The St. Louis Republic. [volume] (St. Louis, Mo.) 1888-1919, 1903-04-12
Miss Nora Iselin Bestows Name
Reliance" on New Craft That
Is TO Uphold Sea Honors.
YACHTSMEN AT THE LAUNCHING
Work of Stepping Mast Will Be
gin Tomorrow - Spectators
Much Impressed by the Har-
reshOff Boats Appearance.

Bristol. L. /, April u-wlth an Ameri-
can eagle at her bow the cup defender Re
lance was lsunched at the Herreshofr
Works just before shutdown to-day.
Five hundred persons stood beside the
glistening under body Of the yacht when. at
81 o'clock this afternoon. Miss Cora Iselin.
daughter OF g. Oliver Iselin. the managing
owner Of the boat. broke. with the sturdy
blow Of a silver hammer. the traditional
bottle OF champagne. saying at the same
christen thee Reliance, and may God
| bless thee"
Laurel vreaths and punches Of plnks
tied with red and black ribbons. the racing
colors OF Mt. lselin. were f~estooned for
ward. and as the yacht slowly drew out OF
the shop the American Yacht ensign was
raised al the stern. with Mr.. Isclin'S p-i-
yate signal am!dships. and tine coiors OF
the New York Yacht club at the bow.
Three thousand persons in steam yachts,
street behind the shops greeted the initial
plunge OF The Reliance with lusty cheers.
while a busier, on a torpedo boat played
the Star ~Spansled Banner.
Among the yachts anchored OF the works
was the constitutional the unsuccessful
candidate for cup honors two years ago,
COMPARISONS MADE.
flags. and as the Renance lay for a few
minutes alongside her older sister. some
comparison of the lines of the two boats
could be made 1t was then seen that the
bow Of the Reliance turns out OF the water
more sharply. that her stern IS lower and
%fat;cr. and that she has a trifie less free
board.
The new boat. however. was soon hauled
back into the dock. where she will he
risged- The work Of stepping the mast
Il is expected that she will have her trial
trip in about then days. after which she
will have a thorough trying out. meeting
hnsh the Constitution md Thn Tn1Tr-0hfn IN
a series of thirty-five races in Long Island
Sound. OF Sandy Hook and at Newport
Should she prove superior to her two II
walls. she Will meet Shamrock III In the
first Of the cup races on August IL
The Reliance Is a decided departure on
the part of Herreshon from his other
cup defenders and an excellent example of
the, American type OF fat-hoored, fin
keeled dish as was the Independence. but
she nevertheless resembles the Crownin-
shield boat more than she does any of her
predecessors built here Her lines are very
easy, with few hard pieces and a grace
ful, sweeping curve from the bilges into
the garboards.
STERN is FLAT.
Her stern is very fiat. so that she will
ieave but little wake. while her bow. al
though not quite so broad and fiat as THAI
OF the Independence. Is still very much dit
tuition or the Columbia. She has a long
keel. but wing 20 her good beam does not
carry so much lead IN the bulb as the
other cup defenders. Her bow. toward the
end. Is quite sharp. while her t~raffrail
measures scarcely eight feet.
Her greatest beam Is well up in the
shoulders. and Is carried aft many feet
At the wsterline. forward. she IS curved
like the inside of a saucer. IL Is believed
that her strongest point OF sailing will he
with started sheets in a comparatively
smooth sea She Is also likely TO. 90 very
fast down the wind. her long keel holding
her well on her course.
Her weakest paint. therefore. will he on
the wind. with iattened sheets. n point on
which the Shamrock is said to be very fast
The broad floor OF the Reliance probably
will cause her TO pound considerably. es-
pecially In a lump Of the sea.
The boat. however. with her easy lines
and her tremendous sail spread of more
than l5.GoO square feet. will be easily driven.
and II seemed TO be the unanimous opinion
Of those yachtsmen who saw her to-day
that she would prove the fastest sailing
vessel ever built.
The launching was a great success. The
weather IS perfect. with a light breeze
blowing of shore. so that there was no
danger of heavy seas rolling into the dock
and throwing the craft against the side of
the pier.
The FURNISHED under body OF the Reliance
as she stoop propped up in her cradle
aroused much admiration II shone like old
gold. and so well had It been rubbed down
by the sailors that II seemed as II the very
bolts must have been parts of the plates.
The seams were scarcely discernible. while
the rudder was a marvel of workmanship.