The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1874-12-29
PAUL RoYNToN,s SWIM.


PAUL BOYNTON'S SWIM.
THE STORY AS TOLD BY COL. FoRNEY-AFLoAT
AND ALONE ON THE OCEAN.
Col. Forney writes thus to the Philadel-
phia Press concerning Paul Boynton, the
celebrated "man-fish:" A few days after
ward met Pennsylvania, not quite so
renowned as the Austrian lieutenant, but
in another sphere even more of curiosity
in London. refer to resident of Phila-
delphia, Capt. Paul Boynton, OF
the New Jersey Life Guard at
Atlantic City, now here after his
extraordinary feat of throwing himself into
the ocean from the National steamship,
Queen, on the stormy night OF Oct q, seven
miles off Fastnet rock, on the irish rock
bound coast. He began his experiment
east of Baltimore, where the cliffs arc lSO
feet high and more. and after king seven
hours in the water swimming over 40 miles,
he finally guided himself in the midst OF the
| tempest, into one of the assures on that
terrible shore. He was clad in the life
saving apparatus recently invented by an
other American, Mr.. Merriman, and aided
by his great skill as swimmer and a diver,
his cool courage and strong constitution,
performed a feat which, when the news
reached London, was regarded as hoax,
and generally commented upon as another
| evidence
have heard the story how he attempted to
get passage on several OF the outgo-
| ing American steamers from New York In
vain, because the captains knew that he
would attempt to leap from the ship to
prove the American apparatus OF Mr.. Mer-
riman, and how, finally, he obtained berth
on the National steamer, the Queen, and
was prevented only by main force from
| jumping overheard when 800 miles from
New York, and how at length, at 8 O'Clock
on Tuesday evening, October q, of the
Irish coast, he persuaded the captain to put
him down the side, and all alone, in
A DARK, TEMPEsTUoUs NIGHT,
clothed in his India-rubber air-tight suit,
with its inflated air-chambers, with food for
three DAYS, a compass, bull's-e ye lantern,
some books, several signal-rockets, an
American flag, with number of letters be-
longing to the passengers in his inside
pocket, with his bowie knife and axe at his
side. he grssped his paddle, and amid the
cheers of the crew and company entered upon
his awful journey. Every soul on board
believed that was the last of the brave fell
low. 1 wish you could hear him tell the
story of his condition after being tossed
on those mountainous seas for seven long
hours; how he was cast into the rocky hs-
sure on the Irish coast, how in the dark
night he scaled the almost perpendicular
signal rockets for the relief that never came;
how he descended the dangerous declivity,
stripped off his preserver and walked, bruised
and battered, until he came to a little Irish
town, the bareiOOted inhabitants OF which
regarded him pretty much as the Indians
beheld Columbus, or Robinson Crusoe's
man Friday" started at the sight of the
shipwrecked sailor; h&T, at last, he got to
Skisbareen, where he posted the letters in
trusted to him by the passengers of the
Queen, who had all given him up for
lost, and were astonished when he
had arrived, and would soon be
among them. awhile the houses were
being shaken and roofs being blown off in
London" says the Daily News of October
%, "this bold mariner was alone on the
stormy sea, encased in his magic dress.
carried up and down the alternate hills and
valleys of the ocean," His passage through
Ireland was something more than a tri-
umph; the "man fish," as he is called, be-
came an object of
WILD CURIOSITY AND ADMIRATION.
Crowds followed after him, and when he got
to Cork hs was welcomed at the theater by
the company singing the 'Star Spangled
Banner" aud on the 9th of October exhib-
tied himself in the harbor near Queenstown
for more than an hour. He proved at once
the efficiency of his life saving suit and his
burnt signal lights, ate and drank. knocked
the neck off bottle of lemonade,
holsted his flag twined round with
the Irish green, and excited bewildering
enthusiasm. Repeating these experiments
on several other occasions he performed
some extraordinary feats in the city of
Dublin, and on the 9TH of November, in the
theaUers, Geological Garden, in the River
Liffey, and here, as everywhere, he at
tracted an immense concourse. The same
scene took place in the harbor of Kingstown,
and 1 have just been looking over many
columns in the Irish newspapers of COM
ments upon his various performances,
full of incident and amusement. Capt.
Boynton has been in London about a
week, and will soon display his prowess and
prove his invention at Brighton, the English
London by the sea, now in full blaze of
fashion and frolic. But he is reserving him
self for the most dangerous and daring
achievement of his life, viz, that of crossing
the channel from Dover to Calais. To use
his own words to me: ''I will do it if il costs
me my lite, and whenI land will telegraph
you these words: II have just planted
THE cENrENNIAL FLAG
on the soil of France" 1 do not describe
this young Philadelphian as would describe
an acrobat or a juggler; be is neither. He is
engaged in a great work of humanity, de-
serving far more honor than many who
boast of their distinction in science and art
young man who can speak OF having
saved seventy-one human lives and who
travels not for show, but to prove the
| efficiency and usefulness of a great life-
saving invention, deserves something more
than the applause awarded to a travelling
mountebank, and have no doubt he will
receive 1t. Captain Boynton is about q years
old, and was boru in the county OF AL
| legheny, Pennsylvania, but is now a resi-
dent OF Philadelphia. He served in the
American navy during the war, on the
northern side, afterward took part in the
battles against Maximillian in Mexico, and
| happening TO be in Paris when the conflict
between France and Germany broke out,
! fought with the French, returning to Amer
lea at the close of that struggle to enter the
service of the life guards on the Atlantic
coast for the D1rnosa of saving life at xvatar-