Cruising on Roy Barcal's yacht Intrepid

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Part of The American Chamber of Commerce Journal

Title: Cruising on Roy Barcal's yacht Intrepid
Language: English
Source: The American Chamber of Commerce Journal Volume 8 (Issue No. 6) June 1928
Year: 1928
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Fulltext: THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1928 saying that traffic in and out on the Yangtse was rapidly tending toward normal when he left Shanghai, and that business was consequently improving. He was pleased with the many signs of progress in Manila, where he opened the Dollar offices originally and remained until 1912.) Captain Dollar has not wavered in his opinion that the Pacific is the future theater of the world’s greatest commerce. Of Congress Captain Dollar has ceased to expect encouragement or even fair treatment for the American merchant marine; he would wel come it if it came, but he would welcome it with surprise. “The trouble is,” he said, “there isn’t a shipping man in Congress.” Contrary bills are pending, one to reestablish the govern ment in shipping on a big scale and one to en courage private enterprise; and the latest news at hand when Captain Dollar left was that effort was being made to reconcile these two widely opposed bills. The compromise has been effected now; and President Coolidge has signed the law. “Out here you have a different viewpoint,” said Captain Dollar, “you would encourage private enterprise in ocean shipping by every means. But in America they don’t have this viewpoint, that is the majority don’t, and they say ‘there’s that big fellow, let’s soak him!’ Why, I don’t know. Nothing is more important to America than a prosperous merchant marine, in the hands of men who know how to conduct such business. Yet what did the Congress do in its last session? It compelled us to pay 50% Cruising on Roy Barcal’s Yacht “Intrepid” Roy Barcal, with all his Lake Michigan fame behind him, would of course be the first man in the Manila Yacht Club to go beyond the racing boat and build himself a cruising yacht on which to enjoy the exhilarating sailing the Philippine interisland seas afford. This was entirely natural, and Barcal built the Intrepid, shown on the front cover tips month, and went sailing. Barcal knows Lake Michigan, Long Island waters and the New England coast, and all have their attractions; but he tells the Journal he has never enjoyed yachting so much as he does in the Philippines, where the thrills of cruising and the natural beauty of the coasts are beyond describing. The sunrises, sunsets, the tranquil opalescent waters of the anchorages—these are all special compensations proffered by the Phil ippines; and liberty to step ashore anywhere, of course, and fishing and hunting as one wants them. As others may be feeling the tang of the sea, space is taken to describe the Intrepid, built to Barcal’s designs by Leung Yee and Company. She is 47 feet overall, beam 13 feet, draft 6 feet, waterline 40 feet, mainsail 1090 square feet, spinnaker 500 square feet, and jib. Mast above deck, 45 feet; boom, 34 feet, 6 inches; gaff, 21 feet. Her dinghy, 11 feet long, weigh ing 103 pounds, accommodates six passengers in smooth water and is either towed or stowed aboard while cruising. Her standing rigging is all of galvanized cast steel. She has two cabins midships, fully appointed. The four berths in the cabins are equipped with heavy hair mattresses, and two wide seats, convertible into berths, boast the same comfort. There is a pipe berth forward for the boy, An selmo, able seaman and general utility man, indeed the entire crew. Galley equipment includes a large icebox, a three-burner alcohol stove swung on gimbals, and a six-foot table swung on gimbals. There are tanks for 300 gallons of fresh water, to be had today at the same old stand, Mariveles, where the galleons got it on leaving Manila bay during 300 years. The auxiliary engine is 10-horsepower, the oil tanks hold 95 gallons of fuel. Two anchors, one of 100 pounds and another of 130 pounds, are provided with 750 feet of line and 120 feet of 1/2-inch chain. Spares and a complete outfit of tools are carried, necessary repairs could be made any where. The Intrepid is adequately ballasted and rides on a very even keel; the weather must duty on all repairs made abroad unless they should be absolutely essential to the running of the ship. As a consequence we have claims in the amount of $180,000 pending adjustment, aside from the duties we have paid. The repairs were essential, unless you were to hear some day that a Dollar ship had stopped in midocean, broken down; but the authorities argue with us, asking if we couldn’t somehow have got the ships back to American ports without the repairs! “We painted a ship in Hongkong, using Amer ican paint bought in Seattle, and had to pay 50% duty on the bill for labor and 50% duty on the paint bill. We paid it, but I wrote a note to Mellon saying I couldn’t understand why we should pay duty on American paint bought and used on an American ship. He wrote back an opinion of the law which was stronger than mine, and returned our money for the paint Captain Dollar permits nothing to handicap him in the keeping up of his ships, of course; and so, with improvements and additional con veniences and comforts all the time, they run on schedule around the world and back and forth across the Pacific with the regularity of express trains. His final remark was, “Some thought we couldn’t do it, on the world trips, but we do.” (For the most extended opinion on the American merchant marine and its problems ever formu lated by Captain Dollar, readers are referred to his Trinity College address, reprinted from the Atlantic Monthly in the Journal of last month.) SCENES IN A YACHTSMAN’S PARADISE Left column: Just to before the cock fight; Anchored at Puerto Galera; Sandy beach, and coconut grove background, Puerto Galera; North passage, Puerto Galera.—Center column: Anselmo, the crew; “Intrepid” at anchor, Manila bay; Overlooking Varadero bay, Mindoro.— Right column; Mission church, Romblon; Native visitors returning to shore, Puerto Galera; Steering into Romblon, Romblon island; Sunset, Puerto Galera. be dangerously bad to make her take water. She has waterproof awnings from mast to stern. She is described here somewhat in detail because she was expertly designed and has been tried and proved to be an excellent type of yacht for Philippine waters. In February, Barcal cruised on her to Romblon, stopping at Puerto Galera, Mindoro, and Gasan, Marinduque, on the way down, and at Maestre de Campo and Puerto Galera on the way back. Besides the crew, Anselmo, he had with him his sister, Mrs. Laura Arctander, and T. Anderson, a friend who went for the fishing and hunting aside from the yachting. “Without even a speaking acquaintance with the engine,” says Mrs. Arctander’s notes, “but particularly intimate with the canvas, the Skipper lifted anchor shortly after daybreak, February 2. At last we were off.” And, beyond Corregidor, “a lovely sea roll from the China sea, a beautiful day and wonderful sailing.” On and on, past Point Santiago to Pagapas bay, anchoring at midafternoon where “we could see coral, colored fish and rocks in a depth of 20 feet,” and they row ashore for a swim whilst Anselmo prepares dinner. Quite early next day they make Puerto Galera, “the Skipper’s almost unerring sense of direction took us fairly to the entrance of the north channel before we realized where we were; once inside, we turned to our .left and dropped anchor. ... All about us the hills, running right down to the water’s edge, covered with coconuts, dotted here and there with a nipa house, and occasionally a group of houses: corn on the sunny slopes, cattle grazing in small clearings, and trails which invite you to discover where they lead one over the horizon.” Before the trip is over, they explore some of these trails. Some of the country people make June, 1928 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL 9 acquaintance and arrange an evening’s enter tainment in a villa in the hills, where, through folk music and dances, inklings of the life and customs of the region are gained. One chap has built a little trading boat, not very scientifi cally, with scanty rigging, and he is helped with things from the Intrepid. Visitors come aboard to listen to the phonograph, the first they have ever seen. English is sparse at Puerto Galera, but hospitality abundant. There are primitives, in the hills, who of old made foreigners “very big in the stomach, and become very cold and shaky and then die, casting this spell because they believed all foreigners to be cruel and unkind,” but travelers now take greater precautions against malaria, and somehow the spell doesn’t work, and the people have revised their notions about foreigners. Through a moonlit night they made the sail to Marinduque, and found everybody talking English there, while Anselmo advised the log keeper to doff knickers and wear a dress ashore— “here it is not like Puerto Galera.” It was at Gasan. “Passing along the street, a Filipina gathering flowers in her garden spoke to me, gave me roses and invited me into her house,” and this was the prelude to an informal tea that after noon, and motoring into the hills. Mrs. Rosales and Mrs. Alvarez, so they introduced themselves, were delightful hostesses, for in Marinduque, English of the American brand is spoken by men, women and children. An interlude: “Mrs. Rosales accompanied me down to the shore when I was ready to go out to the Intrepid, and by the time we reached the dinghy I am sure half the children of the village were in our train. As we started to row out, bancas suddenly darted out from shore here and there, and by the time we got aboard we were surrounded by bancaloads of Filipinos, all speaking English among themselves, anxious to see our boat, the like of which had never been there before.” Romblon next, “. . . . called on deck to see the beautiful islands, and, about 3:30 p. m., we drop ped anchor off the quay.” There is no less progress here than in 'Marinduque. First to ON THE MIKADO’S SERVICE Vice Admiral Kobayashi (left) shaking hands with Aguinaldo aboard H. I. J. M. S. Admiral Koba yashi’s flagship. Prince Nobuhito Takamatsu (center), third brother of the Mikado, who was aboard the as a sub-lieutenant and enjoyed sightseeing in Manila. Cavite and environs. A Japanese training squadron comprising the Yol.umo and liitmo. cruisers, called at Manila May 19 and de parted for Singapore May 21, under Admiral Kobayashi’s command. Only pleasant experiences greeted the Jap anese, who exchanged formal calls with Philippine offi cialdom, went sightseeing everywhere, and were dined by His Excellency, Governor General Henry Lewis Stimson, Saturday evening. May 19. after which Governor Stimson left Manila on the .1/w for a southern-islands inspection from which he returned to Manila last week, Among newspaper men, James Van Shyke of NEA service displayed the most audacious enterprise; he got aboard both cruisers with a photographer, took pictures and obtained brief interviews with both Prince Nobu hito and Admiral Kobayashi, the latter evincing great cordiality toward the United States and ignorance as to what may happen in North China. greet the visitors was a procession headed by a very noisy and merry brass band; and it seemed like an impromptu welcome, but was in reality a child’s funeral; since children die in years of innocence and are translated straightway to realms of eternal bliss, there is nothing incon gruous about joyful music at their funerals. It may not comport with American custom, but it conforms to theology with the doctrine of infant damnation expunged. Two teachers in Romblon, the principal and another, are grad uates of American universities. Here the turn around was made, and new waters were crossed on the return trip to Puerto Galera and then to Manila. The Intrepid anchored one night in Agbelang bay and “we watched a magnificent sunset over the point.” Isla del Maestre de Campo, such a name for such an island! History, tradition, legend and folklore, the seas and the islands of the Philippines are alike replete with them; and one may put ashore any where, seek the elders of the villages and find interpreters, and have tales as fine as he would ever wish to hear. Music, at the party in Puerto Galera, is bellowsed out of an old accordion by an old man “who must have inherited both instrument and technic from Robinson Crusce.” Next morning they climb the hills, getting a view of the shimmering landlocked harbor “with all its bays and three channels.” And the next morning they are off for Manila: “We used the engine to go through the channel. The wind was light and right astern, so we put the spinnaker up and made good time across Verde channel. (As a matter of fact, a steamer was nearly the whole day passing them.) Before reaching Point Santiago, the wind got so strong that we had to put two reefs in the mainsail. This continued all the way up the coast. The strong puffs off shore hit us almost abeam, and s?nt us just spinning along. The water was rather smooth, allowing Anselmo to prepare a light lunch.” Reefing and furling throughout the afterncon, playing tag with the winds and the sea—a rudder lost, but harbor luckily made and a new one contrived during the night—and Manila the next evening early, rounding out a voyage of sixteen vigorous health-giving days. When you are Hot and Tired and your Throat is as parched as the sunbaked Sahara, there’s nothing that can match the long, cool, draught of BREWED BY SAN MIGUEL BREWERY IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL