"Ship" Ha'pennies for Life-boats A LARGE tin containing a thousand ha'pennies, all with the "ship" design on one side, has been given by Mr.

Henry Broom and his daughter Betty, of Bedford, as a contribution to the Mumbles life-boat fund. Mr. Broom and his daughter are regular holiday visitors to Mumbles where Mr. Broom once served during the war; and their gift was completed and handed over during their holiday there in July this year.

Fishing For It THREE Elie (Glasgow boys) Michael Scott, John Winter, and Ronnie Hen- derson, have given the sum of 29s. to the Institution's Funds by (1) catching and selling crabs for 17*., and (2) building an aquarium and collecting 125. in "gate" money.

A Holiday Snapshot Winner MR. J. FERGUSON of Oldham won half a crown in a holiday snapshot competition organised by the Oldham Evening Chronicle and Standard. He took a photograph of the launching of the new Cullercoats life-boat, Isaac and Mary Bolton, on June 28th. The Oldham Evening Chronicle and Stan- dard, publishing this picture on the 2nd of August last, reports Mr.

Ferguson's wish that the half-crown he won should be sent to the Culler- coats Branch of the Institution. (See page 259).

A Programme of 1862 ON the promenade close to the pier at Llandudno there stands a house once known as Haverlock House. Some- thing like two years ago it was bought by a builder called Idwal Jones who set about repairing and reconstructing it. Early in 1950 one of his labourers, Dick Foulkes, was removing an old fireplace; and in the space behind he discovered an old concert programme.

Its sojourn in this hiding-place had not improved it. The edges were charred and discoloured by the smoke and flames of countless fires. Most of its lettering was almost indistinguish- able; but the title page, fortunately, had survived the experience best.

Dick Foulkes gave the programme to Mr. John Williams, a brother of Robin Williams, the last retired cox- swain of the Llandudno life-boat and a resident in Llandudrio since 1884.

Mr. Williams gave it to Mr. Thomas Taylor, the Honorary Secretary of .the Llandudno branch of the Institu- tion, who sent it here. The title page was clear enough to be photographed and we have reproduced it on page 255 of this number of the Journal.

As it states, the programme is of a concert given by Mr. G. W. Wallace and some fellow artists on the 7th of September, 1862, in aid of the funds of the Orme's Head (Llandudno) branch of the Institution; and it must have been one of the earliest special efforts which this branch arranged as a station branch, for the first life-boat came to Llandudno the year before in 1861. The page opposite the title page, as far as can be made out, con- tains a list of the items to be performed by those artists, vocal and instru- mental, who were involved.

The Bath's Assembly Hotel was pulled down some fifty years ago and the present Grand Hotel now stands on its site.

Excelsior A ST. BERNARD dog called Ben, owned by Mr. Frank Simpson, an hotel keeper at Skegness, has collected the sum of £36 4s. for the Life-boat Service during three months of this Summer.

Badges for Permanent Collecting Boxes LIFE-BOAT workers who have perman- ent collecting boxes may like to know there are now badges which can be issued with the receipts to stick on the boxes. The wording on them is "Past year total over ." The badges are in three colours, one with £2 printed on it, one with £5, and one with £10.Shining Star EARLY last August, a film company was making sequences of a film at Portpatrick, in Wigtown, Scotland.

The star was Mr. Dirk Bogarde. Dur- ing his stay, Mr. Bogarde gave an autographed bottle of whisky to be auctioned at a dance, and six auto- graphed photographs of himself for auction at another dance.

The proceeds of both gifts were in aid of the Life-boat Service funds; and the bottle of whisky fetched £8 12*. 6d., the photographs £5 9s. 6rf.: altogether £14 2s. 0(i.

A Life-boat Pulpit ON August Bank Holiday, the Bishop of Blackburn, (Dr. W. M. Askwith) preached his Sands Mission sermon to holiday makers at Blackpool. The Blackpool life-boat, Sarah Ann Austin was brought out from her boathouse on to the promenade, and the Bishop used it as a pulpit. A large crowd of visitors gathered round to hear him.

Exmoor Shepherds As reported in the winter 1950 Life- boat, the owner of an hotel on Exmoor and a number of shepherds, in Septem- ber of last year, held the first sheep-dog trials on Exmoor, and gave the net pro- ceeds, £120, to the Minehead branch of the Institution. From many parts of Exmoor one can see the sea, but none of these shepherds had ever seen a life- boat, and it was arranged at once that they should have a trip in the Minehead boat when she was out on exercise.

The trip took place last August, and the photograph on page 258 leaves no doubt that the shepherds enjoyed the adventure.

Cricket for the Life-boat Service ON Sunday, 17th June, an interesting cricket match was played at Orping- ton, on the ground of the Cricket Club there, between teams representing the Gentlemen of Orpington and the Gentlemen of the Life-boat Service.

The teams were dressed in the costume of 100 years ago—tall hats, shirts with long sleeves and buttoned at the neck, sidewhiskers, black shoes—and the match was played for a barrel of ale.

The rules and conditions of play also belonged to an earlier epoch. The overs were of four balls each (under- hand bowling) and the wicket was un- prepared, with no creases marked. All runs were run out and no declaration was allowed. The stumps measured 27 inches by 8 inches, and there were no pads, batting or wicket-keeping gloves.

It is a pity that it has to be recorded that the Gentlemen of the Life-boat Service lost; but the proceeds from this very successful match, organised by the Orpington branch of the Royal National Life-boat Institution, amount- ing to about £42, were given to the Life-boat Service. Over 1,000 people saw the play. (See page 258).

On the 6th of June a comic cricket match was held at Tintwistle in Lan- cashire, and the proceeds from this were also given to the funds of the Institution.

A Well Kept Ledger A SHORT while ago a cheque for £518 5,9. 4d. was received from the estate of the late Mr. John Thomas Roper, who died in 1865, willing to the Institution any monies left after the death of the last survivor of the Ledger family.

Thousands of legacy cases are kept in the Institution's strong room; yet the correspondence from 1865—over 86 years ago—was produced in less than five minutes.

Gardens of Auchindinny House THESE beautiful gardens near Edin- burgh, a picture of which is on page 259, were thrown open by their owners on July 22nd, for a garden party in aid of the Life-boat Service. It raised the sum of £55 2*. 6d.

Portrait on the Cover THE portrait on the cover is of Coxswain Christopher O' Connor of Howth, County Wicklow, Ireland. He was bowman of the Howth life-boat from October 1947 to December 1948, second coxswain from 1st of January 1949 to the end of September 1950, and has been coxswain since that date..