These are, I think, the correct crews, though the places in the boat were often changed, and, of course, outsiders had often to be brought in, when men were sick or kept off the water. In 1853 A. L. Onslow often rowed, and occasionally S. Fellows; R. Southey also was often cox. In 1854 we were pretty regular in attendance. In 1855 I remember having to take the stroke oar in Gray's absence, and T. Waters, Q.S., rowing in his place, in a race against the old Westminsters.

So much for the eight-oar crews that I rowed with; but my water recollections run back to the year 1850, when I first began rowing in the heavy fours, so I must hark back.'

And first a few words as to the boats in which we rowed and sailed, the Barges from which we started, the boat-builders, and the Jacks, who had care of the boats.

In describing the boats, I will commence with the eight-oars.

Eight-oars were either the old-fashioned cutter, or the narrower boat with short outrigger at bow and stroke, or the outrigger eight for racing.

Six-oars: We had no six-oars in my time.

Four-oars: Either the heavy four, a four-oared cutter old style; or the outrigger bow and stroke, used in the Four-Oar Cup Race; or the outrigger complete.

Pair-oars: Either gigs with steerer, as used for the Silver Rudder, or outriggers, as used for the Silver Cup.

UN

Sculling boats: The light funny, always used for Junior Sculls, and for the Senior Sculls after 1854; the outrigger, used last for Senior Sculls in 1854.

Sculls or pair-oar boats, not used for racing, were the heavy funnies; these were used by the Jacks for towing the eights across and by us for humbugging about.' Funnies had bows both fore and aft, no rudder. Wherries, used mostly by watermen, with rudders and high projecting bows. Gigs, with rudders.

Then there were two kinds of sailing boats: (1) Half-deckers, small yachts rigged with one mast, made to lower to enable them to pass under the bridges, the forestay being fitted with a pair of blocks, by which means the mast could be lowered, taking good care to unhook the tack of the foresail before so doing. They carried a mainsail with gaff and boom, like a cutter, a fore-staysail, but no jib or bowsprit; they were steered by a tiller, and had a well in which you sat. They were good, safe sailing boats. (2) Punch-bowls, small sailing boats very wide in the beam and square in the stern; they carried a single sail, but whether a lug or barge-rigged I cannot remember. They were not decked, and steered with a tiller.

'The Barges' (so called) was the place we started from. We had wooden stairs, just above the hoardings surrounding the Houses of Parliament, which were then building. Numbers of barges, belonging to coal wharves and marble-works, were always moored just above our landing-stairs.

The boat-builders' yards were all across the water,

on the Lambeth side: Searle's yard nearest to Westminster Bridge-here our boats were kept when I was in the eight; Roberts' above that, who found us in boats before Searle; Renshaw's above him, who had the half-deckers; and Noulton and Wyld's above Lambeth Church, who had the best light sculling boats and pair-oars.

The Jacks were two in number, and had to bring the boats, the heavy fours always, and sometimes the first eight, across to our landing-stairs at the Barges. These Jacks were there all through my time; they had no known surnames, but were addressed as Cockeye and Bloody. Cockeye had a squint, Bloody had one eye suffused with blood. Their language was far from Parliamentary, and their appearance did them no credit; but they were both capable watermen, and could take an eight up-river safely to any point we named.

In the summer half, the boats that went up every evening (except Saturday and Sunday) were the two eights (first and second), two or three town boy heavy fours, and one Queen's Scholar heavy four. These were the school boats, kept and paid for out of the money weekly subscribed by those who went on the water. Besides these there were generally halfdeckers and punch-bowls, if there was a good breeze, or pair-oars and sculling boats, privately hired for the day. Sometimes, also, during the latter part of the Whitsuntide half, there was another heavy four which was manned by the minor candidates.

In the morning the eights were seldom out, but the