The Mount Holly news. [volume] (Mount Holly, Burlington Co., N.J.) 1891-1942, 1898-09-27
A GREAT BOAT RACE.
THE eENNiNGToN's CRACK GREW GOT
A COSTLY SURPRISE.
The Story of Fourth of July Rowing
Contest at Honolulu Which Emptied the
Pockets and Lacerated the Feelings of
Uncle Sans Jackies.

Pockets and Lacerated the Feelings of
Uncle Sans Jackies.
about as dismal Fourth of July
as ever l experienced on board man.
o'-war, T" said an ex-sailor of the navy
now living in Washington to report
er, twas Independence day not many
years ago down in the harbor of Homo
lulu. The Bennington had an all star
racing boats crew. The eight had just
happened to be assigned to the Ben
nington in bunch before she left for
her Pacific cruise and several of the
oarsmen had been members of the Co
lumbia s crack boat s crew that walloped
all of the British navy's boats crews in
English waters a few years before.
The Bennington cutter was one of
the best in the navy, and she had been
built for racer. Before we left the
Mare Island navy yard for south Pacific
waters the ship racing crew had easily
beaten all of the other crews of the
ships lying at the yard, including the
tiptop crew of the Olympia and the
Boston's fine crew. We thought that
we were about as warm as they make
EN- after our crew put it on so many
other man-o'war crews, giving them a
couple of minutes the start of us, too,
on numerous occasions and still beating
them disgracefully.
"The people of Honolulu arranged
an aquatic festival for the Fourth of
July-the Americans down there cele-
brated the Fourth just as enthusiastic-
ally as we do up here-and the Ben
nington's crew figured in it largely.
Our ships colors were at the fore in the
two races that were run with picked
Kanaka crews, and the third and last
race of the day was one in which our
crackajack eight was to figure. the other
races having been won by subcrews
practically picked at random from
among the strongest seamen.
eve thought this race was at our
mercy. twas to be four sided affair
one crew Of Kanaka sugar field workers,
crew of Kanaka policemen and the
racing crew of the yacht Eleanor, be-
longing to Mr.. Slater of Providence,
that had pulled into Honolulu harbor
from Japan few days before Our
crew didn't pay much attention to the
yachts racing crew and were only fig
uring on the distance they could beat
the crew Of Kanaka policemen, which
seemed the most formidable.
The race was over the four mile
course carefully blocked out in the har-
bor-which was very SIN ooth-by the
Honolulu aquatic sportsmen, and the
start was first rate. There WASH a man,
fore or aft, on the Bennington that
didn't stand to go broke to the extent
of at least a months pay on the success
of the Bennington's crew, and we had
to give to 1, too, for it was generally
conceded that we had the race at our
mercy.
The start as L said, was good, and
the Bennington's crew showed in front
first and started out apparently to make
a runaway race of it. The Kanaka po-
licemen's crew trailed after them, pull
ing steadily, then the Kanaka sugar
workers and, good ten lengths to the
rear, the Eleanor's crew. This was the
way it looked for the finish when the
Bennington's crew rounded the stake
boat and started for the return trip
"Some of the Honolulu men who had
their money up on the two Kanaka
crews actually began to square accounts,
and the cry, It's all over-Benningtonp
was heard all over the bay. When the
stakeboat was rounded, it was noticed
that the Eleanor's boat was sort of get
ting a move on itself, and the men
were working like machines at long,
steady stroke that certainly looked as if
it was cutting down the Bennington s
lead and the lead of the two Kanaka
boats
1.-TWO minutes after the stakeboat
was rounded the Eleanor's gang were
gaining on them with every stroke, and
the cox un of the Bennington cutter,
hearing the yells of warning from the
Bennington bluejackets ashore, looked
behind him and saw the Eleanor cutter
only two lengths behind him and COM
ing like an electric launch. Our crew
was tired, and that's all there was
about it.
1.-THE Eleanor's crew had held them
selves in for the finish, and they GER
tainly did make Garrison finish of it.
The yachts cutter shot ahead of our
cutter good mile from home, and then,
to make the thing more CALLING, the
crew actually stopped rowing until the
Bennington crew was alongside again.
Then they took to the oars again, and
from then on it was a bowling farce
The Eleanor's crew just romped their
cutter in ten lengths ahead of our cut
ter and the Kanakas a quarter of a
mile in the rear.
tYou never saw such a disguised lot
of men in your life as the men and
officers on the Bennington. The Flea
nor's ship company had taken all of the
3 to money they could get on board
our ship, for they knew they had good
thing up their sleeve. The Eleanor's
crew on the whole trip around the
world that was wound up at San Fran
cisco had not been beaten once in cut
ter race and the yachts sailors had
made all kinds of money in betting on
their crew. 1t was minor sort of con-
ISOLATION for us when we found out that
five Of the Eleanor's racing crew were
ex-American man o'-war's men. -
Washington Star.
A Really Historical Novel;