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The Boom in Catboats. 
Many years ago the, catboat was the most 
popular of all small racing craft, but slowly 
and surely the small sloop crowded them out 
and then for a time it was a rarity to see a 
catboat in any regatta. Now some enthusiasts 
who favor the mainsail yacht have gradually 
worked this type of yacht back again into 
popular favor, and in many regattas to be sailed 
next summer the catboat will take a prominent 
part. 
In Eastern waters the Cape Cod Catboat As¬ 
sociation has been looking after the interests 
of the big cabin ciaft, and the races that have 
been sailed have been interesting and the boats 
have furnished good sport. On Long Island 
Sound the boom has not come yet, but cat- 
boats are being built by some yachtsmen, and 
these will be raced. On the Great South Bay, 
on account of the shoalness of the water, the 
catboat has always been popular, and some of 
the fastest yachts of this type race there in all 
the regattas. On Barnegat Bay catboats of the 
freak type, built only for speed, have been 
raced for a trophy sailed for each season, and 
these boats have been turned out by Charles D. 
Mower. They are verj^ fast, and by some 
yachtsmen said to be the fastest craft of their 
size afloat. 
Now efforts are being made by the Yachts¬ 
men’s Club of Philadelphia to arrange for inter¬ 
club catboat races, and for these races yachts¬ 
men of New York, Barnegat Bay, Great South 
Bay, Narragansett Bay and Massachusetts Bay 
have been interested and have taken part in the 
meetings called to arrange rules and restric¬ 
tions for the construction of the boats. 
In the West there is another catboat boom. 
At Cleveland special races have been arranged 
for a class of small catboats built to certain re¬ 
strictions which are going to furnish good sport, 
and at Detroit rules and restrictions have been 
framed to govern a class for clubs enrolled in 
the Inter-Lake Yacht Racing Association. It 
is rather strange that Charles D. Mower, who 
has designed the freakiest type of catboat, 
should have been appealed to for a boat of 
wholesome type; but the inter-lake yachtsmen 
wanted to see what type of boat would be 
built under their new rules, and Mr, Mower 
made a set of drawings which are published in 
Forest and Stream. The plans speak for 
themselves and show a good, wholesome boat 
that should be an ideal eraft for a young sailor. 
Challenge for Quincy Cup. 
The Boston Y. C. has challenged for a race 
for the Quincy cup, which is now held by the 
Quincy Y. C. Bryan G. Permar, chairman of 
the regatta committee of the Boston Y. C., sent 
the formal challenge to Commodore Herbert M. 
Robbins, of the Quincy Club. It is expected 
that entries will he made by the Eastern, Man¬ 
chester and Corinthian clubs. 
PLANS OF SMALL 16-FOOT WATERLINE CATBOAT—Designed by Charles D. Mower, to fit new rules of Inter-Lake Y. A. 
