A LATE BOAT RACE. 259 



advantage, as everyone knows who has ever rowed 

 astern of a racing-boat. No boat's chance has ever 

 been injured by forcing the pace, and in nine races out 

 of ten the boat which has been first for the first half- 

 mile has been first past the winning-post. What he 

 adds about the Cambridge boat being * done with ' and 

 * done for ' at Hammersmith, and about a rumour 

 reaching Putney that the Cambridge boat had been 

 taken off at Chiswick, is simply absurd. The writer of 

 the article may have been at Putney while the race 

 was rowed ; but he should not have believed that so 

 preposterous a rumour was ever mentioned there, 

 except as a joke. It is only necessary to examine the 

 time-records of the latter half of the race to see that 

 Cambridge were not < done for and done with ' at 

 Hammersmith, nor yet at Barnes Bridge. The race 

 was over at Hammersmith, beyond all doubt. That is, 

 it was clear then, and even earlier, that, bar accidents, 

 Oxford must win. But Cambridge rowed the race out 

 to the end. They not only did not fall astern faster 

 in the last half than in the first half of the race, but 

 they made as good time, mile for mile, in the latter 

 half as in the first. 



To say the truth, many who are either unfamiliar 

 with the conditions under which boat races are rowed, 

 or do not duly consider them, misapprehend altogether 

 the probabilities in the case of a struggle of this sort. 

 They seem to think a close race should be the usual 

 event, instead of the reverse ; and when one boat Avins 

 by a long distance they think it necessarily follows that 



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