Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1888-04-05
THRILLING EXPERIENCE.
Captain Boyton, the Famous
Swimmer, Takes a Swim in
Lake Michigan.
Getting Lost in an Ice Field, he Has
a Narrow Escape from
Death.

Death.
Capt. Paul Boyton, the celebrated SWIM
Tuesday morning in his inflated rubber
suit, and he came near not getting
back. The Captain has grown heavy dur
ing the winter, and to reduce his flesh
twenty-five pounds has been taking little
pulls out into the lake. These are the
points in his story as he furnished it:
Tuesday morning at o'clock he left
Fullerton avenue for o swim to South Chi
cago and return. and met with the most
thrilling adventure of his life, in which ho
battled for hours with O great ice-hoe, was
carried many miles out into the lake, strip
ped of his navigating instruments, and lost
for fifteen hours in the cold, bleak waste
OF drifting ice, hanging clouds, and strag-
Cling ducks and gulls. From o'clock in
the morning until midnight the Captain
was without food or drink, and the chill Of
the icy waters had driven him to the des-
perate resort of hard work all that time to
keep up vigorous circulation, so that he
would not chill and perish in the lake. At
midnight. when he was rescued at the crib,
his vitality was almost gone. Stimulants
were applied and the daring navigator put
to bed.
A telephone message was sent to the po-
lice that the Captain was saved, and by
them taken to his little family-a wife and
SON who we're distracted by his long alb
sence, and supposed he had perished. He
had promised them to return at 10 o'clock
in the morning, as he had been doing.
Mrs. Boyton let that hour pass without
uneasiness, but at noon she began to
worry. At 6 o'clock she urged her father.
Mr.. G. G. Connolly, to get tug and go in
search of her husband, but such q search
at night was considered useless. At
o'clock, when the officer arrived with news
of her husbands rescue, she was willing to
concede that his luck had not forsaken him.
Capt Boyton was in bed when a Trib-
une reporter called at his home in the
evening. He was exhausted, the reaction
from his desperate excitement of the day
before having made him weak and sick.
when entered the water at z o'clock, !"
the Captain said, "there was a fresh west
wind. i swan about two miles, intending
to clear the crib fora trip to South Chicago.
Just about the limit of my run east began
to meet ice. pushed through it for a time
and then ran across some foes onto which
/ climbed. Meanwhile q heavy sky had
shut out all view Of the sun and the wind
had got the ice together. l struggled quite
while in what thought was the west
ern border of the field, and then ran into
what / thought was q pocket. / pulled
through it and came again to struggling
foes. 1 must have fought them until 10
o'clock before missed my compass. When
looked to get my bearings, having noticed
that the city had faded from view, found
the band which bound the compass to
my body had either been severed by q
piece of ice or had become unbuckled. 1t
was gone. The sun was hidden, and there
was nothing by which could get my bear
ings. The water was cold and 1 had been
in it so long l began to get drowsy. Chills
ran through my veins in quick succession,
and saw must either pull out for some-
where or perish. looked about and saw
the field of ice was at my feet swim feet
foremost-and then concluded had only
to pull from the ice TO reach Chicago. So
started, and vigorously, too. For five
hours l worked as l n.ver did before.
The water was heavy and lifeless.
had TO fight for every inch made. Chi
cago was still nowhere to be seen, aud
had no notion of the time of day. Then
L changed my course about halfway
round and pulled hard for awhile. The
ice gathered about me again, and when
night came was fighting again for
my life. Sometimes I could dodge the
drift, at others / climbed upon the cakes
/ anu CTObb6u tueu. Wneu tuo moon rose Il
got flash of a view OF it and then saw my
mistake. / had crossed the field in the
morring when 1 entered what thought
was q pocket, and all the long pull Of the
day with the ice at my feet had driven me
toward Michigan. The turn had taken
had sent me south. l set about and pushed
from the moon. At 10 o'clock saw faint
| light in the western sky and an hour later
perceived it was from the furnaces at South
Chicago. Then 1 got my bearings and
sighted the lights at the crib. Ipulled up
there at midnight and blew my bugle.
must have called half-d dozen times before
an answer came. Then Captain Mckay
answered my signal, and shouted, Crib,
ahoy.'
"Aye, who's there?' the Captain an
swered.
"I must stay here to- night
'Pull round TO the port
when got there they dropped bit or
a rope, into which fixed my foot, and
then they drew me up. They gave me re-
freshments, put me to bed, and telephoned d
my wife that l was safe. Capt. Mckay
says when / left the ice at night IL was
fully fifteen miles from shore, and think
he is about right, because the swim in
would take the time used. have swan
greater distances by thousands of miles,
| Out Jndb Whb tuo HTbJ tiIno ever was iObJ,
and the battle with the ice and cold was a
more thrilling episode than I care to ex-
perience again.
Capt. Mckay was amazed when he
picked you up2"
"Yes, but the Captain had some fun out
OF the episode. He has a young fellow
from Nebraska staying with him. The
young man never heard of me. He sup
posed when be began 10 haul me up that l
was man in boat. When 1 rose to
where the light betrayed me and he saw a
pinch Of my face in that hideous black
rubber suit, which, when wet, looks az
sleek as an eel, he gave shout of horror
and ran. His eyes stuck out like the
horns of Texas steer, the Captain told
me. o, I'll never pretend TO tell you what
he thought was.
"This morning pulled into Rush street,
where my friends met me with apparel, and
/ came home. I'm completely played out.
BY the way, the public has no idea how
foul the Chicago River is. Thought MS I
swan through Il the stencil would overcome
me-"