The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1897-06-26
AN AMERICAN VICTORY
COOK STROKE AND ENGLISH
COACHING MUST GO
HARVARD AND YALE ALL IN A HEAP
Cornell Crosses Line in Gale and MerriIy Go
to Training Quarters For Their Next Race
The University Town Goes
Crazy With 10y.

Poughkeepsie, y. Y, June 25.-Cornell
won; 20 minutes 81 seconds. Yale was
second by three lengths and a half time,
20:44. Harvard came in third five
lengths and a half astern of Yale; time,
y minutes.
Cornell's time by miles minutes, 45
seconds; second mile, 1870; third,
1874 80; fourth, 20:34.
The stroke: Start-Cornell, 80; Yale
SO; Harvard, SO. Quarter, b, 33, 81, re-
spectively. Half mile: 81. 80, 81. Three
quarters: 4.34,30. Finish: "a, 81 and
Harvard drifting across the line.
e American grit, American methods and
American training won to-day as against
American grit coupled with English
methods and English training. A crew
of American college youths. trained un
der an American coach won from two
other American college crews in an eight
cared contest the two other crews hav
ing studied, the one under an American
coach with mixture of English and
American methods. and the other dis
carding all American teachings and meth
ods, and importing an English coach in
an endeavor to prove a superiority for
Henly methods. No such contest ever
occurred in this country before Cornell
University has not been able to meet
Yale University on the water since 1879.
And then, as to-day, she defeated the
boys of the blue After long chickering's,
Yale University consented. under pres
sure from Harvard. to again meet Cor
nell The match was arranged and to-
day the leading crews af these three
leading colleges of this college strewn
country started down the four mile
stretch together. Yale finished second
and three and half boat lengths sep
arated her from Cornell. Harvard, with
her newly acquired English methods,
finished third. and she was oven eight
and a half lengths behind Cornell Her
eight were thoroughly exhausted, while
the expOnents of American theory as APP
piled to the propulsion of eight-oared
shells. finished at a hot pace, without
any distress being apparent The tide
was slack, the wind favored no particular
crew, and absolutely no favor of any
kind was shown by nature toward the
result. The race was rowed entirely on
its merits.
The race was one of the most bril-
liant in the history of aquatics in this
country. The crew started with a stroke
of 80 for Cornell and So for Harvard
and Yale. Harvard gained a slight ad-
vantage over the others at the start, and
the usual note of jubilation went up from
the Harvard adberents. 1t was appar-
ent within the first quarter mile that
the Cornell crew was using the same
methods that took them on to victory
last year, that of a slow and telling
stroke that would wear out their oppo-
nents. At the bridge the Coxswain of the
Harvard crew had to give the Harvard
stroke a little water in his face, and for
a moment, under the reviving influence
the boat swung along at a goodly pace.
But only for moment, and just as they
passed under the big bridge the stroke
began to give way. Cornell was rowing
at 30 and Yale was working away at 33
and "a and evidently tired. The last
mile of the race was probably one Of the
most sensational in the history of college
| aquatics-sensatiOnal not so much from
the fact that it recorded the defeat of
the crews of the two leading colleges of
the United States, but that it demon
strated to the satisfaction of the major
iy of those who have watched the work
Of the crews and the different methods
pursued in their training that the Leh-
mann and Cook strokes must bow to
the superiority of the Courtney mOdifi-
cation of the two, and that while weight
and Drawn are factors they must be
combined with skill, and skill is that
which Mr. Courtney teaches. AS they
approached the finish line it was seen
that the Harvard eight were nearly to
man in difficulties, while several of the
Yale men were flying signals of distress.
Then the Cornell crew, as if in mockery
at the discOmforture of their rivals, in
creased their stroke to "a and shot passed
the judges boat every man as fresh ap-
parently as when he started they rowed
on down the stream for half mile.
Ten seconds after Cornell, Yale cross
ed the line and Immediately stopped
rowing, with number (Whitney) and
number (CampbelD in a state of col
lapse.
Then came Harvard, 16 seconds behind,
her entire crew used up and three of the
men utterly helpless. Hardly had the
nose of her shell reached the finish when
Boardman, stroke, fell back off Of his
seat. Wrightington, at number 3 and
J. +. Perkins, at number 5, also lost their
oars and their companions commenced
to splash water over them. In the mean
time Geo. Rich, captain was trying to
raise Boardman, but was too weak
and the Coxswain was throwing water
over the two. After the race the Cor
nell crew were taken on board their