Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-07-19
ONE CONTESTANT DROWNED
Six Seized With Cramps, But Escape
With Their Lives.
CHILLED BY COLD WATER
One Man Hauled Aboard Tug in
Unconscious State - Woman
Finishes in State Of Exhaustion.

was drowned, half a dozen others were
seized with cramps and rescued with
difficulty, and two spectators were
thrown in the river when a tug col
lided with their rowboat during the first
annual Marathon swim" Of the New
Illinois Athletic Club in the Chicago
river today. The water proved far too
cold for the swimmers, and only seven
teen Of a field Of sixty managed to fin
ish the two-mile course. The list of
accidents follows:
A. G. Freese, fffty-five years old,
seized with cramps and drowned near
the Madison street bridge, in view of
thousands Of spectators.
H. ]. Handy. Chicago's premier swim
mer. seized with cramps at Rush street
and hauled aboard a tug in a semi
conscious state.
All Seized With Cramp.
Howart Wetz, Chicago; Jose Basse,
Mexico City: Anna Harris. Chicago: ].
H. Merriam, Chicago: J. Stuart, Belle
view. Iowa, all seized with cramps at
various stages of the race.
The race was won by S. c. Jensen of
the New Illinois Athletic Club. His Of
fetal time was 44.41 2-5. Anton Jaeger
and G. A. Johnson Of the same club
None Of the out-of-town contestants
finished.
Freese sank after he had covered about
two-thirds Of the course He was the
oldest contestant in the event, and is
said to have confessed to the younger
swimmers before the race that he had
undergone no special preparation for the
race. He came to Chicago from Ger
many about twenty-five years ago, and
has been noted as a distance swimmer
at the local beaches. but evidently found
the strain of a long-distance race too
great for his advanced age.
Watched by 100000.
Fully 100000 persons watched the race.
lining the banks and crowding the bridges
from the start at the live-saving station
at the mouth of the river to the 10Th
street viaduct on the south branch of the
stream, where the course ended. The
greatest crowd was near the Madison
plunged to aid Freese he sank before any
Of the rescuers could reach him. Harold
Christensen. seventeen years old. dived
repeatedly for the body, but failed to find
1t because of the strong undercurrent
which swept it down stream. The corpse
was recovered by police with graphing
hooks several blocks from the scene of the
accident.
Handy had a narrow escape at Rush
street. He was leading the field by 100
yards, when he suddenly turned on his
back and called for aid. a launch hur-
ried to him, but, when he was taken
aboard. he was so badly cramped that
his finger nails had sunk into the flesh
back. Medical assistance was summoned
for him after he had been placed aboard
q fire tug.
Woman Is Exhausted.
The others who were stricken as a re-
suit Of the cold water had less thrilling
experiences. Miss Harris, the only wo-
man in the event, became exhausted just
after she crossed the finish line at 18th
place. A line of rowboats blocked
the stream and she was unable to reach
the bank. She sank once. but was seized
then by one Of several men who jumped
into the water. Basse was stricken thirty
feet from the start. Stuart went to his
assistance and helped him reach the pier
then plunged in again, only to be taken
with the effects of the cold water himself
a few blocks further on.
The race itself was procession. Handy
went away in the lead. followed by
Jensen and Jaeger. The latter two swan
abreast until past Rush street, where
Handy quit. At this point Jensen
changed to a breast stroke and steadily
drew away from his competitors. The
strong current carried the men along at
rapid rate. making the time of the
winner unusually fast. The current OF
the Chicago river runs from Lake Michi-
gan toward the former source Of the
river, as the river now empties through a
drainage canal into rivers that flow to
the Mississippi