ROWING, the propelling of floating rafts, boats or barges by means of oars, is the most ancient of all methods of traveling by water. As evidenced by some of the oldest Egyptian carvings rowing was a well-established prac tice before history began to be written and re mained the chief mode of propelling even of war craft of considerable size long after the art of sailing was invented. Three hundred years before Columbus discovered America the water men of the Thames were linking the art of rowing inseparably with the sterner history of England in transporting the barons to Runny mede in 1215 to witness the signing of Magna Charta in boats and barges propelled by oars.
Just when rowing began to commend itself to the attention of gentlemen of leisure as a new outdoor sport is not a matter of record. However, it appears that in 1715 an English actor, Thomas Doggett by name, instituted a boat race among the watermen of the Thames, offering as a prize a waterman's coat with a conspicuous silver badge upon the arm. The occasion was so great a success that he estab lished a fund to provide in perpetuity the prize for the annual celebration of such a contest, which is known to this day as the uDoggett's Coat and Badge Race," from the reward of the successful boatman. Following the initiative of Doggett the practice became general of organ izing boat races between the Thames watermen, and there was no lack of sportsmen to con tribute prizes as incentives to vigorous con tests.
The introduction of the Venetian Regatta, first conducted on the Thames in 1775, added enormously to the popular interest in water sports, and by the opening years of the 19th century rowing had become one of the standard athletic diversions of the people. Several boat clubs were in existence, and special racing boats for oared and eight-ored crews had been built. The names of the first four clubs, °Star," gArrow,b ((Shark* and aSiren,D have been pre served in the annals of the time. The records show that in 1811 Eton had three 8-oared boats and one 10-oared boat; and that in 1813 Westminster School had a six-oared boat. In 1818 a challenge to race was sent by the Eton -crew to the Westminster crew, but the authori ties prevented the race. In 1829, however, the .crews of these two schools rowed the first of a series of matches which spread irregularly over -the period up to 1847. For 15 years these con tests were abandoned, to be renewed for a brief period in 1862, the Westminster school then giving up their boating.
The first amateur races were between two rival picnic boats on the Thames in 1826. This became a favorite sport, and It became a com mon practice to enliven picnic parties on the 'river by improvising such boat races.
• The first intercollegiate race was rowed at Henley in 1829, the Oxford crew winning from Cambridge. Oxford had begun rowing races among its own classes in 1815, and Cambridge took up the sport a year or two later.. The sec ond meet of these two colleges was not until seven years afterward, and from that time for ward these races were held at irregular inter vals until 1856, since which year the Oxford Cambridge race has been an annual occasion, up to the outbreak of the War of 1914.
The Henley Royal Regatta was established by the town of Henley in 1839. The series of contests was open to all amateur crews in eight oared boats and to any four-oared crews of the town. The first regatta comprised five races. This regatta is now held annually and is the greatest rowing event of the world. The course is one mile-550 yards. The races are rowed against the stream, and the time is dose to seven minutes.
In The first college races in the United States were between boats owned by Yale students, in Boston Harbor in 1844, the contestants being an eight-oared gig and a dug out canoe. The first intercollegiate race was rowed in eight-oared barges by Yale and Har vard crews in 1852, over a two-mile course on Lake Winnepesaukee. In 1855 the two colleges raced again over a three-mile course at Spring field, Mass. For nine years thereafter they rowed at Lake Quinsigamond and in 1869 at Lake Saltonstall. For the seven years following no Yale-Harvard races were contested, but in 1876 they were resumed on a four-mile course at Springfield. In 1877 they rowed again on this course, and since then the races have been rowed on the Thames River at New London, Conn., annually up to 1916. No races were made during 1917 and 1918 on account of the war. The fastest time ever made oit this course was 20.02 minutes by Harvard, on 23 June 1916. In this race Yale's time was 20.17 heating the previous record of 20 20, made by the Yale crew 26 June 1902.
In 1859 the first intercollegiate regatta was held at Springfield, Mass., and from that time onward this meet was an annual event •ntil 1875. when 13 colleges were represented. The racing boats of that period were six oared shells. The adoption of the • eight oared boat and the four-Mile course by Yale mid Harvard, and their consequent with orawal from the intercollegiate races put an end for the time being to these contests. They were revived, however, in 1900, when the new Intercollegiate Association formed in 1895 by Columbia, Cornell and Pennsylvania, selected the four-mile course at Poughkeepsie, N. Y. In this first of the new series of regattas crews of Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Cornell, Columbia and Georgetown contested. Pennsylvania won in 19 minutes 44 3/5 seconds, the others finish ing in the order named. In 1901 a crew from Syracuse University joined the other five, and Cornell won the race in 18 minutes 53 1/5 sec onds, the fastest time ever made over this course. In 1907 Annapolis participated, and in 1912 Leland Stanford. Jr., University sent a crew.
The best time for four-oared crews made over two miles of the Poughkeepsie course was recorded for a Cornell crew in 1915-10 ininutes 0 1/5 second.
No races were held by this association in 1917 and 1918 on account of the war. Yale and Pennsylvania raced with two crews each at Philadelphia and the regular regatta of the New England Amateur Rowing Association was held on the Charles River on the Fourth of July of that year, but a general suspension of the sport on account of the war marked the season of 191& See Spoirrs.