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Show Columbia Shows the Shamrock 0tean Inels New Y'ork, Oct. 19. Had the- wind held today, the Columbia-Shamrock series for the America's cup would have ended in three straight wins for the defender and the Irish cup hunter would have sailed home without the trophy, beaten as decisively as any former for-mer candidate. Only the failure of the wind saved the Shamrock from a defeat de-feat more stinging than on Monday. Today she was beaten on the run to the outer mark, five minutes and fifty-one seconds, elapsed time and on the leg home, which should have been a beat, but which, owing to a shift of the wind was a broad reach, the Columbia sailed away from her like a witch. When the race was declared off, about ten minutes before the expiration of the time limit, Columbia was leading by about three miles. She was then four miles from the finish. Had the race ended the Shamrock would have been beaten by at least twenty minutes. Sir Thomas' hard luck continued to follow. His boat was very badly handled han-dled today in spite of the aggregation of talent aboard of her. The two English Eng-lish captains and the captain of Emperor Em-peror William's yacht Meteor, failed to get the Shamrock over the line before the gun was fired, and she went into the race penalized by two seconds on that account. VICTIM OF BLUNDERS. The additional ballast which was put into her yesterday also seems to have been a blunder on the part of her managers, man-agers, as it increased the size of the doby to be forced through the water and in the light air that prevailed today, to-day, retarded -instead of increased her speed. What the Shamrock may be able to do in rough weather and a stiff wind is still problematical, but after the drubbing she has received, the experts are almost unanimous in the belief that the Columbia can take her measure in light airs or a gale of wind. The crew of the Shamrock have given it up. They. are now convinced that we have the better boat. Before the race on Monday they had the most supreme confidence in their abi"ty :to win with Shamrock. - ' "There-was ' no living with them," said one of the Yankee tars on the Shamrock's tender Lawrence. "They did not think their boat would win: j they absolutely knew it. They would not even, henr ;irrument;. After thpv returneei from the race Monday they were so sore that they would not speak to each other. Now they are frank enough to admit that the Columbia is the better boat by ten minutes over a thirty-mile course." MAY BE MORE RACING. The boats will race again tomorrow, and even if the Columbia wins it is possible two more races will be sailed. A proposition to this effect has been made and Sir Thomas seems anxious that it be carried out. He has been greatly disappointed in the showing his boat has made, but believes she might do better over a triangular course in a heavier wind and has said he 'would be very pleased to sail tvo more races. This was a rad' - ,t day for those afloat. Though a light haze hung over the horizon, not a cloud flecked the sky. A ten-knot land breeze blew out of the northwest and the foam-tipped wavelets wave-lets running on the gentle ground swell shimmered in the bright sun. A big holiday crowd went out to witness what all supposed would be the last race of the cup series, and the sightseers sight-seers were treated to a rare picture as they bowled down the harbor. The bay was alive with sails. Fifty or more sailing ships of every style, from coasting schooners to lofty square-rigged ships bound for the Indies In-dies or the China seas, which had been harbor-bound for two weeks, were taking tak-ing advantage of the favoring breeze, and like a flock of wild gulls, were speeding seaward with their spreading 1 pinions gleaming in the sun. I THE COURSE LAID OUT. The course today was laid . fifteen miles before the wind, southeast by south, straight out to sea. After some pretty maneuvering behind the line. Captain Barr, on the Columbia, bested the talent, aboard the challenger, sending send-ing the Columbia flying across the line twenty-seven seconds ahead of his adversary. ad-versary. So badly had the Shamrock miscalculated that the handicap gun boomed two seconds before the green boat crossed, and she sailed away with that penalty, in addition to the sixteen seconds she allows the white wonder now under the new measurements. The race to the outer mark was not exciting. Both yachts crossed with bulging balloons, mainsails and their largest club topsails drawing. But, as the wind had pulled a little to the southward after the .course had been set, instead of keeping away from the mark, they made almost a triangular race of it. Without setting their spinnakers, spin-nakers, they luffed sharply to starboard, star-board, each striving for the weather eaue. ' The Columbia showed her rival a fleet pair of heels, gaining gradually from the start. For almost an hour the luffing continued, carrying the yachts four miles off their course. SQUARED AWAY FOR THE MARK. . The Shamrock having been bau!y beaten in her attempt to get to windward, wind-ward, both squared away for the mark, breaking out their big spinnakers to the wind. After watching the yachts run before the wind for an hour, during dur-ing which the breeze gradually died down to .about five knots or less, the excursion fleet turned ahead and gathered gath-ered about the float to witness the turn. By the time they had lined up the big yachts could hardly be. seen. Through the haze across the water they looked like phantom pyramids. The wind kept failing, and there was a long wait. The excursion boats became be-came impatient as they lay wallowing in the swell, and, they shifted their positions po-sitions occasionally, starting and stopping stop-ping their engines. The balloons of the big sloops bellied in and out, shivered, collapsed, and the race was degenerating into a drifting drift-ing match as they approached the mark. The challenger was directly astern of the Columbia, trying with her mountains of canvas to blanket the towering sails of the Yankee. j THE COLUMBIA A WIZARD. I But Columbia was a wizard. Somehow Some-how she managed to get wind enough from . somewhere to keep her slipping through the water, and in vain the Shamrock strained to overtake her. -The yachts were half an hour covering cover-ing the last mile. Slowly but stately as a queen the white Leviatian went around the mark and filled away. Passing Pass-ing the Shamrock, still outward bound, close aboard on her weather, she robbed her of the light breeze and left her with drooping wings, utterly becalmed for a full minute. - It murst, have been- a minute of intense in-tense chagrin aboard the challenger, and the patriots could not but feel a sense of pity for the loser. A brass-throated brass-throated chorus had greeted the Columbia Co-lumbia as she turned, and the salute was repeated with added vigor when the Shamrock went around six minutes and eighteen seconds later. THE COLUMBIA'S GAIN. The Columbia had gained five minutes min-utes and fifty-one seconds in the fifteen fif-teen miles to leeward. About three and a half hours had been consumed, and there appeared no chance for either yacht to get home, but as the breeze J continued to haul it to the southward it made a fair wind for the return journey, and as it freshened to teil knots soon afterwards, a faint hope of finishing within the time limit arose, i The Yankee sailed away from, her rival like a ghost ship, leaving her far astern, increasing the distance between them so rapidly that " when the race was declared off at 4:19 she was leading lead-ing by three miles. |
