Omaha daily bee., 1908-07-12
No CHALLENGE FROM Upton
Sir Thomas Not Yet Heard From by
New York Club.
SUGGESTS CHANGE IN CONDITIONS
London Sporting Paper nnOunces
Proposals that Do Not Exactly
Square with the Deed
of Gift.

NEW YORK, July 11.-,Cable messages
from London say that Sir Thomas Upton
is about the challenge again for the
Americas cup, The Field, a sporting pub
~lication, announces the conditions as fol-
lows:
''First-The new yacht shall be cutter
rugged and built under the present uni
versal rule of the New York Yacht club.
"~Second-The New York Yacht club shall
designate the size of the yacht which 1t
considers most suitable for the race
Sir Thomas is reported to have expressed
the hope that his American friends would
see their way clear to meet his wishes.
The size of the boat, he said, was no OBJ
ject to him. Before challenging, it was
said, Sir Thomas desired to find the senti-
ment regarding the acceptance Of his chal-
lenge. In case a race is decided upon, he
will ask permission to build two boats and
race them against each other to select a
Shamrock ".
Cornelius Vanderbilt, the president of
the New York Yacht club. said that he
had heard nothing regarding Sir Thomas
Lipton's challenge. Neither did he be-
lieve that any sentiment existed in the
yacht club other than that expressed in
the letter sent to Sir Thomas last fall, in
which the club insisted that it would meet
yachts built with no other restrictions
than those involved In the deed of gift"
of the Americas cup. 1t was said at the
office of the secretary, G. A. Cormack,
that no challenge had been received from
Sir Thomas. Mr.. Cormack emphatically
denied that the club had accepted a chal-
lenge. When a formal challenge has been
received it will receive the proper consid-
Grafton. A canvass of the prominent mem
bers of the club failed to reveal any senti-
ment in favor of racing under conditions
other than have been in vogue. Several
expressed themselves as sceptical regarding
a challenge this year. They spoke of Sir
Thomas in words of commentator, how
ever. and expressed a hope that If he again
tried for the cup he would desire to do so
under the old conditions.
The Americas cup was given under a
deed of gift which contains but one re-
striction. that of the length Of the water
line. 1t calls for a boat pre-eminent for
speed and requiring the utmost skill in de-
signing, construction and management.
The Americans have always believed that
the cup should be sailed for by the most
powerful and fastest boat possible to build,
They look upon the Americas cup as call
ing for speed alone, without regard to COM
fort or. as Sir Thomas puts it. a whole
some and seaworthy type of boat" The
English of late have developed the theory
that the yachts raced should adopt the
universal rule, which makes a scientific
comparison of sail. beam. length and all
other dimensions.
ON September %, 1905, the New York
Yacht club declined a challenge from the
Royal Irish Yacht club, which desired tc
race two sixty-eight-foot boats under New
York Yacht club rules. In his challeng,
Sir Thomas expressed himself as believing
that this length was fitted TO the limita
lions of the cup class. There existed
difference of opinion among the zach
clubs members regarding the acceptanc,
of these conditions, but the men WHIT
financed yacht races in the past put thei
feet down hard on the proposition to rae,
under any conditions other than those al
lowed by the deed of gift. They said 1t wa
belittling to the cup to accept the chal
lenge of a small boat. Unless the Sham
rock " It to be sailed under the sam
conditions that ave governed the previou
contests. there is little doubt that Rnothe
challenge will be declined.