Exmouth, Devon; Fenit (Tralee Bay), Co. Kerry; Dungeness, Kent; Longhope, Orkneys.

THE Exmouth naming ceremony was held on 29th August in the presence of nearly 8,000 people. Among those taking part in the ceremony were the Rev. the Earl of Devon, a vice-president of the Institution, Admiral Sir A. A. M.

Duff, K.C.B., a member of the com- mittee of management, Admiral F. C.

Fisher, chairman of the branch, the Bishop of Crediton, and the chairmen of the Urban District Councils of Exmouth, Salterton and Sidmouth.

Exmouth has one of the oldest life- boat stations on our coasts. It was established in 1803, and its first life- boat was built by Henry Greathead, builder, in 1789, of the first life-boat, the Original, stationed on the Tyne.

Since 1858, when the station was re- established by the Institution, its life- boats have rescued twenty-six lives.

The station has had four life-boats since that time, and all have been gifts from Devon. The new life-boat has been built out of a legacy received from the late Rev. Charles Pemberton Eaton, of Milford Haven, who spent much of his life on the coast of Pem- brokeshire, but in his early youth lived near Bideford, and was ordained by the Bishop of Exeter.

She is of the light, self-righting type of motor life-boat, 35 feet 6 inches by 9 feet 3 inches, specially designed for stations where the life-boat has to be launched off a carriage or the open beach. On service, with crew and gear on board, she weighs 6| tons. She is divided into six water-tight compart- ments, and is fitted with 115 air-cases.

If a sea breaks on board she can free herself in twelve seconds, and if she were capsized, even with a hole in her bottom, she could right herself in four seconds. She has one screw, driven by a 35 h.p. engine, in a water-tight compartment. The engine itself is water-tight, so that it could continue running even if the engine-room were flooded. Her speed is 7 knots, and she carries enough petrol to be able to travel 116 miles at full speed with- out refuelling. She carries a crew of seven, and can take thirty people on board in rough weather.

The Rev. the Earl of Devon presided at the ceremony, and the guests were welcomed by the chairman of the Ex- mouth Urban District Council (Mr. J.

Carter, J.P.). Mr. J. Kelly White, one of the executors of the donor, pre- sented the life-boat to the Institution, and she was received by Admiral Sir A. A. M. Duff, K.C.B., who then pre- sented her to the branch. Admiral Fisher accepted her on behalf of the branch, and after she had been de- scribed by the district inspector of life-boats the Bishop of Crediton dedi- cated her. Miss Shrubb, the daughter of Captain C. P. Shrubb, honorary secretary of the branch, then named the life-boat Catherine Harriet Eaton, after the mother of the donor.

The Rev. the Earl of Devon presented to Lieut.-Col. B. M. Hynes, O.B.E., honorary secretary of the Lyme Regis branch, the binoculars awarded to him by the Institution, and a vote of thanks to the Rev. the Earl of Devon, Admiral Sir A. A. M. Duff, K.C.B., and the Bishop of Crediton was proposed by Mr. S. Cooper, J.P. (chairman of the Budleigh Salterton Urban District Council), and seconded by Mr. G. E.

Saunders, J.P. (chairman of the Sid- mouth Urban District Council). The singing at the ceremony was accom- panied by the Exmouth British Legion Band.

Fenit, Tralee Bay.

The naming ceremony of the new motor life-boat took place on 6th September in the presence of an audience of about a thousand people.

A letter was received from Mr. Sean Lemass, Minister for Industry and Commerce, expressing his regret that he and Mrs. Lemass were unable to be present and wishing good fortune to the new life-boat and continued success to the Institution.

There has been a station at Fenit since 1879, and its life-boats have rescued thirty-six lives. The new boat is of the largest type which the In- stitution is now building, the Barnett (Stromness) type. She is a cabin life- boat, 51 feet by 13 feet 6 inches. On service, with crew and gear on board, she weighs 26 J tons. She is divided into seven water-tight compartments, and is fitted with 160 air-cases. She has twin screws, and is driven by two 60 h.p. engines. The engine-room is a water-tight compartment, and each engine is itself water-tight, so that it could continue running even if the engine-room were flooded. Her speed is just under 9 knots, which, having regard to her speed-length ratio, is equivalent to a speed of nearly 35 knots in a vessel the size of the Mauretania.

She carries enough petrol to be able to travel 120 miles at full speed without refuelling. She carries a crew of eight, and in rough weather can take 100 people on board. She has a cabin, a line-throwing gun, and an electric search-light, is lighted throughout with electricity, and is fitted with an oil- spray in the bows to make smooth the water round the wreck.

This boat has been built out of a legacy from the late Miss S. B. Blake, of Streatham, London, who left the money for the provision of a motor life- boat on the west coast of Ireland.

Mr. David Twomey presided at the ceremony, and after the singing of " Ave Maria," Lieut.-Col. C. R. Satter- thwaite, O.B.E., secretary of the In- stitution, presented the life-boat to the branch on behalf of the donor and the Institution. The life-boat was received by Mr. Timothy Barrett, honorary secretary, on behalf of the branch, and welcomed by Mr. A. J. MacGillycuddy in the name of the people of Kerry.

Commander J. M. Upton, R.D., R.N.R., district-inspector of life-boats, de- scribed her, and a service of dedication was conducted by the Right Rev.

Monsignor David O'Leary, P.A., P.P., Vicar-General and Dean of the Diocese of County Kerry, representing the Bishop of Kerry. The hymn " Hail, Queen of Heaven " was sung, and Mrs.

A. J. MacGillycuddy named the life- boat Peter and Sarah Blake, after the donor and her brother.

A vote of thanks to Mr. and Mrs.

MacGillycuddy and the officiating clergy was proposed by Mr. John Kelleher and seconded by Mr. John Latchford, and a vote of thanks to the chairman was proposed by'Mr.

T. L. M. Fuge, district organizing secretary, and seconded by the Rev.

Canon Clarke.

The life-boat then took trips round the harbour with parties of the guests on board.

Dungeness.

The Dungeness naming ceremony was held on 9th September, with a gale blowing, in the presence of about 800 people. Among those who took part in it were the Mayor of Lydd, Sir Godfrey Baring, Bt., chairman of the Institution, Mrs. E. Astley Roberts, president of the Eastbourne Ladies' Life-boat Guild, and Lieut.-Col.

C. R. Satterthwaite, O.B.E., secretary of the Institution.

The Dungeness life-boat station was established in 1826, and since 1892 there have been two stations. There will continue to be two. The motor life-boat has replaced a large pulling and sailing life-boat, but a light pulling and sailing life-boat will remain. Since 1850 the Dungeness life-boats have rescued 137 lives. There have been three disasters in the history of the station. In 1852 a coastguard boat capsized, with the loss of four of her crew of seven. In 1891 the life-boat capsized, with the loss of two lives, and Coxswain James Lucas received the silver medal for his gallantry on that occasion. In 1893 the life-boat again capsized, and the second cox- swain was drowned.

The new motor life-boat is the second to be built of the new H-t'eet Beach type, of which the first was stationed at Aldeburgh (Suffolk) in 1931.1 She has been built out of a legacy from the late Mr. Henry Cooper Henderson, who died in 1913. He was a son of Charles Cooper Henderson, of Shepperton, the artist, whose pictures of the old coach- ing days are well known to collectors of sporting pictures. Towards the end of his life Mr. Henderson lived mostly at Ramsgate, where he took a warm interest in the life-boat, and its crew, becoming an enthusiastic admirer of their splendid work. Having made ample provision for various charitable bequests, he gave directions that eventually a life-boat should be pur- chased and named after his father, and stationed, if possible, at Ramsgate, or at an important station on the South Coast.

The Mayor of Lydd presided at the ceremony, and after the district inspector had described the life-boat she was presented to the Institution by Major C. von Essen Moberley, a trustee of the estate of the donor of the boat, who said that it was a great regret to Miss Ella Henderson that she was not able to be present at the naming ceremony of the life-boat which bore her grandfather's name.

The life-boat was received by Sir Godfrey Baring, Bt., who presented her to Captain Q. C. A. Craufurd, R.N., honorary secretary of the station.

The Rev. P. H. Collins, M.A., Rector of Lydd, then dedicated the life-boat.

Before the actual naming ceremony a vote of thanks to Mrs. Astley Roberts was proposed by Mr. W. P. Spens, O.B-.E., K.C., M.P., and seconded by Mr. Charles E. Bass, J.P., and a vote of thanks to the Mayor and Sir Godfrey Baring, Bt., was proposed by Lieut.- Col. C. R. Satterthwaite, O.B.E., secre- tary of the Institution, and seconded by Lieut.-Col. V. Findlater.

Mrs. Astley Roberts then named the life-boat Charles Cooper Henderson, and the boat was launched into a heavy sea.

Longhope.

The naming ceremony of the new motor life-boat at Longhope in the l,A lull description of this type, with photograph and plans, will be found on page 173.

Orkneys was held on 15th September, among those taking part in it being Mr. Alfred Baikie, of Tankerness, Lord Lieutenant of Orkney, and Mrs. Baikie.

There has been a life-boat station at Longhope since 1874, and its life-boats have rescued 128 lives. The new boat is the second motor life-boat stationed there, and has replaced another motor life-boat of the same type, which was built in 1926. She is of the Watson (cabin) type, 45 feet 6 inches by 12 feet 6 inches. On service, with crew and gear on board, she weighs 20J tons. She is divided into seven water-tight compartments, and is fitted with 142 air-cases. She has twin screws, and is driven by two 40 h.p.

engines. The engine-room is a water- tight compartment, and each engine is itself water-tight, so that it could con- tinue running even if the engine-room were flooded. Her speed is 8J knots.

She carries enough petrol to be able to travel 116 miles at full speed with- out refuelling. She has a crew of eight, and in rough weather can take ninety-five people on board. She is fitted with a line-throwing gun and an electric searchlight, and is lighted throughout by electricity.

This life-boat is the third to be built out of a legacy received from the late Mr. William McCunn, of Largs, the other two having been stationed at Broughty Ferry (Dundee) and Port Logan (Wigtownshire).

Mr. J. M. F. Groat, president of the branch, presided and received the boat, which was presented to the branch by Lieut.-Commander T. G. Michelmore, R.D., R.N.R., district inspector of life- boats, on behalf of the donor and the Institution. The Rev. Gilbert W.

Moore, B.D., dedicated the life-boat, and Mrs. Alfred Baikie, of Tankerness, named her Thomas McCunn.

Mrs. Alfred Baikie also presented to the widow of Thomas Gunn, bowman of the life-boat for nearly thirty-three years, his certificate of service. A vote of thanks to Mrs.

Alfred Baikie was proposed by Mr.

A. Sutherland, J.P., county coun- cillor, and a vote of thanks to the president and others by Mr. Alfred Baikie..