New-York tribune., 1913-07-21
Girl, AND BOY BEATEN BACK
IN SWIM FOR SANDY HOOK
Henry EIionsky, 26O-Pound
Connecticut Youth, Baffled
Within Sight of His Goal.
SQUALL CAUSES FAILURE
Swimmer Stopped by waves
After Covering 35 Miles ana
Spending More than IA
Hours in Water.

Hours in Water.
The treachery of the course from the
Battery 20 Sandy Hook, which mas oio'teu
so many otherwise unmarried sWifhrh'hs
records was never illustrated TO pettet
/, advantage than yesterday. when II turheu
,he apparently certain victory of Henry
Tlionsky. the nineteen-year-old New Lon
don mary 81. to sudden defeat Elohshy
weighs 9eO pounds.
For fourteen hours and a quarter the
Connecticut youth fought his way through
! the shifting tides and cross seas OF the
various channels until he had coVereu
more than thrty-hve miles. the las'
fifteen miles of tho Journey constltuteu
relentless battle with an ebb tide WhIch
should have been his savior, and just as
the lad. by sheer pluck and phenomenal
endurance. was about to wrcst success
from failure brisk wind chopped the sea
into smother of rollers and held MN
until every chance Of utilizing the vary
ing currents had vanished.
The New London boys attempt was
nota BILE n for no other reason That II was
the first time the Battery-Hook SWIM "au
eyer been tried on two tides. For more
than half the distance the going was
without a fault and the experts who ac-
companied Elionsky felt that the result
Of the -xncrlnent was assured. The mo-
ment he began the last and longest leg
Of the Journey. however. the tide which
few weeks ago carried Charles Dur
borrow. the Philadelphian. as In null
race and nearly enabled him 10 make the
trip on one tide took Elionsky far Out
Of his course AMI compassed his defeat
Starts by Moonlight.
Elionslly dived from the Battery wall
at 1850 o'clock yesterday morning. Inc
moon was shining brightly and tn wa
ter was without ripple as EllonsKy
worked his way down Che harbor. keep
ing well to the westward. lie passed
the Statue of Liberty at 1884 and ROD
bins Reef light at 2.22. At SWlnOurhe
Island he turned almost at right angles
making it's shelter just as the flood set IN.
Then began what under ordinary cir
cumstances would have been the most
fatiguing and dangerous part OF the
DAVIS work Inclosed In the semcircle
of the wharyes at the southern end oi
the island Elionsky began a wait OF
dve hours for ,he return Of the ebb tide.
He kent up the battle with the cold
until 1920. when Captain Seely one OF
his handlers. gave the word and the jour
ney was resumed.
Barely had his handlers piloted him
outside into the open water when
stretched away TO the Hook than II was
apparent that all Elionsky's calculations
had gone awry. The tide was more than
thirty minutes late. and when II turned
IL began running almost due east instead
of obliquely toward the Hook. Before
the situation could be countered enec-
tually the New Londoner was three
quarters Of a mile 20 the east OF the
island and being carried out fast
Rallies Near Finish.
From that point on II was a continuous
battle with this unexpected tide. Ehonsky
reached Romer Shoal at 2:lL lie was
| then more than three miles 10 the east.
, DESPITE the fact that he had been In the
water for more than thirteen hours with
out food on drink. the young man demon
strated his gamcness and staying quail
/ ties Setting a pace that would have been
I fast for middle distance, he began tear
! ing through the water toward the low
beach OF the Hook. which now showed
plainly ahead.
/ Slowly but steadily he cut down the
distance that separated him from his goal
and within thirty minutes had changed
his prospects from almost certain defeat
/ 10 all but certain victory when the ele-
/ ments made their last move. So suddenly
/ as 20 be practically "A squall wind began
whipping I'm from the open sea, raising
/ the choppy waves To rollers and burying
the swimmer under them. Already blind
/ from the action Of the salt water Eli
onsky was now helpless After thirty
| minutes more Of vain struggling, and just
as the tide was about to turn again, he
was taken from the water, though but a
little more than quarter OF mile from
the Hook.
Although apparently strong and well
able To continue his eXertions. Elionsky
dropped fifteen pounds during the swim
After an hour or so he began recovering
from his blindness. and by the time tn,
city was reached he was normal again.
Elionsky, although falling Of the entire
distance, easily broke all previous records
for the attempt and practically finished a
winner