The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1899-08-10
Columbia s Victory
Greater Than She
Deserved.
DEFENDER LACKED A BREEZE.
Gets the Worst Beating in
Her Racing
History.

Newport, r. l., Aug. 9.-The second
run of the New York Yacht club cruise
from GARDENERS bay to this port today.
distance OF forty-three miles. while
full of interesting brushes was not
quite as satisfactory as the first one.
Tor while the yachts ran the last half
OF the forty three miles in a constant
" increasing southwest breeze. the
FIRST half of the day was luky and
many boat received more than due
credit for a seemingly glorious vic
tory.
is no disparagement toward the
new cup defender Columbia to say that
her defeat of the Defender by over %
minutes was due more to bad Judgment
and hard luck of the latter boat, which
left her in soft spot, than to actual
superiority. Still the new boat showed
herself very able in a broad reach with
constantly increasing breeze, and it
is not too much to say that she made
an average of fully 10 knots in the run
along shore from Watch Hinyto Point
Judith. So rapidly did she drop the
Defender that when she gybed round
the whistling buoy off Point Judith,
her rival was hun down to the west
ward over FIVE miles astern.
On the run up from Point Judith
dead before the wind, Columbia gained
minute or more, so that at the finish
the old Defender had received the
worst beating in her history. There
was never moment during the day
that there was not wind enough to fill
the sails while the last fifteen miles
was sailed in grand breeze from the
nVa oh hOo
move. The day itself was perfect, for
the Sky was cloudless and the air vas
full of life and vigor A huge fleet OF
steam yachts watched the sailing craft
start, accompanied them over the most
of the course, and all Newport saw
the finish at Brenton's Reef lightship,
the cup defender of 1898 Yigilant,
leading the fleet over the line after II
warm contest with the schooner CO.
ionia, of 15 miles or more.
The brush between these two boats
| and the great luffing match between
Amorita and Quisetta, as we'll. as that
between Hildegarde and Constellation,
claimed attention after Columbia had
jumped so far in ahead of Defender.
For miles and miles the sloop Vigilant
sailed abreast of schooner Colonia
neither getting the advantage until af-
ter rounding Point Judith whistling
Vigilant pulled away and gained some
thing more by changing her spinnaker
from starboard to port AT the finish
there was ffty-five seconds between
the boats, but as Vigilant started six
minutes ahead, Colonia beat her easily
on the run, although of course the
boats sailed in different classes.
Amorita and Quisetta had another of
their famous luffing matches, and
nff fI1A 10Y 10
Block Island before swinging off Tor
home. Amorita, on the last ten miles,
pulled away and won easily, while
Quisetta was beaten out by the new
Latona. Hildegarde and Constellation,
the two largest yachts in the fleet, jlad
another great tussle, Hildegard finally
winning out. The yachts started at
1890 o'clock in a fairly strong westerly
breeze, all breaking out spinnakers on
crossing the line. The first three or
four miles were quickly sailed, but half
an hour after the start the wind began
to slacken, and soon some were almost
becalmed. Half a dozen stood over into
the Long Island sound, among them
Amorita, and nearly all gained by this
move, as they held the westerly breeze
strongly until the shift came to the
southwest about 1 o'clock.
All during this soft spell Of two hours
vored, for she carried breeze right
through and gained rapidly on Defen-
der. The latter, too, made a mistake in
getting too near Fisher island shore.
SO that when the wind did come round,
Columbia caught it half an hour ahead.
It was at this time, as the boats
passed the entrance to Fisher island
sound, that Columbia made the great
gain that gave her such lead. From
IA O
flew over the water, with her boom
well off to port and her big balloon jib-
topsail drawing like steam engine
All the boats went we'll on this reach
along shore, and looking back, every
yacht seemed fairly buried in canvas.
The home stretch of seven miles from
Point Judith to Brenton's Reef light
ship, was made dead before the wind
in a freshening breeze, and the way
the boats jumped along was caution.
The entire fleet was over the finish
line within an hour after Vigilant and
at o'clock the flagship had dropped
anchor in Brenton's Cove, amid the
booming of every gun in the feet.
Commodore Moore through Fleet
Capt. Beaver Webb, has issued a gem
eral order that the fleets shall get UNI
der way from the harbor at $50 in the
morning. The start OF the race to Vine
ward Haven will be from Brenton's reef
iightship as near 1890 as possible.
Briefly today's accidents were the
grounding of George Weld's schooner
yacht Hildegarde near Goat island. the
loss Of sloop Sistae's topmast and the
schooner Quisetta's spinnaker and the
injury TO one of the Columbias men.
The owner of the schooner Constella-
ton entered a protest against the
schooner Hildegarde for having passed
inside the whistling buoy off Point Ju-
1ifh