6CT. 28, 1899. 
FOREST AND Sfi^l^AM. 
88 
COLUMBIA. 
Copyright, 1899, by J. C. Hemment. 
though they should have been square in her wake. They 
held this course until ix :45, when Shamrock started main 
sheet and squared her spinaker boom, which had been run 
forward, breaking out her spinaker at 11:51; Columbia 
following each maneuver. In all the work thus far, slow 
as it was, the gain had been on the side of Columbia. 
They ran along in a lighter breeze and smooth water imtil 
12:45, when Shanu-ock in answer to a little shift jibed over 
and reset her spinaker to port, Columbia following three 
minutes later. Nearly an hour of drifting followed. Co- 
lumbia now worlcing ahead; at 1.33 they jibed booms to 
port as the wind shifted to the west. A little later they 
set spinakers to starboard. Before the mark was reached 
they took in spinakers and set baby jib topsails. The 
turn was very slow, Columbia almost drifting up to the 
mark and luffing round at 2 :24 :45, while Shamrock though 
not far away did not turn until 2 131 :03 ; to all appearances 
the new lead had anchored her most effectually in light 
weather. When Columbia turned she started home on 
port tack with the wind still from the west, allowing her 
to head well up the course. Shamrock, on the contrary, 
held by the mark on starboard tack for eight minutes, to 
her serious detriment. The wind was so nearly on 
Columbia's beam that shortly after 3 o'clock she set her 
No. 2 jib topsail in place of the baby; at 3:38 she set her 
balloon foresail and at 3:50 she broke out her balloon jib 
topsail. With the wind thus easing until Columbia laid 
her course in on the port tack, all of Shamrock's star- 
board tack was a loss of distance. At 4 o'clock Columbia 
• was nearly a couple of miles ahead, and when the race was 
called at 4 :24, she being then three miles from the light- 
ship, she still held her lead. The wind was very uneven 
and fluky all the way in from the turn, and Columbia per- 
haps had the better of the little flukes, but she had fairly 
outsailed Shamrock on the way out, and it was plain that 
with her added ballast the latter had no chance of win- 
ning in the weather in which she showed to such good ad- 
vantage in the first three days. 
ELEVENTH DAY— FRIDAY, OCT. 20. 
Columbia Wins by 6 Min. 18 Sec. 
Friday morning was cloudy, with a moderate northerly 
breeze that at last promised to hold. When the fleet 
reached the Lightship the wind, now N. by E., was blow- 
ing from 15 to 16 miles an hour, with the sea covered 
with whitecaps. The only possible course was to lee- 
ward, E. by S., and the tug was sent off in that direction. 
With plenty of wind and sea, the yachts were_^ canvased 
in curious fashion. Both had poor mainsails, Columbia's 
being loose on the leach, while that of Shamrock showed a 
hard ridge just inboard from the leach, making the sail 
•in two parts, ,^ . 
As they worked about in readmess for the farst gun 
they had only whole mainsails and jibs set, but Columbia 
sent up her working topsail and staysail in stops. Five 
minutes after the preliminary gun, fired at 10 :45, Sham- 
rock set a working topsail that was far too large for the 
space between topmast and gaff, a sail that could only 
hurt her on the wind, though it might do noharmbefore it. 
At the same time she sent up her staysail. Columbia did 
not break out her working topsail until well on her way. 
It seemed that Shamrock's gaff was sprung on the out- 
board end, where it had been lengthened, and that the 
boom also buckled, so that the mainsail, whatever its own 
merits, had no chance in the strong wind. It was again 
a case of getting off last, and Columbia won ; with five 
minutes to go the pair left the line and sailed to the 
north, circling about with Columbia always in the weather 
berth; with three to go they started for the line, Sham- 
rock ahead and crossing 34 seconds after the gun. With 
her rival once timed, Columbia was in no hurry to cross, 
but luft'ed along the line until 11 :oi :35, or a minute and a 
second to the good of Shamrock, who was thus compelled 
to finish more than i min. 17 sec. ahead in order to win. 
With a down wind start the odd minute counted for 
nothing in a 15-mile run; but it might be very useful at 
the end of a close bout to windward. 
This time there was no luffing, but each steered a 
straight course with spinakers drawing to starboard, 
Columbia breaking hers out just after crossing and Sham- 
rock following a moment or so later. Shamrock's spin- 
aker was sheeted and tacked down in the usual way. The 
upper stops failed to break for 10 minutes, but it made 
little difference in such a breeze. 
Columbia either through accident or design did not get 
her sail down, but carried it literally as a balloon or a 
parachute, with tack and clew high up in the air above the 
line of the jib, making a great bag of the sail. When it 
was m the proper position it was plainly pulling like a 
tugboat, but It was constantly lifting and then falling to 
leeward over the luff of the jib, the boom rearing and 
fetching up on the headstays. She ran with, the .spinaker 
in this position until 11 :4o, when it was sheeted down in 
the usual way. It is no rarity to see a sail in such shape 
for a few minutes as it lifts and then falls, but it is some- 
thing new to see it carried thus for three-quarters of an 
hour and doing good work most of the time. 
The first of the very many changes of sail throughout 
the race was made at 11 :09, when Shamrock broke out her 
baby jib topsail, then a minute later Columbia sheeted 
home her working topsail, set in stops. At ii:ig Sham- 
rock shifted to a balloon staysail, with no apparent advan- 
tage, as Columbia was easily holding her own or a little 
more. There was no attempt at a luffing match to-day. 
Shamrock steered a straight course for the mark and 
Columbia kept in her wake at first and then a little to lee- 
ward. At 11:25 Shamrock lowered her jib and after 
twelve minutes broke out a No. 2 jib. They had run very 
evenly from the start, any slight gain being on the side of 
Columbia. At 11 :40 she hauled in spinaker tack and sheet 
and in a few minutes she was clearly gaining on Sham- 
rock. Columbia had her staysail down for a time, and 
when at 11 :53 Shamrock set her working staysail again 
in place of the ballooner, Columbia broke out a No. 2 
staysail, a new thing on a Cup defender, considerably 
smaller than the regular working staysail. She was now 
almost up with Shamrock to leeward, but the green boat 
pulled clear for a little time; just after noon, however, 
Columbia made a new spurt and placed herself fairly on 
the lee abeam of Shamrock. She stopped here but a few 
moments, for at 12:10 she had opened clear ahead, with 
the mark little over a mile away. At 12:17 she took in 
her spinaker and hauled down her working topsail, while 
Shamrock took in spinaker and baby jib topsail.. They 
turned the mark slowly, close together and with sheets 
off, the times being : 
„ , ■ ^. ' Turn. £Japsed. Gain. 
Columbia 12 19 UO 1 17 25 0 01 18 
Shamrock 12 19 17. 1 18 43 ... .a 
The average speed down wind was nearly kiiots. 
Ihere is little to be said for the work ol either boat at 
the turn. They were slow with their sheets and lost way 
as they passed the mark and came on the wind on star- 
board tack, Shamrock to leeward. They luffed several 
times to get in sheets and Columbia was caught by a sea 
and put in irons, her jib and staysail being hauled to wind- 
ward before she paid off. This gave Shamrock a chance 
to get well clear to leeward, and she started oft' with more 
of an advantage than her position at the turn entitled her 
to. : 
Columbia carried a bare stick aloft, with her three 
lower sails, while Shamrock's topsail, now a bag, held her 
back and reminded one of the famous last race of 1885, 
when Genesta carried a similar sail for twenty miles to 
Windward and was beaten by Puritan. They heeled about 
equally in the wind, now blowing about 15 miles an hour, 
but Shamrock was doing the same poor work to wind- 
ward. She footed out from Columbia and got her wind 
clear, but w-hile the white boat was pointing high and hold- 
ing to windward the green one was looking another way. 
At 12:31 she took in her topsail, but by this time Columbia 
was well ahead. Shamrock went on port tack at 12 :39 and 
Columbia tacked with her on her weather bow. Columbia 
was now so far ahead and gaining so fast that it niade 
little difference to her what the other boat did, but she 
continued to tack with her at intervals. About 1:15 
Shamrock started in at the old game of two tacks to the 
minute and Columbia was willing to play with her, but 
lost no time by it. At i :40 Columbia was at least three- 
quarters of a mile ahead; the wind fell a little and, she 
sent up her working topsail in stops, but the sail , was 
never broken out. Shamrock a few minutes later .felt the 
need of more canvas and sent up a No. 2 club topsail. She 
Lead. 
0 UO 17 
SHAMROCK JUST AFTER THE ACCIDENT,.. OCT.. 17. 
Copyright, 1899, by J, C, Hemmeat, 
