The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-08-02
MEN, WOMEN
 AND THINGS

The year 1851 was notable for the open ing of the first worlds fair ever held, at the Crystal Palace in London; and among one of the ceremonies attending the open ing was great international yacht race at Cowes, England,
 l Now, this in itself would not be of very great interest to Americans were it not for the fact that the America was sent over to represent the United States and flew the Stars and Stripes? This famous yacht was built at New York by George Steers and launched in March, 1851 |
 The Americas principal owner was J. c. Stevens, who in 1S44 had founded the New York Yacht Club and become it's first commodore. She was of the type known as a New York pilot boat Her first race in American waters was against the sloop Maria, known as the fastest yacht in the world. and it was thought that the America did well in winning one race out of three.
 l The America sailed across the Atlantic in seventeen days under cruising rig, and from the moment of her arrival at Cowes i she became an object both of curiosity and apprehension, for her reputation had preceded her, and her quick trip showed that she was seaworthy in every way. ! The fame of the New York pilot boats, then and now as superior craft, was great in England.
 The most singular unanimity pre- New York Herald that the Yankee Gas she is most improperly styled) was able to outsail creation, with the excep- 1 tion at least of the Maria, the other Yankee boat, which had bested her two out of three. Yet still the lurking hope, which ever filled Mir Micawbers bosom, that something might turn up to save the honor of the old land, was lingering around many heart"
 l By many she was thought to be 'oniy a trick of build,' and the cheerful as- surance would burst forth from the Brit
 sh bosom that if the Yankee showed her heels to he- competitors that John Bull would be ready if the cup went to Uncle Sam. to build one in twelvemonth that would be able to bring it back home. But little did any Englishman at the time dream that their oversea cousins were going to get such tight grip on the trophy that many an English yacht would cross and return without it.
 The regatta of the Royal Yacht dates back to 1915 in it's formal capacity, was scheduled for Friday, August 9, 1851. The race was to be open to all yachts, with no time allowance of any kind, the lcourse being round the Ise of Wight, inside No Mans buoy and Sand Head buoy. and outside of the Nab" So much for the course, now word about the America and her owner.
 She was built at New York by the firm of George and James R. Steers, for the special purpose of competing with British yachts at Cowes in the sinterna- tional regatta George Steers, who was born in New York, designed her, the de- sgner being a son of Henry Steers. a shipwright at Dartsmouth. The regis tered owners of the vessel were J. c. Stevens, the commodore of the New York Yacht Club; c. A. Stevens, H. Wilkes and J. B. FinIay. Her crew consisted of thir- lteen all told, seven seanen before the mast two mates, cook, steward, boy and l cAf down at about $10o per ton, and her builder vas to receive one-third more should she succeed 'n outsailing any lcompetitors of the same tonnage in Eng land''
 Now. for a description of the boat itself. IThe America had long, lean, hollow entrance and rather short but firm run, hut her lines were graceful and clean, and the transverse sections amidships very gentle and shapely. She had a clipper Ibow and an cleptical stern. Her masts
 raked, and she carried a mainsail laced to the boom, which in those days was almost unknown in England; foresaii. a ib on a jibboom, but this was not re- garded as of much account Being a llan6sman pure and simple. have merely copied the above terms without their having the least meaning for me.
 |
 But taking it for granted that some of my readers have, lived by the sea, l
 will also add the principal dimensions of the America in order that they may be contrasted with those of the Resolute and Sharl, ock ". Tonnage, I'll: length over all, e4 feet; on the keel. s2 feet; beam. 22k feet; foremast 791A feet; mainmast, sl feet with rake of 27s inches to the foot lin each mast); hollow bowsprit, 17 feet out board only; foregaff, "A feet; main boom 5s feet. I'll confess that yacht. be- ling a Dutch word, the above figures all are Dutch to me
 She was ballasted with pig iron; 2 tons of the iron were permanently built into tthe vessel, and the rest slowed inside. Below deck she was comfortably fitted for the living accommodation of the own Ter. guests and crew; and a cockpit on deck was a feature that few English yachts of the period possessed. This was the America as she lined up at her sta tion off the clubhouse, strange looking lcraft onough, with her long, low, black hull, her breadth of beam and her thick, ist'ff-lookine. rakish masts.
 Fitted against her to uphold the glory