Ottumwa weekly courier. (Ottumwa, Wapello County, Iowa) 1872-1899, 1874-11-19
4 SEVEN HOURS, SWIM.

A SEVEN HOURS SWIM.
---
with the Ocean-xcicncc
ami Nerve Conquer waves mud
wind. a.
A correspondent of the Now York Her.
AID. writing from Cork, Ireland, says:
When it was announced ia the city this
morning that an American scamen had,
In the gale OF Tuesday night. Jumped over
board from q trans-atlantic-lincr, and after
swimming for seven hours had landed on
the Skibbcrccn coast, people, while quite
prepared to give Americans credit Of doing
big things, were yet unprepared for such a
demand on their credulity ,as this. The
thing however, was done, and the hero Of it
was Captain Paul Boynton, Of the New
Jersey Life Guards, Atlantic City. This
gentleman o professional diver Of well
known daring, left New York about fort
night ago III the National Company's
steamer Queen, taking, with him patent
swimming costume, It was Captain Boyn-
toms intention when from 200 to 500 miles
distant from New York to jump overheard
and swim back, hut the commander Of the
steamer was a man oflittle faith and vetOsd
the experiment. Captain Boynton had
therefore to remain sninvoluntary passen-
oes until the vessel approached tho coast on
Tuesday evening, when the commander,
having beer repeatedly importuned gave his
permission.
Captain Boynton drew on his India snb.
Dor alright suit and inflated tho air cham
bers : in bis air-tght sack he placcd food for
three days. q compass, o bullss-eye lantern
some books Gust to beguile the time on the
water), some signal rockets and a United
States flag. III bis inside pocket ne placed
a mail which the passengers had given him
to post, he strapped his bowie and II 70 his
side, and grasping the paddle was lowered
into the water amid the cheers OF the pas
seDgers, at half-past . o'clock p. n. 1t
was wild, dark night. He was close TO
the Fastnst rock, with Cape Clear three
miles from him, and Baltimore, toward
which he intended to make was IN direct
line seven miles away. HelAy ON bis back
padding vigorously, and now the lights Of
the vessel were lost in the night. In .
quarter Of An hour more his spirit asmost
quailsd, when tossed high on The crett OF .
wave he could no longer re- the coast line
Of any lights. Tho wind blew, the rain
poured down, and the tide ret dead against
him, He was drifting out to sea, and, to
add TO the awful loneliness ofhis situation,
aud TO increase the dreadful peril, . violent
gale commenced, That night for many
hours no mail-boot crossed the Irish cham
mel and great destruction was done on the
coast. And through these awful hours oil
darkness this man was tossing about at the
mercy or the waves some fifteen miles from
land. The, WIND was 10 violent thatrhs had
10 give over padding, and with one hand
70 shade his face (the only part Of his body
exposed from the cutting blast Once bis
paddle was wrencllcil sway by heavy sea,
but il fortunately came into his hand again,
For several seconds wave would ,com-
pletely submerge him, then he would shoot
on to the crest And take breath before he
again was buried down 8 sloping mas
Of water which seemed 100 feet to tho bot
tom. As result OF this testing he became
seasick, thing, he says which hever hap
pened to him before. His indomitab1e
spirit, however, conquered essFything, and
about o'clock the wind began to blow sdi.
rectly on shore. His paddle was piled Wig
orously, and at 8 o'clock on Wednesday
morning he perceived he was near breakers.
and the rock.bound coast west of Skibber-
cen doomed up before him. His danger was
not less than Il was during the height of the
gale, for as 0 wave would raise him almost
on q level with the cliff tops he could dis
Germ nothing but q threatening..wa OF rock
He made his way along parallel to the cosst
and fortunately lighted upon almost the
only safe landing place for miles round. He
saw an opening IN the cliffs And propelled
himself cautiously toward II. While llesi-
tatingly examining the entrance ssea struck
him, carrying him on another and an.
other followed In quick succession, and, in
high and dry upon the beach. II was then
4 O'Clock ia the morning, and he had been
nearly seven hours on the water, traversing
. distance of30 miles. The apparatus had
behaved admiralty, having divestci himself
of it he stood quite dry in his aTyuniform
which lie ware beneath. That having beer
done he lot off one Of his signal rockets
without effect. Itshowed him, however, a
narrow path in the rocks. Up this, he
cambered and got on . mountain road,
which brought him to the coast-guard sta
ton. He was Hospitality received there
and discovered that the place he landed q,
was Treiska Right, some miles south Of Bal,
timore. During the, morning he reached
Skibbereen and posted the letters intrnsted
TO him, and arrived in Cork on Wednesday
night. On Monday 10 intends to swim
out Of Queenstown harbor Some distance
That will be followed the week after by q
little swim across the Strait OF Dover q
Calais towed by kite, and to cap all. on
his return to the States. he intends to CARR
out bis original idea of jumping overheard
at $50 miles from the land and swimming
to New York or Long Island. Alter hi
achievements in the gallo ON Tuesday might
these last-named experiments, startling 81
they seem ii, first, cannot be regarded ~
imp0ssible. =