Dive

“ As diving is a very large subject, it is impossible to give in detail all the varied dives. There are three important dives everyone should know—the front, back, and shallow or racing dive. The beauty of diving is in the form.
The Front Dive.—The diver stands erect at the end of the spring board, falls forward, then as the body passes the balance point, the arms are raised straight over the head, knees bent; then spring out so that the body is parallel to water, arms above head; the body is curved downward and enters the water, arms, head, body, and legs forming a straight line. ”

“ The Racing Dive.—The swimmer stands with the body bent forward, arms back; then, as body falls forward, the knees are bent and the spring out is taken; the body strikes the water arms over head, the whole body in a straight line with the arms and legs. Do not dive so that you sink into the water, but try to strike it at the right angle, so that you will sink only a few inches. The arms start the stroke as soon as they reach the surface, then the legs commence as the arms are recovering. ”

“ In springing, jump out parallel to the water. The running dive is very similar.
Back Dive.—The diver turns with back to the water, heels over the edge of board into space; the arms are over head, body is curved backward; as the balance point is reached, spring out, turning body as it enters the water.
The position of the head is important. Ducking the head or throwing it too far back, added to stiffness of the body, makes the dive awkward. The legs should never be apart, but together; toes pointed, so that feet are not flat; the fingers should be together. ”

“ Nobody should attempt to learn how to dive when alone; even more than when learning to swim, he should have some one near at hand in case help is needed.
To learn how to dive, the beginner should first squat down on the edge of the float or spring-board from which he is to plunge into the water, holding his hands out before him just as he does in the breast stroke in swimming (described in this Department last week) —that is, with the arms extended, the hands horizontal, and the fingers close together, the thumb tips and the forefinger tips touching one another. ”

“ He who would search for them systematically must dive, and if he does not possess the proper costume and accessories his trips below are but brief, and not always profitable. When a diver boasts that he can remain under water two or three minutes—and the boast is very common—he has gauged his endurance by his sensations, not by the clock. ”

“ Regulations for Diving Competitions
Instruction to Judges. In making awards for points for each dive the judges shall have regard to the character of the respective dive to be performed, and shall take into consideration: The manner of the dive (proper carriage, confidence and form) , the force and speed of the dive, the entrance into the water and how the run or take-off is performed. When judging the carriage the individuality of the diver should be taken into consideration. The bearing in the air should be natural, easy, supple and graceful. ”

“ The back dive is always an interesting swimming feat. It brings into play considerable gymnastic ability, but, on [Pg 35] account of the confidence the performer has as to the certainty that the water will not hurt him much, barring a slight sting to the flesh, should he come down flat on his back, it does not require so much courage, in attempting the first trial, as tumbling on land, in which the back dive may be in a measure likened. ”

“ A chap will dive all day for the fun of it and half a stick of tobacco, but you can do most of the diving yourselves and save on the business. There are the diving suits, two of them. Good as when I got them, and the pump’s in the boat there; she’s in that canoe house, it’s a Clarkson, in good order. Say, boys, you’ve no reason to sneeze over this deal. Here’s an island, a living larder, pigs and fowl and taro and fish and fruit for nix, a pearl lagoon not half worked, diving suits and pump and a bit of trade, and all for that frousty old brown boat of yours. ”

“ It is good practise to get a friend to time your lengths, and get used to diving at the word "go." The best position for a racing dive is with the hands in front of the body, the knees bent, and the mouth open, so that you get all the air possible before striking the water. Always spring out as far as you can. ”

“ The longest time that a natural diver has been known to remain beneath the surface is about two minutes. Some pearl and sponge divers rub their bodies with oil, and put wool, saturated with oil, in their ears. Others hold in their mouth a piece of sponge soaked in oil, which they renew every time they descend. It is doubtful, however, whether these expedients are beneficial. The men who dive in this primitive fashion take with them a flat stone with a hole in the centre; to this is attached a rope, which is secured to the diving boat and serves to guide them to particular spots below. ”

“ While in ordinary swimming diving is indulged in merely for the pleasure derived therefrom, in racing diving is a very important factor. Frequently races are won mainly from the ability of the contender to dive properly ”

“ Before learning to dive, the beginner should accustom himself to keep his head under water as long as he can hold his breath, and he should practise opening the eyes under water in order to become used to the appearance of things below the surface. Diving, even more than swimming, demands that a boy or man should have confidence in himself. ”

“ This action causes the body to shoot towards the water at a proper angle and the dive is thereby made clean and effective. A useful accomplishment is that known as surface diving, be- cause it enables you to find and bring an object to the surface. The correct method of performing it is to first swim a few yards on the surface with the breast stroke, take a breath, then suddenly depress the head, look downwards, elevate the body at the hips, and at the same time make a powerful stroke with the legs and an upward stroke with the hands. ”

“ When the swimmer prepares to dive, he must take a full inspiration of air, the eyes must be kept open, the back made round, and the head bent forwards on the breast; the legs must be thrown out with force, and the arms and hands, instead of being struck forward as in swimming, must move backward. When the swimmer would ascend, the chin must be held up, the back bent inwards, the hands struck out high and brought sharply down, and the body will immediately rise to the surface of the water. ”

“ Watch their arms and legs and see how smoothly they kick themselves along and dive and come up. When you want to dive, keep your arms by your side or over your head, and kick, and when you want to come up, let your legs drag and paddle with your hands.”
We found a little basin among the rushes at the south end of the lake, about waist-deep and a rod or two wide, shaped like a sunfish’s nest. ”

“ They seem to become excited, occasionally, together. One dives, and is instantly followed by the other. They dive, too, sometimes, in a more splashy way, particularly once, when the male, I think, went down, kicking the water up behind him in an exuberant spirit. Once one of them—I think again the male—comes up with something in his bill, which he dabbles about on the surface, and seems to sport with, the other coming close up and appearing to take an interest. ”

“ The relief is sometimes so soothing that in long waits the droning of the air-valve will lull the diver into a sleep, from which he is suddenly awakened by a quick jerk on his wrist. Many divers, while waiting for the movements of those above, play with the fish, watch the crabs, or rake over the gravel in search of the thousand and one things that are lost overboard and that everybody hopes to find on the bottom of the sea. ”

“ Swimming on the back is easily learned and is not only a pretty trick but is very useful in giving us an opportunity to rest on a long swim.
Diving is also a branch of swimming that requires confidence rather than lessons. A dive is simply a plunge head first into the water. A graceful diver plunges with as little splash as possible. It is very bad form either to bend the knees or to strike on the stomach, the latter being a kind of dive for which boys have a very expressive though not elegant name. ”

“ They were not even then out of the wood; for shortly afterwards they sighted another of the enemy’s ships, and again they had to dive and go on their way beneath the water; but eventually they reached their port safely, happy to have escaped, but chagrined at not having been able to do any damage to the foe.
Because we do not reap the benefits in daily life of the work of the diver, few of us give him much [171] thought; but for a hazardous, heroic vocation, that of the man in the diving suit is probably without equal. ”

“ Leaping from the davits of the boat-deck above, they plunged downward, their faces and shoulders bowed forward, looking at the water. And only at the last moment did they abruptly straighten up and enter the water erect and true.
"It was a pretty sight. Their diving was not so good, though there was one of them who was excellent at it, as he was in all the other stunts. Some white man must have taught him, for he made the proper swan dive and did it as beautifully as I have ever seen it. ”

“ Slim, a tall, sharp-featured fellow, was our ace diver. Diving—like every other game, including flying and baseball—has its aces. Slim was our Guynemeier, our Walter Johnson. A twin-hitch, ex-service diver, Slim could have pointed to a fancy string of upside-down altitude records as long as your arm. ”

“ They will swim rapidly and dive, and come up and dive again every three or four feet, occasionally one pursuing another, will flutter in the water, making it fly, or erect themselves at full length on the surface like a penguin, and flap their wings. ”

“ You will find the water, even against your inclination, prevents you from sinking to the stone, and if you want to get it, you must use active force by diving. To encourage you to dive, remember that you are in shallow water, and can put your feet to the ground at any moment you wish to stand upright. ”

“ This dive, of course, only carries him to the false bottom of the net, and come up presently he must! Every eye now looks fishy, and every man's hand is armed for the first blow. One tall athletic fellow takes aim, and misses ”

“ A diver’s hands are the sole portion of his body outside the diving suit, the dress ending at the wrists, where thick india-rubber bands prevent the admission of water and expulsion of air. Should a diver meet a large groper, the only thing to be done is to either ascend twenty or thirty feet and drift out of the short-sighted fish’s range of vision or, if there is no tide or current, rise to the surface. ”

“ In a few places where the beds lie in shallow inlets and sheltered bays they can be dredged, but almost universally the oysters are gathered by divers. During the greater part of the year, when storms [178] rage, diving is very dangerous if not quite impossible; but when the song of the sea is hushed to low crooning, and the gentle roll of the waves does no more than playfully slap the boats in passing, then in the seas where men dive for pearls they gather to the harvest of gems.
There are two ways of diving—naked, and with dress. ”

“ It is indeed an 'extensive Volume,' of boundless, almost formless contents, a very Sea of Thought; neither calm nor clear, if you will; yet wherein the toughest pearl-diver may dive to his utmost depth, and return not only with sea-wreck but with true orients. ”

“ An hour afterward the raft and all the instruments necessary for the enterprise had drifted down to the bank where the boats were waiting.
The diving-dress is well known. By its means men can descend beneath the waters and remain there a certain time without the action of the lungs being in any way injured. The diver is clothed in a waterproof suit of India rubber, and his feet are attached to leaden shoes, which allow him to retain his upright position beneath the surface. ”

“ They are so expert in diving that when a number are pursuing a particular individual, and that one happens to dive, the whole of them will follow after, and finally all come up a hundred yards off. To bring up a pebble from a hole twenty feet deep is looked upon as a very common feat. ”

“ There is another department of the art now under consideration, in which our friend greatly excelled, namely, that of diving. There are few divers who do not feel a kind of exultation in their power over the element, and in their ability to move under the surface of the water with ease and pleasure. Half a century ago, diving was a difficult and dangerous art, demanding great skill and endurance; but modern science has given the professional diver an almost perfect accoutrement, by means of which he can literally walk down to the bottom of the sea, and telegraph for as much air as he requires. ”

“ These are examples of unassisted diving as practised by the Ancients. Their primitive method, however, is still in vogue in some parts of the world—notably in the Ceylon pearl fisheries and in the Mediterranean sponge fisheries, and it may, therefore, be as well to mention the system adopted by the natural, or naked, diver of to-day.
The volume and power of respiration of the lungs vary in different individuals, some persons being able to hold their breath longer than others, so that it naturally follows that one man may be able to stay longer under water than another. ”

“ When the diver reaches the sea bottom he tears off as much sponge within reach as possible, or picks up pearl shells, as the case may be, and then pulls the rope to indicate to the man in the boat that he wishes to be hauled up. But so exhausting is the work, and so severe the strain on the system, that, after a number of dives in deep water, the men often become insensible, and blood sometimes bursts from nose, ears and mouth. ”