New-York tribune., 1908-07-19
CHICAGO RIVER FATAL
ONE SWIMMER DROWNED.
unlf a Dozen Others Scised uith
r,am rs in Marathon" Contest.

rs,caxo. July 1S-One contestant was
.n.d half a dozen others were seized with
..,,,. and rescued with difficulty and two
~.sators were thrown into the river when a
-. was in collision with their rowboat at the
- annual Marathon swim OF the New Illinois
..,,.ttc Club in the Chicago River to-day. The
-, n,oved too cold for the swimmers, and
- seventeen OF a field of sixty managed to
s,,.h the two-mile course The list Of accidents
follows: ,.,
r. Freese ffty-ive years old, seized with
,cs and drowned near the Madison street
s-;a.. in view OF thousands OF spectators
H Handy, Chicago's premier swimmer.
.,,.a with cramps at Rush street and hauled
.,o.rd q tug in a semi-conscious state.
uoward Wetz Chicago; Jose Basse, Mexico
r,,v. Anna Harris. Chicago; J. H. Merriam.
r.io.ro. J. Stuart. Rellview, Iowa, all seized
.wh cramps at various stages OF the race
The race was won by S. c. Jensen, of the
x-. Illinois Athletic Club. Anton Jaeger and
= Johnson were second and third, respective
- None of the out-of-town contestants fin
ished
.,s. NJ the course. He was the oldest con-
..+.,, IN the event, and is said to have con-
...-.d TO the younger swimmers before the start
chs. he had undergone no special preparation
o. .he race He came to Chicago from Ger
,,.nv about twnty-five years ago and has been
800 as a distance swimmer at the local
r...be. but evidently found the strain OF a
,,rr distance rate too great
r1,v one hundred thousand persons watched
-. raoe. lining the banks and crowding the
.,a~.s from the start at the life saving station
:. the mouth of the river to the 12th street wa
..t on the south branch OF the stream, where
-. course ended The greatest crowd was near
h~;I opd oil
men pluneed to aid Freese he sank before any
=, .he rescuers could reach him. Harold Chris
,,.n..n. seventeen years old. dived repeatedly
q, The hodv. but failed to find it because Of the
.,,~ undercurrent which swept it downstream
"a. hodv was finally recovered by the police
,., ,rannlins hooks several blocks from the
scene Of the accident.
usnsv had a narrow escape at Rush street
he vas leading the field by one hundred yards
xhen he suddenly turned on his back and calieo
scy sid A launch hurried to him. but When ne
was taken aboard he was so badly crampeo that
-, anvsr nails had sunk into the flesh Of his
hands and his eyeballs were rolled back Medi-
-, ,...s,s,anee was summoned for him after he
had been placed aboard a fire tug
The others who were stricken as a result OF
,he cod water had less thrilling experiences
Miss Harris the only woman IN the event. De-
came exhausted just after she crosseu the iii
i've .. Sixteenth Place. A line Of rowboats
hlocked the stream and she was unable TO reach
n. hank. she sank once. but was then seized
nv one Of several men who jumped into Inc
water. Basse was stricken thirty feet from the
stan. Stuart went to his assistance and he'peo
him to reach the pier. and then plunged IN aeaih.
only to be taken with the effects OF une GNU
x,,.- himself a few blocks further on
The race itself was procession Handy Went
away in the lead. followed by Jensen ano Jaeger
The latter two swan abreast Vntil past nus"
street where Handy quit AT TINS poiill 'ei'oi
changed to a breast stroke and steaoiiy drew
away from his competitors. The strong curreh'
carried the men along at a rapid rate, making
IN. time 81 the winner unusually fast Ihe cur
rent Of the Chicago River runs from Lake Michi-
san toward the former source OF the riNei'
the river now empties through drainage Sai'oA
,n,, rivers that hoyv. into the MISSISSIPPI