A Gentlemanly Rivalry.

When the Earl of Wilton, Commodore of the Royal Yacht Squadron, heard of the New York Yacht Club's plan to show a vessel at the Great Exhibition in London in 1851, he wrote a welcoming letter to his American counterpart, Comm. John C. Stevens. Not mentioning a competition, he suggested he would be glad to learn "of any improvements in shipbuilding that the industry and skill of your nation have enabled you to elaborate." Stephens, a man who had introduced cricket to his countrymen, could read the Englishman's intent between the lines. In his reply he informed Lord Wilton that he would be crossing the Atlantic in America, a yacht that was then under construction, and raised the issue of a race: "We propose to avail ourselves of your friendly bidding and take with good grace the sound thrashing we are likely...