Yachting

“ For the most part the devotees of steam yachting are drawn from the general public without special regard of the situation of their home, as a yacht can be kept on the seaboard or on the lakes, whilst the owner may live far from the sight and sound of the sea; the restless spirit of our countrymen prompts them to embark into every scheme of pleasure-making, as well as business enterprise. ”

“ The invasion of fields of sport by the engine did not then recommend, nor has it since recommended, itself to the hearts of true yachtsmen; all that is so attractive in yachting seems to vanish as soon as the element of uncertainty is eliminated: all the poetry of motion, all the sense of freedom from disagreeable surroundings, as well as all interest in winds and water—all are sunk when the sail is changed for the engine as a propelling force. ”

“ Surely those who can afford so much on luxuries could find a more refined amusement in yachting and similar recreations. To sail a yacht successfully in half a gale of wind, is, I should imagine, more venturesome, more exciting, and a pastime requiring a manifestation of more of the qualities of daring, than shooting a frightened animal from the safe retreat of the saddle of a trusty horse ”

“ They used to make one of the heartiest pleasures of{198} yachting; but nowadays where is the foeman worthy of the steel of the slashing yawls, and cutters, and schooners? Nearly everything that floats goes by steam, and for a yacht to race a steamer would be as sensible as to make up a Derby of locomotives and thoroughbreds. Yet those crank racers, with their enormous spread of cloths—though they be things of beauty—are certainly not a joy to everybody. ”

“ In every age there have been men to whom sea-faring has been a recreation and a delight. Indeed, yachtsmen may be regarded as the patricians of the sea; free from its hardships and privations, though amenable to its written and unwritten laws, and participating in its dangers and delights. By degrees, yacht-racing has become the popular feature of yachting, though early history shows that yachts enjoyed a flourishing existence for nearly two centuries before racing came into fashion. ”

“ The degree of leisure and wealth, so essential to the development of yachting, was not realised by the citizens of the American seaboard until nearly one-third of this century had passed, and even then only a mere handful of nautically inclined sportsmen could spare time from the stern duties of country settling and fortune-hunting to follow in any measure their tastes in seeking pleasure on the alluring waters that flowed at their very feet. ”

“ It is true that the cabin of the older form is pleasanter, being lighter and more airy, but the strength of construction gained by the flush deck, its broad expanse of deck everywhere available for sitting and promenading, all these points of advantage give the present form decidedly the first place in the estimation of all lovers of steam yachting. Since 1880, steam yachting has increased with prodigious rapidity, and, particularly since the introduction of naphtha as a factor in motive power, our waters fairly swarm with craft propelled by a machine. ”

“ It is probable that these men were the first to organize a yacht club on the Thames.
Yacht-racing in England dates from the year 1775; and while many a man, at various times and places, has been called the "Father of Yachting,"—so that yachting in this respect resembles the wise child of the Scriptures,—there can be no doubt that the Duke of Cumberland is justly entitled the "Father of Yacht-racing." ”

“ It is too cold to sit on deck; indeed it seems cold everywhere on board. It is impossible to do anything with the yacht, for you want to go south, and it is evidently blowing a gale outside from the south-west. It is the sort of day on which, if you had no boat, and there was nothing to do on shore, you would sit shivering most of the time below, trying to read, thinking what a miserable business yachting is in bad weather, and feeling ill from defective circulation. But if you have a good boat such a day has positive charms. ”

“ The generally quiet character of the water available for yachting, and the prevailing pleasant weather with moderate winds, combined to influence the form and rig of boats and yachts in use for the first half of this century, and if one carefully examines the situation, it will be found that the style of pleasure craft chiefly in vogue was well adapted to the requirements of the then yachtsman ”

“ What has to be done by the yacht designer, besides getting the very utmost out of the tonnage rule, has never been more happily put than by Lord Dunraven in an article on International Yachting, from which I venture to quote:—
(p. 70) How most successfully to drive a body through the water by the means of the motive power of the wind acting upon the sails, is the question that puzzles men and turns them grey-headed before Nature should have thinned or whitened their locks. ”

“ And now, as we passed along the narrow Sound, and saw through the translucent water the wonder-land of seaweed below—with the patches of clear yellow sand intervening—we appreciated more and more highly the skill of John of Skye in getting us into such a harbour on the previous night. It is not every one who, in pitch darkness and in the midst of squalls, can run a yacht into the neck of a bottle. ”

“ In this connection it is not out of place to speak of our very large fleet of small yachts and of boats for sailing and cruising which from their size may not properly be called yachts.
The number of these craft is legion, they swarm in every northern port, and in a few places in the south are frequently met; their rig is always of the sloop for the larger, and for the smaller—say below 25-ft. water-line—the cat-rig is in preponderance. The value of this 'Mosquito fleet' as a school for yachting cannot be over-estimated. ”

“ Between the overhanging gloom of the mountains and the cold greys of the wind-swept sea the small black line passes slowly on. And these two on board the yacht watch it in silence. Are they listening for the wail of the pipes—the wild dirge of Lord Lovat, or the cry of the Cumhadh na Cloinne? But the winds are loud, and the rushing seas are loud; and now the rude farmyard cart, with its solemn burden, is away out at the point; and presently the whole simple pageant has disappeared. The lonely burying-ground lies far away among the hills.
Angus Sutherland turns round again, with a brief sigh. ”

“ By combining it with limestone, and treating this with acid jelly, we also get good results on raising to the boiling-point.
"However enjoyable the manly sport of yachting is on water, how vastly more interesting and fascinating it is for a man to have a yacht in which he can fly to Europe in one day, and with which the exploration of tropical Africa or the regions about the poles is mere child's play, while giving him so magnificent a bird's-eye view! Many seemingly insoluble problems are solved by the advent of these birds. ”

“ And Master Fred has already marked him for his own.
Then among the shallows at the head of the loch there is many a wild pull after broods of flappers, and random firing at the circling curlew. The air is filled with the calling of the birds; and each successive shot rattles away with its echo among the silent hills. What is the result of all this noise and scramble? Not much, indeed; for right in the middle of it we are attracted by a strange appearance in the south. That dark line beyond the yacht: is it a breeze coming up the loch? ”

“ Heavy gloves, if they intend rowing, should be worn.
Yachting is a delightful and rather dangerous amusement. Ladies wear warm wool dresses that water will not injure, made short in the313 skirt, and jaunty of cut, with sailor-like emblems for adornment. No young lady should go out alone with a gentleman either yachting or rowing. In yachting especially a boat is sometimes becalmed for hours and even all night. A party composed entirely of young people should have a chaperon. ”

“ Is there any one awake and listening—perhaps with a tremor of the heart—for the calling out of "White Dove, ahoy!" from the shore? Once the ordinary loud noises of the morning are over—the brief working of the pump, the washing down of the decks—silence reigns once more throughout the yacht. One can only hear a whispering of the rain above.
Then, in the distance, there is a muffled sound of the paddles of a steamer; and that becomes fainter and fainter, while the White Dove gradually loses the motion caused by the passing waves. ”

“ Most of the larger yachts and pleasure wherries have centreboard sailing dinghies, and it is more convenient to take ours through the narrow arch where the tide-impelled current sweeps upward to diffuse itself over the terminal lakes, twenty-five miles from the sea by river, three miles by land. ”

“ The wind, too, is ahead, and we have to tack a great deal as we continue our course down stream. Still the river course is so tortuous that every reach is not a head one; sometimes, indeed, we can lay one reach on one tack and the next reach on the other tack. It is pretty to watch the yachts shooting from side to side of the river (which widens as we proceed) ; they lay over, with the water bubbling over the lee deck and the foot of the great balloon jib deep in the water. The long bowsprit sweeps over the grass of the margin as the helm is let go ”

“ This international sport awakens such a widespread interest, serving, as it were, as a great national school in yachting and racing, that it is to be hoped as much facility as possible may be afforded the public for witnessing them; therefore, let all international races be held in New York waters, where they were in 1893, as that point is more accessible than any other to those interested. We in America must establish some school for the training of skippers and crews; there is not to-day a professional skipper in the country, nor a crew that is capable of sailing a yacht against the English. ”

“ Here and there a seal stared at us as we passed. Then we found a crofter's cottage, and landed, to the consternation of one or two handsome wild-eyed children. A purchase of eggs ensued, after much voluble Gaelic. We returned to the yacht.
That evening, as we sate on deck, watching the first stars beginning to tremble in the blue, some one called attention to a singular light that was beginning to appear along the summits of the mountains just over us—a silvery-grey light that showed us the soft foliage of the birches, while below the steep slopes grew more sombre as the night fell. ”

“ It was a race between us and the northerly breeze which should reach the yacht first; and we could see that John of Skye had remarked the coming wind, for the men were hoisting the fore-staysail. The dark blue on the water spreads; the reflections of the hills and the clouds gradually disappear; as we clamber on board the first puffs of the breeze are touching the great sails. The anchor has just been got up; the gig is hoisted to the davits; slack out the main sheet, you shifty Hector, and let the great boom go out! Nor is it any mere squall that has come down from the hills ”

“ Moreover, whether the sail be up or down, it is much easier to take reefs down on the main-boom of a yawl, which is well inside the boat, than on that of a cutter, which is right out over the stern. To haul down and secure the earing on the main-boom of a cutter when she is plunging in a sea-way and burying her rail (p. 205) with the force of the wind is a difficult and even dangerous operation, which is not unlikely to end, if you are not careful, in your finding yourself in the sea and your boat careering gaily away without you. ”

“ These boats are all centreboarders. When in Australia the writer was shown the 'Victor' as the finest example at that time of the large class. She was 34 ft. long, had 8 ft. beam, and a depth of 3 ft. A description of her was given in 'Hunt's Yachting Magazine' some years ago. She was built of colonial cedar, and of 1⁄2-in. planking. Her frames were of bent elm, the sternpost and knees of tea-tree, while her keel was of tallow-wood. Her draught aft was 21 in., and forward 2 in., with the crew of sixteen men on board. ”

“ Not far from Hickling, and connected with it by Heigham Sounds and a narrow dyke, is Horsey Mere, so near the sea that the sea-water at times wells into it in the shape of salt springs. At the entrance of the mere a small cruising yacht is lying, the men having gone ashore for a walk over the sand dunes to the sea. The mooring rope is fast to a deck scrub thrust into the bank, and a heifer, having found out the roughness of the scrub, is leisurely rubbing herself all over and most thoroughly against the bristles. ”

“ The lofty peak of our wherry's sail holds the air over the bushes, and we keep slowly moving along, while smaller boats are either becalmed or, catching sudden puffs, lay over at alarming angles. It is a Saturday evening, and very many little yachts, from the open lugsail sailing boat on which a high-roofed cabin-top has been placed to the 4- or 8-ton yachts of smarter build, are making their way down to more open waters for the happy and healthy week end, most blessed to the person whose occupations are sedentary. ”

“ Considering the sea that was running, and the amount of broken water that was throwing itself about, this last race is one to be long remembered and handed down in the annals of small-yacht racing; and now and hereafter, when racing and cruising men feel a tendency arising in them to croak and speak ill of the little yachts that were built under the old rule of measurement, let them call to mind their mighty deeds, their racing and their voyages under circumstances and in weather that would frighten many a 50-tonner into harbour and to her moorings. ”

“ Again, during the recent racing season, the pilot-boat (about sixty tons) started from Kingstown Harbour for her cruising ground. The old pilot at the helm sucked his pipe with confident air as she slipped; you could almost imagine his saying, 'This old boat and I are old chums; I know her. See how, with one finger on the tiller, I make her gracefully fall off to avoid that group of yachts ahead!' Suddenly the smile disappears; (p. 129) the pipe is chucked from his mouth. She won't fall off! she is charging bang into the yachts! ”