[to be continued.]
LEONARD E. WARE.
Ware has turned the tables on Whitman. They met in the finals at Newcastle, but it was 6-4, 7-5, 4-6, and 5-7 before the interscholastic champion could make it 8-6 in the fifth set, and call the tournament his. There was good playing that day, and the schools can take pride in the fact that they are sending new material, and better, into the tennis ranks this season than has entered for many a year. These new-comers are putting up a careful, steady game too. The principal failing of young and promising players in former years has been their inclination to play more for the benefit of the spectators than for the points of the game. But to sacrifice points for applause is a very evident absurdity, and so I was glad to see at the Wentworth that most of the men aimed to put up a steady game.
Ware and Whitman are so nearly even in their play that it is difficult to determine which is the better man. Ware no doubt has the greater powers of endurance, and I should count on him to win more tournaments in the long-run, but Whitman is certainly strong in emergencies and steady at critical moments. Ware's best strokes are his cross-court plays, which I have no doubt he will eventually develop to a standard of proficiency superior to that of any player in the country. He volleys well, too, and when in back court often puts in some good smashes. Whitman is clever at a drive, and puts speed into his strokes, but he has not the physical development to stand a long match. His game would no doubt be greatly improved if he should devote himself during the winter to general athletic exercise. He smashes well, and is excellent on volleying. The performance of Beals Wright at the Wentworth tournament was a surprise to many. For a fifteen-year-old lad he certainly can play tennis. Scudder was also on hand, and repeated some of his clever work at Longwood. He put up even a better game at Newcastle, defeating Budlong in the second round, but he succumbed to Ware in the semi-finals.
Whitman was apparently not in the best of condition when he stepped into court for the final match, but he warmed up to his work as the games piled up, and showed good form in the last three sets. The first offered no exhibition of particularly fine play. The score seesawed, until Whitman took the fifth and sixth games, and then Ware got the next four and the set. But in the second set there was pretty tennis. Whitman did some clever placing, and Ware's drives called forth considerable applause. In the eighth game there was an amusing lobbing contest, which finally turned to Ware's favor, and he followed up the advantage with some clean passes across that added the ninth to his score.
Poor play characterized the opening of the third set, not a point being earned in the first game. Whitman took it, and Ware got the second on his opponent's successive outs. Then Ware came up to the net and put in some good strokes; but Whitman was steadying down by this time, and with some clever passes and good volleying he got his first set. He took the next one, too, made lively by sharp work on both sides with many deuce games and plenty of fierce volleying. Then came the rubber. Ware was warmed up, and kept driving the ball at his opponent. Whitman set his hopes on placing, and played a careful steady game. Ware took the first two games, and Whitman got the following three, and then it was a seesaw until the twelfth. Deuce was called five times in the eleventh game before Whitman could win it. He was leading, then, 6-5. But Ware quickly brought the score to games all, and by beautiful placing earned the two following, the set and the match.
It is to be regretted that all the interscholastic cracks will not meet at Newport. Sheldon of Hotchkiss Academy, winner of the Yale interscholastic tourney, cannot be present because he is out West, where he must stand again to defend the championship of Ohio, which he won last year. For a similar reason McMahon, the Brooklyn interscholastic champion, will be absent. He has won the Leland House tournament at Schroon Lake for the past two years, and if he wins again this summer the Leland House cup is his. That tournament occurs about the same period as the Newport Interscholastic. But the schools will be well represented, nevertheless, and we may look forward to seeing even better tennis this year than at any previous interscholastic tournament.
Although it is now somewhat late in the season to recur to the spring championship series of baseball, it seems advisable to insert the result of the New England Interscholastic League contest, if only for the sake of the record which it will serve. The outcome of the series was not wholly satisfactory, because the Cambridge High and Latin School nine tied Hopkinson's for first place, and no deciding game was arranged. Had it been, the Cambridge men would doubtless have won. They were heavy hitters, and in the field gave excellent support to Stearns, who was one of the best pitchers in the association. The Hopkinson players were likewise strong at the bat, but prone to get rattled. The surprise of the season was English High's defeat of the Cambridge team—in a most exciting contest—after having lost to almost every other nine in the league. The scores follow:
| April | 26.—Hop., 13; Som. H., 11. |
| May | 1.—Hop., 6; B.L.S., 5 (12 innings). |
| " | 9.—B.L.S., 5; Som. H., 4. |
| " | 10.—Hop., 15; E.H.-S., 14. |
| " | 11.—C.H. and L., 24; R.L.S., 12. |
| " | 16.—E.H.-S., 14; Som. H., 1. |
| " | 17.—C.H. and L., 8; Hop., 5. |
| " | 21.—B.L.S., 8; R.L.S., 6. |
| " | 22.—C.H. and L., 7; Som. H., 0. |
| " | 24.—Hop., 19; R.L.S., 13. |
| " | 25.—C.H. and L., 17; B.L.S., 0. |
| " | 28.—R.L.S., 5; Som. H., 4. |
| " | 31.—B.L.S., 10; E.H.-S., 5. |
| June | 4.—R.L.S., 15; E.H.-S., 10. |
| " | 7.—E.H.-S., 4; C.H. and L., 3. |
Canoeing is about as good an out-door sport as any for the month of August, but it is a pastime largely restricted to inland waters. You can paddle and sail a canoe along the sea-shore, of course; but this is dangerous business for any but the most experienced canoeist, and thoroughly unadvisable. Canoes were not intended for rough water. But there is nothing more delightful than to paddle yourself along a winding stream through the quiet woods, or sail in your light craft across some beautiful lake in the mountains. To those who have never tasted this pleasure it can truly be recommended. One of the objections to indulging in it, many will say, is the expense involved in the purchase of a canoe. But this may be very easily overcome by any one gifted with even the slightest constructive ingenuity. If you can saw to a line and plane an edge, and drive a nail, you can build a canoe for yourself at very small cost.
Fig. A.
The simplest kind of canoe is made of canvas, and for the purpose of a novice in the graceful art of paddling it is just as serviceable as a more expensive boat. Very little material is required to construct one, and the cost, including everything, will not exceed $12. First procure two strips of pine board 12¾ feet by 2 inches by ¾ of an inch; a bunch of oak strips 1¼ by ½ inch, and about 4 feet long; a bunch of pine strips 12 feet long by 1¼ by ½ inch; and a piece of spruce 12 feet long by 2 inches by 1-1/8 inch. This last piece is to be used for the keel, to the ends of which are fastened the stem and stern posts. These are both alike, and should be sawed out of a pine plank in the curved shape displayed in Fig. A. Lay out your curve on the plank in pencil first, then saw to the line, and level the edge, so that the prow will slip through the water easily. Next, saw into both ends of your keel piece, insert the stem and stem pieces; then plane the keel piece so that it will come to a point both forward and aft. Fasten these uprights to the keel with copper nails or rivets. They are better than any other kind because they do not rust.
Fig. B.
Next, lay out a cross section of your canoe on a plank, and saw this out. Your section should be 2 ft. 6 in. across the top, which is the breadth of beam of your canoe; it should be 24 inches high, which is the depth of the craft; and the side lines of the section, which will determine the lines of your canoe, should be gracefully rounded, so that the boat when finished will appear as in Fig. B. Now, then, fasten your section upright on the keel, and with the bow, the stern, and the breadth of beam thus settled, all you have to do is to nail your two pine strips (12¾ ft. by 2 in. by ¾ in.) to the bow and the stern. They will get their spread from the mid-section. The skeleton of the canoe is now complete, and the inside ribs may be bent on.
In order to make the oak strips pliable, boil them in water until you can twist them into any shape you choose. Then nail them to the keel at their middle point and to the gunwale boards above, sawing off the protruding ends. These strips form the ribs, and when they dry out they will keep the form they assumed when nailed on. All the nails should be of copper, and clinched when driven in; this is done by holding a flat iron against the points as they come through. There should be six inches of space between each rib. Next take your thin pine strips, which are of about the same length as your sheer planks, and plane them on one side only. These are now fastened to the ribs lengthwise, the unplaned side out, parallel to the gunwales, about two inches apart. This brings all the planking on the outside of the ribs. Be sure to have the protruding lines (after the canvas is put on) run fore and aft, and do not forget that the planking is brought down to a fine point at the stem and stern, and is securely clinched.
Fig. C.
The canoe is now ready to be decked. Fig. C shows about where the deck pieces should be fixed to form the cock-pit. They ought to be inserted about a quarter length of the boat from each end. The deck beams should be of one-inch square spruce, and as soon as they are clinched in you can saw out your mid-section, which is now of no further use except as lumber. As such it will come in handy for braces, etc. On top of your deck beams lay the cock-pit combing of 2 in. by 3/8 in. pine, putting in braces of triangular-shaped pine underneath as a support to and from the ribs. After all the ribs are thus securely fastened, turn your boat bottom upward and lay on the canvas.
S. A. SYME.
This is by no means an easy matter, as you will soon find out, but patience and care will do much toward making the undertaking less difficult. Medium-weight sail duck is a good kind of canvas to get, and second-hand material will do, provided it is firm; in fact, weather-beaten canvas is preferable, as it has a smoother and more pliable surface. To insure its setting firmly and smoothly make four gores along the upper edge on each side and sew them firmly. Sponge the canvas off on both sides with water, and while damp tack it along the gunwale, allowing the stem and stern-posts to protrude half an inch. Use galvanized iron or copper tacks, and do not be afraid of putting them too near together. If you don't use plenty of tacks there will be danger of a leak. Now turn your boat right side up again, and as the canvas dries it will tighten and set with a firm surface. Have the canoe dry in the sun if possible.
Before tacking on the deck canvas, give the inside and outside of the hull a liberal coat of a mixture composed of three-quarters boiled oil to one-quarter raw oil, with some patent drier. This acts as a filler for the canvas, and makes it water-tight. When this has become perfectly dry, apply two coats of brown ready-mixed paint for the inside, and two of dark green for the outside. These are serviceable colors. But before applying the last coat of paint, put on a gunwale-waring strip of 1-in. spruce, and a spruce keel of 1 in. by 5/8 in. As the keel and waring strips are put on after the canvas has been painted, they ought to receive two coats of filler and one of spar varnish. This adds greatly to the appearance of the canoe. It is not advisable for the novice to attempt to manufacture his own paddle. It is cheaper in the end to buy one, and a good paddle is to be had for $3.
The two scholastic representatives at the Metropolitan championships of the A.A.U. held in Syracuse were Syme of Barnard School and Baltazzi of Harvard School. Syme entered as a member of the New Jersey Athletic Club, while Baltazzi wore the winged foot. The latter did not jump to his usual mark, dropping out at 5 ft. 9 in. Some excuse for this may be that he wrenched his ankle at that period of the contest, and could not do better afterwards. But Syme was in better fortune. He contested the low hurdles with Sheldon and Chase, and won. To be sure, Sheldon fell on the eighth obstacle, but Syme breasted the tape nevertheless in 28-4/5 secs. It is encouraging for all lovers of sport to see how the school athletes—the real representatives of the younger generation—are getting in everywhere, and getting in with credit to themselves.
The Graduate.
This Department is conducted in the interest of stamp and coin collectors, and the Editor will be pleased to answer any question on these subjects so far as possible. Correspondents should address Editor Stamp Department.
The rise in value of many scarce stamps during the past two years has been phenomenal. For instance, the £1 brown, 1878 issue, with anchor water-mark, in unused condition. Two years ago this stamp could be bought for $15, whereas the last copy sold of which I have any record brought $250. The one shilling 1862, with white line across the corners of it, unused, was catalogued at $50, a little more than a year ago, but to-day would probably bring $300 at auction. The curious thing about this stamp is that hitherto not a single copy has been found in used condition. Without the white line this stamp used is worth fifteen cents, and hundreds of thousands were sent to this country every month for three years (1862-65).
The finest and most complete catalogue of U.S. stamps from 1853 to 1870 has just been published in England at ten shillings. The work is illustrated by numerous plates and fac-similes, and it takes note of the most minute varieties. It was written by Gilbert Harrison, who possessed at the time of his death the finest collection of U.S. envelopes ever made.
Active steps have been taken to form a list of those philatelic pests, "speculative" issues which threaten to bring stamp-collecting into disrepute. Quite properly the initial steps have been taken in London, as some of the earliest as well as latest offenders in this respect have been some of the colonies of Great Britain. All the so-called Chinese local stamps, the San Marino Jubilee, St. Anthony Jubilee of Portugal, as well as many of the surcharged colonial stamps, should be avoided by every collector. The money spent on them is simply thrown away.
C. A. S.—The 1834 dime is catalogued at 40c., in fine condition; 20c., in fair.
M. S. S.—Fifty cents a thousand.
H. F. Cooper.—The Paris and London prints are much finer than the Belgium and Athens prints. The same plates being used in both places.
W. T. Blackwell.—"Re-engraved" stamps mean those stamps of which the original die having been somewhat worn by the many transfers, has its lines deepened. The result is always a commoner-looking stamp than the original, and if the same ink is used, the re-engraved looks much darker and heavier. An article on the different kinds of paper will probably be printed soon.
J. Haring.—Probably no $1 U.S. coin was issued in 1904. The die was prepared but not used. About fifty years ago the die disappeared from the Mint, but was returned after an interval of some months. Ever since that time, at long intervals, one of the coins comes upon the market. The first one brought $1000, the last one about $500.
A. R. Ketcham.—Always send a 2c. stamp if you wish an answer, or, still better, a self-addressed stamped envelope.
Philatus.