Hartlepool (Durham) and Selsey and Bognor (Sussex).

ON the morning of 26th September last a three-masted Danish auxiliary schooner, the-Doris, of Thuro, attempted to enter the harbour at Hartlepool. A strong N.N.E. gale was blowing, with a very heavy sea and rain, and Hartlepool Bay was all broken water. The schooner was in ballast and her engine was of small power. She failed to make the entrance, and was driven to leeward across the bay.

She narrowly missed the Longscar Rocks and anchored near them in heavy break- ing seas, which caused her to labour heavily, with violent pitching and roll- ing. Then her anchors began to drag.

The Motor Life-boat was launched at 12.35 P.M. and made her way to the schooner, shipping heavy seas. Several times the after shelter was full almost to the top. With great difficulty the Life-boat got alongside, and the Cox- swain hailed the schooner by megaphone, but the Master was unwilling to leave his vessel. The Life-boat was driven away southward by the heavy seas, but again approached the schooner.

The Coxswain then told her Master that he was in a very dangerous position, and that if he went on the rocks close by the Life-boat would be unable to get near him. The Life-boat was again driven away, and on approaching for the third time saw that the crew were ready with lines to throw, but once more she was driven awav by the seas.

At fhe fourth attempt one of the Life-boatmen was able to throw a small line to the schooner. The men on board made a rope fast to it. This was hauled to the Life-boat, and by this means she was brought close along- side the schooner. Eight of the nine men on board her jumped into tfye Life- boat, but the last man was washed back by a sea. The Life-boat was still fast to the schooner ; she hauled still closer alongside ; and the last man jumped down into the arms of the Second Coxswain. The rope was then chopped away, and the Life-boat got clear, returning ashore through very heavy seas. A great crowd had gathered along the town wall and loudly cheered the Life-boat as she arrived with the nine rescued men. The abandoned schooner continued to drag until she grounded and became a total wreck.

It was a rescue very skilfully and smartly carried out in the face of great odds. The schooner, being in ballast and riding to her anchors in heavy breaking seas, afforded no lee for the Life-boat.

She was jumping and slewing violently, and the skill with which the Life-boat was handled can be judged from the fact that not only was ths whole crew of the schooner rescued but that in the four attempts to get alongside the Life-boat was not damaged.

The Institution has marked its appre- ciation of the skill and courage shown by awarding to Coxswain Robert Hood the Bronze Medal and by making additional monetary awards to him and each member of the Crew. The Medal was presented by the Marchioness of Londonderry, D.B.E., a Vice-President of the Ladies' Life-boat Guild.

Selssy and Bognor (Sussex).

On 2nd November, 1930, at 10.30 in the morning, the Selsey and Bognor Motor Life-boat was launched, as news had been received that a vessel was in difficulties to the west of Selsey Bill. A W.S.W. gale was blowing, with hard squalls of wind and rain. A heavy sea was running and the weather was misty.

After the Life-boat had passed round the Bill and the neighbouring shoals, she found the yacht Lucy B., of Rye, in broken water, in a small bay formed by two shoals, " The Streets " and " The Hounds." She was on a dead lee shore in the full force of the gale.

The yacht had carried away some gear, and the two men on board her had been unable to start the auxiliary engine. They had let go their anchor as they got near land, but it would not hold ; the yacht drifted rapidly, and, as the Life-boat came in sight, the cable parted and the two men ware just about to make a desperate effort to reach the shore by swimming. The yacht was then little more than a quarter of a mile from the shore. To those on shore it seemed impossible for the men on the yacht to be rescued. She was in little more than six feet of water, with a whole gale blowing. The • seas were going clean over the Life-boat; though so close in, she was at times invisible ; and those on shore expected to see her capsize. But the Coxswain, without hesitation, took her into the breakers and ran alongside the yacht. One of the two men succeeded in jumping into her. Then the yacht sheered off.

Twice more the Life-boat attempted to get alongside, but the water was so shallow that it was impossible. Then she tried to get a line and buoy to the yacht. This succeeded. The man on board was able to get hold of the buoy, and the Crew hauled him through the water in the buoy and got him on board.

The Life-boat was then so near to the shore that she had to go astern before she could turn. She reached her Station again at 12.15, but it was impossible, with the sea running, to take the Life- boat up the Slipway, so she was secured to her moorings, and the Crew and the rescued men came off in a shore boat, which, in itself, was no easy task.

This was a service in which great skill and seamanship were shown by the Coxswain and great courage by the whole Crew. To Coxswain Frederick Barnes the Institution has awarded its Bronze Medal, and to each member of the Crew its Thanks inscribed on Vellum.

Additional monetary awards were also made to the Coxswain and Crew, a Letter of Thanks was sent to the Assistant Honorary Secretary, Mr. J. E.

Francis, and a Letter was also sent to the Board of Trade commending the Station Officer of Coastguard. He had been the first to give the alarm, having gone, while off duty, to see if all was well to the west of the Bill, which was out of sight of the look-out position.

The Institution received a letter from Mr. William Thornton, " late mate of the Lucy B." enclosing a donation in gratitude for his rescue.

A SECOND SERVICE.

Less than twelve hours later the Selsey Life-boat was again called out.

During the afternoon the Crew had stood by, as there was a good deal of traffic in the Channel, and the second call came at 10.20 P.M., when news was received from the Coastguard that a vessel was in distress five or six miles S.S.W. of Selsey Bill. A strong gale was still blowing, though it had moder- ated a little since the morning, and a very heavy sea was running. It-was only with great difficulty and at con- siderable risk that the Crew boarded the Life-boat at her moorings by means of two shore boats. She got away at 10.40, and fifty minutes later she reached the vessel, the Greek steamer Menelaos, of Piraeus, laden with coal and coke and bound for Tunis from Rotter- dam. Her steering gear was disabled ; her hatches had been stove in ; and she was unmanageable. Earlier in the day the Motor Life-boat from Bembridge, Isle of Wight, had gone out to the Menelaos, but her crew had not then wished to leave her, and had asked that a tug should be sent to their help.

When the Selsey and Bognor Life-boat reached the steamer at 11.30 P.M. she found that twelve of the crew had already been taken off by a Leyland liner ; but the liner dared not stand by any longer, as the Menelaos was drifting rapidly towards shoal water, and had sent out an S.O.S. The Life-boat went alongside, and the remaining seven men on board the Menelaos climbed down a rope over the ship's side and dropped into the Life-boat. Just after midnight she brought them safely ashore. The Menelaos herself became a total wreck.

For this service the usual monetary awards were made..