Year: 1870

The cup won by the yacht America is a


peculiar interest to the whole country as an


evidence of the victory of the little craft which


bore our colors in contest that arrayed


against her the best boats and the best sailors


of the people who are our only rivals on the
ocean. 1t is the sign of a fact that is signif-


cant In national sense--the fact that the
American people tried, with equal oppor-


tunity, have at least no superiors Oh
the sea. In the race this cup memo
rizes first class American yacht sailed
against feet Of yachts that represented


the best nautical skill of England, and beat


them, with distance to spare. Here was a
simple trial of those qualities in the two
people that have made them great maritime
nations. In his origin the sailor is merely
man thrown upon the sea with piece Of tim
Der. He is driven to dare the element by
some necessity in his circumstances. If he
has not those qualities Of head, hand and
heart that at him for the struggle with winds


and waters, he remains man on piece of tim
ber AZ long as he lasts. He may get second
timber and crosspiece, and may stumble on
the contrivance of a rudimentary sail, or he
may get his timber dug out on one
side This is as far as certain races
ever get, though compelled to struggle
with the sea for indefinite ages. On the con-
trary, If the man has the sailor in his natuxe
| his timber gets a rudder, mast, a keel,
! bowsprit, and in time becomes a ship. Now,
there are differences in the degrees Of excel
opment of their craft. One has an eye for
grace and trims his craft to please the sense


Of beauty, and the other, caring little for this,
| secures perhaps some equivalent advantage
The final question is as to who has the best
average Of good qualities, and this question
between peoples is never to be determined
save by such practical test as that in which
the America beat the British heet-a test
which fully proved the qualities of the peoples
! who are the two great rivals for the mastery


of tke ocean. It is because it is significant Of
| the result Of such q contest that the cup won


by the America has a national interest.


| But it promises to become also to the world


at large q symbol Of supremacy on the sea.


British yachtmen, recognizing this character
in it, chafe at the thought that such symbol


should so long remain here, and desire TO
make it subject to another test Their theory


Is that since we won the cup there have been
| such changes in the relative status Of the
nations, as shipbuilders and sailors, that this


cup, so far as it is sign of superiority in


these respects, is no longer justly ours. They


claim that they prohtably accepted the unplea-
SAINT lesson Of the Americas triumph relin-
qnished the errors that they had held till


then, and since that time have greatly


improved their vessels in all the capabilities


of good ships, while we, on the other hand,


have remained stationary. 1t is, we believe,


just; but no evidence has yet been
| given of this by victory over


American yachts. We do not forget the


Sappho; but the fact that she was crippled


depriyes her defeat of fair value as test of


the points at issue. There has been change


in vessels relatively in some important


respects. For instance, in the time of the
America the best point Of the British yachts


was to sail before the wind The America
| was best on the wind. Now our boats are


better before the wind than they then were,


and English yachts have improved in what


was their bad point. We do not know that
| the change has been so great as to completely
| reverse the respective excellences, but the


boats are at least nearer an average. The


fact Of such a change makes 1t probable that


there may be others as yet less evident. 1t is


only natural that Englishmen, aware Of this
change, should desire new trial. If they


should beat us the cup would 60 once more


to their side; and thus in future the world


may see this trophy changing hands--the


sign for ages Of the possession OF the


supremacy it symbolizes q sort Of
sailors Holy Grail; and as it was tabled in
| old times that the Holy Grail would be found


wherever were the best virtues Of Christian


knight so this may indicate the whereabouts
of the best qualities of maritime people,


| We ought then, to be sure that this trophy


does not pass out Of our hands except upon


the certainty that some other people build


better ships and man them with better sailors


than ours. The only English yaohtman who


has made any proposition with regard to this
cup eutertains an idea Of a race that certainly