THE LIFE -BO AT. JOUBNAL OF THE Bational lafe^Boat Jnstitution. (ISSUED QUARTERLY.) PEICB Sd. VOL. XVI.—No. 179.] IST FEBRUARY, 1896. [WITH WRECK CHART. SOME ACCOUNT OF THE GEOWTH OP THE EOYAL NATIONAL LIFE-BOAT INSTITUTION'S FLEET SINCE THE EE-OEGANIZA- TION OF THE SOCIETY IN 1850. II. (1873-1885.) IN the Life-boat Journal for November, accidents to Life-boats are recorded. The 1895, the development of the EOTAL first at Montrose, where a heavy sea NATIONAL LIFE-BOAT INSTITUTION'S fleet broke over the boat when out rendering is traced for the twenty-two years which service to a vessel, washing four of the elapsed between 1850, when the Society crew overboard ; they were recovered, but had got into regular working order, and unfortunately one died a few days after had begun to build its own boats and from the effect of the exposure. The place them on the coast, until 1872, when second case was of a very serious nature. we found that the fleet had increased to The Skerries (Ireland) boat was com- 233 Life-boats, and that in that year pelled to anchor in broken water, and there was a total of 261 boats on the the tide sheering the boat broadside on, coasts of Great Britain and Ireland; she capsized several times, six of her consequently there were but 28 which crew being drowned: this boat's pro- were not under the management of the portions were 32 ft. X 8 ft. The third Institution. accident was to the Eamsgate boat, one The fleet had reached such proportions of her crew being washed overboard at that it was hardly to be expected that it night, and nothing more was seen of would continue to increase by leaps and him. This boat had for twenty years bounds as it had been doing, and the been employed in Life-boat work, and " Annual Report" published in May, this -was the first life lost from her; she 1873, shows no addition to the number was a self - righting boat measuring of the Life-boats—a check, 40 ft. X 10 ft. 4 in. The terrible disaster 233 Lifeboats. no d°Ql>t—but the places to the Northfleet occurred in January. requiring the presence of a As many will remember, she was an Life-boat were getting few and far emigrant ship, and was run into whilst at between. However, 5 new boats were anchor near Dungeness, and nearly 400 built, and sent to the coast to take the lives were lost. place of old ones since the last Eeport. 1874. The list of stations in the 210 Life-boats.. The year 1872 had been one of ex- " Annual Eeport" published ceptional severity for gales. Three 1st May, 1874, shows an increase of 7, VOL. XVI.—No. 17(J.—LIFE-BOAT JOURNAL. 314 THE LIFE-BOAT. [Isi FEBRUARY, 1896. bringing the total to 240. The following One accident took place entailing the are the newcomers:— loss of one man. This occurred through the upsetting of the Shoreham boat on Douglas (Isle of Man), Dunwich. the dangerous bar of that harbour, but Brancaster. 1 additional. New Eomney. Longhope (Orkneys). against this single and sad loss it is St. Mary's Kogerstown pleasing to record that 713 lives were (Scilly). (Ireland). rescued. The list published for 1876 is in- The " Northumberland Keport" shows 1876. creased by four new stations, that at St. Mary's, Scilly, there-was in 254 Life-boats. Tjz . 1850 a Life-boat which was built in 1828 by Mr. Plenty, and whose dimensions Harwich. Cruden. were 26 ft. X 8 ft. 6 in., still in good Torquay. Eyemouth. condition, but no mention is made of a station there between 1850 and 1874. It is curious to note that such an The other stations are all new ones. important station as Harwich, with all A very efficient-sized self-righting boat the outlying sands in its neighbourhood, was adopted in 1873, viz., 37 ft. x 9 ft., should until this year have been with- proportions which have given great out a Life-boat. The "Northumberland satisfaction at those places where there Keport" shows that in 1850 a Life-boat, are sufficient men to work so large a boat. 28 ft. X 7 ft., maintained by the They are a sort of happy medium between Admiralty, existed. This boat was built the small boats which have to rely almost in 1845 by Mr. Thompson of Eother- entirely on their oars and the large boats hithe. Harwich is now (1895) so im- which rely entirely on sail as their motive portant that a steam Life-boat is kept power. there. The wreck of the Deutschland in Four lives were lost through the 1875 on the Kentish Knock, 24 miles upsetting of the Stonehaven Life-boat from Harwich, of course emphasised the on the bar, and the boat was seriously necessity of placing a boat at Harwich; damaged by being dashed against the it will be remembered that 57 lost their pier. lives on that occasion. In addition to the new stations 7 new Another frightful catastrophe in the boats were also sent to replace old ones same year, was the wreck of the Schiller, at 12 other stations. another German vessel, on one of the The Annual Eeport which rocks of the Scilly Islands, when no less .™S P*blished 15th Mar> than 331 of the passengers and crew 1875, shows the fleet in- perished. These two wrecks gave rise creased from 240 to 250. to a vast amount of correspondence urging the necessity of connecting light Cresswell. vessels and outlying lighthouses by Watchet. Hartlepool telegraph with the shore. A movement (3 boats). Seascale. Staithes. Balbriggan (Ireland). only now being really carried out into Hythe. practice. Seventeen new Life-boats were sent to A very large addition, considering how the coast to replace old ones. So 1875 well the coast was now protected. And was evidently a very busy year. all the above, excepting Hartlepool, were An addition of two in the new stations. 1877. list, published in "Annual 256 Life-boats. In addition to the above, 7 new boats Report" of May, 1877, shows were built and sent to replace old ones, the fleet'as numbering 256. but no great departure was made as to new dimensions. Dartmouth. Cemlyn. IST FEBBUABY, 1896.] THE LITE-BOAT. 315 Dartmouth apparently entered the field where a second boat was placed) entirely as a Life-boat station for the first time, new to Life-boat work. In addition to but the often quoted "Northumberland these stations, 2 new boats were sent to Beport" shows that Cemlyn as far back supersede old ones. as 1828 was a Life-boat station, possess- The list of persons rescued by the Life- ing in 1850 a boat of 26£ ft. x 6 ft. boats and shore boats for 1877 amounted dimensions, built by Harton after Palmer, to no less than 1,048, the third occasion and maintained by the National Ship- since the foundation of the Society that wreck Association. " four figures had been reached." Eleven new boats were despatched to A very large self-righting boat measur- replace old ones. ing 44 ft. X 11 ft. 1 in. was sent to Three distressing accidents entailing loss Bamsgate; this boat, though having of life occurred, viz., one at Kingstown, the very poor sailing qualities, was very Life-boat (32 ft. X 7 ft. 6 in.) with the much liked at Bamsgate, and for thirteen crew of a brig on board, making 19 all years did excellent work. told in the boat, was capsized whilst A boat whose dimensions were 37 ft. X under sail, three of the brig's crew were 8 ft. 6 in. was sent to the newly-formed lost and the 2nd coxswain was severely station, Port Patrick, where she still is, injured and died shortly afterwards. and remains a great favourite. At Whitby the Life-boat broached to After such an increase in and upset, and three of the crew perished 268 Life-boats.the fleet as was shown by presumably through their life-belts com- the last "Beport," it was ing off. This led to an improvement in hardly to be expected that the list pub- the belts by substituting buckles instead lished in 1879 would be much added to, of trusting to tying the strings of the and in fact it records the same number belts. of boats, namely, 268. However, 10 new The third case was at Bude, where boats were built and sent to replace old perhaps the heaviest broken water on ones. the coast of England is to be found. The past year had not been one of Here the boat was capsized, and although special results as to the number rescued 11 out of her crew of 12 regained her by the Institution's boats, but it was when she righted, the other was drowned; remarkable for three terrible calamities. he was the coxswain. Against these First, the loss of the training - ship accidents the list of saved for the year Eurydice and 366 lives, a disaster of a appears as 600. peculiarly distressing nature, seeing the The 1878 " Eeport" shows greater part of the crew were young men 268 Life-boats.that the P*8* year'liad been just beginning their career, and also that one of exceptional activity the ship was lost almost within sight of on the part of the BOYAL NATIONAL LIFE- many of their homes, to which they were BOAT INSTITUTION, for we find the fleet just returning after a foreign cruise.