The Sun.
London, England, 1868-09-25 00:00:00

HINTS ON DROWNING.

It may save the lives of some of those who appear to be
doomed to perish in a watery grave, if the following
suggestion is borne in mind by persons who are near the
spot ; it is made by one who has been a swimmer nearly
All his life, and who accustomed himself to diving con-
stantly for a considerable period, and therefore knows
what he is writing about. Many of the deaths—indeed,
most of those that occur when bathing, take place near
the shore, and are caused by the sudden immersion of the
bather in a hole where the water rises above his head,
possibly only to the extent of a few inches, and from
whence he might easily escape if he only had the presence
of mind to keep himself straight and raise himself above
the surface by giving a slight spring to see in what
direction the land lies, getting his lungs full of fresh air,
and making his way out of the hole in the same way he
probably got into it, by walking. Persons, however, who
nee not accustomed to the water seldom have any presence
of mind when they encounter accidents of this sort; indeed,
those who are accustomed to it, but are not able to swim,
are just as stupid, and waste the precious moments during
which they can keep the water from entering their lungs
in wild struggles, instead of attempting to realise their
position. I can remember an instance where a boy with
whom I was bathing slipped into a hole at the bend of the
river, from which he could have walked with hardly any
inconvenience ; but, instead of taking this course, he began
to kick out in every direction, and his face presented a
series of contortions so hideous and so rapid in their
change that though it occurred years and years ago the
picture is as vivid as when it happened. In such clear
water there was no difficulty in walking under it, and
laying hold of the arm of my playmate and dragging him
back into shallow water, and thus saving his life. Now,
whenever we read that an individual is suddenly engulfed
in this way, we are told, if a swimmer chanced to be near,
that he rushed in, swam to the spot, and dived after the
drowning person, sometimes succeeding in catching
hold of the victim and bringing him to the surface ;
not unfrequently wasting his own strength in vain efforts
to effect what he might readily have accomplished by a
more judicious employment of his strength and courage.
To dive, especially with the clothes on, is not such an easy
operation as it may appear, and is attended by a dis-
turbance of the water, an expenditure of muscular force,
and an interference with the regular action of the lungs,
for which there is not any necessity. Let a man when he
is performing such a bold deed cease from swimming when
he reaches the spot where he expects to find the person
he wants to save, and suffer himself to drop quietly to the
bottom on his feet. He will then have all his wits about
him, will remember in what direction he has to go if he
has come from the land, and will be able to select the
part by which to grasp the drowning man, and so to keep
himself from being seized in a way that would be likely to
result in the drowning of both. It would astonish many
a swimmer to find how long he can preserve his strength,
and continue his search, if he operates in this quiet way.
—Once a Week.

FOUNDLING INSTITUTIONS AT FLORENCE.—The
Provincial Council of Florence, which has just closed its
sittings, adopted an important measure relative to the
question of foundlings. The turning baskets are abolished,
and will be replaced by receiving offices, at which no
inquiries are to be made and no information asked as to
the origin of the children brought.

THE QUEEN'S HEALTH.— We regret to say that
the paragraph in last Saturday's Lancet respecting the
health of her Majesty has very little foundation. The
health of the Queen has, we hope, received some benefit
from the change of air and scene, and rest from her onerous
public duties ; but, while her Majesty will continue, as
heretofore, to regulate public business, the Queen will not,
we fear, be able to bear the fatiguing excitement of a
lengthened residence in London, and of the continued
receptions attendant on such circumstances,— British
Medical Journal.

THE HOLYWELL ACCIDENT. Mr. Edwards
Wood, having discovered that the station-master at Holy-
well was absent on his holidays at the time of the collision
between the express and the luggage trains, in the former
of which Mr. Wood was a passenger. has withdrawn the
summons which he had obtained against him. He has,
however, obtained a summons against George Gunnet,
the signalman on duty at the Holywell station on the day
of the collision, "for that he unlawfully and wilfully and
negligently did omit to do a certain act, to wit, to put up
the semaphore signal, danger, to shew that the line was
not free at the time, causing the express train to run into
collision with the goods train, whereby the life and limbs
of William Edwards Wood were endangered." The case
will be heard on the Gth pros.

TECHNICAL EDUCATION IN SCOTLAND.—Last
spring the Council of the Royal Scottish Society of Arts
convened a conference in Edinburgh, which was largely
attended by provosts, local magistrates, and beads of educa-
tional establishments. It was felt that there was a great
want of proper information on the conditions upon which
aid was rendered by the State for promoting scientific
instruction. Application was made for the services of Mr.
Buckmaster, who had long been engaged in delivering
lectures and attending meetings on this subject in various
parts of England and Ireland. Public meetings have been
held in a large number of towns in Scotland, at which Mr.
Buckmaster has attended and delivered very able and
satisfactory addresses, which have resulted in the appoint-
ment of local committees for the purpose of co-operating
with the Science and Art Department in promoting
scientific instruction.

EXTRAORDINARY CONDUCT OF A LIFEBOAT Cox-
SWAIN.—The weather was rather threatening at Peterhead
on Tuesday night, but there being a good appearance of
fish, a number of boats put to sea. The recent rains, how.
ever, had rendered the ocean unsettled, and caused a heavy
ground swell, and many of the boats turned back, without
shooting their nets. They began to arrive early in the
evening, and continued to come in during the early part
of the night and the morning. A little before one o'clock
the policeman on duty heard cries proceeding from a point
to the side of the entrance of the north harbour. An
alarm was speedily raised, and it soon became evident
that a boat had swamped, and that the droWning crew
were calling for help. The boat could be seen a black
speck in the sea, with the billows breaking over her, and
the men were seen clinging to different parts of the boat.
The fishermen on the pier thought it dangerous to put to
sea in a common boat, and all homes were directed to the
lifeboat. The coxswain, however, refused to go to sea, on
the ground that he had no authority to use her among
rocks. The key of the boathouse was brought to him,
and volunteers offered themselves on every hand, but
still he refused. The scene on the pier was heartrending.
The alarm had brought the women to the shore, and no
one knowing who was thus crying for help, the situation
was distressing in the extreme. The cries of the men
were heard about an hour and a half, and no effort was
made to reach them. About two o'clock the cries ceased,
the men having Ivi,lently perished from sheer exhaustion.
—l'cotiman