A Direct Method English Course 5. [antikvár]

Lesson One SWIMMING Almost all animals and many birds can swim naturally, even those that are not accustomed to water. Humán beings, however, have to learn or be taught how to swim, though it is said that the children of the natives on the west coast of Africa and in the South Seas often swim before they can walk. Learning to swim is an important part of one's education, especially in modern times when there is so much more travel than formerly. Sometimes an aeroplane is forced to come down on the sea, and those who can swim have a better chance of being saved than those who can't. Similarly in a shipwreck-many a man owes his life to the fact that he has been able to keep afloat until a boát has come along and picked him up. And there is the danger of being caught in a flood, or of falling into the water accidentally. Not only may skill in swimming result in the saving of one's own life, but in the rescuing of others who are in danger of drowning. It is not very difficult to learn to swim. One must have confidence, and not be afraid of letting one's head go under water occasionally. Somé teachers first show their pupils how to float, which is quite easy, for one simply lies flat on the surface, head well back, with the ears just beneath the water and the arms stretched out. Once the pupil is confident that he can always keep his head above water and breathe, he soon learns the various strokes and is able to move through the water. A story is told of a sailor who one night feli overboard in the Mediterranean. He was 1