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As the Washington boys backed their shell into position, the official in the stake boat for lane three reached out a hand and laid hold of their stern.

In each stake boat, an official sat ready to hold the stern of the shell assigned to that lane until the starting pistol was fired.

One race was end on end, and the other round a stake boat.

Here, each one holding an umbrella in one hand and a palm-leaf fan in the other, they paddled out to the stake boat.

Up the river the wind, cold after rain, was blowing hard when the two shells jumped away from the stake boat.