• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

The Institute of Australian Culture

Heritage, history, and heroes; literature, legends, and larrikins

  • Home
  • Articles
  • Biographies
  • Books
  • Ephemera
  • Poetry & songs
    • Recommended poetry
    • Poetry and songs, 1786-1900
    • Poetry and songs, 1901-1954
    • Rock music and pop music [videos]
    • Early music [videos]
  • Slang
  • Timeline
    • Timeline of Australian history and culture
    • Calendar of Australian history and culture
    • Significant events and commemorative dates
  • Topics

Anniversary Regatta [26 January 1875]

20 October 2020 · Leave a Comment

[Editor: This article about the Anniversary Regatta was published in The Sydney Morning Herald, 26 January 1875. The Anniversary Regatta was held on Anniversary Day (later known as Australia Day.)]

[Anniversary Regatta.]

Anniversary Regatta. — The weather yesterday, not being propitious for those who wished to take a stretch out of new sails, &c., fewer boats than are usually about on the day prior to the races were to be seen on the harbour.

The flagship Hydaspes was placed in position at an early hour yesterday morning; and under the direction of Captain Babot and his officers, the crew were occupied during the day in making preparations for their visitors.

The excitement about the first-class yacht match has not been equalled by any race that has taken place since the Mistral and Zarifa last met. Mistral, after leaving dock on Saturday, met the Alick off South Head, both standing homewards with a light S. E. breeze. We cannot say whether Mistral was being sailed to overtake the Pyrmont craft, but if she was her performance was not considered equal to her reputation; and if she does no better to-day, she cannot save the thirteen minutes’ handicap time.

Magic came out of dock yesterday and towed direct to her moorings. As we now write the wind is hanging at east, with a rather high glass, making it rather difficult to say what the breeze will be at noon to-day. It is most likely that it will be either north-east or easterly. If so, the merits of the three yachts will be fairly tested in a dead beat down the harbour from Goat Island, and again down to Shark Island. In that case the Magic ought to give the Mistral all she can do to give her 3½ minutes, which is only tonnage allowance of 30 seconds per ton yacht club measurement. By the same mode of computation the Alick, though only 12½ Customs register, is 16 tons; her allowance of 13 minutes is, therefore, 40 seconds per ton, and with this, in a soldier’s wind, has as good a chance as either of the larger vessels. Pleiades is not too heavily weighted for anything but a very light nor’easter should there be one, Ione has the best of it, and if a southerly or south-easter, Scud ought to be very near winning.

The handicap pulling match, for all-comers, seems a good thing for Trickett, though he did not give Laycock a 7-lbs. beating at Grafton. All-comers, in gigs, is likely to see Lynch’s crew first; and for centre-board boats, under 24 feet, there will be a close race between Kingfisher, Ripple (if in good hands), Langford’s new boat, and that built by Yates, with Kingfisher for choice. Florrie and Nellie ought to make a good fight for the sailing skiff match.

We understand that his Excellency and the Hon. Lady Robinson will go on board the flagship about noon, and be received by the President and Vice-President. One of the Government steamers will go outside with the yachts, so as to render assistance in case of accident.



Source:
The Sydney Morning Herald (Sydney, NSW), 26 January 1875, p. 4

Editor’s notes:
&c. = an alternative form of “etc.”; an abbreviation of “et cetera” (also spelt “etcetera”), a Latin term (“et” meaning “and”, “cetera” meaning “the rest”) which is translated as “and the rest (of such things)”, used in English to mean “and other similar things”, “other unspecified things of the same class” or “and so forth”

soldier’s wind = a favourable wind which blows on the beam of a sailing vessel, which makes any tacking or trimming of the sails unnecessary

[Editor: The original text has been separated into paragraphs.]

Filed Under: articles Tagged With: Anniversary Day, Anniversary Day regattas, Australia Day, sailing, SourceTrove, year1875

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Australian flag, Kangaroo, Wattle, 100hThe Institute of Australian Culture
Heritage, history, and heroes. Literature, legends, and larrikins. Stories, songs, and sages.

Search this site

Featured books

The Man from Snowy River and Other Verses, by Banjo Paterson A Book for Kids, by C. J. Dennis  The Bulletin Reciter: A Collection of Verses for Recitation from The Bulletin The Songs of a Sentimental Bloke, by C. J. Dennis The Complete Inner History of the Kelly Gang and Their Pursuers, by J. J. Kenneally The Foundations of Culture in Australia, by P. R. Stephensen The Australian Crisis, by C. H. Kirmess Such Is Life, by Joseph Furphy
More books (full text)

Featured lists

Timeline of Australian history and culture
A list of significant Australiana
Significant events and commemorative dates
Australian slang
Books (full text)
Australian literature
Rock music and pop music (videos)
Folk music and bush music (videos)
Early music (videos)
Recommended poetry
Poetry and songs, 1786-1900
Poetry and songs, 1901-1954
Australian explorers
Topics
Links

Featured posts

Advance Australia Fair: How the song became the Australian national anthem
Brian Cadd [music videos and biography]
Ned Kelly: Australian bushranger
Under the Southern Cross I Stand [the Australian cricket team’s victory song]

Some Australian authors

E. J. Brady
John Le Gay Brereton
C. J. Dennis
Mary Hannay Foott
Joseph Furphy
Mary Gilmore
Charles Harpur
Grant Hervey
Lucy Everett Homfray
Rex Ingamells
Henry Kendall
“Kookaburra”
Henry Lawson
Jack Moses
“Dryblower” Murphy
John Shaw Neilson
John O’Brien (Patrick Joseph Hartigan)
“Banjo” Paterson
Marie E. J. Pitt
A. G. Stephens
P. R. Stephensen
Agnes L. Storrie (Agnes L. Kettlewell)

Recent Posts

  • [The new stamps] [re the new Tasmanian postage stamps, 2 January 1900]
  • The Leading Lady [poem by “Stargazer”, 31 January 1917]
  • The Naval Contingent: With the Australians in China [17 October 1900]
  • Australia Day [26 January 1953]
  • Australia Day [24 January 1953]

Top Posts & Pages

  • Poetry and songs, 1786-1900
  • Australian slang
  • Rommel’s comments on Australian soldiers [1941-1942]
  • The Man from Snowy River [poem by Banjo Paterson]
  • The Bastard from the Bush [poem, circa 1900]

Archives

Categories

Posts of note

The Bastard from the Bush [poem, circa 1900]
A Book for Kids [by C. J. Dennis, 1921]
Click Go the Shears [traditional Australian song, 1890s]
Core of My Heart [“My Country”, poem by Dorothea Mackellar, 24 October 1908]
Freedom on the Wallaby [poem by Henry Lawson, 16 May 1891]
The Man from Ironbark [poem by Banjo Paterson]
Nationality [poem by Mary Gilmore, 12 May 1942]
The Newcastle song [music video, sung by Bob Hudson]
No Foe Shall Gather Our Harvest [poem by Mary Gilmore, 29 June 1940]
Our pipes [short story by Henry Lawson]
Rommel’s comments on Australian soldiers [1941-1942]
Shooting the moon [short story by Henry Lawson]

Recent Comments

  • rob buntine on No Foe Shall Gather Our Harvest [poem by Mary Gilmore, 29 June 1940]
  • Carol on Poetry and songs, 1786-1900
  • Annie Crestani on Under the Southern Cross I Stand [the Australian cricket team’s victory song]
  • Peter Pearsall on The Clarence [poem by Jack Moses]
  • Trevor Hurst on Timeline of Australian history and culture

For Australia

Copyright © 2023 · Log in