New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1885-09-10
THE GENEsTAs NEW BOWSPRIT.
SHAPING THE SPAR AT pol1LoN's YARD-rALK Al

n
c. & X. Poilon's shipyard at the foot of Bridge
ST.. Brooklyn. all day yesterday. The property
clerk of the establishment sat out in front of his
Office and answered the perennial stream of ques-
tons until reason tottercd on ler throne under the
strain, but his stock Of good-nature
was neXhaustible. The object of interest which
drew this thTong of visitors down through
the dirty streets of Brooklyn's Waterfront and
set them climbing over piles Of lumber was a long
straight stick of timber which Superintendent
Townsend and a gang of skilful shlp-carpenters
were reducing to the tapcring outlines Of the
Genesta's unfortunate bowsput. The stick was Of
the best yellow pine and came from Georgia. with
cargo Of its brethren of the forest two years ago.
Since its arrival at the shpyard it had lain un-
mocsted until the carpenters hauled it forth from
re irement late Tuesday afternoon a"d attacked II
with adze and dTawing-knilc
straight, wel-favorcd spar il was as it lay yes
terdqv afternoon IN the water beneath the critical
gaze OF Captain Carter; well worthy to help M
hold the honor of the English yachts
men in place of the spluteTcd stick which
traced its pedigree back 10 the shores of Oregon or
Vancouvcr's Island. The captain looked upon the
work OF Nr. Townscnd's hands and soav that IL was
good; so he went ahead with h.s preparations for
towing it down 20 the cutter. while ;hc crowd bal
anced themselves on slippery logs, dividing their
| attention and admiration between the captain aud
/ the spar The tug ". Goodwin Law at the dock
waiting for the lob hut Captain Crockcr came up
/ on thc Edwin ~ Miard explained that there
! wa, a mistake. YOU know, All ON account IT tins
| tclcphoue business" and sent the Goodwin about
her business. The tds and other i-on work belong
| ing to tie bowsprt were thrown aboard tie Mi'-
ard a rope was passed around he spar and the ting
steamed off with her prize. Among the articles
which came from the b.acasEI. th-snop was the
L.. D. 4t.It flfr I'D ma ftt lt
jncb-aud-a-half IRON, was bent ike a ish-hook by
tine su5den force that hurled the broken spar TO
one side.
| The new spar has the same dimensions rs the old
! ono II i, so feet 6 inches long. Il inches square
| at the knighthcads and taperng from there
70 q diameter of ten inchc, at the tip. The square
norton inside the CANNON strap twelve feet long
! and has four square feet holes through IT, Tie
! whole stick contains 430 feet OF lunler, board
measure. and weighs 1900 pounds. This IS 2G4
pouuds more than The old spar, which of Oregon
! pine Good judges assert that it will lose nearly
| ope-eiehth Of its weight by drying, however.
"If she pokcs that into the lurtan's mainsal,
! she'll take boom and ALL" said Superintendent
! townsend with n chuckle as the yellow spar dis
| appeared in the white wake of the tug.
! The stub of the old bow-ptt is at The Ncw-lork
office OF the firm 30. 23I Soutll--t. 1t is broken
short Off, and is separated into the conoentrc rings
showing the yearly growth OF the tIeo IN most
peculiar manner. Captain Carter accounts Tor the
breaking OF the spar by saying that one OF the bolts
! 70 which the bowspIit shrOuds were attached was
defective and also that the howsput caught on tie
! IRON traveller the Puritan's boom.
! "Orcpon pine is largely used as the material ior
spars IN English Yachts" said T.. Cary Smith III
sncakiug of the Gcnesta's now stick but know
Iittle of It's advantages by personal experience. IN
lie Priscilla the Mischief and all the other boats
! that / have designed, yellow pine was used. II "a
! strCugcT and tie ,paIs can thus Oc made sMailcI
| INF Il Is heavier tuau any other wood except locust
The troublc with IT. however s. that Il ls soft and
| the non work cuts INTO IT. Oregon pine Is adid 10
ie barler 80 that tins dittculty is ObNatcd. The
tr-t that heard OF Oregon ne, was III %: when
! " H0b " Fish caIue over with The SapphO. She had
a mast OF that material that came from ancouNcIS
| Island. The accident was most unfortunate one,
of course and the worst OF 1t IS that We were alto
| getlcr in the wrong. ] am not sure that the at
| tempted manGuyTe Of the Yankee sloop was good
| hoatman-hip either. for the position which he
! would have obtained If successful would not have
| been an advantageous one III my judgment lhtlc
| vas a somewhat similar case IN the race iOI the
| Xmerica's Cup IN 20. IL was claimed that the
| iIaInynu then cOmuclled the English schooner
Cambria TO 10 about when the latter bad the night
! of wav. but it was probably unavoidable III The
crush OF boats, as there weIo nearly score III the
rore In one OF the club races about tho same time
| and before the rules required all yachts 10 lOund
| the turning buoy in the same direction, the
Madeleine and Dagntless came together WHen
! rounding the hghtshp on opposite tacks. Ihe
! latter carried away nearly everything the
! Madeleine had standing, if remember rightly;
! There is little no Oregon plne used III folH0ns
| ain vard and a sea captain who has been engaged
nm the lumber trade asserts that there s none OF the
,naI o,tire in Ncw-York most OF that which passes
/ as such being in reality sort Of bastard hemlock
| which grows in Washington Territory.
| The rooms of the Now-l Ork Yacht CluD were not
! os wcll-hlled as on Tuesday afternoon, but thry
/ were by no means deserted and III the evening the
number OF iaunty yachtsmen who make THAT Their
regular resort was augmented by the mahS Hitsus ,
| was gone over again and again ana the arguments
and disqusitlons founded thereon were nauticaliy
| deem and learned. No new phases oI inc matter
I were developed, however, and opinions as TO the
Llame and responsibility remained unchanged
/ a. ,rbcrc ia a urrat deal of what the EnRllshmen
call rot talked about this affair sad Com
modore DickcIson. The rules are plain 0i course,
| Lut I have given away dozens OF times IN racing
! and cruising when was IN the rlght ana suppose
other, have done the same It's Just IKE the rules
of tbe road. If you're walking down the street ana
somebody turns the wrong way you can rtahI on
your dignity and keep Oh untl yon pumip mo nhi'
| 6uf ton chances to one YOU let him brush past"
"Do you think that the Gcnesta's skipper stood
! ou Lis dignity in this case {" asked the reporter.
a0I mo-. IIe did the best he could but tiis talk
! obont hls keeping on and cutting the Puritan III
two il all NONSENSE Everybody WHO KNOWS any
| thing at all about 1t knows that no vessel OF th9
! (;enestas weight cOnld cut another one OF equai
size in two II she driven ntOltwiththe power oI
| forty steam engines There have been d0/chs Oh
| collisions between yachts and dOnt r"coIiecC nov
of either being sunk In any Here on the New
York Yacht Club course have seen one schooner go
| hanging into another at the finish. There wab an
/ nutuI crash of course and two badly stOvcn boats
t eitLer of them was i'm any danger of breaking
IN two There was only seven-knOt breeze on
| Tucs,lay and if the Genesta had struck the sQoP
eorare amidships her bowsprIt would have foulcd
| s1dmethinR then her bob-stay would have cut down
the Puritan's rail and by that time things wonId
have nearly come TO a standstll. lhelo Would
| have been a good deal of loose klndllng "ood
! scattered about and paint missing but hoth-
! ing more. 80. -, o.oo1 ia tho
riticsms of the respective boats, and that is tho
snpposed superiority of the Genesta from peing so
| mick in STAYS No good yachtsman wants me- boat
| In come abont quickly when racing a heaVy'
! norTow boat that carries her headway ana forges
"n0 after her sails are shaking in the wind gansJust
| 40 much clear space dead to windward' ana every