Part 3
“Choose a place where the water deepens gradually, walk coolly into it till it is up to your breast, then turn round, your face to the shore, and throw an egg into the water between you and the shore. It will sink to the bottom, and be easily seen there, if your water is clear. It must lie in water so deep as that you cannot reach 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 actions of your hands and feet against the water to get forward till within reach of it. In the attempt you will find, that the water buoys you up against your inclination; that it is not so easy a thing to sink as you had imagined; 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 reach the egg, teach you the manner of acting on the water with your feet and hands, which action is afterwards used in swimming to support your head higher above water or to go forward through it. I would the more earnestly press you to the trial of this method, because though I think I satisfied you that your body is lighter than water, and that you might float in it a long time with your mouth free for breathing, if you put yourself in a proper posture and would be still and forbear struggling; yet till you have obtained this experimental confidence in the water, I cannot depend on your having the necessary presence of mind to recollect that posture and the directions I gave you relating to it. The surprise may put all out of your mind. For though we value ourselves on being reasonable creatures, reason and knowledge seem on such occasions to be of little use to us; and the brutes, to whom we allow scarce a glimmering of either, appear to have the advantage of us. I will, however, take this opportunity of repeating those particulars to you, which I mentioned in our last conversation, as, by perusing them at your leisure, you may possibly imprint them so in your memory as on occasions to be of some use to you. 1st. That though the legs, being solid parts, are specifically something heavier than fresh-water, yet the trunk, particularly the upper part, from its hollowness, is so much lighter than water, as that the whole of the body taken together is too light to sink wholly under water, but some part will remain above, until the lungs become filled with water, which happens from drawing water into them instead of air, when a person in the fright attempts breathing while the mouth and nostrils are under water. 2ndly. That the legs and arms are specifically lighter than salt-water, and will be supported by it, so that a human body would not sink in salt-water, though the lungs were filled as above, but from the greater specific gravity of the head. 3rdly. That therefore a person throwing himself on his back in salt-water, and extending his arms, may easily lie so as to keep his mouth and nostrils free for breathing; and by a small motion of his hands may prevent turning, if he should perceive any tendency to it. 4thly. That in fresh-water, if a man throws himself on his back near the surface, he cannot long continue in that situation, but by proper action of his hands on the water. If he uses no such action, the legs and lower part of the body will gradually sink till he comes into an upright position, in which he will continue suspended, the hollow of the breast keeping the head uppermost. 5thly. But if, in this erect position, the head is kept upright above the shoulders, as when we stand on the ground, the immersion will, by the weight of that part of the head that is out of water, reach above the mouth and nostrils, perhaps a little above the eyes, so that a man cannot long remain suspended in water with his head in that position. 6thly. The body continuing suspended as before, and upright, if the head be leaned quite back, so that the face looks upwards, all the back part of the head being then under water, and its weight consequently in a great measure supported by it, the face will remain above water quite free for breathing, will rise an inch higher every inspiration, and sink as much every expiration, but never so low as that the water may come over the mouth. 7thly. If therefore a person unacquainted with swimming, and falling accidentally into the water, could have presence of mind sufficient to avoid struggling and plunging, and to let the body take this natural position, he might continue long safe from drowning till perhaps help would come. For as to the clothes, their additional weight while immersed is very inconsiderable, the water supporting it, though when he comes out of the water, he would find them very heavy indeed. But, as I said before, I would not advise you or any one to depend on having the presence of mind on such an occasion, but learn fairly to swim, as I wish all men were taught to do in their youth; they would, on many occurrences, be the safer for having that skill, and on many more the happier, as freer from painful apprehensions of danger, to say nothing of the enjoyment in so delightful and wholesome an exercise. Soldiers particularly should, methinks, all be taught to swim; it might be of frequent service either in surprising an enemy, or saving themselves. And if I had now boys to educate, I should prefer those schools (other things being equal) where an opportunity was afforded for acquiring so advantageous an art, which, once learned, is never forgotten.”
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THE STORMY PETREL.
[Illustration: A petrel flying over the sea.]
[From ‘English Song and other Poems, by Barry Cornwall.’]
A thousand miles from land are we, Tossing about on the roaring sea; From billow to bounding billow cast, Like fleecy snow on the stormy blast: The sails are scattered abroad, like weeds, The strong masts shake, like quivering reeds, The mighty cables, and iron chains, The hull, which all earthly strength disdains, They strain and they crack, and hearts like stone Their natural hard proud strength disown.
Up and down! up and down! From the base of the wave to the billow’s crown, And amidst the flashing and feathery foam The Stormy Petrel finds a home,-- A home, if such a place may be, For her who lives on the wide wide sea, On the craggy ice, in the frozen air, And only seeketh her rocky lair To warm her young, and to teach them spring At once o’er the waves on their stormy wing!
O’er the deep! O’er the deep! Where the whale, and the shark, and the sword-fish sleep, Outflying the blast and the driving rain, The Petrel telleth her tale--in vain; For the mariner curseth the warning bird Who bringeth him news of the storms unheard! Ah! thus does the prophet, of good or ill, Meet hate from the creatures he serveth still: Yet he ne’er falters:--So, Petrel! spring Once more o’er the waves on thy stormy wing!
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GOOD OLD TIMES.
[From ‘Combe’s Constitution of Man.’]
A gentleman who was subject to the excise laws fifty years ago described to me the condition of his trade at that time. The excise officers, he said, regarded it as an understood matter that at least one half of the goods manufactured were to be smuggled without being charged with duty; but then, said he, “they made us pay a moral and pecuniary penalty that was at once galling and debasing. We were required to ask them to our table at all meals, and place them at the head of it in our holiday parties; when they fell into debt, we were obliged to help them out of it; when they moved from one house to another, our servants and carts were in requisition to perform this office, and by way of keeping up discipline upon us, and also to make a show of duty, they chose every now and then to step in and detect us in a fraud and get us fined; if we submitted quietly, they told us that they would make us amends by winking at another fraud, and generally did so; but if our indignation rendered passive obedience impossible, and we spoke our mind of their character and conduct, they enforced the law on us, while they relaxed it on our neighbours, and these being rivals in trade undersold us in the market, carried away our customers, and ruined our business. Nor did the bondage end here. We could not smuggle without the aid of our servants, and as they could, on occasion of any offence given to themselves, carry information to the head-quarters of excise, we were slaves to them also, and were obliged tamely to submit to a degree of drunkenness and insolence that appears to me now perfectly intolerable. Farther, this evasion and oppression did us no good, for all the trade were alike, and we just sold our goods so much cheaper the more duty we evaded, so that our individual success did not depend upon superior skill and superior morality in making an excellent article at a moderate price, but upon superior capacity for fraud, meanness, sycophancy, and every possible baseness. Our lives were anything but enviable. Conscience, although greatly blunted by practices that were universal and viewed as inevitable, still whispered that they were wrong; our sentiments of self-respect very frequently revolted at the insults to which we were exposed, and there was a constant feeling of insecurity from the great extent to which we were dependent upon wretches whom we internally despised. When the government took a higher tone and more principle, and greater strictness in the collection of the duties were enforced, we thought ourselves ruined; but the reverse has been the case. The duties, no doubt, are now excessively burdensome from their amount, but that is their least evil. If it was possible to collect them from every trader with perfect equality, our independence would be complete, and our competition would be confined to superiority in morality and skill. Matters are much nearer this point now than they were fifty years ago, but still they would admit of considerable improvement.”
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_Arab Account of Debtor and Creditor._--Corporal punishments are unknown among the Arabs. Pecuniary fines are awarded, whatever may be the nature of the crime of which a man is accused. Every offence has its fine ascertained in the court of justice, and the nature and amount of those graduated fines are well known to the Arabs. All insulting expressions, all acts of violence, a blow however slight, (and a blow may differ in its degree of insult according to the part struck,) and the infliction of a wound, from which even a single drop of blood flows, all have their respective fines fixed. The judge’s sentence is sometimes to this effect:--(Bokhyt and Djolan are two Arabs who have quarrelled and fought.)
Bokhyt called Djolan “a dog.” Djolan returned the insult by a blow upon Bokhyt’s arm; then Bokhyt cut Djolan’s shoulder with a knife. Bokhyt therefore owes to Djolan--
For the insulting expression 1 sheep For wounding him in the shoulder 3 camels
Djolan owes to Bokhyt--
For the blow upon his arm 1 camel Remain due to Djolan, 2 camels and 1 sheep.
_Burckhardt’s Notes on the Bedouins and Wahabys._
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Transcriber’s Notes
This file uses _underscores_ to indicate italic text. New original cover art included with this eBook is granted to the public domain. Itemized changes from the original text:
• p. 139: Added period after heading “A Golden Rule.” • p. 139: Added period after phrase “which is the best master to serve--INDUSTRY or IDLENESS.” • p. 142: Replaced closing single quotation mark with closing double quotation mark after phrase “Metayer Rent.” • p. 143: Added closing double quotation mark after phrase “all intimate ties with him are broken and he is called ‘brother’ no more.”