From the archives: The swim across the Channel
Captain Webb's second attempt to swim across the Channel has been successful. He started from the Admiralty Pier in Dover at four and a half minutes to one yesterday afternoon, when the wind and tide were in his favour. He was not in such a perfect state of training as when he made his first experiment. He was accompanied by two rowing boats and a lugger carrying the representatives of the press. The lugger was under the command of Mr Toms, who acted as pilot.
Under the instructions of Toms, Webb dived into the sea whilst the tide was at its ebb, and he was carried by it in a westwardly direction. He commenced with and maintained during the journey the chest stroke, and made an average of from 18 to 20 strokes a minute, his movements indicating from first to last that he was not only a man of great strength, but that he was also a graceful swimmer.
By 1.30 Captain Webb had made excellent progress. Mr Payne and Mr Wilkinson, the referees, estimated his speed at the rate of a mile and a half an hour. He indulged in refreshments, in the shape of half a pint of beer, at a quarter to three, receiving the stimulant from his cousin, who was in one of the rowing boats. He was then about three miles from the Admiralty Pier, and was passed by the afternoon mail packet from Calais and by the twin steamer Castalia. Bearings were now taken, but a slight haze prevented any satisfactory result being arrived at.
At a quarter to four o'clock Captain Webb again took some ale, and it was then agreed that he was quite five miles from Dover. The heat of the sun now became somewhat oppressive, but the fog was rapidly rising, and the Dover cliffs, which had been for some time obscured, were again visible. Captain Webb still swam vigorously, displaying better form every hour, and replied cheerfully to the inquiries made by those in the lugger every time it came within hail of him. He was occasionally surrounded by porpoises, none of which, however, came too near to him, and they all escaped the pistol shots aimed at them from the boats.
At five o'clock the Captain enjoyed some beef tea, and he then proceeded to resume his task with the remark that he felt capital. He was now about six miles from Dover, and was being fast carried by the tide to the eastward, or in the direction of the Goodwin Sands. Forty minutes later he once more indulged in beef tea. He said that he did not experience any discomfort from the water, the porpoise oil with which he had anointed himself before starting no doubt proving to be a valuable means of maintaining his normal temperature.
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