JUNE 2, 1906.] 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
881 

Mast and Sail. 
MAST AND SAIL IN Europe AND AsiA. H. War- 
fington Smith. E. P. Dutton, New York, 
$6.00 net. 
“Mast and Sail’ is a delightful and interesting 
addition to a subject, the contributions to which, 
though many, have not, for one reason or an- 
other, been of a kind to command more than a 
passing attention from those interested. 

With our present means of rapid communica- 
tion, the ends of the seas are well within reach, 
and the most indifferent sea traveler will recall 
the great variety in hulls and rigs of the small 
boats of the harbors on the coasts of Europe 
and Asia, The traveler may not realize the mag- 
nitude of the cost of gathering together this great 
mass of material and of portraying and describ- 
ing these boats. Admiral Paris, under the patron- 
age of the French Navy, spent some years cruis- 
ing around the world. Upon his return he 
caused to be published reproductions of his 
sketches and detailed drawings of the boats as he 
found them. This is one of the greatest works 
ever attempted, and this very fact puts it beyond 
the reach of those interested. The sketches in 
“Mast and Sail’ are well done, and possess that 
uniformity which is so valuable in differentiating 
the various types. 

Had all the chapters been dealt with like that 
on the Baltic, it would not have lessened the in- 
terest of the layman in the book, and would have 
added immeasurably to its value and its. useful- 
ness. It must be well understoood that to have 
attempted and carried out a work such as War- 
rington Smith’s compels our admiration for the 
intensity of the sea-love which overcame the 
difficulties inherent to such an undertaking. 
“Mast and Sail” is pleasantly written, and with 
valuable data little historical facts are constantly 
appearing. The appreciation of this contribution 
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to sea-lore is certain. He who has seen these 
brave little ships and their hardy crews in port 
or at sea, with only the opportunity for a pass- 
ing glance, which left him to speculate upon their 
origin, their development and their traditions, 
can find in “Mast and Sail” some clue to their 
identity and history. 

Houseboats. : 
SHOULD you be fortunate enough to add to your 
library, “Houseboats and Houseboating,” by Al- 
bert Bradlee Hunt, it is safe to assert that you 
will become thoroughly absorbed in the text and 
Ulustrations, and then consider the possibility of 
your becoming an owner of a houseboat in which 
you can spend the greater part of the summer 
months—providing it be, of course, within easy 
distance of your place of business. No one seems 
to have given any serious thought to the advan- 
tages of houseboat summering until Hunt took it 
up in practical form and wrote upon a subject 
which he well understands, taking the reader into 
his confidence, and visiting with him crafts of 
many styles, from the simplest and most unpre- 
tentious form of houseboat to the veritable float- 
ing palace of the millionaire. 
The purpose in publishing this exquisitely il- 
lustrated volume, is, as Mr. Hunt says “‘three- 
fold,’ namely: “To make known the opportuni- 
tics American waters afford for enjoyment of the 
houseboating life; to present in an adequate 
measure the development which houseboating has 
attained in this country; and chief of all to set 
forth the qualities ef the houseboat in such truth- 
ful picturing that a larger number of people may 
be prompted to prove for themselves its advan- 
tages and delights. The field is a broad one. The 
houseboat already has a place on many waters of 
the United States from Casco Bay to the Golden 
Gate, from the St. Lawrence to Lake Worth, and 
with every season the boats are growing in num- 
bers and growing in favor. Permanent popularity 
is assured, for the houseboat possesses qualities 
which are lasting in their appeal. Houseboating 
is simple and domestic. In it are combined life 
on the water and the home life which we care 
the most for. Thus to make known the attrac- 
tions, conveniences and compensations of living 
on a houseboat, as illustrated in the chapters 
which follow, should mean the enlisting in its 
following of a constantly growing host.” 
The work, which is richly illustrated, gives 
some interesting history regarding houseboating 
in America and in England. It also gives con- 
siderable information regarding the various kinds 
of houseboats, the sailing, the steam power, the 
gasolene power, a combination houseboat and 
hunting launch, and the stationary houseboat. 
Then the plans of each are discussed, how to 
build, what to avoid, and advice as to interior fit- 
tings, etc. Mr. Hunt has evidently no knowledge 
of the White River Country in Missouri and Ar- 
kansas. with its beautiful placid streams, or he 
certainly would have advocated this and other 
streams of the West and Southwest as offering 
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superb advantages of scenery, fishing and hunting 
to the houseboater. Mr. Hunt has gone deeply 
into the subject and his views are very practical. 
“Whether the houseboat be worth one hundred 
or one thousand dollars,’ writes Mr. Hunt, 
“there is nothing to limit the pleasure and satis- 
faction of the owner. For all practical purposes 
a houseboat costing in the neighborhood of $500 
has been found to answer every need. Another 
hundred spent for furniture has given the happy 
owner a. home that no one need be ashamed of. 
When one thinks of how many people there are 
who pay this amount or more tor the rental of a 
stuffy little cottage at a summer resort for a 
single season, the argument is all in favor of 
Owning one’s own houseboat. Anxiety 
about neighborhood is diminished, because, to a 
certain extent, your neighborhood can be changed 
at will. There can be no haunting anxiety about 
drains when the longest one measures two feet 
six and empties without a trap into running 
water. The twin questions of lawn sprinkling 
and grass cutting do not present themselves at 
all, and you may moor your boat to your front 
door-knob and defy acknowledged thieves as well 
as nominal borrowers. A houseboat may be a re- 
constructed sailing craft, or a shanty on a scow, 
furnished in a style inexpensive or elaborate.” 
Dr. V. Mott Pierce contributes an enthusiastic 
and detailed account of a simple houseboat, dwell- 
Ing upon the question of healthfulness, and the 
advantages of living out of doors in the environ- 
ment ‘of a picturesque stream, for, he says: “One 
does not live on the inside of his floating home— 
that is there only for sleep. The outer decks are 
the living rooms—right out in God’s open air, 
in the midst of sunshine, resting under ample 
awnings in luxurious hammocks or easy chairs. 
After a hard day’s work there is nothing more 
delightful than getting back to one’s home on the 
water, where one may enjoy rest and the delight- 
ful change from business and the heat and dust 
of the city. At night, the quiet ripple of the 
water, the ozone in the air, and perhaps the gen- 
tle mction of the boat, lulls one to sleep, and two 
months of such restful nights and good air fits 
one tor a whole winter of hard work.” 
The book is charming in its descriptive matter, 
while its illustrations are very beautiful, the 
pages being large; the half-tones are, many of 
them, full paged. It should appeal to all who ad- 
vocate rest while in communion with nature, It 
is becoming more frequent for men engaged in 
commercial and professional pursuits in America 
to “break down” under the continuous strain of 
work. Probably a flying trip to Europe is sug- 
gested as a remedy, a relaxation. But here the 
average American becomes even more strenuous 
in his endeavor to get what he calls his ‘““money’s 
worth.’”’ Consequently he returns to his native land 
on the verge of collapse, and blames everything 
and everybody but himself for the result. He 
cannot see that it was his own lack of intelligence 
that led him into a sea voyage, and a journeying 
in foreign Jands where railway travel—particu- 
larly for the semi-invalid—is not as convenient 
nor as easy, nor as luxurious as that to which 
he has been accustomed on a good suburban road 
in his native land, where there is more ozone to 
the square yard than is found in the square mile 
in the over-populated and often unsanitary places 
which he has visited for “change’ and in the 
vain hope of securing that which shall restore his 
shattered nerves. Many such who read this book 
by Albert Bradlee Hunt in combination with the 
travel articles and descriptions of some of our 
most delightful rivers and streams—essentially 
fitted for the purposes of houseboating—which 
appear every month in the pages of the Greater 
West magazine, will become a convert- to its 
motto, “See Europe if you will, but see America 
first !”’ 
“Houseboats and Houseboating,”’ edited by Al- 
bert Bradlee Hunt, is issued by the Forest and 
Stream Publishing Company, New York.—The 
Greater West. 
New York Y. C. ApporlntTMENTS.—Commodore 
Vanderbilt has appointed the following members: 
Fleet Capt., Grenville Kane, and Fleet Surg., J. 
McG. Woodbury, M.D., both appointments to 
take effect at once, 
