Lexington gazette. [volume] (Lexington, Va.) 1871-1962, 1904-10-19
SWIMMING MISTAKES
FEW LEARN TO HANDLE THEMSELVES
PROPERLY IN THE WATER.


1t has always struck me as curious
that, though Englishmen are so fond
Of all athletic sports, though yacht
ing, boating and fishing take so prOmi'
nent q place among our sports and
amusements, we are such very bad
swimmers. When at Cambridge
could never find any one who would
swim the half mile with me, and
doubt If there were twenty men at the
university who could have swum half
q mile. Rather not, get so pumped"
was the answer always made to my
invitation. Yet there is no exercise
which, when properly learned, pumps"
one less or tires one less. After five
mile race ones heart Is not beating
any faster than at the start, nor is one
half SO exhausted as after riding a
bicycle up steep hill.
l often talked with Captain Webb
about his channel swim. and he told
me that even after swimming for
twenty-five hours his muscles were
not very tired and that 1t was weari-
ness he felt more than exhaustion. We
used to swim for two hours together
twice week when We were both
training for some race. He was slow
swimmer, but swan In excellent style,
which means he wasted none OF his
strength, and when / knew him he
never swan anything but the breast
stroke. II ] remember rightly, he
never was any good at any of the side
strokes, and he certainly swan the
channel Oh his breast. The channel may
be crossed again, but it Is not very
likely, as several good swimmers have
tried and been beaten. Except for
the pleasure of having to look out the
Hellespont in the map, Byron's swim
(Which IL. ! suppose. more or less
historical event, us it is alluded to by
every distributor of swimming prizes
who wishes to show his learning)
should be forgotten and never alluded
to as feat at all when compared with
Webb's,
Men are pumped" because so few
care to learn to swim properly and are
content to founder and splitter about. |
thinking apparently that the faster |
they move their arms and legs. never
mind in what direction, the more mag
pif1cent their swimming,
Swimming is question Of balance,
and that is why when once learned 1t
Is never forgotten. The mistake IN
learning is that to avoid breathing in
water boys put their heads too far
back and so keep their mouths too far
above the surface. Nobody will ever
swim well or with ease till he has
learned that it Is not necessary to carry
his neck like strangled giraffe This
strained attitude upsets the balance.
You will see every good swimmer in
the world swimming with his mouth
under water till the arms separate.
His body will thus be straight, very /.
high In the water, and he will be bal
lnced properly.
To learn 10 breathe properly means
to learn to swim quickly and well. 1t
S very simple. All that the tyro need
is to breathe outward as his
hands go forward and to breathe in
ward directly his hands separate, which
S the moment when his head Is high
est. | have found 1t useful when
eaching TO tell boys to elbow their
lands from them" as n sort of memo
ia Technical Of the moment to breathe
I am sorry for lads whom !
zee learning to swim when they be-
ONE apparently much distressed about
he proper movement Of their legs and
rms and much more sorely distressed
eally by the amount Of bath water
hey are swallowing. of which the In
tructOr takes no note. though the pu-
il does.
One word more about learning. 1t {
J important-very-that the hands in {
reast stroke swimming should work {
l the same horizontal plane as the
ody and not downward Working ,
hem downward II q waste Of strength. I
hey are then Only lifting the body out ,
Instead of propellng it through the ?
alter 1t IS Important that boys should [
g taught the breast stroke properly 2
II boys think they can swim quicker c
4 their sides because when OH their c
des they see the water pass by their 4
Ices and fancy they are going as fast O
; torpedo catcher But it is mis- c
Ike. The proper stroke now adopted (
7 all amateurs and professionals for Q
cling Is very different from what boys b
III side stroke" and ought to lie care &
lily learned after good breast stroke S
ls been mastered. Nothing but good t
east stroke can save you in trouble, D
" can you save Il drowning man by
~ fancy swimming.
Now, for the second part Of my text
IN there be more hideous danger Il
an that Of swimming up to rescue W
owning and struggling man who, L
,hting for his life and in the agony of IL
ffocatlon, will seize you and clutch b'
u and take you with him to the bot al
m? Drowning men are said to clutch ty
straw. but tor choice they prefer p'
netting more substantial. Summer
ter summer we read the same old re
Dry Of the rescuer being clutched and II
owned and two lives lost. one of m
EN- certainly being that of brave 81
an. Yet 1t is mere question Of ~
rec or four hours teaching and prac- pr
e to enable any one to rescue a We
owning man with but very little dan Gu
r to the rescuer. OF
L has been my painful duty to award nc
e medals at the SO called life saving Ell
mpetitiOns now taking place every Ill
MINER at our public schools. Aiser. su
lie and gloomy farces they are, 4
lffed BOBBY is pushed out about
enty yards into the water, and the
VS. jump In, one after another, and hi
II it to shore. The BOBBY is then BIZ
nix, and the boys have to dive and Ju
WI
ng II up, nc directions being given Inf,