The Eaton Democrat. (Eaton, Ohio) 1875-1903, 1879-10-09
sAMPATCH.
Bis Last Leap, as Described by IN Eye
Witness.

80 " oa Ayo
Witness.
Rochester N. y Cor. Chicago Inter-ocesnl
Sam Patch, as he was Familiarity
called, was a native of Paterson, N. j.,
the son Of rpoor but honest parents"
and for some years lived there alone
with his widowed mother. He is said
by some persons to have been q lazy,
shiftless and dissipated fellow, but I
was assured by an old and feputable
merchant Of the place, a few years ago,
who knew Sam well, that this was not
SO. The same gentleman kindly took
me to the place where he made his first
leap into the Passaic river, of some
eighty or ninety feet, and which he re-
peated several times. During the sum-
mer of 1929 Patch went to- Niagara
falls and made one or two successful
leaps into the seething waters below.
In October of the same year he came to
Rochester and gave out that he would
leap from a small island above the
upper falls. This was the last Of Oc-
tober, and was an occasion that called
together more people than Roches-
ter ever saw before. Fully $4,000
were on hand to witness, for the first
time, a daring feat that no other man
had even attempted in this country.
On this occasion / took my stand below
the falls, close to the waters edge, and
nearly under the projecting rock from
which he was to jump. Promptly at
the hour announced, Sam made his ap-
pearance on the spotand was greeted with
cheers and q tiger such as any human
might be proud of. After surveying
the vast assenlblage for a moment, he
removed his outside garments and
tied a red bandana around his waist.
Soon he waved a farewell to the people
on all sides, which no doubt sent q chill
extended, leaped into the waters below.
I shall never forget the sensation as /
looked up and saw him coming down.
just as he reached the water he brought
his arms to his side, and went in with
out a ripple upon the surface. In an
instant he reappeared and swan ashore,
with no injury, save a slight
bruise onghis. shin against o. sunken
tree. He was taken upon the shoulders
of some present, and carried up the
bank, where he received the hearty
congratulations of all the vast,
admiring crowd. On the 9th of
November following he made another
and his last leap, this time from an ele-
waited platform 25 feet high, making
the whole distance of the leap 125 feet.
1t was a chilly. unpleasant day, with
some ice in the river, and, to protect
himself from the cold, he drank rather
too freely of brandy, as we noticed in
following him close on to the island,
from which he was destined never to
return. He assembled the place of leap
ing with apparent ease and GOODNESS,
and, after looking ont upon the sea of
heads for q moment, he as, before, re-
moved all his garments except pants
and shirt, and, tying the bandana again
around his body, he motioned to all a
last farewell, and walked off to almost
instant death. He struck the water on
his breast, and as it closed, over him we
felt sure that for him this was the "last
of EARTH" Diligent search was at once
made for his body, but all in vain. Ear.
ly the next spring, however, it was
found floating at the mouth of the river
at Charlotte, with the handkerchief still
on. His remains were decently inferred
in the village cemetery.