Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-10-22
TO CROSS THE OCEAN
Motor Beats to Compete for
the Atlantic Cup.
A DARING PROJECT
RULES AND REGULATIONS Gov
ERNING THE CONTEST.
Main Question is How to Garry suAa-
Client Fuel for Such q
Long Trip.
A DARING PROJECT
Special Correspondence OF The Evening Star.

| Special Correspondence OF The Evening Star.
PARIS, October 8, 1904.
If you are in New York during next July,
go out In one Of the excursion boats that
will be advertising, to scan the eastern
horizon for portentous twentieth century
sight.
At first you will see nothing but the waste
of the Atlantic. smooth as a lake, In all
probability, at that favored time of year.
Something is coming. Thousands strain
their eyes. There is no smoke. No mast
is visible No great transatlantic hull
slides over the horizon.
But, all at once, you hear them cry, 1t
comes. 1t will be comparatively near you
before you see it. 1t will be narrow
and long-like an arrow. 1t will be almost
fiat or cylindrical 1t will dash great
masses of white foam from its sides. And
it will dart past you like projectile, to dis
appear in the direction of New York.
You will have then seen the winner of the
Atlantic Cup" for ocean-going automobile
boats, or motor boats, autonefS or mo-
toscaphes, or whatever 1t may be finally
decided to call them-just organized In
Paris under the patronage of some of the
greatest names in sport, industry and So
cial position.
Two prizes, aggregating $4,000, have al
ready been offered: but as these motor
from Sc, 900 to $4,000 apiece, and as it Is
calculated that the petroleum-essence nee
essary to take one of them a winner from
Havre to New York will cost alone 81 400
1t becomes clear that this will be a race
for fame rather than money, to be con-
tested by rich men and great Industrial
firms.
The organization of the Atlantic Cup IS
complete: President, Henri de Rothschild;
vice presidents, M. lie Marquis de Chasse-
loup-Laubat and Henri Deutsch, the great
petroleum ref1ner, who offered and paid
1250O0 francs drigible balloon prize won by
Santos-Dumont, and who has just offered a
100000 franc flying machine prize on COM
paratively easy conditions On the technical
committee celebrated engineers, cap
tains of industry, big newspaper editors and
admira1s of the French navy-one of whom,
Admiral Fourier, is On the point of pub
fishing detailed report on the subject Of
these ocean-going craft of tomorrow.
which, If rumors in French navy circles are
| to be believed, must inevitably replace tor
pedo boats and present-day submarines and
cause a maritime revolution the vastness
Of whose extent cannot yet be imagined.
Rules for the Contest
The rules and regulations adopted by this
technical committee are wisely liberal, few
| in number, and without harassing details
| this being in itself a triumph of the new
French spirit:
1. Every latitude is accorded to contest
ants, both with respect to the dimensions
| of the boats and the force of their motors.
2. No motor-boat will be allowed to start
unless 1t has already developed, on trial
| trips. a speed greater than fifteen marine
knots (nearly twenty-eight kilometers) per
hour. CThis Is equivalent to doing the kill
ometer in two ninutes)
| 3. Each contesting boat must be disposed
| to transport a minimum crew of six men
and must actually start with at least that
| number on board.
| 4. The boats must make the whole trip
| by their sole means on board. that Is to
| say, without replenishing en- route
8. All boats fulfilling the above conditions
| shall be allowed to start in case their motor
| is such that 1t can be theoretically started
| in ten seconds.
| Mr.. Lewis Nixon, in an interview just ca
bled from New York, says:
Il am building a motor boat, and eight
| weeks from now 1 shall start her across
| the ocean. She is genuine auto-boat and
will have at least twenty-five knots speed"
| The fifth rule above was inserted to define
| this particular question, to what is and
what is not a genuine motor-boat within
| the understanding. at least of the techni-
| cal committee of the Atlantic Cup" There
| are little steam yachts that can be coaled
| up for starting in a comparatively short
| time. On the other hand, the great trans
-, atlantic liners require their fires to be light
| ed several days in advance to get their boil
ers properly going. One of the distinguish
| ing features of the automobile petroleum
motor, is. Of course, its practically instan-
taneous quality: You give turn to a