The record-union., 1899-10-20

away. 1HG 1OIuInDld cfOSSGu the uIlS
twenty-seven seconds in the lead with
out the handicap, which means fully
two lengths distance. She crossed
about the center of the line, and Ho-
garth, after vain attempt to luff out
across her wake and obtain the wealth
er position. kept off and gave the
Shamrock a good full.
The official time of the start was: CO.
lumbia IL :01 33, Shamrock II :02:00.
The Shamrock's actual time of cross
ing the line was 11:02:02. She was
handicapped two seconds, because the
yachts are allowed seven minutes from
the starting signal in which to cross
the line, and she exceeded that time
by two seconds.
Jibs and forestay sails were taken in
at once on both yachts, to give the
balloon sails a chance to fill. While the
yachts were crossing the line spinnaker
booms were dropped to starboard. and
the sails hoisted in stops ready to
break out, but in the game of luffing
and bluff which followed neither yacht
had chance to set these sails for
fifty minutes. Hogarth, not being able
to try his yacht on a reach on a tri-
angular course, seemed determined to
make portion of the race a reach at
all hazards. So they went at it. In
stead of following the guide bow on the
southeast by south course, by which
they might have carried spinnakers
they sailed between four and five points
to the eastward of their courses. in
order to make every sail draw to the
best advantage, thereby covering at
least five miles more ground than was
necessary. The excursion fleet gave
them miles of room, keeping so far
away that the yachts We're hull down"
most of the time
During the first fifteen minutes of
this reaching work the Columbia
seemed to increase her lead. After
that, for the next half hour, the Sham
rock apparently was gaining on the
Columbia, and at 11:5O when they both
decided to abandon the luffing game
ana set spinnakers to starboard, the
shamrock had certainly gained some on
her antagonist.
Having the wind dead aft now, the
shamrock had decidedly the better DO
sltlon. If, with the assistance of some
OF the friendly puffs, she could succeed
IN closing in on the Columbia, her
chances Of blanketing the latter would
be felt. While the wind remained
steady in the same quarter it dimin-
lshed la strength at times. coming in
puffs occasionally, but on the whole
the outlook for finishing the race was
not very encouraging at 1 o'clock. when
the outer mark was in plain sight from
the racing yachts
AT 1z:4o both yachts gybed after TAX
ing IN their spinnakers and set those
sails again to port, the Columbia set
ting hers first The wind canted to the
westward gradually during the next
half hour, and at 1872 the Columbia
gybed to port, quickly followed by the
Shamrock, which dropped her spin
maker boom to starboard and set the
sail at 1 40, the Columbia setting her
splnnaker four minutes later
1t was a long haul before the wind.
with simply enough of it to fill their
sails during the next forty-five minutes.
Balloon jib topsails were taken in when
the yachts were about a mile north of
the outer mark and as they approached
1t Jtbs, staysails and baby jib topsails
were hoisted, ready for the windward
work soon to follow.
1t was noted that as the Columbia
came down for the mark her great
mainsail with it's crosscut cloths was Il
brand new one, having in it four bat
tens and two reef bands. The cloths
in her spinnaker ran horizontally. while
those on the Shamrock were perpen-
dicular.
AT 2:20 the Columbia took in her
spinnaker, and all hands stood by 10
round in the main sheet as she ap-
preached the mark
The Shamrocks spinnaker came in
at 2:27.
The official time for the turn was:
Columbia pa 40, Shamrock 2:31 :O3.
By this 1t will be seen that the Col
umbia was six minutes eighteen sec
onds ahead at the mark: that her
elapsed time was 3:23:12, and that the
Shamrock's was 3:29:32, showing that
the Columbias gain had actually been
i've minutes ffty-one seconds in the
fifteen miles
When the Columbia luffed around the
mark, coming up sharp on the wind on
the starboard tack Captain Barr found
the wind to be about west by north
which meant that if it held in that
quarter he would be able on the other
tack to lie his course for the finish
without making another tack One min
ute and twenty seconds after rounding
the mark he put the Columbia about,
and found his judgment to be correct.
and, better still, the wind fresnened
considerably during the next half hour.
sending the white sloop along at a six
knot clip. Hogarth, who went breeze
hunting off to the southwark for eight
minutes and ten seconds, lost just about
that amount of time, for when he
tackled and stood to the northwest like
the Columbia his imaginary advantage
was that he was to the windward of
the Columbia's wake, while the latter
yacht was nearly two miles ahead of
him and pointing directly to the finish.
AS the Columbia stood on to the
northwest the wind canted to the
southwark gardually, and at 3:35 she
was able to set a big topsail in place of
the baby She also set balloon stay
sail. Fifteen minutes later the wind
had canted to south-southwest Down
came the Columbia's jib topsails and
up went a larger one. The Shamrock
followed suit a few minutes later.
The wind was now falling lighter
every moment. The Shamrock was
nearly three miles astern of the Colum-
bia, and while the lightship was in
sight from the Columbias deck, she
was still five miles from it at 4 o'clock,
with only half an hour of time left to
finish within the limit
Il