TUITION IN SWIMMING
Sir. —Swimming is a dangerous' practice that is safe only for fish, tadpoles and platypuses. As long as humans swim there will be drownings from swimming The more people you hare in the water, the higher your deathrate will be. The more people you teach to swim, the more people von will have in the water, the more people in a position where they can drown. Such elementary syllogisms seem to have escaped the advocates of "learn-to-swim" in schools. Their premise that "if you teach children to swim they will not drown" is on a par with that "if you teach children to drink beer they will not die of methylated spirits poisoning." J, personally, can think of very few things that will sweH the death-rate more than a universal • immersion of school-children. I trust ' that the Education Department will not be stampeded by a few hysterical outbursts into a decision it would undoubtedly regret in a 1 few years' time. The assiduous observance of, and insistence on the elementary "Safety First" is all that is necessary, Akakiy Akakievich Basmatskix.
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Bibliographic details
New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXV, Issue 22950, 31 January 1938, Page 14
Word Count
183TUITION IN SWIMMING New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXV, Issue 22950, 31 January 1938, Page 14
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