ELIZABETH LAVINIA MAXFIELD, of North and South Anston County Pri- mary School, North Anston, Sheffield, won first prize in the competition for the best essay on the life-boat service organized by the Institution.

The competition was open to boys and girls up to the age of eleven in Great Britain and Ireland, including the Irish Republic. Their essay subject was: "You are on holiday at the seaside and the life-boat is called out. You learn later exactly what happened.

Describe, in your own words, what took place from the time the life-boat was called out to the time when the coxswain was given a medal." Prizes for the best essays in Ireland, Scotland and Wales and six districts in England were awarded as follows: Ireland Katherine Stanley, Aghancon National School, Roscrea, Co. Tipperary, Irish Republic.

Scotland James Michie MacDonald, Macduff High School, Macduff, Banffshire.

Wales Paul Mortimer Griffiths, St. David's Voluntary Primary School, St. David's, Pembrokeshire.

England Midlands: Louise Zacchi, Elbury Mount Junior School, Worcester.

North East: Elizabeth Lavinia Max- field, North and South Anston County Primary School, North Anston, Sheffield.

North West: Deanne Lamont East- wood, The Beach County Junior School, Cleveleys, Lancashire.

South East: Rosamund Sykes, Up- minster County Junior School, Upmin- ster, Essex.

South West: Dawn Lois Hucker, Gay Elms Junior School, Withywood Road, Bristol 3.

London: Lesley Denise Smith, Hither Green Primary School, Beacon Road, London, S.E.I3.

The winning essay by Elizabeth Lavinia Maxfield is printed below: DRIFTER Splash! Splash! I stood on the pier, watching the sea crashing up against the wall below. I looked up above me to see a grey, overcast sky. All around was deserted. The wind blew stronger every minute. Big drops of rain began to fall. I walked along the pier towards the life-boat house to shelter, hoping that the storm would die down so that I could run home and not get too wet. I stood by the wall of the life-boat shed and looked up. On the wall, in big capitals was written: R.N.L.I. "I wonder what that stands for ? Royal - um - nations - no - um- national - life-boats - ur - oh dear - institution — that's it!" I was thinking how clever I was, when the shed doors flew open and down the slipway came the life-boat. It went dashing down into the sea, sending water splashing behind it. I ran to the railings to see it, and then raced along the pier, following it until I came to the point where the harbour meets the sea. Then I leaned on the wet stone wall, waiting for the moment when the boat left the calm waters of the harbour and met its first wave in the open sea. My heart thumped as a thundering wall of water headed for the little boat.

Crash! Sheets of water flew up over the bows into the rigging, then down into the cockpit, sluicing round the feet of the oilskinned figures. For a fearful moment I thought the life-boat would not survive the raging seas, but there it was sliding down into the trough beyond it.

The rain fell in torrents and I knew that it would not stop, so I ran home. Arriving there I shouted, "Did you see the life-boat? I did. / was standing right by its shed!" I looked out of the windows overlooking the sea and I watched the white-capped waves crash- ing up to the wall, then bursting back again.

Later I learned from one of the crew exactly what had happened. A trawler had radioed the life-boat station because its engines had failed and it was drifting with the wind on to some dangerous rocks. Even the powerful diesel engines of the Watson life-boat found it hard to carry the craft through the leaping seas and the howling wind to the distressed victim and it was half an hour before the coxswain saw the fiery tail of a rocket to the port bow. He changed course and headed for the trawler and within minutes it was in sight, wallowing help- lessly along, broadside on to the wind. Every time it rose to the crest of the waves it rolled dangerously over, dipping the rail round the side in the water, soaking the deck and sweep- ing things off it. The life-boat came round on the windward side of her to avoid being hit by the drifting boat. The coxswain picked up the loud-hailer and shouted to the crew of the trawler. They answered by waving.

Through the driving spray the coxswain could now see the cliffs quite easily, but he decided to manoeuvre the boat near enough to be sure of getting a lifeline across. It was an anxious moment for the crew as they watched the lifeline snake across the bows of the trawler, but it reached its destination safely. The people on the trawler eagerly pulled at it until they came to the thicker rope tied on to the end. They tied it on the mast and pulled the breeches buoy on board. One by one they slid across the cruel sea to the safety of the life-boat.

One of the men held his arm limply beside him. He had been smashed up against a rail by a big wave. Another was bleeding from a cut on his face. All were wet, tired, shocked, bruised and cold. They were taken below and attended to.

Time was running out because the boat was drifting nearer and nearer to the rocks. One of the deck-hands pulled the breeches buoy on board and threw the lifeline into the water, then they started back for home with the engines going full blast. Soon the harbour lighthouse was in sight and before long the life-boat was back in its shed and the fisher- men were taken to hospital.

Three months later, at a local ceremony, the coxswain was awarded the silver medal for his bravery — and I saw that too!.