ON 30th October the history of the Institution, during its first hundred years of work, was published under the title " Britain's Life-boats : A Century of Heroic Service." It has been written, at the request of the Committee of Management, by Major A. J. Dawson, author, among many other books, of " The Message" and " The Land of His Fathers," and it has an Introduction by the Prince of Wales, the Institution's President, and a Foreword by Mr.

Joseph Conrad.

There are two editions, one bound in cloth, at 7s. Gd., and the other, an edition de luxe, limited to 1,000 copies, of which each is signed and numbered, at £2 2s. Od. Life-boat workers, however, can obtain copies for themselves, direct from the Institution, at the price of 5s. for the cheap edition, and 28s. for the edition de luxe. Honorary Secretaries, who, we hope, will do all that they can to help the Institution in getting the book into the hands of the public, can obtain as many copies as they require from the Institution at the cheap rate, selling at the published price and crediting the Branch with the profit.

The Prince of Wales, the President of the Institution, has very generously signed no fewer than 100 copies of the Edition de luxe; these are numbered from one to a hundred, and are being sold at 55 5s. Od. each.

As there will doubtless be a very keen desire to possess one of these historic copies, we desire to inform our readers that applications will be dealt with in the order in which they are received, and that the price is liable to be doubled in a short time.

The following are extracts from a few of the reviews of the book: "It is a story which no Briton can read without a thrill of pride and thankfulness that the men who do the deeds that are recorded here are men of his country and his blood. . . . All the labour, all the money given to the Service has been by voluntary contributions. But, noble framework though it be, it is only the setting for the pictures of heroism which are sprinkled over these pages. No service by land or sea, no Navy or Army of this or any other country, has produced finer acts of gallantry or a nobler devotion to duty than has been shown not once, but again and again by the men who have manned our Life-boats. . . . Major Dawson has done his work well, as one who loves his theme ; and it is a great story that he tells." The Times." Seaman, traveller and soldier, the author has produced a book which will quicken the pulse of all who read it, and will make the Briton proud to claim kinship with the heroes whom it extols.

But it should do more than that. It should kindle in the hearts of our people the determination that a work so characteristic of the race both in the fundamental principles, which keeps it alive, and in the gallantry with which it is associated shall not be permitted to languish for lack of the necessary support, but shall vindicate throughout the twentieth century, as it did during the nineteenth, the nation's claim to be the first to respond to the cry of distressed humanity. This is a matter which should offer no great difficulty, since the cost of the service to-day represents no more than 1 d. per head of our population." Daily Telegraph.

The Prince of Wales thinks this book will especially stir the hearts of boys and girls. Indeed, we are sure it would make an acceptable Christmas tide gift for it. has throughout a flavour of adventurous reality, being written by one who, as a seaman, as a traveller all over the world, and as a soldier in the War, has seen what brave men can dare and endure, and sets down his sincere testimony without any swell of rhetoric." Morning Post.

We islanders are a tongue tied race, but the hardihood of sailor men, the beauty of ships, and the power and splendour of the seas unlock our eloquence. On three subjects the Royal Navy, the Mercantile Marine, and the Life-boat Service Englishmen, for getting their self-consciousness in their pride, are wont to be eloquent. . . .

It is not alone the services rendered by the fleet of Mercy which uplift and hearten us, magnificent as those services may have been, but rather is it the spirit of the unselfish and brave men who founded the Institution, who built up its glorious tradition, and by their vision, their steadfastness, and warm humanity won the affection and confidence of the British people and the admiration and gratitude of all those who sail the seas. . . . The review of such a book and such a service is a task to which I am not equal; it could be better done in verse by Masefield. I am no poet. Yet in my pedestrian prose I would fain pay my little meed of admiration to the Life-boats and their men and their works; ' as things un attempted yet in prose or rhyme.' . . . This book should have a great sale. And subscriptions are needed, and ought not to be needed, by the National Life-boat Institution, ' the People's Service.' ROBERT BLATCHFORD in the Sunday Herald and the Sunday Chronicle.

The East Coast of Scotland likes a good sea story, and if I were asked what is the best sea story that I have ever read I should unhesitatingly say that it is to be found in ' Britain's Life- boats.' This is not one sea story, but it is crammed with deeds of heroism, which, the Prince of Wales says in an introduction, must be read with pride by all British men and women." Dundee Advertiser.

The history of the evolution of the Life-boat from the first improvement on a coble to a motor-driven boat of to-day, and of the steadily increasing utility of these craft, is in itself an epic." Yorkshire Post.

Major A. J. Dawson has written a wonderful story. . . . The best summing up of the services of our life-boats is contained in a letter which the Prince of Wales has sent for publication in this book, ' It is a story of many dangers bravely faced and skilfully overcome in the long warfare with the storms round the 5,000 miles of our island coasts. It is, moreover, the story of a great national duty, voluntarily undertaken by the British people themselves, and carried on by them for a hundred years without financial assistance from the State.'  Liverpool Daily Courier.

Remarkable statistics of lives saved, and of public generosity, which should serve but as incitements to an ever increasing support on the part of the public. It is a great tale of heroism and generosity, admirably told."—The Scotsman.

Major Dawson has treated every aspect of this great movement, and the historical, biographical and technical details are admirably varied by narratives of some of the most thrilling exploits of the boats and their gallant crews. . . . From a perusal of his book many people will obtain for the first time a clear idea of the special qualities which distinguish a life-boat from all other boats. ... In closing this short notice of an admirable volume, we venture to express a hope that every reader of it will also become a contributor to the funds of the splendid Service with which it deals." Lloyd's List.

Having been afforded access to all the records of the Institution, the author has had a wonderful opportunity, and one of which he has taken full advantage.

From whatever point of view the book is regarded, whether it be read by the student for information regarding boats and their equipment, or by the seeker after stories of heroism, beside which the most sensational efforts of fiction writers appear tame, the highest hopes will be realised. The illustrations, also, are as illuminating as the text, and cover every sphere of the Institution's work, one of the simplest and most effective being a picture of the Goodwin Sands, rightly entitled, ' The Graveyard of Ships.' To any one with imagination the half-buried anchor in the foreground tells more than many pages of reading matter could express."  Liverpool Journal of Commerce.

Major Dawson has indeed a great and glorious subject for his pen, and worthily he has handled it. There is not a child in the land who should not read ' Britain's Life-boats.' Daily Graphic.

The object of this admirably written and lavishly illustrated volume is to remind the peoples of the British Islands that March 4 of the coming year will mark the centenary of that truly and splendidly British corporation, the Royal National Life-Boat Institution. ... It is impossible in the space of a brief notice to give an adequate idea of the interest and value of such a book. The stories 1(of individual and collective courage are so numerous and so heart-stirring that one feels almost invidious in selecting one among them for special mention ; the annals of the entire world would be ransacked in vain to find such another collection of heroic deeds."—Sunday Times.

The story of the life-boat has a thrill of its own. You cannot possibly read of its activities without something stirring inside you. . . . The book must assuredly make the ideal Christmas present for a youngster. It is all most excellently done. The illustrations are numerous and well chosen, and Major Dawson himself is an ideal story-teller.

And in what other book could you hope to find a foreword by Joseph Conrad and an introduction by the Prince of Wales ? " The Bystander.

No greater story is told in our island's history than that of the Life- boatmen." John o' London's Weekly.

The book is ably written and most admirably illustrated. The story is one to stir the blood ; the illustrations are such as should excite the interests of the most sluggish. Truly it is an inspiring volume. The chart enables one to understand how widespread is the area covered. It is ill comparing the heroism of different seamen and different decades. Every one who knows our coasts, and every one who reads this book, will have his own favourite tale. For myself Whitby will always be pre-eminent, for the gallant rugged men to be seen daily on the quay, or in the Seamen's Institute, or in the wonderful old parish church, and in the church in the old town which is their favourite. For as long as noble deeds are remembered there will abide that splendid endeavour commemorated in the old church and the rescue in our own time of the Rohilla Hospital Ship.

This is not only an exciting and thrilling record, but it is also an extremely practical book. Every one who wants to understand how the Life-boats are made, as well as what they have ' done, should read it. It is to be hoped that it will interest a still wider public than that which already helps the work, and that the National Life-Boat Institution will gain a largely increased body of subscribers." The DEAN OF WINCHESTER in the Church Family Newspaper.