The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1893-10-08

1S93.-C0PYRlGHT, 1893, BY THE
leading by q quarter OF q mile. TO give low
estimate. The race was not won, but 1t was In
deal more hopeful condition than any OF the
patriotic sharps had anticipated It would be \
half hour before. Indeed. at that time It had
appeared that only failure Of the race could
defeat the British craft.
THE SHIFTING WIND.
With a change Of position in the boats came
q still further change in the direction Of the
wind The vigilant got in her spinnaker and.
with balloon lib and staysail forward. contin-
ued to forge along.
The yalkyrie followed the yieilant in taking
in the spinnaker. and she set In it's place bal
loon lib Of the same beautiful white silk. and
Of much the shape Of that on the Vigilant
This was not small surprise for many Of
the yacht. sharps They had supposed. and
ono OF the most noted had Rone into print to
say. that the British. don't you know. don't
use any such sail: and others had reck oned. II
that were 80. It was because the British didn't
know how to make 1t. or were lacking In the
appreciation Of good thing.
However. here was q balloon lib. shipshape
and Yankee fashion. but for some reason It
couldn't pull hard enough to catch the slip
perry sloop. Tho British skipper was doing
the best he knew how or that any one could
suggest. but that best was not good enough.
A bit later the wind drew to westward again.
and the valkyrie got out her, white spinnaker
and kept her balloon lib up also. Her fore
staysail had been UP in stops meantime. but
had not been set With her spinnaker set she
seemed to hold her own. but her own was not
very good. because she had In the mean time
dropped at least third Of mile astern--some
said 1t was hall.
vALKYRIE LOSING STEADILY.
And SO the racers and the pleasure boats
rolled lazily on for another half hour or more
By LILO o'clock the setting Of the spinnaker
seemed to have helped the cutter somewhat
The sharps said she had orawled MP bit The
men with sporting blood were glad to have the
race enlivened thus. even though 1t did hurt
their patriotic feelings bit. But It was only
little, after all. By the time the turn was
sighted the gain had not brought her nearer
than o third OF mile.
Then the wind shifted again to southland
and the Viglant quickly took in her spinna.
ker. As usual. the valkyrie held on longer to
that sail. The British skipper clings to his
white silk as to rosy-cheeked sweetheart.
But It had to come down. whether or no. for
the Valkyrie was losing steadily. And SO they
approached the stakeboat with the valkyrie
CAEEyluR Ouly htE BEcdS uaiiooh JAZZ auoNo hoE
bowsprit. while the vigilant had this and q
forestry sail also. The Valkyrie's staysail was
up in stops. however. ready for any event.
Whether one or the other gained after the
change in canvas not even the barnacles could
tell. They talked about gains as barnacles
Invariably do. but the gain believed In was al
ways tho gain wished for. Whatever the fact
in this respect, the speed of neither was
fit TO turn ones hair. When. at O mile
from the turn. the Vigiant took in
her foretopsail and then set It again
there was no noticeable change in her speed.
All the sails famed with lazy grace to every
courtesy. and the yacht sharps looked first at
their watches before saying to their less nau-
tcal friends that the turn would be reached in
time to make the race within the allotted time
Of six hours.
THE TURN. ,-.ss., -,..-.,.,v,..
Nevertheless. By 1:45 O'clock the racers had
in some way come so near the turn that the
Vigilants working lib was set ready for the
turn that was then no more than o half mile
away. The breeze. too. cantsd o bit moro
to southland and freshened perceptibly.
The merry shippers Of the excursion fleet
made haste to get positions to the
eastward Of the stake-a pretty little
flag afoat. with a great ocean tug marked by
big red ball aloft between its masts lying
and sought for places from which they could
see the racers. and this was easy to do. for the
feet arranged itself in one huge new moon. o
mile wide across the horns.
And what o picture the people saw whom
once they were ready to look. Tho beautiful
sloop. with her towering spars holding aloft
such o spread OF canvas as never had been
made before. swept within the wide arc Of the
pleasure fleet. A dozen men ran out on her
bowsprit as the luff of the huge balloon jib
trembled and sagged and fell.
Three times she oourtesied as the long. low
waves swept By. and then the wheel whitfield In
the hands Of her master. tho great white sails
shut out from view Of ship after ship the float
ing pennant. the head sails huttered In the air
the long boom swung down to starboard. the
wind caught her again to port. and away she
fed.
Small need to tell how the idle spectator
woke up to cheer nor how the blooded skipper
paved the air In his frantic efforts to lot tho
eagle scream through the brazen throat OF his
steamer. Even the blase old barnacles smiled
as they gazed.
vALKYR1E 8 MINUTES SECONDS BEHINn
And then they waited and counted the time
while the Valkyrie forged up in the wake that
was left by the rass-oheeked Yankee. One.
two. three. four. Ave. six. seVen-whoopl And
down csme her balloonl Eight. eiGht-five.
eight-six. and around she goes With one
accord she Is cheered and saluted as heartily
as was the sloop. just as on Thursday no Ill
will was exhibited when she had led the way.
The Valkyris had crossed the line half
length ahead Of tho sloop. She had increased
1t when two miles down tho course to two
lengths and now she was beaten ct the turn
by eight miputes and six seconds
The sharps got out pencil and paper and he-
ured up the conditions. and said that she
would have to catch mp six minutes and TWEEN
ty-two seconds to make the race a draw. Could
she do it2 The shsrps began to look about
for pointers.
They saw first Of all that the ViGilants big
lib caught In coming down and that n preat