The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1899-08-29
Cup

| -" - 80 ht p',hNNi w ~
later life.
lie made several trips 10 Europe 10
study the yards of the older country,
but up TO IL years OF age his knowl-
edge was more or less confined TO
! steam education. What he studied i'm
this line and the experience he gained
afterward iitted him for that which was
| then considered to be the least profita-
BILE. but which has developed into the
| richest OF the two branches OF the trade
| the designing and building OF the
| sailbOat. When he formed his first part
| nership with his brother John IL was on
| the basis OF three-quarters Of the prof
IT'S for John and one-quarter for Ma
| thaniel. showing that the sghtless de-
signer had a keen idea OF a good bar
| gain as well as Of other tn Dgs. A few
words Will tell OF the success OF the two
| men, which began practically with the
| construction OF the first American tor
! pedo boat. the Stiletto in 1876. which
was also the first high-speed boat OF
| this country. The Cushing. another ma
val affair, and the say When. Now
Then and Vamoose flyers. for Munro
| made their name "A new household word
4 In one OF his early sailing yachts Nat
| Herreshoff used the bulb or ballast fin.
and with what success is we'll known.
! Western man claimed 10 be the origin
ator OF the idea, and when asked about
| IL Nat said
II don't claim to have inverted the
ballast fin. My father used the same
thing seventeen years ago"
While successful I'm all OF his early
boats his greatest prosperity dates
from the design OF the Pelican, which
was really the original Gloriana.
MATS SONS.
Nat Herreshoff has two sons who
are known far and wide about Bristol.
These lads were not born 10 be drowned
although some OF the old cronies in the
al a sf.sh ln. Of hot
place, predict an untimely end for them.
or all the fearless, dom -care-a-rap
chaps these two boys are the top-saw-
yers. They are not wild. be " under
stood, nor selfish. like most boys, and
they have a refinement and frankness
about them that is perfectly refresh
ing but the way they fool with life is
not sanctioned by any well-regulated
life insurance company. The pair have
gone overheard all standing, and clung
To overturned boats so often that the
excursion craft along Narragansett Bay
look upon taking them from the water
as philosophically az they run out their
planks at the end OF each trip.
A friend OF the family says that their
father has a professional career plotted
out on the chart OF life for th1l, but
the facetious individual who once said
that all jack tars come from the YES
sells pitch would doubtless remark that
all the whiting that Nat Herreshoff
has done i'm his time 10 turn out crack
boats has made chips OF the old block
OF the boys The oldest is about i3 years
old. and the younger over 10. and since
they were able 10 swim they have per-
suaded their father to let them follow
the heirloom OF keel and truck. The |
clay had hardened i'm the potter's hand, |
and he saw TO IL that they could swim |
before he intrusted them in a boat on |
their own hook, even I'm one of his own |
boats at that. which was considerate n |
not exactly complimentary. and today |
the lads have no peers as youthful CO. |
rinthians. They take chances that Would |
make men hold their breath, and their |
boats have been knocked down and |
capsized so often that IL is an exception |
when they return to the shore in dry |
clothes.
DIDN'T CARE FOR SCHOL.
Those who remember Nat Herreshoff |
as a boy cannot but picture him as |
either one of these boys il now. He |
nsver cared for school. Neither do they. |
In his early twenties Nathaniel Her |
reShom was up with the sun and afioat |
with the fish, TO experiment with this |
or that model He tried her on one |
tack or the other trimmed her by the |
head or the stern. shifted her mast and |
sails lightened or increased her rig
ging. and had a fair days work done
when the average yachtSman arose for
be work by him. he was so passionately |
fond of his experiments. His boys to-
day are doing the very same thing. ex-
cept that their models are prepared for
them by "A master hand and all they |
have to do Is to go In and sail them
which they DO with veng gaance when
there is any wind. When there isn't
any wind to speak Of they come hack
without a duekng. ard as penance have |
a hand at golf about their paternal
lawn. which Us a short distance below
the south shop in which Columbia was
built
The experiments OF the father are
continued even 10 this day. for the
bu lding OF the Gun defenders IL only
small portion OF the work done at the
shops. and the rapid changfis that are
constantly being made in the twenty
one ami thirty-footers demand some
Improvements that only HIS superior
eye can fathom. That's why Nat Her
rcshoff is frequently on the bay off !
from his works before BRISTOL IS aStfr
c~i when ne finds a model that prom
ises wsll he turre il over II his sons
for them to sail and test When they
have dCne - four or FIVE times he puts
their suggestions down on paper an the
bre reakflst table and occasionally alters
a boat 10 their way of tn mixing. Con-
sideriry their aceis the boys have re-
markablv good Judgment
NAT ISN'T SOCIABLE.
Nat Horr-eihoff as not socisble. lie
doubtless does not believe with n distin
gu ulShei author that laughter Is the sun
rhat drives winter from the F,iman
face. He rarely SMILES and the clam is
open -fnCuihel alOnriside of him. IL a
CORRESPONDENT ways any information
and the great designer del gns To give
IL. a pickax and crowbar ave necessary
to dig " out NJ him. He does not like
men. They have taken his
weathe~ too often To suit MS mode OF
and he prefers TO give them
wi 70 berth. Many have spun galley
yarns about him when h had refused
absolutely e. talk, and some Of those
early day interviews" ~S,rged n pad
lock which has kept his mouth sealed
eV-r snCe.
There IS an unwrttsn law eT rigid
as death about the works that his en-
ployes mu0t not discuss the private az
fairs OF the firm with reporters. Many
have been the mon knockc1 of aid