Kansas City journal. [volume] (Kansas City, Mo.) 1897-1928, 1899-10-14
SAME OLD STORY.
Yesterday-Too Much Fog, Too
Little Wind,

NEW YORK, Oct 13-The winds asleep
in their caverns and a coverlet of white
fog drawn over the bosom of the drowsy
ocean to-day heightened the unprecedented
record of fiukes in the cup contest to six.
As on Tuesday. the yachts did not leave
their anchorages inside Sandy Hook. 1t
was useless to make another attempt in
such weather. So, at the hour set for the
start, the regatta committee boat poked
out to sea through the dense bank of vapor
and announced TO the group of vessels as
sembled about the lightship the same mo-
notonous story that there would be no race
to-day
Everybody is thoroughly Disguised. The
patience of the public is almost exhausted.
From 5000 people, who went out on the
first day, the crowds have dwindled until
II is perfectly safe to say that fewer than
500 people were afioat to-day. The out
look was SO gloomy from money-makinG
standpoint that some of the excursion boats
which sold tickets for the series OF races
We're trying to-day to redeem them, with
the intention of abandoning their eXcur-
sions altogether.
The repeated postponements have also
worn the patience OF the committee and
the owners of the two yachts. Sir Thomas
and Commodore Morgan each has a COM
pany of invited guests aboard their yachts,
but IL is very desolate for the hosts as
well as their guests to lie quietly at an
Choir inside the dreary sandspit with moth
ing to look at but blank walls of fog. The
delays have been equally trying upon the
crews of the racers. For more than ten
days the tars have been keyed up to rae
ing pitch, and they are beginning TO feel
the effects of the strain.
Experts estimate that the big club top
sail the Shamrock showed yesterday for
the first time contains about $50 more
square feet of canvass than the similar
sail of the Yankee boat. Add to this the
excess of sail area of her lower sails, as
shown by the official measurements, and
the foreigner Is capable of spreading some
thing like 1,200 square feet more canvass
TO the wind than Columbia. In light airs,
therefore, the Shamrock must have a great
advantage. and the patriots are whistling
for spanking breeze that will prevent the
hosting of these skyscraping sails and
bring the two boats down to even terms in
the matter of canvas. Another attempt
VIII be made to race tomorrow.
No attempt was made by the captains to
put sail on the yachts to-day. Everything
was made ready, however, TO begin work
at moments notice. All hands We're or
dered on board both yachts soon after
breakfast and d sharp watch was kept on
the weather. II anything, the fog was
thicker than yesterday morning, and il
was with the greatest difficulty that the
excursion steamers and committee boats
found their way to Sandy Hook. It took
the committee boats fully an hour TO re-
turn TO Sandy Hook bay, where the yachts
were lying, because of the dense fog. AS
soon as the yachts were sighted, the COM
mittee again declared the race off for the
benefit Of the owners, and upon receiving
their word that they would race tomorrow
they hoisted the signals announcing that
fact.
Previous to all this, at 1875, the race had
been called off by mutual consent of Mr..
lselin and Sir Thomas Upton, after brief
conference between them on board the
Erin, they not knowing at the time whether
tn committee boat would find its way into
Sandy Hook bay for some hours.
One of the Columbia's wooden club top
sail yards was cut in half lengthwise By
carpenters on Sandy Hook pier this morn
ing. the intention being to hollow it out
and make it lighter