The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1907-02-14
ENGLAND's MANY YACHT
The Most Exclusive Ia the Royal Ytol ,
Squadron at Ceyss.

Squadron at Cey'os.
There are forty-three yacht clubs n
Great Britain, most OF them uaolG-
lished at ports On the English coaat.
Several important ones LeiCng In
Scotland and ireland. the OlC1jt ore
OF them all-the Royal CorE-haYing
its headquarters at Queenstown. Ih.s
one was founded in 4 10.
The chief of all the British clubs
is the Royal Yacht Squadron, iCunded
in 1872, with headquarters at Cowes.
1t is the most exclusive instItu .on Ia
England, no one, until quite recently,
being admitted member OF ii with
out The approval of King Edward.
When his Majesty was Prince OF
Wales he oficiated as commodore, but
on his accession to the throne he re-
linquished the position. The club.
however, still retains its character for
exclusiveness, and according to
Baily's Magazine, no candidate can
hope to secure election unless pos
sessed OF considerable social influence.
The ballot is so severe that the
"pillng'' of extremely we'll known
sportsmen frequently takes place,
much to the chagrin "a their pro-
posers. On one OCCASION certain
ropal parsonage is said to have been
SO annoyed at finding one OF his NOM
inees blackballed that he promptly
rendered his own resignation.
Among those who have belonged to
the club for at least thirty years are
the Duke of Connaught, the Duke of
Fife and the Marquis of Ormonde. OF
those who have joined more recently
the best known are perhaps the Earl
of Dunraven and Marquis of Zetland.
The list of yachts registered to fly the
squadron burgee includes such univer-
sally famous ones as the Meteor, be-
longing to the German emperor; the
Sunbeam of Lord Brassey, and the
tion all members pay an entrance fee
of G105. while the annual subscrip-
tion is G 16.
The yacht club next in Importance
is the Royal Thames, estaDushed In
1923. The membership (Which is linn
tied to 1,0OO) includes the Emperor OF
Russia, the King OF the Belgians, the
Prince of Wales, Lord Brassey and
Sir Donald Currie.
The uniform OF the X. /. Y. c. Is
unique in its way. 1t consists Of a
/ plain blue cloth dress coat and w'ite
waistcoat. each with special buttons,
and either blue cloth or white duck
! trousers, according to the season. In
undress short blue jacEet is worn
! in place of the tail coat.
The annual subscription is eight
| guineas, except in the case Of MEM
bers owning yachts of not less than
nine tons, Thames measurements. For
these latter the yearly dues are re-
duced to six guineas.
Another old established yacht club
is the Royal Western Yacht Club of
England. Membership is restricted to
500, and no one can be elected if the
ballot shows him to have received one
black ball against five white. The
clubhouse, which is at Plymouth, con-
tains a number of valuable pictures
and souvenirs.
The Isle Of Wight being the chief
yachting center in Great Britain, the
Royal Victoria Yacht Club has its
headquarters appropriately enough at
Ryde, 1t was established at this port
in 1874 for the encouragement of
yachting among gentlemen owning
property on the island
BY its constitution membership Is
still confined to persons coming under
this heading. Admission to temper
airy membership, however, may be ex-
tended to yacht owners who belong u
other recognized clubs.
Although it was established at SC
comparatively recent date as 1875, the
Royal Southampton Club is recognized
as a leader.
Membership is open to both ladies
and gentlemen, the proportion Of the
former being large.