THE hundred and tenth annual meeting of the governors of the Institution was held at the Central Hall, Westminster, at 3 p.m. on Friday, 20th April.

H.R.H. the Prince of Wales, K.G., President of the Institution, was in the chair. He presented medals and other awards for gallantry during the past year, and awards to honorary workers for distinguished services.

The speakers were the Right Hon.

Sir Bolton Eyres Monsell, P.C., G.B.E., R.N., M.P., First Lord of the Admiralty, Harriet, Lady Findlay, D.B.E., honorary secretary of the Scottish Life-boat Council, Captain the Right Hon. the Earl Howe, P.C., C.B.E., V.D., A.D.C., R.N.V.R., a member of the committee of management, Sir Godfrey Baring, Bt., chairman of the committee of manage- ment, the Hon. George Colville, deputy chairman of the committee of management, and Mr. Ernest Arm- strong, a member of the committee of management.

The Prince of Wales was supported on the platform by vice-presidents of the Institution, members of the com- mittee of management and honorary life-governors.

Among those who also accepted the invitation of the committee of manage- ment to support him were represen- tatives of thirteen foreign countries: Their Excellencies the Belgian, French, Italian, Spanish and Portuguese Am- bassadors, the Dutch, Danish, Grecian, Finnish, Rumanian and Latvian Ministers, the secretary of the Nor- wegian Legation, and the Swedish naval attache1; the following Members of Parliament: Lieut.-Commander R. T. Bower, R.N. (Cleveland, York- shire), Mr. Tom Cape (Working ton, Cumberland), Mr. T. R. A. M. Cook (North Norfolk), Mr. Arthur Harbord (Great Yarmouth), and Mr. W. Ross- Tayler, C.B.E. (Woodbridge, Suffolk), all representing places from which life-boatmen had come to receive awards; the Mayors and Mayoresses of forty-four boroughs : Acton, Barnes, Battersea, Bermondsey, Brentford and Chiswick, Baling, East Ham, Fins- bury, Fulham, Gravesend, Hackney, Hammersmith, Hampstead, Holborn, Hornsey, Ilford, Kensington, Lambeth, Lewisham, Leyton, Poplar, Richmond, Shoreditch, Southgate, Southwark, Stepney, Stoke Newington, Twicken- ham, Walthamstow, West Ham, West- minster. Willesden, Wimbledon, Wool- wich, Aldeburgh, Blackpool, Blyth, Boston, Great Yarmouth, Guildford, Hertford, Hove, St. Albans and Salis- bury ; Lord Snell, C.B.E., chairman of the London County Council, and representatives of the Board of Trade and the Shipwrecked Mariners Society.

Presentation of the Report and Election of the Committee of Management.

After the president's address (reported on page 245) SIR GODFREY BARING, BT., chair- man of the committee of management, presented the annual report and accounts for 1933, and they were adopted.

LiEUT.-CoL. C. R. SATTERTHWAITE, O.B.E., secretary of the Institution, read the list of those nominated as president, vice-presidents, treasurer and other members of the committee of management, and auditors for the ensuing year, and those nominated were elected.1 Presentation of Medals and Other Awards for Gallantry.

The secretary read the accounts of the services, and the medals and other awards were presented by the Prince of Wales, as follows : To MRS. ROBERT PATTON, widow of Coxswain Robert Patton, of Runswick, Yorkshire, the gold medal posthumously awarded to her husband for his gallantry in sacrificing his own life to save a lame man from the sinking steamer Disperser, of West Hartlepool, on 8th February, 1934.

To COXSWAIN HENRY BLOGG, of Cromer, Norfolk, a second service clasp to his silver medal for the rescue on 13th December, 1933, of two men from the barge Sepoy, of Dover.

Coxswain Blogg has now twice won the gold, and twice the silver medal, equalling a record which has stood in the history of the In- stitution for eighty-five years.

To SECOND COXSWAIN GEORGE BALLS, of Cromer, Norfolk, the thanks of the In- stitution inscribed on vellum for the same service.

To COXSWAIN WILLIAM FLEMING, of Great Yarmouth and Gorleston, Norfolk, a certificate of service on retiring, after serving in the life-boat for forty-eight years, and winning the gold, silver and bronze medals for gallantry.

To ACTING COXSWAIN HARRY BARRETT, of St. Mary's, Scillies, the bronze medal for the rescue on 28th November, 1933, of the crew of six of the schooner Mynonie R. Kirby, of London. He was in charge of the life-boat for the first time.

1 The list appears in the annual report.

To COXSWAIN T. Q. REAY, of Maryport, Cumberland, the bronze medal for the rescue on 17th January, 1934, of thirteen of the crew of the steamer Plawsworth, of Newcastle-on-Tyne.

To COXSWAIN J. H. PEAD, of Aldeburgh, Suffolk, the thanks of the Institution in- scribed on vellum for a very fine launch of the motor life-boat on 13th December, 1933.

(Full accounts of these services appeared in the last issue of The Life-boat or appear elsewhere in this issue.) The Right Hon. Sir Bolton Eyres Monsell, M.P.

THE RIGHT HON. SIB BOLTON EYRES MONSEIJ,, G.B.E., R.N., M.P. (First Lord of the Admiralty): Your Royal Highness, Ladies and Gentlemen : I read in one of the publica- tions of the Institution that the great majority of the men who man the life-boats, and the men and women who launch them, come from the fishing population. As the great Merchant Service was the mother of the Royal Navy, so is the old fishing com- munity of these islands the father of the Merchant Service ; and so the Royal Navy thus stands in relation to the fisher-folk of this country as a granddaughter—a young lady perhaps looking rather prosperous and possibly overdressed for a fishing village, but, although we may in the language of the world have bettered ourselves, still we are immensely proud of the old family connexion. (Applause.) I am delighted to be here as First Lord of the Admiralty to express my profound admiration and respect for the fishermen and fisherwomen of this country. (Applause.) We in the Royal Navy can testify to the courage and devoted service which the fisher- men rendered their country during the last war. (Applause.) The ordinary life of a fisherman is full of danger, and I often wish that the people of this country, when they are eating their soles, or their fish snacks, would sometimes think of what the har- vesting of this food means, and what it is like to be out on a dirty night in the North Sea in a trawler or a drifter. I sometimes wish that they could think of the womenfolk of the fishermen, who in the evening hear of a gale warning and see, in the words of Charles Kingsley, " a night wrack come rolling up, ragged and brown." But, not content with this hazardous life, the fishermen in their spare time provide this great life- boat service, a service different from all other services, because it only operates in the hour of danger and usually at a time when the ordinary individual in bed, hearing the wind howling round the chimneys, pulls up the bedclothes and says : " Thank God I am not at sea to-night." (Applause.) Therefore, Ladies and Gentlemen, for these very brief reasons (and I am trying to give an example for shortness of speeches) I am quite sure that this great meeting will, with acclamation, endorse the words of the resolution, which says : " That this meeting, fully recognizing the important services of the Royal National Life-boat Institution in its national work of life-saving, desires to record its hearty appreciation of the gallantry of the coxswains and crews of the Institution's life-boats." And I am also sure that you will subscribe with all your hearts to the second part of the resolution, which says "and gratefully to acknowledge the valuable help rendered to the cause by the local com- mittees, honorary secretaries and honorary treasurers." Sir I beg to move. (Cheers.) Harriet, Lady Findlay, D.B.E.

HARRIET, LADY FINDLAY, D.B.E.

(honorary secretary of the Scottish Life- boat Council) : Your Royal Highness, Ladies and Gentlemen : It is a very great pleasure and pride to me to second this resolution and to add my appreciation of the magnificent services rendered by the coxswains and crews of the life-boats. There can be no better way of appealing for help for the life-boat service than to bring to public notice the deeds, such as we have heard to-day, of the men of the service, who, taking their lives in their hands, volunteer under the worst possible conditions of weather, storm and stress, to go out to the rescue of their fellow- countrymen. They do not pause to consider " whom we are helping, or who is my neigh- bour." They love their neighbour as them- selves, and the fact that a human being is in peril on the sea leads them to place all that is dearest to them, even life itself, at their service, going forth on their work of rescue. No words of mine can possibly express our admiration for and our thanks to these men. We can only stand up with the highest admiration and profoundest emotion and give thanks that this country of ours is actuated by this wonderful spirit of heroism and self-sacrifice. (Applause.) There may well be a little spirit of friendly rivalry between the different parts of our island in forwarding the work of the In- stitution, and I am particularly proud to have the opportunity of taking part in its great meeting to-day, and to assure your Royal Highness that the work of the In- stitution is being carried on with the greatest zeal and keenness in Scotland, where I have the honour of participating in it. All who take part in the organization there are proud of being helpers in the life-boat service and we feel ourselves to be the shore crews, if I may use that expression, pulling together to provide material assistance for what we all feel to be one of our nation's most valuable and important services.

I think I may say without undue pride that our pull in Scotland has been a strong one since the Scottish Council was formed in 1927. We have increased our annual contributions from £10,000 a year to £17,000 a year. In that sum I am not including windfalls, because in national finance, or in individual finance, or in the finance of any institution, one has no right to expect such windfalls to happen as a regular occurrence.

But I may say, perhaps, with pride of my fellow-countrymen that during the last four vears we have had windfalls to the extent of £26,000, one of which was £11,000, another was between £4,000 and £5,000, and others were not quite as large. The information has also reached me that another very large Scottish donation may come soon to help this magnificent work.

I do not know if I am trespassing on the speakers to a later resolution if I say one word of thanks to those who undertake the work of helping to provide the Institution's funds, and if I mention that recently, at a meeting of our Scottish Council, we came to the conclusion that our energies in future must be directed to the question of annual subscribers. We were looking at our own position and we found, rather to the horror of some of us, that although we have a large body'of regular subscribers, the annual subscriptions represent only between 22 and 23 per cent of the total amount sent in, about 46 per cent coming from flag days, and the rest from special efforts.

In thanking the workers for all they do, I would propose that this year we should help the Institution best by trying to double our rate of annual subscription. Then the committee of management would know what the regular income was which they could put at the Institution's disposal for the building of new boats, or replacements, or for maintenance purposes. It is an admirable thing to hold life-boat days all over the country, but as at any moment life-boats have to go to sea and the weather takes no account of what dangers they may have to face, so on a flag day the weather may be very unkind, and a bad day inevitably reduces the amount of the collection. Therefore, I would urge upon the public to help us to obtain a very much larger number of subscribers. I do not think it is possible to enlarge our or- ganization very much, because almost the whole population is now covered by our branches and Ladies' Life-boat Guilds, but I do think there is an enormous scope for improvement in our annual subscriptions.

May I end by saying to your Royal Highness that the spurt we made in Scotland in contributions and in the increase in our organization can definitely be traced to the wonderful appeal made by you, Sir, at that great meeting in the capital of Scotland four years ago, and in making this acknowledge- ment may we dare to hope that at some opportune time in the future it will be repeated ? On Tuesday, the 16th, the fateful day of the national budget of 1934, the year 1934 was described as the year of " great expectations." It is not too much to hope that we who are working for the Life- boat Institution may look forward con- fidently in our work also to seeing those " great expectations " realized.

I have great pleasure in seconding the resolution of thanks both to the coxswains and crews of the life-boats and to the local committees and officials. As a humble member myself, I would also like to con- gratulate them on being members of a service, and helping in a work, in Which I feel it is such an honour to share. (Applause.) The resolution was put to the meeting and carried unanimously.

Presentations to Honorary Workers.

THE SECRETARY : Since the last annual meeting two honorary workers have been appointed honorary life-governors of the Institution. This is the highest honour which it can confer on an honorary worker, and the appointment is accompanied by a vellum signed by H.R.H. the Prince of Wales, as president of the Institution. The two new honorary life-governors are : LONDON : The LADY DOROTHY D'OYLY CARTE.

ABERDEEN : Mrs. D. M. KILGOUR.

The Institution has also conferred the same honour on a distinguished official of a foreign life-boat service, on his retirement— the secretary of the North and South Holland Life-boat Society, LIEUTENANT-COMMANDER HENDRIK DE BOOY.

H.R.H. the Prince of Wales, K.G., pre- sented the vellums.

THE SECRETARY : Since the last annual meeting twenty-one gold badges, which are given only for distinguished honorary ser- vices, have been awarded. Nineteen of the recipients are present this afternoon to receive them.

ABERDEEN, Mrs. ADAM MAITLAND.

BELFAST, LADY DIXON, D.B.E.

BIRMINGHAM, Mrs. GEOFFREY BIRD.

BROMLEY, Miss M. L. SCHOOLING.

SOUTH CAERNARVONSHIRE, DAME MAR- GARET LLOYD GEORGE, G.B.E., J.P.

DARLINGTON, ALDERMAN G. R. YOUNG, J.P.

GIRVAN, Mr. JAMES BREWSTER, J.P.

LONDON, The VISCOUNTESS BEARSTED.

LONDON, LADY STRUTHERS.

LONDON, Mrs. MEREDITH HARDY.

LYMM, Mrs. A. KIRK.

MANCHESTER, Miss N. WILDE.

NOTTINGHAM, LIEUT.-COL. F. RAYNER, D.S.O.

OXFORD, Miss M. L. VELLACOTT.

ROMSEY, Miss M. PEPPER.

SEAFORD, Miss J. LERESCHE.

THAME, Mrs. M. E. PECOVER.

TRURO, Mrs. C. E. GIBSON.

WIGAN, Mrs. W. H. TYRER.

H.R.H. the Prince of Wales, K.G., pre- sented the badges.

Captain the Right Hon. the Earl Howe, P.C.

CAPTAIN THE RIGHT HON. THE EARL HOWE, P.C., C.B.E., V.D., A.D.C., R.N.V.R.: Your Royal Highness, Your Excellencies, Your Worships, My Lords, Ladies and Gentlemen : I am proud indeed to think that I should have been selected to move so important a resolution. No one like myself who is acquainted with the work of the Institution could fail to have the greatest possible admiration for the work carried out by the ladies on its behalf. It is really quite impossible for a mere man, such as myself, to hope to pay adequate tribute to the work that they do, but I am going to give you one or two instances to show you what I mean. Grace Darling set a very high standard years ago in the annals of the Institution, and when people think of women in connexion with the life-boat service they probably almost instinctively think of Grace Darling. But she was no phenomenon ; she was merely the first in the annals of the Institution. Since the time of Grace Darling there have been no less than nineteen more silver medallists—that is to say, ladies who have earned one of the highest decorations that the Institution can give for gallantry. (Applause.) But that is not all. There are cases of life-boats being called out when, apart from the crews, there were hardly any able-bodied men available, and the life-boat had to be launched by the women wading breast high into the surf in order to get it oft. (Cheers.) I will give you a case. Take Boulmer, which is a little fishing village. It has a population of only about 150 all told, but on one cele- brated occasion both the life-boats for which Boulmer provides crews were called out.

That took twenty-seven men. The rocket apparatus took another twenty-seven men.

Sixty-one persons were employed in the launching of the life-boats, of whom thirty- five were women—only thirty-five people were left in the village altogether. (Cheers.) A similar case occurred during the war, the case of the Pomona, to which the Lowestoft life-boat was called out. Practically every able-bodied man had gone to the front and only the old men were left. The average age of the life-boat crew who went out that night was between fifty and sixty, and the boat was only got off by the heroic efforts of the launchers. I only tell you these things because I know that those who serve on the Ladies' Life-boat Guild are just as proud as we are on the committee of manage- ment of the devoted and magnificent service of the women round the coast. (Applause.) But there is another side to it. Take the magnificent efforts of the ladies in the direction of raising funds. I will give you two cases, and only two cases. Take Culler- coats—that is a little fishing village on the coast. The fishwives of Cullercoats have collected no less than £1,571 in twelve years.

(Applause.) At Cullercoats there is an old lady, seventy-six years of age ; her name is Mrs. Donkin. Last year she, by her own unaided efforts, raised £73, and in the last twelve years she has raised £501 by her own efforts. (Applause.) Take again the case of Miss Alice Marshall, I believe for sixteen years honorary secretary of the Oxford branch, and a collector for the branch before that. During Miss Alice Marshall's term of office at Oxford as honorary secretary, very largely from her own efforts, she raised no less a sum than £13,500. (Applause.) Now that I have given you those few instances I think you will realize how deeply grateful every single member of the com- mittee of management is for the devoted work of these splendid women in every sphere. The life-boat service is a standing example of what can be done by perfect co-operation between men and women. I have cited a few cases of ladies who have distinguished themselves, but I know per- fectly well that if the call came and if any of the ladies in this room got the chance, they would not be backward, but they would all be capable, and they would do the same.

(Applause.) I beg to move the resolution : " That this meeting desires to record its sense of the deep obligation of the Institution to the Ladies' Life-boat Guild and its many hundreds of voluntary members for the work which they have done in raising funds for the life-boat service." Mr. Ernest Armstrong.

MR. ERNEST ARMSTRONG : Your Royal Highness, Your Excellencies, Your Worships, My Lords, Ladies and Gentlemen : In paying tribute to the Ladies' Life-boat Guild for its work I do so with a specially keen sense of appreciation. Prior to my appointment as a member of the committee of manage- ment, I acted for some years as chairman of a station branch, and was then closely associated with the Ladies' Life-boat Guild there, and obtained a knowledge of its wonderful work. As evidence of the develop- ment and value of that work, the amount collected by that particular Guild rose from £120 in 1913 to £770 in 1933. An incident which occurred during the Parliamentary by-election there is also an illustration of their ardency and devotion. A canvasser seeking support for one of the candidates called at the house of a member of the Ladies' Life-boat Guild to find that the lady was not at home. He asked the maid if she thought her mistress was likely to vote for his candidate, to which the maid replied : " Oh, my mistress only votes for the Life-boat Institution." (Laughter.) I feel sure that the lady in question would not neglect her duty as citizen at the election, but it is evident she was a life-boat enthusiast and that her spirit had thoroughly permeated her household. (Applause.) I know also that the work of the Ladies' Life-boat Guild is not confined to the period round about life-boat day, but continues throughout the year. Its members are always seeking for and trying new methods of interesting people in life-boat work and of obtaining their financial support. It is calculated that of the sum raised annually for the Institution, apart from legacies and special gifts, two-thirds come from the efforts of the Ladies' Life-boat Guild, a record of which they have good reason to be proud.

(Applause.) Such results are a great source of satisfaction to those responsible for the administration of the Institution, and they are deeply grateful for them. The satis- faction is increased by the knowledge that the efforts of the Guild continue to extend.

For instance, last year the number of branches holding life-boat days was 731, an increase of eighteen on the previous year. The number of persons who contributed was 4,479,000, an increase on the figures of the previous year of 224,000. So- the work of the women goes on with unflagging zeal, despite the increasing difficulty of raising funds in these days of financial stress, but we have a cause which carries a great appeal in that it represents constant acts of courage and heroism on the part of our gallant crews in the saving of life. We have seen some of these heroes to-day and heard the epic stories of their deeds.

I wish, however, to give some information from another aspect which I trust may be useful to the members of the Guild and stimulate their confidence in the cause for which they are working so splendidly.

Experience on the branch committee shows that there are always critics, and it is well to be in a position to meet their criticism.

For instance, one has heard of the critic who finds fault with the policy of closing certain life-boat stations. That policy is actually the result of the advent of the motor life-boat, which has completely revolutionized our service. The motor life-boat, with its wider cruising range, speed and power, is making it possible for the total number of our fleet to be reduced, and there is no question that it is making our service for the saving of life at sea much more efficient than ever it was. That great story we heard to-day of the rescue of the crew of the Sepoy by the Cromer motor life-boat in December last could not have been told but for the fact that the service was rendered by a motor life-boat. The pulling and sailing boat by which gallant efforts were made to reach the wreck was unable to do so, owing to the terrific sea.

The change which has been brought about in our fleet as a result of the introduction of the motor life-boat is quite remarkable.

Nineteen-hundred-and-four may be taken as the last year preceding the era of the motor life-boat. In that year our total fleet numbered 285, made up of two steam life- boats and 283 of the old pulling and sailing boats. At the present moment our total fleet only numbers 175—121 motor life- boats and 54 of the pulling and sailing type. Thus the position is that whilst our service is much improved in efficiency our total fleet has been reduced by 110. It is, therefore, obvious that the closing of certain life-boat stations is inevitable as they become redundant. It is always a matter of regret to the committee of management when any station has to be closed, and it is also natural that those people who have in the past been specially interested in those stations should feel disappointed when their life-boat is with- drawn, but it is necessary to take a broad view of the life-boat service as a whole. No station is closed without most careful con- sideration, nor, above all, until adequate service by neighbouring stations is assured.

This should satisfy that particular type of critic.

Then there is the critic who complains that the cost of administration is too high and is extravagant. This raises the question of work at headquarters, about which little is ever heard. It will readily be understood that Life-boat House, Grosvenor Gardens, is the central point from which the In- stitution is managed and controlled. Indeed, it resembles the head office of a vast industrial organization,''with its 1,133 branches ex- tending to the most remote corners of the British Isles. The work of ordinary manage- ment of such an organization is great and has been increased by the introduction of the motor life-boat, which requires much greater service. We have at headquarters a staff devoted to their work and to the life- boat cause. Many of those members have been trained from their youth in the service, and most of them have had years of ex- perience in it. Yet, as will be seen in the statement of accounts, the total cost of head- quarters administration is less than 5 per cent of the total amount expended by the Institution last year—surely a most reason- able amount for the work done. (Applause.) The committee of management, upon which it is an honour to serve, resembles a board of directors which decides and guides the policy of the Institution. From it are formed the committees which supervise and follow the operations of the various departments of the work, and the constant object of all concerned is to seek the highest efficiency on terms of the strictest economy. The members of the Ladies' Life-boat Guild may go forward with their work in absolute confidence that the funds which they are so successful in raising are used to the best possible advantage in the maintenance and continued improvement of our great life- saving service. (Applause.) I have, therefore, much pleasure in seconding the resolution " That this meeting desires to record its sense of the deep obligation of the Institution to the Ladies' Life-boat Guild and to its many hundreds of voluntary members for the work they have done in raising funds for the life-boat service." The resolution was put to the meeting and carried unanimously.

Sir Godfrey Baring, Bt.

SIB GODFREY BARING, BT. : Your Royal Highness, Your Excellencies, My Lords, Ladies and Gentlemen : It is my high honour and privilege to move a resolution which I am sure you will receive with the utmost enthusiasm. That resolution is : " That the hearty and respectful thanks of this meeting be given to His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales, K.G., for presiding over this the hundred and tenth annual general meeting of the Royal National Life-boat Institution." (Applause.) Sir, this has been a meeting characterized by, if I may say so, most admirable but very brief speeches, and although I could keep this audience here for a long tune reciting the manifold services which His Royal High- ness has rendered to the Life-boat Institution, I will confine myself most unwillingly to only a few sentences. May I say this, Sir, with great respect: We regard His Royal Highness not only as our honoured president, but as an unfailing, most generous, and splendid friend to the Institution ? (Loud applause.) Your Royal Highness, it is no mere form of words when I ask you to accept the heartfelt and abiding gratitude of every single governor of this Institution. (Cheers.) May I in conclusion, Sir, very respectfully suggest to you that you can render one further notable service to the Institution ? If His Royal Highness could manage to have just a little engine trouble in a seaplane at a suitable distance from one of our motor life-boats, at a station preferably in a thickly- populated district, and if His Royal Highness would allow himself to be brought ashore by a motor life-boat, then I can say with confidence that the financial anxieties of the committee of management would be allayed for many years to come. (Laughter and applause.) The Hon. George Colville.

THE HON. GEORGE COLVILLE (deputy- chairman of the committee of management) : Your Royal Highness, Your Excellencies, Your Worships, My Lords, Ladies and Gentlemen : The attendance this afternoon bears witness to the recognition of the great work done by our president, His Royal Highness. I have very much pleasure in seconding the resolution.

The resolution was put to the meeting and carried with acclamation.

H.R.H. THE PRINCE OF WALES : I thank you for the resolution and for re-electing me president, a position of which I am always very proud. (Applause.) Entertainment of Medallists.

After the meeting the coxswains and others who had received awards for gallantry were taken to tea at the House of Commons by Commander the Hon. A. D. Cochrane, D.S.O., R.N., M.P., a member of the committee of management of the Institution. In the evening they saw Mr. Whittington at the Hippodrome, as the guests of Mr. Jack Buchanan..