Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1926-02-28
ARMY GENERAL STAFF OFFICER
REVEALED AS TIDAL BASIN HERO
Maj. Leigh F. ]. Zerbee
Rescuer of Woman
and Child.
Tries to Keep Identity
Secret After Plunge
in Icy Water.
Heroism will "out."

1erolsm Will out"
MAJ. Leigh F. J. Zerbee of the gen.
eral STAFF of the Army. learned This
TACT Yesterday when he picked up
an edition of The Star and found his
picture staring at him on the front
page alongside of hero" story.
his modesty had led him to throw
what ne thought was an impenetrable
ven about the identity of the "un.
khoWn nero who jumped in the Tidal
BASIN Friday afternoon and rescued
Mrs. Margaret l.. Dickey and her
5-year-old SOP Charlie. after the
hiooher mad thrown her baby and her
self into the icy waters
But heroism will not be downed so
easily. and when reporters were tipped
on that Maj. Zerbee was the man
they wanted they managed to gain a
few facts from an equally modest
person, the ma jor's wife.
Gosh. as long as she had to go and
spill the beans on me the way she
did, Maj. Zerbee told The Star La
night. its only fair that | should tell
the truth about her. isn't it? Well. |
just want to say-what's that, dear?
She says l don't want to say a thing.
But. anyway. a lot of women would
nave lost their heads. and the Mrs.
uIun l. InaI Ill.
Burke Also Modest
All of which is perfectly correct. &C
cording TO another participant in the
rescue. J. E. Burke. a Young travelling
man. who resides at 27c6 Connecticut
avenue. Burke may he a hero. too
but he denies 1t as emphatically as did
the major with respect to his own
case. Burke says that all he did was
81
seawall as Maj. Zerbee handed them
up.
BE that as it may. and with all par
ties concerned disclaiming any credit
whatever and accusing" one another
of being the real heroes, the fact re-
mains that but for the unhesita ting
plunge OF the jor, the GOODNESS Of
the wife in summoning assistance and
the part played by Burke In hauling
hero and rescued out Of the water
Mrs. Dickey and Charlie might both
be at the morgue today instead Of on
he road to recovery at Emergency
HosS ital.
Burke's Story Of Rescue
Burke's account of the exciting
happenings Friday afternoon follows:
II was sitting on bench near the
basin when | noticed boy about 6
years ola crying near the sea wall
at the foot of Seventeenth street. l
didn't pay whole lot OF attention to
him. Then, moment or two later, l
heard woman yell loudly and I
looked up in time to see Mrs. Dickey
deliberately throw younger child
into the water and then jump in her
self
For the moment | was stunned. I
could hardly believe that my eyes
were telling me the truth. Then I
saw Maj. and Mrs. Zerbee running
toward the sea wall The jor was
shedding his coat as he ran and when
he reached the wall he jumped In
without giving any thought to h9W
deep the water might be. He acted
the part of a real hero, l tell you.
The water near the sea wall was not
very deep. but he didn't know that
when he jumped in. and. besides. he
had to do bit of swimming away
from the wall in order to grab the
baby, which was drifting out. He
swan back and handed up the half
drowned little fellow to me and then
got hold Of the woman, who was par
TALLY unconscious, and handed her
up, too.
Mrs Zerbee in the meantime kept