APPENDIX, 



INSTRUCTIONS FOR SAVING DROWNING PERSONS 

 BY SWIMMING TO THEIR RELIEF. 



ist. When you approach a person drowning in the water, assure 

 him, with a loud and firm voice, that he is safe. 



2nd. Before jumping in to save him, divest yourself as far and 

 as quickly as possible of all clothes ; tear them off, if necessary ; 

 but if there is not time, loose, at all events, the foot of your 

 drawers, if they are tied, as if you do not do so they will fill with 

 water and drag you. 



3rd. On swimming to a person in the sea, if he be struggling, do 

 not seize him then, but keep off for a few seconds, till he gets 

 quiet ; for it is sheer madness to take hold of a man when he is 

 struggling in the water, and if you do you run a great risk. 



4th. Then get close to him, and take fast hold of the hair of his 

 head, turn him as quickly as possible on to his back, give him a 

 sudden pull, and this will cause him to float ; then throw yourself 

 on your back also and swim for the shore, both hands having 

 hold of his hair, you on your back, and he also on his, and, of 

 course, his back to your stomach. In this way you will get sooner 

 and safer ashore than by any other means, and you can easily thus 

 swim with two or three persons. The writer has often, as an ex- 

 periment, done it with four, and gone with them forty or fifty yards 

 in the sea. One great advantage of this method is, that it enables 

 you to keep your head up, and also to hold the person's head up 

 you are trying to save. It is of primary importance that you take 

 fast hold of the hair, and throw both the person and yourself on your 

 backs. After many experiments, I find this vastly preferable to all 

 the other methods. You can, in this manner, float nearly as long 

 as you please, or until a boat or other help can be obtained. 



