ON the night of Sunday, the 31st Janu- ary, 1892, the four-masted steamer Eider, of Bremen, of 4,719 tons, the Norddeutscher Lloyd, stranded on the reef of rocks in the Isle of Wight, known as Atherfield Ledge. There was a thick fog, the weather was stormy, and a very rough sea was running. The Eider fired signal rockets, and about 11 o'clock the Atherfield Life-boat went out and brought ashore telegrams from the Eider's captain asking for tugs. At day- light the Eider again signalled for the Life-boat, which went out and brought ashore some of the mails.

Meanwhile, the Life-boats from the Stations at Brighstone Grange and Brooke had arrived on the scene. The captain of the Eider decided to land his passengers, and during the day the Life-boats made eighteen trips, bring- ing ashore 233 persons, specie and mails.

The next day, in the course of eleven journeys, the Life-boats landed 146 persons, mails and specie, and on the two succeeding days they landed more specie, bars of silver, the ship's plate, and the passengers' luggage. Alto- gether they made forty one journeys, and brought ashore 379 persons. The captain and some of the crew of the Eider remained on board, and in the end the vessel herself was saved, but it was not until nearly two months later that she was towed off the rocks.

Queen Victoria expressed to the Institution her appreciation of this service, the Emperor of Germany pre- sented each of the three Coxswains with a gold watch, bearing his portrait and initials, and gave £200 to the Institution's funds, and the Nord- deutscher Lloyd made a donation of 100 guineas. Punch celebrated the service with verse and a cartoon, and presented each member of the Crews with a framed copy.

A Silver Medal was awarded by the Institution to one of the Coxswains, and Clasps to the Silver Medals which they already held to the other two, and the awards to the Crews amounted to £565 10s. The Thanks of the Institution inscribed on Vellum was awarded to the Honorary Secretaries of the three Stations. Only one of the Stations, Brooke, still remains. The other two were both closed in 1915.

The fortieth anniversary of this service was celebrated at Brighstone on Saturday, 30th January, the sugges- tion for the celebration coming from Mr. J. Prosser Chanter, a member of the staS of the Press Association, whoat the time of the wreck, was on the staff of one of the Isle of Wight papers.

A Commemoration Service was held in Brighstone Church, conducted by the Rector of Brooke, the Kev. A. A. P.

Winser, wto is also the Hon. Secretary of the Brooke Life-boat Station. The Archdeacon of the Isle of Wight, the Yen. Eobert McKew, D.D., C.B.E., who was Chaplain of the Fleet from 1924 to 1929, delivered the address.

Of those who took part in the service, either as members of the Crews or as Helpers, twenty-one were present, the oldest of them being now seventy-eight and the youngest sixty-one. Several others were unable to come.

The service was followed by a supper in the Church-hall, at which Mr. Aubrey Wykeham, J.P., D.L., Honorary Secre- tary of the Isle of Wight Branch, pre- sided, supported by the Archdeacon of the Isle of Wight, the Rector of Brooke, Mr. F. I. M. Bigby, of Southampton, representing the Norddeutschei Lloyd, (which had sent a contribution towards the expenses of the celebration), the Divisional Inspector of Coastguard and members of the Isle of Wight Committee.

Mr. Wykeham proposed the health of the survivors of the Life-boat Crews, and Mr. Gr. A. Shotter, of Brighstone, and Mr. W. White, of Atherfield, responded. Mr. Shotter recalled that the first to be taken off the steamer was a baby, who was lowered in a sailor's kitbag and was followed by its mother.

Mr. White said that he was there all the time, but could not remember much about it, except the weight of the gold and silver when it was lowered into the Life-boat. Following the supper, there was a sing-song, with the Rector of Brooke at the piano..