Early in 1945 the German U-boats renewed their attacks on shipping close to the British coasts and one of the first ships to suffer was an American steamer which was torpedoed off South Wales. She was taken in tow, but broke away in a gale and was drifting helplessly off tl)e Scillies with fifteen men on board. They were rescued by the St. Mary's life-boat which had to make a hazardous journey of nine miles among the islands in that gale on a very dark night with no lights or marks to guide her. Coxswain Matthew Lethbridge and his brother Second-coxswain James Lethbridge were awarded vellums..