ON the afternoon of 15th September, 1935, two men and a girl went bathing in the bay at Port William, Wigtown- shire, in a very heavy surf. They kept in the broken water close inshore, but they were swept off their feet by a much larger wave, and carried out by the undertow. Although they were strong swimmers, they were helpless in the rough seas. Their cries were heard, and it was seen that they were being carried towards the rocky headland on the east of the bay. Fishermen were summoned, and tried first to reach them with ropes from the headland, but among the rocks this was found to be impossible, and the bathers were signalled to keep out.

Boat Carried Overland.

The fishermen's boats were on the far side of the other promontory of the bay, and the sea was too rough for it to be possible to row round ; but eight men, fishermen and visitors, carried a lobster boat across the promontory.

It was a fairly heavy boat, 16 feet 9 inches by 5 feet, and it had to be carried for a quarter of a mile. Mean- while one fisherman remained on the top of the headland to keep the bathers in sight. The boat was then launched with two of the fishermen on board, Mr. John Moreland and Mr. Joseph Maguire. A very heavy surf was breaking fifty yards from the shore, and the south-west wind, blowing against the tide, had raised a rough sea. The girl was quickly seen and rescued.

She was conscious and wanted the fishermen to rescue her brother first.

Then the boat, directed by the man on the headland, went in search of the two men. By this time they had drifted some distance away. The first to be found was only half conscious.

He could do nothing to help himself, but the two fishermen succeeded, with great difficulty, in dragging him into the boat by his hair.

Picked up Unconscious.

The second man had now disappeared, but the fishermen rowed in the direction in which he had last been seen, and came upon him floating unconscious with his head under water. It was only the good fortune that he and the boat were in the trough of a wave at the same moment that enabled the fishermen to find him. He, too, with great difficulty, was dragged on board by the hair. He had then been in the sea nearly an hour, and after he had been brought ashore, it needed two hours of artificial respiration to bring him back to consciousness.

It was a very fine rescue. The two fishermen, already half exhausted by the work of carrying the boat overland, ran a great risk of being themselves capsized and drowned while they were struggling to drag two unconscious men on board in the rough sea.

To each of these two men, MR. JOHN MORELAND and MR. JOSEPH MAGUIRE, the Institution awarded a silver watch, inscribed, and a letter of thanks.

Letters of thanks were sent to Mr. J.

Cochrane, who directed the rescue from the headland, Miss Marie Dunn, of Newton-Stewart, who worked tire- lessly at the artificial respiration, and Miss Gertrude Alison, of Surbiton, and Police Constable Walker of Port Wil- liam, who also helped to revive the two unconscious men.

The awards were presented by the Right Hon. Sir Herbert Maxwell, Bt., P.C., F.R.S., D.C.L., LL.D (who is in his 92nd year), at a special meeting arranged by the honorary secretary and treasurer of the Whithorn and Bay of Wigtown branch. The Provost of Whithorn, who is also chairman of the branch, presided, supported among others, .by Admiral R. H. Johnston- Stewart, C.B., M.V.O., J.P., D.L., the president of the branch..