Year: 1879




PROVED FATAL.


ROCHESTER, n. Y, Aug. 24.-Recent
items have appeared in the papers IN re-
gard to the last and fatal leap Of Sam
Patch. Having myself seen Sam Patch
many times, and having been an eye
witness of some of his daring feats, 1
thought perhaps I might state some
| things about him that would interest
your many readers. I will premise by
saying that he was no impostor, but that
he gave his real name, and, in his brief
career he always performed all that he
promised in a straightforward and hon
est way. He never resorted to the use
of rubber straps, coils of wire, or para
chute, in order to render his leaps free
from apparent danger. Sam Patch, as
he was familiarly called, was native OF
Patterson, n. j., the son of ''poor but
honest parents" and for some years lived
there alone with his widowed mother
He is said by some persons to have been
lazy, shiftless and disssipated fellow,
but was assured by an old and reput-
able merchant of the place few years
ago, who knew Sam well, that this was
not so. The same gentleman kindly took
me to the place where he made his first
leap into the Passaic River, of some 80
or 80 feet, and which he repeated several
times. During the summer of 1829Patch
went to Niagara Falls and made one or
two successful leaps into the seething
waters below. In October of the same
year he came to Rochester, and gave out
that he would leap from small island
above the upper falls. This was the last
of October, and was an occasion that
called together more people than Roches-
ter ever saw before. Full fifty thousand
were on hand to witness for the first time
daring feat that no other man had ever
attempted in this country. On this oc-
casion / took my stand below the falls.
close to the waters edge, and nearly un-
der the projecting rock from which he
was to jump. Promptly at the hour an
nounced Sam made his appearance on the
spot, and was greeted with cheers and
tiger such as any human might be proud
of. After surveying the vast assemblage
for moment, he removed his outside
garments and tied a red bandana around
his waist. Soon he waved farewell to
the people on all sides, which no doubt
sent a chill through many a bosom, and
with arms extended, leaped into the wa
ters below. L shall never forget the SEN
sation as looked up and saw him COM
ing down. Just as he reached the water
he brought his arms to his side, and
went in without ripple upon the surface.
In an instant he reappeared and swan
ashore, with no injury save slight bruise
on his shin against sunken tree. He
was taken upon the shoulders Of some
present, and carried up the bank, where
he received the hearty congratulations of
the vast, admiring crowd. On the 9th
of November following he made another
and his last leap; this time from an ele-
waited platform 25 feet high, making the
whole distance of the leap 125 feet. 1t
was chilly, unpleasant day, with some
ice in the river, and, to protect himself
from the cold, he drank rather too freely
of brandy, as we noticed in following
him close on to the island, from which
he was destined never to return. He
ascended to the place of leaping with ap-
parent ease and GOODNESS, aud, after look
ing out upon the sea of heads for a mo-
ment, he, as before, removed all his
garments except pants and shirt, and,
tying the bandana again around his body
he motioned to all a last farewell, and
walked off to almost instant death. He
struck the water on his breast and as it
closed over him we felt sure that for him
this was ''the last of earth" Diligent
search was at once made for his body, but
all in vain. Early the next spring, how
ever, it was found floating at the mouth
of the river at Charlotte, with the hand
kerchief still on. His remains were de-
Gently inferred in the village cemetery.