Mr. Felix Rubie, M.I.N.A., who died on 25th February last, had passed the greater part of his life in the service of the Institution. Born in 1862, he was brought up at Cowes, and it was there that he learnt his sailing. He served his apprenticeship at Denny's Yard, Dumbarton, set up at Cowes as a consulting naval architect, and then, in 1888, at the age of twenty-six, came to the Institution as a temporary Assistant Surveyor of Life-boats. Six years later he was appointed Assistant Surveyor, and in 1906 he became Surveyor. That post he held until October, 1927, when he retired on reaching the age limit.

Mr. Rubie's term of service with the Institution covered one of the most interesting and important periods in the history of Life-boat construction.

The year before he joined the staff Mr.

G. L. Watson had been appointed Consulting Naval Architect, and had designed the now famous type of Lifeboat which bears his name and which, with modifications, still is the standard type. Then, two years before Mr. Rubie became Surveyor of Life-boats, the first experiments with Motor Life-boats had been made, and the twenty years during which he held that post saw those experiments successfully completed and over sixty Motor Life-boats take their place in the Institution's Fleet.

Mr. Rubie's chief contribution to these important developments was that he brought to the Surveying Department, at a most important time, the modern scientific methods and the precision of the trained mathematical mind. But, in addition to that, he designed two types of Life-boat, both of which bear his name and did fine service. The first was a surf-boat, remarkable by reason of its lightness and its power for the' given size. It owed its lightness to Mr.

Ruble's discovery—which experience fully justified—that canvas, properly treated, could be used instead of wood for the bulkheads. The first of these boats was built in 1894 and stationed at Dungeness. Altogether sixteen of the type were built. In 1906 Mr. Rubie, at the request of the Committee, set himself to design a new type of Pulling and Sailing Self-righting Life-boat, which should be able to work to windward, a difficult point of sailing for the ordinary boats of this type because of their high end-boxes. By the ingenious use of an automatic water ballast tank, Mr. Rubie succeeded in making a boat self-right with much flatter end-boxes. The first of this type, which also bore his name, was stationed at Ballantrae in 1906, and altogether thirteen of the type were built. For these and other services Mr.

Rubie was, on more than one occasion, specially thanked by the Committee of Management.

His name will always have an honourable place in the list of those who have contributed to the design of Lifeboats.

By his colleagues, who saw him retire with great regret, he is, and will be, remembered for his great kindliness and his gentle, almost shy humour..