The Sun

YACHTS ALL NIGHT AT SEA.

RACING OVER A TWO HUNDRED AND TWELVE-MILE COURSE.

Shaking Hands with the Cape May Lightship at Midnight. And Defying Tarpaulins to the Sandy Hook Lightship at Sunrise.

The yachts had a brilliant run down the New Jersey coast, and the beat back with light and baffling breezes was a good test of skill. The contestants were the Resolute, owned by Rufus Hatch, 205.56 tons; the Vesta, owned by S. M. Mills, 90 tons, and the Dreadnaught, owned by J. C. Osborn, 216 tons. The Resolute and the Vesta are centre-boarders, and the Dreadnaught is a keel schooner. The course was from Sandy Hook lightship to Cape May lightship and return, 212 miles. Balloon jibs and club topsails were ruled out. The Dreadnaught allowed the Resolute 8 minutes, 45 seconds, and the latter allowed the Vesta 1 minute, 53 seconds. The yachts rendezvoused off the lightship at about 4 o'clock on Tuesday afternoon. A gun from the Resolute at 3:53 P. M. was the starting signal, and the craft dashed by the lightship as follows: Vesta, 4:03:32; Dreadnaught, 4:03:45; Resolute, 4:04:20. All went off with sheets lifted and booms to port. At 4:30 the Resolute was abreast of the Vesta and to windward, and the Dreadnaught was a short distance ahead of both on the lee bow of the Resolute. As it breezed up the Dreadnaught got a knock down that sent her main boom into the water. At about 5 o'clock jib topsails and maintopmast staysails were set by all three, and they rattled down to Barnegat at a lively rate. Off Long Branch the Dreadnaught and Resolute dropped the Vesta, and the Resolute slowly but surely began to overhaul the Dreadnaught. At 6 the Resolute was nearly abreast the Dreadnaught, the Vesta a mile astern. Not long after sunset Barnegat Light was seen, and at 7:24 it bore west from the Resolute. At 9:57 Absecon Light bore west from the Resolute, and the Dreadnaught was nearly a mile and a half astern, with the Vesta far behind her on her weather quarter. A rising barometer prognosticated northerly winds, and at 10 the wind was about north. At 10:40 the Dreadnaught was picking up a little on the leader, and both dropped the Vesta. All winged foresails, and the Cape May lightship was seen by a lookout at the Resolute's masthead. At 11 the wind was north northeast, and the sea rising. At 12:30 A. M. on Wednesday the Resolute was steering south by west southwest, and trying to squeeze round the lightship without jibing. It was impossible, however, and after taking in foretopsail she jibed over at 12:58:45 A. M. At 1:11:10 A. M., the Resolute led the racers round the Cape May lightship, and hauling her sheets aft stood off to the eastward on the port tack. The Dreadnaught rounded at 1:41:45, missing stays as she did so, and the Vesta passed at 1:54. At 2:30 the Dreadnaught made an inshore tack, and at 3 she was out of sight. The Resolute and the Vesta kept on, standing to the eastward, the former dropping the latter all the time. On the way down Mr. Hatch had taken his trick at the helm like a veteran salt, but just before rounding Capt. Lewis of the pilot boat Negus took the wheel, and with Capt. Dennis, the sailing master, and Capt. Eldridge handled the yacht the rest of the trip. Beating to the eastward was cold work, and as the Resolute dashed through the waves she tossed up the spray in lively style. Day broke cold and clear, and the Dreadnaught was seen about a mile to leeward. The wind was baffling, but it favored the Dreadnaught, and she beat up to windward of the Resolute, and at 7 A. M. was nearly two miles to windward. The Vesta was out of sight. At 8 o'clock the Vesta was sighted two or three miles to leeward of the Resolute. It turned out afterward that the Vesta had split her foresail, and that the time lost in repairing damages had retarded her considerably. Up to 11:30 the Resolute's prospects were rather slim, but her standing on to the eastward proved to have been good policy, and she in her turn was favored by the wind, as the Dreadnaught had been early in the day. At 12:15 P. M. Absecon light was bearing west by north from the Resolute, which had gone to windward of the Dreadnaught, and was rapidly increasing her lead. At 1:30 the Dreadnaught was on the Resolute's lee quarter five miles off, and the Vesta could barely be seen. On Little Egg Harbor the Dreadnaught was hull down, and the Vesta was out of sight. Barnegat light bore west at 7. The wind continued light and baffling, and the lead that the Resolute held all through the night was due more to her skilful handling by Capts. Lewis, Dennis, and Eldridge than to any breeze she held. During the night the Dreadnaught crawled up on the Resolute, and at 6 A. M. on Thursday she was barely a mile astern. At this time Sandy Hook lightship was about two miles or so ahead of the Resolute, and with the baffling wind it was doubtful which would pass first. The lightship had to be turned to port, and, unable to weather it, owing to the wind heading her, the Resolute at six went about on the port tack. After making a short stretch she went about again, placing herself so that the Dreadnaught was on her lee bow a short half mile off and nearer the lightship. It was an exciting moment. Everybody supposed that the Dreadnaught would be unable to weather the lightship and that she would have to go about, thus enabling the Resolute to be first home. The wind, however, favored the Dreadnaught, and the tars in the Resolute had the mortification of seeing a boat that they had led for miles nearly all through the race slip past the goal a minute ahead of them. The Vesta passed several hours afterward. The judges give the time of arrival as follows: Dreadnaught, 6:15:15 A. M.; Resolute, 6:20:18; and Vesta, 8:47:58. The Resolute thus wins the race by several minutes on time allowance. Although it was stipulated that the race should be made under the New York Yacht Club's rules, Mr. Osborn says that he understood it to be without time allowance, and a referee will decide which is victor.