Buying a Boat:
If you are going to buy a boat, either the first or last one, make up your mind thoroughly as to what kind of a craft you want, and what you want her for. If you want to race, it is one thing; if you want to cruise, another. Combination cruising and racing boats are impossibilities, and are neither one thing or other. If you are going to build, get a good design from some man who knows his business, and have a boat built from it in the best manner possible. A poorly or cheaply-built boat is a losing proposition. If you are going to buy a second-hand craft, and don’t know much about boats, get a man who does to look over any that you think of purchasing. An honest builder is the best man for this. Most men buy a racer for her record, and a cruiser for her cabin. The record of a racing craft is not worth a pinch of salt, unless the boat is in such condition as will enable her to uphold it, and a cabin of a cruiser is of little value unless it is surrounded by a good, seaworthy and handy outside.