The Democratic banner. (Mt. Vernon, Ohio) 1898-192?, 1913-06-20
Between Ya|e ADd Harvard
Occufs 1onorroW
Additional Interest Is Given
The Race This Year

| crews or Yale and Harvard will take
place on the Thames River course
here tomorrow. The big event will be
preceded as usual by the varsity four.
cared race and the freshman eight.
Dared race. The four.oared race will
be rowed upstream at 9:15 o'clock In
the morning, over the lower two miles
| Of the course. As soon as possible
after the finish Of that race the fresh
men eights will row upstream over
the upper two miles of the course.
The big race Of the day will be start.
ed at about $3.50 O'Clock in the after.
noon at the Harvard quarters ana
will be rowed over the four.miIs
course downstream, finishing at the
railroad bridge.
In anticipation of the big regatta
New London today Is It's holiday garD
which 1t dons but once year. The
advance guard Of visitors has already
put in an appearance. But the main
army of the enthusiasts will not ar.
rive until early tomorrow morning,
when they will pour into town by
train, by boat and by automobile,
from Boston, New York. New Haven
and many other points.
It Is one Of the traditions Of Yale
Harvard rowing that the crew which
shows the better form two weeks be.
fore the race will win. Basing their
judgment largely on this tradition, the
majority of the critics predict a VIC.
tory for the Blues In the big race to
morrow. The Yale crew has made a
distinctly better showing in its prac.
tice work. This is the first season
since Harvard began her winning
streak in 1906 that Yale has been the
favorite. But the fact that the Grim
son crew has come to the Thames
this year with record Of defeat by
both Princeton and Cornell earlier in
the season has served to almost en-
tirely reverse the conditions that have
prevailed on the eve Of the Yale. Har.
ward race Of late years.
II Yale does win. tomorrow it will
be one of the most remarkable
achievements in rowing history. Al
ter a season of defeats and a thor
oughly demoralized condition In Yale's
rowing system, to adopt a new and
radically different stroke and produce
a winning crew the very first year
would seem to be an absolute impos.
sibility. The difference between the
English stroke which Yale is rowing
this year, and the Americanized Ems
lish stroke such as has been taught
by nearly all of the professional
coaches is very marked. But it is
believed that any disadvantages re-
sulting from the change of stroke will
be more than Offset by the facts that
the Yale crew is largely composed OF
veterans and that their opponents
seemingly are the weakest crew thai
Harvard has sent to New London IN
years.
Some additional interest IS given
the race this year by the fact that II
Is in the nature of rubber Since
the annual classic had its inception
on Lake Winnipiseogee, sixty-one
years ago, Yale and Harvard have
each been credited with twenty-thret
victories, the duels being fought Out
on the Thames at New London. There
have been many Interruptions since
the first struggle in 1852, so that the
regatta this year is the forty-seventf
meeting of the two oldest American
universities in what many graduate'
regard as the American sporting
classic.
The fastest time ever made on the
Thames was by the Yale crew II
1888, which covered the four miles II
20 minutes and 10 seconds. The fast
est Harvard crew was that OF 1873
which rowed the four miles in 20 min
utse and A 3-4 seconds. The slowes
time by q winning crew was that o
Harvard in 1885, which padded Owe
the course against head wind in q
minutes and IL IL seconds.
The slowest time by losing crev
was when the Yale stroke COLLAPSED
Ave years ago, but recovered in tim
to help the shell over the line In .
: minutes and As seconds. AS Harvar'
} won this race by 3 minutes and 3
seconds, it was estimated that tn
: difference between the two was seven
: lty-two boat lengths, the longest lea
! ever attained by winning crew.
The initial race in 1852 was rowe
, over q two-mile course, which was II
\ creased to three miles in the mex
. race, which was rowed in 1855. Agar
: the distance was increased In 1871
J. this time to four miles, which ha
9 been the length of the varsity race
I ever since.