The owners of the Solent half-raters were not too well pleased to see some of the prizes going into the lockers of these canoe yawls, and a fine string of letters appeared in the 'Field'; but the excitement moderated when it was found that the raters usually scored honours. One other type was tried--the C.B. dinghy. 'Bairn,' however, was the only example in this class. Many of the clubs limited the crew of half-raters to two hands. This did not suit the 'Bairn' type, which requires three or four hands to windward as 'ballast' in the usual Solent weather. It is impossible to give a summary of the racing in this class, because it is very imperfectly reported in the sporting press, and the club secretaries do not invariably retain correct records even of the starters and winners. 'Kittiwake' was generally considered the best boat of the year; but several others ran her close. The only boats recorded in the 'Yacht-racing Calendar' are 'Tiny,' 'Narua,' 'Bairn,' and 'Jeanie,' and for these the figures are given in our table of records. 'Spruce's' record includes her Solent races only. She won numerous prizes in other waters. CLASS RACING, 1892 began, so to speak, with a conference of club delegates under the hospitable roof of the Royal Southampton Yacht Club, on the last Saturday in February. An amicable meeting agreed to encourage as many open races as possible by withdrawing the restriction that owners and helmsmen should be members of the clubs.[9] It was also decided that the classes 'not exceeding 1/2-rating,' and 'exceeding 1/2-rating but not exceeding 1-rating,' should be added to 'the Solent classes,' and be supported by the yacht and sailing clubs on the Solent. Dates for match days were agreed to, and the meeting separated. [Footnote 9: The Royal Portsmouth Corinthian Yacht Club, however, still continues to give races only to those owners who are members of the club; and the Royal Southampton adheres to the condition that the yachts in the small classes shall be steered by members of the club.] The result was satisfactory, as better sport in the small classes was seen on the Solent in 1892 than in any previous year. _Racing Records, 1892._