respectable evidence in vindication of my character, ad will clear it from the aspersion that is attempted to be put on it in the report contained in your Gazette. I have the honour to be, Sir, your most obedient Servant, JAMES MILSOM James Milson Jnr (1814–1903) & the Royal Yacht Squadron, Kirribilli James Milson Snr was a farmer and his business interests were associated with the land and its produce. His son James Milson Jnr served a mercantile apprenticeship and became a merchant involved in importing and exporting. He gained a wide knowledge of shipowning. In 1845 James Milson Jnr invested in the company that owned the paddle steamer the "Fairy Queen". In the 1860s James Milson Jnr also became a director of the Australian Steam Navigation Co. In September 1863 James Milson Jnr was one of the founders of the Milson's Point Ferry Co which inaugurated a regular service between Milsons Point and Circular Quay. Milson's Point Ferry Co was sold in March 1878 to become the North Sydney Ferry Co, and which later merged to become Sydney Ferries Limited. With the same name, some sources confuse details between father and son and attribute to James Milson Snr some of the activities of James Milson Jnr. This includes the North Sydney Historical Society which states that James Milson Snr was the Milson who co-founded the ferry service. This, however, disagrees with the details in the Obituary of James Milson Jnr. Also often attributed to James Milson Snr is that he was a keen yachtsman and active in local politics, both attributes of James Milson Jnr not James Milson Snr. James Milson Jnr was a prominent figure among yachtsmen from the early 1830s. His obituary states that he may be described as the "doyen" of Australian yachting. James Milson Jnr described regattas from as early as 1834 when races were between ship's boats provided with temporary keels. By 1836 there were several small yachts afloat on Port Jackson (Sydney Harbour) and an informal association of yachtsmen including James Milson Jnr, the first approach to a yachting club in Australia. James Milson Jnr's first yacht was the "Sophia" named after his elder sister. He raced the "Sophia" in the 1st Anniversary Regatta of the informal association in 1837. In 1841 he was winning races in his second yacht the "Friendship" a famous 12 ton decked boat, built especially for him by