Omaha daily bee., 1896-10-24
SWAN THE GOLDEN GATE.
Charles CnvilI's Remarkable Perform
nnce Against Adverse Tides.


The most important feat In swimming in
the history of the coast was accomplished
the other day, says the San Fran
cisco Chronicle, by Charles Cavill,
the champion swimmer of Australia.
Cavill managed to breast tides and
currents between Fort Point and
the Marin county shore and swan across
the Golden Gate 1t was $3.50 o'clock when
CaviI left Devils Point, and just one hour
and fifteen minutes later he touched the
rocks about 200 yards seaward from Fort
Winfield Scott, having covered a distance
as the crow flies of over one and one
half miles.
The Australians performance drew big
crowd. The shore about Fort Point was
lined with people, and the waters in the
Gate were crowded with small craft of
every description. The ferryboat Sausalito
had place In the stream with almost a
thousand people aboard.
From a swimmers standpoint the day
was an ideal one. The water was as
smooth as could be desired, its surface
only ripped by the curling edges of the
long swells that came from the ocean.
There was slight wind blowing but II
was not strong enough to kick up any dis
turbance.
rived In midstream off Lime Point. He had
as companions Adolph Kahn, the high
diver of the California Swimming club, and
Prof. Killick of the Sutro baths life-saving
crew. The tide was at a standstill and the
three men chose as a starting point for the
swimmer bunch of rocks about 100 yards
of Lime Point. A selected crew from the
Dolphin Boat club acted as escort in a
Whitehall boat.
Cavill wore the regulation tights He
dipped into the water easily and naturally,
and started for the San Francisco shore
with energy, Killick and Kahn and the
The swimmer led OFF, with long, easy,
right-side stroke, and for the first few
hundred yards of the course the way was
easy and his pace was rapid. About n
a hn An
tralian encountered what he says was the
swftest current he ever met
The tide had turned since he left the
ferry, and was now pouring through the
channel with the speed of mill race. The
ripples roared like a miriature sea and
struck into 1t bravely. ana attempted TO
stay its progress by turning his face to-
ward Sausalito and swimming north. The
tics, but the, rush Of waters toward the
ocean carried everything with IT. Seeing
that 1t was useless to attempt to withstand
the force of the tide. Cavill drifted with it,
He was carried out almost to the Heads
before he encountered the counter-currents
on the Preside shore The eddy opposite
whirled him back again toward the bay.
From this time on Cavill's work was COM
paratively easy. He swan leisurely and
a hundred boats and tugs. A half mile
from the landing point he picked up an
old felt hat that was floating in the water
ment of the spectators
AS he neared the shore Cavill increased
his speed. The Dolphin crew and boat
from the Life Saving service cleared the
way. There was long, slow swell
smashing against the rocks, and on top Of
one of these breakers Cavill landed easily.
There was a great crowd awaiting his ar
rival, and as the swimmer walked up the
beach he was given an ovation by every
thing and everybody, from the small boy
on the fort parapets to the big whistle of
the steamer Sausalito Cavill returned to
the water almost Immediately and swan
10 the Dolphin clubs boat, from which he
was transferred to the Sausalito.
Cavilfs performance adds new notch
to the swimming record of the coast. The
time spent I'm covering the distance is re-
markably short considering contrary tides
and currents and the fact that he was car
rled almost mile out of his course
Throughout he swan on his right side,
using side stroke.
Al the finish he was almost as fresh as
when he started. The water was cold and
when he touched shore after his long swim
his right arm and leg were benumbed to
the point of uselessness
The swimmers physical dimensions are:
Height. feet 10 inches; weight, 1S0 pounds;
chest measurement 43 inches, with the
phenomenal expansion OF 9% inches He is
the son of Prof. Fred Cavill of England,
who swan across the English channel In
eleven hours. making worlds record.