320 ^"^ TiJE ART 01" s\vjMMTNef, 



It may be the art pf swimming may be learned almost at a single trial, 

 veT"-reaUa- ^^^ *^^^ ^^^" ^^ excepted frojn the general privilege of animals, 

 cilityr in this respect, only from a circumstance which it is fully in 



his power to command ; so that if a man, who falls into deep 

 A mao is no vvater, can have recollection and resolution enough to avoid one 

 to'be drowned ^'"§^^ bad habit (too likely indeed to present itself), he will 

 than a dog. require po more instruct! ns to enable him to save his life than 



a dog or any other animal in like circumstances. 



Dr. Franklin I have not at this time in my possession any writing on the 



taught swim- ^^t of swimming, except the letter of Dr. Franklin (LTV. in 

 mmg at one ♦ bj i , \ • t 



fiiigle lesson, the quarto Exper. and Obser.), which has been deservedly re- 

 printed ir> many of our periodical works. The Doctor, in the 

 account of his own life, speaks of himself as a first-rate swim- 

 mer. He asserts that he taught the art of swimming to a young 

 man of the name of Wygate, and another friend of his, in the 

 course of a few hours ; and that he had[ it in contemplation 

 to establish a swimming school at Londopj, in the summer of 

 172^. His method, as described in tlxe letter before mention- 

 ed, is as follows : 

 His insti d-f :ons " The practice I mean is this. Chusing a place where the water 

 for becoming " deepens Gradually, walk cooly into it till it is up to your 

 familiar with ,, , % ■ i r i , , , ' 



the water. breast ; then turn round, your tace to the shore, and throvf 



" an egg into the water between you and the shore. It will 

 " sink to the bottom, and be easily seen there, as your water is 

 f ' clear. It must lie in water so deep as that you cannot reach it 

 " to take it up but by diving for it. To encourage yourself in 

 " order to do this, reflect that your progress will be from deeper 

 " to shallower water, and that at any time you may, by 

 " bringing your legs under you and standing on the bottom, 

 " raise your head far above the water. Then plunge under it 

 '' with your eyes open, throwing yourself towards the egg, and 

 " endeavouring, by the action of your hands and feet against the. 

 *' water, to get forward till within reach of it. In this attempt 

 *' you will find, that the water buoys you up against your in- 

 *' clination ; that it is not so easy a thing to sink as you ima- 

 " gined; that you cannot, but by active force, get down to the 

 " egg. Thus you feel the power of the water to support you, 

 " and learn to confide in that power; while your endeavours 

 *' to overcome it and to reach the egg, teach you the manner 

 *• of acting on the water with your feet and hands, which 



" action 



