New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1895-10-22
TORD DYvNRiVEN'S OPPORTTNITY


Lord Dunraven having presumably cased his
mind TO some extent by repeating in England
the complaints which he first made here IN con-
ncction with his recent unhappy experience, add
ing thereto the announcement that Mr.. Roses
challenge for the Americas Cup Is extremely
disagrceablc, not TO say offensive. to him. 1t may
he hoped that he Will take or make an early OPP
portuniy 10 say one or two things more. 1T GER
tainly beh0ovcs him. partly for his own sake ana
partly for the enlightenment of Englishmen VINO
do not wish 10 he grossly deceived, to contradict
explicitly and promptly certain assertions which
are being deliberately published in England anu
probably are believed by n considerable nuiloer
Of persons. but which he knows 10 be utterly
false Such denial would either stop the clrcu-
lation Of various preposterous hctions or eAPose
various wanton liars In either case II would oe
instructive TO those who have been unconscious
" mised. and tend to promote the interests OF an
intrinscally fine sport.
If WAS not supposed that Lord Dunravens
original opinion of his own conduct wouu ne
much changed by reflection. lie was not eN-
noctod 70 acknowledge before his departure or
after he reached home that the conditions OF the
international races were on the whole pe''ef
here than English courses would allow III a Sill
liar competition; that he had as fair chance 10
win as the American boat had to DEFEND the
cup. and that his disappointment at the sure
prospect Of defeat betrayed him into deporaoe
error of temper and judgment. Nobody on thls
side of the Atlantic anticipated or WOULD nave
thought il worth while TO advise such a Win
drawal from the position which he hau 'akeh'
honestly let us assume. though unwarrantaDl!'
What he has already said at home indicates no
change of view on these matters but there II
something else which, we think, he is in honor
bound TO saw so soon as he hears all that is
being said in England. 1t is represented there'
for example by THE Field, a journal OF sports
which has had the confidence OF many readers,
that the Yacht races off Sandy Hook might be
fairly likenod To horse races in the Strand; thr
purpose Of that analogy being to confirm by
means of an cxaggerltion the belief that the
VaIkyrie had to pick her way from start To hnsh
through an inextricable snarl of boats, and the
Implication being that the intention was to make
a victory for the English racer impossible
Acain in an English account Of one OF the races
# was said that several large tugboats steamed
alongside of the Valkyric. cutting off her wind'
ohsc,rinc the marks and threatening collision.
As is known by everybody who saw the races,
and by nobody better than Lord Dunraven, 1t
would not have been more grotcsqucy raise 10
say that the Vakyrie was compelled 70 tow over
the course an excursion boat which had clan
dcstinely passed line through her hawse-hole;
and vet the former statement and others IKE II
have been explicitly made in England, have
served as a basis for many savage attacks on
American yachtsmen and the American pubhc'
and are probably supposed to be true by not
few Engshmen who have no wish to be fooled
As we have said we do not expect that Lorh
Dunravcn will ever recognize and confess the
truth. that the conditions which he actually en-
countered off Sandy Hook were much better than
those which he feared might prevail when he
proposcd different course. and which he ac-
cepted when he finally decided TO enter the Val
kyrie for the cup. But we shall be disappointed
if he does not take early opportunity to refute
the absurd and apparently malicious falsehoods
which are circulating in England