March 2, 1901.] 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
173 
AUXILIARY HOUSE-BOAT— DESIGNED; BY MESSRS. TAMS, LEMOINE '& CRANE FOR MR. J. B. MACDONOUGH. 
cannot fail to be appreciated by all yachtsmen, and shows 
remarkable keenness of foresight on the part of Thomas 
W. Lawson. In the first place the races are to be 
scheduled after the international races are over, this not 
interfering with any regular dates. It is only natural lor 
a man like Sir Thomas Lipton to recognize the value of 
such enterprise by one man. Therefore, it is expected 
that he will be perfectly willing to bring the Shamrock 
II. to Massachusetts waters, that the people here may 
have the pleasure of witnessing a race between 90-footers. 
It is only natural, too, that the owners of the Belmont 
syndicate defender, not wishing to be outdone in recog- 
nizing the compliment implied, will bring their boat to 
enter in the races. With such an interest started, it would 
be surprising indeed if the whole racing fleet of the New- 
York Y. C. did not come to Massachusetts waters to take 
part in the races. 
And here is another feature which means a great deal 
for future yachting in these waters. The races are to be 
given under the auspices of the Hull-Massachusetts Y. 
C, of which Mr. Lawson is a member. This will place 
. this club in a position before all others in New England, 
and will prove the starting point of making it the New 
York Y. C, of Boston. The club has every natural 
facility for maintaining this position, and is fortunate in 
having a member like Mr. Lawson, who is able and willing 
to take the initial means of making it possible. 
But for the interest of the sport throughout the entire 
New England district it means a boom which has been 
long waited for. It means that the interest in the larger 
classes will be revived, and that each succeeding year will 
see_ a big fleet of large boats in these waters during the 
racing season. Massachusetts yachtsmen own large 
yachts which they cannot race here, as there are not 
classes for them. If these first races prove successful, it 
is likely that a series will be given each year, and Massa- 
chusetts will take the position in the yachting world 
which it should have before maintained through its 
natural facilities, and this revival of interest will be wholly 
credited to Thomas W. Lawson. John B. Killeen. " 
The alterations that have been made on the stem yach<- 
Surf, which is owned by Mr. C. K. Billings, N. Y. Y. C, 
were done under the supervision of Messrs. Tarns Le- 
mome & Crane. Mr. Percy Chubb. N. Y. Y. C.', has 
commissioned this firm to change the rig of his cutter 
Vigilant to that of a yawl. This same firm has an order 
for a sieain yacht for Mr. Edmund Randolph. N. Y. Y, 
C. She will he 8sft long. iift. beam and 4ft. draft. Geo' 
Lawlev Si Son Corp., of South Boston, will build her and 
Increasing Interest in House-Boating. 
""THE'la^ of house-boats, both large and. small, 
that iave been built during the last few years, and the 
many requests-- that the "publishers of Forest and Stream 
- have received from its -readers for information on the sub- 
ject, indicates a widespread interest in this novel, health- 
ful and wholesome sport. The many uses to which house- 
boats can be put appeal to almost all sportsmen. This is 
clearly shown by the fact that some of the large railway 
and hotel systems have introduced house-boats for the 
use of sportsmen wherever game of any sort is to be 
found,, either on salt or fresh water. At the Pan-Amer- 
ican Exposition to be held in Buffalo this summer there 
will be seen a house-boat that is practically a floating hotel. 
This is intended for the use of those visitors who wish to 
be near the exposition grounds and who prefer to live on 
the water. 
On cruising yachts the matter of living and sleeping ac- 
commodations is always of secondary consideration to the 
question of safety and seaworthiness. But in the case 
of the house-boat, the all-important features are questions 
of ease, comfort and luxurJ^ The designer works with far 
more freedom in planning the vessel, and this would 
naturally be the case, on account of thal.requirements be- 
ing so entirely different. In the house-boat the designer 
generally produces a craft of very shallow draft, so^ that 
she may lie close to the shore and be used in very shoal 
water, and that she shall be non-capsizable and able- to be 
moved from place to place -either under sail or motor 
power w^th reasonable speed and safety. It is the shape 
of the hull and the high cabin structure which shows the 
relationship of the entire craft to a house rather than to a 
boat. Merely because there is a general impression that 
the house-boat is a sort of a scow with a big dry goods 
box on top of it, still there is no good reason why any 
reputable naval architect should not be employed to make 
the plans and, if possible, superintend the entire con- 
struction of the boat. The small commission paid to the 
architect for such services could easily be saved by him 
in the cost of the boat, and eventually would prove a 
wise investment. In conversation recently with one of 
the best known naval architects in this country, he spoke 
of a house-boat that he had designed for use in Florida 
waters, and said that it was one of the most difficult prob- 
lems he had ever tried to solve, for the reason that the 
boat was to be used in very shallow water and that under 
no circumstances w-as her draft to exceed 2ft. The boat 
was built in Northern waters, and it was necessary that 
she should be sufficiently staunch and seaworthy to en- 
able her to make outside runs when going from one inside 
route to another, on her trip to the South. The boat was 
intended for use in rather a wild country where, of 
"SQW^i \^ jrppssible to procure oil for the en^i^e, ^n^ 
it was therefore necessary to build tanks large enough to 
carry a two months' supply. It was also necessary to 
make extra proA'ision for a liberal supply of fresh water 
and ample accommodations for ice and supplies. To cover 
all these requirements and at the same time give the owner 
all the living room he wanted, it became a difficult matter 
to produce the results desired, and at the same time not 
to increase the draft of the boat. When the boat was 
built and turned over to her owner she was found to be 
perfect in every way, and it was evident that had her de- 
sign been in less skillful hands it is safe to assume that 
there would have been danger of failure. 
Through the kindness of Messrs. Tams, Lemoinc & 
Crane, Mr. M. Hubbe, Messrs. Clay & Torbenson and 
several of our correspondents, we are able to reproduce 
this week quite a number of designs of house-boats. These 
include, the most primitive as well as the elaborate, both 
power and stationary, that have yet been built in this 
country. 
There is now being built by Messrs. T. S. Marvel & 
Co., of Newburg, N. Y., a twin-screw steel house-boat for 
Mr. Pierre Lorillard. This is not Mr. Lorillard's first 
experience with house-boats, as this boat will replace Cai- 
man, that was burned in Florida last year. The new boat 
is i2Sft. long over all, 119ft. 6in. on the waterline, 22ft. 
width of hull, 23ft. 4in. extreme width over guard rails, 
8ft. 6in. depth of hull at lowest point and 2ft. 6in. 
draft. Her displacement at 2ft. 6in. draft is 137 
tons, and her displacement at 2ft. 3in. is 122 
tons. She will have two decks, and on the upper 
deck amidships will be an observatory 25ft. long and 13ft. 
wide, from which the main deck is reached by a staircase. 
The main deck is^^y;gri up to the living quarters of the 
owner. Forward'^is a, front parlor i6ft. long and 20ft. 
wide, which opens on to .a passageway leading aft. On 
either side of this passageway are two large staterooms, a 
toilet room on the starboard side and a gun room on the 
port side._ The back parlor is also reached by a passage- 
way. This room is 13ft. long and 20ft. wide. There is a 
stateroom on either side of the after passageway, both of 
which have connecting toilet and bath rooms. Below 
the main deck the space has been utilized in the best man- 
ner. Each room is of liberal size and careful attention has 
been paid to the matter of ventilation. There is a good 
sized forecastle with swinging berths for the men, from 
which a passageway leads aft to the servants' sitting room. 
On the starboard side of the passage are rooms for the 
ship keeper, cooks and other servants; on the port side 
are rooms for the pilot, waiters and steward. The ser- 
vants' sitting room is 20ft. wide and 15ft. long, and aft of 
this are to be found an ice house, which will hold five 
tons; a pantry and another storeroom.. The kitchen 
comes next and then the engine room is reached. The 
greatest a^tentiot^ has beei| paid to the fittings ^4 a|)poj||tr 
