The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1893-05-24
Treading Water.

The easiest position that a man, a
woman or a child can assume 10 water
is to float perpendicuarly. Any per-
son, without any previous practice, can
tread water and so keep ahoat for
long time. He should keep his hands
below the surface of the water, his
lungs inflated, and his feet moving up
and down as in walking. Let the " man
overheard " throw his hands and arms
out of the water, let him raise an out.
cry whereby the air is expelled from
his lungs, and he will sink to the bot
tom. The trouble is that nine people
out of ten lose their presence of mind
when they are in water out of their
depth for the first time. If instead of
struggling aud 1oundering about, they
would do little walking, there would
not be the slightest danger of drowning
right away.
Anyone can tread water in the first
attempt No preliminary teaching is
necessary. Treading water is simply
walking into the water out of ones
depth, with or without the aid of ones
hands. The operation is not unlike
running upstairs, and, if anything,
easier. Truly, any man, any woman,
any child, who can walk upstairs, can
walk in the water, and, remember, on
the first attempt, without any previous
instruction or practice.
Hence say that persons really ig-
norant of the art of swimming are per-
fectly safe in water out of their depth.
Very often you hear people excaim
Ugh! if this boat were to upset, I'd
nf nrN1f
know"
Yes, but you can tread water. Most
of us attach strong significance to the
word 4" swim" Why should we mean
one thing when a man swims, and
another or different thing when dog
swims? The dog cannot /" swim " as a
man swims, but any man can swim
dog fashion" instantly and for the
first time. The animal has no advan.
tage in any way in water over man, and
yet the man browns while the animal
"swims." The dog, the horse, the
cow, and even the cat all take to the
water, and are able to walk as they do
when out of water. Throw dog into
the stream, and at once he begins to
walk, just as he does on dry land.
Why should man, woman or child act
differently under like circumstances?
1t seems strange that people have to
be told to do what the animals do in
stinctively and instantly. Mems ignor-
ance of so simple thing as treading
water is remarkable; it is without rea-
son or excuse. There is a popular no.
ton afoat that in some way the dog
and the animals have an advantage
over man in the water. Nothing
could be further from the truth. The
advantage lies with man, who is pro-
vided with paddle formed hand, and
knows enough to float when tired
something the animal rarely or never
does.
Next to treading water, floating on
the back is the easiest thing to do in
water. This consists in lying fiat on
the back, head thrown we'll back, the
lungs inflated, the limbs extended but
flexible, the arms held close TO the ears,
the hands over the head. The major
ity of people able to sustain themselves
in water prefer to float in horizontal
position rather than in perpendicular
manner. Both positions are much bet
ter, in fact much safer, than the atti.
tude that we assume in swimming. l
have found it so. One day, in rough
surf, l was nearly strangled with sud-
den swallow of water; had l not been
able to float the result might have been
Observation-Disclosures Young People.