The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1895-09-08
DEFENDER IS FIRST
CONTINUED from First Page.)

/ The Shippers noO done tHelT tliHlno
very we'll and it was only IS seconds
| after the starting gun was fired at 12:2O
| that the Valkyrie crossed the lire. As
4 said before, the Defender on her OPP
4 ponent weather quarter was only four
| seconds later As they went over the
| Valkyrie shot out of stops baby Jlb
| topsail. The defender people were not
4 satisfied with SO small a sail on their
| outer stay, and srpead a No. 2. The
| wind was then blowing about five miles
| an hour There was something of a
| swell on the sea but the water could
| not be called rough by any means.
| HOW THE SAILING LOOKED
| The weather conditions at the time
/ were pretty nearly those that have
| been described as most fitting for Val
/ kyrie. The challenge slipped through
| the water beautifully, throwing some
| spray from her bows, it is true, but
| surely sliding ahead faster than the
| Defender The latter was held very
1 high up but for several minutes was
| both outfooted and out pointed. 1t
| was now the time when birth was CIV
| en- to the apprehensions of the Yankees
| The Valkyrie, it was plainly seen, was
| doing the faster work, and as she slip
| ped past the Defender the chaps who
( had been betting on Defender to win
|
| that their money was gone. Even the
most enthusiastic admirers of Defender
and Captain Half, such as for instance
| Captain Harry Demp of the tug Fred
| D. DalZell, who has been to sea in pi-
| lot boats and steamers for nearly for
| ty year remarked" We will be done up
| today, sure; that Valkyrie is a marvel
| in this kind of going"
| Both yachts We're handled in the most
| admirable manner and it cannot be said
| the sails on the Briton, much as has
been said about them, set whit better
than those of the American boat. In
| fact it may be said no flaw could be
seen in any bit of cloth on either boat.
| The imreSsion which some people have
| that RatZey was the only perfect can
vass cutter in the world was dispelled
| when Defenders spread was seen in
her really first race.
PORT AND STARBOARD.
The yachts stood on the starboard
tack until 1888 when Defender was
first to go about. As soon as she saw
this move, Valkyrie did the same. Val
kyrie continued to gain advantage and
Defender was held up very close to the
wind and by so doing became blanket
| ed. When Captain Half saw the trou-
BILE he was getting into, he at 12:47 cas-
good that her friends had been hoping
to see for many minutes. AS soon
as Defender was eased off she began
to increase her speed. She caught up
on the Valkyrie not little, but Of
course she was going further to lee
ward than the Valkyrie and her appa-
rent gain was less in reality than it
looked to be. When the Valkyrie saw
the Defender ease off she did the same
thing though not to so great an extent
and she maintained her lead. Now the
breeze freshened to about seven miles
an hour VaIkyrie on feeling the
breeze again stood high against it,
while the full rate of Defender was con
tinued Here Defender with her sails
chock full OF wind went ahead very
fast but she was not better than an
eighth of a mile leeward. 1t was a
beautiful race up to this point but it
was not a pleasant one for the patri-
OTIS TO gaze upon for Valkyre was sure
ly in the lead. On this tack the YES
sells encountered head seas from the
southeast and neither one took them
better than the other. They both
pounded a good deal.
vALKYRIE COMES ABOUT.
Valkyrie was first to come about. She
came around to starboard at II and
Defender followed her example at once
The Defender was still an eighth of a
| mile away On Valkyrie's weather quar-
| ter On this tack there was an effort
| to get in some windward advantage
| by Defender and she was pinc1ed very
| much. But Valkyrie held her ground
and Defender could not get nearer to
her.
At 1:4S Valkyrie, evidently believing
| that she could cross Oefen 1er's how if
the latter would split tacks with her,
came about, The challenger was. how
ever. unable to weather the Deiende-
and when she passed under the Ameri-
| cans stern there was a shriellilg by
| the steam yachts and excursion boats
/ in attendance that will never be 11I-
| gotten by those who heard it. Valkyrie
| on finding that she had not gained
| enough to weather Defender come back
again to the starboard tack afte- one
minute on the port. AS she iii so De-
| fender came about to port. 1t was now
Valkyrie's turn to refuse a splitting Of
tacks and she followed Defenders lead
in going about to port. At :. o'clock
| the contestants began a long reach 10
| starboard. During this tack the wind
hauled gradually to east, southeast ! V
| east and finally to southeast. The
/ breeze stiffened, too, up to about eight
miles an hour and with that increase
the Defender began TO overhaul the
| enemy.
| DEFENDER SHOWS HER HEELS
She picked her rival up with hurst
/ OF speed that was rema -K1ala as it
WAS delightful to the inhabitants of the
floating city that was looking IN. SO
easily did she overhaul the cha c.cer
| that more than one obsa --r.r .elnat k
ei t, his neighbor soma-l'ng - lie eff
g,
| iollyiny his competitor all :ke tine.
| 1t Was DO when Tia Dat der was IN
| even terms with the Nalky .. hence
| she gradually forged aheli ana at
so it was estimated that the Yankee
| boat was three lengths ahead and well
to windward at that. Defender WAS
| first to come around - stGrboa,i and
| head for the outer mark. This was at
S:25. 1t looked just then as tn Duyh De-
| fender was quarter Of 4 mile II Inc
| good. When Valkyrie came about. fif-
| teen seconds later, she was we'll away
| on Defenders lee quarter. This breeze
continued to blow at about eight miles
an hour from southeast ana trey came
along at pretty lively gait to round
| the buoy and square away err home.
AS will be seen by the tallA below
| Defender passed first by ; minutes and
% seconds, a gain OF minutes ani ..
seconds from The lims VI START. on
| going around they eas=' nff s'1eets On
the starhcsrd side. set ball III jlb -or-
| sails AMI sped for ne fiaish. The al
! kyrie took in her lib ana stay s':l
| while Defender hauled down only hi
jib. Before long, however. Walk. RE
seeing that Defenders stay sal was
drawing we'll. reset hers
The few champions If Valkyrie who
were left said that their boat would cv-
erhaul Defender on this broad reach
home. But she did not. TIE same sails