THE AMERICA CUP.

Otago Witness, Issue 2373, 24 August 1899, Page 23

THE AMERICA CUP.

THE SHAMROCK IN AMERICAN WATERS.

NEW YORK, August" 18. The Shamrock has arrived here safely. The first intention of Sir Thomas Lipton was to make his new yacht wholly Irish, but for some reasen he has changed his mind, She carries an Irish name, was designed by Mr "William Fife, jun., ' a. Scotchmen, and built by an English firm, Messrs J arrow and Company, ol Poplar. The Shamrack is therefore peculiarly "British "in the sense -of representing the British lies. Mr Fife, like Mr Watson, of the Thistle, the" Britannia, and the Valkyries, is ona of the best British designers. Before 1893 he was chiefly known for small yachts. His first remarkable success with a large one was in the spring of 1895, when his Ailsa beat the Britannia, the Satanita, and other crack vessels. When pitted against the Valkyrie 111, of Lord Dunraven, with the view of substitutinc her for the latter in the race for the America Cup, she did not fulfil her first promise, and, moreover, she was beaten by the Britannia during that season. Mr Fife, however, made some improvements in her, and the following season she scored a set of brilliant victories. Another famous boat of Mr Fife is the Isolde, which, under Captain Hogarth, who has been selected for the Shamrock, won 180 first and 95 seconds in foui years' running — that is to say, about £4000 in prizes. The Columbia of Mr Iselin, which has been challenged by the Shamrock, was designed and built by Messrs Herreshoffs, of Bristol, Rhode Island. The Herreshoffs have been •famous for their large racing yachts sinca 1693, the date of the Navahoe; ana the Defender, which beat the Valkyrie liL in 1895, was thojr work. There is a strong resemblance between the hulls of the Shamrock and her antagonist, tha Columbia. Both yachts have practically th« sama length of water-line — that is, 89ft lOin and 89ft 6in. Both yaohts, in fact, have been built to tha full limit of 90ft, with 6in allowed for change of trim and a possible difference between their actual and calculated displacements. Both hare the same draught of 20ft. Tin Shamrock is lOin longer overall, 3iin broadei in the beam, and 2£ tons lighter in displacement. In spread of canvas the Shamrock has the advantage with 14,125 square feet foi 13,9+0 square feet for the Columbia. Thesa figures, however, may have been enlarged or reduced, but probably enlarged, during the preliminary trials, when the yachts were"tuning up," so to speak. Nickel steel and manganese bronze have been employed in the construction of the Shamrock, and she has been fitted out with light steel booms and gaffs, sunnlied by Messrs Fry and Co., who also provided the Britannia. Her crew will number from forty to fifty men. In the opinion of experts, both of these new yachts are improvements on the Valkyrie 111, and the Defender of 1895. The strong .point of the Defender was " reaching,' and her weak point running with the wind dead aft ; but the Herreshoffs have tried to remedy her defects in the Columbia, by changes in tha model of her hull, the materials used in construction, and the plan of her sails. For ona thing, the draught has been increased by a foot, the beam Tpy nearly as mnoh, and the spread of canvas is larger in proportion to the displacement. She also has a fuller bilge area of section, and her lead keel, while not so lbn<* by several feet as that of the Defender, is deeper, less bulbous in shape, and more like that of the Valkyrie 111. The Shamrock, again, has a finer model, and will cut more easily through the water than the Valkyrie in. She ia built of lighter materials, has less displacement by several tons, and a larger area of canvas. Weight spared from her hull has been put into her keel, where it adds to her capacity for carrying sail. A reduction of nearly two feet in beam and an addition of over one foot to_ the water-line and two feet overall has given, her a form more easy to slip through the water than that of the Valkyrie 111. With fairer lines, a lighter hull, and smaller displacement, a much lower centre of • gravity, and a much larger spread of sail than the Valkyrie 111, the Shamrock is by far the most dangerous competitor for the America Cup that ever crossed the Atlantic, and she stands a very good chance of proving the victor. Compaiiison of Columbia and Shamrock. __— — j g hamroc k - Length over all 131 ft 4in 132 ft 2in Water-line length ... 89ft lOin S9ffc fiin Beam 24ft 2Jin 24f 1 6in Draught ... 20ft 20ft Displacement... 149 J tons 147 tons Sail area ...13,940 square ft 14.125 square ft Construction ... — Nick«l steel and ! manganese I bronze. The boom in West Australian mines ha 3 been renewed. There exist at the present time something like 600 gold mining companies in. West Australia, and that after some hundreds I have been weeded out. Joe Mullet, the " Invincible," who Iras been released after 16 years' imprisonment, has confided to an interviewer that "What surprises me most is the appearance of the electrio trams and the lady cyclists. When I went into prison the only oyclistß who venj tured abroad were those who risked their lives on the ordinaries." Mullet is over 70 years old, and, unlike the majority of the Irish prisoners, he does not complain of hia treatment in gaol. ANYBODY SICK At your bous«? Jt Is \tt\t\y enougi) tb*/t sorrje rrjeti)b«r of tl?e family 1$ '' out of sorts," aii?4 requires a stlrrjulsiot to r«njove tl)*t 4«spo!}4et)t fe«Uns. Wolfe's sd>n*pps I 5 a. cheer* ir>s cor4lal tljat restores n)eot»l »• veil as physical visor.