Two men who allegedly tried to steal a motorboat from Weld Boat House were stopped early yesterday morning by Harvard police officers after a chase along the Charles River.

Police arrested the soaking wet suspects, white males 21 and 23 years old, who will be arraigned today on larceny charges in Cambridge's third district court.

The suspects were first spotted in the boat on the river by Harvard police officers on shore, according to the police report of the incident.

When one Harvard patrol car spotted the boat, the suspects maneuvered the craft to the other side of the river, but found another Harvard police cruiser waiting for them on that side, Harvard police Lt. John F. Rooney said. The two suspects then took off their pants and shoes and tried to swim to shore.

After a brief foot-chase, Harvard police officer Peter McGaffigan arrested the suspects, who were charged with felony larceny of greater than $250, according to the police report.

Rooney said the suspects broke a lock on the boat's motor, allowing the pair to move the boat into the Charles.

The National Crime Information Computer has recently reported a rash of thefts of outboard motors along the Charles River, Harvard police said.

Daniel J. Boyne, Harvard's director of recreational sculling, said "a couple" of such attempted thefts Occur at the boathouse each summer. "Incidents like this are more common as the weather warms up," he said.

Boyne said motorboats at the Weld Boat House are left outside with their motors padlocked to their hulls