eceding at the time, so that they
were enabled, with the assistance of the rope, to walk ashore. There are
several old men living now who well remember this circumstance.

[Sidenote: SWIMS ACROSS THE HUMBER.]

'Soon after this occurrence, I remember one Saturday afternoon, going
with some other boys of my own age, and swimming across the Humber, a
distance of two miles. We started from Swanland Fields (which was then
enclosed), Yorkshire, and landed at the Old Warp, Lincolnshire. Here we
had a long run and a good play, and then we recrossed the Humber. But in
doing so we were carried up as far as Ferriby Sluice, and had to run
back to where we had left our clothes in charge of some lads, but when
we got there the lads had gone, and we didn't know what to do. We sought
for our clothes a full hour, when a man, in the employ of Mr. Pease told
us that the lads had put them under some bushes, where we at last found
them. We were in the water four hours. This was an act of great
imprudence.

'On another occasion myself and some other lads played truant from
school, and went towards the Humber to bathe, but the schoolmaster, Mr.
Peacock, followed us closely. He ran and I ran, and I had just time to
throw off my clothes and leap into the water, when he got to the bank.
He was afraid I should be drowned, and called out 'If you will come back
I won't tell your father and mother.' But I refused to return, for at
that time I felt no fear in doing what I durst not have attempted when I
got older.

[Sidenote: SWIMS IN HESSLE HARBOUR.]

'On several occasions some young gentlemen, who were scholars at Hessle
boarding school, got me to go and bathe with them. They had plenty of
money, and I had none; and as they offered to pay me, I was glad to go
with them. One day while we were bathing, the eldest son of Mr.
Earnshaw, of Hessle, had a narrow escape from drowning. I was a long way
from him at the time, but I did all I could to reach and rescue him. He
was very ill for some days, and the doctor forbade him bathing for a
long time to come. This deterred us from bathing for awhile, but we soon
forgot it. We agreed to have a swimming match, and the boy that swam the
farthest was to have _sixpence_. We started at three o'clock in the
afternoon from the third jetty below Hessle harbour, and went up with
the tide. One of the boys got the lead of me and I could not overtake
him until we got opposite Cliffe Mill, about a mile and a half fr