THE ANNIVERSARY REGATTA.

New Zealander, Volume XVIII, Issue 1650, 8 February 1862, Page 9

THE ANNIVERSARY REGATTA.

Notwithstanding the angry state of the elements throughout the greater part of Monday and Tuesday, and one or two heavy squalls of rain during the earlier part of Wednesday morning, the twenty-second Anniversary Regatta was probably the most successful that has hitherto taken place ; at all events, it was celebrated in a manner which has given the most general satisfaction. It is but simple justice to the working members of the Committee to state that they laboured with the utmost diligence and untiring zeal to accomplish such a result; the officers of H. M. ships of war, too, exhibited much interest in promotion of the sports, and the public responded with the greatest liberality to the appeals which were made to render the Fete Day worthy the high maritime reputation of the Province. In every department there seemed to be an inherent anxiety for the successful celebration of the day—our Maori brethren being by no means the least backward in performing their parts, whether by sailing craft, whale boats, or canoes, in all of which they honourably, as well as conspicuously, distinguished themselves. At 8 a.m., all doubts of the Regatta’s taking place were dispelled by the flag ship Clutha (anchored oft’ the Queen Street Wharf) which fired the premonitory gun, (a 12-pounder from Fawn, and served throughout the day by two of that ship’s company,) and covered herself with bunting. From that time the atmosphere cleared, the sun broke forth, and as the day advanced the weather became beautiful, with a fine, full, steady, Northerly breeze, amply sufficient for the sailing craft, and not too boisterous to overtax the powers of well trained rowers. There were the customary parties in cutters, schooners, and other craft of various rig and size, bent upon a day’s enjoyment; to some of these we have been requested to state that, in future, they would confer a favour upon racing boats, the Committee, and the public at large, by keeping out of the course, and thereby avoiding all risk of obstructions and collisions so likely to ensue. As a whole, the harbour was less gay than usual, owing to the unprecedented paucity of shipping. Last season we had a plethora of clippers of the largest and finest class ; but, this season, the last square-rigged vessel took her departure on the Saturday previous. This, although it detracted from the nautical brilliancy of the scene, was favourable for a clearer view of the course, the manoeuvres of most of the competitors being under unbroken observation from the starting point to the goal. The First Race was started precisely at 10 o’clock, the competitors clustering around the flag ship to the number of fifteen, a large proportion of them Maori boats, and some of this mosquito fleet having been built expressly for this occasion. First prize, £lO ; second prize, £5 ; third prize, £3. Fourth boat to save stakes. Away they went in a cloud, their course being from the South side of the flag ship, round flag boat off Stokes’ Point, then round the Marion hulk, two rounds, coming in on the South side of the flag ship. The following were the entries: — 1. Mene, 3 tons, Munro, blue, while ball 2. Undine, 2 tons, A. 8011, red swallow 3. Mischief, 4J tons, Thompson, white, red cross 4. Queen, 4i tons, V. Selvidge, blue, white diamond 5. Tairo, 4 tons. Gray, white 6. Hurry, 44 tons. Smith, mauve 7. Trial, 4J tons, Sims, white, red ball 8. Kawana, 4 tons. Smith, Union Jack 9. Mapere, 4 tons, Martin, death’s head 10. Zone Star, 4 tons, Conway, white, blue star 11. Italian, 4J tons, Wiremu, white and blue 12. Mary Anne, 4 tons, Hemi, blue 13. Philomela, 5 tons, Capt. Gator, green and white chequered swallow 14. Faugh a BalUgh, 2 tons, Martin, yellow and green 15. Peata, 3 tons, Hanlen, red, white diamond. This race was keenly and skilfully contested, the Maori boat “ Tairo” (Mudian rig) taking and keeping the lead throughout, and coming in an easy winner. Mischief second; Mene and Mapere third and fourth, both very close together. Philomela promised well to be a good third for a length of time, but she was run into and dismasted, and thereby thrown out of the race. The Second Race was for Whale Boats, pulling five oars, or, to speak by the card, for boats built whale-boat fashion. First prize, £2O; second prize, £lO. Course from South side flag ship round Marion hulk, then round flag boat off Freeman’s Bay, twice round, coming in on South side flag ship. The following started: — 1. Blue Jacket, Layson, blue, red cross 2. Tiger, W. Honi, black, two red stripes 3. Lion, Rete, white 4. Manukau Pilot, Capt. Wing, blue, white ball 5. Stranger, McLeod, white arid blue, red star 6. Fawn, Carr, blue 7. Phemie, Nicholson, red, yellow cross. Great interest was manifested in this race. The Stranger, a very beautiful boat, built by Mr, Morgan, of Wakefield-street, and the Phemie, built by Mr. Nicholson, were greatly admired and in high favour; both were new, as was the Fawn, built by Mr. Carr. Phemie broke an oar, and was thrown oat, to the great disappointment of her admirers. The Stranger took and held the lead throughout, coming in an easy first; Lion second; and Blue Jacket third. The Third Race was for Trading Vessels of 8 to 20 tons. First prize, £2O; second prize, £lO. Course from South side flag ship, round buoy off Rangitoto, then round flag boat d|ff Stokes’ Point, coming in South of flag ship. The following started.— 1. Eclair, 17 tons, Hemi, black 2. Thames, 17 tons, Dickson, green, yellow square 3. Triad, 10 tons, John Bennett, circular saw 4. Iris, 18 tons, Kereminata, Union Jack 5. Henry, 10 tons, C. Robinson, red, while baP. An excellent race. Triad was the first to get away, and came in first, but very closely followed by the Henry, a new and beautiful boat. The Fourth Race was a rowing match between the cutters of H. M. ships Miranda and Fawn,—course the same as in second race. Both had an excellent start, and for a considerable time Fawn kept the lead; she, however, gradually dropped, and a'ter rounding the hulk the second time, gave in. The Fifth Race was for Trading Vessels of from 20 to 45 tons. First prize, a silver cup, value twenty guineas, presented by His Honor the Superintendent of the Province. Second prize, £lO. Course, the same as third race. The following fine vessels were entered; and we may remark that they represented an aggregate value of between £B,OOO and £9,000, whilst they were from the hands of various naval architects, namely, Mr. Nicol, Mechanics’ Bay; Messrs. Beddoes ! and Co., North Shore; Mr. Scott, Mahurangi; and Matakana and Coromandel builders.

1. Agnej, 24 tons, Martin, blue, white stripe ; i S. Wanderer, 23 tons, raclnman, white, blue cross I 3. Bonita, 29 tons, McKay, blue, white ball 4. Bessy, 25 tons. Edwards, blue, white cross 5. Three Sisters, 27 tons. Trimmer, green 6. Shamrock, 22 tons, Casey, pmk 7. Rose, 24 tons, Casey, green and white stripes a James and Julia, 33 tons, \V. Blown, Union Jack. J This was a very interesting race and very keenly contested. A ernes was the first to get away, wbic_ did cleverly. 'She came in a good first, followed by Bessy, a good second. A protest was entered y Wanderer, on the allegation of fouling. The protes has been investigated and disallowed, and too cup awarded to Agnes. A Sixth Race for Schooners of from 45 to 100 was on the card—first prize £2O, second prize £W. There were, however, no entries. The Seventh Race was for yachts above 5 tons. First prize £2O, second prize £lO. Course the same as third race. The following were entered : 1. Maggie, 8 tons, Beddocs, blue, white star. 2. Gleam, 9 tons, Roltou, blue and yellow. 8. Alice, 10 tons. Porter, white and blue, swallow. As the yachts came to their stations, a newboat, tho Arrow, from Mahurangi, made her appearance in time to effect a post entry, when the four started, Maggie being the first to get away. Gleam, with former conquests at- ! tached to her, was the favourite, and again the victor, coming in a long way ahead of all her competitors, Alice second. It is worthy of remark, that tho course of tho vessels in the fifth and seventh races was exactly the same in point of distance; bnt whilst Gleam, of 9 tons, did her work in 3 hours 19 minutes and 20 seconds, it took Agnes, of 24 tons, 3 hours 40 minutes and 30 seconds to perform the same round. The Eighth was intended for a Waterman’s Race. First prize £lO, second prize £5, Every effort had been made by tho Committee to meet the wishes of tho Watermen with respect to this race, to render it essentially a waterman’s race. With that view the question, after having once been determined, was re-opened, but all to no purpose, Wright’s Harriet being tho only boat entered. The Ninth Race was for Open Cargo Boats. First prize £2O, second prize £lO. Course the same as first race. The following started : 1. Mount Eden, Casey, green. 2. Caroline, Cranch, red, white cross. 3. Lizzy, Murray, white. 4. Active, MatfarUne, white, black ball. 5. Mount Albert. Casey, red. This was a caj ital match, the little squadron keeping well together,* and using every effort to out-ma-noeuvre each other. Mount Albert proved to be tho winning boat, Mount Eden coming in second. The Tenth Race was for Gentlemen Amateurs, pulling boats with five oars, with coaxswain steering with either oar or rudder. First prize, silver cup, value £6, second prize, silver cup, value £2. Course same as second race. The following were the entries:— 1. Fawn, Simpson, blue. 2. Pea, J. Duncan, blue, white star. 3. Phemie, A. Nicholson, red, yellow cross. 4. Blue Jacket, J. Sims, white, red cross. 5. Stranger, J. Cooper, blue and red. C. Nil Desperaudum, R. Coombes, blue, white ball. A capital race. Phemie came in first. Blue Jacket second. Stranger was withdrawn. This race was performed in exactly half the time as the whale boat race, the amateur race being precisely half tho distance of the former. The Eleventh Race, for Waka Tana Canoes, has v.' always been regarded as the distinctive and most attractive feature of the Auckland Regatta. For the last year or two its interest has waned; but on Wodnesday it revived again in full force. The first prize was £ls, the sceond £7, and the third £3. Course the same as in the second race. The following were tho entries :

1. Tua Tara, Tamati. y 2. Piki Wahine, Hamiora. 3. Nga Puhoro, Henare. 4. Tumunui, Hora, 5. Tumu Tumu, Te Whara. Three, however, were all that started; but these /. came to their stations in magnificent array. Splendid ■*> canoes, of from sixty to seventy feet long, fully manned, ifih elaborately carved, and superbly decorated with pigeor C \ and albatross feathers. They were greeted with enthu- f siastic cheers as they paddled along, and the cheers were,* returned in a hearty and sportsmanlike spirit. The ' start was a capital one, and the race throughout was contested with unflagging zeal, the first canoe securing \ his place by a bare half dozen feet. They were placed thus:—Piki Wahine, first; Tua Tara, second; Tamunui, third. \ ■ The Twelfth Race was a match between the pinnace and two cutters of H. M. Ship Fawn — pinnace allowed one minnte. First prize j£lo, second prize £5. Course same as second race, once round. The boats were entered thus : 1. Condor, H.M.S. “Fawn.” 2. Eurydice, do. 3. Philomela, do. The race was a good one, the pinnace (Condor), coming in first, and winning easily, notwithstanding the spare minute allowed her. Tub Thirteenth Race was for boys under sixteen years of age, pulling a pair of sculls in dingys not exceeding ten feet over all. First prize £3, second prize £I. Course, round the Marion hulk and back to south side of flag-ship. The following took their stations;— 1, L'zzy, George Clarke, red. 2. Eclipse, Geo. Robinson, white, red border, 3, Mount Eden, Parker, red, white diamond. 4. Carry, John Scott, white. 5, Teazer, Kuntz, blue, white, und blue. 6. Midge. They came in in the following order—Midge, Eclipse, Mount Fden. The Fourteenth Race, Duck Hunt,r-gig and dingy,—by flag-ship subscriptions,—was a sorry affair, the duck being caught almost on the instant. We caunot close this notice without expressing a conviction that the Regatta of 1862 was by much the best and most successful that has hitherto taken place. It was conducted with the utmost order and punctuality. There were no weary delays,—no hanging fire, —all went well and smoothly; superior classes of boats and vessels were brought forward; their owners entered liberally and pinckily into the contest, giving an impetus not to yachting alone, but to tha construction of an improved class of vessels, which which will not fail to develop itself. The system, too, of giving cups instead of money, has been happily introduced ; and, from the anxiety to secure these trophies, we hope it is a system that, in future years, will be considerably extended. At horse races there are ladies’ purses, merchants’ plates, metropolitan plates, garrison plates ; why should there not be like distinctive cups or plates at our regattas? They would create a much more generous spirit of emulation than any mere money prizes are ever likely to do, and we trust the subject will not be lost sight of. To Captain Anderson, the committee and the public are specially indebted for the anxious endeavours made by him to render the little Clutha as comfortable and convenient a flag-ship as her capacity would permit. A band was on board, and Mr. James was there to administer to the wants of clamorous visitors, for whom he catered with his wonted skill and success, there being a superfluity of every thing desirable in the shape of creature comforts. And so ends the Regatta of 1862, without accident, in excellent time, and after a day of rational and pleasant enjoyment— N. Z., Feb. 1.