By SHEILA MARY WICKS (10|), The Heston Junior Mixed School, Heston, Middlesex.

"A GALLANT RESCUE." BY THE COXSWAIN OP A LIFE-BOAT.

IT was a dark, stormy night in the middle of a terrible winter ; a wild wind was howling round my little cottage beside the life-boat station in the little village of Dunkelly, in the Highlands of Scotland ; the sea was roar- ing, the waves were dashing up against the half-submerged rocks, sending sprays of foam all round. All the brave crew of the life-boat were standing by, ready for any- thing. I was gazing out of the window at the black sea, and wondering how long it would be before we received calls for help.

It was • not long ! Suddenly a flash of lightning lit up the sky and showed us a trawler on the rocks. It was immediately followed by the glare of a distress rocket, and we interpreted the message: " On the rocks, sinking fast." We all rushed to the life-boat station, put on our " waterproofs " and, with some difficulty, launched the life- boat. She was filled with water the minute she reached the water, but was emptied, quickly, by the scuppers. We set the motor to work at once. Up and down we tossed.

The forty-foot waves broke over our stern.

A fierce battle raged between us and the gale.

Several times our boat was filled with water, but it was baled out by way of the scuppers.

We were all wet through after the first mile.

The vessel was still three miles away. The farther out we ventured, the worse was the : storm.

At last, after an hour's battling against wind and sea, we reached the ship. She was a sorry sight. Her stern was down under the surface ; her topmast was broken and splintered, and her crew were hanging to whatever they could, while the ninety-mile- an-hour wind was knocking her to pieces.

I ordered one of the men to throw a life-line.

He tried once. No one caught it! He tried again : the people were too cold to move ! Then I struck on the perilous idea of trying to reach the ship. Accordingly I ordered the men to go round to the leeward of the ship and try to approach ; so we tried to make a passage between the rocks, but were swept back by the terrific force of the raging gale.

This rush almost upset us, but we ventured again. We had more success this time.

When we reached the ship's side, after a perilous fight, I asked for volunteers who would board the vessel. A man, John Ark- house, put himself forward at once, and he was followed by several others. There was a rope hanging over the side; we tested it, and, as it was safe, the volunteers climbed up it. After a few minutes the man who went up first came down with an unconscious woman. We put her in the cabin and ad- ministered artificial respiration. The re- mainder of the life-boat crew were now assisting the sailors down, and, after half an hour of tossing, we were ready to return.

Just as we were getting ready to start we heard the pitiful mewing of the ship's cat, so we neared the fast-sinking vessel again.

As the life-boat was being lifted up on a wave, one of my brave crew jumped on board with a life-line round his waist. We saw him staggering up and down the deck as the ship tossed and turned, in his search for the cat. After a quarter of an hour of suspense he reappeared at the edge, holding the cat. He dropped back into the boat, and we started for home.

After a terrible tossing, and a battle with wind and waves we reached the shore, and were greeted by a crowd of fisher folk who had braved the storm to come and take the rescued to a hot supper and a warm bed.

After a struggle we housed the life-boat, and I went home, tired and weary, to a bowl of hot porridge and an inviting bed, thinking that the story of my adventure would be a good one to tell to my children in the morning..