A Lecture, Or Essay On the most efficacious means of Preserving The Lives Of Shipwrecked Sailors And The Shipwreck

31 distress, and which we found, on getting on boat’d, to have six feet water in her hold, one pump broken, and the other choked, and with her chain-cable unshackled; and that, without the assistance given by us, the vessel would have certainly been wrecked. I have further to inform you, that I stated to the adjudicators (who awarded us 140Z. for the service) it would have been impossible by any other means to have launched our boat, but by the warp brought into use by you for getting off the life-boat. ‘ John Denny, late Commander of the Yarmouth Life-Boat.’ I must further observe, the plan, in reference to Yarmouth, from its peculiar situation, (being probably the most dangerous part of the British shore of the North Sea,) renders it of the first consideration to that place ; as it will entirely remove in future the many interruptions that occurred (when it was a great naval station) between the ships of war in the roads and the shore, in violent, and often long gales of wind. Its value on several other occasions cannot be calculated on, in secur- ing with promptness the landing or sending- off messengers charged with despatches; the disembarking of the mails or passengers from packets, when they cannot make Harwich, in tempestuous, adverse weather, with many services importantly connected with the affairs of state, and beneficial to the commercial interests of the country. /«■> < f 7*- - ON LIFE AND OTHER BOATS. I shall next call your attention to some observations on life and other boats, and submit designs for giving the effectual property of life-boats to the boats ordinarily used upon the beach, in different parts of the kingdom, with the view of general, as well as universal, adoption of efficient life-boats. From considerations of their vast importance in affording assistance to distressed vessels, either in the rescue of life or property from ship- wreck, great attention has consequently been devoted to the subject of life-boats ; and various descriptions of them have been invented from time to time, which, from some peculiarity in structure, or other pro- perty, the projectors have too fondly imagined to be worthy of the name of life-boats. My design is not to enter into their peculiarities of structure, but briefly to submit remarks on boats, resulting from long practical experience and much observation.