Charles H. Lawrence, 33, farmer, saved F. Clyde Cobb, 33, taxidermist, from drowning, Kalispell, Montana, June 8, 1913. Cobb’s boat was caught in a whirlpool while he was in it on the Flathead River, which was at flood stage, and it was sucked beneath the surface. Coming to the surface, Cobb clung to the boat and drifted two miles. Lawrence, who was a poor swimmer and boatman, went to the rescue in a small leaky boat and, paddling through a whirlpool 50 feet in diameter, reached Cobb 250 feet from the bank, where the water was 20 feet deep. Cobb grasped the boat, which was half full of water. Lawrence headed for a jam of logs about 1,700 feet further downstream at the entrance of a branch channel. When the boat was three feet from the jam, Lawrence jumped and landed on the logs on hands and knees. The boat was sucked under the jam at the same instant. Cobb grasped a log, and Lawrence quickly pulled him up on the jam. Both reached the bank in safety. 11598-1106
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11598-1106