The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-09-10

Cup" is at Tiffany's, in New York.
Millions of dollars will be spent dur
ing the autumn in the contest for its
possession, and this fact furnishes a
strange anomaly, for the cup is not in
trinsically valuable. If it could tell its
own story. it would have something like
the following to say:
When Sir Thomas Upton, the tea
man, tries to win me away from the
United States, it will be the tenth time
an effort of that kind has been made
In forty-eight years. 1t seems that l
am as desirable to sportsmen as the
Golden Fleece was to the Argonauts.
Eleven times two nations have been
wildly excited over these contests,
which have cost enough to build a de-
cent navy for each one of them.
And what is it all about? / am only
a little old misshapen silver mug, of no
particular design, and so out of date
and commonplace that first-class jew
eler in these days would De ashamed to
confess me as his workmanship. The
bottom is out of me, my carving is in
ferior, and if melted down / would be
worth, according to the present quota
tons for silver, just SIS. A junk dealer
would think hard before offering that
What in the world am / that you
should make so much fuss over me?
Really, l feel quite bored over all this
attention, for, in confidence, am of no
value at all, and my career has been
quiet. 1 was made by r. & r. Gerard,
on Panton street. London, on hurry
order when the yacht America came
over in 1851 and beat our English re-
gatta at Cowes. 1t was not a cele-
brated firm, and the workmen only or
binary. One Of them said he thought 1
ought to be fashioned in the style of
Henry III. and another thought a Henry
III design more suitable. so / am sort
of mixture l had no idea that / should
become an international prize then, nor
did the men who ordered me dream of
my coming Importance. AS a matter
of fact, the firm received just S525 for
me, and now / could be duplicated for
$50.
Il weigh 1S4 ounces, am 81 inches tall,
measure sc inches around the waist and
"a at the base. The decorative work
on me is very simple, but / pride my
self that my lines have an aristocratic
appearance, my lip is curved grace
fully, and my neck beautiful. Just one
thing more. Many call me the queens
cup, because l was bought by the COM
mittee of the Royal Yacht Squadron,
but this is wrong, for when the gen.
tlemen took me off the shelf in Gerard's
Office I distinctly heard them say:
This is to be known as the Hundred
Guinea Cup and that's what / used to
be called on both Sides
Enormous Expenditures.
Nevertheless, thousands of persons
from all over America will come to
New York shortly, and, standing be-
fore the Tiffany window on Broadway,
gaze at this mug long and deferential-
~, for, after all, it is the most historic
trophy of its kind in existence, and has
cost so much money that it gives your
ordinary American a thrill to think of
it. Such enormous sums have certain
ly never been spent before on like
object.
A member of the New York Yacht
club, in looking over the inscriptions
on the cup the other day to refresh his
"reminiscences of the bygone contests,
figured roughly that the Englishmen
had spent in the neighborhood of
l4,000,000 in behalf of this trophy, and
the Americans probably a little more,
owing to the expenses incident to the
trial races. This, Of course, includes
only the money spent in striving for
and defending the cup. When you fig
ure on the expenses of the public in
witnessing and betting on the races, an
approximate estimate is impossible.
The challengers find a heavy expense
III IlSSllleS lnSlI VESSELS 1OI SeSt u dstl
This is essential, owing to the condi-
tons laid down by George L. Schuyler,
VINO re-deeded the cup to the New York
Yacht club in 1882.
Owing to the present and increas-
ing size of ocean steamers" said Mr..
Schuyler, sit would be quite feasible
for an American, English or French
club to transport on their decks yachts
of large tonnage. This might be
awaited of in such a way that the
match would not be a test of sea-goinS
qualities, as well as of speed, which
would essentially detract from the in
terest of national competition
Mr.. Schuyler. therefore, inserted this
clause in the deed:
Vessels intending to compete for
this cup must proceed under sail on
their own bottoms to the port where
the contest is to take place.
The English owners have also been
to a considerable expense usually in
bringing along an advisory committee,
as Dunraven, the first time, brought
over Watson. designer of the Valkyrie
II, and Lapthorn, sailmaker.
The Cups Inscriptions.
The only things about the cup itself,
however, that tell of these millions
spent on account of it are the inscrip-
lions. carved in different styles and
y
brief legends inspire awe in the heart
of the veteran yachtsman. They tell
him of one struggle after another when
the country was all in a f1utter over
the approach Of a challenger, and when
1t seemed sure that Yankee supremacy
on the water would be snatched away
by the BritiSher. On each occasion |
the result of the contests has been the |
same. The nearest that the game chal-
lenSerS have ever been to the cup is to
look at it in Tiffany's window, or per-
chance view it on the banquet tables
at the New York Yacht club house.
Tiffany is now concerned as to where |
he will carve these inscriptions. There |
is only one small panel below the six
large shields about the body Of the cup |
that is not filled. On these shields is |
told the story of the trophy. And the |
narrative has taken all the space avail |
able there for Inscriptions, also on the !
panels underneath, with the exception !
of one leaving just enough room to |
contain the account of this years races |
should there be more than two. That |
number can be crowded in and still |
leave space for another contest. More |
than that will fill the cup.
At first the silverSmiths were quite |
lavish with their space, not conceiving |
how valuable it would be in later years. |
on each successive race they econo- |
mixed. as will be seen by the following |
list of inscriptions which the cup bears: |
Hundred Guinea Cup won Aug. %, |
1851. at Cowes, England, by yacht |
America at the Royal Yacht squadron |
regatta, "open to all nations beating |
the
Cutters: