UPRIGHT SWIMMING.
The upright position in swimming is recommended by some writers because in the " breast stroke" the head has to be bent back in order to raise the mouth and chin clear of the surface, and pain in the back of the neck is sometimes the consequence, especially if the swimmer is long in the water. This difficulty can be met by the swimmer changing position as the pain comes on.
In the "side stroke" the swimmer has only to incline the head toward the right or left shoulder, according to the side on which he prefers to swim, and thus the exercise may be greatly prolonged.
Some persons think that because mankind adopts the upright position in walking and running, they should swim in- the same posi tion. Those who advocate this method should remember that the greater the angle made by the legs the less the effective power, and that with an increase of depth there follows a proportionate increase of pressure, and consequently the more labor has to be expended, with but little progress compared with any other style of swimming.
Signor Oronzio de Bernardi, Professor of Swimming in the Naval Academy at Naples, Italy, is a strong believer in the upright position in swimming, going so far as to say that a good swimmer ought to make three miles an hour in this way. The writer does not think it possible, unless the wind and current come to the assistance of the swimmer ; but under any circumstance the labor incurred in this method renders it undesirable except for very short distances, or • simply as an exercise in ornamental swimming.
The upright, or perpendicultx, swimming is practised by the natives 'of the East Indies, who swim out to meet vessels nearing their shores, to secure employment in discharging cargo. They usually swim in the track of the vessels until picked up ; and, as they live on islands a distance from the mainland, on the vessel's return trip when nearing their homes, they drop into the water with their wages, in " kind," on their backs, and make for land ; and although the distance is considerable sometimes, and the current strong, their skill in swim ming, acquired from childhood, and their bravery, soon lands them safely at home. Having loads on their backs, they swim nearly upright, but when rid of their burden they revert to the horizontal position.
The French and German' military schools teach upright swimming, beginning with perpendicular floating (see Fig. 24) ; next they instruct the learners to use their limbs as in walking, stretching the arms on either side, and putting one leg before the other so as to balance the body ; simultaneously he gives a circular sweep with his arms on the water, striking the legs downward and forward, and when proficiency is acquired, he is able to perform the same motions in military drill perpendicularly in the water, that he generally executes vertically on land.