The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-07-28

are interruptions firms who think noth- ing of giving the skipper a percentage of the money spent with them and they do not neglect to charge this commission on the bills The owner knows that he has had to pay but he cannot stop the graft unless he is a practical man himself, and the majority of yacht owners, especially steam yacht men, are not practical men and have not the time to go into the lit- tie details of the management of their yachts.
 Many shippers have their pet yards where they will take their yachts for overhauling and fitting out. If the owner objects and wishes his vessel taken to some other basin the probabilities are that the skipper will find so much fault with the work that Is done and prove too, that 1t does not compare with work done at other shops, that he will next time have his own way. The engineer, too, has his graft and with the stewards way of running things yachting comes 10 be more of an expense than many own CTS like.
 Some time ago prominent yacht owner found that a steward he had hired was making money too fast When he joined the yacht he was without cent, but in a few weeks he had a good sized roll ana was wearing expensive jewelry, and his salary was only $75 a month. He was discharged and the owner was anxious to find out how he had been worked. He selected a clerk in his office, told him what he wanted to learn and instructed him to go to firms the old steward had been trading with and find out his meth ods. The clerk went to the butcher and said he wanted stores for the - yacht for a two-weeks cruise.
 'sW'ho are you?" asked the tradesman
 "'rhe new steward of the -,' was the reply.
 And what do you want?'
 same as the old steward" said the clerk
 The butcher did some thinking and then said That was 25 per cent and daph- cate bills All right"
 The clerk ordered different meats, paid the erket price less 25 per cent and got bills charging the owner for four and nNe times the amount purchased. me grocer fruiterer and others were Just the same Where five dozen eggs were ordered the bill was for twelve dozen, and so on. The owner learned how he had been swim dled. and he said: ""The only way to stop It. as far as I know, Is to do your mar keting yourself, and l don't care to do yachting that way
 There are many stewards who protect their employers interests. and there are some firms who will not do business tii's way hut the unScrupulOuS stewart SooH learns who these business men are ana they are carefully avoided.
 The towboat man Is another who Is do- ing much to hurt yachting The towoodt skipper thinks that a yachtman IS leg 'u- mate prey. and he will take every ad- vantage of him. The unlucky owner who lets his craft get ashore will have 10 pay dearly to get her pulled off by towboat. Often se00 or sS00 has been paid to get off sand bank when if the owner had waited he could have hoated ms yacHt off with the next tide.
 A disabled yacht, too. is a fine thihs TOT a towboat man. One small sloop was dls- masted during the Crescent Athletic clu5 regatta a few weeks ago. It was raln- ing hard and the yacht in her trouble could not be seen from the committee boat or if would have been lowed ir. \ tugboat captain sped the disabled cratt and offered to tow 1t into the basin not more than half mile away for s25, ana he got the job. !,
 These are only a few of the troubles or A yachtsman He Is never free from them and they are driving men into other sports and those who should be doing what they could to foster the sport ana thus bring legitimate business to them selves are doing all they can to drive men out of the sport. and as result every basin is now filled with yachts on the sale list.