ON 27TH OCTOBER, 1927, an Italian seaman spent the night clutching the rigging of the stricken 6,oooton s.s. habo, an Italian merchantman, which had foundered on the Scilly Rocks at the Isles of Scilly. The next morning he was snatched to safety by St. Mary's life-boat with 31 others out of a total crew of 38.

In July, 1966, the lucky sailor returned to thank the islanders for saving his life. The man, then a third officer on the ship, is now Capt. F. Rolli, aged 62, of Mestri, near Venice.

At the ceremony, which included a luncheon, Capt. Rolli, who was nursed after his rescue by Mrs. Janey Slaughter, now aged 82, presented a memento to the Isles of Scilly council in the shape of a seagull made at the famous glassworks of Murano, Italy..