THE annual meeting was held at the Central Hall, Westminster on the 8th of March, 1955, with Sir Godfrey Baring, Bt., K.B.E., Chairman of the Committee of Management, in the chair.

H.R.H. the Duchess of Kent, Presi- dent of the Institution, presented medals for gallantry and other awards and gave an address. The Rt. Hon.

the Lord de L'Isle and Dudley, V.C., proposed and the Rt. Hon. Walter Elliot, M.C., M.P., seconded the resolu- tion of gratitude to the coxswains and crews of the life-boats, the honorary officers and committee of the stations and the honorary officers and members of the financial branches and the Ladies' Life-boat Guild.

Mr. H. S. H. Burdett-Coutts and Mr. John Russell, members of the Committee of Management, proposed and seconded a vote of thanks to the president.

Supporting the Duchess of Kent on the platform were the Danish Ambas- sador Mr. V. de Steensen-Leth; the Counsellor of the Irish Embassy, Mr.

Frank Biggar; the Air and Cultural Attache's of the United States Em- bassy, Brigadier-General John M.

Sterling and Dr. Myron L. Koenig; the Members of Parliament for Honiton and Lewes, Sir Cedric Drewe and Major Tufton Beamish; the Mayors and Mayoresses of over forty boroughs; the Chairmen of several Urban District Councils; representatives of the Minis- try of Transport and Civil Aviation; the Civil Service Life-boat Fund; King George's Fund for Sailors; and the British Red Cross Society; the High Chief Ranger of the Ancient Order of Foresters; and donors of life-boats or their representatives, honorary life-governors and vice-presi- dents of the Institution, members of the Committee of Management, and the Chairman and Deputy Chairmen of the Central London Women's Com- mittee of the Institution.

Chairman's Speech Sir Godfrey Baring spoke first. He said: We are meeting here to receive the report on the work of the Royal National Life-boat Institution in the year 1954. That it has been in every way an outstanding, and in some ways a unique year, nobody can doubt.

The facts are in the report before you, and I feel sure you will hear more about them from this platform today. I will not, there- fore, dwell on the Institution's achievements in the past year. But I feel bound to say that though I have had the honour to take the chair at this meeting on a good many occasions, I can think of no meeting at the Central Hall when I have undertaken my task of formally moving the adoption of the report with such great pride in the past year's work.

Members of our life-boat crews last year rescued the lives of 405 people—a wonderful figure and more than 40 per cent higher than the number rescued the year before. The dangers they faced in carrying out these rescues are always there, as was demonstrated all too tragically in December, when three gallant members of the Scarborough crew lost their lives after escorting the local fishing fleet into harbour.

When reporting on a year of such great achievement, we are particularly honoured to have the privilege and pleasure of welcoming Your Royal Highness as our President here today. Your Royal Highness's constant interest in the Service, and the inspiration you bring to those who are engaged in its work, cannot be too strongly stressed.

W7e are also most happy this year to wel- come two very distinguished guest speakers.

One is the holder of one of the great offices of State, the Secretary of State for Air, the Rt.

Hon. the Lord de L'Isle and Dudley. At a time of year when all members of the Govern- ment have exceptionally arduous duties, it is very gratifying that one holding such im- portant office has managed to find time to attend a meeting of this Institution, which has close and honourable connections with the service for whose affairs he is responsible to Parliament. At a later stage of this meeting medals for gallantry will be presented, and I think we must all agree that no man is better qualified from the record of his own personal distinction to assess gallantry than the Lord de L'Isle and Dudley.

Another very distinguished guest who is to speak today is the Rt. Hon. Walter Elliot, M.P. Mr. Elliot has long been known as one of the most able, fluent and witty speakers in the House of Commons, and in recent years his talents in this respect have become known to a very much wider public through the medium of the B.B.C. We are extremely happy that the wisdom and command of language, for which Mr. Elliot is so well known, should be directed today towards the affairs of the Life-boat Service.

As you will see from the report, the services for this year have been of a somewhat inter- national complexion, and we are, therefore, specially honoured by the presence today of His Excellency the Danish Ambassador, by the Counsellor of the Irish Embassy and by the Air Attache and the Cultural Attache of the United States Embassy.

We have a number of other distinguished and welcome guests on our platform. I am particularly glad to call attention to the pres- ence of representatives of those organisations, and of those far-seeing and generous individ- uals, whose gifts have helped to provide us with life-boats. Among them are representa- tives of the Ancient Order of Foresters and the Hearts of Oak Benevolent Society, of the Civil Service Life-boat Fund and King George's Fund for Sailors, of the Cunard White Star Steamship Company, of the Girl Guides Association and of the Aguila Wren Memorial Fund, as well as executors and trustees of those who have helped to provide life-boats which have done fine service at Exmouth, Falmouth, Gourdon and Redcar.

Now that I have had the pleasure—I believe I can safely say on behalf of all of you—of welcoming our Royal President and some of our distinguished guests, I will formally move the adoption of the report and accounts which are before you.

Medals for Gallantry The report and accounts for 1954 were adopted, and the president, vice- presidents, treasurer and other mem- ners of the Committee of Management and the auditors were elected.

The Secretary read accounts of services by the life-boats at St. David's Pembrokeshire; Rosslare Harbour, Co.

Wexford; Newhaven, Sussex; Clovelly, Devon; Exmouth, Devon; Whitby, Yorkshire; and No. 66 Air Rescue Squadron, United States Air Force.

The President then presented four bronze and seven silver medals: To COXSWAIN WILLIAM WATTS WILLIAMS, OF ST. DAVID'S, the silver medal for the rescue of 35 men from the Liberian tanker World Concord on the 27th of November, 1954; to MOTOR MECHANIC GEORGE JORDAN a second service clasp to his bronze medal for the same service; and to ASSISTANT MOTOR MECHANIC GWILLYM DAVIES the bronze medal for the same service.

To COXSWAIN RICHARD WALSH, of Rosslare Harbour, the silver medal for the rescue of 7 men from the fore part of the tanker World Concord on the 27th of November, 1954; to SECOND COXSWAIN WILLIAM DUGGAN the bronze medal for the same service; to MOTOR MECHANIC RICHARD HICKEY the bronze medal for the same service.

To COXSWAIN WILLIAM HARVEY, of New- haven, the silver medal for the rescue of the crew of 8 of the Danish auxiliary schooner Vega on the 27th of November, 1954.

To COXSWAIN GEORGE LAMEY, OF CLO- VELI.Y, the bronze medal for the rescue of the crew of 3 of the motor ketch Progress on the 28th of July, 1954.

To COXSWAIN HAROLD BRADFORD, OF EXMOUTH, the bronze medal for the rescue of the crew of 5 of the cabin cruiser Nicky on the 20th of September, 1954.

To COXSWAIN ERIC TAYLOR, OF WHITBY, the bronze medal for the rescue of the crew of 4 of the fishing boat Foxglove on the 15th of April, 1954.

To CAPTAIN CURTIS E. PARKINS, OF No. 66 AIR RESCUE SQUADRON, UNITED STATES AIR FORCE, the silver medal for the rescue by helicopter of the sole survivor of the South Goodwin lightvessel on the 27th of November, 1954.

The Secretary explained that it was not customary to present the thanks of the Insti- tution inscribed on vellum at the annual meeting, as this was normally done at a ceremony held locally. But on this occasion the Institution was happy to welcome the other three members of the helicopter crew who had rescued the survivor from the south Goodwin lightvessel. The President then presented vellums to: MAJOR PAUL L. PARK, CAPTAIN WILLIS R.

KUSY, and AIRMAN FIRST CLASS ELMER H.

VOLLMAN.

Presidential Address H.R.H. the Duchess of Kent, giving her presidential address, said: This has been a very remarkable year in the history of the Life-boat Service. Rather more than 130 years ago, an eventful meeting took place in the City of London Tavern, presided over by the Archbishop of Canter- bury, when it was decided to form a National Institution for the Preservation of Life from Shipwreck; in the succeeding years, that object has been achieved with such distinc- tion, courage and skill that the lives of nearly 80,000 people have been saved. Yet during all these years there has never been one, in time of peace, in which life-boats were called out on service so often as they were in 1954.

You have heard the details of some of the great rescues during the worst days of a year when gales, often of hurricane force, were threatening ships all round our coasts.

Listening to them, I have been impressed as on many former occasions, by the completely international character of the Service. The story of the Newhaven life-boat is a typical instance; leaving the harbour in a full gale, handled by her coxswain in the face of the most dangerous conditions with consummate skill, she reached a schooner whose cargo was being washed overboard—a Danish vessel, whose entire crew was subsequently rescued.

Equally characteristic and no less dramatic was the rescue, on that same day, of the crew of,the Liberian tanker, World Concord, by two life-boats, one hailing from St.

David's, the other from Rosslare Harbour in Ireland.

While all this was taking place, the tragedy of the South Goodwin Lightship was being enacted- I am sure that there can be no one in this hall who does not remember the des- perate efforts which were made to save the lives of those who manned it, and the flight of the United States Air Force helicopter whose commander, Captain Parkins, is here today. By that exploit, he achieved the double distinction of being the first United States citizen for more than a hundred years, and the first pilot of an aircraft in the entire history of the Institution, to receive its award for gallantry. In taking this opportunity to congratulate, most warmly, Captain Parkins and his crew, all of whom are here this afternoon, I know I shall be voicing the feelings of everyone present. But I feel sure that they would be the first to pay tribute to the crews of those life-boats, from Rams- gate, Walmer and Dover, who, although thek efforts at rescue were destined to be unsuccess- ful, nevertheless stood by and braved the hazards of that terrible sea throughout the days in which it raged round the stricken vessel.

It is now twelve years since I first became connected with the Institution, but many more since I began to learn something of its work. The names of nearly all the places mentioned in this year's report have, for me, a familiar ring, and with many I feel a sense of personal connection, for throughout these years I have visited their stations and talked to the brave men who man their boats.

Nearly everyone here in this hall today is in some way connected with this Institution, some of you as active workers, but all of you as supporters. I ask you to continue that support for a service of which you have every right to feel immensely proud, and I know that you will join with me in congratulating the men of the life-boats, and in wishing them good luck and all success in the future.

The Secretary of State for Air Lord de L'Isle and Dudley moved the following resolution: "That this meeting, fully recog- nizing the important services of the Royal National Life-boat Institution in its national work of lifesaving, desires to record its hearty apprecia- tion 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 thousands of voluntary members of the financial branches and of the Ladies' Life-boat Guild in the work of raising funds to maintain the service." In doing so, he said: At some time in our lives we must all of us have heard the sound of a maroon and felt a stab of excitement as the shout, " The life-boat is going out" was heard. Most of us well remember running as fast as our legs would carry us in the hope that we should arrive in time to see the life-boat going down the slip and disappearing in a cloud of spray.

It is all so smooth and efficient that it seems automatic, and it is also deeply moving.

Last summer I was at Bembridge in the Isle of Wight with my children. We heard those maroons and we ran and we saw this happen, and I felt compelled by the same sense of admiration that I felt years ago as a child when, on the South Coast during the late war, I first saw a life-boat going down into a stormy sea. Therefore I regard it as a very great privilege to be here on this important occasion to move this resolution and to have the opportunity of expressing my gratitude to those brave men.

Of course, the coxswains and crews must be first in our minds, and Her Royal Highness has reminded us what a tremendous year this has been in the history of the Life-boat Institution: 668 launches and 495 lives saved.

But the thing which is naturally of particular interest to me is that one in every eleven of those launches has been in. connection with a reported crash at sea from the air.

I should like to take this opportunity of expressing to the Service and the crews the gratitude of Her Majesty's Services for their constant vigil and tireless efforts on their behalf in this respect.

Her Royal Highness has told us that it was 130 years ago that there was the first meeting to form this Institution, and I fancy that those men would have been very incredulous if they had been told about the conquest of the air.

Fifty years ago the WTright Brothers, at Daytona Beach, made the first powered flight, and those men, though perhaps a little sceptical about the future of the air, would not, I feel, have been surprised if they had been told that it might be necessary from time to time to rescue airmen from the sea.

It is not unsuitable—in fact, it is very suit- able—that fifty years later the first airman to be decorated for rescue by helicopter should be a member of the United States Air Force.

If I may venture an observation, it is that I believe that helicopters will play an increas- ing role in rescues at sea, but I do not think the helicopter will supplant the life-boat. As far as I know, no helicopter has yet been invented which can alight on a rough sea safely, and I feel certain that there will be a very great scope for rescue by the Service for a very long time to come.

We, as I said, think first of the crews.

But we, as this resolution rightly expresses it, do not forget the work which maintains them, the work of the local committees, the financial branches, and, last but not least, the Ladies' Life-boat Guild. In this age it is more than ever remarkable that all this work is voluntary, that the sinews by which the Institution is maintained are voluntarily found, and it is indeed a magnificent effort.

Colonel Walter Elliot is seconding this resolution, and he may tell you that the record of Scotland per capita is better than that of England. I do not know, but at any rate we must recall that some Scotsmen earn a modest though profitable livelihood in England, so that we do not begrudge them the wherewithal. But, at any rate it is a generous rivalry and in a great cause, and I should like to commend this resolution to you with all the sincerity and warmth of feeling that I can command.

Resolution Seconded Seconding the resolution, Mr. Walter Elliot said: I have the very great honour of seconding the resolution which has been proposed in such felicitous terms by so felicitous a speaker as Lord de L'Isle and Dudley. He has spoken particularly of co-operation in the sphere of one of the elements which has been chosen for man's transport, that of the air.

May I, coming from one of the great ports and ship-building centres of our island, from the Clyde, second this resolution and say that we desire, we of the seafaring community, and of the shipbuilding community, to express our thanks and our sense of obligation to the gallant men of the Life-boat Service, and those of you whose work in raising funds has made that gallant work possible? The great seafaring communities know well what is owed to the life-boats. Those who go down to the sea in great ships recognize, more than anyone else can, the craftsmanship and the skill of the seafarers in the small boats—examples of which have been given to us this afternoon—who are able in the stress of storms to approach in the most dangerous conditions men in deadly peril of their lives and to bring them off in safety.

We have another feeling also in the great shipbuilding centres of which the Clyde is one. Lord de L'Isle and Dudley made some reference to Scotland so that I will say no more than that this is one; were I speaking in Scotland I would say more. There is a hush over all a shipbuilding town when a great ship goes through, and a feeling that they have sent out part of themselves afloat to carry the reputation of their port and their c'ty and their shipyard round the world. So when they hear of a ship in great distress, when they hear as we do nowadays on the wireless of the momentous minute-by- minute account of some gallant rescue, they feel it is their own work, the work of their hands, which is being saved; and they feel themselves honoured by the efforts which are being made and put forth by their brothers who go to sea in the small boats.

Lord de L'Isle and Dudley was good enough to say that I might mention the fact that Scotland had by no means an unworthy record in the funds which were raised. That is so. We claim that we have doubled the figure per capita that they have in England for raising funds. I would say that ours is more than three times that of Wales and Ireland. Yet we have, of course, a great coastline, the coastline of the northern kingdom. We have 32 out of the 155 motor life-boats, and we recognize and know that without the help of those life-boats the death roll round our coasts would be enormously heavier than it is now.

We say that in the brotherhood of the sea we are all equal. We have seen gallant men honoured this afternoon, and the proudest thing we can say is that there are as good fish in the sea as ever came out of it, and there are as gallant men in the Life-boat Service as even those gallant men whom we have seen honoured here todav.

Future meetings will still be held here, we hope, under the same gracious patronage, and we know that the men of the future will have performed just as gallant deeds, and that the audiences of the future will be as proud to hear of them and to applaud their works, as the audience today have been.

The deeds of today, gallant as they are, will not surpass the gaHant deeds which are yet to be performed in the future by the men of the Life-boat Service.

Awards for Honorary Workers The Secretary reported that since the last annual meeting four honorary workers had been appointed honorary life governors of the Institution, the highest honour which the Institution can confer on an honorary worker.

The President then presented the vellums awarded to two honorary life governors : THE COUNTESS HOWE, CENTRAL LONDON.

The late MR. J. W. BAYES, FLAMBOROUGH, who was represented by his daughter, Miss- Bayes.

MARY DUCHESS os MONTROSE, AKRAN, and MR. R. H. FKANCEYS, BLACKPOOL, who had also been appointed honorary life governors, were unable to be present at the meeting.

The Secretary reported that the gold badge, which is given only for distinguished service, had been awarded to seven honorary workers.

The President presented gold badges to: MRS. B. SLEIGH, ACCBINGTON.

LADY WINIFRED LOWRY CORRY, FER- MANAGH.

MRS. ROCII, Youghal.

MR. O. JONES, Ipswich.

MAJOR G. M. DUNCAN, CAMPBELTOWN.

Miss PARKINSON, MARKET WEIGHTON, and MR. F. RUDDOCK, COURTMACSHERHY, who had also received gold badges, were unable to be present at the meeting.

A Vote of Thanks The President then presented a certificate to the winner of the first prize in an essay competition open to secondary school-children under six- teen in Great Britain and Ireland for the best essay on the subject of the Life-boat Service. This was won by Miss Lesley Perry, of West Norfolk and King's Lynn High School for Girls.

Proposing a vote of thanks ot H.R.H. the Duchess of Kent, Mr.

H. S. H. Burdett-Coutts said: Your Royal Highness, to me I think falls the pleasantest task of the afternoon, because I have to express to you, Madam, the very deep gratitude that we all feel to you for coming here once more to preside at our Annual General Meeting. We all of us recognize, Madam, the immense inroads that are made on your private life by the gener- osity with which you attend public occasions, and it is always with great diffidence that we ask you to attend our functions, more parti- cularly since we know with what readiness you always answer our requests. Already this last year your Royal Highness has named two life-boats at Walton and at Fraserburgh, and Your Royal Highness's presence at Fraserburgh was a great solace to those who were bereaved in the disaster which over- whelmed the previous boat there.

Believe me, Madam, it is a source of great inspiration to all of us to have Your Royal Highness with us here at our Annual General Meeting year after year, unchanging and un- changed, and, if I may take the liberty of saying so, Madam, the years that have passed over your head since first you became our President have only left you their spring.

It only remains for me to express once more to Your Royal Highness the deep gratitude we feel for all vou have done for us in the past and to express the hope that you will continue to grant us your gracious favours in the future.

Mr. John D. Russell seconded the vote of thanks, which was carried with enthusiastic applause.

In the evening the medallists and their families went to the Crazy Gang show at the Victoria Palace. Two of them, Coxswain George Lamey and Coxswain Harold Bradford, later took part in a B.B.C. television programme.

The proceedings at the meeting were televised by the B.B.C. and the Colum- bia Broadcasting System and were shown in einema newsreels and reported in the B.B.C. Radio Newsreel. The B.B.C. also recorded an interview with the medallists from St. David's..