125 years ago From the pages of THE LIFEBOAT, October 1864 issue LIFEBOATS FOR THE FRENCH COAST We have much pleasure in being able to report that the French Government have decided to place some lifeboats on the coasts of France. Preparatory to doing so it appears to have been decided to obtain every information of the subject, and to ascertain the results of experience in this country, where life-boats have been so much more extensively in use than in any other.

Accordingly after some preliminary enquiry three life-boats, of different sizes, on the self-righting model of the NATIONAL LIFEBOAT INSTITUTION, have been ordered by the French Government, complete with transporting carriages and equipped in the same manner as that society's boats.

A French naval officer of rank. Commodore De La Roche Kerandraon, has likewise visited this country by direction of his Government to obtain a knowledge of the system of management of the life-boat establishments of this Institution.

He was accompanied by the Inspector of Life-boats of the Institution to its station at Walmer where he witnessed the launching of the life-boat; and also to two coastguard stations, to examine the rocket and mortar life-saving apparatus.

The Commodore expressed himself as being much gratified with all he had seen, and as highly appreciating the attention he had received from the Institution.

The October 1864 issue of The Lifeboat was much concerned with the infant science of weather forecasting, and many of the remarks seem topical to this day. Who for example canfail to have heard 'persons impugning their accuracy'! Opening that issue of the journal Vice-Admired R. Fife-Roy wrote of the new forecasting system: The Life-boat Journal having aided practical meteorology the following memorandum, as a general answer to numerous observations and questions, may interest its readers: "Many persons have asked questions about forecasts of weather and their principles. Some have impugned their accuracy, and a few have demurred to their having any claim to a really scientific basis.

"No doubt that as very different views of atmospheric commotions or changes are taken by able men.such subjects may scarcely seem worth their earnest attention, because as yet they have not been brought to the verification of a rigid mathematical analysis...

"It is by a continuous observation of the changes and indications of change that we are now enabled to decide and direct with confidence...

That errors have occurred - that we have been too slow, or have given warning where it seemed unnecessary - may appear to have been unavoidable in such new and tentative experiments...".