Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1911-06-30

Regatta. Course. New London, Conn.
June 30.-Awaiting with confidence the
supreme test Of their speed and power
forty tanned and muscular collegians
tum bled out Of their beds at quarters
early today and gazed across the slight
ly zippled river and up at a cloudless
sky, both Of which gave them assurance
Of excellent condition for the forty
fifth meet Of Harvard and Yale in
aquatic sports.
Altho last in order for the days pro-
gram the first in importance was the
varsity eight cared contest. The bet
ting favored the crimson oarsmen
among the hotels and along the water
front this afternoon, and the odds,
which were 10 to 9 on Harvard, In
creased to 10 to 6 before 10 o'clock to-
day.
The freshmen oarsmen stepped into
the shells from the two launches, John
Harvard and Elihu Yale, and at 10:4O
o'clock were ready for the signal.
After the crews got near the starting
mark the Yale crew protested against
starting the race on account Of strong
wind and water. Harvard wanted to
row at once but consented to a delay
until 11:3O o'clock.
The starting pistol sent the fresh
men away on their two mile struggle
at 1926. In the first dozen strokes
Harvard pulled out one length in the
lead.
After the cheers from boat and shore
that greeted the freshmen crews at the
finish had subsided the varsity sub
stitute four lined up for their two
mile stretch still farther up the river,
with the rowing conditions in good
shape. It took some little time to get
the fours into POSITION but at 1853 the
pistol shot sent them away. Harvard
jumped into the lead at the start by
half a length but Yale quickly drew up
on almost even terms.
Ancient intercollegiate Sport.
Harvard and Yale rowing antedates
all other intercollegiate sport Back in
1852, two crews in crude boats pulled
over a two-mile course on Lake VIM
nipesaukee, and Harvard won. Since
that initial event, the two universities
have met forty-three times, in various
places, and at various distances, with
Harvard winning a majority of the
early races and Yale proving faster IN
later years, until today the record
stands: Yale %, Harvard 81.
From Lake Winnipesaukee the scene
shifted to the Connecticut river at
Springfield then to Lake Quinsiga-
mond at Worcester. Lake SaltOnstall
near New Haven was tried also, and
in one year Harvard cast her lot with
other colleges at Poughkeepsie. Rae
ing at New London began in 1878, and
several times there have been three
crews on the river. Cornell came here
in 1898 and beat both Yale and Har-
ward, but since that time the two old
est universities have rowed only each
other over four mile course.
Yales longest series Of successive
victories, six in number was broken by
Harvard in 1906, and, while the blue
won in 1907, the crimson has been to
the fore for the past three years and
with powerful collection Of varsity,
freshman and substitute fours have
swept the river on every occasion ex-
cept the four-oared race in 1908.
The two varsity came to New Lon
don this year after an unsuccessful pre-
liminary season Yale had met defeat
twice. once at Springfield by Pennsyl-
vania, and again at Princeton by both
Cornell and Princeton. while at Ithaca,
Harvard was beaten by Cornell.
Until most recent practice, the
Thames bore a decidedly crimson hue,
for Harvard's boat load OF veterans was
looked upon as far superior to the green
ma terial in the Yale SHE'LL But the i'm
provement of the Yale crew since the
Princeton race has been marked, espec-
tally in recent practice.
Five Of them, Metcalf, Wilmington,
Strong, Newton and Cutler, were in the
boat that beat Yale last year, while
two others, Stratton and Goodale, rowed