Daily Kennebec journal., 1896-06-27
CORNELL WINS.
Defeats Competitors in Great
College Boat Race.
Harvard Comes Next With Only Short
Distance Behind Cornell.
Time Of Winner, 19.24-large Number Pres
ent 10 See the Race.


Eighteen thousand people grouped
upon the banks of the Hudson saw the
stalwart eight from Ithaca win the
first honors over Harvard. Pennsyl-
vania and Columbia 1t was a great
race. Probably no prettier has been
rowed before greater crowd in
American waters. All conditions OF
air and water were perfect Not a flaw
marred the contest from the. crack of
the starters pistol to the crossing Of
the finish line. Cornell Won by four
| lengths in 1929. official time Harvard
was second, nnsylvania third. and
| Columbia a poor. fourth. As Il spec
tacular scene the race was one1ong to
be remembered. The course, four. miles
straight as the crow flies. lays near
the west bank of the Hudson and was
spanned by a great eantilever bridge,
the finish being a mile below that
structure and the start three miles
above. 1#
The revenue cutters Manhattan and
hudson and the police boats Walla
| Walla and Susie, aided by auxiliary
| launches, kept the course clear under
the recently passed United States
law. No boats except the referees
boat and the crews launches We're per-
mitted to follow the crews over the
| course.
| No crews ever raced under more
equal conditions. and the vanqushed
%ere beaten because they were no
match for the winners.
| The crews We're In position to start
at 5.2l. The pistol was fired at J.42 So
| The start was a pretty sight. The
| Columbias being on the outside and
nearest the referee, caught the flash
! ot the pistol before their rivals and
they took The water first. The others
| got off in the order of placings from
| the pistol. the Cornells getting away
s,cond. the Pennsylvania third and
| The Harvards last. The start was very
| fair None of the crews had any too
much the best of it. Scarcely 20
| strokes had been rowed when the CO.
inmbias were seen to drop back in the
ruck. Sluggishly and with neither
style. time nor power, the New York
ers. pulling 3S stroke. seemed ut
| terly unable to send the shell along
Before POO yards had been traversed
the crimsonS had forged a boats nose
ahead of the Pennsylvania, who were
level With the Cornells, while the Co
lumbias We're already a length to the
bad. The crimsons rowed a nice, level
stroke, and sent the shell along on an
even keel and apparently had plenty
of power behind the strokes The
Pennsylvania We're splashing bit
and were by no means stylish, but
made the boat move along The i'm
provement in body swing and leg work
and the long. smooth stroke of the
Cornells attracted the attention of the
experts on the train. as the Courtneys
modified the Hanley stroke. and kept
the Ithacans on even terms without a
seeming effort.
AT the quarter mile the Harvards
led the Pennsylvania by length. |
The Cornells We're just about an |
eighth of length behind the Ouakers
and length and a half in front of the
Columbia men. Coming up to the half
mile mark, the Cornells drew up to |
the Quakers' canvas. 1t was nip and |
tuck for second place between them |
Both crews were gaining on the
leader. Passing the first half-mile. |
Harvard's lead was cut down to three
quarters of a length. The cornells
were rowing along just fast enough to
keep quarter of length in front of |
the QuakerS, and the ColumbiaS We're
dropping further astern.
The three-quarter mile saw the
Harvards still in the lead, without
having improved on their position at
the half. The Cornells doubled their
lead on the Pennsylvania, while the
Columbias We're toiling along four
lengths in the Quakers' rear. The
Cornells and Harvards were setting a
80 clip at the mile. The Cornells We're
putting more force behind their stroke
and had cut down the Cambridge
lads advantage to half a length. The
Pennsylvanias, who We're running ,
to the minute. held the CornelIs to halfl
a length, while the >.uakers were still
four lengths ahead of Columbia.
The next half mile saw the Cornells
creeping gradually up on the Har-
wards and pressing them closely only
an eighth of length apart. A length
divided the CornelIs from the Pennsyl-
vanias, and the Coiumbias were hang
ing four Lengths behind PENNSYLVANIA.
At this point the Cornells began to
make an effort, and when the two
mile mark was passed the Ithacans
We're only one-eighth of a length be-
hind Harvard and length i'm front of
the Pennsylvania. Even up, between
the Cornells and the Harvards, was
the order at the two-mile flag. ine
Cornells We're still length ahead of
the Pennsylvania. The Harvards
were going along at 36. the Cornells'
stroke was steady at 35, and the Penn
SyNaniaS' at 33
quarter-mile further on saw the
Cornells wrest the vanguard position
from the Harvards. despite the latter,s
desperate resistance, and the Pennsyl-
vanias We're three lengths behind the
crimson. Then the Cornells began to
show the effects of Courtney's ideas
imbibed in England last year. With
long, sweeping strokes, the Ithacans
had their shell length ahead of the
Harvards, who were in turn four
lengths in front Of the Pennsylvania.
The Coiumbias were splashing badly
eight or 10 lengths to the bad. and
could scarcely keep the boat on an
even keel.
AT the three1quarters mile the Cornells
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