Arizona weekly citizen., 1883-08-11
Battling With the Mnres.

While thousands lined the beach and thousands more were plunging in the surf, at Atlantic City, recently, two young girls were struggling for their lives wirh the waves. One was brought 70 the shore in an unconcious condition, and revived. The other sank before help could reach her. They were Nellie Rosenberg and Maggie Wassef, of Phil adeiphia. They were about II years old and had been brought up together from the cradle. The families are spending the summer there. Tie girls were in the habit of bathing every day near the pier. They had always attracted a great deal of attention by their merry laughter and sportIve play in the surf. The bathing spot SO near the pier K 6 favorite one, and hundreds of people conCregate dsily during bathing hours Co watch the bathers underneath. At about twenty minutes after 10, just be- fore the life guard came or duty, and at which time the crowd IS always the great est, piercing shrieks were heard in the neighborhood of the pier, and thOus- ands of eyes saw the gleam Of white arms for an instant, and then they dis aDpeaTed beneath the waves. Col. J. Holmes Groves, Of Philadelphia, who was sitting in the pier office moment before, looked ont and saw, about two hundred feet from the waters edge and about twenty-five feet above the first pavilion, two yOTng girls struggling with the waves. In an instant breaker hid them from view, and when 1t receded but one of them was tO be seen. She evidently could not swim, but by Grs- perate efforts. and without utterInc a cry, she kept atiOat, and seemed to be making some pro gress toward the place where her companion had disappeared. She forgot her own peril m the desire to save her companion. Thousands of people saw this heroic struggle for life ani love and were helpless to assist. Mike Bradford, of the life guard, was about lO) yards away down the beach
 when tue first thrilling shrlek au- nounced the beginning of the tragedy.
 Running like a deer-houud to spot
 opposite the struggling girl, he plunged
 into the waves and swam to the still
 floating form of Maggie Wasser. When
 his strong arm clasped lt she closed her eyes aud gave up the struggle. hun
 dred hands were ready to relieve him of
 his unconscious and apparently llieiess
 burden when he reached the shore. It
 was carried to the nearest booth and the
 work of resuscitatlon began. For a
 time it appeared as If she was not to
 part from her dead companion whose tresses were miugling with the sea weed
 beneath the waves, but hard work con
 qucred, and gradually a faint pink int came upon her cheek, and then her lips
 parted, and those nearest her heard the
 whispered Nellie and then she slept
 peacefully. Sue was taken into the cOt-
 tage near by where the weeping mothers
 awaited the bringing home of the loved eaes. The alarm had spread like light
 ming along the beach, and the throng
 that had seen the unfortunate girl swal-
 lowed up by the sea was augmented by thousands from along the beach and the
 city itself. As they strained their eyes
 there was the flash of a speck of blue upon the crest of a breaker. Another wave swept 1t closer into shore, and twenty men dashed into the sea and ten derly bore the dead form of pretty Nel- lie Rosenberg to the beach. Every re- stOrative known to science was applied
 by doctors, but all efforts were unavail-
 ing. The effect upon the stricken
 mother is terrible, and her grief has
 overcome her completely. Little Mag gle Is still unconscious, but will recover.