No life-boat station can be considered complete without a set of life-belts for the boat's crew, and the several local committees should insist upon having them, and upon the belts being put on, before the men go afloat. The qualities essential in a good life-belt, for life- boat purposes, are that it should be light, compact, and flexible, so as not to inconvenience the rower, for if it does so we may be sure it will not be worn. It should have ample buoyancy, but not more than sufficient, be little liable to damage, and economical in cost, or it will not be generally adopted. It is not easy to find a belt that combines all these requisites; we must, therefore, take that which comes nearest to it until a better is found.

Cork life-belts, from the indestructibility of the material, and as not liable to injury,, would stand first on the list for every purpose except for rowing in a boat; but it is found that cork belts are generally made too rigid to allow a man the free use of his arms and muscles. If this defect could be remedied, cork would be preferable to any other material in common use. A simple jacket or shirt made of old bottle corks, strung together by twine passed lengthways through the centre, as proposed by JOHN WHITE, commissioned boatman of the Coast- guard at Hornsea, is the best adaptation of cork we have seen. If some of the manufacturers of life-belts would take a hint from this jacket, and exercise their skill upon it, we believe that cork would carry the day.

There are, however, woods lighter than cork, and, we believe, equally impervious to moisture, but they are not easily procured in this country; such as the baobab (Adansonia digitata) of Senegal and Teneriffe, and the balsa-tree of Peru, of which the native makes his raft, or, as the Spaniards term it, balsa.

Several other materials have been tried, as dried rushes; but experience shows that these, although very light at first, cannot be depended upon, but will imbibe moisture, unless inclosed in a waterproof covering.

The life-belts worn by the six poor fellows recently drowned at Rhyl by the upsetting of the life-boat were of dried rashes! Hair also has been tried, and as an elastic padded shield for the chest would be good if not too rigid; but it must likewise have a waterproof cover. The only alternative seems to be air enclosed in a waterproof case, which can be inflated at pleasure.

The objection to this belt is that a puncture would be fatal to it, and thus we have a choice of difficulties. The experience of boatmen who use belts seems in favour of the air life-belt: these are used by the Yarmouth beachmen, who cover them with a piece of dungaree for protection. Seeing the risk that is incurred by a single air-case, it has been proposed to use one divided into two lengthways, or another divided into four compartments, to be inflated respectively at two or four valves or nozzles, half on the upper and half on the lower part.

In the following table are recorded the results of some experiments, carefully made at Shields in September last, when Captain WARD, E.N., Life-boat Inspector, put the belts on one after another, and gave each of them a fair trial in the water:— Life-Belts. Carte of Hull. SUver. No. 1. No. 2. No. 3, Us. ozs.3 104 4Cork.32 X 10 X H14 Ibs.Rigid."14s. Ibs. oss.2 83 0Cork.36 X 8 X 1SJlbs.Rigid.1'13s. 6d. Ibs. oz.2 04 0Cork shavings.37 X 54 X 144J Ibs.Rigid.' Ibs. ozs.3 12Hair.24xl2x2J20 Ibs.Rigid.*8s. 6d. Weight after one hour's immersion -Nature of buoyancy ------Length, width, and thickness, in inches -Will support in water -Rigid or supple ------- life-Belts. Macintosh. Edmiston. Wart, No. 1. No. 2. Ib. ozs.1 61 14Air.46 X 7 X 221 lbs.eSupple.7s. 6d. Ib. ozs.1 41 12Air.40 X 64 X 219 lbs.«Supple.Is. 3d. Ib. ozs.0 121 0Air.42 X 5 X 18 lbs.«Supple.12s. 6d. Ibs. ozs.2 6J3 0Air.46 X 10 X IJ28SSupple.18s. 6 f. Weight after one hour's immersion - Length, width, and thickness, in inches -Will support in water - Cost --------- a Four compartments, having 6 pieces of cork in each, or in all 24 pieces.

b Nine pieces of cork, 4 inches wide, 8 inches long, and 1 deep. It will barely support a man.

c This belt has been -withdrawn from the market, and would not be noticed here out that the life-belts at Scar- borough, Filey, and Bridlington, if not at Spurn, were of this sort in November last. It is unequal to support a man.

From 15 to 20 Ibs. would seem to be the proper amount of buoyancy for a man likely to be overboard with his clothes on, a The bulk of this belt, and the case not being waterproof, are the objections to it.

e Serviceable and economical belts. Messrs. Macintosh liberally supply these belts at cost price for ife-boat service.

f Barely sufficient buoyancy to support a man in the water.

8 Air-belt divided into 4 compartments, inflated by 2 valves at the upper edge and 2 at the lower. Proposed by Captain WARD, R.N., and made by Messrs. MACINTOSH, according to order.