ENDEAVOUR II.

Press, Volume LXXII, Issue 21812, 18 June 1936, Page 1 (Supplement)

ENDEAVOUR 11.

Mr Sopwith’s New Yacht Mr T. O. M. Sopwith’s new racing yacht. Endeavour 11, was launched at Gosport, England, recently. Mr Sopwith may challenge the United States for the America’s Cup with this yacht next year. The story of the contest for the America’s Cup~which is named after the first boat to win it—goes back to 1851, the year of the great exhibition in England. An American yacht was invited to sail across the Atlantic to compete in the regatta of the Royal Yacht

Squadron. The America won the trophy for the race round the Isle of Wight. Some years later the cup was offered for competition between England and the United States, a condition being that the challenger had to sail across the Atlantic to compete for it. This has meant that the English challengers have always had to be more strongly built than the American defenders, for a yacht built as a racing boat would never stand up to the violence of the weather on the Atlantic crossing. During the last 83 years the trophy has been competed for 16 times, but it has not yet been won by an English challenger. In September, 1934, Mr T. O. M. Sopwith challenged the United’ States with his yacht Endeavour. He won. two races, and the American yacht, Rainbow/ won four. Britain and Japan Mr Shigeru Yoshida, the newly-appointed Japanese Ambassador to Britain, emphasised that Japan wants to keep up the traditional Anglo-Japanese friendship. Sir Frederick Leith Ross, an authority on AngloChinese relations, says Japan will not interfere with British interests in China. On the contrary, Japan desires a revival of the old' 'friendship with Britain.