Life-Boatmen Were Honoured During 1964 rescue craft of the Royal National Life-boat Institution received more service calls than in any year since the foundation of the Institution in 1824. This was reported by Captain the Hon. V. M. Wyndham-Quin, Chairman of the Committee of Management, at the annual general meeting of the governors of the Institution at Central Hall, Westminster, on 6th April, 1965. The meeting was attended by H.R.H. Princess Marina, Duchess of Kent, President of the Institution.

RECORD NUMBER OF CALLS Captain Wyndham-Quin said, "The year 1964, on which it is my duty to report to you, was a very remarkable one in the life-boat service. May I begin by calling attention to one fact ? This is that last year rescue craft of the Royal National Life-boat Institution were called out on service more often than in any other year since this Institution was founded in 1824.

"There were a number of reasons for this remarkable occurrence. One was the increasingly successful use of the fast inshore rescue boats, which are now becoming a familiar sight around our coasts. We first introduced these small boats, which are intended primarily for rescue work in the summer months, two years ago as an experiment. So successful has the experiment been that this year we shall have nearly twice as many of these boats in service as we did last year.

INCREASING DEMANDS "The fast inshore rescue boat, capable of well over 20 knots, is a supplement to the traditional life-boat. It might, perhaps, be thought that the use of these boats will lessen the calls on the traditional boats. Yet the facts of last year do not seem to bear this out. As I have already explained, there were more calls on rescue craft last year than ever before, and for life-boats alone the number of calls has been exceeded only in two other years in our history, one of those being 1940, the year of the Battle of Britain. In other words, what is happening is that more and more demands are being made on all those who man our rescue craft, whether they are members of life-boat crews or whether they man other types of rescue vessel.

VIOLENT GALES "Later, when Your Royal Highness presents the awards for gallantry, we shall hear something of the conditions in which many of the calls on our lifeboat crews were made. For those living inland the past winter was not a particularly severe one, but around our coasts there were a number of periods of prolonged and violent gales, particularly during the early part of the winter— that part which is dealt with in the annual report in front of you. On one occasion indeed, one of our life-boats, that stationed at St. Hclicr in the Channel Islands, was called out when a wind speed of 107 miles per hour was recorded. I would invite you to consider what a long search for a missing vessel in such conditions must have meant for the men who manned that life-boat.

NONE LOST AT SEA "In the light of these achievements it is particularly gratifying to me to be able to report to you that no member of a life-boat crew lost his life at sea during the year. There was an unfortunate occasion when a man died shortly after returning from service, but no man was lost at sea and no life-boat was put out of action.

"We can never be complacent about the quality of our life-boats and their equipment. The dangers will always be there, and we must strive to do everything to make the tasks of our crews as easy and as safe as we can. During the past year we can certainly record a number of important advances in life-boat design, construction and equipment. We now have under construction on Clydeside two yo-foot steel life-boats of an entirely new kind, whose completion we can look forward to this year. The 48-foot 6-inch Oakley life-boat, the largest self-righting life-boat we have ever built, has proved so successful that two more boats of this kind, with certain modifications and improvements included, have been ordered.

AMERICAN LIFE-BOAT "Last year you may remember, we had the pleasure of hearing on this platform a speech from Admiral Shields of the United States Coast Guard, and details were given of a new type of life-boat which is in the service of the United States Coast Guard. This is a 44-foot steel life-boat which we obtained through the good services of that organisation. Our purpose in getting hold of a boat of this kind was to decide whether to build similar boats in this country. Well, we have carried out sea trials of some 5,000 miles, and in this way we have learned a very great deal. The story of the acquisition of this life-boat illustrates, I think, the way in which we have to move both speedily and with caution. As soon as we heard about this new type of boat at the international conference held at Edinburgh we came to the conclusion that this was something we ought to look into, and with very little delay we sent a delegation over to the United States to examine the boat. But before deciding our policy we have spent as long as a year in carrying out extremely thorough trials. The fact is that in life-boat matters one has to be sure before making decisions about new types of vessel.

We have had this prolonged trial period, and very soon we shall be able to announce our future policy about this boat.

MAGNIFICENT WORK "1964 was a year of records: more launches than ever before, more vessels saved than ever before and, as I fear was inevitable, higher expenditure than ever before. It is, therefore, deeply gratifying to me to be able to record and report to you that the huge cost of the service last year was fully met by the voluntary contributions which we have received from the public. That this has been brought about is, of course, due to the magnificent efforts of our voluntary workers, many of whom are present in this hall today. On behalf of everyone connected with the life-boat service I would like to express the most profound thanks for these splendid achievements.

"Having told you something of the work of the life-boat service last year, I have now a most agreeable task, that of welcoming, on behalf of all of you, our President, Princess Marina, who once again has delighted us all by being present on this occasion. We all know what a tremendous inspiration we receive from our President in all activities connected with the life-boat service.

GUEST SPEAKER "I also have much pleasure in welcoming our guest speaker, Mr. James Hoy, Member of Parliament for the Leith Division of Edinburgh, and Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries. Mr. Hoy is himself a member of our Committee of Management and I know we are all looking forward to hearing what he has to say. Other distinguished guests whom it is my pleasure to welcome include the Belgian, Danish, Irish and Netherlands Ambassadors." The report and accounts for 1964 were adopted, and Captain Wyndham- Quin read out the nominations for chairman and deputy chairmen. These were: chairman, Captain the Hon. V. M. Wyndham-Quin; deputy chairmen, Air Vice-Marshal Sir Geoffrey R. Bromet and Commander F. R. H. Swann.

These were elected unanimously, as were the president, vice-presidents and other members of the Committee of Management.

Princess Alarina then gave her presidential address.

EXAMPLE OF SUCCESS "May I thank you very much first of all for your kind welcome to me this afternoon ? As you have said, Mr. Chairman, this has been a notable year in the history of the life-boat service and it must be a source of tremendous encouragement to all those who give up their time voluntarily, whether as members of crews or in raising money, to know that their efforts have been crowned with such success.

"I think an example of this success has been in the field of international cooperation.

We have been told something of the new type of life-boat brought over from the United States of America. This was a direct outcome of the International Conference in Edinburgh which I had the pleasure of opening.

The boat has now been tried out round our own coasts and those of the Netherlands as well.

"In similar fashion two life-boats were completed in this country last year for service in Italy and the men who will man them were given experience in handling them here at our own stations. But this is only part of the picture of international co-operation.

AID TO FOREIGN SHIPS "I shall shortly be presenting medals for gallantry and the acts which will be read to you will record the rescue from a Dutch motor vessel by the Dunmore East crew, the rescue from another Dutch vessel by the Walton and Frinton crew, the rescue by the Sennen Cove crew of the crew from the Belgian trawler, and a service to the Danish motor vessel by the Torbay life-boat. Perhaps I take a rather special pleasure in the last of these exploits because, as some of you may know, the Torbay life-boat was launched by my daughter and bears her name.

"These facts alone give ample proof the life-boat service continues to uphold the principle that no distinction is made on grounds of race or religion when rescues at sea have to be performed. It is sufficient to say that last year life-boats from our shores went to the aid of no fewer than eighty-two vessels registered in nineteen different countries.

TWO NAMING CEREMONIES "The other side of the picture is, of course, the immense voluntary effort which goes into the maintenance of this service up and down the coasts of these islands.

"I always find it extremely interesting, as well as enjoyable, to visit life-boat stations. I will look forward once again this year to naming two new boats, both in Norfolk, Cromer and Wells. I am hoping to be able to visit informally at least three other stations during the coming summer.

"So it is a very great pleasure to me as your President to extend my congratulations to everyone concerned in this great voluntary organisation and to send my best wishes to all of you for your continued success in this essential part of our work." MEDALS PRESENTED Princess Marina then presented to:- Coxswain Daniel Kirkpatrick, of Longhope, the silver second-service clasp for the rescue of nine of the crew of the Aberdeen trawler Ben Barvas on 3rd January.

Coxswain Harold Coyde, of Torbay, the silver medal for an attempted service hi very difficult conditions to the Danish motor vessel Northzuind on 22nd December.

Mechanic Richard Harris, of Torbay, the bronze fourth-service clasp for the same service.

Coxswain Patrick Power, of Dunmore East, the bronze fourth-service clasp for the rescue of six of the crew of the Dutch motor vessel Jan Brons on nth March.

Second Coxswain Stephen Whittle, of Dunmore East, the bronze medal for the same service.

Assistant Mechanic John Power, of Dunmore East, the bronze medal for the same service.

Coxswain Walter Oxley, of Walton and Frinton, the bronze second-service clasp for the rescue of the crew of nine of the Dutch motor vessel Merak on 15th March.

Coxswain Henry Nicholas, of Sennen Cove, the bronze second-service clasp for the rescue of the crew of five of the Belgian trawler Victoire Roger on 24th March.

Second Coxswain John Bowden, of Appledore, the bronze medal for the rescue of the crew of four of the yacht Volunteer on nth September.

SPEED AND CAUTION Mr. James H. Hoy, D.L., M.P., Parliamentary Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, and a member of the Institution's Committee of Management, told the meeting, "The story of the acquisition by the Royal National Life-boat Institution of a new 44-foot steel life-boat shows indeed, as the chairman has pointed out, how necessary it is to move with both speed and caution in this crucially important sphere of service to the sea-faring communities of the world.

"Thanks to the Institution, whose annual report for the 14151 year of its work makes heartening, impressive reading, we in this country are able to keep abreast of the most modern developments, to apply the fruits of experience and of invention to a noble cause.

"This prompts the question: what is a life-boat ? THE DARLING RESCUE "The simple answer is, of course, that it is a boat used to save lives: and we have come a long way from the little 21-foot fishing craft or coble of William and Grace Darling to the fine, professionally-styled boats of today.

"But the notion of a life-boat means more to us than timber or steel: it is also the men who sail in the boats and the spirit which sustains them.

"In this respect, there is more similarity than difference between the achievements of 1964 and the heroic rescue carried out in September, 1838, by the Darlings. William and his daughter Grace, you will recall, looked out from their Longstone lighthouse on a stormy night and saw a group of survivors from the wreck of the Forfarshire huddled on the Harker Rocks. Without hesitation, and in their frail craft, they went to their rescue.

FOUNDER'S ACHIEVEMENT "That coble, it is interesting to record, may still be seen in the museum at Hamburgh in Northumberland: a reminder to visitors enjoying the summer breezes on the North Sea coast of the tremendous gales which can lash our shores, and of the bravery and devotion which have saved so many in peril on the sea.

"There is no need for me to rehearse the story of Sir William Hillary's achievements in the early igth century: his energy and eloquence led to the founding in 1824 of the Royal National Life-boat Institution for the Preservation of Life from Shipwreck, and those present will realise, as keenly as I do myself, the consequences of his actions.

"But perhaps the moving story of how life-boats repaid their debt to Sir William in May, 1940, just before the Battle of Britain reached its peak, merits retelling.

DESCENDANT WAS SAVED "A Spitfire pilot had parachuted from his blazing cockpit into the sea.

Bunded, terribly burned, he neither hoped nor wished to live. But the Margate life-boat found him at last, despite the mists, and brought him ashore. The name of the airman was Richard Hope Hillary, a descendant of that Sir William to whom the life-boat service owed its origin. Thus does the good work of a man live on after his passing.

"One of the founders of the R.N.L.I. was Thomas Wilson, Member of Parliament for the City of London.

"He and Hillary, in fact, called the meeting in London in 1824 which was to lead to the society's formation. As a Member of Parliament, I am of course interested in the fact that a Select Committee of the House of Commons was appointed, in 1897, to inquire 'into the Administration of the Royal National Life-boat Institution, and into the adequacies of its organisation for Saving Life on our Coasts'.

"Very serious charges had in fact been made against the general and financial management of the Institution during the closing years of the igth century.

The Select Committee carried out an elaborate examination of witnesses and documents. My friends from both Houses will appreciate what that means.

"They concluded that the damaging charges made were entirely without foundation. They felt it necessary to state, moreover, that the thanks of the whole community were due to the committee of the Royal National Life-boat Institution 'for the energy and good management with which they have for so many years successfully carried out the national work of life-saving, and this without reward or payment of any sort'.

FAVOURABLE REPORT "Small wonder, perhaps, that the Institution itself reported in glowing terms, in 1899, on the 'good certificate of character and management' which the Fund had received from the House of Commons! The Report of 1897 and its Minutes of Evidence run to just over 1,000 foolscap-size pages: formidable bulk, even for those days, and few institutions can claim to have been more thoroughly investigated by Parliament than was the R.N.L.I.! "Amongst the interesting Appendices to that Report is information to the effect that foreign Jife-boat services—in Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Holland, Norway, the United States and Russia—were established after the British service. There are few spheres in which one can be prouder of having been first in the field.

PRESENT-DAY NEED "I have spoken of the past, not only because the history of the Royal National Life-boat Institution is worth recalling—however well known—but also because other speakers here today have properly emphasised the importance of the present time and of the need to ensure that every modern development in the matter of saving life at sea is taken into account.

"In this last respect, it is good to know for example that each R.N.L.I. lifeboat is equipped with a radiotelephone set operating on the distress frequency of 2,182 Kc/s. When a life-boat is launched on service it is able to listen to the distress traffic on that frequency and, when necessary, to speak direct to other ships or authorities using that frequency and also involved in the search or rescue action. Many life-boats also have a VHF radiotelephone enabling them to communicate direct with Service search and rescue aircraft.

NETWORK OF HELP "The Institution is, of course, only one of the authorities keeping watch round our shores. When a ship or aircraft is in distress off the coasts of Great Britain, assistance may be given not only by the R.N.L.I. and by ships in the vicinity, but also by or through Coast Radio Stations operated by the General Post Office, Her Majesty's Coastguard, the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. Thus a network of help exists round the shores—help for all in distress of whatever creed, colour or nationality—based on the co-operation of professional and voluntary organisations.

"There is no need for me to tell you today—this is Budget Day in case you have forgotten—that the R.N.L.I. is a private organisation supported entirely by voluntary contributions. But it is proof indeed of the national respect accorded to the work of the Institution that voluntary status is still possible.

AT SEA AND ASHORE "As always, of course, an immense debt of gratitude is owed to the comparatively few actively engaged, at sea or ashore, in this service. But the wider support pf the people at large is also much in evidence, and that is an achievement in itself.

"The following words are those of an eye-witness at Cromer in 1917, when the No. i life-boat found itself engaged in a series of spectacular sea-rescues.

" 'Bathed in the brilliant beam of the searchlight, one moment standing on end as she mounted the crest of a huge breaker, at another with her nose buried in the trough of the sea, or completely lost to sight as a sea broke right over her, the life-boat made a sight that will never be forgotten by the hundreds of spellbound spectators on the beach.' "Over the years, there have been a great many such spectacular acts of lifeboat heroism.

BEHIND THE SCENES "The rewards are shown, not only in the number of medals awarded, but in the figures of lives saved—85,502 since the founding of the Institution in 1824, or approximately the present-day population of a town like Doncaster.

"These figures, however, have been achieved not only by deeds of valour, but also by the patient, unspectacular labours of many people behind the scenes: by steady, continuous service at sea and on land. Perhaps the combination of the two is best shown at the local level, where the life-boat is so often an integral part of community life. From Lerwick to Sennen Cove this co-operation between the coxswain and his crew on the one hand, and a host of 'backroom' volunteers on the other, has ensured that the life-boat is ready and is launched in times of need.

"The life-boat has become, very rightly, a symbol of admiration and of romance: it has inspired Florence Nightingale and Charles Dickens to moving tributes; it has its own literature; it has inspired poetry—not all of it very good poetry.

VITAL ROUTINE WORK "But one verse of a little poem at the beginning of Grant Uden's book on 'Life-boats' brings out very well the vital part played by the day-to-day routine of life-boat work: 'It's not all high adventure At Lerwick and New Quay, Nor drama down at Dover, Newhaven and Penlee; There's a trawler needing escort At Whitby or Arklow, A stranded boy at Barmouth Or a limping yacht to tow.

They've learnt at Port St. Mary What the service always tells— They pass it on at Weymouth And remember it at Wells— That maybe in the future There waits some high emprise, But, meantime, it's with smaller things The line of duty lies.' "Looking back on 1964, a year of records for the Life-boat Institution, it is well to remember the 'smaller things' which make possible the 'high emprise'.

"May I close, Your Royal Highness, in thanking you for your presence this afternoon, and for your unremitting work on behalf of the Institution ?" UNANIMOUS RESOLUTION Mr. Hoy proposed the resolution that the meeting, fully recognising the important services of the Royal National Life-boat Institution in its national work of life-saving, desired to record its hearty appreciation 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 the Ladies' Life-boat Guild in the work of raising funds to maintain the service.

After the resolution had been carried unanimously Princess Marina presented a certificate of honorary life governor to: Mr. B. V. Howell, M.B.E., honorary secretary of the Pwllheli station branch since 1929, and a member of the South Caernarvonshire Life-boat Committee.

Princess Marina then presented bars to their gold badges to: Mrs. O. Henderson, Belfast Miss L. Cook, Bury and gold badges to: Mr. H. L. Powell, Ashford (Middlesex) Mr. C. M. Kershaw, Bradford Dr. D. Vaughan, Cromer Mrs. M. McCrone, Largs The Rt. Hon. The Countess of Airlie, Montrose Miss M. King Clark, Paisley Mrs. R. H. Urwick, O.B.E., Shrewsbury Mrs. J. Wilson, Spenborough THANKED PRESIDENT Rear Admiral K. St. B. Collins, C.B., O.B.E., D.S.C., a member of the Committee of Management, who moved a vote of thanks to Princess Marina, said, "This annual general meeting is a most important occasion in the work of the life-boat service. We have learnt from our Chairman and from the report that we have received of our achievements during the year and our hopes for the future.

We have heard details of gallantry and great courage and we have had the opportunity of meeting the men who have performed these deeds. We have listened to a magnificent and most interesting address from our honoured guest. Finally, we have had the honour to meet, to see, and to do honour to a large number of people who have given many, many years of voluntary service to the life-boat cause.

"It is indeed a very exciting and wonderful day for all of us who strive so hard for the life-boat cause. It is particularly so, because you as our President do us the honour to be with us on the platform today.

INSPIRING VISITS "The inspiration which for some years now you have given our service you have conveyed to us today as so often you have done when you visit our life-boat stations in various parts of our coasts. It has been thrilling to learn from you that you will be visiting so many during the coming year. We thank you for being here and for your promise to visit our boats." Sir Knowles Edge, Bt., J.P., also of the Committee of Management, seconded the vote of thanks, which was carried with acclamation.

Members of the platform party included the Belgian, Danish, Irish and Netherlands Ambassadors, the Member of Parliament for Torrington, Devon, the mayors and mayoresses of 25 towns and boroughs, and the chairmen of three urban district councils.

AMONG THE GUESTS Others on the platform were representatives of the Ministry of Transport, Board of Trade, and United States Coast Guard, Europe, donors of life-boats or their representatives, others representing charitable trusts which have been actively supporting the life-boat service, honorary life governors and Vice- Presidents of the Institution, the President of the Ladies' Life-boat Guild, the president and a vice-chairman of the Central London Women's Committee.

After the meeting those who had received awards for gallantry went with their families to an evening performance of the Black and White Minstrel Show at the Victoria Palace..