The Madison daily leader. [volume] (Madison, S.D.) 1890-current, 1908-07-31
FLUNG into THE SEA
Experience of a Man Struggling
In Midocean.
SENSATIONS OF DROWNING.
A TangIe of Wild Thoughts combined
With Vague Notions of Time and
Spaee--The Dreamy Doze, the Res
cue and the Knife In His Back.

cue and the Knife In His Back.
Standing on chair near the deck
rail of an ocean liner, a sudden lurch
Of the vessel flung me into the Atlantic.
Instinctiyely as / went over / held my
arms out for the dive, and while was
still falling l heard the cry ring out.
MAN overboardw
Down, down / sank, for the fall was
from a considerable height. Being able
TO swim little, l was spared the first
mental agony experienced by the non
swimmer who Unexpectedly finds him
self In deep water. The surprise
caused by the suddenness of the fall
filed my brain, but as / struggled to
regain the surface, my lungs almost
bursting, the horrible thought of the
propeller churning out its 100 reyolu-
tions a minute flashed upon me.
Should be mangled beyond recogni-
tion in second? oh, for another years
sweet life! Would my leg be cut clean
OFF Or
could see the sky again, and took
great breath of fresh air, though sick
with fear. Then I saw the steamer
had passed. l was spared mutilation
to die slowly by drowning.
How rapidly the steamer was vanish
ing! | could catch glimpse Of it
when a green wave lifted me high in
the water. | would only be able to
swim for ten minutes-ten little min
utes!-though | was still In the prime
of life. Surely that cry as fell would
have reused somebody to action! And
yet was alone In the Atlantic, with
possibly two miles of water between
me and the bottom.
| looked round anxiously to see
whether q lifebuoy had been thrown,
There was nothing In sight but wide
waste of water and the fast disappear
ing steamer.
My arms were growing heavy. All |
tried to do was to keep my head above
water, but seemed to have been do
ing that for an hour. My legs. too,
| were refusing to bend The end could
not be far away.
My arms must both be broken, for
they would hardly move, and they
ached terribly. What a long time a
man could keep afoat! I was vaguely
| glad / could not swim very well, be,
cause 1t would have meant waiting for
| the end such a long time. 1t made one
| drowsy.
Another wave lifted me UP, and
| saw the steamer had changed its posi-
L In hon tO
land to tell them at home what had
happened to me. How soothing the
sea was! If only could stop trying to
| work my arms that aching pain in
them would cease and might go to
| sleep.
Sometimes when / saw the ship
| which never seemed to get any farther
| away now, | remembered l was fight
| ing for another minutes life. 1t had
been harder at first, but now the sea
| lulled me into happiness.
| What on earth were they playing al
| ON the steamer? had nearly caught Il
| up again, only somehow l had got IL
front of it. 1t grew bigger quickly
and 1t was coming straight on. II
those ridiculous people were not care
| full they might run over me yet.
Perhaps 1t would be better to go t.
sleep, after all. My arms were easier
| and did not want to breathe so muci
now. 1t was getting dark and ever 81
much colder than 1t was last night
| The steward must give me an extri
blanket.
Why was everything so hazy and thu
room stuffy? l could hardly breathe
And yet 1t didn't matter. Nothin,
mattered, but l wished dreamily tina
some one would stop digging knit
into my back, for / was just droppin;
off to sleep nicely.
Next day l found the knife hat
been the point of boat hook witt
which they picked me up as came t
the surface. The steamer had turnet
In circle and arrived just In time
London Answers.