Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-08-12

Dan Slattery, q Far R0ckaway Swim.
mer, Talks About His Profession.


who bring drowning people out Of the wa
ter never speak of themselves as hfe-savers.
They call themselves swimmers One would
naturally think that they would be proud
OF the title which Is justly theirs and
would want to use 1t. But these life-savers
are modest men always. You see they are
brave men. men who have an abiding re-
spect for danger, and yet who never know
what personal fear is.
When the work performed by a lise-saver,
the dangers and insult to which he is ex-
posed are placed in one balance and the
amount Of wages he receives Is placed in
the other. his compensation seems ridicu-
iousiy small. The highest wages are paid
along the Jersey coast. which is the most
dangerous about New York. About Long
80 to $50 q month. At Coney Island from
s4o to $50 month is paid the ufe-saver.
Along the Long Island shore beyond Coney
flrst-class man. The nfe-savers are ex-
pected to go on duty about o'clock In the
morning and they are not at liberty to leave
the beach until o'clock at night. They
must pay all their own expenses; sometimes
bathing suit.
bathing beaches Of Far Rockaway. He has
been in the business for ten or twelve years.
Like all the really good men. siattery is
the beaches from Fire Island to Atlantic
City. he is thirty-three years old and Is
therefore an old timer. All the nfe-savers
What becomes Of the life-savers!" Stat
terry was asked.
They get drowned" he replied simply
take too much risk himself. II he finds he
cannot save a man whom he goes after ana
e himself in danger. he is expected to save
bring in the person he goes after or drown
with him. II he puts the theory to practi-
cal operation he might as well make up his
ind it almost Impossible to get a Job And
that Is the reason why so many of the life
savers are drowned.
JOB as swimmers said Slattery. as ne
was lying on the sand keeping a sharp look
out upon the bathers. but there are mighty
swimmer. said slattery. "a man nA must i in
the first place. take to the water naturally.
A man must never know what 1t Is to get
he will lose his head, and then hes woree
than useless When q pereon's drowning,
you've got to get there as quick as you can.
die him after YOU GET there"
Slattery stood up and motioned to an ath-
ietic young man who had been pareding the
peach, ana who was then showing how well
Those are the fellows who give us all the
trouble" he explained: III there were no
anything to do It's only the good SWIM vim
mers who get drowned. The others keep
inside the life lines and are safe. The good
swimmers go out 80 far that II Ii hard to
get to them when they have crainp or
1T is always best to go out with n life
get them in easier then. When a swimmer
nrst goes to beach he starts in by study
Ing the currents and undertow. When he
sees man go down the swimmer doesn t
| start for the place where he saw the man
20 GOWN. dc probably makes for a point
sxmn. feet !, :S %hsn h
the hard part. When persons are drown
Ing they haven't any sense. The irst thing
the 90, 90 is to grab you around the neck. We
We generally try to swim around them and
get hold OF the neck of their bathing suit
BY Sy,d the shoulder or by the waist it is sood
III the person behaves himself then he's
Bile. But If he Keeps on fishtins US it gets
to be pretty bad work II q mans got q
beard or mustache we'll usually give il q
swimmer can get free. Then II ne tries to
grab You again, there IL nothing left but
to hit him: ] don't believe that there IL q
man in the water, and vet we have to do It
too. The swimmer has to raise himself in
DO the best good. 1t is astonishing how
easy 1t II to save a man after you have
knocked him 0enseleOe.
Now, women are better than men. They
make lot Of fuss at first. but they seem
to come to their senses quicker. II you tell
| e woman you will smash her II she doesn't
do as you want her to. ana you make a
motion to carry out your threat, that 10
usually SUFFICIENT"
What do swimmers usually get for saw
ing nfe?"
Usually they get blackguarded Halt
the people whom you save from drowning
Will stand on the sand and roast you until
they can't speak any more. Occasionally
they Will thank you. Upon very rare occa-
sions they may give you something"
II Is astonishing, as any one will learn
who talks much with the lfe-savers and
others who work on the beach, how few
people reward them. The red-letter season
| in Dan Slatterys career was at Atlantic
City, where he received $675 in sratuities In
three months. 1t was that season that he
| saved Miss Annie Drexel Of Philadelphia
from drowning. She gave him a diamond
| pin worth 800 and two brand new $50 notes
The $675 is four times as much as Slattery
ever made In one season before or since.