314 
Forest and stream. 
[April 20, 1901. 
Fifteen Years* Development of the 
90ft. Racing Yacht. 
In pursuance of their commendable policy of satisfying 
the very natural and perfectly proper public curiosity as 
to what manner of yachts are being put afloat for the 
defense of the America Cup this year, Messrs, Lawson 
and Crowninshield, the owner and the designer of Inde- 
pendence, have furnished the Scientific American with 
the sail plan of Independence, which is herewith repro- 
duced from the original blue-prints. At the same time, by 
the courtesy of J. Beaver W ebb, the designer of the famous 
old Genesta and Galatea, we are enabled to present the 
sail, sheer and deck plans and midship section of the latter 
yacht, these plans being also reproduced from the original 
working drawings. 
It will be fifteen years ago this summer since the 90ft. 
cutter Galatea (her actual waterline length was 87ft., but 
she classes with the 90ft. Independence) came across the 
Atlantic to make the second attempt on the part of the 
typical English cutter to secure the America Cup. She 
and her sister, Genesta, may be said to have opened the 
latest period of the Cup contests, a period which has been 
far the most brilliant in the history of this memorable and 
long-drawn-out struggle. Although her genial owner, 
Lieut. Henn, one of the most thorough English yachts- 
men that ever crossed the water, sailed Galatea, not 
merely in the Cup races, but throughout the yachting 
season of the following 3'ear, she did little to add to the 
prestige of her predecessor, Genesta, whose performance 
stands to-day as the most creditable among the many 
English yachts that have competed for the Cup. We have 
chosen Galatea, however, for this comparison, because on 
the basis of waterline length, by which the modern racing 
yacht is classed, she lends herself admirably to compari- 
son with the 90ft. Independence of 1901. In our drawing 
the cutter of 1886 is thrown in shadow upon the cutter- 
sloop of IQOI, and the two drawings being exactly to the 
same scale, they tell the story of the development which 
has been taking place during the past decade and a half 
better than would a whole volume of verbal description. 
Speaking in a general way, it may be said that among 
the many conditions surrounding the Cup contests there 
is only one, at least as regards the dimensions of the 
yachts, that is strictly negative, and this is the rule that 
neither yacht must exceed 90ft. in length on the water- 
line. They may be as deep, as broad, as long on deck, as 
their respective designers may care to make them, but 
in length, while they may be many feet less than they 
must not be a fraction of an inch over 90ft. Subject to 
this restriction, then, the problem is to design a yacht 
which shall carry a maximum amount of sail upon a 
hull that shall have the smallest possible displacement and 
wetted surface, and shall present the easiest form to drive 
through the water. At the time of Galatea-Mayflower 
races, the American and English yachts were widely 
different in form, the English cutter being of narrow 
beam and considerable depth of body, the American sloop 
being of shallow draft and great beam, and depending 
upon the movable centerboard to give her the proper 
lateral plane when sailing by the wmd. The initial stabil- 
ity of the sloop was large, the center of buoyancy moving 
out rapidly to leeward as the vessel heeled, and thus 
automatically, as it were, maintaining the margin of 
stability. In the narrow cutter, the initial stability was 
small, the center of buoyancy moving to leeward but little 
as she listed, although the righting moment increased 
rapidly with every increase in the angle of heel. On 
equal displacements, the greater initial stability of the 
sloop enabled her to carry a considerably larger sail plan, 
and hence in light winds she was invariably faster than 
the cutter. At higher speeds, however, the finer form of 
the cutter showed to advantage against the bluffer lines of 
the sloop: there was less w^ave-making resistance, and 
hence in the second race between Genesta and Puritan, 
which was sailed in a piping breeze, the cutter was prac- 
tically a match for her shallower-bodied competitor. 
The narrow beam of the cutter was due to an English 
rule of measurement which put a heavy tax upon beam, 
but none upon draft. As soon as this was removed, and 
a rule of measurement based on waterline length and sail 
area- substituted, the English designers reverted to the 
more generous breadth of the original cutter type, Thistle 
having a beam of 20ft. .3in. to a length of 86ft. 6in , as 
against Galatea's beam of 15ft. on a length of 87ft. Val- 
kvrie IL of 1893, which, with her sister. Britannia, rnay 
justly be termed the type from Avhich the modern racmg 
craft has sprung, showed on a waterline length of 85ft. a 
beam of 22ft. 6in., and a depth of 17ft. 6in. Simuhaneous- 
ly with this lowering of the lead and widening of the 
beam, the forefoot was cut away, the sternpost and rudder 
brought well forward of the after end of the waterline, 
Avith the result that the wetted surface and. therefore, the 
frictional resistance of the j-acht was considerably re- 
duced. 
On the American side, development had been in the 
direction of deeper draft and a lowering of the center of 
gravity, until in Vigilant, the competitor of Valkyrie, we 
see a boat with the enormous beam of 26ft. and the deep 
draft, for a sloop, of 13ft. 6m. With such a draft it 
was evident that the days of the centerboard were over, 
and in the next 3^acht, Defender. Herreshoff produced a 
keel boat of similar contour to Valkyrie, but with even 
2ft. greater draft than that yacht. It was at the time of 
the Valkyrie-Vigilant races that the forward and after 
overhangs of the racing yacht began to be carried out 
far beyond the load Avaterline, and so great has been the 
development in this direction that in Independence we have 
a forw^ard overhang of 27ft. S^in. and an after overhang 
of 23ft. sin. These exaggerated overhangs have the ad- 
vantage of compensating for the increase in beam (com- 
pare the deck plans of Galatea and Independence) by per- 
mitting the fore and aft lines to be practically as fair and 
easy as those of the old cutter type 
It will be seen in the comparison of the midship sections 
that the modern yacht embodies two points of excellence 
of the cutter arid sloop, for it has the low center of 
gravity of the otie and the high center of buoyancy of 
the other. The bottom of the lead of Independence is 6ft. 
6in. lower tl.ian that of Galatea, and her beam is 8ft. sin. 
greater. Thanks to her great length, her lines are at 
least as easy; and by carrying the flat floor of the hull well 
out into the overhangrs, Iftr. CrbSvninshield has s'ettired 
the unmistakable advantage that when the yacht is heeled, 
even in a moderate sailing breeze, she lengthens her 
waterline from 00 to losft. The cutter, on the other hand, 
lengthens but little; as will be seen by comparing the 
listed waterline of both yachts. The comparison is not 
made on the same degree of inclination, for the reason 
that the relative tenderness of the cutter would cause 
her to heel about 30 degrees in a breeze which would 
only incline the cutter-sloop by 20 degrees. With her 
straight stem the cutter, of course, gains nothing when 
heeled forward and her gain aft, at the given inclination, is 
not more than a couple of feet. 
In considering the form of Independence, as shown 
from the midship section, we must bear in mind not only 
that she possesses all the initial stability of the sloop type 
due, as we have seen, to great beam and shallow 
body, but that the height of the center of buoyancy, when 
the yacht is heeled, is increased by the great lengthening 
of the waterline and consequent submersion of the full 
ends of the yacht, as shown in the plan of the listed load 
waterline. Under 20 degrees of heel, the center of 
buoyancy of the submerged portion of the hull moves out 
to leeward until it is 2.75ft. from the vertical axis of the 
boat and only 2.83ft. below the normal waterline. Com- 
pared even with Columbia, she shows in this respect a 
remarkable gain ; and it is probable, moreover, that the 
center of gravity of the boat is lower than that of the last 
Cup defender. That this is the case is suggested by the 
fact that Independence will spread 1,476 sq. ft., or 11 per 
cent., more sail than Columbia, although the displace- 
ment of the latter vessel is greater. 
The increased power of the cutter-sloop over the cutter 
is not, however, to be all attributed to form and disposi- 
tion of weights ; for a corresponding gain has been made 
both in the materials and methods of construction. Look- 
ing at the hulls of the two boats, as .shown in outline and 
in shadow, it is seen that although her displacement is less, 
in bulk or cubical capacity Independence is enormously 
larger than Galatea. She is 39ft. longer on the deck, 8^ft. 
greater in beam, her deck area alone being two and one- 
quarter times as great as that of Galatea. .A.lthough nomi- 
nally in the same class by virtue of her waterline length, 
Independence, measured by her actual superficial area, is 
a vastly bigger boat. The same disparity is present in 
the spars and sails. Nevertheless, as will be seen from 
our comparative table of dimensions, the total weight of 
the hull, spars, rigging, sails, etc, of the bigger boat is 
less than that of the cutter by 8.9 tons, or 11 per cent. — 
a structural paradox which tells more eloquently than 
words the story of the advance which has been made dur- 
ing the past fifteen years, not merely in the quality of the 
materials themselves, but in their scientific adaptation to 
the problem in hand. Doubtless Galatea, as designed by 
Webb, embodied the latest ideas in the way of lightness 
of construction known at that date to the naval archi- 
tect. Her hull was of steel, but the deck was wood 
planked, and the spars w-ere solid throughout. Although 
she was lightly constructed, as things went in those days, 
nothing was sacrificed to the determination to make her a 
perfectly .staunch and sea\\jorthy vessel, and doubtless to- 
day she could snug down and thrash her way, without 
starting a rivet or loosening a spar, through a gale that 
would send Independence or, in fact, any of this year's 
90-footers to the bottom. Still, the America Cup con- 
tests are not supposed to be, or, at any rate, have had 
the luck never as yet to be, sailed in a gale of wind. 
Therefore Independence is a perfectly proper and legiti- 
mate craft for the work she is called upon to do. Allow- 
ing then that staunchness has been somewhat sacrificed 
to lightness, as compared with the cutter, we may still 
attribute the remarkable lightness of Independence, both 
in hull, spars and sails, to the far greater strength per 
unit of weight of her materials of construction, and to 
the great care which has been exercised to dispose this ma- 
terial to the best structural advantage. To particularize, 
we may mention the substitution of nickel-steel framing 
and Tobin bronze plating for the mild steel frames and 
plating of Galatea; the substitution of steel and aluminium 
plating for the heavy wood deck, and the use of plow 
steel, having a strength that runs pretty close to 100 tons 
to the square inch, for the standing rigging, and the sub- 
stitution of hollow steel and hollow wooden spars for 
the solid pine sticks w'hich were used on the earlier boat. 
It must be confessed that the sail plan of Independence 
is very impressive. We were prepared for an increase 
over that of the last contestants, but not for such an in- 
crease as this. The ring or cap of the mainmast is io8f(, 
and the topmast is 150ft. above the deck, while the head of 
the topsail will be r72ft. 7in. above the same level. What 
these dimensions are can best be realized when it is stated 
that were Independence to range alongside the center of 
the Brooklyn Bridge, the topmast would be level with the 
passenger foot walk, while the peak of the club topsail 
w-ould tower 20ft. above the top of the chord of the 
trusses. Compared with Shamrock and Columbia, it will 
be noticed that the gain in sail area has been in the direc- 
tion of greater height. The ba>^c line from end of bow- 
sprit to end of boom is only 3' jft, greater than that of 
Columbia, and is. indeed, 4ft. le^^-^ than that of Shamrock. 
In height, however, there is a gain of lift, over Columbia 
and not less than lyVzit over Shamrock. The English 
yachting journals are crediting Shamrock II. with a base 
line of i8sft., which is exactly that of Independence, and a 
mast measurement of 148ft. It is not stated whether this 
m.easurement is over all or whether it is from the deck. 
Shamrock's boom is given as 112ft., or sVzit. longer than 
that of Independence, but as the measurement from the 
forward side of the mast to end of bowsprit of Shamrock 
is said to be 71ft., as against 74.5ft. in Independence, it is 
evident that the mast of Shamrock is to be placed several 
feet further forward and that she will probably show a 
larger area in her mainsail. — Scientific American. 
Lysistrata. 
James Gordon Bennett's new- steam yacht Lysistrata. 
designed by George L. Watson, and built bv W Denny & 
Bros., has just completed her triab, and is said to have 
given great satisfaction to her owner, designer and 
builders. Over an 8o-knot course on the Clyde Lysistrata 
showed a mean speed of igyz knots, and without forced 
draft -i6^A laiots. The yacht handles admirably, has 
twin screws and 6,500 horse-power. In her high speed 
trial the machinery acted faultlessly. There was no heat- 
ing or cbmplicafion of any kind, and so cool were th^ 
bearings at the end of the trial that the chief engineer 
said he was prepared to drive her another 300 miles at 
the same speed without fear of the results. 
Lysistrata is of 2,800 tons, has a perfectly straight stem, 
has a storm deck fore and aft, a single huge funnel, with 
one mast abaft it, and one square yard for signaling pur- 
poses. The interior arrangements are novel, and, gen- 
erally speaking, she is unlike any yacht built. She has no 
bowsprit, but features at the stern and bow are large owds, 
with electric eyes, amid a scroll work of mistletoe.^ More 
striking than all else in the yacht are the anchors, which 
are stockless, like those used on board warships, the 
shaft being drawn into the side of the ship. The hull has 
the appearance of being made out of a solid piece of metal, 
so highly is it polished and finished. 
Harbingfer* 
The catboat Harbinger, owned by Mr.' William W. 
Genet, was destroyed by fire at i o'clock on the morning 
of April 9. She was hauled out on the grounds of the 
Knickerbocker Athletic Club at Bayonne Citj^ N. J. All 
that remains of the once famous Harbinger, built in 1889 
by Hanley, at Monument Beach, is a charred keel with 
stumps of frames sticking up and stem and part of her 
transom and deadwood. Her entire cabin, planking, deck 
and frame were so completely consumed that the ashes 
were carried away hj the strong northwest wind that 
was blowing at the time. Her iron work is intact, and 
bolts and galvanized nails strew the ground. The brass 
screws of her planking must have melted. The galvanized 
rods that ran through her centerboard stand out all 
twisted. Her rudder was burned off, but the quadrant 
of her steering gear was saved. Her iron traveler lies on 
the sand on the beach. She was blocked up on the cradle 
of a .'^mall set of marine railways; this cradle was burned 
and the heat caused the rails of the track to bulge badly. 
Another catboat owned by Mr. Thomas J. Parker, called 
Tiche, was also completely gutted and her stern burned 
off. The fire is thought to be of incendiary origin, Ilar- 
binger was valued at $1,500 and Tiche at $1,000. 
YACHTING NEWS NOTES. 
The boat being built by Capt. Fearnside for the 
Canada cup trial races is from a design made by Father 
O'Brion, of St. Johns, Newfoundland. 
^ 1^ 
The. yawl Ailsa, owned by Mr. H. S. Redmond, N. Y. 
Y. C.. sailed from Southampton for New York on April 
5. The 65ft. cutter Eelin, owned by Mr. P. T. Dodge, 
has also left England for America, 
«^ *•= 
The steam yacht Neckan which was burned last fall 
while in winter quarters at Rockland, Maine, has been 
rebuilt and now measures about 125ft. over all; her orig- 
inal length w^as 109 feet. She is owned by Mr. H. C. 
Baxter, of Brunswick, Maine. 
4^ 4^ 
Manning's yacht agency has sold for Mr. Edward S. 
Renwick his "steam yacht Giralda to Mr. Charles G, 
Conn,, of Elkhart, Ind. 
The 70-footer Virginia, owned by Mr. W. K. Vander- 
hilt, Jr.. i.s being strengthened at Burlee's yard, Staten 
Island, under the direction of Tarns, Lemoine & Crane. 
Yankee and Rainbow were practically rebuilt at the; 
llereshoffs". 
8ft 
The schooner yacht Clarctle which was reported off 
Highland Light in distress on April i, was towed to 
Boston by the fishing schooner Tecumseh. Capt. 
Coonicy. of the fishing schooner Tecumseh, received 
$300 from the owner of the yacht. 
8ft 8ft 8ft 
Com. Pvobert L, Stilson, of the Bergen Beach Y. C'.,,, 
IS having a 38ft. naphtha launch built at College Point, 
L. I. She will be completed about May i. 
8ft 8ft 8ft 
The steam yacht Radha has been chartered by Messrs. 
Tarns, Lemoine & Crane to Mr. W. L, Bull for the 
coming season. 
IS K 
The steam yacht building at Lawley's for Mr. W. P. 
Eno, N. Y. Y. C, from designs by Messrs. Tarns, Le- 
moine & Crane, will be named Aquilo. 
It t« 
The following sales have been made through the 
agency of Huntington & Seaman: Seawanhaka Senta 
sold to R. C. Mitchell, Sachem's Head Y. C; Sewanhaka 
Ruby sold to George E. Edwards, of New Rochelle; 
Sewanhaka Vagrant sold to Messrs. Brown & Low, of 
Brooklyn; Marine Field Club Sweetheart sold to Stephen 
H P. Peil, of New York; knockabout Wideawake sold 
to R. I. Carter, of Baltimore, Md. ; sloop Adelaide sold 
to W. C. Sutherland, of Pittston, Pa.; yawl Dulwich 
sold to George C. Kirkpatrick, of Philadelphia, Pai; 
auxiliary yawl Qntiora sold to J. Murray Watts, of Phila- 
delphia, Pa.; alco-vap©r hunting launch Zolfo sold to F. 
B. Van Doon, of Brooklyn. 
