OF the many thousands of Londoners who give their help to the Life-boat Service probably very few realize that there is a fleet of Life-boats in London itself—the reserve Life-boats of THE ROYAL NATIONAL LIFE-BOAT INSTITU- TION, which are kept at its Storeyard at Poplar, ready to be sent at a moment's notice to any part of the coasts of Great Britain and Ireland, to replace Life- boats which may have been damaged, and, in addition, repair shops, and all the stores for our Life-boats round 5000 miles of coast.

With the idea of enabling the people of London to know a little more about the Life-boat work which is being done in London itself, the Institution arranged two visits to the Storeyard last autumn. For the first, invitations were sent to the leading London firms which organize collections among their employees. The second was arranged for a party of thirty members of the London Society, of which Lord Crawford and Balcarres is President, and Sir Aston Webb Chairman, and the aim of which is " to stimulate a wider concern for the beauty of the Capital City, the preservation of its charms, and the careful consideration of its develop- ments." The party was very much interested by its visit, and contributed generously to a Life-boat collecting box which it named the "good ship 'London Society.'" Several members of the party have since become subscribers, and the Society gave an account of the visit, with a short history of the Life-boat Service, in its monthly journal..