Evening star., 1900-11-24
Talk With Sir Thomas About the
Next Big Yacht Race.
PLANS FOR HIS new BOAT
Says He is Sure of Fair Treatment
on This Side.
THE ALENANDR TRUST
special Correspondence of The Evening Star.

Special Correspondence of The Evening Star.
LONDON, November II, 1900.
I'm eating, drinking. sleeping Cup said
Sir Thomas l.ipton. sliding back in his
chair, forgetfu of the masses of business
correspondence that hid the top of the desk
at which he was sitting.
1t was in the course Of an extraordinary
interview in which the great grocery knight
said good many notable things about the
interna tional yacht .'ace, subject OF much
more interest to him at present than pork
corners or anything of that sort He Lad
been found in the midst of business in the
richly fitted private office in his big retail
headquarters in City Read. The Upton
desk is studded at one side with forInida-
BILE array of polished electric buttons, and
above it hangs the portraits of two good
old people-the yaChtsman's father and
mother lie says he likes to have them
there.
Sir Thomas was dressed in a brown busi-
ness suit and looked brisk and hearty. He
had just driven i'll from his country house
at Osidge and was. he said, of for the
north which means Scotland. that even
ing. He was probably also desperately anX
ious to have the interview over but there
was suggestion of this in his m inner,
and he beamed on the intruder with the
same Iight-hearted smile that captured New
York
Carte lilRnche for Shamrock II.
when VIII you be in American was the
first question asked of the challenger for
the Americas cup.
Not till I so with y boat was the
answer given with just d suggestion of the
Scotch burr. Il expect to launch her In
May, and probably shall start across In
July some time
How much will the new Shamrock cost,
or have you given Watson carte blanche?'
"Oh. I've given him absolute carte
| blanche I'm not even thinking of money
| in the case. What | want is the best posi-
| BILE boat-the best boat that British ma
terial and skill and brains can turn out. l
| don't mean that | have money TO throw
| away, either, but l realize that l might
| just as well take my dollars and put them
| into that CRATE over there as to send over
anything but the best boat that we can
put together. Why, | know that for every
dollar | will spend the Americans are ready
to spend ten-they We done 1t before, and
| they'll do it again. And then there's the
quality of the builders that I've got against
me. Those Herreshoffs wonderful peo-
pie. There is no little point that might in
crease the odds of their boat that they'll
! overlook. They're terrific opponents for
any man to face. And, speaking of quality.
l know that there's no people who are bet
ter yachtsman than Americans and l know
| that they don't want me to bring over any
boat Lat the best I'm going to do it, too"
Delay is What He Fears.
"Are you giving the building of this boat
| your personal attention.
Yes. Every minute that I spare
| from my business. OF course, / don't know
anything about building designing, but,
as business man, l can make suggestions,
and l m doing 50.
Il see, Sir Thomas went on, that some
of the American papers are printing ar
| ticles headed Upton fears ocean voyage
Now, that's mistake. That ocean voyage
doesn't bother me bit. What worries ME
| is the delay. / mean of changing the boat
! to the ketch rig, putting in the jury mast
| and the rest of it. That occupies all of
fourteen days. to say nothing of the length
| of time taken in crossing. All that delay
| is the worst possible thing for the British
| boat. But the voyage doesn't matter at all.
| Some people say the Columbia couldn't
| have done 1t, but | know that she could;
| not, OF course, as she raced. but strength
ened as the Shamrock will be. Why, boat
| has got to be as strong they make 'em
| to stand the weather that may come along