The evening world., 1888-04-16
SCH00NERS lave THEIR DAY.
ONCE MORE COMING INTO FAVOR AMONG
AMERICAN YACHTSMEN.
The Change In the New York Yacht Clubs
International Racing Rules Practically
Sends the Big slsops to Leewnrd in
Popular Favor A Lively Yachting
Senson Looked orwnr to this umincr

Wv s"o "'h StvVph ~ u"
Popular Favor A Lively Yachtins
Season Looked Forward to this Summer.
Members of the several yacht clubs of the
country are anticipating a buster and livelier
racing season during the coming summer
than has taken place for many years.
The reasons for this expectation are two
fold. In the first place, the great 1nterna-
tional events of the past three seasons have
dwarfed oil mere local races, and the regular
regattas of the clubs have been tame.
Relieved from this overshadowing in
huence, the regular races of the clubsw will no
doubt be well attended and interesting.
The other reason is the wonderful increase
in the number of yachts and of club mem
bers, the latter having doubled in number
during the past five years.
A third reason may also be urged in the
fact that the racing of the large yachts during
approaching season will be confined entirely
to the schooner rig, which has always been
the favorite in this country, as the cutter rig
is in British waters.
All the great trump his Of the ~past-the
| winning of the cup by the America, the great
ocean race in the winter of 1866, the success
sive defense of the cup by the Magic, Co
lumbia and Madeline, and later the ocean
match of the Coronet and Dauntless-have
all cen schooner triumphs, and by universal
admission it is accepted as u fact that the
American schooner-yacht is the handiest, the
most comfortable, the most seaworthy, the
most beautiful and the speediest of any craft
of that rig i'll the world.
OF the vessels of that rig there WAS never q
finer fleet brought to a starting point than
those which will contend this season. One
of the big sloops-the Priscilla has been
rugged as u schooner and her name changed
tn Elmn The Crawling mn old LIGHT weather
f%avorite, has, under the magic touch of
Burgess, the successful Boston designer,
been changed to a heavy weather yacht;
with what success will be more apparent at
the close of the season than now.
The Marguerite, a new Boston centre
boarder, and the Alert, a new Boston keel,
will have as competitors the new New York
centreboard Sea Fox and the new keel
Yanpa. Besides these, there are the old
f~avorites Montauk, Sacnem. lroquois, For
tuna and Gitana, not to speak of the still
older flyers, the Columbia, Madeline, Palmer
and a dozen others of note.
The ill-advised action of the Committee of
Revision of the New York Yacht Club in
changing the deed of gift has completely
legislated out of use the big sloops, whose
performance has done 30 much to increase
the fame of American yachtsmen for The past
three years, and in all probability this elias
will practically cease to exist.
The Puritan will most likely remain a sim
gle-sticker, from the associations connected
j with her signal triumph in 1885. her advent
marking the introduction Of a new principle
in yacht designing The Volunteer will also
remain a sloop, and ultimately, though not
this season. she will go across to England
and she will show John Bull what an Ameri-
can centreboard sloop can do in " our wa
ters." 1910.
The Mayfower and Atlantic IN e%ventu-
ally become schooners. The single-stick
yachting of this season will be between Craft
of the size of the Titania and Shamrock or
of the Cinderella, Anaconda, &C., class, and
of those still smaller, of which there are a
legion.
The struggle for supremacy among these
classes will be a redhot one and will be the
principal feature of the yachting season of
1883. @ NJ '..r
People outside of the sport are apt to gauge
the Importance of the contest by the size of
the contestants, but yachting men are quite
as much interested in a race between two
Of the largest class. In fact. some of the
most interesting matches ever sailed in this
country have been between open sloops, and
there is no race where as much skill is re-
quired.
An open sloop % feet long will spread q
length of 70 feet of canvas from the tack of
her jb to the after clew of her mainsail. She
will require at least eighty sandbags of fifty
must carry about twenty-fve men to handle
her. No one but an expert i'll handling
yachts of this kin can sail them, and a pro
fessional deep-sea seaman would upset her in
ltSb tutu wv tuChS IL tutEc NdS any btItuSth
at all TO the breeze, and yet there are re-
corded races of craft of this kim in strong
breezes and rough water all making the
course in safety.
The one great reason for the prejudice that
has sometimes existed against the " centre
board sand bag =" as they are called is due 10
ignorance in handling them. All who know
how to sail them love them. The numbering
British cutter. with deep and heavy lead keel,
requires no skill-she will sail herself but
the sand-bag boat is like the speedy trotter
on the road. To the expert driver it is q
pleasure to hold the ribbons over him. The
unexpert had better drive the numbering
cart horse or he will most likely land in the
ditch.
lin this open class of yachts, which are es
pecially encouraged by the Larchmont, the
New Rochelle. the Greenwich, the jersey
City, Knickerbocker and a dozen other clubs
there are to be some notable contests thii
invested most freely, more freely. perhaps
than any not " in the ring " are aware of.
Most of the clubs have now arranged theil
fixtures. The season will open as usual or
Decoration Day, which has by common con
sent been made the regular day for oil the
clubs. The Knickerbocker Club has always
made this the day for its annual regatta. anG
it ID the only regular race, the starters mum
bering usually between sixty and seventy.
The Seawanhaka Corinthian and the Cor
inthian clubs also offer prizes and try tc
make of the affair regular regattas, but they
have but few starters, and 1t is not, in fact
: anything more than an opening, like that OF
first inauguI ated the custom of an opening
on this day. and its great success, has caused
many imitators, so that now nearly all the
clubs do something-have an opening sail. q
clam bake and a hop in the evening.
Next to the Knickerbocker regatta in i'm