The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-10-14
wATsONs NEW BOAT.
a Possible Line ON the New sham
rock.

4 Possible Line ON the New sham
NEW YORK, Oct. 13.-when the Brit
ish skipper. Capt. Edward Sycamore,
came here on visit few months ago.
he was loud in his praise of George l..
Watson's latest creation. the Sybarita.
Captain Sycamore had taken out the new
yacht. and with her untried and untnned.
beaten over and over again the German
Emperor's crack yacht. the Meteor. The
captain admitted then that he had come
over to take a look around and see the
seventy-footers, and that he had besu
engaged by Sir Thomas Upton, IL not to
sail the next challenger. at least ito do
a little with the Shamrock in the Medi-
terranean." Nobody doubts that Capt.
Edward Sycamore will be the profe sion
al skipper on board Shamrock H., and
second in command only to the fins st
amateur in Europe, the Irish yachtsman,
William G. Jameson, who eight years ago
sailed his own yacht. the Inverna to a
dead heat In Wemys Bay with the Me-
teor. and steered the Prince of Walls
| Britannia time and time again to victory
over all corners. beating even the SUE
cessful cup defender the vigilant. when
she visited British waters. 1t may be
said to be equally certain that Mr. Wat
son, who is to design or has designed the
new Shamrock, experimental in fashion,
ing the Sybarita with a view to the next
challenger. When designing the Sybarita
for Whitaker Wright, he had already
been engaged by Sir Thomas Upton, and
In the Sybarita herself he practically
turned out a challenger.
The Sybarita is yawl, but so much has
she been talked about. and in Watson
Upton connection. that many on both sides
OF the Atlantic harbored a sort OF half
belief that in the challenge, which has
come at last, the boat specified would be a
yawl. That the Sybarita is remarkable
boat Is generally admitted, and the only
thing unsettled about her quality is
whether she could not show clean pair Of
heels to the old Shamrock, just as she
showed them to the Meteor. Mr.. Watson
has always be. believer In boats OF the
composite bui and so the materials used
in construct 3 the Sybarita were wood
and steel, but both were wonderfully light.
With this combination he produced
craft In which lightness is one Of the chief
characteristics. From stem to taffrail the
Sybarita is 1876 feet long, as against Sham
rocks 12s feet inches. She is SO feet on
the water line, and her beam Is % feet.
while the Shamrock's was "a feet Z inches
The Columbia's length over all was 1872
feet, and her beam % feet 9 inches Her
bow is long and very fine, but her counter,
also fine. is shorter. So long. indeed, is
her bow and so fined away the lines that
she looks a slim thing which could not
possibly have beam measurement Of %
feet. But with all her fine bow and coun-
ter the Sybarita locks anything but pretty,
and her degree Of ugliness depends great
deal on the point of view. And it is not
perhaps. SO much that she is ugly as 1t is
that she is peculiar.
Taking broadside view of her, she ap-
pears to have long-drawn, fat-sided.
shallow body with fine ends and little
shear. Looking from the end she seems
to have bluff bow. shallow body. with
softly turning bilge. The flare OF the
sides goes well above the water-line, but
there Is practically no tumble home.
Broadside on one gets the impression of
deep and square fin. while from the end
there seems to be no fin above the lead
at the forward end, and that it gets it's
depth by cutting away the after body
A deck view fails to discover any flow
ing curves. anything in fact. more than
might be found on any old tub. save that
long wedge-shaped bow presents itself
and that there is a lean quarter.
Sharpness seems to be everywhere. and
the cutting away from the point of great
est beam at the chain plates leaves 81 ugly
bulge. And yet all this is only apparent,
for once over the side one finds the lines
running beautifully and not at all as they
appeared from deck. The Sybarita carries
even a lower and wider mainSail than did
the Shamrock, and her mainmast, which
looks stumpy. is stepped well forward Her
topmast is also a short affair. The mizzen
is as far aft as 1t is possible to carry it,
The mainmast is OF Oregon pine, but the
main boom is built of quarter-inch steel
plates. strengthened internally with spurs
and struts, while the gait and spinnaker
boom. are Of wood followed out The
Sybarita's lead Of ninety tons is cast fiat
sided without trace of a bulb, but the
weight is said to be more evenly distrib-
uted throughout its forty feet of length
than in any craft built in recent years.
Whether Mr.. Watson. in his design Of
the new Shamrock. will follow the lines
Of the Sybarita. which, after all, seems
to be a combination Shamrock and Co
lumbia. following more after the Herre-
shoff style. he must certainly, in view
of her cleverness when pitted against the
Meteor, have profited by her construction
and so make big advance on his former
work with the Valkyrie. The chances
must be very much more in favor of Sir
Thomas Lipte1's browning his LIES sue
cess by lifting the cup"