FOREST AND STREAM. 

[APRIL 21, 1906. 















ALCCGHGL, 
On Monday, by a vote of 224 to 7, the House 
passed the Free Alcohol bill, which provides for 
the denaturization of alcohol, i. e., rendering it 
poisonous for drinking or medicinal purposes; 
and its withdrawal from bond free of tax. 
Section 4472, of the Steamboat Inspection laws, 
provides: “That no naphtha, coal oil, 
crude or refined petroleum or other like explosive 
or burning fluids shall be carried as 
freight or used as stores on any steamers carry- 
ing passengers.” Senator Frye, of Maine, has 
offered an amendment introducing the words “for 
hire’ after the word passengers. Thus steam 
yachts or any steam vessel carrying passengers 
without hire will be enabled to carry a supply of 
fuel oil for the operation of their tenders. 
The Department of Commerce and Labor has 
decided that no opposition will be made to the 
Frye bill, believing that public welfare is not en- 
dangered. 
In connection with the change in section 4472 
it is a remarkable coincidence that the Free 
Alcohol bill should be passed at this time. No 
doubt attention to alcohol and its uses will be 
somewhat put off in connection with marine 
motors, but commercially it will be put to use 
at once, saving many thousands of dollars each 
year and increasing our ability to produce goods 
in the manufacture of which alcohol is used. 
Gasolene is becoming less plentiful, and_ its 
gradual rise in price would be a certain indica- 
tion of the difficulty of obtaining it. Alcohol, on 
the other hand, is of such chemical composition 
as to be readily manufactured at a cheap price, 
and is always available, being a manufactured 
instead of a natural product. It has undeniable 
properties of safety, cleanliness and_ efficiency 
over mineral oils or other refinements. The in- 
ternal combustion engine in its wonderful de- 
velopment has absorbed the attention of all 
engineers, and gasolene, in the earlier engines, 
gave better results, and thus the line of improve- 
ment has been continued, though some attention 
has been devoted to the heavier grades of oil. 
The market to-day offers but few motors cap- 
able of running by means of alcohol. The opinion 
of men who have conducted experiments as to the 
comparative efficiency of gasolene and alcohol, do 
not seem to favor alcohol; but the value of this 
opinion is somewhat weakened, because these 
men have built up a large and successful busi- 
ness in the manufacture of gasolene engines, 
In calling attention to the Free Alcohol bill, 
we have only appreciation and praise for the in- 
genuity and perseverance which have built up— 
with gasolene as a basis—a business, the magni- 
tude of which few realize. But we wish to point 
out the possibilities awaiting the development of 
alcohcl, which is susceptible of manufacture prac- 
tically anywhere, which is clean and which, above 
all, is safe. To the resources and ingenuity that 
have made of the gasolene engine a perfect ma- 
chine, may safely be left the work of developing 
an equally perfect motor, the fuel of which shall 
be alcohol. 
Steam Yacht Visitor. 
WE publish this week, in connection with the 
drawings of the steam yacht Visitor, a photograph 
of the yacht as completed. 
Visitor was finished about two years ago and 
was directly put in commission by her owner, 
Mr. W. Harry Brown, of Pittsburg. Designed 
by Messrs. Swasey, Raymond and Page, Visitor 
was constructed at the yard of George Lawley & 
Son Corp., and is a twin-screw steel vessel of a 
type that has received, perhaps, its greatest de- 
velopment in our waters. 
It is comparatively simple to trace the re!ation- 
ship of Visitor to the earlier torpedo boats, but 
she shows much improvement and is well adapted 
from the original purpose of war to that of 
pleasure. The long, low sheer line, neat deck 
erections and great speed are the same for both 
boats. The form is easy, sharp forward with 
straight waterlines, and deep buttocks for the for- 
ward third, from thence aft, tapering to the stern 
with a great area of load water plane and fine 
buttocks. Briefly, the ideal speed form so modi- 
fied as to suit conditions best adapted to give 
the boat a good behavior in a sea way. The 
stern is peculiar but lends itself readily to the 
purposes of speed and construction. ; 
The accommodations are good, and comprise, 
in the after part of the vessel, and reached from 
a cockpit of good size, two quarter staterooms; 
next to port is a toilet and bath, on the starboard 
side a large store room and clothes press; forward 
again is the owner’s cabin, the full width of the 
ship. Steel bulkheads separate the after quarters 
from the engine room, and one forward separates 
the boiler room from the owner’s quarters. These 
quarters include a saloon, toilet room, stairway to 
deck house, with a door into the galley for ser- 
vice of meals, either in saloon below or that on 
deck. The owner’s quarters are finished entirely 
in Flemish oak and upholstered in velour. 
The deck is cut by two long coamings and 
trunks, the after one over owner’s quarters and 
the other forming the engine and boiler room 
casing, the bridge and the deck house. The water 
ways are wide and permit moving about the 
deck in comfort. Ventilation and light received 
much attention, and, as in the largest liners, suc- 
tion pipes are connected to an exhaust fan and 
induce a constant current of air through the ship, 
which in a steel boat is very necessary from 
the readiness with which the metal transmits heat. 
The machinery consists of two triple-expansion 
engines, developing about 600 horsepower each, 
and the yacht has attained over a measured course 
a speed of 21% knots an hour, an excess of a 
knot and a half over the contract. The boiler is 
of the water-tube type, and there are the usual 
condensers, feed circulating and bilge pumps, 
with a complete electrical lighting outfit. 
Visitor has proved to be a very comfortable and 
able ship. On her visits to Chesapeake Bay her 
light draft has enabled her to enter most of the 
small harbors otherwise closed to boats of greater 
draft. Visitor's dimensions are as follows: 
Length; Yover tall case see o8ft. oin. 
load swaterkne’+ . 2072820. eh g2ft. 4in. 
Breadth i:s.4 : cee seins eet eee T4ft. Yin. 
POTS Ss Bb ck aE os en ee 4ft. 3in. 
Depths 26 sii 20), Sarees aoe Fei 9fbiy. 
Peeeboard ioswacdmeer eee 6ft. oin. 
amMidShipsmee «29. eee 2itwetine 
alt dee. 2:2 Vue ee 3ft. roin. 
orsepewet yi Saeee oo ee ee eee 1,200 
Coal capacity, “te.geamiee «aves donee eee 10 tons 
Speed fa ids. Baie. «<s «ae nes 21% knots 










: : A a 
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Boston Letter. 
Apopts CONFERENCE RuLEs.—A special meeting 
of the Yacht Racing Association of Massachu- 
setts was held at Young’s Hotel on Friday even- 
ing, April 13, at which the revised rules, as pre- 
pared by a committee consisting of Messrs. Sum- 
ner H. Foster, B. Permar and A. T. Bliss, 
were accepted. The revised rules conform with 
those adopted by the Atlantic Coast Conference 
in New York in February, with such additions as 
will apply to local conditions and to the needs of 
the Association’s restricted classes. At a previous 
meeting the Association adopted all of the rating 
classes under the new uniform rule of 4oft. rating 
and under. On account of the great interest in 
the local restricted classes, however, it was de- 
cided to retain them, The rating classes and the 
restricted classes will be maintained under sepa- 
rate classification. The restricted classes re- 
tained are: Class D, yachts conforming to the 
limitations of the Cape Catboat Association; class 
E, Twenty-two-foot Cabin Yacht Association; 
class I, Eighteen-foot Knockabout Association ; 
class T, Yacht Racing Association of Massachu- 
setts 15ft. class, and class X, Massachusetts Rac- 
ing Dory Association. These restricted classes 
will probably be the greatest factors in the circuit 
racing during the coming season, as development 
in the rating classes is slow. One 33-rater and a 
22-rater are the only new ones built during the 
past winter. 
It was voted to insert a clause in the racing 
rules to the effect that the Association recom- 
mends for a mark for Y. R. A. races, a barrel 
painted red and white, with a red flag 4ft. square 
on an 8ft. pole, flag and pole to be maintained in 
an upright position. 
At this special meeting it was also voted to 
adopt the use of the code letter B as a signal for 
notice of protest, as has been practiced in other 
waters with considerable satisfaction. The dis- 
play of the flag must be supplemented by a writ- 
ten statement of the facts, which must be sent to 
the judges within one hour after the protesting 
yacht has finished. 
Quincy Cup Trrats.—The Manchester Y. C. 
has issued a circular to its members asking those 
who have boats conforming to the rules govern- 
ing the Quincy Cup match this year to enter them 
for the trial races, the dates for which will be 
announced later. The races for the trophy this 
year will be between boats of the Sonderklasse, 
which will also compete in the German-American 
match, As there are 15 of these boats building, 
the field of challengers should be a good one, 
while there will be several owned in the Man- 
chester Y. C. from which to pick a defender. 
Dorotuy JII. Sotp.—Commodore F. F. Crane, 
of the Quincy Y. C., has sold his catboat Dorothy 
Ill. to Mr. F. E. Coppenrath, of the South Bos- 
ton Y. C., who will have her fitted with auxiliary 
power. Commodore Crane will have a new boat 
for the Cape catboat class. 
Harpinc YAcuts Sotp.—Mr. W. Dixon Ellis, 
of the New York Y. C., has purchased from the 
estate of the late Edgar Harding the steam yacht 
Montclair and the schooner Saxon. Saxon will 
be used for commercial purposes. 
SALES BY HoLiis Burcess.—The following sales 
have been reported by Mr. Hollis Burgess: 
Cruising launch Woggie, owned by Mr. E. A. 
Rich, of Wakefield, to Mr. William C. Forsaith, 
of Malden; 3o0ft. sloop Sauquoit, owned by Mr. 
T. K. Lothrop, Jr.. to Mr. Benjamin D. Hyde; 
22-footer Opitsah V., owned by Messrs. Sumner 
H. and Herbert I. Foster, to Mr, Robert A. Boit, 
of Brookline; knockabout Sabrina II., owned by 
Mr. Benjamin D. Hyde, to Mr. T. K. Lothrop, 
Jr.; launch Edith F., owned by Mr. William C. 
Forsaith, to a Boston man, whose name is with- 
held. 
