Chapter XII: Five-Tonners and Five-Raters in the North (2)

The 'Cyprus' was kept in the family during her career in the Clyde, and was very successful during those seasons that her racing flag was seen at her topmast head, being always piloted by that prince of helmsmen, her designer and owner. In the winter of 1884 this yacht became the property of the writer, when she began a most successful career of a more all-round character than she had up to that time undergone, and it is principally from the practical experience derived from racing and cruising in her that he has been enabled to form his ideas and recommend the 5-ton yacht of ordinary dimensions as the best size and class of vessel for an inexperienced yachtsman to ship himself aboard as owner, captain, and hand.

When the 'Cyprus' came into his possession her fittings below were practically _nil_. Like the 'Vril' in her early days, she had only such contrivances as were absolutely essential for one living on board during a time bounded by hours rather than weeks or months. He was therefore obliged to make a few alterations below, such as turning her sofas into lockers, having iron bed-frames fitted in the cabin on hooks so as to be easily removable, and a box made to stand in between the after-provision sideboards and under the ladder to hold a bucket, washing basin, and lavatory conveniences. On deck the fittings were almost perfect. The jib, throat, and peak halliards led below through brass fairleads let into the deck a few inches on either side of the mast.

The forestay, instead of coming down through the stem-head along the deck, and being purchased up to the bits, was led through the stem close under the deck and set up by tackles to the mast. In place of the regular tackles to the bowsprit shrouds, two sets of selvagee strops were used, the one short and the other long. The long strops were doubled round the forearm of the belaying rail on each side, abreast of the rigging, and the standing part of the bowsprit shroud shackled on and set up with galvanised rigging screws. The short strop was employed whenever the bowsprit was reefed in. It was found strong and neat, and much better altogether than the old plan of tackles, which formed the original fitting. The 'Cyprus' was not entirely flush-decked--that is, she had a low very neat-looking 'booby hatch,' which fitted on a combing some three inches high. The combing ran from about two feet abaft the mast to within a couple of feet of the rudder-head. The after part enclosed a small water-tight lead-lined cockpit, then a foot of deck, ahead of which came the hatch, containing the after sliding hatch into the cabin and a low skylight. The width between the combings was 2 ft. 4 in. A transparent compass and binnacle fitted into the deck space ahead of the cockpit, and this was lighted by a lamp below in the cabin. This arrangement was excellent, as it prevented any of the troubles which so often arise in small yachts from the lights being washed out. At sea the boat was stowed below in the cabin, and as the hatch was very simple and easy to adjust, it was always taken off for the boat to be lowered down into its place. Another point in favour of this hatch was that on fine sunny days it could be removed and the yacht kept well-aired and sweet. A narrow strip of india-rubber, doubled, was nailed round, close up to the combing, and this proved a thoroughly effective method for keeping the hatch tight and preventing any water from coming into the cabin.

The 'Cyprus' was a particularly handy boat. As the writer had to take her round to Plymouth from Scotland, he invited an old friend, and with the help of a boy of seventeen years of age out of one of the Plymouth trawlers, left the Clyde for Kingstown, the port of call, after enjoying a few days' cruising about by way of letting everything shake into its place. It was a Tuesday morning when the start was made from Lamlash, in Arran, and the 'Camellia,' which was on her way to Stranraer, left about half an hour before. The wind was N.W. and came down off the hills in strong squalls; but the water was smooth, and under all plain sail the little vessel simply flew along.

After leaving Ailsa Craig astern, the sea began to show signs of getting up, and about 5 P.M., before reaching Corsewall Point, it had begun to take such liberties, and make such encroachments on deck whenever a big curler chose to break over aft, sometimes to the depth of three inches to four inches, that it was thought advisable to heave her to and shorten sail. About 6 P.M. the helm was put down and the foresail hauled to windward, whilst a reef was taken in the mainsail, No. 3 jib set, and our ship made snug.

It was a treat to see how well the yacht lay to, and it is impossible to describe the feeling of confidence it inspired, for not a drop of water was shipped, and she rode like a duck the whole time, coming up and falling off as each sea passed under her. From the time the foresheet was let draw to the time she dropped anchor in Kingstown Harbour all went well, the only incident being the writer's coming on deck at 6 A.M. to find that the boy, who was on watch, had mistaken the Morne Mountains to the north of Dundalk Bay for the south of Ireland, on the strength of which he had given up steering by compass, and was taking a course into Dundalk, which would have soon led to a disastrous end. The compass, though a spirit one, was rather sluggish, and his idea of safety was steering by the land. Wednesday night was spent at Kingstown, and with the first of the ebb the 'Cyprus' was again on her way with gaff-topsail set over all. Light flukey airs from the southward and westward helped the yacht along during the greater part of the forenoon, but these were eaten up by the sun as the day wore on, and gradually died out altogether, leaving us to drift along till the tide began to make, when, being in easy soundings on the edge of the Arklow Bank, the anchor was let go, and the yacht brought up to await the beginning of the ebb or the wooing of a breeze. The next morning--Friday--there was no wind of any kind; but the tides run strong on the east coast of Ireland, and a whole ebb meant many miles to the good. The time during this drifting was well employed in having a thorough clean down, in opening up the cabin, airing the bedding, and improving the stowage of the general cargo shipped on board, consisting of sails, luggage, provisions, and numerous other necessary items. In the afternoon the yacht was again brought to an anchor, and remained so till Saturday, about 4 A.M., when a breeze springing up from the southward, her head was pointed towards the Welsh coast. Travelling was very slow, for the wind was very light, and not at all true. Two short boards were made on reaching the other side, and about 8 A.M. on Sunday the yacht was laying up on the port tack for the Smalls. The wind had now some westing in it, but not sufficient to let a course be laid for the Longships; and as long rollers were coming in from the south-west, it was settled to go well away to windward in order to make Land's End in one tack and obtain a clear offing.

The Smalls was left behind about 3 P.M., and at 5 P.M. the whole face of the sky was beginning to look so threatening, and the clouds to drive past at such a rate from the southward, while the quiet rollers had already begun to break up and require such extra attention, that at 6 P.M. the 'Cyprus' was hove to, and made ready for a dirty night. The mainsail was taken off her and trysail set, the topmast housed and bowsprit reefed in, the second jib shifted for a spitfire, and the foresail double-reefed. Two hours later, the wind having sprung up into something near akin to a gale, and the yacht dancing with a light heart and by no means wet deck away out to sea, everyone on board was glad that she was under snug canvas and that time had been taken by the forelock. She could not have been more comfortable or cozy had she been a sea-going rocking-chair. On going about, the first land sighted was Cape Cornwall, but the wind, having had its say, again went down, till the yacht was left with just sufficient to keep her going, but not enough to make her steady, or prevent her knocking about in the choppy sea that remained. About noon, however, a breeze sprang up, and the Seven Stones Lightship was passed close to about 3 o'clock on Tuesday morning. Towards 8 A.M. the wind had veered round to the N.W., coming off the land in strong puffs; sail was made once more, and with fairly smooth water all the way the yacht lay herself down to her work, and finally brought to off the Hoe at 10 P.M. the same night. The lesson learnt during this cruise was a useful one--viz. that if sail is attended to in time, a 5-ton yacht is fit to face almost any weather, provided she has sea-room. During the whole trip round the crew were never without hot water when they required it, so easy was the yacht's motion to those below, even during the most disagreeable part of the journey; and no water went below even when it lay thick on deck, as, for instance, off Stranraer, and once or twice before sail was taken off her when near the Smalls.

The 'Cyprus' was raced, whenever an opportunity presented itself, in the then A, B, and C classes, and in every case the racing was against yachts larger than herself. Any amount of Channel groping had to be undertaken, both from one English port to another, as well as between the French coast and England, ocean racing being quite as much in her line as the 'Meteor's.' Her best performances took place in strong breezes, and it was a sight worth seeing to watch the wonderful manner in which she could drive through a head-sea. At Bembridge Regatta the 'Cyprus' sailed the course round the Nab on a day when the 30-ft. class of yachts (15-tonners in reality) begged to have their course, which was identically the same, altered. No matter on what point of sailing she was engaged (and she is only given in these pages as a very fair type of the 5-tonner built to sail under the old Y.R.A. Rule), blow high or blow low, a lady might have handled her tiller without experiencing any of that muscular arm exercise so common in boats built under the length and sail-area rule, or even the slightest inconvenience. The 'Cyprus' was sent out to Toronto on board an Allan Liner from London, and became an ornament to Lake Ontario, where she is at the present time.

Between the years 1880 and 1886 four 5-tonners were built from the designs of one of the most rising young naval architects the Clyde has ever produced--Mr. Payton. The first of this team was the 'Trident,' which, though not by any means a successful racer, was a fine able boat and moderately fast. She is mentioned here on account of her having made a long ocean voyage to the South of France. She was altogether bigger and a much heavier boat than the 'Nora' or 'Cyprus,' but could be worked just as easily. Five Frenchmen, however, were employed to take her South. Her behaviour under a very trying state of the weather, while crossing the Bay of Biscay, was highly spoken of, and the men who went in her declared their faith in her to such an extent as to be quite willing to take her out to the Cape.

The 'Olga' was Mr. Payton's next attempt at a flyer. She was 32 feet long, with a beam of 5.73 feet, and had a great draught of water. She was a very large-bodied boat, was built on the most advanced scientific principles, and, what is more to the point, was a complete success; but she was a most unfortunate yacht. With a very wide keel her midships section was anything but shapely, and ran down almost in a straight line from her bilge, which was very low and square, to the bottom of the lead. At the Royal Irish Yacht Club Regatta, Mr. Power's steam yacht ran into her and sank her in Kingstown Harbour, but she was brought up and floated again, Mr. Power having bought her as she lay under water. The 'Olga' after this mishap won her full share of races, and ended her first season flying 18 winning flags, of which 15 were firsts. Mr. G. B. Thompson bought her during the winter, and the following season won four first prizes with her; but before the season was half over she was again unlucky, and on June 22 was once more run into and sent to the bottom, whilst in the Mersey. She was fished out, and put up for auction, but who bought her or what became of her is not generally known.

The third yacht of 5 tons was the 'Luath.' She, however, was not such a phenomenon as the 'Olga,' and after the 'Olga's' short but brilliant existence, what was expected of her did not come off. She was, as may be supposed, very much like the 'Olga' in looks and of about the same dimensions, though of rather larger displacement. The last of the four was the 'Oona.' Her melancholy end is still fresh in the memory of many a small-yacht sailor. She was built in 1886 at Wivenhoe, in Messrs. Harvey & Co.'s yard, for Mr. Plunket, of Belfast, and was an extreme example of what could be designed under the old Y.R.A. Rule. Her length was 33 ft. 10 in. on the L.W.L., her beam 5 ft. 6 in., and draught 8 feet, but her chief characteristic was her marvellous body, which displaced 12 tons, both displacement and sail-area of 2,000 square feet and more being greater than many racing 10-tonners, and the latter over 1,300 square feet more than 'Freda' or 'Nora's' sail-spread. What she might have done as a prize-winner it is impossible to say, for she never reached her station. Coming from the eastward, she put into Southampton to effect some small repairs, and after remaining there a few days, on May 4, with her owner Mr. Payton, her designer, and a crew of three men on board, left for Belfast. It appeared that shortly after passing Dublin Bay--for she did not put into Kingstown, as might have been expected--her owner must have intended to make the best of his way up Channel, but, unhappily, terrible weather set in about the night of the 12th, and the general opinion was that, from some weakness in or lack of roping, the trysail was burst up, and that becoming unmanageable, or through her crew having been swept overboard, the yacht was driven on to the sands off Malahide and so became a wreck. Her hull was washed up without its lead keel and its fastenings or the iron floors; in fact, the whole of her keel and lower garboards had gone.

Mr. Payton's name will always be associated more especially with the 3-tonner 'Currytush.' She was a more brilliant success than even the 'Olga'; but the old 3-tonners do not come within the scope of this paper.

The last of the race of 5-tonners, if the 'Oona' be left out, is the 'Doris,' one of Mr. Watson's greatest successes in small-yacht design. She was built in 1885 for the Messrs. Allan, who had owned and sailed the little 'Nora' so pluckily and so well. Her length is 33.6 feet on the load-water-line, beam 5.6 feet, and draught about 7 feet, or a little more. The 'Doris,' like the 'Oona,' is an extreme representative of the old rule. Her displacement is very large, but there is far more shape and comeliness about her body plan than was to be found in any of Mr. Payton's designs. She has proved herself a clever boat in all weathers, and in light winds particularly so. Her chief rival, had she not been lost, would have been the 'Oona,' for there was no other 5-tonner afloat capable of tackling her, and her principal racing was against boats of a larger tonnage. She could always save her time on the crack 10-tonners of her day, such as the 'Uleerin,' 'Queen Mab,' and 'Malissa,' and the only matches of any interest that she was mixed up in were three that came off between her and Mr. Froude's 5-tonner 'Jenny Wren.' This yacht, designed by her owner, and built at Messrs. Simpson & Dennison's yard at Dartmouth, was made double-skinned for the sake of lightness. She, like the 'Doris,' was a large, big-bodied boat, but her form did not give that idea of power with which a look at the 'Doris' at once inspired the observer. Both the 'Doris' and 'Jenny Wren' are cut away forward, and carry the curve of the keel up to the water-line, finishing at the deck-line in a fiddle-head. The 'Jenny Wren' had shown herself remarkably fast in light winds and smooth water, and on certain days could leave the length classes to follow her up. Bad weather, however, was her weak point, and even in strong breezes and smooth water she did not always appear to be sailing at her best. At Plymouth, then, when the 'Doris' and 'Jenny Wren' met, everything depended on certain conditions what kind of a fight the latter would make. As the 'Doris' beat her, there is every reason to believe that it was either blowing hard or that the wind was shy and there was a certain amount of roll outside the breakwater.

Since the measurement rule was altered, the 'Doris' has been improved by being spread out and given more beam. She still races, but cannot do much against the 10-raters, the class to which she now belongs, and has lately been sold to spend the rest of her days as a cruiser. Should she race in the future, it will be in the many Clyde handicap cruising races. With such bodies and draught there was no lack of head-room in the cabins of the latter day 'plank on edge' 'lead mines,' but the want of beam made the accommodation not exactly as grateful as it might have been had there been a little more elbow-room. The alteration in the 'Doris' has given her the requisite amount of beam, and she ought to make a very comfortable fast and able boat for cruising purposes.

THE Y.R.A. RULE AND ITS 5-RATERS

In the year 1886 the Yacht Racing Association brought in a new rule for yacht measurement, or, more properly speaking, for rating yachts to be used in racing. There is no other reason why a rule for rating should be required at all, as under the old rule, or any true capacity measurement, a naval architect or yacht designer would be sure to produce a good, serviceable vessel for cruising purposes, and according as the owner's requirements might be speed, accommodation, or light draught, so the several dimensions and design would be arranged to suit.

With regard to this rule of rating by 'length and sail-area,' and the boats which are the result of it, there appear to be many and diverse opinions; and prior to noticing any particular yacht built under it, it will be as well to look at all its points before declaring for or against it. Experience declares them to be good sea-boats, in that they rarely ship solid water, and they are very fast when sailing on a wind. Their spoon and fiddle-headed bows would help to throw the water off, while their mast being stepped almost in the eyes of the yacht, would make them eat up into the wind, because it permits of most of the driving power being concentrated in one big sail.

Their sailmaker's bill is a small item, on account of the tendency to keep the sail-area down. For instance, the 'Archee,' Mr. Lepper's 5-rater, of Belfast, with a length of 30.4 feet, a beam of 9.2 feet, and a draught of nearly 5 ft. 6 in., a length on deck of 39.5 feet, the tonnage of which, by the last rule, would have been a little over 6-1/2 tons, has a sail-area of 979 square feet against the 1,680 square feet of the 'Doris' 5-tonner.

They are bigger boats than the old 5-tonners, but then they have so much more beam. The 'Cyprus' was the same length as two-thirds of the 5-raters that have been built, but she had only 6 ft. 4 in. beam against the raters' 8 feet to 9 feet. They have very little gear with the lugsail rig, and the decks are always clear.

They can lay to, but it is on the same principle as that of a Una boat, and they would not remain on one tack all the time but for the little jib they carry, while they forge ahead at a great speed, and cannot be stopped unless a man is left at the helm to look after it.

If properly trimmed the rater can be steered by the lightest hand when beating to windward and close hauled, and she is remarkably quick in stays.

Experience, however, shows that, though the rater rarely ships a sea, still, when she does put her nose in the water, it becomes a general question on board her whether she will ever bring it out again. This is not altogether enjoyable, and such sensations were never experienced in boats built under the old rule. The one large lugsail, too, and little jib form a most unhandy rig.

Experience has also proved that, with regard to the two factors, sail-area and length, the tendency is to make the body of as small displacement as possible, taking the length into account, so that with the small area of canvas employed there may be very little weight to propel. Thus, though the early raters were big-bodied and roomy boats, with good head-room below, the boats built lately are inferior in those qualities, and those which will be put on the stocks in the future will be merely big canoes with bulb-keels.

Experience prefers for Channel seas a boat that can be driven through the water when necessity compels without any sense of danger, and that, if allowed to do so, will ride over the waves when no object is to be gained by making a short cut through. A yacht of four beams to her length or more will do this far more comfortably and with less commotion and fuss than one of three beams or less to her length.

Experience furthermore says that, though the lugsail requires very little gear, and can be hoisted with a certain amount of ease, yet if sail has to be shortened, or the lugsail to be taken in hurriedly, it requires more than three men to do it smartly; at no time is the job an easy one, but if any sea is running, or the weather squally, three men have as much as they can do to handle it. This is never the case with the gaff-mainsail. In a 5-tonner a man and a boy could have shortened sail easily, and though the sail-area was great, one man and the owner could always sail her from port to port.

Money may be saved through a small sailmaker's bill, but it must go out in wages to the crew and extra hands.

It is a good point to have very little gear about, but the 'Wenonah' and 'Wee Winn' both prove that a gaff-mainsail is quite as suitable as the lug and a better all-round sail.

_Experientia docet_ that the rater, though she can lay to, cannot be hove to and have her way stopped. And the risk with her is, that in a sudden rush, caused by her aftersail filling, she may bury herself by jumping right into a head-sea--a most dangerous performance when the weather is so bad and the seas so high that travelling can only be carried on at peril.

Again, experience tells a tale that raters are not all so very tender on the helm even when sailing on their best point, and are what would be called in horsey phraseology very hard-mouthed; and that whilst off the wind they are like star-gazers, all over the place, and ready to rush anywhere and everywhere rather than straight ahead or where the helmsmen want them to go. Some of the small yachts built latterly under the old rule had a similar inclination, but it was generally at a time when they were being very heavily pressed, carrying too much sail, or when badly trimmed.

Of the two kinds of overhang forward, the spoon-shaped bow, which Mr. G. L. Watson has given his new boats, is the best, because it adds flotation as well as length on the L.W.L. when the yacht is sailing down to her bearings, and fairs all her longitudinal curves. The fiddle-headed bow may be thought by some to look prettier, but it is not so effective, unless it helps by its flam, or flare out (which some new yachts with this kind of bow do not have), to keep the decks clear of water. The overhang bow means an extra top weight, which has to be provided for and counteracted when the calculation is being made for the ballasting; but, on the other hand, it gives enlarged deck-room. It also saves having a long outboard spar in the shape of a bowsprit, and so does away with any need of reefing. This is really only a small matter after all, since even with a rough sea there is never very much difficulty in reefing in the bowsprit providing it is properly fitted. Years ago in American waters there was scarcely a sloop built that had not an Aberdeen stem or fiddle-headed bow, but for some years they were discarded, and it is only lately they have been brought into fashion again. No American would give up anything that he had pinned his faith to unless he saw some real advantage to be gained by so doing. It is quite easy to understand why Americans should come back to the old stem now, for their waters like it, and it helps to cheat the rating for length.

The main design so common in the rating classes is perfect when regarded from two points of view only. The long, very gentle curve that runs up from the heel of the sternpost to the stem-head, and the excessive rake of the sternpost itself, allow of no more outside deadwood than is absolutely necessary to keep the yacht together, hang the rudder, and fix the lead keel on, so that whatever surface there may be to cause friction is doing its duty--that is, is caused by the skin or planking. The form thus given has its drawbacks; this experience has shown us and they are far more prominent and, therefore, serious when met with in the smaller raters than when seen in a 40- or 100-rater.

The second point is the quickness with which yachts of this new design 'stay' and 'get away.' This is a more practical benefit to large yachts than to small ones; for vessels like the 'Doris' or the old 'Solent,' 30-ft. and 25-ft. classes, could all stay and move off quite quickly enough, although they might not have manifested a desire to spin round twice when not stopped on their wild career, which is a marked peculiarity with the modern mosquitos. In the large classes a few years ago it was a common thing to make use of the time occupied in going about to take in or shake out a reef when circumstances demanded it; at the present day the skipper or sailing-master has to keep his wits about him, otherwise he may find his beauty turning round and looking him in the face; for the large rater can whip round like a top.

Now, in regard to the courses round Great Britain, two-thirds are what may be called reaching courses--that is, there is more running and reaching to be done than there is beating to windward--and though the distance to be sailed over in tacks may be only a third of the whole course, still the tacks that have to be taken will make the distance almost as long as two-thirds of the whole course itself; hence comes the advantage of having a yacht that will travel the distance quickly on a wind. Nevertheless it seems foolish to place the eggs all in one basket, and as it is an absolutely useless accomplishment for a yacht to be able to go round two or three times to the once putting down of the helm, the question may be asked whether she would not be equally quick and a better racing, to say nothing of a cruising, yacht if she were not quite so much cut away forward, or, better still, if her sternpost were not quite so much raked; and could not this be done without materially affecting the speed? If the idea is to give the yacht a great hold of the water by a deep draught, then it is easy to understand that the present fin-shaped keel is necessary; but Mr. Herreshoff has given practical proof that such a shaped keel or such excessive draught is by no means necessary to make a boat weatherly or a successful prize-winner. With a straighter sternpost a certain length of horizontal keel might be required to keep the centre of lateral resistance in the best place, but that again would only be following Mr. Herreshoff at a near distance, and would make the boats run and reach better and under a steadier helm, whilst a very imperceptible difference would be found in their rate of travelling to windward.

The two Herreshoff boats that have been sent over to England have certainly shown their tails to our smartest raters in the two rating classes, viz. the 2-1/2 and 1/2. Both the 'Wenonah' and 'Wee Winn' are fitted with bulb-keels, which run their length horizontally to their L.W.L., and they are good on all points of sailing as well as remarkably quick in stays. These two boats are rigged with regular gaff-mainsails too, so that notwithstanding the craze for lugsails, they are not essential to make a boat sail past the winning marks first. To the cruising yachtsman who lives on board his little vessel, with such an alteration or improvement as the one referred to above there would be the comfort and satisfaction, when hauled alongside the pier of a tidal harbour, of knowing, after the yacht had begun to take the ground, that he had not to sit up all night watching her, or waiting till her bow started to lift before he could turn in to his bunk, because his yacht would take the ground on a more even keel. It is no child's play looking after a fin-keeled yacht taking the ground, and the very greatest of care and most subtle precautions have to be used to avoid a fall over on the side.

_2-1/2-rater (Mr. H. Allen). Designed by Nat. Herreshoff, 1893._]

In designing a small yacht there are matters that have to be considered which scarcely affect larger vessels except when comparing them, again, with larger vessels still. One of these points almost makes it worth while looking back at the reasons why certain types of small yachts have become so prominent and so much sought after and believed in. The great American designer, Mr. Herreshoff, and our own clever yacht architects here, are taking the canoe of the savage as their model; and as this is the case, it may be interesting to see how, starting from the canoe, all yachts have taken their form (no matter how deep or beamy they may have been), and perhaps, too, by so doing, it will be easier to discern and arrive at the kind of form best suited to meet special requirements, apart from the trammels of the rules, measurements, or ratings such as are or have been laid down for yachtsmen and yacht-owners by the Royal Thames, the Yacht Racing Association, the American and French yacht clubs, or other societies and authorities.

The canoe of the South Seas or the kyak of the Greenlander could not have been better chosen, had they been worked out on the most scientific principles, for the work they have to do. The shape is that best adapted for speed, lightness (which means light displacement), and, under certain conditions, for sea-going qualities. Those conditions are, of course, smooth water or big ocean rollers, which seldom if ever break, and a propulsion easy, strong, and yet not exaggerated, longitudinal and not transverse in its tendency (as in propulsion by sail). Now if this model be taken, which invariably possesses a U-shaped section, there will be no great difficulty in understanding the whys and wherefores of the several transformations it has undergone.

If it is desired that a small boat should keep the sea, the nearer she approaches to the canoe form, as far as is compatible with the limited requirements, the better able will she be to cope with the difficulties which she ought, under the circumstances, to be ready to encounter. Hence it is that those men who make great ocean voyages, as, for instance, across the Atlantic, in boats about 15 feet or thereabouts, always have their boats built as round and floaty in form as it is possible to design them, taking into account that they must be decked, have sufficient depth of hold to allow of stowage for provision and water, which act as the greater part of the ballast, with the addition of just sufficient room for lying down at full length under deck covering: 2 ft. 6 in. to 3 feet is the outside depth under the deck of any of these diminutive ocean cruisers. The entrance given to such boats is always full and buoyant, though not bluff. Rarely do they have a vertical stem, but one rather rounded up, with a slight overhang. The after-body is generally whale-shaped, with the sternpost at a somewhat less angle than the stem. Both stem and stern-posts have this inclination given them, not with the idea of making them quick in stays, but rather for the purpose of meeting and throwing off head or following seas, and adding buoyancy to both ends. The main principle in these boats is to obtain buoyancy and speed, while great sail-carrying power for driving at abnormal speeds does not so much as receive a thought. This is why it so seldom occurs that any of these little vessels fail in reaching their destination. They go over the seas and not through them, owing to lack of weight and want of power. Their worst experiences during their long, uninteresting, and perilous voyages generally begin on nearing our shores and the chops of the Channel, where the seas begin to assume a broken, short, uneven, or at the best a deep ridge and furrow, shape. These boats may be considered the first remove from the early canoe form.

The general requirements, however, in a yacht are speed, accommodation, sail-carrying power, and weight. This latter property means, in other words, the ability to drive through a sea which, from its wall-sidedness, makes it an impracticable barrier to get over. When a vessel has not the weight or power to meet such a sea, as a rule, it spells disaster, or, to say the least, very disagreeable consequences; whereas if she can climb a part of the way up and then send her nose through the top, all is sure to end well.

Accommodation is very near akin to weight, for it is impossible to have a roomy boat without weight being concerned in it as a factor of some consequence. Accommodation in a yacht of 30 feet length and 6 feet to 7 feet beam means that there should be a height between the cabin floor and the deck beams of 4 ft. 6 in. to 5 ft. 6 in. at least, and this will demand a big-bodied boat of rather large displacement, otherwise the deepening in the water of the original U shape. Such a boat will require a large sail-spread to propel her. Supposing, however, that such height between decks is not required--that is to say, the boat is to be only partially decked with a large open cockpit--in that case the designer can, if he chooses, give the boat very much less displacement, which, in its turn, will require less driving power. The tendency, as it has been shown, of the Length and Sail-Area Rule is to provide just such a small displacement yacht, and accordingly a large yacht will some day be launched without any accommodation whatever.

Sail-carrying power is almost entirely a matter of displacement, for it is only a large-bodied boat that will have buoyancy sufficient to carry a great weight of ballast, and the deeper that ballast is placed, the more leverage will there be to counter-balance the sail, and hence the greater may be the sail-spread. Under the new system of deep plates, with the whole of the ballast bolted on at the bottom of the plate in the shape of a cigar or Whitehead torpedo, it is impossible to say how much area of sail could not be given to a boat of a certain length, beam, and depth of hull, and the only questionable difficulty that would come in the way would be the weight of the mast and spars necessary to carry the sail. For instance, take the three principal methods of stowing ballast, inboard, outboard, as in the ordinary keel, and the plate with a bulb. The dimensions of the boat to be supplied with sails are, length 30 feet, beam 7 feet, draught to bottom of wooden keel 4 feet. If the ballast is stowed inboard (lead ballast is presumed in all the cases), and the displacement permits, the sail-area may be 800 square feet. If the ballast is taken out and moulded in a keel, the sail-area may be increased to close upon 900 square feet. Should the lead be taken out and a plate some 2 feet or 3 feet deep be fitted, with the lead in the form of a bulb fixed at the bottom, the weight of the spars and the sails would be the only obstacle to the great increase of canvas that might be spread. Suppose, again, another hull be employed for experiments, having the length the same, but the beam increased to make up for the smaller depth of body below L.W.L. of 3 feet, the new hull may have the same displacement, and therefore the power to support the same weight of ballast as the last example. If this hull were supplied with a plate 4 feet or 5 feet deep, with the same bulb of lead, she would carry a still greater amount of sail; but with such a shallow boat there would be no accommodation.

Speed, that element in design which everybody cries after, whether they be practical scientific yachting men (and there is one thing Great Britain can boast of in her yacht designers, professional or amateur, and that is, they are all, without exception, first-rate helmsmen and seamen), or only graduating in the first principles of yacht-racing, is dependent on many conditions. In the first place, it forbids the presence of all superfluous deadwood, so that the outside surface presented to the water may be all of a useful description (that is, by being part of the planking or skin, or only as much deadwood as is necessary for the strength of the vessel), and the friction caused thereby may be reduced to a minimum. With a hull of large displacement there must naturally be very much greater surface friction than in one of smaller body, and therefore the question will arise--Will not the smaller yacht be the faster of the two? This involves still deeper sifting, because sometimes the smaller yacht will beat the one built on the same length and beam, though she may be very much larger. Before we can choose which of the two kinds of boat will be the better to have for a successful racer, a second great condition has to be looked into and satisfactorily settled. This is nothing less than what kind of waters the yacht will have to race or cruise in. The question of the element water is one very frequently forgotten and lost sight of by those buying yachts, especially second-hand ones; and the purchaser, who perhaps buys a most successful small vessel in the South, is astonished to find that when he has tried her against the local Scotch cracks, her performances prove of a very poor description in comparison, and disappointment is the consequence. Water may be in the eyes of some all the same, wherever it may be, and so it is round our coasts in its smooth state; but when it is set in motion there are scarcely two of our great yachting stations alike, while the seas in our three Channels all vary in form. At the mouth of the English Channel the seas, as soon as the 'chops' are left astern, become regular, are long and deep, and more or less easy for a small yacht to negotiate; that is, she has room to work in and out of them, and at the same time avoid receiving a comber aboard as passenger. As she sails farther up and the channel narrows, the seas become more of the deep ridge and furrow order, steep, narrow, and difficult to sail over, whilst each sea will contain its full weight of water. On nearing Calais the seas have less water in them, but are very short and steep; the consequence is they are more inclined to break. In the North Sea the sea disturbance takes another and larger form, and sailing North becomes still larger, and, of course, wider and deeper, till the Northern Ocean is opened out. St. George's Channel is very much like the English Channel, except that between Port Patrick in Scotland and the Irish coast the waves are more regular than between Calais and Dover, where currents and banks tend to make dangerous cross seas. So it is found that off Plymouth and Falmouth and outside Dartmouth there is often an ocean swell running, especially after there has been a south-westerly gale. The Solent, again, is different from the Clyde in its sea disturbance, and when acted upon by a south-easterly gale the seas off Spithead, owing to the shallowness of its water, have not nearly so much weight of water in them as those of the Scotch estuary when worked up by a northerly or southerly breeze. The Liverpool and London rivers are very much alike, though perhaps of the two the Liverpool has the greater sea disturbance, owing to the strength of its tides, which at some seasons are very rapid.

To large yachts of 40 tons and over the difference in character of the seas just spoken of is not a matter of great importance. What a large yacht may treat as a mere ripple to a 5-tonner may be a 'nasty sea'; and as these pages are dealing with the smaller craft of about 30 feet length, the sea disturbance must be regarded as it affects them. On rivers and inland waters the waves, as a rule, have not much weight in them, and there is no reason why the small yacht should not be able to go through the waves she is unable to rise over. Yachts of large displacement are more likely to do that at better speed than a small vessel of the same beam and length, because they have more weight. Where ocean rollers are concerned, or a heavy swell, while there is wind both types may be equal; but when the wind is shy and light, then the yacht of large displacement will walk past her small rival. It would be noticed that the heavy displacement vessel would forge ahead apparently moved by no other force than the 'send' of her weight as she lazily pitches to the movement of each succeeding wave. The courses for small yachts where such conditions are met with are Plymouth, Dartmouth, and Queenstown, and some parts of the Clyde and St. George's Channel to a very much lessened degree. Then, if a thought be cast across the Atlantic and a look be taken at the characteristics of the waters of Long Island Sound, that favourite haunt of all American racing and cruising yachtsmen, as on our own inland waters, the seas that much disturb the small fry are, it will be observed, scarcely noticeable to the large schooners and cutters of which so much is heard. The principal form in America laid down for all yachts used to be a long flat floor with very small displacement, great beam with a centreboard--the immense beam giving great initial stability. Large as well as small yachts were built to this design, and much used to be heard about their remarkable speed. A few years ago, however, two or three small yachts, amongst them the little 'Delvin' 5-tonner, built by Mr. W. Fife, jun., were sent over, all of fairly large displacement. These, without exception, put the extinguisher on all the American small yachts, by beating them time after time. The reason of it was that the English-built yachts could drive through what broken water or sea disturbance they met with, while the 'skim-dishes' could do little against it. Since those days the Americans have very materially altered their model, and both large and small yachts have been given more power; _vide_ the examples brought out to compete with our yachts for the 'America Cup,' and those to which the 'Minerva' has so lately shown her tail.

Where, therefore, great speed is required, and there is no limitation to sail-carrying power, a large displacement vessel is the best type to choose. Some small-yacht racing men do not like to be always remaining in their home waters, but prefer to go round to the regattas at other ports, and try their luck against the small yachts that gather at these meetings. They live on board, and sail their yachts round the coast. To such the large bodied boat is a regular frigate. The head-room is good, no lack of space is wanted for a comfortable lie down, and the owner and two friends, with racing sails and all other yacht paraphernalia, can stow away in the main cabin as cosily as can be.

During the last six years yacht designers have been spending their time in perfecting a vessel to be rated by length and sail-area alone. Boats of large displacement and moderate length, with good sail-spread, limited so that the boats might be rated under their several classes, gradually, but surely, gave place to boats of greater length, smaller bodies, and a smaller sail-spread. It does not appear, from the opinions of many who have published their views, that there is at the present time any particular desire to have good accommodation in racing yachts. The owners of the greater number of the 5-raters do not live in them, and the owners of the 40-raters have been so accustomed to great head-room in their vessels, that now, when, instead of having 7 feet to 8 feet, they still find they can walk about in the cabins, no complaints are heard; but with the lessons that Mr. Herreshoff has been teaching, there is every reason to believe that we may live to see a 40-rater launched with about 3 to 4 feet depth of body under water, and then perhaps there may come a reaction, and a return may be made to a moderately large displacement. Up to the present time the 5-raters have been kept fairly large, and owing to their beam, as far as internal accommodation is concerned, have room enough and to spare; but the raters of 1893 were not nearly of such large displacement as the boats of two years before, and they are wonderful to look at outside.

The fin-keel requires great depth if it is to be of any real use, and it is in this particular point that small yachts suffer. If a 5-rater is to sail in all waters, and go the round of the coast regattas, then her draught should be limited; of course, if the sole intention of the owner is that his yacht is never to race in any other locality than his own home waters, then, if the home waters be the Clyde, or Windermere, or Kingstown, there is no reason why depth should not be unlimited. On the other hand, should the yacht be intended for a sea-going vessel, then a heavy draught of water is not altogether desirable.

There are times when a 5-tonner or rater may be overtaken by bad weather while making a passage, and when a comfortable harbour under the lee would be a most acceptable refuge to make for. There are scores of snug little places round the coast where a small craft could lie peacefully enough, provided her draught of water allowed her to make use of any one of them. The average depth of water at these bays or harbours is about 6 feet at low-water spring tides. Hence no yacht or rater of 30 feet or under should have a draught of more than 6 feet. The writer remembers only too well an occasion when, after leaving Campbeltown, in Cantyre, for a northern port in Ireland, a north-westerly gale sprang up, bringing with it rain and a sea fog. The distance across from the Mull is not more than a few miles, but when his yacht made the land it was blowing so hard he had to run for the nearest shelter. Alas! when he sighted the little tidal harbour he was steering for, it was low water, and his yacht, which drew 7 feet 6 in., could not enter. He had to lie at two anchors outside in the Roads with some half-a-dozen coasters, expecting, with every shift of the wind, that the anchorage might become one on a lee shore. The 'Humming Bird,' in 1891, left the Solent for Queenstown. She is a 2-1/2-rater. After leaving Land's End the weather, which had been more or less fine, changed, and the sea getting up, it was decided to take her into St. Ives Harbour. She unfortunately drew more than 6 feet; the consequence was, though only 25 feet on the water-line, she was compelled to take her chance and drop anchor in the bay outside, because there was only 6 feet of water in the harbour.

None know the value of a moderate draught of water better than those who have cruised or raced afar from home, and groped their way into all kinds of out-of-the-way bays and harbours in small craft. The yachtsman who builds for racing only, possesses the means, and is ready to launch a new yacht to his name every other year, should (if he be a sensible man and proposes to himself to sell the yachts he has no further use for) think of the requirements of the market and his ability to sell. Soon the yacht mart will be flooded with a number of cast-off 5-and 2-1/2-raters, all with a draught of water which would limit their sale to only a few places.

There are many living at the present moment who will remember the time when even the large yachts of 100 to 200 tons were never given more than 12 feet draught. This was done to enable them to enter tidal harbours, the greater number of which only have a depth of 15 feet at high-water neeps. But there is another argument in favour of not having too great a draught of water, and that is, it is not an element of speed, beyond helping the sail power; and the existence of yachts like the old 'Fiery Cross,' which only drew 8 feet and was a most successful winner, and of the Herreshoff boats, which do not draw so much as the English-built raters and are the cracks of the day, points the lesson that it is well to put a limit where a limit may be altogether an advantage.