A half plate negative. A slightly distant starboard quarter view, taken from wide off the stern, of the spritsail barge Alarm (1898) under sail in the River Medway during the Medway Barge Match. She is on the starboard tack and her racing flag is attached to her forestay. Her starboard leeboard is deployed and one of the crew, in his racing whites, is holding a pole in the water just abaft the leeboard. Ahead of her is the spritsail barge Lord Nelson (1898), also seen from wide off her starboard quarter.