Marcus E. Benson, 53, lumber manufacturer, attempted to save Florence Thomas, 31, and saved P. Eugenia Peterson, 31, from drowning, Clover Bend, Arkansas, August 29, 1909. Benson, a poor swimmer, and dressed, swam 55 feet to the women, who, unable to swim, had gotten into water 12 feet deep in the Black River at a point 70 feet from the bank. Holding to the hair of the women, Benson swam 20 feet, when Mrs. Thomas’s skirt entangled Benson’s legs, and she grasped him. He freed himself and swam 65 feet downstream with the two women, where another man took Mrs. Peterson, and Benson swam toward a launch with Mrs. Thomas. He lost his hold on Mrs. Thomas’s hair when a man on the launch caught hold of him and pulled him aboard. Mrs. Thomas was drowned. Benson was exhausted but soon recovered. 5266-490
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5266-490