SIDMOUTH, DEVON. — This Life-boat Station has been provided with a new 34 feet 10-oared Life-boat, possessing all the latest improvements and furnished with a transporting carriage. The expense of the change was met by a gift of 1,OOOZ.

from Miss BASS, of Dalston, and the new Boat, at her request, has been called The William, and Frances.

ST. DAVID'S.—The NATIONAL LIFE-BOAT INSTITUTION has sent a new Life-boat to St. David's, to take the place of a smaller one stationed there many years since.

The new Boat is 37 feet long, 8 feet wide, and rows 12 oars, double-banked. It possesses all the latest improvements, in- cluding water-ballast fittings. A new Boat-house and launching slipway have been constructed for the use of the Boat at a large expense, a considerable portion of which has been defrayed from moneys bequeathed by the late Miss A. M. BED- FORD, of Pershore, Worcester. The cost of the new Life-boat and equipment was, presented to the Institution by the late Mr. JOHN METCALFE, of West Huntington Hall, Yorkshire, and, in accordance with his request, the Boat is named The Gem.

SOUTHEND, ESSEX. — It having been found desirable to provide a larger Life- boat for this Station, in addition to the small Life-boat kept at the head of the pier, such new Boat, furnished with a transporting carriage, has recently been sent there by the Institution, and placed in a substantial and commodious house erected for its reception on a suitable site.

It is hoped that, in the event of vessels running ashore on the Barrow, Mouse, Girdler and other neighbouring sandbanks at the mouth of the Thames, the new 34 feet, 10-oared Life-boat may be en- abled to succour their crews. This Boat is named The Theodore and Herbert, and its cost was defrayed from a legacy be- queathed to the Institution by the late Mrs. FRANCES SOPHIA SMITH, of Lisheen, Co. Cork, in memory of her two sons and only children, who died as they were entering upon manhood, both being very promising young men. A demonstration was organized at Southeud to celebrate the first public launch of this Life-boat, which took place on the 8th October last, under the superintendence of Commander CARTER, R.N., then District Inspector of Life-boats to the Institution.

The ceremony of naming was performed by Mrs. THACKERAY, wife of the Rev. F. THACKERAY, Chairman of the Southend Branch. The launch was a very good one; the Boat behaved admirably in a strong S.W. wind, which necessitated a reef being taken in the sails. There was also rather a heavy sea running at the time.

APPLEDORE, DEVON.—The smaller Life- boat on this Station has recently been superseded by a new one, 34 feet long and 7 J feet wide, fitted with water ballast, and provided with a transporting carriage.; The Boat has been presented to the Insti- tution and endowed by Mrs. MACDONALD, of Brighton, and bears her name, The Jane Hannah MacDonald.

THE LIZARD, CORNWALL. — The NA-TIONAL LIFE-BOAT INSTITUTION has streng- thened the Life-boat Station at the Lizard by placing an additional Boat there. It will thus always have two Life-boats ready for any emergency that may arise at this dangerous point. The present Boat, which has been here for several years, will be transferred to Church Cove, on the eastern side, while the new one will be placed at the old Station. Both Boats will be worked by the same crew, and be under the management of the Local Branch, of which the Rev. P. VYVYAN ROBINSON has for many years been the valued Honorary Secretary. The new Boat is 34 feet long by 8 feet wide, rows 10 oars double-banked, and is fitted with water ballast. Its cost has been presented to the Institution by-Mrs. HOL- LOND, of Hyde Park Gardens, London, and late of Benhall Lodge, Suffolk, and it is named The Edmund and Fanny.

BARMOUTH, NORTH WALES.—The Life- boat stationed here has been replaced by a new water-ballast Boat, 37 feet long and 8 feet wide, rowing 12 oars double- banked, the gift of Mrs. JONES GIBB, of Tunbridge Wells. The Life-boat is called The Jones-Oibb. The new slipway which has been erected has also been presented by Mrs. JONES GIBB.

BLACKPOOL, LANCASHIRE.—The Life- boat stationed here by the Institution twenty-one years since has been removed, and a new water-ballast one, 35 feet long and 8 J feet wide, placed there in its stead.

It will be remembered by our readers that THE QUEEN, in view of the intention of the late Mr. SAMUEL FLETCHER, of Great An- coats Street, Manchester, to build and endow a Life-boat, was graciously pleased to direct that a portion, of his property, which, owing to his intestacy, had devolved on Her Majesty in right of Her Duchy of Lancaster, should be appropriated to the building and maintaining in perpetuity by the ROYAL NATIONAL LIFE-BOAT INSTI- TUTION of a Life-boat, to be named The Samuel Fletcher of Manchester. It was this new Life-boat which was sent to Black- pool, the Committee of the Parent Insti- tution having decided to appropriate the gift in that way. A grand demonstration was organised at Blackpool to celebrate the first public launch of the boat on the 29th September last, in conjunction with the opening of the new Electric Tramways, when an immense number of persons at- tended from different parts.

At noon on that day the Blackpool old and new Life-boats and the St. Anne's and Lytham Life-boats, each mounted on its own transporting carriage and drawn by six horses, took their places in a very long procession, formed of Police, Volun- teers, Fire Brigade, and numerous car- riages, including those of the Lord Mayor of York, the Mayor of Liverpool and about twenty-seven Mayors of other towns in Lancashire and Yorkshire.

After passing down the whole length of the Esplanade, a distance of about 2 miles, the cortege returned -to the South Pier, where the four boats were lowered down the steep sea-wall abreast of each other.

Three of them were launched in succession, and then laid off on their oars, while the new boat was named in the customary way. Prior to this ceremony a short religious service was held, and the Mayor of Liverpool delivered an address in which he gave a brief history of the Life-boat Service, and then went on to say :— "We are all interested in this great move- ment ; many of us have been passengers on board ships, and all of us owe some of the comforts and luxuries of life to the work of those whose business it is to traverse the ocean and bring products from far countries. There is laid upon all of us, too, the Christian burden of lending a willing hand for the alleviation of the sufferings, and mitigation of the dangers of others. As it is with mankind as individuals, so it is with them as members of communities, and I do not know that there is any work in which the chief magistrate of a borough can better engage than in giving aid and encouragement to the work of a Society like the ROYAL NATIONAL LIFE-BOAT INSTITUTION. Muni- cipal corporations may not be able to include in the scope of their duties many charitable objects, but it is none the less the duty and the privilege of those who represent their fellow-men, to hold up to commendation every movement calculated to benefit the human race. I am sure that these sentiments will be shared by the Mayors of most inland towns, but the chief Magistrate of a great seaport like Liverpool is peculiarly interested in identifying himself with a cause the neces- sity for which he has unhappily only too many opportunities of observing. There can be no connection so close as that which exists between the development of our mercantile marine and the safety of those who are engaged in it, and, speaking as Mayor of Liverpool, I am sure that in saying this I interpret the feelings of the whole of the great shipping section of the community. The provision of Life-boats is, however, only one part of the business, and it is, I may say, probably the least important part, because unless it were possible to provide adequate crews, no amount of money and resources would be of any avail. When I have spoken of the work that has been done by the Institu- tion, I feel how great and noble that work has been. I speak of this not in the way of boasting, but in the way of encouragement.

No praise, however, can be too high, and no pride can be more justifiable, than the praise which is justly given to the seamen who man the boats at the peril of their lives, and the pride which every Englishman feels in their brave self-denial and noble characteristics." Lieut. TIPPING, B.N., District Inspector of Life-boats, handed the boat over to the care of the Local Committee, and the Mayor of Liverpool performed the naming ceremony. The launch of the new Life- boat then took place, and when clear of the surf the crew gave three cheers for Her Majesty the Queen. The four Life- boats, under the direction of the District Inspector, then formed into line and rowed the whole length of the Esplanade, after which they all made sail and proceeded to the South Shore, where they were beached and afterwards replaced on their carriages, the two boats from the adjoining stations returning home the same evening.

SELSEY, SUSSEX.—The Institution has also sent a new water-ballast Life-boat to Selsey Bill, the well-known point on the Sussex Coast, to take the place of a smaller Boat. It is 34 feet long, 7£ feet wide, and rows 10 oars. Our readers will doubtless remember that a fully-equipped.

Life-boat and carriage took part last year in the Lord Mayor's Show, and it is interesting to know that these were the ones sent to Selsey. They were much ad- mired and cheered by the million and a half people who saw them pass through the streets of London on the 9th November.

The cost of the Life-boat was defrayed from a legacy bequeathed to the Institution by the late Mr. HENRY SKYNNER, solicitor, of Elect Street, London, supplemented by a handsome contribution from his executrix, Miss EMILY E. BRIGDEN, the Boat being called The John and Henry Skynner, after the names of the testator's deceased brother and himself. The London, Brighton, and South Coast Railway Com- pany kindly granted a free conveyance to the Life-boat over their line.

MONTROSE.—Another Life-boat has been forwarded by the Institution to this im- portant Station, and placed a little to the westward of Kirkside Salmon Fishing Station, on the south side of the old mouth of the river North Esk. The dis- trict protected by the Montrose Life-boats, which are now three in number, is a very dangerous one; it includes Lunan Bay and Montrose Harbour and Bay as far north as this new Life-boat Station. Boat now supplied is a 10-oared one, 34 feet long and 8 feet wide, fitted with water ballast. A new transport- ing and launching carriage has been provided for the Boat, and a boat-house for their reception is being constructed from the designs of the Institution's architect. The cost of the new Life- boat and equipment has been defrayed from a legacy bequeathed to the Institu- tion by the late Mr. GEORGE MARSHALL GRAY, formerly of Dundee, but afterwards of Wanganui, New Zealand, and the Boat is named The Resolute, in accordance with his wishes. Mr. GRAY, in his lifetime, gave the Institution The Peep o' Day Life- boat, stationed at Port Enroll.

NEWBIGGIN-BY.-THE-SEA, NORTHUMBER- LAND. — A new 37 feet 12-oared Life- boat, fitted with water ballast, and car- riage have taken the place of the old Boat and carriage on this Station, and the expense of the change has been de- frayed by Miss E. H. JACOMB-HOOD, of j Lee, Kent, the new Boat, in accordance with her request, being named The Robert and Susan. On the 5th December last the new Life-boat was launched at its Station under the superintendence of Lieutenant BEDDOES, E.N., District In- spector of Life-boats, after the Local Honorary Secretary, the Rev. E. SHORTT, M.A., had offered up prayer in an impres- | sive manner, and the hymn, " Eternal i Father, strong to save," had been sung by a choir formed of fisher girls. The naming ceremony was performed by Mrs. BLENCOE COOKSON, of Meldon Park. The new Life- boat gives much satisfaction to the crew.

COURTMACSHERRY, Co. CORK. ThlS Station has been provided with a new 34 feet 10-oared Life-boat, fitted with water ballast, and carriage, the cost of which has been met from a munificent legacy bequeathed to the Institution by the late Mr. H. A. M. FARRANT, of Bays- water, London. In accordance with his request, the Boat is named The Farrant.