No one has so far achieved success.

McNally succeeded in reaching within three miles of the French coast, but he was then so exhausted that he had to be pulled into the boat and give up the attempt.

He had announced that he would swim the Channel, and had been some days in Dover, swimming over a part of the course, and getting himself in training for the final effort.

He started from the Dover pier, followed by a row-boat in which were two sailors, a newspaper man, and his trainer.

When he started out he had no intention of taking the swim.  He merely went out for exercise.  The weather was so foggy that his companions urged him to turn back and exercise later in the day.

He, however, kept on, and when he was about six miles from the shore the fog lifted, and wind and tide all being in his favor, he determined to make the trial then and there.

He was in the water fifteen and a half hours, and swam steadily all the time at the rate of about a mile and a half an hour.

Swimmers will be interested to know that McNally used the breast stroke continually, only occasionally changing to a side stroke for relief.

He never swam on his back.  He says that this method of swimming interferes with the muscles, and gets them out of condition for resuming the breast stroke.

Swimmers as a rule seek rest and relief by turning on their backs, so the opinion of an expert on such a subject is well worth having.

Apart from the interest we all feel in great feats of strength and endurance, such an attempt as that made by McNally is valuable to us, as it shows us the length of time it is possible for a swimmer to remain in the water without becoming exhausted.

Swimming is an accomplishment that every boy and girl should acquire, and the knowledge that if a swimmer keeps cool, and has his wits about him, he can remain in the water for a considerable period without danger of drowning, should be taken to heart by every lad and lass who contemplates boating as a part of the summer’s enjoyment.

G.H.  Rosenfeld.

INVENTION AND DISCOVERY

Fruit-picker.—­Fruit-picking is such an easy matter for boys that I think it is the girls who will chiefly appreciate this contrivance.  It too often happens that there will be a very tall tree with fruit well out of reach, and a girl at the foot of it who is not an expert climber.  Her mouth need no longer water in vain.  This fruit-picker is very ingenious.  It consists of scoop-shaped jaws worked by cords and springs, and mounted on a pole of suitable length.  Attached to the jaws is a long, funnel-shaped bag, which receives the fruit and allows it to drop without injury right into the fruit-picker’s hands.

[Illustration:  Fruit Picker]

[Illustration:  Safety-Brake]