THE REGATTA.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume V, Issue 305, 27 December 1870, Page 2

THE REGATTA.

A more delightful day for the regatta than yesterday proved to be it is almost impossible to conceive. The heat of the sun was tempered by a most refreshing breeze, which was just sufficient to fill the sails of the various competing crafts, while the air was so clear and transparent that the snow-capped mountains of the great dividing range showed out most conspicuously, and added greatly to the beauty of the view to be obtained frora tbe Port Hills, which were dotted with tents in all directions, many pic-nic parties having taken possession of the heights, from whence they could obtain an excellent view of' the busy scene below. A larger iiamber of persons were collected on and;: near ths vv;barf than we ever remember to p ,have seen before on similar occasions, our population having received great additions in the shape ofexcursionists from other parts^ t^e& Taranaki, from Wellington having brought nearly 130, the Charles Edward from the West Coast about 60, and the Lady Barkly between 30 and 40 from Golden Bay. The first race of the day was for two" oared boats, but some difference of opinion existed as to whether a boat that had been brought over from Wellington for the purpose was entitled to run, and the race, in consequence, did not come off. The uext on the programme was, without doubt, the event of the day, as upon its result depended the retention of the Challenge Cup in Nelson. Five boats came to . the starting place, but, before they had left- the harbor, even the most sanguine of the onlookers had made up their minds that if a cup was to be offered for competition at the next regatta, they must put their hiinds into their pockets and pay for it, as the formidable little Red Jacket was fast outstripping all the other competitors in the race. On rounding the first buoy outside the harbor, the Lyttelton boat was 4^ miuutes in advance of the Minnehaha, and five before the Petrel, which advantage she bad increased on reaching the second buoy to eight minutes, the'Minne and Petrel rounding it almost simultaneously. From this point to the "winning post the Red Jacket ran away from the others just as she liked, but a beautiful race ensued between Cross' and Gibbons' boats for the second place, and it must have been extremely difficult for the judge to decide which of the two was first to pass the buoy. Of the Cosette snd Claymore it is unnecessary to make mention, as they were never in the race, but were satisfied to jog along comfortably together, a mile or two in the rear. With regard to the ! other events, there is nothing to call for

[special remark, except perhaps the appear[ance at the post of three boats for the Amateur Whaleboat Race, which however never came off, as everybody objected to everybody else, the result being similar to that which followed a little disagreement on the part of the celebrated Kilkenny cats, namely, that in the space of a few minutes nothing was to be seen of the disputants, unless, indeed, it might be their wake on the water. The objection to the Wellington crew was that their coxswain backed up the stroke oar, to which our Nelson men are not accustomed. Surely on a point like this some general rule might be adopted by the various regatta clubs throughout the colony. The Volunteer Whaleboat Race was productive of a good deal of excitemeut, but the heroes of the hose proved too much for the men of the Pipeclay, a3 will be seen below. We heard a good deal of grumbling at the absence of any shore sportsj and we really must say that, for those who were not immediately interested in the racing, it was a little trying to the patience to dawdle about for some hours without a break, excepting that created by the occasional report of the gun which aunounced the commencement or termination of a race. At the conclusion of the regatta, the Cup, together with a handsome silken flag, bearing the letters N, C. C, was presented to Mr. Day, the fortuuate owner of the Red Jacket, by Mr. C. Elliott, on the balcony of the Ship Hotel, in the presence of a large concourse of people. Mr. Elliott, in a short speech, congratulated Mr. Day on his well-earned success,. and stated that the Cup had beeu presented to tha Club "in 1858, by that thorough sportsman the late Captain Nicholson. But now it was to pass away from Nelsou, yet he hoped that before next year an equally handsome one might be obtained by a liberal public subscription, towards which he was willing to contribute his share. The Cup was then presented to Mr. Day, amid the cheers of the people and the straius of " See the Conquering Hero comes" from the band, and, having been filled with champagne, success was drunk to the Regatta Committee, and to all concerned in the day's proceedings. Thus terminated the Regatta of 1870, which, on the whole, proved a great success. Below, we give the results of the day's racing: — TWO-OARED RACE ; three miles. First prize, £3; second prize, £1. No race. YACHT RACE; eight ' miles. First, Silver Challenge Cup, second prize, £7. Mr. Da) 's Red Jacket - - 1 Mr. Gibbon's, jun., Petrel - - 2 Mr: J S Cross's Minnehaha - ,- . 3 •Mr. Brown's Claymore - - 0 '.:•:.- Mr. Hadfield's Cbsette' . - - 0 SHIPS. BOATS RACeV twice .round. Chartes'Edwfird'- 1 Boat J ' ' ' '"- ' '*''-' 1 Murray's Boat ~'~ - - -2 COASTER'S;' eight miles.' First ! prize, £8; second prize, £3. Mr. Thorne's Planet - - - 1 Mr. Harvey's Mary' V- - - 2 Mr. Charles's Sisters - - 0 , WHALEBOAT RACE, five oars; five miles.. Prizes, £10 and £3. Mr. Freeman's Phantom - - 1 Mr. Logan's Tito Kowaru - - 2 Mr. Cross's Quean - - - 0 FIRST-CLASS OPEN SAILING BOATS; four miles. Prizes, £7, £3, and £1. Mr. Wimsett's Rose. - - 1 Mr. Harley's Eclipse. - - - 2 Mr. Moore's Leather Jacket - 3 Mr. Atkinson's General Trochu - 0 Mr. Rickett's Rosella - - - 0 Mr. Lamb's Francis Flowerday - 0 Mr. Franzen's Bruce - - - 0 SECOND-CLASS OPEN SAILING BOATS ; two miles. First prize, £4 ; second prize, £2 ; third prize, £1. Mr. Clark's Toothache - - 1 Mr. Black's Bonita - - 2 Mr. Westrupp's Spray - - 3 Mr. Yarrall's Dolphin - - 0 Mr. Gilbertson's Ada - - 0 Mr. J. Cross' jun. Rapid - - 0 Mr. Listen's Minnow - - 0 SCULLER'S RACE; with or without Outriggers ; 3 miles. First prize, £5 ; second prize, £1. Mr. M'Rae' s Nemo - - 1 Mr. Morrison's Kuby - - 2 Mr. Freeman's Little Duke - 0 Mr. Erickson's Norma - - 0 AMATEUR WHALEBOATRACE; three miles. Prizes, £5, and £2. No race. BOYS' RACE; one mile and a half. Prizes, £2, ani 10s. Mr. M'Rae's Nemo - - 1 Mr. Morrison's Huby - - 2 Mr. Freeman's Little Duke - 0 Mr.Erickson's Norma - - 0 VOLUNTEER WHALEBOA.T RACE; three miles. First prize, £8; second prize, £4. Mr. Wigzell's Phantom (Fire Brigade) 1 Mr. Sinclair's Queen (City Rifles) - 2 Mr. Taylor's Tito Kowaru (Artillery) - 0

AMATEUR SCULLER'S RACE; one mile and a half. Prizes, £3, and £1 Mr. Morrison's Ruby - - 1 Mr. M'Rae's Nemo *" - - 2 Mr. Erickson's Norma - - 0