SWIFT CURRENT 



5656 



SWIMMING 



In the year following this unfortunate affair, 

 Swift won the lasting esteem of the Irish people 

 by issuing the Drapier Letters, in which he 

 vigorously opposed the granting of a patent for 

 copper coinage in Ireland. Two years later 

 appeared his Gulliver's Travels, a highly amus- 

 ing satire on human nature. He persisted in 

 his efforts to lighten the wrongs of the Irish, 

 until in 1742 the fate that he had long dreaded 

 came upon him, and he became insane. He 

 remained an imbecile until his death. A.MC c. 



Consult Smith's Dean Swift; Collins' Jonathan 

 Swift: A Biographical and Critical Study. 



SWIFT CURRENT, a city in the southwest 

 corner of Saskatchewan, and on the main line 

 of the Canadian Pacific Railway, 110 miles west 

 of Moose Jaw and 147 miles northeast of Medi- 

 cine Hat. It is also on the Vanguard-Bassano 

 branch, by which it is forty-four miles north of 

 Vanguard and 236 miles southeast of Bassano. 

 The Swift Current River, which flows through 

 the city, is not navigable. In 1901 Swift Cur- 

 rent was a village of 121 people; by 1911 it had 

 grown to a town with a population of 1,852; 

 and in 1914 it was incorporated as a city. 

 Population in 1916, 3,181. 



Like most of the towns in southern Sas- 

 katchewan Swift Current is prosperous because 

 it is in a rich wheat-growing region. It is a 

 large shipping town, and is also a wholesale 

 and retail distributing point. It is the seat of 

 a judicial district, and has a land-titles office, 

 customhouse, Dominion lands office and mu- 

 nicipally-owned hospital. The courthouse, a 

 conspicuous structure, was completed in 1915 

 at a cost of $125,000. Other attractive buildings 

 are the town hall, erected in 1913 at a cost of 

 $45,000; the fire hall, also erected in 1913; and 

 three public schools, one completed in each of 

 the years 1914, 1915 and 1916. The total ex- 

 penditure for the three schools was $325,000. 



SWIMMING, swim 'ing. Every boy and girl 

 should learn to swim, for the following reasons : 



1. In case of accident on the water ability to 

 swim may enable one to save his own life, and 

 possibly the lives of others. 



2. Swimming affords one of the best means of 

 developing the muscles and invigorating the sys- 

 tem. 



3. Swimming is a delightful recreation. 

 Notwithstanding the importance and value of 



this art it is probable that not over one-third 

 of the people know how to swim. Various 

 reasons have been given for this lack of knowl- 

 edge of a useful and pleasure-giving recreation. 

 Chief among them are that swimming is very 

 difficult to learn ; learning to swim is dangerous 



to life and health, and there may be lack of 

 opportunity. All these reasons rest upon false 

 notions. It is nearly as easy for a person to 

 learn to swim as it is for a child to learn to 

 walk; it is said that the babies of the South 

 Sea islanders can swim before they have 

 learned to walk. 



Under reasonable conditions learning to swim 

 is attended by no danger whatever. But, 

 granted that the learner were in some danger, 

 would it not be more reasonable for him to 

 confront this danger under conditions which 

 will enable him to overcome it than to run the 

 risk of encountering it unexpectedly without 

 means of self-preservation? 



There is scarcely a community where it is 

 not possible to provide swimming pools. 



Preliminary Steps. The first step towards 

 learning to swim is to overcome fear of the 

 water. Select a place where the water is clear 

 and free from currents and weeds, with the 

 bottom sloping gradually. Wade out slowly 

 until the water reaches the waist. Take a full 

 breath, then bend the legs until the head is 

 under the water. Open the eyes and look at 

 the bottom for a second or two, then rise to a 

 standing position. Repeat the exercise until 

 the head can be placed under water with confi- 

 dence. 



Having learned that you can place your head 

 under water for a few seconds, you are ready 

 for the next preliminary step, which consists in 

 learning to lie in the water and float. Wade 

 out to where the water is waist deep, face the 

 shore, incline the body slowly, stretching the 

 arms out straight with the palms down. As 

 the arms and head strike the water the feet 

 will rise. Straighten the legs and you will be 

 able to lie in this position several seconds with- 

 out sinking, if you do not attempt to raise the 

 head. Open the eyes and paddle gently with 

 the hands. You will see that you are moving 

 towards the shore. 



The human body as a whole is lighter than 

 water, but some parts of it, particularly the 

 head, are heavier than water. Consequently, 

 when the head is partially supported in the 

 water it is much easier to float. 



Probably several exercises may be necessary 

 to enable you to lie in the water with confi- 

 dence, but you should gain this confidence be- 

 fore attempting to swim. 



The Breast Stroke. The breast stroke is the 

 simplest swimming stroke and the one that 

 should be learned by beginners. While an in- 

 structor is of great advantage, one may learn 



