The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1899-06-30
Everything in Readiness
For the Pull.
HARVARD And YALE CREWS
To Battle for the SuPremaey-Io be n
Regular Rowing Regatta-Several
ting on the Varsity mace IN Favor OF
Harvard-All the Men In Fine Trim
and Exciting Contests are AntIci.
pated.

Gales Ferry, Conn, June 2S.-The
finishing touches have been applied;
the hard practice is over; and the six
crews which will represent Yale and
Harvard on the Thames in the big
regatuL are practically awaiting the
pistol shot which will send them off
over the course on Thursday
The close OF the training period finds
all of the oarsmen Of the universities
IN perfect shape, physically, with no
indications of over training, except,
perhaps, a little fineness in the condi-
tlon OF two men in the Harvard var
sity eight.
The work on the river has been more
than ordinarily delightful this year
on account of the cordial feeling which
has from the first existed between the
rival oarsmen. In fact the utter lack
of secrecy, the open and frank meth
DDS of practice, and the exchange of
courtesies between the Yale and the
Harvard settlements have done much,
according to the coachers and graduates
of both universities, toward putting
intercollegiate rowing ON a new foot
ing.
The new contests are awaited with
much interest in view of the fact that
the managers have conceived and this
year for the first time are about to car
ry out the scheme of a regatta. The
events of the meet will be crowded into
one day in order to meet the conven-
ience of visiting spectators.
The contests will begin in the fore
noon Thursday and will find climax
in the early evening with the big"
race between the eights of the two uni
versities.
Wind, weather and water permitting,
the university fours will row their race
at 10:30 o'clock, the start being just
above the drawbridge. The course will
lie upstream for two miles. this race
finishing at the two-mile flag, off the
navy yard.
Immediately after the race the two
freshman crews will go on for a two
mile pull from the navy yard up the
river to the varsity eight starting
point, opposite Gales Ferry. Late in
the afternoon the varsity race will
come.
Harvard has the best in the betting
for two out of three contests. However,
last minute changes have been made in
the shell of the Yale four. Two heavy
Oarsmen have been succeeded by lighter
men, and the boat moves more rapidly.
AS a result, a hot race is looked for.
On form the Harvard freshmen are the
superiors of the Yale youngsters and
their shell has splendid speed.
With the two big eights the situa-
ton is different. Harvard is reported
to have made faster time on the river
than Yale. On the other hand, the
Yale eight is markedly the superior
thus far as to form. The men pull
much more easily, apparently, and have
vast amount of endurance and reserve
power The New Haven crew, more
over, is largely veteran aggregation,
a factor which tells not little in a
race
The course of the varsity eight race
is the old Yale-Harvard course, which
was abandoned when Cornell became a
third crew 1t starts on the west river
bank; makes straight for the navy
yard, where with a turn almost insig-
nif1cant it reaches straight down the
river to the big railroad bridge.
The official arrangements have been
satisfactorily completed. Observation
trains will be run on either side Of the
river, affording good views OF the races.