'A big floating piece of wood'

摘要

Anyone familiar with the Thames - and Max Beerbohm's entertaining novel Zuleika Dobson, in which an outrageous lady magician inspires half the student body of Oxford to drown itself for love of her - will know what a College Barge should look like. About the length of a full-sized narrowboat but almost three times its width, and permanently moored, it has a big front deck from which top university people were invited to view the rowing races, and a roof with prettily balustraded railings to contain the press of other spectators. The stern, where the changing rooms were, is swept up in the manner of your classic pirate galleon, with high windows to protect nervous Victorians from a glimpse of uncovered athletic torso.