It pays to say thank you A year ago last September I went on a sequence dance holiday to Paignton, in Devon, with the Rita Carrudus School of Dancing, of Harlington, Middlesex. During the holiday, money was collected by means of raffles, tombolas, bingo and fines for late attendance to meals etc. The collection was presented to a local charity at the end of our holiday, but we got no letter of thanks.

So last year we collected again and used a different charity, this time the RNLI at Brixham. A representative attended our final dance and he and his partner were presented with a cheque from our efforts. We received a letter of thanks and good wishes.

This year in September we will be collecting for the RNLI at Brixham again.

The moral of this letter is - it pays to say thank you to all donors, even if it does cost a stamp. It is our way of saying thank you to the crews and all the behind-the-scenes people (most of whom we never see).

A David Jones Maidenhead, Berkshire Thank you for your letter David. The RNLI certainly appreciates the importance of thanking our donors for their efforts and we are delighted that you were treated so well by Brixham RNLI. Thank you for all your past and future support. A bottle of Old Pulteney whisky is on its way to you.The eyes have it Whoever chose the model for the fold-out part of the front cover of the Lifeboat Spring 2002 issue did well.

The girl is immediately captivating and gives the image of enthusiasm and ability, but it is the eyes which grab the attention.

If I was in trouble and my gaze was met by those eyes, I would feel that all was going to be well for they say: 'I know what I'm doing, I'm happy to be here and I won't let you down.' Whether she is actually lifeboat crew or a model she personifies the spirit of the RNLI.

Then I looked at the faces in other photos and found the same look in the eyes of many of the lifeboat crews, which only goes to prove what we've always known - our lifeboatmen and women are a special breed.

I hope I'll never need them, but am confident that I'll be in good hands if I do.

Des Healey Seaton, Cumbria Editor's note: We almost never use models for photographs.

as we believe that the genuine lifeboat crews are far too important to be replaced, even for photographs- The crew member shown on the Spring cover is indeed an RNLI volunteer, based at Appledore lifeboat station in Devon.Thanks for diving talk I would like to thank Don Lees, Craig Billingham and Nick Foster for organising and presenting a talk on standard diving equipment and rebreather sets. Over 30 people attended the presentation, which was deemed a great success. In attendance were members from Borders search and rescue, Eyemouth and St Abbs lifeboat stations, and also some members of the public. Much appreciated.

Alistair Crowe Station Honorary Secretary St Abbs lifeboat station Memories of Moelfre I read with interest the account of the sinking of the Royal Charter off the coast of Moelfre as featured in the Spring issue of the Lifeboat. My mother's family came from Moelfre and were lifeboat crew. I used to hear the tale of this tragedy many times from my grandfather when I was a young lad.

His father, he used to tell me, was a deep sea diver and actually made many trips down to the wreck, no doubt instructed to recover what gold he could find for his masters. According to my grandfather, many a Moelfre family found a sudden improvement in their financial status following this wreck. My daughter to this day has a pewter candle holder that was among some of the minor artefacts that my great grandfather was allowed to retain from his dives, but alas no gold.

My most vivid impression of this tragedy made on my young mind was that some of the passengers were hastened to their watery graves weighed down by the gold strapped to their bodies.

John Wood gates Oakham, RutlandA tale of two towns Regarding the photograph on page 11 of the Spring 2002 issue of the Lifeboat, showing the crew of the Charles Biggs lifeboat, there are two errors in the caption. They are the crew of the Lytham lifeboat: the St Annes boat Laura Jane was lost with ail 13 of her crew going to the Mexico. Lytham and St Annes were separate towns in those days, each with a lifeboat. In 1924 the two towns became a borough and in 1931, after the closure of the St Annes station in 1925, the Lytham station was renamed Lytham St Annes, as it still is today.

The second point is that the photograph shows not only the crew of the Charles Biggs. The figure in black with a hat. not a sou'wester, is the captain of the Mexico, Gustav Burmester. The original of this picture only came to light three years ago and is now in the safekeeping of the Lytham Lifeboat Museum.

No picture of Captain Burmester had been known to exist until this photograph was donated to the museum by a lady from Lancaster.

Frank Kilroy Honorary curator, Lytham Lifeboat Museum History of treasured souvenir I read with great interest the Spring 2002 issue of the Lifeboat. The Caister lifeboat disaster struck a chord with me.

I have in my possession a china souvenir replica of the Caister memorial statue shown on page 33.

My paternal grandfather, James Smyth, spent the early years of the last century visiting English fishing ports as part of his job buying and selling fish.

For each port he visited, he brought home a souvenir - in the case of Caister, the memorial statue.

This article has given me valuable background into the history behind my treasured possession. Thank you Paul Smyth Londonderry, Northern IrelandProud to be a member I will admit to being one who is rather scared of the sea, especially the cold and rough waters that we have in the UK. In fact, I am a Shoreline member who is permanently anchored on firm ground. This makes me admire the dedication and bravery of the RNLI personnel who sometimes face great danger when they are called upon to rescue people in our waters. Even more admirable is the fact that they are volunteers.

Although I don't think I will ever qualify to be a lifeboat crew member, I will always treat my membership of the RNLI with great honour. I am proud to be associated (in a small way) with all the individuals who run this organisation Dave Ramasamy Aberdeen Independent Sheringham Page 35 of the Spring-issue of the Lifeboat showed a splendid reprint of Mick Bensley's painting of the Augusta rescuing 17 from the Russian barque Dygden, on 5 February 1841. But Augusta was not an RNLI lifeboat.

The first RNLI lifeboat at Sheringham was the Duncan (1867-86). Before that, the first lifeboat there was the Upcher, which was really a large fishing boat, funded by Charlotte Upcher in 1826. Then, after a disaster to the fishing fleet in 1838, she funded the building of a 33'/2ft boat in Sheringham Park, for the cost of £135.

Named the Augusta, she served the fishermen of Sheringham until 1894, when the Upcher's replaced her with the Henry Ramey Upcher. The Henry Ramey, as she was known, gave wonderful service and her last active launch was 11 May 1935 when she stood by and escorted in nine fishing boats, in one of which was the RNLI coxswain Jimmy Dumble.

It is quite clear from the records that, up to the end of the 1920s, there was a marked tendency for the fishermen of Sheringham to launch their own lifeboat first, which was not surprising. The Henry Ramey's shed was in the centre of town, whereas the JC Madge was away across the golf course and it could be quite a long pull on the clanking carriage across the beach.

Incidentally, up until 1935 the two Sheringham fishermen's lifeboats had saved over 400 lives.

Why my interest? My father's family and my mother's were both from Sheringham and my mother was an Upcher.

Lord Sandhurst St Brelade, JerseyWin a bottle! Inver House Distillers, the makers of Old Pulteney whisky, have kindly agreed to give away a bottle of the genuine maritime malt to our 'Letter of the quarter'. So if you've got any burning issues to get off your chest about lifeboats or a related subject, put your pen to paper and send your letter to: Your Letters, The Lifeboat, RNLI, West Quay Road, Poole, Dorset BH151 HZ or email us at [email protected] All letters intended for consideration should be clearly marked 'For Publication'..