The Indianapolis journal., 1902-09-07
To Become Expert One Must Have Pa
ttence and Confidence I'm
First Lessons.
HOW TO SAVE THE DROWNING
RESuSCITATION POSSIBLE IF GER
TAIN RULES ARE REMEMBERED.
The Sport Is Popular with Women and
Men fn IndfanapOlis-Talk with
an Instructor.


more swimming enthusiasts than any place
have ever come across said the in
structor of one of the leading swimming
schools of the city the other day. "You
find a larger per cent. of people here who
learn to swim in their youth and who have
continued the practice after they have be-
come grown, than you do in towns that are
situated along the coast. This, however,
has been one Of the worst seasons have
ever experienced on account of the change
able weather The cold nights are bad for
the business, because the water becomes
cool; and on the hot sultry nights people
enjoy swimming because they can get
cooled off. Now, last summer conditions
were very different: it was one of the finest
swimming seasons that we have had in
number of years. We had day after day
of sultry weather. which gave the water
a chance to get warm, and during both day
and night the school was crowded. But
under all conditions this business is very
good in this city. In a number Of places
much larger than this. If there had been
summer as cool, their schools would have
been closed on account of the lack of at
tendance.
1.-THE season here will close now In a
few weeks, and while everybody else is
hard at work during the winter I will be
enjoying my rest. From the first of June
until about the middle of July is the
crowded season in a swimming school, be-
cause that is the time just before people
start for the lakes and the seashore. They
come here to get in condition to do lots
of hard swimming, and those who do not
know how come here to learn. The truth
is, they all have the same purpose In view,
and that is to make good a showing as
possible when they arrive at the resorts
where there are hundreds of expert swim
mers. During the first part of the season
l have had as many as 200 and 500 people
swimming here in one day, and at night
sometimes there are as many as 200 and
900 here. 1t is, however, very poor day
at any time that we don't average over 100.
Where a large number of people make
great mistake in swimming" continued
the instructor, sis that they wait until
they are pretty well along in years before
learning, and then get very much discour-
aged because they do not learn the move
ments as quickly as boy. The proper
age to begin to swim is between nine and
ten years, and this rule applies to both boys
| and girls. At that time of life their muscles
have not fully developed; age has not stiff
| fened them in any part of their bodies, and
then they have good breathing. which is
| the most important part of a good swim
| mer. Boys and girls at that age also have
| endurance to go through the motions, and
| their muscles develop and mature with
| these movements, where, with man or
woman, muscles are fully developed, and
| unless they have led extraordinarily
active life II will be found that in most
| cases they are more or less stiff. All older
| persons, however, have to do Is to have
| patience. In large number of cases. be-
| cause they are unable to swim at their sec
ond lesson, they give 1t up. 1t is true tnat
| IL a person waits until he has become
grown it Is seldom that he makes as grace
| full swimmer as one who commenced in
his youth.
CONFIDENCE ESSENTIAL
Another important thing in making a
good swimmer is confidence. II a person
does not have that he will never be a sue
cess In the water. See that woman over
| there?" asked the instructor, pointing to
the other end of the swimming pool, where
a woman was grasping wildly for a board
and halloing for help at the top of her
|
some day she will make a good swimmer,
but at the present time she has no conf
dence in herself. There is not a particle
| of danger of her drowning, for she has a
leather belt around her waist which has a
strong rope attached to it. This rope is
run through a hole in the end of long
pole, which keeps her away from the plat
form, and the instructor is holding the 9TH
er end of it. so it is impossible for her to
go down. and yet. because he let the rope
get little slack, she thinks that she is
going straight to the bottom. That woman
| there is no exception to large number of
others who learn the movements with little
difficulty, but when thrown on their own re-
sources lack the nerve to strike out for
themselves"
What is the most difficult thing about
| swimming?" the instructor was asked He
replied:
THAT which / have just explanied-the
| lack of courage. 1t is no trick at all to
| get the movements, but to have the nerve
and endurance to strike out for ones self
and swim some distance requires more nerve
than the average grown person possesses.
That Is also one of the principal reasons
that boy ten years old learns to swim
much quicker than a man of twenty y-five.
boy does not think of the danger All
he has on his mind Is to learn to swim as
| quickly possible. while a man thinks
Of nothing else but his danger. Women
are worse in this regard than men. If a
woman happens to get mouthful OF water
she imagines at once that she is gone and
| instead Of working harder and trying to
gain the platform she gives up and goes
to the bottom without further effort on her
part. You see they don't stop TO consider
that a person can swallow a great amount
of water before ceasing TO breathe OF
course, after ones lungs become filled his
breath stops, but for this to occur requires
considerable more than a mouthful OF
water.
HOW TO SAVE PEOPLE.
do you know that lots of people drown
that could be resuscitated after their
bodies are landed, provided they have not
been in the water more than ten minutes
if they were properly handled, but this few
people understand. The methods for restor.
ing people to consciousness are very simple
but In such cases people become so excited
they forget what TO do. The best rules tC
follow in restoring people are these: Tn
less In danger of freezing never move then
from the spot where they are rirst taker
from the water, nor allow bystanders L
get close. Instantly wipe clean the mouth
and nostrtls, rip and remove all clothing ts