THE BIRTH OF CLASSICAL TECHNIQUE record. The victory was a decisive one, and with that generous spirit which animates the British nation, the Canadian victor was everywhere received with enthusiasm.”541 Morrow: “Hanlan was the toast of the town when he returned to Toronto. A three- mile flotilla followed Hanlan’s steamer into Toronto harbor. One editorial in the Ottawa Citizen proclaimed that Hanlan should be knighted for his British victory!542 The Globe of Toronto heavily advertised a ‘Hanlan Gala Day’ during which Hanlan would be presented in full racing costume to the audience attending the performance of HMS Pinafore at the Horticultural Gardens.543”544 The Rematch with Courtney Both Hanlan and Courtney had expressed keen interest in racing a second time, but as it had with their first match, it took a year to arrange it. Finally, an agreement was negotiated for them to meet on October 8, 1879 in southwestern New York State on Chautauqua Lake, a destination resort with railroad connections extending in four directions. The crowds from nearby Canada as well as the United States were expected to be huge, and betting would be rampant. Chautauqua Hanlan historian Frank Cosentino: “As soon as the race was announced, construction started on a grandstand six hundred metres long, which would seat fifty thousand. A railroad spur line was constructed along the shore parallel to the race course.”545 During the late 19th Century, spectating from a moving train, often nearly a kilometer or half a mile in length,546 was the best way to see a North American professional sculling championship, or later a collegiate race in New London or Poughkeepsie. “The cars are platform cars, and tiers of seats are built up on them, rising one above another, so that everyone has an unobstructed outlook; only, if we can get a place on the central car, we shall be more likely than in any other to remain just opposite the boats during the race.”547 In addition, at Chautauqua Lake “rival steamboats vied for passengers, while old lumber and stone barges were refurbished and outfitted with chairs to carry passengers at $5 per person,” a huge sum in those days. The upheaval to the local town of Mayville caused by race preparations was later called the “Chautauqua fiasco.”548 Morrow: “Hanlan’s backers did an admirable job, producing the 37-page Sketches of the Champion Oarsmen, Hanlan and Courtney,549 financed by advertising revenue from Montréal businesses. It included an account of Canadian rowing successes, early life stories of each athlete, their records to date, the articles of agreement, and preliminary comments on race conditions. “The publication was not merely good advertising. It also gave the conduct of the races an aura of legitimacy and business acumen. Further dignity was added to the event with the distribution of an Official Program of the ‘Championship Boat Race,’ which featured handsome sketches of the 541 Kerr, pp. 14-6 542 Cosentino, Case Study, p. 11 543 The Mail, Toronto, October 15, 1878 544 Morrow, p. 37 545 Cosentino, Hanlan, p. 39 546 Ibid. 547 Hawthorne, p. 187 548 Cosentino, op. cit., p. 39 549 Callahan and Co., Montréal, 1878 149
