The -Omaha Sunday Bee
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VOL. XLI NO. 6.
OMAIIA, SUNDAY MOKXIXG, JULY 3i, 1911.
SINGLE CXJPY FIVE CENTS.
Swimming a Great Sport and Growing in Public Favor
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OXT yo remember lie rlrn, old boy?
Wouldn't you be able to respond
readily ti.ii minute U some friend
acted It on you? Sure, 700 tar; and
if 70a couldn't 70U hare bo claim to
assert you were once a real boy.
When the xnaster'a back was turned
In school, in the old days, harent you often and often
had two fingers stuck up before your eyes, and luTeot
you nodded with warm significance, at once, without
the allghtent hesitation? That la. if 70a were or the
crowd whose mothers did not treat as piracy the de
sire to gtf swimming.
Who lnrented the swimming sign In unlrersal use
among boys? He is forgotten, like the man who in
Tented sleep, or first measured the -hot dog" for his
tight-fitting jacket; as lost to history s record as the
man who drove the mysterious aotomoblle that took
the train robbers to Lane Cut-Off and hauled them
awa7 with their booty.
From the urchins in the little school alongside the
"erJek 'way down in old Kentucky to the lads in
the newest school out in the last-built town in North
ern Canada; from Port Dalhousie to Lake Itasca,
where the Mississippi takes its rise, there nerer was
a truly, sure-enough boy who couldn't Interpret two
fingers raised and slightly separated.
It's the swimming sign happy, reckless, adTen
turous boyhood's own sacred "high sign," of which
all others bearing the name axe mere imitations.
Fond Memory's Backward Hike.
Happy the boy-man who can recall the particulars
attaching to the old swimming hole. He can lire
again, aa a carefree yonngster if he meet some ether
boy-maa who can reminisce with him about ita delec
table characteristics. Was it "sandy bottom?" Did
it hare a mud-coTered slide where you went down
head first, on your stomach, fare raised and arms and
legs spread wide and gesticulating like educated fin
gers? Was there a -float" on which to undress?
God save the mark, how little trouble clothes were
In those days. Just a hickory shirt, a gallua and a
pair of oreralls. Of course this shuts ont the poor
chsp who never went barefoot, never had a stone
bruise, and never Jnmped in "denies an all" on a
dare. Was there a springboard at your swimming
hole, boy? Or a deep hole in the water that only
yourself and one or two others would dare to get
into? Or was your swimming place one of those
desperate spots where you got muddy going in and
forty tiir.es as muddy coming out?
Sy. did yon d:v from a mossy bank or wade in?
Were there tr-es handy, or bushes, under cover of
which Satan-inspired friends (?) coald spproach and
perpetrate tricks which would mske you "chsw beef"
with teeth and nails trying to get the tightest knots
ever tied ont of your pants legs and your shirt
sleeves? And say. did you have to lay around In the
sua snd let your hair dry. so "ma" wouldn't suspect
you had been in swimming. Ge, that knocked half
the pleasure out of the event, except the after glow
of victorious strategy if she never found ont. until
next time.
Swimming llamch to laborm.
And say again when the urchin at your knee gets
bitten ty the swimming bug. at school or mixing
with other hopefula, and asks you if he can go swlm
jning, do you froan and tell him btll surely get
drowned? And if you do. doesn't your worn old con
science hurt you. mister? Of course it does, for away
tack somewhere in the rece&sea of yonr mind where
savagery still larks, you know he comes naturally by
the hnach, and will not be denied for long.
Omaha boys of the old and young generation, with
a swimming pond stretching for miles before the city,
have been mighty lucky as to bathing spots, except
that regulation (a word of which boys never did un
derstand the sense) has made their watery frolics
a trifle difficult. From Florence to South Omaha
and a goodly distance beyond In either direction
there be elegant places to "go la" amid wild natural
scenery. Besides, there are the tame, conventional
reeorta. where you put on other folks' clothes after
taking off your own. Eight here rises the question,
ran "bathing" ever hold a candle to "swimming?"
No. st; no more than apple bought la the store can
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compare to th apples yru used to have to scheme for
against man and bulldog. There ain't no such apples
no more. The world is too good and high-toned to
let the modern boy have hia fling at capturing things
aa his stone-age ancestors used to do.
And yet this modern boy is doing fairly well in
other directiona. If he can't swim wild, and run the
gamut of Immemorial chxnces ordained to him by
mother nature, he will find other strings to pull and
let off steam.
Swimming Dert-ioped to aa Art.
Swimming has been brought to the point, almost,
of being an art In these aays; and aa a matter of fact
many men, and women too, make their living by their
cleverness in the ater. Annette Kellerman, for in
stance, coming from the other end of the earth, has
thrilled admiring thousands both in and out of the
theaters; and numerous other professionals might be
mentioned. Swimming is an accompliahment within
the reach of all, literally, yet the number of people
who have never learned to swim is surprising. This
Is being corrected, to a large extent, in recent years,
since cities began establishing and managing open
air bathing beaches and Indoor natatoriuma. The lu
cre of facilities, especially notable in the east, has
led to a greatly increased interest in swimming. To
be proficient in the water is today a good claim to
distinction among devotees of the many clubs having
their summer homes by the water side. The Omaha
clubs, like the Rod and Gun, the Dietz and othera,
encourage a lively interest in swimming exercises and
water games; and the Toung Men's Christian associa
tion and Toung Women's Christian association also
devote a goodly share of sttention to this important
accomplishment.
Joseph Hersehberg. known locally aa "Joe the dia
ler." is typical cf that class of men who acquired
a love for swimar:ng in the old land. England, Ger
many. Australia, have always been particularly keen
to encourage swimming smong their people, and in
late years the Tnlted States haa become known aa the
home of some of the best swimmers in the world.
Swimming champlonehipe are honors eagerly sought
and they enlist large numbers of contestants, from
the Juvenile class up to the professionals who swim
against time.
Omaha Expert Lands AccoupUshment.
Mr. Herschberg Quotes Moses and Jacob aa be
lievers In swimming and of course it is generally
known to all Sunday school children that hloaea was
having a nice Utile swim along the edge of the fcul
ruahes whea Pharaoh's daughter thought he was in
danger and pulled him aahore to uti tlm for some
work oa dry land. "Aa all your pleasures cannot be
confined to land, the pleasure 70a feel la the knowl
edge 70a caa swim. If aeed be, cannot be xpreaae4
la words," says Herschberg. who is seen la one of the
Illustrations doing a stunt In the Miaaourl river at
Douglaa street.
"When you 'have such a grand river at your door,"
he aald. "that received a gold medal at the Paris ex
position, there is no excuse for anybody not knowing
how to swim. It is pure mountain water, originally,
mixed with a little clean mud as it travels to the sea,
and cleansea you like a little baby. Why shouldn't
the city of Omaha do as other cities situated on the
great rivers have done. ,and construct a public bath
ing place on the river front? This could be done at
small expense, for the cost of pavilion and a fence in
the river. Many, like myself, would be glad to volun
teer their services without cost, for Instruction to
those who might seek it. During the real hot weather,
to go down to the Missouri and take a dip is a great
pleasure, which thousands would avail themselves of
If proper facilities were provided. Here is a grand
luxury available to all. with the minimum low of
time. With the rirht kind of supervision, there would
be no danger of drowning, since preventive precau
tions can easily be taken.
"ASLEEP C3T THE UEEP'
"To make good swimmers it is only necessary to
remove fear, inculcate the knowledge how to reserve
power and establish self-confidence. The exercise
and esJo.rmeLt will keep people young and enable
them to enjoy life to a grand old age.
Good Way to Rave Drowning People.
"In my experience I have found It perfectly safe to
grasp drowning people under the arms behind, so
they have no chance to grap you about the neck or
arms; and any fair swimmer who win keep cool can
outwit a flustered person who is gasping and swal
lowing water. When one takes cramps In the water
It is vitally essential to maintain one's self-possession
and rest, when relief will speedily come; also turn
tbe cramped portion of the body to the sun. If pos
sible. It should be kept In mind, too. that only one
pound of power is required to move a 8 00-pound
body in the water, which I demonstrate with a line
of flags artsched to a pole and kept above water
with my foot- Yet even people who can swim will
sometimes stand and look on. apparently helpleas.
Venom of Toad Good Heart Stimulant
M
ODERN science is enlisting the toad in the
battle for human life.
By aa accidental discovery two pro
fessors of Johns Hopkins university huve
evolved from the venom of Bufo a sua, a
gigantic toad of the tropical countries,
a heart stimulant far more powerful
They have named the new drug "bufa-
than digital ia.
gin." indicative of lu origin.
And thus science, through the agency of Dra. John
J. Abel and David I. Macht cf Baltimore, has slumped
upon the truth of one of China's ancient traditions and
haa raised the croaking creature of the witches' chant
to a place of pharmacologic value, aays the St- Louia
Republic.
For many ages Chinese physicians have tried to
tell their western brethren of the remedial value of
toadakina. They derived from it a preparation they
called "senso." and declared it to be 60 to 100 time a
more powerful than digitalis. The west listened to
them, made an ineffective venture or two, and went
lu way.
Various European nationa, for a few centurie.
gave the powdered toadtkin a place among thera
peutic agenta. They aaid It was a remedy for dropsy,
but they dropped it. In 1&&3 it waa the joke of
akepUca.
But tbe venom of the toad has been recognized
from the earliest times. As the ' tzb" of the Talmud
it was differentiated from the frog, and was abhorred
aa a creature whose touch contamlnatea. Among the
primitive Indiana of New Granada its poiaon was used
on arrow heads employed In the chase for game. This
venom was powerful enough to kill a stag in two min
utes. The aborigines of the Amazon used It in place
of the curara cf other tribes, a few scientists made
note of it. and proceeded to forget It.
So It remained to two American Investigators to
discover anew the pharmacologic value of the toad.
They were Interested In poisons of animal origin, and
la the laboratory of Johns Hopkins university they
were testing the effects cf organic eye stuffs on a
tropical toad. The cxeature became irritated by the
action of the drugs and a milky substance was exuded
from lu parotid glanda. These glands are located just
back of the ears.
"Scraping off some of the secretion with a knife,"
they say in telling how they stumbled upon the new
drug, an account cf which appears in the Journal cf
the American Medical society, "we were struck by the
bluish-green discoloration which appeared on the
blade. This observation led us to test some of thf
diluted secretion." and they discovered they were
dealing "v.nh a substance which is identical with, or
closely allied to. the suprarenal principle. Further
wcrk demonstrated the presence cf a second body,
which, in respect to its pharmacologic action, is to be
classed with the digitalis group of poisons."
The suprarei.nl principle, or epineptrian, is ob
tained mostly from the sheep, although it is known
to exist in all of the higher animala.
These discoveries set the two scientists to work
In earnest. Through the assistance of Prof. E. A.
Andrews of Johna Hopkins university they laid In a
big supply of Bufo agua and "mi'.ked" of their venom
as tr.acy as sixty at one time. They did the "milking
with a forceps and caught the secretions In a bowl.
Then began a series of experiments with the crude
poison upon the lower animala. Cata. dogs and a
rsbblt were the victims. Given Internally with meat,
the drug had no effect; injected Into the blood. It
killed the cat. Administered to the dog. In a capsule.
It made the animal sick. And it was found to be a
rapidly acting ngglutinlxlng agent for the red cor
puscles of the rabbit.
The Investigators recite that the venom of Bufo
am a owes it efficacy as aa arrow poison to the pres
ence of the digitalis-like substance.
Thus has the legended jewel been found la the
head of the envenomed toad; and thus has aa agent
of death been converted Into aa agent for the preser
vation of life.
while persons are drowning before their eyes. That 1
is the result cf fear cf their own power la
the water.
Three prominent women one la America, ens la '
England, one In Australia some years ago competed
as to the most effective way to develop a graceful
body. The American woman adopted gymnasium
methods, the English woman took to dancing, and the
Australian practiced swimming. The latter received
the gold medal. Women are the mort natural swim
mers and can most easily acquire the art."
Bidding for Swimming Con trots.
At this time several cities are engaged In bidding
for the American swimming meeta. The New York
Athletic club applied for the quarter-mile swim and
fancy diving contest, which will probably be held at
Travers island on August 1. The half and one-mfla
races were asked for both by the Pittsburg Athletis
dub and the' Missouri Athletic club of St. Louis. Tha
ten-mile title win be competed fcr again In the Mis
sissippi river on August 19 under ths auspices of th
Missouri Athletic clnb.
The metropolitan championships will also have
several sponsors. Ths New Tork Athletic club haa
requested sanction for the half-mile raoe on Septem
ber I; the Deal Beach Swimming club for ths fane
diving on August IS. and one other event for Septera
ber 4.
The middle Atlantic titles will be competed for ta
Philadelphia on September 2. Ths 10 O-yard a, half
mile and mile are on the program.
As to the central and western championships, thers
Is still some doubt aa to where they will be run oft.
The entry of George Hodgson of the Montreal Ama
teur Athletic association is promised for some of ths
titular events, and there is every prospect of his
making the Americans turtle. He swam doss to
record figures in the Canadian championships snd
will take a lot of beating. His presence with that of
the Germ in cracks. Hitter snd Behrena. the Austrlaa
ToMas. and the Australian Smyrk. will give an ttter
national flavor ot the big carnivals.
Marathon swimming races of the senna! Chicago
river event will take rlsce on Anmrt It. and soma
easterners propone starting In It. The American Life
Raving society will ask aanctlon for a five-mile rae
In Long Island sound In Angurt.
Why Sot IUce in the West?
Some Omaha and Council Bluffs enthuslasu ar
fuaiy enough to raise the question. Why can't wa
have swimming races on Carter lake and Manawa,
if not In the Missouri river? Still, It will very likely
be some time in the future before the Interior cities
of the west will undertake competition for the swim
ming prises. Indulgence In the sport for lu ow
sake. Instead of for reward, will probably be ths rule)
la ths west for s good many years to corns.
Relative to municipal swimming places, under pun
He control, the one at St. Paul. Minn., on Harriet
lilac d, is the most successful and best knewn. De
troit, too. has gone to s good deal of expense to pro
Tide facilities st small cost, at Bells Isle park. These
are different altogether from the English swlmmin
clubs, which undertake to teach school ehildrsa to
swim as payment for the privilege granted to erect
club bouses cn the water front.
