THE ninety-third Annual General Meeting of the ROYAL NATIONAL LIFE- BOAT INSTITUTION was held at the Mansion House, London, by kind per- mission of the Lord Mayor, on Tuesday, 17th April, 1917, at 3.30 P.M. H.R.H. The Duke of Connaught, K.G., presided, and amongst those present were :—The Lord Mayor (Sir William Dunn, Bart.), the Earl Waldegrave, P.O. (Chairman of the Institution), His Excellency the Swedish Minister (Count Wrangel), the Earl of Londesborough, K.C.V.O., the Lady Northcote, C.I., Admiral the Lord Beresford, G.C.B., G.C.V.O., the Ven. Archdeacon J. R. H. Becher, M.A., the Mayor of Bermondsey, Mr. Noel Buxton, Mr. John Carlbom (Swedish Consul at Grimsby), the Hon. George Colville, Sir William Corry, Bart., the Mayor of Baling, Mr. Henry R. Fargus, Sir Robert U. Penrose Fitzgerald, Bart., Mr. John Bevill Fortescue, Maj.-Gen. Sir Coleridge Grove, K.C.B., Mr. Harry Hargood, Lady Jellicoe, Mr. Eugene F. Noel, Captain Robert Pitman, C.M.G., R.N., Vice-Admiral R. C. Prothero, C.B., M.V.O., Rear-Admiral Hector B. Stewart, the Lord Sydenham, G.C.S.I., G.C.M.G., the Deputy Master of the Trinity House (Captain Sir Herbert Acton Blake, K.C.V.O.), Mr. Alfred G. Topham, Mr. George F. Shee, M.A. (Secretary), and Commander Thomas Holmes, R.N. (Chief Inspector of Life- boats).

The CHAIRMAN : Ladies and gentlemen, there are three rather important letters which I should like the Secretary to read. I think they will interest everybody present.

(The Secretary read the following letters from the Archbishop of Canterbury, Admiral Sir John Jellicoe, and Sir Joseph Maclay, the Controller of Shipping).

* affi3*ld • Admiralty, • -_: staff Jan. 27, 1917.

DEAR LORD WALDEGRAVE, Thank you for your letter of January 25th.

I appreciate the invitation to attend the Annual General Meeting of the Royal National Life-Boat Institution, and hope that you will be kind enough to convey my thanks to the Committee, but I regret extremely that it is quite impossible for me to be present, as my time is so very fully occupied with public business, and it is out of the question my being able to get away any afternoon.

I well know the invaluable work of the Life- Boat Institution, and would have been glad to have added my meed of praise at the Meeting, and to have met some of the gallant men who have risked their lives for others—often in face of great peril—had circumstances allowed it.

Yours very truly, j (Signed) J. R. JELLICOE.

Lambeth Palace, S.E. 1.

19th March, 1917.

DEAR SIR, ! It is a very keen disappointment to me j that questions of health make it impossible for me to be present at your Annual Meeting at the Mansion House. I had looked forward to taking part in it this year and to expressing on behalf of thousands our sense of the in- estimable value of Life-boat Service at the present time. Attention is concentrated just | now upon the difficulties and perils of the | seas, and not least upon dangers which beset sailors in the waters near our own shores.

We know what has been the magnificent service rendered by our Life-boats and their brave crews during this last year, and we are correspondingly grateful.

Anything and everything that can be done at present for the safety and well-being of the dauntless sailors of our mercantile marine is a primary duty incumbent upon us all. The Royal National Life-Boat Institution is in the forefront therefore of our thoughts and interests.

God speed and prosper its work.

I am, Yours very truly, I (Signed) RANDALL CANTUAR.

26th February, 1917.

MY LORD,  I greatly regret that I cannot attend the Annual Meeting of the Royal National Life- Boat Institution at the Mansion House on the 27th March, as my public duties absorb the whole of my time.

Had I been present I should have been glad i of the opportunity of paying a tribute to the I magnificent work which is carried out by the j Institution, and which has been of the greatest advantage to the country through these trying days. My interest in the Life-boat Service is of many years' standing, and I have always emphasized the debt of the shipping com- munity to the great Institution which is so intimately associated with our maritime life.

The close ties which link our Mercantile Marine with the Navy on the one hand and with the Life-boat Service on the other have been strengthened by the events of the great struggle through which we are passing, and I have been very glad to see that the services of the Life-boats, always valuable in the time of peace, have been even greater both in fre- quency and in character during the War.

The Institution is national in the truest sense of the word and is worthy of the most generous support of the country, and especially of the Shipping Community.

I remain, my lord, Your obedient servant, (Signed) J. P. MAGLAY.

The Rt. Hon. The Earl Waldegrave, P.O., V.P.

Royal National Life-Boat Institution, 22, Charing Cross Road, W.C.

The CHAIRMAN : My Lords, my Lord Mayor, Ladies and Gentlemen, I should like first to express to you the very great honour I feel it for me to be your Chairman on this occasion.

I can honestly say there is nobody who more fully recognizes the magnificent services of our Life-boats, and I am glad to have this opportunity of acting as Chairman, thereby to show you how very important I consider are these services rendered to the country, and how warmly I support this cause.

I must begin by expressing our great regret at the death of the Duke of Norfolk. He was one of the Vice-Presidents of the Institution, and one of his last public acts was to issue an appeal in Sussex for the Life-boat cause. I hope you will forgive me if I depart from the course I usually pursue, and allow me to read from a few notes which I hold in my hand.

The reason I ask this is that I feel that I cannot otherwise adequately do justice to the many points that I should like to bring out; so I crave your indulgence if I read from my notes.

The most striking impression gathered from a study of the Report, which I suppose you have all with you, and a closer knowledge of Life-boat Service is that it is essentially a fighting Service. The men engaged in the heroic task of saving life on our storm-beaten coasts are men who have been trained through a long life of struggle with the elements to those qualities of courage, endurance and tenacity which are the indispensable equip- ment of a Life-boatman. But courage and tenacity are not enough. The highest skill and seamanship, and prompt action in circumstances of the utmost danger and difficulty are also essential to a Life-boatman, but above all to the Coxswain, who must also have those qualities of personal command which come from constant battling with the elements, enabling him to get the last ounce of energy out of a crew already worn out by exertions, such as those of the Cromer Life- boat to the s.s. Pyrin -and s.s. Fernebo on the 9th January.

The Life-boat Service is a fighting Service in more senses than one. The whole of our national organization has been tried by the fiery test of war, and while we point with pride to the glorious achievements of the Naval and Military Forces, and to the deter- mination of the whole people to achieve complete victory in this tremendous struggle, we have been made aware of many points of weakness in organization, administration, and the general adaptation of national resources to national needs. The mobilization for war , proved to be fraught with infinite difficulty I for a nation, warlike indeed, in the highest I sense, but not military in the meaning of the word which has made " militarism " the curse of Europe and the world. If we were to look, in time of peace, for an organization constantly mobilized for war, no better instance could be found than the Life-boat Service. Faced with the constant possibility of immediate service, and service which is of its nature hazardous and difficult, the Life-boats are ever ready to launch at the signal of danger, and their crews are prepared, at any moment of the day or night, to put to sea to the rescue of fellow-men in danger of shipwreck. Hence, too, we find the crews constantly trained, not only in virtue of their sea-faring life, but by the regular exercises carried out under inspectors.

Their discipline is of the highest kind, that of men who voluntarily submit themselves to the leadership of one of their own comrades, and who, for the moment, become living instruments in his hands, inspired by their own generous eagerness to save, and by that spirit of self-sacrifice which is, perhaps, the noblest feature of the Life-boat Service, dis- tinguishing it even among the many kinds of heroism which illustrate the story of the War to-day.

Nor does the analogy of a fighting Service end here. The Report shows that 16 gallant men sacrificed their lives in the year 1916 in the effort to save their fellow-men; but while we mourn their death, we take pride and joy in noting that the standard of heroism and achievement has never been higher in the history of nearly 100 years of Life-boat work, and that the record of lives saved in 1916 is actually greater than in any previous year in the annals of the Institution.

I am to have the pleasure presently of presenting some of the heroes of the Life-boat Service with the honorary awards so well earned, and we shall all join in doing them honour. But we must not forget that the organization, administration and management of this great Service could not be carried out with that high efficiency, of which the past records and the present Report give the fullest proof, were it not that you have in the Committee of Management a body of men, not only highly representative of the best elements in pur public life, but of technical knowledge and long experience, and who willingly give a great deal of their time and energy to securing that the Life-boat Service shall be managed and equipped in a manner commensurate with its great national im- portance. For if we ask men to risk their lives in one of the most dangerous services which exists, it is a solemn duty to provide them with the best means which science can devise and money buy. The Committee have ever had this object before them. The public may rest assured that even in the midst of this great War, and in the face of the manifold difficulties alluded to in the Report, the Committee will ever keep before them the ideal of securing for the Life-boats, Life-boat slipways, carriages, equipment and gear of all kinds of the very best material and the highest skill and workmanship. This means money. Here the public can and should help a Service which is proud to carry out its work without any subsidy from the State, and entirely on the basis of voluntary contribu- tions. I regret to note that last year there was a loss of £37,000 in legacies. The Insti- tution is justified in relying, to a considerable extent, on this source of revenue for a national work of a permanent and humane character.

Therefore, such a loss calls for a special effort in order that donations and subscriptions may make up, as far as possible, the loss sustained, at a period which has cast, and is casting, heavy additional burdens on the Life-boat Service.

The Institution is organizing throughout the country a large number of Life-boat Days and street collections. I believe this Insti- tution was one of the first to initiate this method. The Secretary informs me that a gratifying list has been received of cities and towns throughout the United Kingdom which have arranged to carry out a Life-boat Day.

I am asked to state that Life-boat Day in London has been fixed for May 1st, and I am happy to know that a very strong Committee has been formed, with Lady Northcote at the head, which includes Mrs. Lloyd George, Lady Waldegrave, Lady Jellicoe, Lady Beatty, Lady Maclay and others. I understand that the Lord Mayor and most of his colleagues in the Metropolitan Boroughs have promised patronage and co-operation. I appeal very strongly to the women of London to come forward as Depot Superintendents and workers. There is nobody who could do it better than they, and, I am sure, with the many experiences we have had of flag days, we may hope that they will have a real success on this occasion.

The Life-boat Service is the natural corollary and humane outcome of our maritime life.

The greatest maritime power in the world should have a great and Well-organized Life- boat Service. It has been the model of the Life-boat Services for every other country.

The founders of the Institution in 1824 laid it down that it was intended to be active in Peace and in War alike. The Life-boats have saved over 3,000 lives since the outbreak of War—in other words, the equivalent of three j splendid battalions of the finest fighting material, nearly all men saved for Great Britain and her Allies; the rest for neutrals, such as those of Sweden and Norway.

But the intimate nature of the service rendered to the nation during the war is seen in the fact that 845 persons have been rescued from H.M. ships and other vessels which have been mined, torpedoed, or otherwise in jeopardy through causes arising directly out of the War, and the Life-boats have been launched to casualties of this kind on 295 occasions.

This is an age in which innumerable claims are made on the generosity of the public, and the name of " War Charities " is legion. But the Life-Boat Institution may well claim a foremost place amid the great societies which are the outcome of the patriotism, public spirit and generosity of the people of these islands, and with a record of nearly 100 years of fruitful achievement, resulting in the saving of 54,800 lives, the Committee are fully entitled, even in the midst of this great War, to appeal for the support of a nation which can never be indifferent to a Service which embodies in so high a degree the courage, the endurance, and the humanity which are the national characteristics which we particularly cherish, which have stood us in such good stead in the ordeal through which we are passing to-day, and -which give us, under Providence, the best hope of complete victory and enduring peace.

Ladies and gentlemen, I trust that the few words that I have read to you from these notes will have appealed to you. I think that any- body listening to the facts that I was able to mention here will say that I have proved my case. I only hope that, in however small a way, I may be able to help forward the interest in and support for this grand national Insti- tution. I shall be amply repaid by knowing that I have been able to interest the people of this country in a Service which is probably amongst the first from one end of the Kingdom to the other.

I will now ask the Secretary to read the names of the President, Vice-Presidents, Treasurer, and other Members of the Com- mittee of Management, and the Auditors for the ensuing year.

(The SECRETARY read the nominations.) President.

His Grace the Duke of Northumberland, K.G.

Vice-Presidents.

His Grace the Archbishop of Canterbury, G.C.V.O.

His Grace the Duke of Leeds.

His Grace the Duke of Portland, K..G., G.C.V.O.

The Most Hon. the Marquis of Ailsa.

The Right Hon. the Earl of Derby, K.G., C.B., G.C.V.O.

The Right Hon. the Earl of Rosebery, K.G., K.T.

The Right Hon. the Earl Waldegrave, P.O.

The Right Hon. the Earl of Plymouth, P.O., C.B.

The Right Hon. the Earl Brassey, G.C.B.

The Right Hon. the Lord Strathclyde, P.C., M.A., LL.D.

Sir Robert Uniacke Penrose Fitzgerald, Bart.

Sir Godfrey Baring, Bart, M.P.

Robert Birkbeck, Esq.

Eugene F. Noel, Esq.

Treasurer.

The Right Hon. the Earl of Harrowby.

Committee of Management, The President.

The Vice-Presidents.

The Treasurer.

The Right Hon. the Earl Waldegrave, P.O., V.P., Chairman.

Sir Godfrey Baring, Bart., M.P., V.P., Deputy- Chairman.

The Right Hon. the Lord Airedale.

The Right Hon. the Earl of Albemarle, K.C.V.O., C.B., A.D.C.

Frederick Cavendish Bentinck, Esq.

Admiral the Right Hon. the Lord Beresford, G.C.B., G.C.V.O.

Capt. Charles J. P. Cave.

Kenneth M. Clarke, Esq.

Harold D. Clayton, Esq.

Major Sir Edward Feetham Coates, Bart., M.P.

The Hon. George Colville.

Sir William Corry, Bart.

Colonel William Elliot, C.B.

Henry B. Fargus, Esq.

John Bevill Fortesoue, Esq.

Maj.-Gen. Sir Coleridge Grove, K.C.B.

The Right Hon. the Viscount Hambleden.

Harry Hargood, Esq.

Vice-Admiral Sir Colin Keppel, K.C.I.E., K.C.V.O., C.B., D.S.O.

Sir Horace Woodburn Kirby.

Brigadier-General Noel M. Lake, C.B.

Charles Livingston, Esq.

Commander Sir Harry Mainwaring, Bart., B.N.V.B.

Admiral of the Fleet Sir Gerard H. U. Noel, G.C.B., K.C.M.G.

Capt. Robert Pitman, C.M.G., R.N.

Capt. George B. Preston.

Vice-Admiral Reginald Charles Prothero, M.V.O., C.B.

Sir Boverton Bedwood, Bart., F.B.S.

Engineer Rear-Admiral Charles Budd.

The Right Hon. Walter Bunciman, M.P.

Brigadier-General the Right Hon. John E.

Bernard Seely, D.S.O., M.P.

Rear-Admiral Hector B. Stewart.

The Right Hon. the Lord Sydenham.G.C.S.I., G.C.M.G., G.C.I.E., F.B.S.

The Admiral Commanding Coast Guard and Reserves (Vice-Admiral The Hon. Sir Somerset Arthur Gough-Calthorpe, K.C.B., C.V.O.).

The Deputy-Master of the Trinity House (Captain Sir Herbert Acton Blake,K.C.V.O.).

The Hydrographer of the Admiralty (Rear- Admiral John F. Parry, B.N.).

Alfred G. Topham, Esq.

Commander Francis Fitzpatrick Tower, B.N.V.B.

Sir Philip Watts, K.C.B., F.B.S.

Commodore Sir Richard Henry Williams- Bulkeley, Bart., B.N.B.

Auditors.

Messrs. Price, Waterhouse & Co.

The CHAIRMAN : These gentlemen have been duly nominated and I declare them elected.

Before presenting the Gold Medal to Coxswain Henry Blogg, of Cromer, I wish to refer to the presence of His Excellency the Swedish Minister, Count Wrangel, in this connection. We are very glad to have him with us. I understand that the Count desires to hand over to me a sum of money (£250) for the Coxswain and crew who saved the crew of the Fernebo, COUNT WBANGEL : It is my very pleasing duty to hand over to your Royal Highness a cheque for £250, which the owners of the Swedish s.s. Fernebo wish to offer to the gallant crew of the Cromer Life-boat as a token of their j gratitude for the rescue, under very difficult circumstances, of the Swedish ship Fernebo, which was lost off Cromer on the 9th January of ! this year. They also wish me to express their appreciation of the great courage and self-sacrifice displayed by the gallant Cromer Life-boatmen on that occasion. We Swedes, as a seafaring nation, are well aware of the enormous services rendered to the seafarers of all the world by your NATIONAL LIFE-BOAT INSTITUTION for nearly a century, and espe- cially during the difficult times of our days, when so many new dangers, before unheard of, are every day and every hour and every minute threatening the SOBS of the sea. It is not only on behalf of the owners of the Fernebo, but of the whole Swedish nation, that I am glad to have this opportunity to convey a tribute of admiration and gratitude to THE ROYAL NATIONAL LIFE-BOAT INSTI- TUTION for their magnificent work for the benefit of sailors of all nations.

The CHAIRMAN : The Institution has awarded a Gold Medal to the Coxswain and a Silver Medal to the second Coxswain. The service has a special interest, not only because of the magnificent courage and endurance shown by the crew, but because it is one of the many instances in which the soldiers I have assisted in launching a Life-boat under ] very great difficulties. Hundreds of soldiers | helped on this occasion, and also gave in- valuable assistance in rescuing some of the men who were cast ashore. Private Stewart Holmes, of the Seaforth Highlanders, is awarded the Silver Medal for his efforts on this occasion. Unfortunately, the Institn-tion has since learnt that another soldier, Private Sharpe, of the Army Service Corps, has developed paralysis as a result of his ex- posure in carrying on the same work of rescue. It is feared that there is little hope of his recovery. The Institution has granted him £100, and Mr. Carlbom, the Swedish Vice-Consul at Grimsby, has sent a donation of £25 for the same purpose, and has promised to obtain further assistance from Sweden.

This is only one of the many instances in which the Life-boat has rescued the lives of neutrals, and the Norwegian Minister greatly regrets that he is prevented from being here to add his tribute to the services rendered to Norwegian vessels during the War.

The SECRETARY : The Gold Medal is awarded to Coxswain Henry Blogg, of Cromer, in re- cognition of the splendid services of the Cromer Life-boat on the occasion of the wreck of the Swedish steamer Fernebo on the 9th January. This service was marked in a high degree by tenacity, physical en- durance, unwavering courage and skilful seamanship. If any one of these qualities had been lacking, the crew of the wrecked vessel could not possibly have been saved.

The Fernebo struck a mine during a terrific gale, and was blown in half. The Life-boat, which had only just returned from a service to the Greek vessel Pyrin, was promptly launched again. In spite of prodigious efforts it proved impossible to get beyond the breakers, and the boat was driven back to the shore. The rocket apparatus then made repeated efforts to reach the vessel, but in vain. Undaunted by their previous exertions, the crew launched once more, and after a fruitless attempt their dogged tenacity and endurance were finally crowned with success, and the whole of the crew of the Fernebo, 11 in number, were saved. The service was a gratifying example of the close and friendly co-operation which exists be- tween the Naval and Military Forces and the Life-boat Service. Hundreds of soldiers as- sisted in the launch of the Life-boat, and many of them went into the breakers up to their waist and over in their efforts to rescue some of the crew who were cast ashore.

Among the soldiers, Private Stewart Holmes distinguished himself, and was awarded the Silver Medal of the Institution. Coxswain Blogg's conduct throughout the four launches to the Pyrin and the Fernebo is a splendid example of the finest qualities which go to form the ideal Coxswain of a Life-boat crew, and there is no doubt that his leadership and dominating personality constituted the main- spring of action in this fine service.

(The CHAIRMAN then presented the Gold Medal to Coxswain Blogg.) The SECRETARY : His Majesty the King of Norway has awarded a Silver Cup, bearing the inscription " For a Noble Deed," to John Bushell, of Blyth, in recognition of his con- spicuous bravery and the fine conduct of his crew on the occasion of the wreck of the Norwegian barque Auder on the 28th February, 1916. The service was carried out in an E.S.E. gale and a very heavy sea. Five of the crew of the vessel were saved at the first launch. The Life-boat crew were too exhausted to make another attempt imme- diately, and bluejackets from H.M. Ships manned the Life-boat and made two gallant attempts to reach the vessel, but in vain.

The Life-boatmen then decided to make a further attempt, and this proved successful, the remainder of the crew being saved.

Coxswain Bushell was in charge of the Life- boat throughout.

(The CHAIRMAN then presented the Cup to Coxswain Bushell.) The SECRETARY : The fine service performed by Coxswain John Holbrook, of Bembridge, resulted in 110 persons being saved. While the service was being performed a very heavy sea was running, and the boat was constantly filled with water. After strenuous efforts the Life-boat got alongside, but whilst making a rope fast Coxswain Holbrook had his hand severely injured. In spite of this the work of rescue was proceeded with, and, in the course of four trips, the 110 persons were taken ashore in safety. During one of the trips the boat was driven on to the rocks and severely damaged, and when she put off on the fourth occasion she was in a water-logged condition.

(The CHAIRMAN then presented the medal to Coxswain John Holbrook.) The SECRETARY: The Silver Medal is awarded to Coxswain James Cameron, of Peterhead, for the very fine service to a vessel belonging to our gallant Ally, Kussia, which resulted in 60 persons being saved from the steamer Kiev on the 28th October, 1916. The service was carried out at night and proved extremely difficult and hazardous, demanding the exercise of the highest seamanship. All the rescued men had to be hauled through the water into the Life-boat. The service is a good instance of the value of Motor Life-boats, as the whole of the 60 persons were rescued by the Motor Life-boat in one trip.

(The CHAIRMAN then presented the medal to Coxswain James Cameron.) The SECRETARY : His Royal Highness allows me to mention that the Committee have received a letter from the Russian Volunteer Fleet, from Petrograd, to this effect: " Dear Sirs,—The Board of the Russian Volunteer Fleet have commissioned me to tender you their most heartfelt thanks for services rendered by your Society's Life-boat in rescuing the officers and men of their s.s. Kiev, wrecked off Rattray Head last November. At the same time I have the pleasure to inform you that the Board have instructed their London Agents, Messrs. The Borneo Company, Limited, to remit you the sum of five hundred pounds in aid of your Society's funds." Coxswain George Cromarty, Holy Island.

This was another case of a service to a Norwegian vessel, the barque Jolani, which was completely wrecked in November last.

The Life-boat had to be transported on her carriage over sands churned up by the waves, and for four miles all the crew had to wade through water 2£ feet deep. When the boat finally reached the wreck the rescue was carried out at midnight in the teeth of a hurricane, and the work was one of extra- ordinary difficulty. Finally, however, the whole of the crew, fourteen in number, were rescued, the Life-boat Crew being utterly exhausted by their efforts.

(The CHAIRMAN then presented the medal to Coxswain George Cromarty.) The SECRETARY : Coxswain Robert Smith, Tynemouth. The Tynemouth Motor Boat, which already has a splendid record of service, notably in connexion with the rescue of the doctors, nurses, and crew of the hospital ship Rohilla, added to her laurels by a splendid service to the Norwegian mail steamer Bess- heim, which was wrecked oft Tynemouth in a fierce easterly gale on the 18th November.

In the course of three trips the Life-boat rescued 118 persons from the Bessheim. About the same time the steamer Muristan ran ashore in Blyth Bay, and the Blyth Life-boat could not put out in the face of an on-shore gale. The Tynemouth Life-boat was therefore notified, and launched early next morning.

When she reached the vicinity of the wreck nobody could be seen on board, and, in the state of the sea, it was impossible to get quite close to the ship. The Life-boat therefore put into Blyth. It having been ascertained that there were still survivors on board, the Life-boat put off again at daybreak the next morning and succeeded in saving the sixteen men who had been on the wreck over three days.

Coxswain Robert Smith, who received the Gold Medal in connexion with the service to the Rohilla, received the Silver Second Service Clasp on this occasion.

(The CHAIRMAN then presented the medal to Coxswain Robert Smith.) The SECRETARY : Coxswain William Adams, Deal; Coxswain William Stanton, Deal Reserve Boat; Coxswain William Cooper, Ramsgate; and Coxswain James Pay, Kings- downe. The group of services performed by the Deal Life-boats, the Ramsgate and Kings- downe Life-boats off the Goodwin Sands during the period of the 19th-21st November stand out as splendid achievements even among the wonderful records of Life-boat deeds in connexion with the dreaded Goodwin Sands. A gale of almost hurricane force was blowing on the 19th November, when the Italian steamer Val Salice was driven on to the Goodwins, and the North Deal Life-boat reached her about midnight in intense dark- ness and blinding rain-storms. With the utmost difficulty the whole of the crew were saved, the operation being assisted by a searchlight, which was thrown on the steamer by the guard-ship. Early on the morning of the 20th, the steamer Sibiria, of New York,, was also driven on to the sands, and the Reserve Deal Life - boat, with Coxswain Stanton in charge, was launched with the utmost difficulty. When the wreck was reached it proved impossible to get alongside, in spite of repeated efforts, the Life-boat being nearly capsized three times; the fourth time she was thrown on her beam ends, the mast and sails being under water. Several of the crew were injured, and the Coxswain was obliged to cut the cable and make for Deal.

Meanwhile the Ramsgate Life-boat, under Coxswain Cooper, was engaged in an equally fine but equally unsuccessful attempt to save the crew. The Life-boat was constantly filled with water, and several times nearly capsized, two of the crew being injured. The Life-boat was compelled to return to Ramsgate, but at 7 P.M., in response to an urgent message asking for help, she was launched again and reached the Sibiria, but found that the whole crew of fifty-two men had just been saved by the Kingsdowne Life*boat, which had launched earlier, and had succeeded, in spite of tre- mendous difficulties, in getting to the vessel.

It is noteworthy that these services, coupled with those at Tynemouth and Holy Island, resulted in the saving of no less than 230 lives in the course of about thirty-six hours.

(The CHAIRMAN then presented the medals.) The SECRETARY: The Venerable Archdeacon J. R. H. Becher, M.A. The Silver Medal was awarded to Archdeacon Becher for the courage, perseverance and initiative which he showed in connexion with the wreck of the s.s. Alondra, which was wrecked on the Kedge Rock, off Baltimore, Co. Cork, on the 29th December last. Sixteen men of the crew of the Alondra were drowned as the result oi leaving the ship in one of the ship's boats.

As soon as information of the casualty reached the shore, Archdeacon Becher, who is the Honorary Secretary of the Institution's Balti- more Branch, called for volunteers to launch a boat, and in this he attempted to make a landing on the Kedge Rock; but this proved impossible, and the boat was recalled by a signal to Baltimore. Meanwhile, some of the crew from the wreck had managed to get on to the island, and -when this was seen, the boat again put off from the shore, but failed to reach the wreck, and as the night was closing in all attempts at further rescue had to be abandoned until the next morning. At daylight, Archdeacon Becher and others again put off to the island, taking with them some of the gear of the rocket apparatus, and about the same time two of H.M. Trawlers came to the assistance of the shipwrecked men, and established communication with the shore.

Eventually, thanks to the efforts of Arch- deacon Becher and the two naval officers, twenty-three men were saved, some of these having to be lowered sheer down the face of the cliff, 150 feet. Apart from the excellent services rendered by Archdeacon Becher, this case is of very special interest to the Institution.

A splendid Motor Life-boat is under con- struction for Baltimore, and should have been at her station in January, 1916. In all human probability not only the sixteen lives which were lost on this occasion, but a considerable number which have been lost this winter off Baltimore, would have been saved had it been possible to secure the completion of the engines j for this Motor Life-boat. The Committee of j Management feel that they are hardly divulg-ing a secret in stating that the Baltimore I Life-boat is being presented by a Society to commemorate the safe return of His Royal Highness the Duke of Connaught from Canada, and that the boat will bear his name.

(The CHAIRMAN then presented the Medal to Archdeacon Becher.) The CHAIRMAN : I will now call on Admiral Lord Beresford.

ADMIRAL LORD BERESFORD : Your Royal Highness, my Lord Mayor, my Lords, Ladies and Gentlemen, I have the honour to move the first resolution :—" That this meeting, fully recognizing the important services of the Royal National Life-Boat Institution in its national work of Life-Saving, desires to record its hearty appreciation of the gallantry of the j Coxswains and Crews of the Institution's.

Life-boats and gratefully to acknowledge the valuable help rendered to the cause by the I Local Committees, Honorary Secretaries, | Honorary Treasurers, and Ladies' Auxiliaries." The all-engrossing thought in everybody's I mind at this moment is the circumstances connected with the War. Our hearts are full of respect, admiration, and affection for the unsurpassed gallantry of the Navy, the Mer-cantile Marine, and the Army. We know ! that numbers have been laying down their lives from day to day, from week to week, for ! nearly three years. And remember this, that i every one of those men have had to face the sea before they got to their work. The perils ! of the sea are enormously increased now, not j only the treacherous action of the sea in all times, but the perils of the sea by means of mines, submarines, and airships. Why I make mention of these points is to bring to your notice that the Life-boat and the Life- boat's crew are always ready to face perils from the sea and from the enemy, and to do their best to save lives. Since the War men belonging to the Services to the number of 890 have been saved by the crews of Life-boats, and those are men essentially belonging to the Services who have been going out to fight for you and their country who have been wrecked by the enemy, apart from the 3,000 lives which have been saved of people not belonging to the Services.

While we think of the heroism of the Services, we must not forget the glorious records of the Life-boats and the splendid services of the Coxswains and Crews, to which His Royal Highness has already referred.

They are the embodiment of the best National Service that could be rendered to the Nation.

The Life-boat Service makes a history of itself—a history of the sea that is all its own.

I have spoken of the services they have rendered to the naval and military forces.

They also render services to shipping, and they also render services to humanity. With regard to saving ships, which they have had a large share in doing since the War, you must remember the position we are in at this moment, and how useful they have been in that direction. When you lose a ship, I do not think it is quite brought home to the public what the loss of that ship means. It is not only losing the ship; you have to remember that that ship cannot be replaced for a year, and during that time, at the most conservative estimate, she would import three cargoes of food into this country. Therefore, you lose those three cargoes of food through losing that ship. On many occasions the Life- boat crews have come to the rescue and they have saved that ship, and therefore have saved those three cargoes, which are all important for you at this moment, because our near danger, the danger we shall have to face— do not make any mistake about that—is the shortage of food in this country. If we rely upon our people, the pluck of our people, and trust to their honour to begin to save now, we shall face that danger like we have faced many others in the past.

Your Royal Highness remarked on the twenty-one splendid boatmen who lost their lives. Since the War three boats have been lost in their efforts to save lives and ships. But the curious thing is that with the brilliant record which I have given you, an6?which His Royal Highness has given you, I find that the re- ceipts are less this year by £21,000 than they were last year. We must all see what we can do to make up that deficit.

I should like to refer to the crews. You must remember the position of the crews at this moment is particularly hard. All the younger men have gone off to sea; most of them have gone perhaps into one of the finest Services that we are using at this moment — certainly nothing can beat it—I refer to the mine-sweepers. Those men hardly ever leave port without being almost certain that their ship will probably be blown up. Many of them have been blown up, and many of them have seen their mates blown into the air in pieces. What is the first thing they do? Though they may have been blown up in three separate ships, those men come back and sign on next day. I do not think I exaggerate—the Secretary will correct me if I do—I think you will find the average age of your Life-boat crews at this moment is about fifty, right through the coast. I say it is a credit to those men at that age that they should go out and face the amazing difficulties which they have to do. Of all the Institutions we have in this country, I think that the record of Life-boat crews and Life-boat work is almost the brightest. It certainly possesses all the characteristics of our fighting race.

They are always fighting the elements; they are fighting for human life ; they are fighting Nature, and they are fit company for our brothers of the sea and our brothers of the shore—our soldiers and sailors, who are proud of them. The Coxswains and Crews of our Life-boats represent the finest characteristics of the British race. You have got your cards : look at the faces of the men that you see on those cards! Why, they are enough to inspire confidence. Look at the grit and pluck and the great British characteristics in all those faces ! No wonder we are proud of our Life- boat crews. They are always ready, they are always prepared. At any moment they may be called away to risk their lives—of their own free will, remember—to go out to save life. Perhaps it is the finest Service in the British Isles. They are always mobilised, they are always ready for active service. And remember this also, that it is different to the other Services. Whenever they are called upon they have got to go out on difficult, dangerous duty. They have to face hurricanes, they have to go out to a ship on a lee-shore ; they have to pull out in the blinding surf of the mountainous seas, and blizzards, snow and hail, and more often than not that is done at night, when the perils of the sea are 40,000 times greater than they are by day.

They have to surmount what appear to be in- surmountable difficulties, and only seamen can really appreciate what those men do —that is why we in the Navy honour and respect and reverence our Life-boat crews.

The Life-boat cause is unique: there is nothing like it. And remember this—it is so constantly employed, its deeds are so often in the papers that people are apt to forget it and think it is a sort of common-place. More particularly is that the case now, in the amazing events which are occurring in the War. All those who travel by the waters, no matter of what nation or in what ship, steam or sail, know if they get into difficulty off the British coast the Life-boat's crew arc ready to go out and help them.

Now, how is all this efficiency brought about ? First of all by the indomitable gallantry, the pluck and the grit of the Cox- swains and the Crews themselves, but it is no use having all that chivalrous work unless the administration is good, unless the local authorities look after the men, look after their boats and are always ready, unless the Honor- ary Secretaries, the Honorary Treasurers and the Ladies' Auxiliaries help like all women do help when they make up their minds to do it.

I am not quite sure that the shipping in- terest fully pays its quota to this Institution.

We must remember it is an Institution which works essentially in the shipping interest, and I do not think they have come forward as they should to support the Institution. The Navy supports the Institution most generously, but that is only natural, because of the sympathy between the Life-Boat Institution and the Royal Navy.

I should like to say one word of the women.

What we owe to the women in this War can never be repaid. They have laid themselves out, every class alike, to try and help the men. They have sent out their husbands, their brothers, their sons, and their lovers, and helped them to go put. When women take up anything there is nothing that can beat them; that is my experience. We ask the women to help us on the 1st of May to do what they can to get our funds into a more satisfactory position, and having asked them to do that, once they make up their minds to do it, they will do it, and I expect we shall have a very successful day on May the 1st.

I have the honour to move the first Resolution.

SIR ROBERT PENROSE FITZGERALD : In seconding the Resolution I shall not try to add one word to what the noble Lord who has just sat down has said to you. You heard what he said; if that will not rouse you to do your duty to the Life-Boat Institu- tion, nothing will. Remember this: these men are the driving power at sea; you have got to find yours — the rowlocks and the stretchers ; that is what drives the boat along, and she will not go without driving.

I second with pleasure the Resolution of thanks that we all feel to the ladies who do so much for the Life-Boat Institution—the Coxswains have been already thanked—and to those local Secretaries who also have done so much to keep the boat afloat.

The Resolution was carried with acclamation.

The CHAIRMAN : I now call upon the Earl of Londesborough.

The EARL OF LONDESBOROUGH : Your Royal Highness, my Lord Mayor, ladies and gentle- men : The Resolution I have to propose is a purely formal one which has to be put to the meeting under the terms of the Charter. It is as follows : " That this Meeting do approve and ratify the sale to Mr. John Sinnott of the Life-boat House and Site at Cahore, County Wexford, which are no longer required for the purposes of the Institution." We have all been asked to confine our remarks to as brief a period as possible, and therefore I will simply move that Resolution formally.

ARCHDEACON J. R. H. BECHER : Your Royal Highness, my Lord Mayor, my lords, ladies and gentlemen: I presume the reason I was asked to second this Resolution at all was because it has a Hibernian tinge about it, and it goes without saying—(for, like another man who followed the sea, my speech betrayeth me)—that I also am an Irishman. English- men have often found, and I am afraid they are finding it now, that Irish questions are strange, mysterious things, and when they interfere they frequently burn their fingers in attempting to handle them.

I suppose the Committee of the ROYAL NATIONAL LIFE-BOAT INSTITUTION thought that if there was going to be- any trouble about this business they had better have an Irishman implicated in it. Well, there is not going to be any trouble, because this is a question of selling land, and not of buying it.

We have only got four minutes left, and I am not going to keep you much longer, but there are just one or two words I would like to say. The first is this: We have not got a Life-boat at the place that I come from because of the War, and we want one very badly there if we can have it. If you had seen as many dead bodies brought ashore as I have seen during the last two and a half dreadful years— if any of you had seen as many living men, ! thank God, coming ashore too in half sinking boats from torpedoed ships, I think you would come to the conclusion that we wanted a Life- boat badly in my part of the world. There is just one other thing, and I have done. I am not a financier, we are not much used to money in Ireland. But you are a great many thousands of pounds short—at least, it seems to us in Ireland that you are an awful lot of money short this year. But, anyhow, remember it rests with the public to raise that money, and if it is raised, I am perfectly certain, from my experience of the Institution, that they will spend that money well, and I think I can answer for the crews of the Life-boats that they will attempt every time and will succeed all through in rescuing life when it is possible, and they will attempt it even when it is impossible, every time.

I have much pleasure in seconding the Resolution.

The Resolution was carried with acclama- tion.

The LORD MAYOR: My Lords, ladies and gentlemen, I have the honour and pleasure to propose a Resolution which I know will be received with acclamation ; it is: " That the best thanks o£ this Meeting be given to His Royal Highness the Duke of Connaught, K.G., for presiding over this the Ninety-third Annual General Meeting of the ROYAL NATIONAL LIFE-BOAT INSTITUTION." This Institution is to be congratulated in having secured a national asset in the person of His Royal Highness to preside to-day.

You know, in addition to his being a great and distinguished soldier, whose career has been before the public so long, and which we all respect and admire, in addition to that, he is now the President of the Royal Trinity House. The Royal Trinity House is an In- stitution 400 years old, and performs similar work to that which the ROYAL NATIONAL LIFE-BOAT INSTITUTION performs, in this way, that it provides lighthouses and beacons all over the rivers and seas of the Empire, and great experience and benefit has been derived from the work that has been done by the Trinity House.

Great work also has been done, as yon t know, by the ROYAL NATIONAL LIFE-BOAT ; INSTITUTION, and I agree with Lord Beresford j when he said the shipping trade has not ; sufficiently recognised it. We in the City of London talk of our love for the sea and for our brave sailors, and for those who risk their lives for the benefit of their fellow-creatures, and I think that they should subscribe more j liberally than they do at present to the ROYAL NATIONAL LIFE-BOAT INSTITUTION. I hope my words, as Lord Mayor of London, will be j carried to those gentlemen in the shipping industry. In conjunction with my brother Mayors, j we of the City of London are going to do all we can on the 1st of May, which is National Life-boat Day. It is very pleasant to me to note that that happens to be the birthday o£ His Royal Highness the Duke of Connaught, | who, to show his appreciation for the work of f the ROYAL NATIONAL LIFE-BOAT INSTITUTION, ! has handed us a cheque for £50.

Now if you appreciate, as I know you do, the occupancy of the Chair on this occasion by His Royal Highness, if you allow those I gallant men to give up their lives for the benefit of humanity, if you have any apprecia- tion for them, as I believe you. have, then turn all your energy to the 1st of May and make it an unqualified success. That is the wish that I am sure will dominate all present here to-day.

I am sure the vote of thanks, which will be seconded by the Earl Waldegrave, will receive your hearty support.

The EARL WALDEGRAVE : My Lord Mayor, my Lords, ladies and gentlemen, I have great pleasure in seconding the vote of thanks to i His Royal Highness. I fully appreciate, as I am sure you all do, the great honour His Royal Highness has done us by sparing the time among my many duties to come here and preside over this Meeting to-day. I am sure none present appreciate it more heartily than do those gallant men we are so glad to see here to-day, who have received their medals from his hands, which I am sure must have greatly enhanced their pleasure in re- ceiving them. I may say it is only another proof of the great interest which the Royal Family have always displayed in the ROYAL NATIONAL LIFE-BOAT INSTITUTION. Queen Victoria and King Edward were always most deeply interested in this work, and his present Most Gracious Majesty has followed in their footsteps. King Edward and King George, when Prince of Wales, were Presidents of the Institution, and I sincerely hope that after the War we may be honoured by having the present Prince of Wales, who is now so gallantly serving his country, as our President.

His Royal Highness has handed me this telegram, which I should like to read to you : "To His Royal Highness the Duke of Con- naught. With best wishes for a successful meeting, I am contributing £20 to the ROYAL NATIONAL LIFE-BOAT INSTITUTION. — Lister Brotherton." I will ask the Secretary to send a most cordial letter of thanks in answer to that.

I have much pleasure in seconding the Resolution.

The Resolution was carried with acclama- tion.

The CHAIRMAN : My Lord Mayor and Lord Waldegrave, I thank you for the Resolution you have just proposed, and I thank you, ladies and gentlemen, for carrying it. I would wish particularly! to thank the Lord Mayor of the City of London for having placed this hall at our disposal on this occasion, thus showing the great interest he, as chief magistrate of the City, takes in the great work being done by the ROYAL NATIONAL LIFE-BOAT INSTITUTION.

May I, as Master of the Trinity House, assure him how very much I, and the Deputy- Master sitting behind me, appreciate the kind reference he made to the very heavy duties which have fallen upon the Trinity House during this great War. We have always been very proud of the position we hold, not only in the country, but in the City of London, and we very much appreciate the Lord Mayor's graceful allusion to the work we are doing at the present moment.