The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1899-10-18
TQPMAST
BREAKS Off,
Challenger Put Hors de Com
bat by Accident.
RACE GOES TO COLUMBIA.
Iselin Had No Choice But to Finish Out
Course Alone-Marvelous Time Made
Around the Triangle-Yankee
Sloop Led at Time
of Break.

the start, and try as the defender
would, she could not shake off her rival.
Both were on the porrNtack to the
southwark of the lightship. Finally,
when but 20 seconds remained, the Co.
lumbia wore around beautifully, while
the Shamrock simultaneously tackled in
the other direction, and thus making
two divergent circles they came around
on the starboard tack and headed for
the line.
ALMOST A COLLISION.
A collision was almost inevitable,
had they approached each other at an
acute angle under the lee of the light
ship. But the Shamrock established an
overlap and the Columbia had &c keep
off, and almost together they bounded
away in the smoke of the gun, SO close
that sailor might have stepped from
one boat to the other. The Shamrock
was perhaps half a length ahead and
in the windward berth. Both mad their
sheets trimmed straight aft, and as she
went across, the Columbia set her baby
jib topsail. 1t was broken out and
sheeted home in eight seconds The
Columbia was blanketed, but instead OF
dropping astern, she gathered headway
and Went through the Shamrocls lee
like race horse. Madly she footed,
and in five minutes she was clear of
her adversary.
Five minutes later the Shamrock
went about on the port tack, bilt the
Yankee held on for a minute to be sure
of the weather gauge. AS both sheetcd
away on the stake it seemed that the
Columbia would repeat her perform
ance Of yeste Nay, for she footed foster
and pointed higher. Fifteen minutes
after the start she was three hundred
yards well out on the Shamrock
weather bow and forging ahead at ev-
cry bound.
NO HANDKERCHIEF FORWARD.
The Shamrock did not set her hand
kerchief forward, evidently believing
from her experience yesterday that it
knocked her off the wind. Capt Ho-
garth was able to keep her closer, but
he could not hold her as high as the
Columbia. The COlumbia's haadSail
lifted her head out of the waves aid
made her splash more spray as hsr bow
went smashing into the long swells
The experts thought this made hsc spill
wind out of her sails. The excursion
boats chased after the big flyers, and
the wind was freshening until it blew
to 10 or Is knots.
sHARPs SEE BREAK.
About 20 minutes after the yachts
We're started some of the sharps. with
their glasses glued on the two boats,
noticed that the Shamrook's top mast
appeared to sag little. Several times
she was luffed up sharply. 'She won't
carry that club top over the course"
said one of the men aboard the Asso-
ciated Press tug, John Nichols Sud
denly at 1124, the big kite and the
whole top hamper of the green boat
tumbled over to leeYard and the chal-
q CrfaV- I,,,I,.
sky-scraping sail fell lifeless out of the
wind and she lay on the water help
less.
1t was almost a cry of agony that
went UP from the sightseers, and never
were there more sincere expressions Of
regret than when the Shamrock gave
up the contest The Columbia went on,
as she was bound under the rules to do,
but several of the steam yachts went
over alongside the Erin, and former
Commodore Benedict and others ex-
pressed sincere regret over the hard
luck which had befalfen the challenger.
Sir Thomas philosophically replied that
1t was the fortune of war.
INTEREST GONE.
A large majority of the vessels of the
excursion fleet continued over the
course with the Columbia, but the in
terest in the race was gone. They sa-
luted her with their whistles at the two
outer marks, and gathered at the finish
to give her a stentorian welcome The
Columbia made a fine race of 1t, hold
ing on to her club topsail throughout
and setting her balloon jib in the final
reach for home. Her time was little
short of marvellous. She covered the
course in three hours and thirty-seven
the beat ten miles to wind
ward in one hour and thirty-seven
minutes and eleven seconds; the reach
to the second mark in fifty three min
1tes and fifty-nine seconds, and the
last leg in one hour three minutes and
fifty seconds. AS she crossed the finish
line she let go her headsails and one Of
he Deer Island sailors treated the
spectators to an exhibition of daring az
ne climbed out over the peak halyard
80 feet in the air to loosen the club top
sail.