SYDNEY'S BOAT RACE DAY.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXI, Issue 18707, 13 May 1924, Page 11

SYDNEY'S BOAT RACE DAY.

HIGH PITCH OF ENTHUSIASM. . ■ V . ■■■ ■ - ..>/■'> i V ■ . [FROM ova OWN correspondent.]: V SYDNEY. May 7. 1 Every Australian capital has: its boatrace day, but it is extremely .doubttuS whether any of ; them arouse the same amount of general interest as does Sydney's annual . contest : to decide which of the great public schools shall boast of j ■ being "head of < the •; river. Ic fact the race ; has become an institution. . During the past week the newspapers have been full of preliminary gossip and phonographs of s the - various crews. * Their aver; age weights have been compared, their ; styles contrasted and' their ' personnel ■ analysed. 4 ■ Excitement reached a high pitch •at the middle of the week, when ; the heats 1 were decided,'. and despite ; -the . fact that Wednesday : was a ; perfectly good working day thousands of fond ; parents found - a 1 sufficiently good' • excuse u for ueserting • their- work ' and '• crowding • into the ' steamers * which followed the race. As for; the day itselfwell, Sydney deserted everything for the boat ;race despite the ; rain. The special .. steamers : were ; not largeenough Tor ;; the crowds and - the. banks of the . river were black J with bar•{ lacking- sightseers. f - . • It was the day of the youth and the flapper. EveryS: second ' girl £ one met > in; the street in the morning and every ' single one which ;. attended; the race in £ the afternoon > wore,. the colours 'of V one ; school or another. And many . a solid l" man;: of business i came to his office with : ,„a foot or so of coloured ribbon dangling from his button-hole. ■■■ Sydney-- Grammar School won. the r coveted honours. ~