310 
FORES 1 AND STKEaM. 
[April 20, 1901, 
\ - 
stream swollen to full banks and a good many muslcrats 
swimming. There was a gun or two at the camp, and 
they ■ were soon brought into requisition. One of the 
gunners — he may be called James, for short, since his 
name is not to be mentioned — thought he would go out 
in the canoe, while his friend John took the safer boat. 
He did not want John to get a ducking, and the canoe is 
very cranky. The gun had been loaded for some time, or 
at least the shells had. James saw a rat swimming in the 
dim twilight. Sitting in the canoe, for he could not stand 
in it, he shot crosswise. There was a tremendous ex- 
plosion and a splash. John saw his shooting companion 
feet up and overboard. He started to fish him out with 
the boat, but James had seized the canoe and soon rolled 
the water out of it, after the method of the experts at 
the Boston Sportsmen's Show. He climbed into the canoe 
and pulled for the shore. The water was ice cold, but 
they soon had a good fire in the camp and James is now 
all right. The gun is in the bottom of the river, and no 
effort will be made to recover it till the water svtbsides. 
The muskrat was killed, and the pelt will ornament the 
camp in memory of the good ducking James got. He says 
that he shall not attempt to shoot from that canoe again 
with shells loaded for deer — about two years ago. 
Special. 
^mailing. 
— * — 
Notice. 
All communications intended for Forest and Stream should 
always be addressed to the Forest and Stream Publishing Co., and 
not to any individvial connected with the paper. 
'Mid Reef and Rapid — VIA. 
BY F. R. WEBB. 
"Well, there's George with the kodak," remarked the 
Colonel, as we scrambled down the steep clay bank to 
the water's edge where our canoes lay, their painted can- 
vas decks blistering in the burning rays of the sun, 
and scorching our fingers as we unbuttoned the aprons 
from over the well, readjusted our back rests and mat- 
tresses, preparatory to stepping aboard and rejoining 
George, who was observed approaching the river bank, 
where his canoe lay moored under the spreading 
branches of a gigantic oak tree a quarter of a mile away 
below the mouth of South River. 
"Where's Lacy. I wonder?" I asked, as I picked up 
my paddle out of the bushes where it had lain con- 
cealed with the others while we were gone up into the 
village; gave the colored youth a dime for watching 
them, and stepped aboard my canoe. 
"If you'll untie his canoe and make her fast to the 
stern ring in my boat I'll tow her down there; I expect 
he is not far behind George," I continued, as I settled 
myself comfortably in my seat, aTanged the open hatch 
and apron in front of me and grasped my paddle pre- 
paratory to shoving out from the bank. 
"No; there he comes now across the South River 
bridge," replied the Colonel as he settled himself in his 
own canoe. 
We pushed out into the stream without waiting for 
Lacy, and paddled gently across the mouth of South 
river and into the Shenandoah, while George experi- 
mented on us at long range with the recovered kodak 
as we approached to ascertain if it was in good working 
order, the experiment appearing to prove satisfactory, 
as he said nothing to the contrary when we joined him 
a few minutes later to wait for Lacy; the Colonel im- 
proving the opportunity to load and light his perennial 
P'pe- ... 
As Lacy approached we re-embarked and joined him, 
turning our bows down stream and beginning the de- 
scent of the most beautiful Shenandoah, whose bright, 
sparkling waters stretched away before us invitingly the 
full length of the river, as with steadily moving paddles, 
their dripping blades flashing mirror-like in the sun as 
thej' rose and fell on alternate sides of the canoes, with 
the water falling in a spray of living diamonds at each 
stroke and furrowing away in snowy little ripples from 
our bows, we gladly and with light hearts responded to 
the invitation. 
The landscape at the head of the Shenandoah is a 
lovely one. On the right, clos-e at hand, tower the 
domes and walls of the Blue Ridge, clothed in living 
green to their summits. On the left the bluff-like banks 
rise steeply from the water, while behind them, and al- 
most in our front, as the river winds a little to the left, 
the towering peak at the southern end of Massanutton. 
some six or seven miles away, rises in a grand, sweep- 
ing slope from the trees near the river to the sharply 
pointed summit a couple of thousand feet or so above; 
with the long, wall-like crest of the range sloping away 
behind the peak in a diminishing blue haze down the 
valley in a converging line with the wave-like slopes of 
the Blue Ridge, until the two .ranges melt away in a 
faint blue haze and sink into the nearer tree tops before 
apparently uniting and closing the narrow valley into 
which our rippling stream boldly plunges. 
We easily portaged the loose stone dam a mile and 
a half below Port Republic by lifting and sliding the 
canoes over its crest and down its sloping face into the 
swift water below. 
We found a mile or two of splendid rapids between 
here and the Lewis dam, the entire distance being one 
more or less continuous down hill shoot, the river being 
quite narrow and the shoots down the steep and short 
gravelly pitches consequently deep, and the water strong, 
rough and rolling in spite of the unusually low stage: 
and shout after shout went up from the lungs and throats 
of the party as the canoes pitched over the verges and 
down the rough, foaming slopes of the .successive shoots, 
testifying to the delightful and exhilarating character of 
the sport. 
"rommodore. wasn't the battle of Pnrf Rrpnblic 
fotight along here somewhere ?" asked Lary a-; we 
landed on the broad, fiat crest of the massive four foot 
log and stone dam above the Lewis mill. and. seeking a 
shady spot, sat down to enjoy a rest and a smoke before 
portasring the dam. 
"Yes," I replied, as I applied a match to the end of 
my cig3T and ptiffed it into a good li^ht. "We ^re right 
opposite the battle field. The fight was thickest and hot- 
test all along out there in the fields and over toward 
the mountains. The mill race below there was full of 
Federal soldiers at 'one time, and they made it very hot 
for Jackson's men. Lewistgn, the old Lewis mansion 
over near the mountains, was in the very thick of the 
fight. A Federal battery of artillery was stationed in 
the dooryard and did deadly execution among Jack- 
son's troops before it was finally captured and held 
after a desperate hand to hand struggle which followed 
a flank movement along the mountain side in which it 
was taken and retaken several times, being finally held 
by the Confederates, which terminated the battle, the 
Federal forces being utterly routed." 
"It was a pretty hot little battle, I have always heard," 
the Colonel rem.arked, as, having finished his pipe, he, 
according to his usual custom, lit a cigar "to take the 
taste out of his mouth," Lacy always declared, as that 
pipe of the Colonel's was strong and rank to a degree 
that not the bravest and most inveterate smoker in our 
party— barring the Colonel — would have had the courage 
to tackle it. 
"It was a hot fight," I replied. "It was not a great 
battle, Uke Gettysburg or Malvern Hill, with a hundred 
thousand men on a side. I think there were not more 
than twelve or fifteen thousand men on either side in 
this fight, but, considering its size, there was not a 
bloodier or more deadly battle in the entire war. Gen- 
eral Jackson is said to have remarked at its close that 
the dead outnumbered the living." 
"Jackson shut Fremont out by burning the bridge over 
North River at Pork Republic, didn't he?" asked George. 
"Yes," I replied, as I lit a fresh cigar. "He had de- 
feated Fremont at Cross Keys, a few miles away on the 
other side of the river, a day or so before, and then, 
withdrawing his army across North River, or to the 
Port Republic side, he burned the bridge and thus cut 
Fremont oi¥ from, rallying and coming to the assistance 
of Shields." 
"Couldn't they ford?" asked George, 
"No; the river was high and could not be forded. I 
met a gentleman a few years ago who was in the fight 
AFTER SLIDING OUR CANOES OVER THE DAM. 
with Jackson's army, and in speaking about it he told 
me a thrilling account of how he saw a young Con- 
federate officer drowned right before his eyes in attempt- 
ing to swim the river on his horse. In company with a 
few others, who remained on Fremont's side on some de- 
tail or other, he was cut off by the burning of the bridge, 
and to avoid capture he attempted to swim the river 
just below the bridge — you know how full of reefs that 
pool is. Well, his horse became entangled in the reefs 
in some manner, and both horse and rider were 
drowned." 
"Couldn't anybody help them in any way, I wonder?" 
queried the Colonel. 
"I suppose not," I answered. "My friend said there 
were no boats at hand, and no one dared ride or swim 
out into the river after him for fear of sharing the same 
fate." 
"I can readily understand that." said George, "for in 
high water this is not a stream to lake any liberties 
with." 
"I should think not," I replied. 
"How about the rest of the party? Were they also 
frowned?" George asked. 
"Fle did not say," I replied, as I threw away my cigar 
stump and walked over toward my canoe, "but I sup- 
pose not. We might as well portage the dam and go 
on; its getting toward lunch time, and we want to make 
Walker'.s^ for lunch." 
"Yes. I am gettin,g hungry already." Lacy said. "How 
did Jackson's troops cross Soitth River to reach the 
battle field, I wonder?" he added, as the others rose and 
followed me to the canoes. "There was no bridge over 
that stream at that time, and the battle field is this side 
of it, so they must have crossed it." 
"Jackson extemporized a bridge by running wagons 
out across the stream, the water being a little over axle 
deep in that small stream. A plank was laid down across 
the running gear and a narrow little bridge thus formed, 
wide enough for one man at a time, and the troops 
hustled over in single file on the run." 
"That must have been a tedious operation," said the 
Colonel. 
"Yes. and it would have been a snap for Shields' 
troops if they had been at hand to receive them," said 
George. 
"Yes, it would indeed," I replied, "but the battle was 
fought a couple of miles or so down the river, and 
there were no Union troops at hand to obstruct the 
crossing." as I pulled my canoe up out of the water, 
half her length nn to the broad, flat, road-like crest of 
the dam. " and while it was tedious work, Jackson's men 
got there just the same." 
[to be continued.] 
A. C A, Membefship, 
The following names have been proposed for mem- 
bership to the Eastern Division of the A. C. A. : Ed^vard 
Johnson, Willis F. Burkman and Frefl K- loathe, all of 
Woburn. Mass, 
Notice. 
All communications intended for Forest and Stream should 
always be addressed to the Forest and Stream Publishing Co., and 
not to any individual connected with the paper. 
Sir Thomas Lipton has cabled his American rep- 
resentative, Mr. David Barre, that Shamrock 11. would 
be launched on Saturday, April 20, and that the boat 
would be christened by the Marchioness of Dufferin. 
The alterations that have been made on Shamrock I. 
have been completed, and the first race between the two 
boats is scheduled for Ma.y 4. Shamrock II. will con- 
tinue to race in English waters until about the 'second 
week in June, sailing her last races during the Glasgow 
exhibition on June 8 and g. She will then be disr 
mantled and prepared for the ocean voyage. Shamrock 
II. will come across under the same rig that was used 
on Shamrock I. in 1899. It is expected that she will ar- 
rive in American waters early in July. 
History of the Development of the 
Racing Yacht. 
Mb. Thomas H. Macdonald, of the Bridgeport Y. C, 
delivered the following lecture at the Yachtsmen's Club, 
47 West Forty-third street. New York city, on Wednes- 
day evening, April 3, 1901. The lecture was illustrated by 
stereopticon views: 
The history of yachting is the history of the develop- 
ment of the racing yacht. Just as speed contests among 
horses have served to develop the thoroughbred, so have 
the rivalries engendered among boat owners contributed 
to improve the "going" qualities of racing yachts. 
The_ origin of the sailing vessel is lost in the gloom of 
antiquity. Ages before the dawn of histor}', perchance, 
some primeval savage ferried himself across from shore 
.to shore upon a simple log of wood. True to the same 
instinct that taught him to point his stone arrow, he 
sharpened one end of the log, and thus mayhap contrived 
the first vessel's bow. It may have been that the first 
sail was nothing more than the branch of a tree, held 
aloft, that favoring breezes might aid his short passage. 
When this occurred we have no means of knowing. Cer- 
tain it is that it was a period so remote that the mind 
falters in attempting to grasp the immense space of time 
that must have elapsed since then. Records of the Stone 
Age, as revealed in the Swiss debris and the Irish bogs, 
have preserved for us many types of the primitive boat. 
These were, for the most part, logs hollowed out. Many 
of them present evidences of no mean degree of skill on 
the part_ of our ancient brother mariners. This style of 
boat building exists even to the present day. In the 
National Museum in Washington is a boat of this descrip- 
tion, and a remarkable craft she is; over 6oft. in length 
and of 8ft. beam, she was hewn by the natives of 
Noothan for Moquilla, one of their chiefs. The immense 
log was hollowed out, then filled with water. Bark fires 
were lit near the sides, sufficient to heat the log, but not 
to burn it. By this means was formed what experts have 
decided to be a well-modeled boat, and one whose lines 
are said to resen\ble those of the American Line steamer 
New York. 
Probably the oldest type of sailing vessel in existence 
to-day is the Chinese junk. The Chinese, as a race, have 
practically stood, still for 2,000 years. It is little wonder, 
therefore, that the Mongolian boat of to-day should differ 
scarcely at all from its prototype of twenty centuries 
agone. The Chinese vessels present the germ of many 
points of merit in design, but, like all things Chinese, they 
seemed to have been stopped in their development in some 
past age, and to never have progressed beyond that point. 
The Chinese junk is a fairly good sea boat, and in running 
with Avind free makes fair speed, but in a thresh to wind- 
ward is hardly to be considered with our fin-keelers of 
the present time. 
About the most progressive, or at least aggressive, of 
the nations of Europe of 1,000 years ago were the 
Norsemen, or Vikings, of what is now Norway and 
Sweden. Those fierce sea rovers, half pirate and half 
trader, covered the bleak northern seas with their swift 
ships, and placed all contiguous countries under tribute. 
A viking ship was exhibited in Chicago in the World's 
Fair of 1893. In many respects the lines of the hull of 
this vessel closely resemble those of the best modeled 
yachts of to-day. She was built in exact duplicate of the 
hull of a viking ship that was dug up in Norway a few 
years ago, and that had lain in its grave for over 1,000 
years. The original was undoubtedly the property of 
some famous leader of those old freebooters, as it was the 
custom to inter the ship with the dead body of such as 
those who by unexampled bravery or ferocity had made 
their mark as leaders among their fellows. 
Tradition says that the Dutch galliott was an evolution 
01 the viking ship. This vessel has the high after deck 
so familiar in the ships of Columbus, models of which 
were seen in this country during the Chicago Fair. 
They were for their time fairly good sea-going ves- 
sels, and when down wind or with sheets well started 
pretty fair sailers. ■ 
There is little or no evidence to be found, however, in 
the meager data at hand, that would lead us to believe 
that pleasure vessels were in use much before the be- 
ginning of the nineteenth century. It is true that the 
word "yacht" had entered into our language at a much 
earlier date, but it is also probable that it was used to 
designate merely a fast boat. 
The word "yacht" means speed. It is a Dutch word 
and. literally translated, means "to hasten" or "to hurry." 
It found its way into the English language in 1660. In 
that year the Dutch East India Company presented 
Charles 11. of England with a boat named Mary, and 
which they designated a "yacht." meaning thereby a fast 
vessel. Charles was pleased with the present, and in the 
follovging year designed for himself a vessel of 25 tons, 
which he also called a "yacht." The name was then 
taken up and has become a part of the language. Ac- 
coants state that Charles , matched this vessel against one 
owned by the I>tike of Yorl? for one hun'drfey pounds. 
