Atlantic Y. C. 
There is no club on the Eastern coast that 
has made so much progress as the Atlantic Y. 
C. this season. At the end of last season, after 
a period of diffidence on the part of the mem¬ 
bers, the Atlantic Y. C., one of the best known 
in the country and the only one of the larger 
organizations remaining on the Lower Bay, was 
in rather a poor way, and those members who 
have the club’s interests at heart were worried. 
They started in this season determined to do 
or die, and with wise judgment selected Robert 
C. Veit as the chairman of the Board of Trus¬ 
tees. The club is on its feet again. It has 
wiped out its indebtedness caused through last 
year’s failures, has taken in eighty new mem¬ 
bers this year, and the future is full of bright¬ 
ness. The racing of the club this year has been 
of the best. Its regattas have been well patron¬ 
ized by yachtsmen, and through the generosity 
of Capt. Frederic Thompson, many rich prizes 
have been offered for competition. By some 
it has been argued that the prizes are too rich 
and that it is ruining the sport, because owners 
of yachts that cannot be called first-class are 
able to win prizes far more valuable than their 
yachts are entitled to, and far more costly 
than those offered by other clubs. This may be 
so, but it is a fact that these rich prizes at¬ 
tracted yachtsmen, and yachts came from all 
parts to race and will do so again, not only for 
the costly trophies, but because they have found 
that they can get good racing on Gravesend 
Bay, and that those who abandoned the bay for 
the Sound did not act wisely. 
In appreciation of all his services to the club, 
the members last Wednesday evening enter¬ 
tained Mr. Veit at dinner. It was what has 
been termed at that club “a mess dinner,” and 
these have been very successful this season. 
These dinners bring the members more closely 
together, and they have made friendships that 
do so much to help any club along. At this 
dinner there were about one hundred present, 
and every one had lots of fun. Of course, Mr. 
Veit was lauded in speech and song, and he 
very modestly declined to accept praise for what 
he maintained he had not done, but had been 
accomplished by those members who had served 
as officers and committeemen during the sea¬ 
son. He praised Commodore Richards, Vice- 
Commodore Probst, Rear-Commodore E. E. 
Malcolm, Treasurer W. A. Brown, Secretary 
Robert Speir, Chairman of the Regatta Com¬ 
mittee, John R. Brophy, and the Chairman of 
the Entertainment Committee, H. A. Bullock, 
and many others who, he said, had worked hard 
and successfully and deserved more praise than 
he. 
The dinner was served in the main dining 
room, and among those present were: Com¬ 
modore Leonard Richards, Vice-Commodore J. 
D. Probst, Rear-Commodore E. E. Malcolm, 
Fleet Surgeon Dr. Dunckel, Fleet Captain 
Hardy M. Banks, Secretary Robert Speir, 
Treasurer R. A. Brown, A. W. Booth, C. H. 
Eagle, ex-Commodore R. P. Doremus, John 
R. Brophy (Chairman of the Regatta Commit¬ 
tee, and his associates, H. E. Boucher and F. L. 
Durland), H. A. Bullock (Chairman of the En¬ 
tertainment Committee), Hudson Booth, W. A. 
Barstow, F. Q. Barstow, Hendon Chubb, E. F. 
Luckenback, J. L. Luckenback, H. G. S. Noble, 
F. C. Noble, C. A. Morse, R Maxwell, George 
S. Small. Jr., Calvin Tomkins. S. E. Vernon, 
Bartow S. Weeks, Theodore D. Wells A. B. 
Whitlock, A. C. Postley, W. H. Remick, 
Martin H. A. Smythe, Winchell Smith, A. H. 
Post, S. D. L. Prentiss, J P. Krebs, C. V. 
Kip, C. B. Ludwig, C. F. Larzelere, A. J. 
Lamme, L. D. Martens, C. D Marsh, H. 
Mestre. H. A. S. Martin, W. H. Todd, Erastus 
T. Tefft, J. M. Fisk, Macomb Foster, E. E. 
Foye, Max Grundner, E. B. Havens, D. Huyler, 
S. L. Blood, Col. T. G. Agens (Commodore of 
the Rocking Chair Fleet), T. G. Agens, Jr., 
R. W. Bartram, J. M. Barrett, Thomas Barrett, 
J. W. Copman, George W. Hodges, W. H. 
Hanford, J. S. Jaffraes, W. A. Martens, J. G. 
Taylor, Russell Veit, C. A. Wright, Jr., and W. 
R. Wallace. 
Topical songs were sung and about the 
middle of the dinner a new song written on a 
big sheet was unrolled over the head table. It 
ran as follows: 
(Tune: I’d Rather Two-Step than Waltz.) 
There’s a royal fellow and his name is Dickey Veit, 
He’s in the driver’s seat, he runs the club so neat; 
He’s always smiling, always jolly, he never stoops to 
folly, 
You can go the limit that Dick Veit is hard to beat. 
The trustees made him chairman when affairs were on 
the bum, 
And we were feeling glum, but now good times have 
come. 
He’s kept us moving every minute, Teddy Roosevelt isn’t 
in it, 
When you need a man to make things hum. 
Chorus: 
So give the big stick to Veit, boys, 
So give the big stick to Veit; 
He’ll not abuse it, tell him to use it 
Whenever he thinks best and then we will do the rest. 
There’s something about him you trust, boys, 
And whene’r you need a friend, 
Go to Dick Veit, he’s a man they can’t beat 
And he’ll stand by the club to the end. 
With Richard for our commodore and Veit as chairman, 
too, : i ' ll 
We’ve got a splendid crew; there’s nothing we can’t do. 
We’ll crowd the harbor with our racers, give all our rival 
craft stern chases. 
When they come to Sea Gate to corral some cup that’s 
new; 
We’ll get two hundred melmbers for the club another 
year, 
And show them all that here is where they find the good 
old cheer. 
We’ll beat all records on mess dinners, prove that we are 
all-round winners, 
While Atlantic’s name spreads far and near. 
It was sung several times, and then a I eddy 
bear entered the room, bearing a big stick sur¬ 
mounted with a trident, which was presented to 
Mr. Veit. Mr. Veit tried to acknowledge the 
compliment, but he was drowned with the 
cheering and had to sit down again. 
Commodore Malcolm spoke of Mr. Veit’s 
successes, and throughout his remarks appealed 
to those present, asking, “Am I right?” and a 
yell, “You bet you are, Ernest,” answered him 
each time. 
Then Hendon Chubb told what the members 
thought of Mr. Veit, and as he finished he 
presented to the popular chairman of the board 
a handsome gold watch. 
Mr. Veit spoke and told of the work that had 
been done by all in the club and pictured the 
future of the Atlantic Y. C. in glowing terms. 
Commodore Richards, Bartow S. Weeks, 
Rear-Commodore Probst, Robert Speir and 
Calvin Tomkins were also speakers. S. E. 
Vernon was made to sing one of his fetching 
songs and then speak, and a letter was read 
from Charles J. McDermott, expressing his re¬ 
gret that he was forced to be absent. The 
dinners at the Atlantic are never late affairs. 
Those in charge of them crowd lots of fun and 
good times into a short space, and they never 
fall flat. There have been several this season, 
and the last will be that to Commodore 
Richards, who has led the club well, and who, 
it is earnestly hoped by all the members, will 
be the commodore again next year. 
Lipton Talking Race. 
Sir Thomas Lipton has been talking again, 
and this time he says that he wants a race, but 
is waiting until he hears from the New York 
Y. C. that his challenge is likely to be accepted. 
Sir Thomas does not want to have his challenge 
declined as it was last year, and at the same 
time, he says that he knows that the New 
York Y. C. cannot take any action until it 
hears officially from some yacht club on the 
other side. This is what Sir Thomas is quoted 
as having said: 
“Nothing could be further from my wish 
than to try to force the hand of the New York 
Y. C. I am now ready to challenge under the 
club’s own rules, and am willing to build a 
go-footer and send her across. I could not, of 
course, be sure of winning the cup, but I would 
make a good try and would promise plenty of 
sport off Sandy Hook next autumn. But before 
challenging again, I would really be silly to 
expect the New York Y. C. to take action be¬ 
fore I issued a challenge. I know the club felt 
embarrassed in declining my last challenge. I 
wish to challenge again, and if there is any 
way to bring it about, I should like to do so 
without embarrassing either the club or myself. 
I repeat I would like to know if my challenge 
would stand a good chance of being accepted. 
In other words, I should like to feel that this 
is the psychological moment, as it were, for me 
to issue a challenge.” 
While Sir Thomas has been talking and wish¬ 
ing that he could arrange a race, some of the 
members of the New York Y. C. have been 
thinking and talking among themselves. The 
season was not a good one for the club, 
many of the members are of the opinion that 
the leading yacht club in the country should do 
more for yachting than it has done. The cruise 
was a good one and the racing of the best, but 
new boats lacking. In the club regattas the 
entries were few and these were limited al¬ 
most to the ^-footers, a' few smaller sloops 
and the 30-footers. These yachtsmen have been 
thinking that something must be done to revive 
interest in the chib’s affairs and particularly in 
racing, and various methods of doing this have 
been discussed. Some favor giving open re¬ 
gattas and catering more to the smaller classes, 
but that idea, while it has often been broached 
in the New York Y. C. before, has never found 
favor with many. Some think that it was a 
mistake to abandon the Lower Bay and go to 
the Sound for its regattas, but owners of large 
yachts do not favor the Lower Bay, because it 
is so crowded with steamers, tugs and tows. 
Tt has been practically agreed that a race for 
the America’s Cup would give the sport a big 
boom. It always has, and there is no reason 
to suppose that it would not again; but it 
seems certain that no foreign yachtsman, or 
syndicate of yachtsmen, will challenge again for 
a race under the old conditions. Yachtsmen 
abroad do not favor the old rule. They want 
a yacht that, after it has ended its racing career, 
can be used as a cruiser, and one that is safe 
and sane in model, dhere are many yachtsmen, 
too, on this side of the Atlantic who are of the 
same way of thinking, and they would, be de¬ 
lighted if the New York Y. C. would in some 
way smooth things over, so that a challenge 
could be accepted for a race under the present 
rules of the club. 
These members of the New York Y. C..—and 
they are some of the most influential in the 
club—in their informal conferences may have 
found some way to brin fT this about. They are 
in favor of a race, and if Sir Thomas Lipton 
or anvone else will challenge with a 90-footer 
and then take advantage of the mutual agree¬ 
ment clause and suggest, that as the Deed 01 
Gift allows 1 the challenger and the challenged 
