Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1905-08-29
SAW OLDEST CHILD DROWN.
Mrs. Wheeler And Four Children
Were Rowing Across
The Harbor.
BABY KATHERINE CAME NEAR
DROWNING ALSO.
She Was Rescued By Young Hem
bers of The Severn Boat
Club And Revived.

As the result of one of the saddest
drowning accidents in years in this
city. Mr.. and Mrs. John Wheeler, to-
day lost their nine year old daugh-
ter, Hazel, and but for the timely as
sistance of a gentleman from the
power yacht Gypsie and young Cor
don Claude aud Bushrod Howard. ju-
nior members of the Severn Boa
Club, would have been mourning the
death of their youngest child, Rather
inc, who is just rs motnhs old
The accident occurred Just before
noon today, while the mother and her
four children, of which Hazel was the
eldest, were in a row boat bound to
this CITY from Eastport, where they
live Little Jennie and Earle, aged
three aud five, respectively, were in
the bow of the boat and Mrs. Wheeler
was rowing. Ia the stern sat Hazel
with the baby in her lap. There are
several versions of the accident but
the most reliable seem to be that the
mothers attention was called TO the
fact that she was too close to a boat
at anchor, and as she turned TO pre-.
vent running into this vessel a gust
of wind filed the umbrella which
Hazel was holding over the baby
This caused her to lose her balance
and fall over backwards into the
water. taking the infant with her
Many on the shore and vessels in
the harbor had witnessed the accident
and at once put out TO the scene in
any craft available. The screams of
the distracted mother and the other
children soon drew others TO the spot
Young Claude and Howard were in q
small padding canoe several hundred
yards away at the time and at once
went to the rescue, being about the
first TO reach the spot Hazel had
gone at once to the bottom, it is said,
as no one could be found who had
seen her come to the surface after the
first plunge, until the body was re-
covered almost an hour later Young
Claude jumped into the water and
grabbed the baby by her dress as she
was going down for the third time
and was then several feet under
water.
Young Howard assisted him and by
this time rowboat from the Gypsie
had arrived, into which the apparent
ly dead child was placed. The gen.
tleman in the boat lost no time, but
went TO work at once TO revive Kath-
crime, and it is undoubtedly due TO
their promptness and forethought that
the baby now lives While this was
going ON other boats had reached the
scene, including steam launch from
the Naval Academy, and every effort
was being made to recover the body
of Hazel Just as a drag had been
put out from the launch Mr.. Peter
Parkinson located the body on the
bottom with pair of tongs When
brought to the surface the child was
already beyond all human aid, having
been in the water nearly sixty min
utes.
DIR. John Ridout was summoned to
the bereaved home on Severn avenue
and did what was needed for the
baby, but the other child was dead
and all efforts at resuscitation by artifi- 2
cialrespiTation proved fruitlessKather,
inc is now safely out Of danger, but
the distracted mother is said to be IN
a serious condition as a result of the
fearful shock.