TO SWIM THE CHANNEL.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 274, 12 August 1908, Page 7

TO SWIM THE CHANNEL.

another effort,

(at TBIiBORAfH— PRESS ASSOCIATION—COPIBiaE't l Lonijqn, August JO. Mearns, tho. Spottish cijaropion, after a |ourteen hours' swijn from Dover, reached wjtfiip tjiree fpjles of Calais, when he coljapsed ifi t)ip >yater, and rpscupd with cjipieulty, owing to the darkness, WEBB AND HIS RIVALS. J. Wolffe''&l;o«faiUd"Yrflon' three mjles from the French coast, after swimming 35 miles in 1-1 hour's, A writer in the London "Telegraph" says he. cannot call to jnjnd another sjpgl? ipsfanoe where a- record .e'teated thirty-two years ago still stands, but, judging from the events of tho past few years, it' would' seem that tlie performance, of "Captain" Matthew Webb on August'Si ind : 2sj 18(5; may long remain the best op r e o)',d, ' Thjs 'is the more gijrppsing when oife ooneider?; the raornious progress that'has been made' in' the arts of natation during the thirty years,' Ope'has' oiily to glance at {he comparative times pf champipjisliips to seo how pronounced this is. For instance, .in 1878 the 100 yards was won in'lrnin. 16|see., Whilst in 190G the time was 5? 3-ssec., a reduction pf 18sec.; in 1878 flip 500 yards championship was iron in Bmih. 7}seq., and' in 1905 in Gmiri;''/ l-s?ep., a' differenpe of 2min.; and whereas fhe'lppg distance ohaippionsliip in 1877 qooupipd 1 hour 13mjn. 27spp., j» i?O7 j{ was won jn 1 hour Omjn, 15 l-ssec;

WEBB'S EFFORT. Prior to Webb's successful effort, when, starting from the Adiniralty" Pier at' Dover, he landed on Calais Beach after swimmirig 21hr. 45min., ; 'tliqjrjj" are' qiily two attempts on record,' the first'bpipg on August 24, 1872, when J. B.' .Jphljsdn quickly relinquished the task, after'swiininjiig'for an hour and five iiijnutes. Then three 1 years later Matthew Webb announced his intention pf attempting tjie feat. This resolve was, no''doubt;"the outcome of a performance by Captain Boytop, the inventor of a patent life-saying' dress. Clad in an inflated costume, tlip American, after ojie urisupcessfijl attoriipt, succeeded in panelling his way across the Straits'pf Dover. "On August 12, 1875, Webb, then twentyeight years of'age, having accomplished 'soino fine performances in practice,' made his first attempt, which' ended in failure.'' He was swimmirig for 6hr. dSinin. SOsec., during which time lie'covered 131 miles, when the rough jrea'thir and t)io fact that he had drifted oastward of his course some ten miles caused hill) to give 'rip.' Twejyc' days' latpr,' hoivover, he'started' on'lis succpssfiil aftompt, "arid astonished t]ie world with his 'great achievement. Where 'he landed at Calais is 21J liiiles from )iis starting-point as the erow flies, but in crossing he took three full tides, in addition to }, hour south-west stream at the start aud about forty-five niinutes slack at' Calais PiV at' tho finish, which' preverit'ed hini being carried back on the et?b tide, which'was'just commencijjg. • '•••• LADY SWIMMERS. !fhe first lady swimmer to attempt t|ie seem, ingly iirippssible was'Madame Isacescu, an Austrian, who, on September 5, 1900, although she failed, accomplished a wonderful 'performance for a woman, arid one whiplf no othqr has accomplished, fo'i"'sha "stayed ten' h'orirs 'in'the Channel, and by swim arid drift covered twenty miles. The'only other lady swimmer who has aspiredtocrpss the Straits is Miss Arinette 'Kellerman; an Australian with a most graceful style, who has many fine swljns to her credit,'notably jri the TJiames arid Danube. It was on August 2i, 1905, that Miss Kellormari iriado her first dttpirip't, but seasicknesscaused hereto give up after six hours' swimming; and "oh August '7. 1906, the "same 'complaint coiiipelled Tier to leave the water lifter two hours' had elapsed.'