March 30, 190 rj 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
251 
heavy muslin or drilling will do as well, except that it is 
much bulkier and heavier, and may be made by the 
canoeist himself at an expense not exceeding 2$ 
cents; it should be from 30 to 32in. long from collar to 
hem, and is the two-thirds segment of a circle. These 
articles, with the before-mentioned sou'wester hat, give, 
effectual proctection from the rain ashore or afloat. 
As to the .second point — good, Avholesome, well cooked 
food — the great standby of the average canoeist is bacon 
and eg_gs. This i.< an excellent diet as far as it goes, but 
when indulged in two or three times a day tor an entire 
trruiSe it has a tendency to grow monotonous, and the 
boai^dei-s around tile catnp-fite may well be excused if 
they feel like the boarders immottaliz:ed in verse at the 
celebrated boarding house where they had ham and eggs 
tliree tiines a day, and should Avant to yell, too. Pota- 
toes, onions, fish and fresh meats when proctlrable atll 
give healthful variety to the bill of fare, and, although a 
little bulky and heavy, are well worth their carrying, and 
room may generally be found for them in some of the 
other fellows' canoes. 
There is a great deal of romance and poetry about a 
camp-fire, but for good, quick, effective cooking a sheet 
iron camp stove is infinitely preferable, and I would al- 
most as soon cruise without iiiy fiahoe as without my 
camp stove. 
Our .stove, in connection with, the expeditionary tin- 
ware and cooking utensils, has been fiilly described. 
The club supplies consisted of bacon, eggs, potatoes', 
onions, biscuits, cheese, pickles, olives, a boiled ham, a 
boiled tongue, with canned goods, such as ham. tongue, 
sardines, boned turkey and chicken; coffee, sugar, salt 
lemons, pepper, corn meal, coal oil, candles and matches. 
The coal oil was carried in. a flat-topped half-gallon 
can with a brass cap over the spout, which was packed 
ill the camp stove. There is a great deal of prejudice 
in the minds of many canoeists against carrying coal oil, 
but when packed as above described we have never yet 
experienced any inconvenience from it, and we con- 
siaer it indispensable for starting fires, especially on a 
rainy day; also a lighted latitern or two around a camp 
has a good effect in keeping off prowling "varmints." 
Coal oil lanterns are, however, objeotionable foi- use in 
the stnall canoe cabins, and we use candles in our tents. 
The eggs are carried , in a couple of half-gallon lard 
buckets; the potatoes, onions, biscuits, cheese, lemons, 
etndlcs, etc., in bags of drilling or sheeting. We gen- 
erally lay in a supply of four or five dozen biscuits at a 
time, and the bag containing these, as well as the smaller 
bags containing crackers, cakes, etc., are carried in a 
large rotind-bottomed oiled canvas bag. The matches 
are carried in large-mouthed bottles — one in each canoe- — 
secttrely corked and with a small brass screweyc in the 
top of each cork, to which is attached a string, which is 
lied around the neck of the bottle and is the means of 
J)reventing much bad language and vexation of spirit. 
The coffee, sugar, butter, lard, salt, pepper and corn 
meal (in which to fry fish) are carried in small tin cans — 
generally of the square kin-d procured at any drug store. 
The bacon is procured in coarse sacks, in which it re- 
mains until used up. The ham and tongue are packed 
iti muslin bags. 
The mess chest is a small box, 12 by i8in., and 6 or yin. 
deep, covered with oiled canvas. It contains one tin 
can each of coffee, sugar, butter, lard, salt, corn meal 
and peeper, a small bottle of pickles or olives, a small 
bag of biscuits, one or two cans of potted goods or 
sardines a piece of cheese, a couple of hard-boiled eggs, 
some sliced ham or tongue or both, a couple of lemons 
and whatever else is intended for each day's noonday 
lunch, for it is our custom to get up a hot meal for 
breakfast and supper only, and to have a midday lunch, 
picnic fashion, instead of dinner, and everything neces- 
sary for this lunch is prepared and stowed in the mess 
chest by me, every morning after breakfast, so that all 
the unpacking required for our midday meal is to get 
out the mess chest. It also contains all the expedition- 
ary gratiiteware plates, knives, forks and spoon.s — each 
man carries his own drinking cup in his own canoe. 
Extra cans of coffee and sugar were stowed in my canoe, 
and the small mess chest cans replenished from time to 
time as required. All the small canned goods are stowed 
in a large oiled canvas bag, and the provisionary sup- 
plies were distribttted around among the dift'crent canoes 
as equitably as might be. 
Our bacon, coffee, sugar and canned goods were laid 
in at Staunton for the entire cruise, while but a small 
supply of butter, lard, vegetables, eggs and biscuits were 
laid in, as owing to the heat generated below decks they 
will not remain in good condition longer than two or 
three days, and arc easily replenished at almost any 
farmhouse. 
We are by this time quite well known along the river, 
and generally make it a point to procure supplies at 
certain houses on each cruise, where we know by ex- 
perience that good butter, lard, bread, etc., can be had, 
such as Rippetoe, Kygers, Bear Lithia Springs, Coff- 
man's, Keyser, Fleming, the Kenner House, at River- 
ton, and Osburn's. 
The third point — good sleeping accommodations — I 
consider also a very important one, for after a hard day's 
work a good refreshing night's rest is surely more bene- 
ficial than a night passed in turning and twisting ai-ound 
in the vain endeavor to find a softer spot on the pine 
floor boards of the canoe; consequently our party carried 
each a small foldin.g hair mattress, speciallj'- designed 
and made to our order, which, when extended, spreads 
over a floor space of 5ft. in length by i8in. wide, and 
which, when folded for transportation, presents two 
cushions 18 by 2oin., upon which to sit, which, with a 
third cushion of the same size placed in an upright posi- 
tion against the swinging back rest, forms a most com- 
fortable seat, and the room it occupies is not noted. The 
mattress is incased in an oiled canvas bag, which is 
slipped off when preparing the bed for the night. A 
small air pillow is slipped inside of the mattress bag 
lor transportation and used at night. 
A good thick pair of blankets incased in an oiled 
canvas bag and a piece of rubber sheeting, such as is 
used in carriage tops, about 5 by 7ft., complete the sleep- 
ing arrangements. 
A good serviceable teat is also to us at least a neces- 
sity, fis the cnide shelter affordet| by the rubber sheet and 
peddle arrangement 4acs not' cQ^^e mp to owr ideas pf 
comfort. Olif tents are of the square of oblofig-topped 
Mohican pattern, rnade of blue and white striped awning 
cloth, with white duck tops. The tents are 5ft. long on 
top and 8ft. long on the bottom, covering the entire 
cockpit. The canvas roof extends a few inches beyond 
each end of the tent, and these ends are looped to re- 
ceive light spreaders of bamboo or pine, which are 
slipped in when the tent is to be used. A light line h 
rove into each end of the looped top, so as to pass the 
bight of the line around the spreaders, and a metal hook 
or snap similar to those used on hitch reins is rove into 
the free ends of the lines to hook into the rings at bow 
and stern of the canoes. Tents of this class are usually 
erected by lashing the lines to tlae masts, but as our 
canoes carry no masts we use a simple device in the 
shape of a couple of standards. Each standard is made 
of two pieces of light pine bolted together at one end, 
the other ends being left free, so that they spread out 
like^ the legs of a pair of compa,sses. They are about 
3J/^ft. long — a little longer than the height of the tent. 
To raise the tent in position for the night, throw it 
loosely over the cockpit, insert the spreaders into the 
loops at each end of the top, hook the hooks at the 
ends of the lines into the bow and stern rings of the 
canoe, spread and raise the standards one at each end of 
the tent, with the lines passing through notches cut in 
the tops, which also raises the tent; place the feet of the 
standards (also notched) on cleats screwed on top of 
the gunwales on each side of the canoe for this purpose: 
fasten the tent all around at bottom and corners to stout 
screweyes screwed under the gunwales or fenders by 
means of loops of .stout fish line slipped through button 
holes worked for this purpose, and there you are! It is 
a much simpler and neater device than tying the tent 
ropes to masts, atid there is no strain on the decks of the 
canoes. 
The advantages of the canoe tents over a shore tent for 
a cruising party are obvious. Good smooth caitiphig 
places affording room for a shore tent are not always 
to be found when cainping tinje arrives, whereas when 
canoe tents are used a camp may be made wherever 
roont can be found for the canoes. We have not in- 
frequently camped on the side of a high bank or placed 
the canoes for the night on the rocks and reefs at the 
water's edge, and I have even put up my tent and 
slept with ray canoe afloat safely moored to the bank with 
bow and .stern painters.' 
(3ur mess' table^ — two thin pieces of poplar 4ft. long 
and I2in. broad — mounted tipon four buggy wheel spokes 
driven into the ground, upon which they are sustained 
side by side on cross-pieces fitted to the spokes at each 
end of the table (in tran.sit the boards are laid flat qn 
the floor boards of one of the canoes, and covered with 
a piece of rubber sheeting to prevent soiling by muddy 
shoes), and our diniitg fly of striped awning cloth of the 
same material and pattern of which our tents are made 
and erected on two of the li,ght bamboo pike poles car- 
ried by each canoe, will doubtless be considered hy 
most canoeists as superfluities that might be dispensed 
with, but we have found both to be such conveniences 
that they are worth more to us than their room and 
weight in the canoes. On a rainy day in camp the flj' 
comes out specially strong and proves to be a con- 
venience that is well nigh indispensable. We each of 
us also carried another superfluity in the shape of a 
small light folding camp stool, which we" find such a 
comfort and convenience that it could not well be dis- 
pensed Avith. This, when folded flat and placed on the 
floor of the canoe under the mattress, is entirely out of 
the way, and its weight is but a trifle. 
We carried two small coal oil lanterits for use around 
the camp, but for use in the canoes each one was pro- 
vided with an ingenious little candle lantern, con- 
structed in my workshop out of a couple of blocks of 
pine, a yard of stout wire, a piece of bent tin and a large 
lamp chimney. The piece of tin was tacked to one side 
of the wooden base of the lamp, and bent so as to hook 
over the cockpit coaming, where, so placed as to come 
between the eyes of the canoeist and his book as he lies 
at full length in his blankets, its convenience for reading 
purposes is mestimable. 
[to be continued.] 
The following men have been proposed for membership 
to the Eastern Division of the A. C. A. : Arthur C. 
Whittemore, West Medford, Mass.; Philip A. Hutchins, 
West Medford. Mass.; F. B. Howard. Medford. Mass.; 
Frank H. Hamilton, Medford, Mass. 
Our Boston Letter* 
Boston, March 23. — The annual meeting of the Yacht 
Racing Association of Massachusetts has been held, the 
dates for open races to be sailed under its rules selected, 
and it now looks as though the season had commenced in 
earnest. This will be a great yachting 3'ear in Massa- 
chusetts, not only for the Association but for all kinds of 
clitb racing. Many new boats have been built and the old 
ones are not leaving the district in very large numbers, so 
that there should be a very respectable racing fleet 
throughout the entire season. 
Several of the clubs will have more than one Y. R. A. 
race day. The custom of having a series of races Jias 
grown very popular in Massachusetts during the past few 
years, and there is no doubt that it is a very good thing, 
for it has been noted that when a series of races have been 
given there have been more boats attending than if a 
single race was held. This j^ear the Hull-Massachusetts 
Club has taken fotxr dates, three of which will be for in- 
vitation races. The American Y. C, of Newburyport. has 
taken three dates, all of which will be for open races. 
It is expected that the town will have an anniversary 
celebration on June 25, and the American Y. C. is expected 
to firrange an elaborate programme of races on that day. 
Newburyport day will come on Aug. 13 this year, and tAvo 
dftys' racing Avill be held. The Annisqu^m Y. C. started 
in| ■ last year giving series of raceSj a^^^. it will 4q ^he 
same thing this year. The Burgess Y C. will have twx? 
days' racing and the East Gloucester Y. €., which did' 
not hold any Y. R. A. race last year, will this year give 
two. 
The folIoAving list of race dates was taken by lili'c" 
different clubs : 
May 30, Thursday — South Boston, City Point. 
Jinie 17, Monday — Hull-Massachusetts, for classes over' 
iSft., Hull. Dorchester, clas,ses i8ft. and under. Dor- 
chester, 
June 25, Tuesday — American. NeA\'buryport. 
June 29, Saturday — Boston, City Point. 
July 3, Wednesday — Columbia, City Point. 
July 4, Thursday — Citj"- of Boston, City Point. 
July 6, Saturday — Mosquito Fleet, City Point. 
July 20, Saturday — Winthrop, Winthrop. 
July 25, 26 and 27, Thursday, Friday and Saturday — 
Hull-Massachusetts, invitation races, Hull. 
July 29 and 30, Monday and Tuesday — Burgess, Marble- 
head. 
.'\ug. 5 and 6, Monday and Tuesday — Manchester, West 
Manchester. 
Aug. 7 and 8. Wednesday and Thursday — ^East Glouces- 
ter, Gloucester. 
Aug. 9 and to, Friday and Saturday — Annisquam, An- 
nisquam. 
Aug. 12 and 13. Monday and Tuesday — American, Ncav- 
buryport. 
Aug. 17, Saturday — ^Wollaston, Quincy Bay. 
Aug. 26, Monday — Cape Cod. ProA'incetown. 
Aug. 27, Tuesday — Well fleet. AVellfleet. 
Aug. 29. Thursday — Plymouth. Plymouth. ^ 
Aug. 30, Friday — Kingston, Kingston. 
Aug. 31, Saturday — Duxbury, Duxbury. 
SepL 2, Labor Day — Lynn, off Nahant. 
It has been decided by the Yacht Racing Association 
that all movable trusses must go. The yachts which have 
been built for the unrestricted classes have become lightel' 
and lighter in construction with each succeeding year, un- 
til they have reached the point where trusses are absolutely 
necessary to hold up the long ends that are not sufficiently 
strong to maintain their original form. The Yacht Racing 
Association realizes that these trusses are necessary and 
has no intention of attempting to bar them altogether, 
but it does insist that, when they are used, they shall be 
sealed by the ofiicial measurer in such a manner that they 
Avill become immovable, and an official seal put on them. 
This year there will be but one general circuit of races 
to be held under the rules of the Association. Last year 
the season's races AA'ere divided into three circtiits. It has 
not been discovered that any good came of this change. 
l)Ut. on the contrary, if persisted in, it might have proved 
dangerous for the Association. One Association is al> 
solutely necessary in these Avaters, and only one. If that 
one Association AA'^ere to be divided into three districts, it 
would be only a forerunner to the existence of three asso- 
ciations. This would be a severe bloAV to yachting in 
Massachusetts, for there Avould undoubtedly be scantHng 
and classification rules which Avould conflict, the general! 
classification that exists now would become a thing of the 
past and the yachtsmen Avould not foel encouraged in 
building new boats. 
The present classification with its scantling restrictions 
is a good thing for yachting. Fir.st of all it provides uni- 
form classes, all of the boats for wdiich are built to the 
limit of Avaterline length. The limit of waterline length 
being maintained under the rules, permanent classes are 
obtained — that is, a 25-footer is built to be a 25-footer, 
with a Avaterline length between 24 and 25ft., and not a 
22-footer or a 23-footer or a 24-footer. The scantling re- 
strictions provide a boat that is staunch and seaAvorthy 
and wdtich will not become useless after a few seasons of 
racing. With the assurance of permanent classes and 
restrictions that Avill insitre Avell-built boats, the yachts- 
men have every inducement to build, for under these con- 
ditions a yacht becomes marketable at any time and the 
owner is not oft'ering for sale an obsolete type of boat. 
But Avith all the good that the Association has done 
atid all that it is possible for it to do in the future, there 
are ahvays some Avho Avant constant changes Avhich will 
firing things nearer their way of thinking, regardless of 
the interests of others. These things have always had to 
be met since the present Association Avas formed and in 
similar associations before it. There is now a moArement 
on foot to form another association that will directly con- 
flict Avith the principles of the present one. Parties have 
been to some of the clubs Avith the object of haA^ing them 
leaA^e the present Association and join the neAv one. If 
this moA'ement Avas started for the purpose of elevating 
yachting it might receive the attention of reputable clubs, 
but there is CA^ery reason to belicA'e that it has been started 
because of purely personal gricA'ances and that the pro- 
moters want to form an association in Avhich they will 
haA^e their own sweet way. regardless of the harm it might 
do yacht racing and without any thought of fairness to 
others. 
Independence is fast taking form at the Atlantic Works. 
More than half the plating is already on her, and the 
plates are being turned out every day. All of the plate.? 
of the second strake from the bottom of the fin haA^e beern 
put in place. As soon as these are all riveted the re- 
mainder of the lead will be stowed. Nearly all of the 
steel plating of the deck. Avith the exception of the 
partner plate and those AA'hich go betAveen it and the 
stringer plates, has been put in position. The brackets that 
brace the deck beams and the frames have all been riveted 
to place on the starboard side. The intercostal plates that 
brace the floor plates are nearly all in and the steel bulk- 
head, that strengthens the fitting around the mainsheet 
traveler, has been bolted to place. It has been found 
necessary to cast a ncAv frame for the balance rudder, as 
the one already cast did not prove flexible enough ander 
test. The ncAv one will be cast at the Bath Iron Works of 
Hyde metal. 
The committee aopointed to conduct the races for the 
cups and prizes offered by Thomas W. LaAVson held a 
meeting this Aveek and appointed a sub-committee to ar- 
range all necessary details. It has been decided to hold 
the races on Labor Day, Sept. 2, or one week from the 
close of the America Cup races. If these races are finished 
one Aveek or more before Sept. 2. the races for the Law- 
son cups will be held on that date, but if they are not 
finished until lessjhan a week before Sept. 2, the LaAvson 
civps y^iji] tie hel^ one week from the tim^ ijliey- 
