Swimwear

“ You strike the water with your right and left legs, when swimming on the back, at each extension of the legs, lifting them up out of the water one after another, you strike the water so that it starts into the air. Those who are most expert at this bring their chins towards their breast at each extension. There are some who, not satisfied with going so far, only, to perform the business more gracefully, lift up their legs higher than others, strike the water at cach extention, sometimes with the right leg, sometimes with the left, and at the same time turn the whole body. ”

“ For bathing, a girl must either be willing to have her hair well soaked or else to put a cap on so tightly that it cannot be loosened. To hesitate to try a dive for fear of getting wet hair spoils much of the sport of swimming. Each moment of hesitation makes her more convinced that perhaps, after all, she had better not try that dive, because she probably would not be able to do it anyway. The lack of confidence is disastrous. I have known girls who could swim perfectly well in the shallows but could not keep up at all in water out of their depth. ”

“ 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. ”

“ Along with the increased popularity of swimming and the appearance of the knitted swimming suit we note the rapid development of the ready-to-wear swim suit industry. During the last half of the 19th century women frequently made their own bathing dresses with the aid of paper pattern supplements that appeared in women’s magazines of the period. Dressmakers also may have used these patterns to outfit their clients for their summer excursions. On the other hand, ladies in the large cities could purchase bathing dresses at furnishing stores or rent them at the large public beaches. ”

“ But we adepts in swimming plunged in head first from a sort of trapeze, or from the roofs of the dressing-rooms, making a somersault on the way. The swimmers did the prettiest tricks in the water. Young married women met in the middle to shake hands and hold long conversations. Scores of young girls used to romp about, ducking each other under and climbing on each other's backs for support, and children of three or four used to swim about like whitebait, in and out, among us all. ”

“ After this a little more plain swimming will lead, perhaps, to a miscellaneous string of obstacles, all across boats, baskets, punts, barrels, canoes—anything, and nearly everything that floats—loosely tied together. Here, more than anywhere, the swimmer requires generalship. His eyes are below the level of the obstruction, and he has not the advantage of a general view. A good large broad-beamed boat, stern on, offers an opportunity not to be despised, affording a fairly easy pull up and promising a clear run through the barricade. ”

“ In England swimming seems to have been more popular among women than it was in the United States. While encouraging its readers to swim, during the late 1860s, Queen’s Magazine used forceful language of a kind that was not found in American publications until the late 19th century. If swimming was more acceptable as a feminine exercise in England it is understandable why English women were more receptive to a functional, skirtless bathing suit—especially since it was worn only in the presence of other women. ”

“ Bathing costume did not evolve gracefully into the swim suit, nor was there an abrupt replacement of one garment for the other. Instead, a garb designed for swimming emerged in the 19th century as tentatively and as poorly received as had the suggestion that women should be active in the water. The growing popularity of swimming and the changing status of women eventually made it possible for the swimming suit to replace the bathing suit in the 1920s. By the 1930s, however, this trend was accelerated by a growing advertising and ready-to-wear clothing industry. ”

“ If he travels after nightfall, the chances are his craft will steal unawares close to a black head above a swimming body. With both wind and current meeting the canoe, no suspicion of his presence catches the scent of the sharp-nosed swimmer. ”

“ Also at certain seaside resorts of the same period, a special time was set for men to practice the art of swimming without clothing, but women had no similar opportunity. When the ladies entered the water they were clothed from head to toe because men were also present. The description of women’s bathing costume, which will appear in a later section, clearly shows that women could do little more than try to maintain their footing. ”

“ I have always thought that to swim thus with steady and deliberate arm action, the water parting at the chin and rising just to the root of the underlip, was the most dignified and manly attitude the human being could put himself in. Cow-fashion was a burlesque of this, and the swimmer reared out of water with each stroke, creating tidal waves. It was thought to be vastly comic. Steamboat-fashion was where a fellow swam on his back, keeping his body up by a gentle, secret paddling motion with his hands, while with his feet he lashed the water into foam, like some river stern-wheeler. ”

“ In the proper position it will support the head above water, while, if fastened around the waist, it is apt to sustain the lower part of the body and submerge the head. If compelled to take to the water, divest yourself of the greater part of your clothing, and have your feet bare, or, at best, only stockinged. Ladies should reject their corsets under such circumstances, as they are serious hindrances to breathing in the water, and it is hardly necessary to say that long skirts are great impediments to swimming, or even to floating. ”

“ At this date swimming in the United States was considered a masculine skill, exercise, and recreation; only men were provided with a real opportunity to swim at popular watering places. As described previously, Harper’s Bazar reported that American women in general rejected the European bathing suit made with long trousers and a skirtless waist. ”

“ Should the swimmer wish to turn on his back, he must keep one leg still, and embrace the water beside him with the other, and he will turn to that side. To shew the feet, he must turn himself on his back, and bend the small of it downwards, supporting himself by his hands to and fro immediately above his breast, and hold his feet above the water. Swimming under water is performed by the usual stroke, the head being kept a little downwards, and the feet struck out a little higher than when swimming on the surface. ”

“ When all the day has been passed in swimming, and the evening paddled out in sport, away float these everlasting voyagers in a luxurious hydrostatic bed, and are borne through the night wherever the current chances to carry them; and, with only an occasional instinctive gulping for a mouthful of air to replenish the exhausted swim-bladder, on they go till early dawn—bursting upon a pair of unprotected eye-balls, gives the owners thereof timely notice to descend deeper, and to strike out fins and tail in whatever direction waking thoughts may suggest. ”

“ I had a brand-new diving dress, and, above all, queer as this may sound, I had a specially new outfit which was my chief pride: a frock-coat and pearl-gray trousers, waistcoat modestly fancy—my real tastes in that direction having been gently suppressed by an honest tailor—and a plug-hat whose shininess fairly put my eyes out. And up to that time I had had no opportunity to wear that suit except in front of the mirror in my hiding-place! ”

“ Petticoats could be fastened to buttons sewn around the waist of the combination. This streamlining of undergarments helped the lady of fashion to maintain a desirably svelte figure. Apparently the advantages of this streamlining were obvious, because it was not long before women were quietly adapting this style to bathing dresses. By the 1890s the skirt was often omitted for swimming (fig. 12) , giving the more active women more freedom in the water. Following popular dress styles, the top of the bathing costume was bloused over the belt. ”

“ As previously stated, swimming was practiced through the Middle Ages as a useful skill for men. Gradually this activity became regarded as also a healthful exercise and then as a recreation. Finally by the late 19th century swimming also had achieved the status of a competitive sport—but for men only. It was not until the 1920s that social attitudes permitted women the same full use of the water as men. ”

“ The 1918 spring catalog showed two one-piece knitted outfits suitable for swimming in striking contrast to the surplice bathing dresses that were also offered. By 1920 all of the bathing costumes illustrated in the Sears, Roebuck and Co. Catalog were of the more abbreviated and functional type.
In 1918 Annette Kellerman recommended that serious swimmers wear close-fitting swimming tights or the two-piece suits commonly worn by men. Being [28] quick to admit that this costume would not be tolerated at all beaches, she told dedicated swimmers to
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“ A striking effect is frequently obtained by the wearers of these two-fifths-piece bathing suits when they stroll out on the beach in short, hip-length capes which hang open negligently at the throat. One sees nothing below the cape but several square yards of flesh, and nothing above the cape but several square feet of flesh. It is a sight that gives one pause. When one sees it for the first time, he feels that he ought to hunt up a life-saver sometime later in the day and ask him to go and speak to the young woman and tell her that she has come out without her two-fifths-piece bathing suit. ”

“ In swimming competitions, a minimum of clothing must be combined with the demands of modesty. In England, the regulations of the Swimming Clubs affiliated to the Amateur Swimming Association, require that the male swimmer's costume shall extend not less than eight inches from the bifurcation downward, and that the female swimmer's costume shall extend to within not more than three inches from the knee. ”

“ When you have gone so far in that the water reaches your breast, you are to put yourself in a right posture for swimming, by lying down gently on your belly, keeping your head and neck upright, your breast advancing forward, and your back bending ; then withdraw your legs from the bottom stretching them out in imitation of a frog; stretch out your arms also, and spread them open then draw them in again towards your breast: strike forward as may strokes as you can, first with your hands, and then with your feet, and you will find this way easy and pleasant. ”

“ Upright swimming.—This is a new mode of swimming, introduced by Bernardi, a Neapolitan, and consists in adopting the accustomed motion of the limbs in walking. It gives great freedom to the hands and arms, affords a greater facility of breathing and of sight. It is true, that a person swimming in an upright position, advances more slowly, but as the method is more natural, the person is [Pg 84] able to continue his course longer, and can remain with greater safety in the water. ”

“ It was a general characteristic of the 1930s that swimming suits covered less of the bather. The attached trunks of the swimming suit no longer extended down the leg but it survived unseen beneath the vestigial remains of a skirt.
The diminishing coverage of the swim suit was also related to a changing attitude toward sun exposure. For years women had protected their delicate skin to prevent any unladylike, healthy appearance. The barrier against a lady having a tan deteriorated as women became accepted into athletic activities. By 1930, women eagerly sought a sun tan. ”

“ All that the swimming master has to do, is just to thrust the little creatures into a pair of gum-elastic trousers, and a cravat inflated, and then pitch them in, one after another—only taking care not to put on the trousers without the cravat. ”

“ Taking the Plunge.
31Boys and girls ought to be taught swimming at school as they are taught gymnastics and calisthenics—as a matter of course. We ought, as islanders, to be swimmers, and it is to be regretted that we are not: swimmers are of necessity bathers, but bathers are not always, as they should be, swimmers. The percentage of swimmers in this country is perhaps considerably less than might be expected by those who have not given any thought to the subject, and yet the art itself is a necessary one, easy to acquire, healthy, and sometimes of the greatest possible service. ”

“ Finally, stand up to the chest, face the shore, lean forward, and push off and try a stroke—the feet will easily recover themselves. Presently two strokes will become possible, after awhile three; that is swimming. The sea is so buoyant, so beautiful, that let them only once feel the sense of floating, and they will never rest till they have learned. Ladies can teach themselves so quickly, and swim better than we do. The best swimming I ever saw was done by three ladies together: the waves were large, but they swam with ease, the three graces of the sea. ”