I confess I thought ho longer
of saving Drewett's life, but only of saving my own. We struggled
there in the water like the fiercest enemies, each aiming for the
mastery, as, if one were to live, the other must die. We sank, and
rose to the surface for air, solely by my efforts, no less than three
times; Drewett getting the largest benefits by the latter, thus
renewing his strength; while mine, great as it was by nature, began
gradually to fail. A struggle so terrific could not last long. We
sank a fourth time, and I felt it was not to rise again, when relief
came from an unexpected quarter. From boyhood, my father had taught me
the important lesson of keeping my eyes open under water. By means of
this practice, I not only _felt_, but _saw_ the nature of
the tremendous struggle that was going on. It also gave me a slight
advantage over Drewett, who closed his eyes, by enabling me to see how
to direct my own exertions. While sinking, as I believed, for the last
time, I saw a large object approaching me in the water, which, in the
confusion of the moment, I took for a shark, though sharks never
ascended the Hudson so high, and were even rare at New York. There it
was, however, swimming towards us, and even descending lower as if to
pass beneath, in readiness for the fatal snap.
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