ISLE OF MAN.

XX. and XXI.—DOUGLAS.

No. 1. The Manchester and Salford Sunday Schools, 32 feet long, 7 feet 6 inches beam, 10 oars.

No. 2. The John Turner- Turner, 35 feet long, 9 feet beam, 10 oars.

IF the climate of the Isle of Man can justly be boasted of by the Manxmen as milder than many of the most popular winter watering-places in the South, its coasts, it must be admitted, are subject to as great an amount of tempest and change as any other portion of these islands; and in the early part of the present century the list of wrecks on its shores was annually a large one.

Good harbours, lights, and steam, by giving additional facilities for trade, greatly increased commerce, and, at the same time, greatly reduced the annual average number of wrecks.

At Douglas, the capital of the island, the Insti- tution has found it necessary to station two Life- boats. The No. 1 boat, which is the smaller, is kept in a house on the esplanade to the north of the town, and is used for wrecks in the shallow part of the bay, and on the sands and shoals on that side of it. The No.-2 boat, which is intended specially to work under sail, is kept always afloat just inside the breakwater at the entrance of the harbour, and finds her work in standing out under canvas to remove the crews of vessels which, having been obliged to anchor in a dangerous position, are in expectation of parting from their cables.

The Isle of Man, from its situation midway between the three ever contending countries of England, Ireland, and Scotland, until recent times was not uncommonly the scene of struggles between the rival nations. The Manxmen, how- ever, had always this great advantage, that an attack from either of the three powers called the other two to their assistance. And it was always NOVEMBER 1, 1876.] THE LIFE-BOAT.

621 the sure refuge of those individuals of either country who sought shelter from the oppression of their own rulers. To the Isle of Man the Druids retreated from Anglesea before the persecution of the Romans under Suetonius Paulinus in 61, and Druidical remains still abound in the island.

It remained, however, under the government of the King of Scotland till the times of Baliol and Bruce, when it passed provisionally into the hands of Edward I., and finally Henry IV. granted it to Sir John Stanley, who became King of Man, married the heiress of Knowsley, and was about the year 1400 also Lord Lieutenant of Ireland.

The Lordship of Man remained in the Derby family till about 1736, when from lack of male heirs it passed into the hands of the Duke of Athole, with whom it remained till the rights of that family were purchased by the British Parlia- ment in 1765; further grants were, however, made to the same family on the ground of inadequate compensation in 1805, and so late as 1829 nearly half a million more was voted to compensate the then Duke of Athole for his remaining rights, civil and ecclesiastical.

Sir William Hillary, who, about the year 1820, commenced a public agitation which resulted in the establishment of " the ROYAL NATIONAL INSTI- TUTION for the Preservation of Life from Ship- wreck," and which, in later years, became the present ROYAL NATIONAL LIFE-BOAT INSTITUTION, resided in the Isle of Man, and one of the first local Life-boat Associations was established by him there in 1826. It is a significant fact, illustrative of the wondrous strides made in recent years towards lessening the perils of the sea, that between 1821 and 1846, 144 wrecks took place on this island, entailing the loss of 172 lives, while during the last five years there have been scarcely a dozen wrecks on the coast, and the loss of life has not been very large. Yet the commerce has greatly increased since the beginning of the century.

One of the prominent features in the wild scenery of this part of the coast is the rocky islet of St. Mary-at-Conister, a reef and ledge of rock in the centre of the bay, which is covered at high water, and which was the frequent scene of appalling wrecks. In 1833 Sir William Hillary built on it the present tower, to indicate its posi- tion to mariners, and afford refuge to the crews of vessels wrecked on the rocks at its base. On the mainland, opposite this island-tower, stood, until the beginning of this century, an ancient British fortress, in which Caratack, brother of Boadicea, found refuge from the fury of the Romans after the defeat and death of that Queen and her children.

From the " History of the Life-boat and its Work," by RICHARD LEWIS, Esq., we learn that in 1825 Sir William assisted in saving the lives of 62 persons from the steamer Glasgow, and 11 per- sons from the sloop Fancy; between 1827 and 18 2 he saved many other lives, " but his greatest success was on the 20th of November, 1830, when he saved in the Life-boat 22 men, the whole of the crew of the mail steamer St. George, which became a total wreck on St. Mary's Rock. On this occa- sion he was washed overboard among the wreck, with three other persons, and was saved with great difficulty, having had six of his ribs frac- tured." The Honorary Secretary of the Douglas Branch is THOMAS BAWDEN, Esq., to whom the Public and the Institution are indebted for his careful super- intendence of this important Life-boat station; 40 lives have been saved from the No. 1 station since 1868.

XXII.—RAMSEY (ISLE OF MAN).

The Two Sisters, 33 feet long, 8 feet 6 inches beam, 10 oars.

AT the north end of the Isle of Man is the town of Ramsey, having a small harbour inside the mouth of the river Sulby; the river is narrow, and the entrance has to be protected by strong works of masonry and a pier.

Vessels use the anchorage outside extensively during westerly winds, but if caught at anchor with an easterly or north-easterly gale they are placed in a most dangerous position, as, though the mouth of the river is under their lee, it can only be taken at favourable states of the tide and in moderate weather.

The Life-boat Two Sisters is therefore kept in a house on the esplanade, near the entrance of the river, and, on her carriage, is run down the beach in the immediate vicinity of her station, and is generally, except in the case of heavy on-shore gales, got afloat without difficulty.

There is always a heavy sea to contend with, and it is fortunate for the distressed ships which require the services of the Life-boat that the crew is composed of Ramsey fishermen, who are reckoned among the best of the proverbially hardy Manxmen. Most of the wreck work is performed by the Life-boat under sail.

Since the establishment of this Station in 1868, through the Manchester Branch, 65 lives have been saved by the Life-boat, besides which several ships and cargoes have been saved entire by timely assistance, and much other aid has been rendered to vessels in need of it.

The Rev. GEORGE PATON, the Rector of Ram- sey, is the valued and energetic Honorary Secre- tary of this branch.

XXIII.—CASTLETOWN (ISLE OF MAN).

The Commercial Traveller, 32 feet long, 7 feet 6 inches beam, 10 oars.

THIS town is situated at the mouth of a small stream, named the Silver-burn, on the extreme south side of the island. The little stream empties itself into Castletown Bay, which is land-locked for three-fourths of a circle, but is open to the south-west; the shores are very rocky, and vessels, though they may use the anchorage with the wind in any other direction in safety, are placed in a dangerous position if a south-west gale sets in, and getting to sea in a sailing vessel is then most difficult. The Life- boat, therefore, may be called on to remove crews from vessels in danger of parting from their cables, and also may be wanted to rescue the crews of stranded vessels inside or outside Castletown Bay. Forty lives have been saved from this station.

The boat-house is built adjoining the castle of Rushen, which occupies the prominent place in the centre of the town. The boat is kept on a carriage, and can be launched, when the tide suits, either in the stream or from the coast under the lee of the pier, or be conveyed by land to other parts of the coast.

The castle of Rushen, remarkable for the great thickness and strength of some parts of the walls, is in good preservation, and is used as a prison.

A castle was built by the Danes here about 960, but the present castle was probably erected in the thirteenth century. In the southern tower is still preserved the quaint strange-looking clock presented by Queen Elizabeth, lii 1313 Rushen Castle was besieged by the army of Robert Bruce, and became famous for having successfully re- sisted ail attacks for six months.

The magnificent view from the battlements of the castle embraces in one sweep the Calf of Man to the westward; the Paris Mountains in Angle- aea, and the Black Coomlee in Cumberland to the south-east; and to the north-west, through & gap in the lands of the Isle of Man, the Moume Mountain in Ireland.

A considerable number of fishing-boats belong to the port, and at some seasons many others make it their port of refuge. The Life-boat, therefore, has a good crew.

G. H. QUAYLE, Esq., is the zealous Honorary Secretary of this branch.

SOUTH WALES.

XXIV.—MILFORD.

The Katharine, 33 feet long, 8 feet 6 inches beam, 10 oars.

THIS Life-boat is stationed at Angle Point, near the south side of the entrance to Milford Haven, She is intended to carry out pilots to vessels an- chored in a distressed condition outside the haven, or to remove the crews from ships an- chored in dangerous proximity to the steep cliffs which form the shores of this magnificent inlet of the sea.

The boat-house is placed on the edge of steep ground, close to the water, and a long slipway enables the boat to launch at any time of tide without difficulty. No carriage is used, as it is not possible to transport by land.

The Katharine was so named at the request of Titus Salt, Esq., of Bradford, who, in 1867, pre- sented the Institution with the boat.

The boat has been launched several times to vessels in. distress in need of pilots, and the like, besides which she has saved 19 lives; but her services are not so frequently required as the boats of many other Stations.

HENRY PATTISON, Esq., Collector of Customs, is the Honorary Secretary of this branch.