A competition open to secondary schoolboys and schoolgirls under the age of sixteen for an essay on the subject of the Life-boat Service was held again last year.

The subject set was: "Why does our country need a Life-boat Service?" The first prize for Great Britain and Ireland was awarded to David Glyn Jones, a fourteen-year-old boy from Ysgol Dyffryn Nantlle, Pcnygroes, Caernarvonshire.

David Glyn Jones last year won the first prize for Wales. His essay is reproduced elow:OCEAX waves pitch, toss, clash, swirl; they struggle as if trying to dislodge the rocks, and batter, batter, batter against the cliffs. They only break into harmless clouds of spray when they come to grips with those stark guardians of the shore; but they have succeeded in another fight. This was a struggle against a British merchant ship, and the waves have, hours ago, taken control of the wretched vessel.

Inch by inch, foot by foot, the vessel takes its leave of the tearing wind and the driving rain. Doom is unavoid- able—but, there is a small craft com- ing towards her, deftly dodging the rocks and the breakers. It is a life- boat! Within an hour all the persons who started to accompany the shig to its doom are safe and sound on shore.

Fire Brigade of the Sea That is one, and the main answer to the question of life-saving. It is, of course, the principal work of a life- boat; the life-boat is the fire-brigade of the sea, the ambulance of the waves.

Whenever the call comes, it dashes out in the teeth of any gale to perform all sorts of difficult tasks.

Apart from life-saving, the life-boat does valuable work by taking provi- sions to lighthouses, lightships, and small islands, when no other craft can venture out without being mauled by the fury of the sea. It is not neces- sarily a sinking ship that a life-boat has to save, it is known to help ships on fire, ships that cannot anchor in rough seas, or ships with engine trouble. The life-boat also saves swimmers in distress, or birds'-nest hunters stranded on cliffsides with the tide closing in below.

Those are some of a life-boat's duties, which are many, varied and valuable. But we are not compelled to have a life-boat service; we could sit at home, safe and warm whileships are sinking in the sea a few miles away, and we could relax while some of our seamen perish just off our coast.

But, fortunately, most of us are not of that spirit—we have some Christian conscience which makes us sorry for others and yearn for the saving of life in danger.

No Government Aid Therefore some brave dwellers of our coasts volunteer to risk their own lives to save others. These are the life-boatmen—the knights-errant of the waters who give us such praise- worthy service, based entirely upon their own effort. They depend, finan- cially, on themselves and the goodwill of the public, and accept no Govern- ment aid at all. The}', therefore, teach us fraternity and self-sacrifice, and make us more eager to follow their excellent example.

Almost every country needs life- boats, but why ours, especially? First of all, we are an island nation, and we cannot get very far from the sea where- ever we go in this country. The sea is part of the life of many of us who live around the coast, alongside which ships of every nation pass—ships from France, Germany, Holland, Norway and almost every country in Western Europe fish or trade in the North Sea, ships from America and Australia pass along our Atlantic coasts and the Irish sea; in fact, we are surrounded by ships from everywhere on earth.

Treacherous Coasts And our coasts are treacherous; our rocks are sharp and rugged, our cliffs are stark and dangerous. Therefore many of these ships find themselves in grave distress, and the true old spirit of fraternity throbs within our hearts.

The life-boatmen do not care about the nationality of the ship they save; they do not turn back because there are Russian Communists on board; every race receives equal treatment off the life-boatmen's hands.

From statistics, we know that an average of fifty lives are saved monthly by this valuable institution, and there- fore about six hundred people, annually, have to thank the life-boat- men for their survival. And the wonderful thing about it is that all this great work is done voluntarily and supported by the people of the land.

Therefore, from the moral and the practical point of view, at any rate, the life-boat service is absolutely essential to us as a maritime nation, and is, undoubtedly, of utmost value to the entire world.

OTHEB PRIZES Prizes for the best essays in Scotland, Ireland, Wales and six districts of England were awarded to the following: Scotland: EVELYN B. RENDALI,, Stromness Academy, Stromness, Orkneys.

Ireland: JOAN MARY MONAIIAN, Cross and Passion College, Kilcullen.

Wales: DAVID GLYN JONES, Ysgol Dyffryn Nantlle, Penygroes.

England— South-East: ALAN D. ROBINSON, Felix- stowe County Grammar School, Felix- stowe, Suffolk.

North-East: TREVOR WINSTON MILNER, Lapage Boys' Secondary School, Brad- ford Moor, Bradford, Yorkshire.

Midlands: BRENDA MARY BIRCH, Orme Girls' School, Newcastle, Staffs.

Smith-West: ARTHUR CLIFFORD SAUNDERS, Portsmouth Technical School, London Road, Hilsea, Portsmouth, Hampshire.

Xorth-West: MARIAN LEE, The Cathedral R.C. Secondary Modern School, Bal- moral Road, Lancaster.

London: ROY EDWARD HARRIES-HARRIS, Tylers' Croft County Secondary Boys' School, Bacon Lane, N.W.9.

The national and district prize winners each received book tokens. Challenge shields pre- sented by the seventh Duke of Northumber- land are held for a year by the schools which the district prize winners are attending.

Copies of Storm on the Waters by Charles Vince were also sent to the writers of the 20 best essays in each district..