The daily morning journal and courier., 1897-11-12
ROWING AT AMHERST.
Famous Crew of '72 and Their Spring.
 field Race.

field Race.
 The recent lecture on Boating deliv- cred at Amherst college by Rev. Arthur J. Benedict '72 of Housatonic, starboard stroke on Amhersts famous 1872 cham pionship crew, is thus summarized by the Amherst Student:
 That was surely a great victory. If dreams are true while they last, then records should stand until surpassed, and that 16 minutes 32 4-5 seconds stands as the six-oar three-mile record, amateur or professional. This record has not stood because they have not had a race in six oars since '72. Bob Cook, who was in Yale's boat in '72, went to England that year and devel- oped the stroke which has made him and his university famous in boating annals. He won in '73 over the same course, beating nine crews, but the time was 27 seconds longer. There is nothing so pleasant as the memory of athletic triumphs. A word of class pride-'72 had three men In the boat and they were graduated a few days before the race and did not come back to college to be lionized-two of them, our magnificent stroke, Negley. and big, strong Wilkins, will never come back.
 James A. Barnes was the founder of boating at Amherst in the purchase of the lap streak Thetis in 1869. The class of '72 soon purchased a new shell in which they appeared at Lake Quinsiga- mond at Worcester against crews from Yale, Harvard and Brown. They sur prised every one by taking the lead at the start and holding it for nearly mile, when they were fouled and disa- bled, but that partial victory stirred them to further efforts. Crews were organized in all the classes and @ naval association formed. A boat house was erected in North Hadley just above the ferry All the classes competed at regatta held on the Connecticut river. The '72 crew met the famous Massa- chusetts agricultural college crew with Eldrid as stroke and were badly beat en. The next year the same Massachu- setts agricultural college crew carried off first honors at the International Rowing. Association of American Col 1eges which Amherst did not enter. In ,72 we had the famous Amherst crew. Tn '73 nine crews lined up. Yale' won in Is minutes 59 seconds, Harvard third, Dartmouth fourth and Amherst fifth. Tn "A Columbia won. Amherst did not enter. In '75 twelve crews competed. Cornell won Harvard third, Yale fifth and Amherst sixth, followed by Brown, Williams. Bowdoin, Hamilton, Union and Princeton.
 Then came a dual league, Harvard and Yale. The coming in of Cornell
 +1 ,x,l, t1,o+ a1 of boating in other institutions was probable. I trust it may come about that Amherst may have other flags to hang beside those at present on the gym wall. Of all forms of sport in which a man matches muscle and skill with man, boat race is about the neatest, cleanest and most satisfacto- ry. We had almost insurmountable difficulties to overcome-the distance from the river, lack of material and money, lack of support and interest and yet we worked on.
 The race of '72 was held at Spring. field Before the race Amherst was not thought of even as a possible winner. She drew the worst course, The sound of the starters pistol is heard and the race is on. No battle was ever more fiercely fought or more fairly won than this boat race The same stuff won 1t that wins real battles. The Amherst undergraduate crew won the college re- gatta after the fastest, closest and pluckiest race on record, over the fin- est five college crews that ever rowed in our waters. Harvard was second. It came as complete surprise to the students and admirers of Amherst, and great was the celebration. There was no claim of foul; no dispute about the time. President Stearns welcome to the winning crew was particularly warm and chara cteriStic.