The daily morning journal and courier., 1896-06-26
TO BATTLE ON THE HUDSON.
COLLEGE ORBITS IN FINE SHAPE
 FOR TO-DIY'S STRUGGLE.

wanna NOt seriously ConSidered-lf
 Rough, Race VIII be Rowed Saturday,
 Poughkeepsie, N. Y, June 25.-Lower- ing skies, a chilly atmosphere and an occasional drizzle of rain made the day before the great varsity race a dismal one. Even the enthusiasm of the col lege lads, who are packed like sardines in the hotels, was affected by the low barometer and it was not until to- ward evening that the wearers of the ! college colors began to show signs of the lively interest they take in their respective crews.
 Excellent arrangements have been made for viewing the race. An obser- Vation train of forty cars Is in readi- ness. Seats are provided for 5000. This train Will start on the West Shore | tracks, with the racing crews and fol- low them to the finish. On the river fleet of excursion boats, private yachts and all kinds of water craft will oc- cupy positions near the finish.
 United States revenue cutters Man hattanand Hudson, will keep the steam CTS clear of the course. A steam yacht, tug and two naphtha launches will assign b'ats to anchorage DO itions and preserve order. Aside from the crowd on the train and the crowd on the ex- cursiOn craft, other crowds will gather on the river banks, from which DOT tions of the course may be seen to good advantage. No excursion steamer, yacht or boat of any description, except the referees boat and the two police boats, are to be permitted to follow the racing crews. This will assure the oarsmen of a clear course and freedom from wash.
 The Poughkeepsie course, with these precautions taken, is one of the best that could be asked for. The crews will be started opposite Crum's Elbow, on the west bank of the Hudson, three miles above the Poughkeepsie bridge. Four lanes marked by stakeboats are laid out. The positions drawn by lot and numbering from the west bank are; l, Harvard; ?, Pennsylvania; 3, Cornell; 4. Columbia.
 At the mile and two mile flags are placed stakeboats to mark the lanes. The bridge is the three mile point. All four crews will pass under the second span. Above each lane is huge square of white board, with a numeral to in dicate the position of the crews.
 One mile below the bridge the finish will be marked by sailboats anchored in the stream From the three and a half mile point to the finish the excur- sion steamers and yachts will be an- chOred well outside of Columbia's lane. Should the day prove stormy or the water rough the race will be postponed until Saturday.
 The crews got in their final polish to- day. A visit to the various quarters elicted the fact that the crews were all ready and fit to row the race 0f their lives. There seemed to be feel ing amongst the men that the issue would be in doubt up to the last mo- ment. At COrnells quarters there was an air of quiet confidence. All those concerned in the management of the Columbia crew expect to see a repeti- tion of last years victory. The Har- ward crew have done most of their work in as secret manner as was pos sible.
 llt IoIlpWtIS Dl tllt tItlllSpI are very sweet on their mems chances and the work of the eight since they came to Poughleepsie has given the utmost sat isfactiOn to those who have followed their doings. Good judges say that the varsity crew of '96 is one of the best crews turned out by Harvard for years The practice work of the Penn sylvania crew has been criticised some what unfavorably by the experts. The men were rowing rather raggedly at first, but there has been quite an inn provement in this respect, and there there is plenty of power in the boat. Columbia has the heaviest crew en- gagged The men average 177 pounds, Harvard comes next with an average of 1701s, Pennsylvania averages 1673s, while the Cornell men average only 161B.
 Seven of the men who sat in Colum- bias winning shell last year will en- deavor to repeat the performance to- morrow. The Pennsylvania crew all sport the varsity colors for the first time. The Cornell eight contains three new oars. Harvards crew is evenly made up of freshmen and varsity oars.
 Taken all around the crews are a fine lot of oarsmen, with at first sight the possible exception of the Penst;yl- vanias. but the Quakers have gained many admirers among those who have watched the way they send their shell along.
 Betting on Cornell ranged from even to a slight shade of odds i'll the evening as against any other individual boat, while against the field the price was 1 to B. Harvard was d POughkeepsie fla vorite up to this morning, but when it came down to business the crimson aggregation was coupled with Colum- bia for second place. There was very little money wagered on Pennsylvania.
 The prevailing opinion as to the re- suit is Cornell first, desperate battle for second honors between Columbia and Harvard, with a slight tide of sen timent in favor of the blue and white, and Pennsylvania for the outside
 The water was a bit lumpy this morning and the work of the crews was mainly confined to practicinS starts with the pistol. In the after noon Ward took the Quakers out for a three-mile spin. and sent them along at a 36 clip. The Cornells did some light work with a couple of short stretches at a fast gait. The Harvards did not come out until almost dusk pace and padded back. Guy Rich