7. The umpire shall be sole judge of a boat's own water and proper course during the race. 8. No fouling whatever shall be allowed; the boat committing a foul shall be disqualified. 9. It shall be considered a foul when, after the race has commenced, any competitor by his oar, boat, or person comes in contact with the oar, boat, or person of another competitor, unless in the opinion of the umpire such contact is so slight as not to influence the race. 10. The umpire may, during the race, caution any competitor when in danger of committing a foul. 11. The umpire, when appealed to, shall decide all questions as to a foul. 12. A claim of foul must be made to the judge or the umpire by the competitor himself before getting out of his boat. 13. In case of a foul the umpire shall have the power-- (_a_) To place the boats--except the boat committing the foul, which is disqualified--in the order in which they come in; (_b_) To order the boats engaged in the race, other than the boat committing the foul, to row over again on the same or another day; (_c_) To re-start the qualified boats from the place where the foul was committed. 14. Every boat shall abide by its accidents. 15. No boat shall be allowed to accompany a competitor for the purpose of directing his course or affording him other assistance. The boat receiving such direction or assistance shall be disqualified at the discretion of the umpire. 16. The jurisdiction of the umpire extends over the race, and all matters connected with it, from the time the race is specified to start until its final termination, and his decision in all cases shall be final and without appeal. 17. Any competitor refusing to abide by the decision or to follow the directions of the umpire shall be disqualified. 18. The umpire, if he thinks proper, may reserve his decision, provided that in every case such decision be given on the day of the race. The 'rule of the road' on the river is not settled quite as hard and fast as on land, or in marine navigation; but certain general principles are recognised by all rowing men of experience, for the sake of mutual safety. The following draft of the recognised principles referred to is set forth by the editor of the 'Rowing Almanack,' and other authorities, to whom rowing men are much indebted for the publication. In case of any 'running-down' action, arising out of a collision between pleasure-boats on the Thames, it would probably go hardly with the occupants of a boat which had brought about an accident by disregard of these 'rules of the road.' _'The Rule of the Road' on the River._ The following are the generally recognised rules adopted by the leading rowing clubs:--