The Irish standard., 1903-07-11
He Has Already Spent More Than Two
Million Dollars in Friendly Fight
for the Americas Cup.
Has Promised to Pension His Grew of Sixty-
Three Men for Life Should the
Shamrock III Win Race.

I ways at Erie basin, and it is prob
able she will again be dropped into
the water. fitted with racing gear, and
be pitted once more against her old
antagonist, the Columbia. in u series
OF special races. 1t takes good
sized company Of tars to handle this
fleet. There are POP men on the
sportsman's pay roll, and they hold
the good-natured Irishman up to the
tune of more than $1,000 Il day. But
that's only part of the expense. He
paid $4,000 to have the two racing
boats doclled. This must be done
twice more before the races are be.
gun, and the yacht-supply firms will
get an additional $4,000 from the
owner. If Sir Thomas elects to have
the Shamrock II reftted. that sport
ing enterprise can be done for about
S2o,OO0, a mere bagatelle, according to
the Upton view.
In everything that has concerned
the three attempts to, carry back to
England the blue ribbon of the seas.
the expenditures of Sir Thomas Lin
ton have been more lavish than those
dreamed of by any previous chal-
lenger. When he began his first try
international yacht racing was under
dark cloud of disfavor and scandal
brought about by the last of the Val
kyrie races and the conduct of the
Earl of Dunraven. BY the exercise of
courtliness and tact, Sir Thomas has
made every one OH both sides of the
Atlantic forget the unpleasantry, and
has won for himself the friendliness
OF all true sportsmen. Sir Thomas
is not niggardly with any one. King
and crew he treats alike What is
good for prime ministers is none too
good for the men who hold the ropes
on the Shamrocks, he thinks. and he
sees that his men get all they could
ask. lie has a manner of taking care
OF his crews that has. been unknown
heretofore. The most important
change in the method of taking care
OF the crews of the two racing yachts
is the absence of the customary "ten-
der. In his two previous attempts
TO win the cup Sir Thomas adopted
the American plan of chartering
small steamer with commodious house
accommodations and having the en-
tire crew live on board of this tender.
The chief advantage Of this is that
1t saves fitting up the interior of the
racing yachts, thus making them
lighter in actual racing. Whatever
advantage this practice has it is not
without it's drawbacks, and. therefore,
Sir Thomas has decided to abandon
the use of tender this year. the two
crews sleeping on their respective
yachts. They take their meals how
ever, on the big tug Cruiser, which.
therefore, becomes the official "ten-
der'' of the fleet, and to carry the
eighty-two men in the two yachts to
and from their meals, Mr.. Davis, Sir
Thomas Lipton's American represen-
tative. has bought big steam launch,
called Buttercup.
There are ample dining accommo-
dations on the Cruiser, for she is so
large that she has accommodations
for sixteen passengers in addition to
her crew of fifteen men. The other
two boats, Smoky and the naptha
launch, are perfectly familiar to any
one who was ever near the Erin. the
Smoky being the boat that was caught
out and nearly swamped in Sandy
Hook one night two years ago in a
fierce northeaster, when she was
bringing a party of Sir Thomas
friends from the boat landing at At.
lantic Highlands to the Erin. Smoky
has carried no less important per-
sonage than King Edward VII on her
leather cushioned seats. and. therefore.
deserves to be regarded with respect
even If she isn't as big or as impor-
tant looking as the Cruiser. Times
are changed indeed from the days of
the Galatea, when Lieutenant Hem
sailed that yacht across the Atlantic
himself. picked tug up off the Hook