THE annual meeting was held at the Central Hall, Westminster, on the 13th of March, 1951, with Sir Godfrey Baring, Bt., chairman of the Committee of Management, in the chair.

H.R.H. the Duchess of Kent, Presi- dent of the Institution, presented the medals for gallantry and other awards and gave her presidential address.

The Right Hon. Anthony Eden, M.C., M.P., proposed, and His Excel- lency the French Ambassador (M.

Rend Massigli) seconded the resolu- tion of gratitude to the coxswains and crews of life-boats, the honorary officers of the stations, and the honorary officers of the financial branches and Ladies' Life-boat Guild.

Commodore the Earl Howe, C.B.E., V.R.D., P.C., R.N.V.R., deputy-chair- man of the Committee of Management, proposed, and the Marquess Camden, a member of the Committee, seconded a vote of thanks to the Duchess of Kent.

Supporting the Duchess on the plat- form were the Mayor and Mayoress of Westminster, the Irish Ambassador, the Chairman of the London County Council, the Lord Mayor and Lady Mayoress of Liverpool, the Mayors and Mayoresses of over forty other London boroughs, the Mayor and Mayoress of Wallasey, representatives of the Ministry of Transport, the Coast- guard, the Civil Service Life-boat Fund, the Shipwrecked Mariners' Society, vice-presidents and honorary life-governors of the Institution, donors of life-boats or their representatives, members of the Committee of Manage- ment and members of the Central London Women's Committee.

The Chairman's Address On behalf not only of all of us here, but of the whole Life-boat Service, I welcome our President, Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Kent. (Applause.) We are very grateful that each year she comes to this meeting to present the awards. Today the will add more names to the now long list of our life-boatmen and honorary workers, from all parts of the country, who look back with pleasure to receiving from her their medals for gallantry and their gold badges for long and distinguished work. But it is not only in this hall that Her Royal Highness meets the men of the Service. She has met many of them at their own stations, and she has most kindly promised to name this year the new life-boats at New Brighton and Margate.

We are fortunate also to have with us one of the most distinguished statesmen of the day. (Applause.) We feel it a great com- pliment to the Service that Mr. Anthony Eden should come to speak of the Institu- tion's work. Last year we had with us the representative of the Spanish Government; two years ago the Swedish Ambassador; they both came to thank our life-boats for services to ships of their countries. Today we are delighted to have with us the French Ambassador. (Applause.) There have always been the most friendly relations between our two Life-boat Services, and a constant exchange of ideas.

This platform would look very different, and much less distinguished, if we had not again the Mayors and Mayoresses of nearly fifty London borouglis (Applause), and other cities and towns. Their presence is a tribute to our work which we deeply value. We are also delighted to have with us too, the donors, or their representatives, of a number of the life-boats in our fleet. I would ask all in the body of the hall, as they look at this platform, to realise what an impressive witness it is to the universal interest in the Life-boat Service.

The report and accounts are before you.

Last year I had to regret that for the first time for nine years the income was not a record. This year we return to our record- making. But we must be careful not to congratulate ourselves too readily. Though our income is £50,000 higher than ever before, it was still £70,000 less than the expenditure.

Once again our gratitude to our workers and the public is accompanied by an earnest request for even more.

The chairman's speech is not appreciated at meetings of this kind by anyone but himself, and I therefore will bring these quite unimportant remarks to a welcome close.

I now formally move the adoption of the report and accounts for 1950. (Applause.) The Report and Accounts and Elections The report and accounts for 1950 were adopted, and the President, vice-presidents, treasurer and other members of the Com- mittee of Management and the auditors were elected.

Presentation of Medals The secretary read accounts of services by the life-boats at Wicklow, Co. Wicklow; New Brighton, Cheshire; and Dunmore East: To COXSWAIN EDWARD KAVANAOH, OF WICKLOW, COUNTY WICKLOW, the bronze medal for rescuing the crew of eleven men of the motor vessel Cameo, of Glasgow, in a gale, with heavy seas breaking, on the 12th of September, 1950.

To SECOND-COXSWAIN WILLIAM STEPHEN JONES, OF NEW BRIGHTON, CHESHIRE, a bar to the bronze medal, which he won in 1947, for rescuing as acting-coxswain, the crew of four of the Irish schooner Happy Harry, of Arklow, in a full southerly gale at the mouth of the Mersey on the night of the 16th of September, 1950.

To COXSWAIN PATRICK POWER, OF DUN- MORE EAST, COUNTY WATERFORD, a bar to the bronze medal, which he won in 1941, for rescuing the local fishing boat St. Declan, with her crew of five, in a south-east gale, with squalls of snow, when she was rapidly drifting on the rocks, on the night of the 14th of December, 1950.

To SECOND-COXSWAIN RICHARD POWER, OF DUNMORE EAST, COUNTY WATERFORD, the bronze medal for the same service.

The Duchess of Kent When I attended last year's meeting I recalled that I had presented medals to men from the coasts of England, Scotland and Wales, and it is therefore with great pleasure that I have an opportunity today of ack- nowledging the bravery and courage of men from life-boat stations in Ireland.

The record of this year's services is as remarkable as ever, and I am especially pleased to give recognition, once again, to the outstanding bravery of Second-Coxswain William Jones, of the New Brighton Station.

In 1948, I presented him with the bronze medal, and I am very happy to be able to congratulate him this afternoon upon the skill and daring which saved four men's lives, and which have won him the bar to that medal. (Applause.) I have on many previous occasions drawn attention to the magnificent standards of conduct which obtain in the Life-boat Service. No praise is too high for the 2,000 men who, year after year, carry on their work of rescue with a cheerful disregard of the dangers of every kind which attend this work. (Applause.) In sending to all of them my congratula- tions upon another splendid year, I would like also to give my thanks and good wishes to the great body of honorary workers, whose indefatigable help to the organisation has been so freely and generously given. (Ap- plause.) Mr. Anthony Eden Mr. Eden moved the following resolution: "That this Meeting, fully recognising the important services of the Royal National Life-boat Institution, in its national work of life-saving, desires to record its hearty appre- ciation of the gallantry of the coxswains and crews of the Institution's life-boats, and its deep obligation to the local committees, honorary secretaries, and honorary treasurers of all station branches, and to the honorary officers and hundreds of voluntary members of the financial branches and of the Ladies' Life-boat Guild in the work of raising funds to maintain the service." (His speech will be found on page 157.) The French Ambassador I am very honoured to have been asked to second the resolution which has just been moved by the Right Honourable Anthony Eden, and it is for me a great privilege indeed to be able to take this opportunity of paying my tribute of admiration and gratitude to the Royal National Life-boat Institution and to all those gallant men associated with its work.

Yours is a national institution, but the innumerable lives it has saved and will keep on saving are the lives of sailors of every nationality, and you have earne i the grati- tude of all seafaring people. Mr. Chairman, you have just referred to the great age of this Institution. The sister institution in France, La Societe Centrale de la Sauvetage des Naufrages, is a somewhat younger one, I think thirty years younger. It is, too, a quite private voluntary institution, and I can say it always has as an example the work already done by your Institution.

Indeed, the French are particularly grate- ful and indebted to you for, though you may not have saved more of my countrymen than any others, their number brings them among the highest on the list. I see in this report that last year eight of the vessels helped hailed from France. (Applause.) No words of praise could express my feel- ings of admiration for your seamen's self- sacrifice, devotion to duty, simplicity, fairness and courage. From your achievements you must derive great moral satisfaction. I hope that you are aware too of the tremendous amount of good will that actions such as yours inspire amongst sailors of every country and of the part you play in creating the vast community of seafaring people. My old friend Anthony Eden has just referred to some aspects of international life which are not always so pleasant; so I think that he will agree with me if I suggest that in many ways you would be well advised to look to that vast community as an example of splendid inter- national understanding and co-operation.

(Applause.) The Resolution was carried by acclamation.

Since the last annual meeting one honorary worker has been appointed an honorary life governor of the Institution, MR. W. E.

MOUNSEY, honorary treasurer of the Port of Liverpool Branch. This is the highest honour which it can confer on an honorary worker, and the appointment is accompanied by a vellum signed by the President of the Institution. Unfortunately ill-health pre- vented Mr. Mounsey from coming to receive the vellum.

The gold badge, which is given only for distinguished service, has been awarded to six honorary workers, and the Duchess of Kent presented their badges to them.

Miss MURIEL A. R. HIBBERT, OF CHORLEY.

Miss JANE B. ELLIOT, OF COLNE VALLEY.

Miss ETHEL M. BERRY, OF HORWICH.

Miss KATHLEEN H. NUTTAJLL, OF LAN- CASTER.

MRS. J. HOOLOHAN, OF MANCHESTER.

LIEUT.-COL. E. V. HUGO, OF RICHMOND.

Vote of Thanks A vote of thanks to the Duchess of Kent was proposed by Lord Howe and seconded by Lord Camden. It was carried by acclama- tion and three cheers were given for the Duchess.

After the Meeting After the Duchess of Kent had presented the medals, the three Irish- men returned to the platform and presented her with a box of sham- rock.

At the end of the meeting the Duchess of Kent and the principal guests had tea at the Central Hall. The four medallists, the members of their fam- ilies who had come with them from Ireland and New Brighton, and the six honorary workers who had been presented with their gold badges at the meeting, were entertained to tea at the House of Lords by members of the House who are members also of the Committee of Management, Com- modore the Earl Howe, R.N.V.R., the Marquess Camden, the Lord Winster, the Lord Saltoun, the Lord Ammon and Captain the Lord Ailwyn, R.N.

In the evening the four medallists and their relatives went to the Victoria Palace to see "Knights of Gladness." In the interval the medallists were taken behind stage and met Mr.

Bud Flanagan, leader of the Crazy Gang, and the other principal actors.

After the interval Mr. Flanagan said from the stage that he had often had the privilege of introducing notable actors and actresses to the audience.

This evening he was delighted to have the company of these brave men who that afternoon had been decorated by the Duchess of Kent for gallantry.

He then asked the four men to stand up in their boxes, the spotlights were turned on them, and the audience applauded..