THE LIFE-BOAT. JOURNAL of the National Xffe^Boat Jnstitution, (ISSUED QUARTERLY.)

THE LIFE-BOAT. JOURNAL OF THE National Xffe^Boat Jnstitution, (ISSUED QUARTERLY.) VOL. XXI.—No. 245.] IST AUGUST, 1912. [PRICE 3d. LIGHTING THE BEACH. SAILORS have always been famous for between walls or gate-posts for the the keenness of their vision, and more carriage to pass. Sometimes it lies over especially for a power, beyond that of a rough foreshore, where the greatest the average man of seeing clearly at care must be taken to avoid hummocks night; but of those who serve the sea, of rock or large boulders, and sometimes none perhaps has this gift in larger over a sandy beach full of deep pools, or measure than the coast fisherman, who " lows," as they are called colloquially ; forms so much the largest proportion or with patches of soft mud where the of the crews of our Life-boats. The wheels of the carriage may sink. nature of his -work will account for The larger types of boats, launched this. Long hours of. toil -with net or on what are known as " roller-skids," line, through moonless nights, have require even more careful manipulation developed the faculty; and the way than those which are small enough for he will take his boat into harbour on a transporting carriage. A couple of a dark night, or steer her through a inches too much to the right or left and narrow channel with only the black the keel misses the roller and buries water between the white of the breakers itself in sand or shingle. As these on either hand to guide him, always boats often weigh from 8 to 10 tons, strikes the landsman with astonishment the hoisting of one of them on to the and admiration. So that when he is skid again means much labour and required to launch a Life-boat at night consequent delay—delay which may be he brings to the task a trained eye and fatal to men's lives. a calm mind, and does not experience For these reasons the efficient lighting the confusion and sense of helplessness of the beach is a problem which has which nearly always beset the ordinary long engaged the anxious attention of man when called upon to perform some the ROYAL NATIONAL LIFE-BOAT INSTITU- familiar daylight duty in the dark. TION, and it is one which, as will be This is probably due not only to a shown later, has now been efficiently physical adaptation of the eye to its sur- solved. roundings, but also to some acquired In early days hand-lanterns, supple- instinct which enables him to feel what mented by various kinds of flares or he is doing even when he cannot see. torches, were the only lights available, Nevertheless, if accidents and delays except in those rare cases when some are to be saved, some sort of artificial friendly town lamp-post happened to light is an absolute necessity for an be in a position where its light could operation which requires so much care, be made use of. Ordinary lanterns, and in some cases so much precision of however, are of very little vise ; not only detail, as launching a Life-boat. Very because a general illumination of the often the boats have to be drawn to the scene of operations is required, rather scene of the wreck on their carriages, than isolated points of light; but because either by horses or men, a considerable it is apparently impossible to devise a distance from where they are kept, lantern which will give an all-round and the way is sometimes intricate and light and at the same time not go out winding, with only just sufficient room in the heavy gales in which it is so VOL, XXI.—No. 245.—LIFE-BOAT JOURNAL. 2 R 680 THE LIFE-BOAT. [Isx AUGUST, 1912. often necessary to launch a Life-boat, purpose of artificial light if it can be the so-named "hurricane" lamp being procured at a cheap rate." Those inte- a striking instance of the lucus a non rested in coincidences will hardly fail lucendo principle! Of the flares or to notice that the discoverer should bear torches, " duck lights," or more familiarly a name already so much honoured " ducks," as the fishermen call them, are throughout the civilized world for the the best. The origin of the name is invention of a lamp which has brought lost in obscurity, but as they are used safety to another class of worker, namely for docking ships at night it is probably the coal miner. a corruption of "dock light," a corrup- But Professor Davy did not live to tion possibly helped on its way by the see the fulfilment of his prophecy, as imagination of some bygone fisherman, for many years after this, the new gas who saw in it a remote resemblance to was little more than a chemical curiosity. a mallard on the wing, the lamp con- In 1860 Bertholet, the great French sisting of an oval-shaped iron vessel chemist, published his researches on the with a long horizontal spout, which subject,- and it was he who first called would correspond with the outstretched it acetylene; and after that time the neck of the bird. The body of this new gas was investigated by various vessel contains paraffin, and the spout chemists of all countries; but it was a thick cotton wick, which, when not until 1892 that the discovery of alight, burns with a fierce yellow glare. calcium carbide made its general pro- Several of them are generally used at duction at a low cost possible, and it the same time, and borne aloft by the was not until 1895 that the commercial hands of men specially told off for career of acetylene may be looked upon the purpose, they cast a picturesque as having been thoroughly established. effulgence on the scene. A more It is now, of course, familiar, almost elaborate form of paraffin flare is the painfully familiar, it may be said, to " comet" light, so called from its every user of country roads at night. resemblance to the tail of that heavenly Exhaustive experiments on the part body. This light may often be seen of the Institution with various kinds where gangs of men are working at of acetylene lights have led to the night on road or railway line. It adoption of a lamp which is now used depends on a mixture of air and at many Life-boat stations, and gives petroleum-gas under pressure, and when universal satisfaction. This is known in good order and properly worked it as the "Imperial Flare Light," a brilliant gives an excellent white light, but it white light which, used with a polished requires very careful attention, which metal reflector, is estimated to give it does not always get. a thousand candle-power, while a second But it is, undoubtedly, the advent of light of equal power can be used at the acetylene gas which has once for all same time at the end of a length of solved the question of how to light tubing. It is very simple in construc- the beach when launching a Life-boat. tion, does not generate heat, is practically This new compound of carbon and free from danger of explosion, and will hydrogen was discovered as long as not blow out. It takes but a few seventy years ago, and, as is so often minutes to light up, and is easily the case with useful discoveries, was transported over sand on a small wooden hit upon by accident while Edmund sledge, which is specially made for the Davy, then Professor of Chemistry to purpose. the Royal Dublin Society, was con- As an example of the power of this ducting a chemical experiment. He light, a few extracts from the report of announced his discovery at a meeting the original experiments may be quoted. of the British Association in 1836, and The place, a lonely beach on the concluded with these words: " From coast of East Anglia : the time, 9.30 p.m. the brilliancy with which the new gas on a dark night in January : the wind, burns when in contact with the atmo- a whole gale from the N.N.E. "The sphere, it is, in the opinion of the weather squally and gloomy, with rain, author, admirably adapted for the . sand drifting with the wind in IST AUGUST, 1912.] THE LIFE-BOAT. 681 dense showers." The light, placed on boiling surf in the teeth of the gale, the top of the sand hills and exposed to they reached the ill-fated vessel, and the full blast of the storm, is reported began the dangerous work of rescuing to have burnt steadily; the time could her crew of 28 men. When 4 of them, be read and the second hand of a watch however, had, with great difficulty, been distinguished at 130 yards, and print got into the boat, the Coxswain, John could be read at 200 yards. The men Corrin, as brave a seaman as ever held a were able to work almost as easily as tiller, felt that in the extreme darkness if it were daylight. It will, therefore, it would be hazardous to do any more; be generally admitted that the claim and he prepared to stand by and wait made in the earlier part of this article until daylight. It was at this moment has been substantiated. that a welcome beam of light fell on But an unexpected and quite in- the wreck, and showed it up with valuable use of this light has recently such brilliancy that the Life-boatmen been discovered, and the circumstances were able to recommence their work of are so interesting to all who care to rescue, and the remaining 24 hands hear about Life-boat work that it is were taken off and brought ashore in proposed to close by a brief description safety.

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