The Pulaski citizen. [volume] (Pulaski, Tenn.) 1866-current, 1875-07-29
FaB UNDER-ToW.

MOO EfEst'f i4.li -f-l-=--.si -.t
A1 IaFsr-PrsseHst Seerst R,Eii Ht Ocean
Bathing X Rsserts- flsay Lives saerifleed
g i'AiAs.s'sAaS f,Hs s..E -iuft
!. The New York Journal of Commerce
remarks that the recent loss Of two good
swimmers ils tas lgallant ATTEMPT 20 save
a hldy from drowning in Far Rockaway
should serve as an impressive warning
against the extreme Ferils Of the under
tow, and continues as follows
To this treecherous foe a large mum
Der of lives are sacrificed annually. II
'Iufka all along our sea coast, even in
the most fashiboabfe and favored places,
and, is as .deadly to bathers as the eroco-
6iles of the. 4apges; "a lt must be
watched fos and guarded against with
the, same care as gigantc saurian or
shark In the waters which these mont
steFs frequent. This lesson is pres sched
by the tremendous el0quencei Of ese
pie with each recurring summer ssht
people forget it. or do not hsed il, or,
more likely, fail 10 appreciate Il be-
Gauss they do not realize what the under
tOwis. They GRnhCs see in operation.
It is not the incoming or sbbing tide.
It is not the eddy or whirlpool which
one often sees forming, at change Of
tide, In the deep holes and marked de-
pressious near the shore. IL 1t does not
pertain exclusively to the flow OF The
ebp, and has nothing TO DO with wind
and weRsher,. = Along some shores it is
liable to occur al al, tirqes IN other
Localities It appears only ct, intervals,
and then. .under conditions Of which
little or nothing is known, We can
only say Of it with the posihyeness that
it is a current running beneath the sur
s.,
it. l That constitutes the great danger.
The bather who does notnsWim, wades
out safely and pleasant enough, meeting
no resistance to his easy return in fact,
the tendency of the superficial current
is TO bear him to the shore, when sud
denly he steps OFF into water a little
dsePer. A strong power, as of an in
visible hatid, seizes him by the legs.
Heieans toward fhe.shOte and tries te
make his foothold more secure. There
is his critical moment. il, by a su
preme. effort, he can, recover, that last
step, he is saved. IL not, he IS sucked
by the undeg,toW beyond bis depth aud
is droWued.li-At active flow or ebb. or
the agitstiou Of-tthea WateE by high
winds, increases his peril but the i'm
mediate cause of his death is the IN
der-tow itselE+-thab mysterious sub
current whish pulsates along the coast,
and which is most familiar proof of
Maury's dlcttm that the sea 0Ven when
apparently quiet; lisl asafall of currents
as tlie air. .st- il0N-S5i50d LiH alb 80 ..tat
dIhe place at vhicK the uhdef-tow is
least likely to beu found IS that where
the land slopes Very gradually into the
water and the time IS that Of low tide.
The sort of shore most atii cted by it is
that where the pitch, ot !, descent is
sharper and the most iqnfayorable time
for bathing there is that of high tide.
The force of the under-toW pulling its
prey beneath the water aud ont TO sea.
seems fully equal bol the surface power
Of the tidelin the, e,atheEl dinention. Buk,
as We have said, the one Is not depend
ent on the Othap,I there being no time at
which an under-t tow maFi not destroy
the !person who comes within it's grasp.
{ The best swimmers only may defy it !;
for if they Aaveb Aet strength TO make
the shore IN a direct line, they cnB, by
trying, find SOME Etitrent which aill as
sist IN taking tilstnI ia. But If they are
chilled, or fatigued, they too may per-
ish b6fore they csln esca15s from the
cruel cnft8ht If Tie. iiaia4fs AIS bt,4
seeond-fete, and cut Of pSaetice, their
lcliances Of life are sHaalI and this class.
Imore often than those .Nho cannot swim
at az, are the victims Of the under
O.