Evening Star Newspaper, May 16, 1926, Page 89

ILLUSTRATED FEATURES Part 5—8 Pages WASHI MAGAZINE SECTION he Sundy Stad NGTON, D. C., SUNDAY MORNING, MAY 16, 1926. Water Sports on the Potomac Gain Increased Importance BY LEE POE HART. OUD, rhythmical re s of water the the boat minute! » W = We are aboard speed making mile a roller coaster. at! I'm glad 1 took 1 want to take another - some time the seat securely mext time, however So the invitation of W. A. Roge! vice commodore of the Yacht Club, to join him on another ride in the “Baby Gar,” 38:mile-an hour speed boat of the Potomac, owned by J. H. McCormick Goodhart, Leads my engagement calendar. Commaodore C. C. Smith alveady had expressed a desire ke us for a ride on the Viking, ship of the Corinthian fleet by virtue of her skip- per’s seniority Coming out of the Club slip, on the V" the Highway Brid turned her nose in v bridge wh ac at that point throttled dow ourse he ridge.” We come t A well modulated suddenly the ten Rogers was heard en_ by surprise pected to see a harr L even heats the ponies get uck the demonstrates should hava i The Hfo e in huady, too. suit Potomac froi ‘Hains Point.” 15 he cut down in_order to mnk on we hack to the rafiw 1 miliar hummi off again tation as ned hoat 3 miles road brid Rahy Rogers exp! 1s low for power hot time made by the win: old Cup race, Datroft. as fast s § during the 15-mile laff v c age time for the race sald, was about 50 m'" One speed hoat 1 ported as making miles an hour spite the perform: hoats, the Baby of the Potomac. * x ¥ TH!‘, GRAY BAT, boat of the rf Battenfield. comm ern Power Boat -minute boat. fa spe will compe course sched country mac regatta The Corinthi a deal of cre national innual Presi £5.000 eve n Pre to the 1 of Coolid a des championsh the Potom governed b zation fast is waiting which will center ey tha country on the : Potomac. n s enthn- o 1. Washin X and busine the sports-lovin well extend exp to the Corinth enterprise in bringing this regatta to the Nation's provision in the nent betwi the American Power Boat Assoclation and the Corinthian Yacht Club stipu lates the event shall be held annually on the Potomac River course Holding of the regatta here will fdent Washington as a center of aquati It is expected to at- on—official, res spheres as well population—might sions of appreciation n Yacht Club for i sports. rs muffling a - Development of Speed Boats Offers New Field for Tests of Skill on Historic River—Yacbt Clubs Are Busy Centers as Season of Outdoor Activity Gains Headway and Water Events Are in Prospect—Preparations Are Made for Record- Breaking Period Which Promises to Attract Attention/Outside the National Capital—Carrying on the Rivalries That Were Popular in Earliest Days Among the American Aborigines. nearly a | ensations on a speed h the thrills experfenced that I'll strap myself to | Corinthian Landing 2 big bass Potomad. tract hundreds of visitors to the city | annus will mean effective nati ing for the community feature, fore Washingtonians who have inter themselves In_putting over a paign “to sell Washington to the Na tion” regard the activ s a splendid stimulus to their purpose. In idition to President and Secretary of the Navy Wilbur, sponsoring the affair are the Dis Washington Chamber the Board of 'rade, representatives of the civic organizi- tions and business men and women of Washington. The deed of gift to the * dept’s cup” will go to the the senior championship c s announced, “The Secretary of y cup” to be the award for championship contes der similar conditions. mitted for the latter trophy accepted, the announcement said. The presidential yacht, Mayflower, heads the Potomac River flotilla. Al- ready this year the President and his party have taken customary week end cruises on the Potoma In addition to this distinguished craft, some of the finest pleasure boats afloat have anchored in the river. An- chored in the water opposite the Capi- tal Yacht Club, another prominent or- ganization of the Potomac, at present is a fleet of pleasure boats represent- ing a vast investment of money. nal advert as well. Co Coolidge s, 000 Presi- winner in ss, regutta Opposite Haines Point, a few hun-| rds below the Capital Yacht re the seaplane hangars of the of Naval Aeronautics. The these flving ships making daily test flights provides versatility in Potomac_ River ac L The good old Potomac long has leen the scene of various activities in water sports, and the place where thousands daily go to seek relief from the sultry days of a Washington Summer. Long before the river he. came identified as the territorial boundary of the National Capital In- rict | It is pointed out the event | upper Potomac. pu—" 3 | dian canoes were paddled through its i turbulent currents by members of the Patawomeck Tribe, a powerful band | of aborigines on its shores. Here the early Americans fished and engaged in the tribal aquatic [ sports—canoe racing, swimming, falls shooting. Fame in the world of aquatic events | has come to the Potomac in recent | | vears as a result of stellar perform- ances of individuals and boat-racing | crews wearing the colors of thed! tinguished swimming and boating clubs holding forth on the river banks | from below Great Falls to Hains Point. Preparations being made at present by the clubs along the Po- | fomac indicate a banner year for water sports here. Considerable im- petus is given the program through the co-operation of the city officials. The Government's part consists of dredging the river bed and generally improving the sanitary conditions of the Potomac. Decoration day is formal opening date for the water | ts season on the Potomac. In ad n to the annual canoe regatta, ey Memorial Bridge, hundreds of canoes, motor boais, fishing craft and pretentious are certain to present the 1 picturesque scene in the Poto- ¢ River on May 30. Hundreds of and girls, young and lantly colored bathing suits, will splash into the refreshing waters, making the ceremonies com- plete. Any mention of swimming in the Potomac brings up the question of suitable bathing cogumes. Gen- the customary | erally it is a debatable question, there belng no regulation now such as ex- ted until two vears ago, when Wash- ington possessed a supervised bathing The small boy has always managed to solve the problem when he could escape the vigilant eye of the harbor Dol ind _others who combine to make a boy’s life just as tame as an adult’s, at least in’ the opinion of the youngsters themselves. He—afore- said small boy—discards his garmen: in true ole swimmin’ hole style, and plunges right in. It legend speaks truly, the small boy has distinguished company in his desire to dispose of the bathing suit question when he enters the Potomac. For it Is sald--although not in any of the vonderous history books that deal so much in stupid figures and leave out such v important facts as whot Pocahontas said to Capt. John Smith when she lifted his head off the block; Ball said to | George Washingtor: when he returned home and reported that he had thrown a perfectly good dollar across the aforementioned Potomac—that one John Quincy Adams, President of the United States in the early days of the Republic, disported himself at sun- rise daily in the yellow waters of the Potomac. He got up at dawn In order to| have the Potemac to himself, so the story goes, not desming it particu- larly appropriate for the populace to form a gallery in those simpler and less formal days while the Chief Magistrate dived, trod water and floated luxuriously as he planned ways and means of handling Con- gress—in those days, as in these, oc- casionally a job and a half for the man in the White House. Thus the battle of bathing clothes has raged on the Potomac since it | has served the Nation's Capital. But, leven in the case of the ‘small boy, { this type of bathing nowadays is a | joy of the past on the Potomac, at “ least as a part of the program for Decoration day. Everywhere devotees of aquatic | activitles are getting ready for the | season. Alongside spacious yachts in | dry dock, for the purpose of apply- |about 200 canoes on his racks. Estimates offered as to the size of the Potomac fleet vary. Ob- viously, it is difficult to arrive at ac- curate figures, as a mariner's license is required for power boats only. Canoes, fishing craft, sailboats, etc., may be piloted without registration. Some idea of the fleet's strength might be gathered by the mathemati- cal genius from a lengthy tabulation. One of the large boathouses, where canoes are stored, alone reported more than 500- racks in use for the romantic lit:le craft. Another boat- house proprietor asserted there n‘re n | ing fresh paint, canoeists have placed | addition to the several clubs where their craft. Owners of larger boats, many of the sea-going variety, are seen inspecting their craft for any needed repairs. Other captains of these palatial pleasure boats are dai- recting carpentry .crews in putting on a new keel, laying a new floor, or otherwise improving their representa- tive in the great Potomac fleet. Despite the backward weather this year, hundreds of hoatmen already have their craft in ship shape. Trial voyages have been made in many cases and defects in the engines cor- rected. Renovation is in evidence at many ab quarters and boathouses. tly, taking a tip from pre- dictions advanced by river men of long experience in annals of the Po- tomac, to the effect that all records for the number of water sports en- thusiasts will be shattered this sea- son, some of the boathouses are bullding additions te the already sizable quarteds. members store their canoes, thers | are three or four small boathouses | equipped to accommodate 50 each, showing the “tilters” predominate in | the Potomac fleet. | Canoe twosomes appear to be in the imajority among the canoce family it- !self. Of course, the term ‘“twosome’ | comes strictly in the classification {only when it is made up-of a belle |and beau. Although it may be called a twosome, it seems that.only one oc- {cupant of the craft actually paddles | his own canoe. Iven then it is doubt- | ful, in my mind, as the feminine mem- |ber' of the crew seldom does the me- chanical work. But girls usually make expert canoe- ists, say the critics of the Potomac realm. The boys seem satisfied so long as the fair sex “talk” a good paddle. At ‘many of the thirty-odd camps along the shores of the river there are feminine aquatic stars. Whether the event be diving, sprint swimming or Polomac Biver boats tied up abbhe Corinthiaw Yacht (lub wharf. ~ Getting the boat ready for Sumwmer. Twosomes are popudar. canoeing, the boys experience much difficuity in holding their own in com- petition with the girls, it seems. This contention seems to be substan- tiated in at least one case of record. The Capital Athletic Club, an organi- zation composed entirely of girls, re- cently added rowing to its list of sports. Members of the crew take spins daily in the club's new elght- oared shell. They have been training for nearly two weeks now, and thelr coach speaks highly of the form dis- played. The crew is complete with coxswain, who apparently regards the use of a megaphone as a handicap in shouting orders to her “men.” The sterling eight of the Capital Athletic Club can be seen in action between the Key Bridge and the ‘Three Sisters about 5 o'clock any day. It's true they don’t take long sweep- ing pulls such as their brethern do, but the stroke executes a snappy dip which keeps the little shell gliding through the water at a dizzy clip. The crew, to a man, is putting in strenuous work and it expects to be ready to enter one of the women's regattas this Summer. It is said to be the first eight-oared crew made up of women to represent a Washington club. Another distinction cherishea by the eight is far more important. It is affectionately referred to as the pride of the Potomac River. But, how could it be otherwise? The Potomac Boat Club, mainstay of the Potomac at Georgetown, has two crews pulling up and down the river every evening from 6 o'clock on. Several scullers are working out, too. This club has won many honors in comgetition since its inception. Tts quarters are near the Key Memorial Bridge. Another leading aquatic organi- zatlon is the Washington Canoe Club, which boasts a wealth of talent in every fleld of water sports. A canoe four, if memory serves us cor- rectly, representing the club won the honor of competing for the United States at the last Olympic contests. Canoeists wearing the big “W" have also competed against the crack Ca- nadian_paddlers. The Sycamore Canoe Club, located beyond Chain Bridge, is another prominent club in the Potomac group. It has one of the most attractive sites on the river and the club quarters resemble the mansions of the colonial type, so pleasant to the eye at other Potomac landings. There are several camps on the banks of the Potomac that have put entries in the regattas, and some of these close-to-nature groups have been | organized for many years. The cool weather handicapped most of the campers in getting situated, but the forecast was made that more of these picturesque colonies will adorn the river banks this year than ever before in its history. * Kk k kx MONG the anglers the Potomac River long has been regarded as “Fishermen's Paradise.” The first run of perch is attracting hundreds of anglers to the waters at present. Possessing one of the largest her- ring beds in the country, the Potomac delighted fishermen this year with the first run of March herring. “Yellow backs" is the familiar tefm given this {ran of herring by the anglers. The Potomac fishing season affords three runs of herring. The second run brings the “glut” herring, the “tide” herring, the small va {is known as the third run. The * | herring gets its name from go |ing up with the tide and then falling | back with it. Rockfish may be found in the river this season. The white meat of the rocks” makes a delectable morsel. hen there is the aristocratic shad in the river at this time. And there is nothing so pleasing to the palate as the baked roe of a shad. The catfish may be found in the er of the Potomac all year. The run wildly through the river, fusing to join the other fish when they leave the fresh water for the salt during the spawning season. No glorification of activities in the Potoma would be complete without | some reference to the romantic this- tory of the river itself. | The story of the Potomac River in common with the stories of most great rivers, begins where the river leaves off. It begins not at its source, but at its mouth. The name is derived from an Indian word which has passed through the mutation »f three centuries of varied spelling. It first apeared in John Smith's narrative of his voyage in the Chesapeake and tributaries, and on his admirable map of tidewater | Virginia. On this map it awomeck, according to the reproduc tion of the original. In the text the variation begins at once and persists with abandon. Other writers of grants, deeds, wills, and : well as of reports and | and histories—took up the game of | varying the spelling with amusing | results, until about 100 years ago, when, apparently by general consent the present fam liar form was finally accepted. It is_ a nice question whether the name Potomac, or Patawomeck, as it i first appears, was given to the river is spelled Pat by reason of the powerful band of | Indians on its shores who bore the same name, or whether these aborig ines took their name from the river | they dominated. Inquiry into the meaning of the word inclines to the | beliet that the river was named after | the Indfans. Some one shifted the original spell |ing slightly into a word meaning ‘;“they re coming to water, drawing near in craft and canoes.” Father Jucker, a Jesuit student, derives the | word from the Ojibwa word *Boto- which specifically means ! of newly hatched fish, which | he freely adapts in this connection. “river full of swarms of small fry | where fish spawn in shoals." Other interpretations are “river of swans" |and “the burning pine, resembling a | council “fire.” | These interpretations pale, how | ever, before the more recent and searching studies of Tooker, who, in | his studies in Indian names, ident fles the word as an Algonquin term | ow-om-eke,” meaning “to bring | a they go and come,” or, by | freer rendering, “traveling traders, or | peddiers.” To'the obvious question. “traders and peddlers of what?” he answers with strong support that | they mined the steatite deposits up | Oceoquon Creek and bartered this val | uable mineral up and down the river. Hence it would appear that the Po tomac was pamed after a particular band of Indian traders on its shores. rm; | Biggest Possible Star. most of us the sun, which for | millions of years has been lighting and warming the earth day after day seems quite the greatest and most im. portant body in the universe. Yet ac- tually our sun is a relatively unimpor- tant little pinhead of fire compared with some of the vast flaming stars swinging through space so far distant from us that they can scarcely be de- tected with the powerful instruments of astronomy. The diameter of Antares, the largest star we know of, is estimated at more than 273,000,000 miles, or more than 300 times that of the sun. Betelguese and alpha Hercules are almost as large. Balls of fire so enormous as these stagger human imagination. Quite naturally, says Popular Science Monthly, they lead us to ask whether there s any limit to the size of a ster, and if so how large is it possible for a star to be. Answers to these questions recently have been given through remarkable measurements by A. S. Eddington. noted British scientist. A star whose mass is fifty times that of our sun, he found, has reached its limit in great- ness. Stars of greater mass than this cannot exist; they would burst of their very enormity. Their own pressure from within, combined with the ce: trifugal force of rotation would over- balance the force of gravitation, and they would fly apart in billions of frag- ments. Eddington learned that in the center of a star whose mass is one and one- half that of our sun the heat reaches the tremendous temperature of 8,550.- 000 degrees Fahrenheit. The pressure at the center is 21,000,000 atmos- pheres, or more than 300,000,000 pounds to the square inch—at least 10,000 times as great as the breech pressure of Uncle Sam'’s largest coast defense gun. Eddington learned, too, that just as there is a limit to the greatness of stars so also there is a limit to their smallness. A star less than one seventh the mass of our sun, he dis- covered, would cease to shine. For the temperature at its surface could not reach 5,400 degrees Fahrenheit— the lowest temperature at which a star can remain visible by light radiation. + Synthetic Lumber. YNTHETIC lumber made of mill waste, or from growths which have been considered pests, promises conservation of the timber supply, according to Popular Mechanics, and is said to possess many of the quali- tles of brick and concrete, besides having strength and elasticity which suit it to use in countries subject to earthquakes. The prickly pear, which abounds in Australia; rice h~sks in Japan, bean straw in Mexico &nd, recently, gorse and blackberry dushes that overrun parts of New Z¢aland are some of the materials that Aave been used for the manutacture of artificial lumber. The New Zealand product is said to be proof against insects, dust and danip. as cheap as wood and to last as long as_concrete. Formed into a plaster it protects timbers through the chemicals that it contains, is fireproof, as tests with torches have proved, and, although holes can be made in it with hammers, it does not split or crack. For finer uses, it can be made to resemble mar- ble, stone, tile or leather, and, since it resists both cold and heat, it is suit- able for refrigerator lining and other insulation. Damage to the material Jean be repaired by adding new plaster,