INVINCIBLE BARRY

Evening Star, Issue 15641, 4 November 1914, Page 10

INVINCIBLE BARRY

HOW PADDON WAS BEATEN. Ernest Barry, by defeating James Paddon, has once more easily retained bis championship honors. In the race on September 7 Paddon in the first mile led a couple of times by a few feet, but after that the race was never in doubt, and Barry, just as ho did last year with Pearce, without per'.'ceptible effort held his own against the Australian to the end. After Hammersmith Bridge, Paddon was laboring and dipping his sculls deep. A rowing expert, standing beside me, who was watching him with powerful glasses, said: "A man would need to be superhuman to win with a stroke like Paddon's." It was a beautiful afternoon for rowing, warm like an Australian summer's dav, with hardly a breath of wind stirring. The three steamers which followed the race wore fairly patronised, and numbers of people lined the path on the river bank. There was very little betting on the race, and the quotation 2 to 1 on Barry sufficiently indicated 1 the public feeling of what the result would be. Paddon won the toss, and chose the Surrey side of the river. —Tho Race.— Barry at once took the lead, but before they had gone far Paddon, putting in some strong work, forged ahead. At Craven Steps, which were reached in 2min 57sec, ho was still ahead. He continued to lead slightly at the mile post Mmin 59see), hut at Hammersmith Bridge (Smin 3-1 sec) Barry was in front. Up to this point Paddon had mado a good raco of it, but from there onwards he was a beaten man. Ho stil! rowed with the gamest determination, but Barry had his measure, and held him safe, passing the winning post with a lead oi two and a-half lengths in tho good time of 21min 28sec. That it was a fast-rowed raoe was evident from the fact that the time was only I.6sec outside Barry's record for tho course. Ii July last year, when Barry rower' Pearce, the'time was 24min 'J 2-lsee At the conclusion of the race Paddei was thoroughly tired out. The one incident of any note occurred at Hammersmith Bridge, where, for an nstant, there seemed likely to be a foul. Happily it was averted. —The Men Interviewed.— Immediately after the raco Ban;, paddled over to Paddon and shook him by the hand. When the men came on board our launch it was easily seen that they had had a hard race. Barn was perspiring freely. Last year, at the conclusion of his race with Pearce, he seemed hardly to have turned _ a hair. He explained his condition by saying that during tho past week he had not been quite- himself, and had suffered from a slight cold on the chest. Still he was the snwo cheery, youthful, debonair individual whom nothing seems to disconcert. Asked his opinion on tho race, he said: "Tt was a good go, but I always felt that I had my opponent's measure. There is no doubt about his pluck; he rowed a hard raco. Pearco I would describe as a two-miler, - Paddon as a i'ourmiler; but neither of them gave me anything like the race I had with Dick Arnst." And then, iuconsequently, as if there were more important things in the world than talking about the race, he said: "Would you mind getting me a drink, old chap, and one for Paddon, too, and see that they're long 'uns?" Two foaming mugs of beer were brought from tho saloon bar, and taking his with a smiling " Here' 6 luck!" Barry swallowed it as though it were nectar of the gods. Paddon took his more soberly. He had little to say about the contest. He remarked: "It was the hardest race of my life, and the best man won, that's all I can tell you." Then he added: "But I will say this, before I ever row another race on the Thames, I must be on the water for a longer time, and I would also like to suggest that no traffic is allowed on the river just before the race. The water was very difficult, far more than it appeared to be to the onlooker."—By "An Australian" in Sydney ' Sun.'