Cup
The Sho-wae-cae-mettes (American) won the heat of the Stewards' Cup in which Columbia had been fouled, but in the final for the Stewards' cup they rowed themselves out, and were easily beaten by London. [Photograph by Sport and General. were not ready, and they did not therefore race, but Cornell was defeated in the second heat by Trinity Hall. 1896.-Yale entered an eight-oared crew for the Grand Challenge Cup at Henley, and was defeated by Leander. 1901.-Pennsylvania University entered for the Grand, but were beaten by Leander in the final. 1905.-Vesper Boat Club, Philadelphia, beat Christ's, Cambridge, but fell to Leander in the fourth heat of the Grand. 1906. Harvard sent a crew over in the autumn to race Cambridge, Putney to Mortlake, which resulted in a victory for Cambridge. fol- A somewhat heated controversy on the advisability or otherwise of allowing foreign entries to Henley arose in the early part of the present century. Mr. T. A. Cook, in the book from which we have already quoted, sums up the question as lows: "The visit of the Pennsylvania crew (which beat London and Thames, and lost the final of the Grand to Leander) brought into prominence certain aspects of foreign competition which were alien to the good fellowship and sport of Henley, owing to the presence of their professional coach and to the methods of his training. A special meeting of the stewards in November, 1901, decided that it was 'at present' inexpedient to alter the rules of the regatta. But in December, 1902, the Henley stewards passed a rule that put a stop to professional coaching of this kind except in sculling. It was a logical progression from ROWING] the rule which had ended professional steering more than sixty years before. But a further step was taken after the visit of the Vesper Boat Club of Philadelphia, who beat Christ Church in the third heat of the Grand, and lost the fourth heat to Leander.
It was reported to the English authorities that certain members of this Vesper crew, having taken an are available courses in profusion throughout the country, somehow the boating spirit in America is wanting. This is not to say that the National Association has not prospered, for, as a matter of fact, it has, and so, too, have boat clubs increased through- CASPAR WHITNEY. out the country.
REGATTAS. oath that they were amateurs, were, as a matter of fact, not entitled to this qualification, inasmuch as they had received money payments. Upon inquiry, this was admitted by the American association which had fathered the entry.
In consequence, the Henley authorities passed a rule that no entry shall be accepted of any crew or sculler out of the United Kingdom unless the crew or sculler belongs to a club affiliated to a union or federation having an agreement with the Committee of Management of Henley Regatta. Nobody in the United States has such an agreement at the present time; but it is not to be supposed that an entry from Harvard or Yale would be refused." crews.
American colleges labour under great disadvantage in the development of The fact of their water courses being not at hand, as they are at Oxford and Cambridge, operates against the spread of a boating spirit. There is, in fact, no general boating spirit at our universities. The practice of the crew cannot be viewed by the student body conveniently, Regattas have been popular from the earliest times. Though the word itself comes from Venice, Virgil has given so vivid an account of a prehistoric regatta which took place before the foundation of Rome that we can only regret that he was not spared to describe the University boat race for the sporting Press. Since the day of the unfortunate Menetes, regattas have increased so much in favour that it is impossible even to enumerate them within the limits of a short article. Regattas may be classed under two headings: (1) salt-water, (2) fresh-water.
The queen of the first division would be Cowes, and the queen of the second, Henley.
Regattas are also held on both salt water and fresh for the encouragement of specific branches of aquatic sport, such as sailing, rowing, punting, and canoeing, and it is hardly too much to say that where in England there exists a suitable piece of water in the neighbourhood of a centre of population, there will be found a regatta of some sort. We shall not, however, deal here with sailing, punting, and canoeing a OLYMPIC REGATTA: FINAL OF THE PAIRS. and the result is a lack of enthusiasm.
There is no following of boats such as one sees at Oxford and Cambridge. Class crews pretend to develop candidates for the 'Varsity, but with no very happy result, and the American college captain very frequently finds himself compelled to put men in his boat who have never before rowed.
Nor is the boating spirit among our clubs so great as in England, and, although there VOL. IV regattas, but only with those which are confined to rowing. Among these Henley has the pride of place, not only because it is the first important regatta in point of time, but because it possesses historic associations which are revered throughout the aquatic world at home and abroad. Henley Regatta was founded on March 26th, 1839, when a public meeting was held in the Town Hall, Henley, with Thomas Stonor, after- G wards Lord Camoys, in the chair. From this first resolution, which ran as follows, the object seems rather to have been to promote the interests of the town and trade of Henley, than the craft of oarsmanship- "That from the lively interest which has been manifested at the various boat races which have taken place on the Henley Reach during the last few years, and the great influx of visitors on several occasions:
This meeting is of opinion that the establishing of an Annual Regatta under judicious and respectable management would not only be productive of the most beneficial results to the town of Henley, but from its peculiar attractions would also be a source of amusement and gratification to the neighbourhood and the public in [ROWING 1848; in 1841, the Stewards Cup, for fouroars; in 1844, the "Diamonds," for scullers; in 1845, the Pairs; in 1847, the Wyfold Cup; in 1847, the Visitors' Cup; in 1868, the Thames Cup. In 1872 the Regatta assumed an International aspect, as the first foreign entry was then made in the person of E. Smith, of the New York Atlanta Boat Club, who competed for the Diamond Sculls, and his example was followed in 1878 by the Sho-wae-cae-mettes crew and the Columbia College crew, besides two American scullers, and since that date foreign entries have been numerous.
For many years there had been an increasing discontent with "the natural unfairness of the course," and in 1885 a sub-committee, consisting of Messrs. E. Warre, F. Willan, OLYMPIC REGATTA: FINAL OF THE FOURS. general." The next resolution referred to the purchase of the Town Challenge Cup, to be competed for by Henley amateur crews in four-oared boats, and a Challenge