Jean Mar:ie Ruhl, age l2, of Ralston, Neb., for her question:
Why does quicksand make you sink?
Sunshine beckons us all outdoors to bask in the warm weather and enjoy the balmy breezes. It also tempts us to explore the teeming world of nature. This is wonderful, but remember that the world of nature has many booby traps, some of them treacherous quicksands.
Most of us look back on our summertime adventures with pleasure and recall them as too wondrous for words. But, sad to say, there is another side to the picture, a grim side. And now is the time to think about it. A number of young persons never return from their summertime sprees. every year a number of our friends drown or meet with other fatal accidents. some are rescued just in time from quicksands, but every year a few lose their lives in these ghastly booby traps.
No one need become trapped in a quicksand. Accidents happen to those who do not knave haw to avoid them and to those who know and ignore the precautions. so, before we learn why the boggy booby trap does what it does, let's brush up on the rules to avoid it. Quicksands and bogs are soupy mixtures of water with sand or silty mud. They occur on beaches and river banks, by lakes and in swampy areas that are poorly drained.
The basic rule says: Be suspicious of all places where quicksands are likely to occur. If the area is familiar, you know where to expect them. But when you explore new territory, you cannot know where to expect boggy conditions underfoot. Never go exploring alone and always tell your plans to someone at home. In doubtful territory, prod every step ahead with a stout stick. Be ready to retreat fast if the ground is soggy.
We all hate to think of what happens when a person steps into a boggy booby trap. His feet sink down inch by inch, and the more he struggles to free himself the more quickly he is engulfed. The soupy mixture seems to drag and suck him dawn. Quicksand:; on tidal beaches actually do drag a person down. This happens when water in the sandy trap is drawn out to sea by the tide. It drags and pulls down a person trapped in this soupy sand.
But most boggy quicksands merely seem to drag a person down. The mixture of water and soupy mud is too thin to support his weight and too thick for swimming so he sinks. A sensible person stays calm and knows how to spread himself flat on the surface until rescue arrives. But some people struggle in panic, which only makes them sink deeper.
This summer, let's aim for a record, a tow low accident record. Lets think of all the ghastly things that could happen. These thoughts are much less scary than those accident reports that come too late for help. Instead of being scared, sensible people get busy and make plans to avoid trouble before it happens. They learn to swim and how to toast rather than roast in the sunshine. They know how to avoid lightning, quicksands and other hazards. Their summers are less risky and, therefore, happier.