New-York tribune., 1903-03-22

piece Of silver from the shores Of Albion those
OF these United States.
The difficulty in answering that question arises
from necessary doubt as 10 its moaning-whether
the queriSt Contenplates a deckcd sailing boat or
OF the large pleasure boats of the present day
which latter not used merely for purposes OF
sport
Lieutenant J. D. Jerrod Kelley, L. S. N. whose
work on American yachts is a recognized authority
writing the subject seventeen years ago said
that the first decked vessel ever launched in Amer
lean waters built upon Manhattan Island In
the spring Of 1914 by the early Dutch settlers
She was named "Onrust," meaning Restless" and
constructed from timber cut from the trees
growing along the shore where the keel laid
This is supposed to have been somewhere between
the present ReCtOr-st and the Battery. Lieutenant
Kelley describes her being "a yacht A feet in
length and Il feet inches in beam. proportions
Enthusiastically Dutch, and still handed down In
the most favorite type Of small boat found in
waters"
This was the first American yacht" says Kelley
though. this fact we have no authentic
history Of the sport previous to the beginning OF
this century" In England Yachting dates from
1904 when Henry Prince of Wales had a pleasure
craft built by that master constructor. Phineas
Pett, to whom the English navy owed 50 much Of
its success in the reign of the early Stuarts The
idea, so Pepys and Evelyn tell US, was taken from
the Dutch. and in the diaries OF both there are
quaint and occasional references to the pastime
From these gather that the spnrtive King
Charles we'll satisfied with the results of his
first race sailed in 1862. in the yacht Mary, boat
presented to him by the Dutch East India Com
pary, for Pepys writes: by water WooIwich
On way the yacht lately built with the
help of Commissioner Prtt. Set out from Green
wich with the little Dutch began 70 try for the
mastery. and before they Cot to Woolwich the
Dutch beat them half Il mile and l hear this
afternoon, on coming home. it got before three
miles which all our people glad Of. Th, King"
he says. hath been L" ths. yacht which Com
missioner PETIT is building. which will b. very
pretty; and also that his brother at WoolwiCh IS
making" And at a later date he enters in his book
Mr.. Grant showed letters of Sir William
Petty's. in which he ays that his vessel which he
built upon two keels-a model whereof has been
built for the King-hath this day CJuIy 81 1863, won
a wager of ESQ in sailing between Dublin and Holy
head with the pacquette boat the best boat the
King ha IN there
I'm their going back from Iolyhead they started
together. and the vessel came Dublin by o'clock
at night, and the packet before O'Clock
the next morning. and when they came they did not
believe this vessel had been drowned, or at least
left behind not thinking she could have lived that
sea. Strang" stories hntd "f this famous craft
hut at last shr was lost in sInu"st which over
whelmed the great hr.t the night
John Evelyn, most honest and luckiest Of chroni-
Cers. notes that on the last Of October lG5l he
sailed with his majesty In of lis yachts nr
rI'as boats vessels not known among us until
tie Dutch East IudtI Company presented that curl
GUS rier" To the kipg-nrd being very excellent
sailing vessels"
The first Coriuthian match of which there is rec
orl was sailed about this Time. the contest being
between King Charlcs's new pleasure. boat. built
frtgat"-lik".' and one of the Yachts belonging to
the Duke Of York. aftcrward KiIa of England The
stakes OF thcSc royal gamNst"ys were fldJ The
course was from Greenwich To- GrIytsenl and back
ard the King lost IT going, but saved stakes re-
turning. sometimes stpcrin; himself. his ma irstv
being aboard with divers noble persons and lords" ="
In 1862 Pcpys again said: August Il 10 Lam
beth. and there saw the little pleasure boats In
building for the King, my Lord Hr"WwiCker and
the virtuosus OF the town. according TO lines
which MIR. Pett cries w nightly. but how it Will
prove we shall soon see
From all this may be seen that the Dutch
Doubtless originated ths typA but % EngiIAhDOa