
like that, said that she would.roll over if she ever
tried to 60 fast, and other ancient mariners re-
marked that she would blow up if she tried to
show anything like the unheard of speed of
twenty-six miles an hour, which her owners
claimed she could make. But old sailors do not
know everything, and there was a big surprise in
store for them.
When the Mary Powell padded away from
her landing she found her diminitive challenger
waiting for her to come along and be downed.
When the Mary Powell people got a good view
of the Stiletto and saw what she really was, the
joke struck them as a better one than ever. The
engineer thought best to squelch presumption
at once. and Immediately proceeded to leave the
little boat out of sight. But the little boat
wouldt be left. She came right up alongside
the Powell, pouring out a column of black smoke
that would have done credit to a much bigger
boat, and throwing up the water from under
her stern in a way that made the old sailors
stare. Seeing that the Stiletto would not be
d~istanced at that rate of speed, the engineer Of
the Powell put on a little more, and advised the
pilot to steer clear of the little boat, as she
would certainly explode if she tried to keep up.
But the Stiletto did not explode, and did keep
up. Mr.. Herreschoff, the blind boat builder Of
Providence, who made the Stiletto, was on
deck with a party of friends. They had
remained modestly silent in the face
of insults from the Powell, but when they saw
that big boat jumping through the water as
fast as she was able they let loose their exulta-
ton and showed that they were proud after all.
One said something to the man who ran the en-
21neS, ana Inc OIICrS All COOk OH Elo1r naISs
bowed politely, and yelled 'Good-by." Then the
smoke poured thicker out of the little funnel,
the water jumped up from under the stern until
it wet the flag floating aft, and the little boat
rocked like an old Fashioned cradle.
Gradually she stole away from the fast-fying
Powell, and before the friends of that boat had
recovered from their astonishment they were en-
joying a stern chase and listening to the taunts
of the Stiletto people blown back to them on the
wind. The engineer piled on more steam, until
/ tho hip hnat haoon 10 i,1Ynn aud thn man vuhn
knew something about boilers got as far aft as
they could. This lasted until the Pow
ell was flying along at the rate of
twenty-five miles an hour, faster than
she had ever gone before. But even that gait
was not fast enough to catch the Stiletto, and
that small yacht was Still steadily gaining. Then
the Powell people sought other consolation. They
said the little boat must either blow up soon or
roll over. and that even if she didn't do that she
could not keep up her speed for any length of
time. Her maker, they said, had contrived some
devilish means of making her go like creased
lightning, but she could not possibly carry fuel
enough to go much further. But they were
| wrong all the way through.
At Yonkers the little boat shot past Jay
Goulds swift yacht, which was going at full
speed to enjoy as much of the race as possible.
Mr.. Gould's yacht has been beaten by the
Powell, and it evidently did that fnancier much
good to see the boat which beat him struggling
in the wake. He took off his high white hat,
waved it wildly to the people on the Stiletto,
and had a cannon fred in honor of the flyer.
That small boat whistled thrice, to acknowl-
edge the polite attention. and few along
faster than before. At Yonkers she was more
than a quarter of a mile ahead of the Powell,
and took it easy. At Hastings she vas a half
mile ahead, and, being sure of victory, spurted
just for fun, to see what she could do. She flew
| over the ten miles between Yonkers and larry.
town in less than twenty-three minutes, and got
there while the Powell spurted desperately along
more than a mile behind.
Al Sing Sing the race ended, as that was the
destination of the little boat. The distance OF
twenty-eight miles had been made by the Stilet-
to in one hour and seventeen minutes. The
Mary Powell arrived there seven minutes later,
| whistled courteously three times to the Stiletto,
and proceeded on her way, no longer the fastest
boat on the river.
The model of the Stiletto is entirely new, and
| her maker says that there is no danger in send.
ing her at any possible speed, because she simply
can't blow up. The engines, ne said. were not
| particularly large, and a bigger boat built in the
900 %, yuo,ld do eapnafhiuO stunninp