THE SPORT OF ROWING According to historian and Henley veteran Samuel Crowther, Jr., some Englishmen of the time “said that all the [Cornell] rowing was done with the arms.”1268 As a matter of fact, it was done mostly with the legs, but since there was minimal body swing in the Pump-Handle Style compared to English Orthodoxy, the British eye was drawn to Cornell’s ferryman’s finish. Hence the “all arms” impression amongst the British. American Crowther: “They rowed a stroke anywhere from 43 to 48 with piston- rod [leg] action, but they were well together, and in the trials on the course made 7:04.”1269 The First Round In 1895, Cornell’s trip to Henley took unfortunate turns from beginning to end. Crowther: “As the race came on, the men began to fall off in condition, either because of the climate or because of too much work, or more probably on account of the combination, and several of them were scarcely fit to row by the day of the race.”1270 Cornell’s first-round opponent was an extraordinary crew from Leander Club, with five Oxford Blues combining for twelve Boat Race wins between them. They were coached by Rudie Lehmann, and they actually outweighed Cornell by just under two pounds per man, 170lb. 77kg to 168lb. 76kg. Courtney, as a professional coach, was disdained by the British. Century Magazine: “His methods were disliked by the English rowing men because he kept his charges so close in hand that 1268 Crowther, p. 112 1269 Ibid. 1270 Ibid. social intercourse with their jolly and hospitable rivals was grimly tabooed. “Suspicion of these secretive methods was shifted to positive resentment when Cornell left her most formidable rival, the Leander Eight, at the starting post, and rowed alone over the course to a technical and empty victory.”1271 According to Cornell crew historian Charles Van Patten Young, that heat against the champions of the previous year “was won on a fluke, the Leanders not rowing more than half a dozen strokes and protesting the start; the protest, however, was not allowed. “The Cornell crew slowed up when they saw their opponents had stopped rowing, but the umpire waved to them to go ahead, and unfortunately, in the excitement of the moment, they followed his instructions.”1272 Historian Bill Miller: “C.V.P. Young is not accurate in his description. There are numerous reports describing the scene the same way. Not even half of the Leander crew took a couple of strokes, and the boat ‘did not move 1/2 length from the stake boat.’ (The New York Times, July 10, 1895) The Cornell crew never stopped or hesitated rowing and the umpire never directed them to continue. Leander sat at the start protesting while Cornell rowed away.”1273 The British reaction was immediate and withering. “The London Saturday Review had this to say: ‘The unsportsmanlike conduct of the Cornell crew in the heat with Leander for the Grand Challenge Cup has been the subject of severe criticism at Henley. “The cause of the unpleasantness marks a characteristic difference between English and American attitude towards games of sport. 1271 Paine, Century, p. 484 1272 Young, Courtney, p. 42 1273 Miller, personal correspondence, 2011 340
