Daily independent. [volume] (Elko, Nev.) 188?-1915, 1892-06-30
. YACHTING IN AMERICA.
1he Extent and Cost Of Boating
for Pleasure.
Hundreds OF Organized Clubs and Thou
sands of Recorded Yachts Repre-
senting an Invested Capital
Of Millions Of Doltnrs.

aquatic sports among the American
people. Yachting has ever been grow
ing pastime by the waters of the North
Atlantic coast. We now find white
sails in the least-eXpected places; yachts
and yachters where but few years ago
he only sailors were the timid wild
duck und the solemn mudhen; boats up
"n waters that have scarcely ceased to
ripple from the agitation of their first
invasion by u launched vessel; butterfly
canoes scudding over rivers that not
decade since knew no alien thing save
the Indians dug-out; lakes upon which
font shapcly vessels Of pattern so mod
"vn that they almost seem uncouth in
their intrusion upon natures primcval
landscape; sloops and cuttcrs schOon-
ErS and cat-boats, every kind of smiling
Iraft, in short, that can be made TO ca
Ter TO the yachtcr's insatiate desire for
sport. In yachting the United States
likes first rank; her yachts and yacht
,r.I outnumbcr and outsail those OF all
cher countries. Few among The ''lGnd-
lUbbCrs" Of tic country, and not many
.'L.htcrS, realize the magnitude of this
national pastinc. The Queens CUp
races gave the sport IL publicity which,
IL never had before, but even those
cents did not bring 10 general public
oIicc an adequate conception of the eX-
t,.ot Of this interest.
Il IS safe to estimate, writes +. W.
ianghUrn in Century, that there is at
Least one yacht 10 every ten thousand
pc"pic in the Land, and that IN average
yacht viii carry at least ten persons
: mis- means that there are at least six
thousand yacht owners i'll 4hc collctrJ,
All! that sixty thousand people may
participate il plCa3urc-sailinC: 4 larg2
number, surely, To be devoted to sport
"hci. il necessarily confined to Iocn';-
TIE near the water, and which is an OK
Irnhivc paTciI,:c The public hears
Ii2h Of vessels Of the Volunteer and
tr@ylinT 1ypCa champions Of the hi =
'"',sG' ci,t,,a,;;, bat the real yachtcra Of
-" land are the owners of small! boats:
il iact, the LiC-hoat owncr generally
bps Il small ylcht il which to cainy
himself when he feels like being master
ot MS nm craft. a few statistics will
I':!cr this r,,,iIc plain.
.Ii%T!rCS that are somewhat inc0m-
i1lr.c show that there are over 200 or
rIri%ad yn.ht clubs in the United
S'tatcG, which enroll nearly 1000 yachts.
Il >'IoSc, less than Onc-t.irtCcnth Grc
&c., III vessels, launches, ct1., and not
80 in~-b0ut5 at al. Onc-clcvCuth arc
{" -.,s"'l Is large yachts, including many
AIN and aLil vessels, big S"hoonorS arI
pppS, all Of more than forty feet va
t>r-ljG" measurement. That is to say.
1000 recorded yachts, tvc-siXthS arc
tsiIing vessels under 10 feet. This
e'i,w# con"lusivc1y that tho majority of
..ncrican ya"hts arc small boats chat
~" managed by thcirowncrs. It's safe
= assert that there arc at least 2 900
ore sIaall yachts which arc not en-
:. rcd in clubs, and of which no exact
H''prd can be given.
The 200 clubs report n membership Of
9Vrr 1000 men, 1000 of whom arc yacht
uHnCrs Leaving out OnC-si:;th of them
.:,owncrs of large and very costly vcs;-
:,.'S r2nging in value from 5000 to
perhaps 100000 each, and assuming
I've average cost of the small yachts to
}" about $1,000, which is IL low figure.
'Ay finds that fivGSiXths of these 900
-, hts represent an invested capital Of
e" y 50, 3GC, 900; q large SUN when i + is,
remembered that yachts never pay
ok anything in profit to their buyers.
ia that, like horses and carriages,
trey cat up good deal of money al
l." time. The average dues, etc. Of Il
yacht Crib arc about So year not
''"ntirG extras This, paid in by 1000
'.!,'"rra Of clubs, shows revenue Of
4. 20 per annnm, which really repre-
a, II" Part of the great cost Of yacht
'". iDr every yacht-own"r hos to pay
uw0 expresses, and the club dues
.7,"t on shore. 40 very low c;t,-
# n ~