The building of clipper ships in the United States reached its zenith in 1853. In that year forty-eight clippers were added to the California fleet, and the wild excitement of building, owning, and racing these splendid ships was at its height. Every one who had capital to invest wanted one, or at least shares in one, and the ship-building yards were taxed to their utmost capacity. It should be remembered also that there was a great deal of other ship-building going on in the United States besides the clippers, and that captains, officers, and crews for such a large number of vessels were by no means easy to obtain. In this year Donald McKay built the _Empress of the Seas_ and _Romance of the Seas_; William H. Webb, the _Fly Away_, _Snap Dragon_, and _Young America_; Jacob A. Westerwelt, the _Cathay_ and _Sweepstakes_; Samuel Hall, the second _Oriental_, the _Amphitrite_, and _Mystery_; Greenman & Co., the _David Crockett_; Roosevelt & Joyce, the _David Brown_; John Currier, the _Guiding Star_; Thomas Collier, the second _Panama_; J. W. [Illustration: The “Young America”] Cox, the _Red Gauntlet_; Briggs Brothers, the _John Land_ and _Golden Light_; and Toby & Littlefield, the _Morning Star_--all beautiful ships, the pride of their owners and captains. The _Romance of the Seas_, owned by George B. Upton, of Boston, was the last extreme clipper ship built by Donald McKay for the California trade. She was a beautiful vessel, with extremely fine lines, heavily sparred, and proved an exceedingly fast ship in moderate weather. Captain Dumaresq was in command on her first voyage to San Francisco. She was 1782 tons register; length 240 feet, breadth 39 feet 6 inches, depth 29 feet 6 inches. The _Sweepstakes_, owned by Grinnell, Minturn & Co., and designed by Daniel Westervelt, a son of Jacob A. Westervelt, was a very sharp and handsome ship, and was the last extreme clipper built in the Westervelt yard. She made three passages from New York to San Francisco averaging 106 days. Captain George Lane, who commanded her for a number of years, was subsequently a commander in the Pacific Mail between San Francisco and China, and later became the agent of the company at Hong-kong.