Читать книгу Stories of the Lifeboat - Frank Mundell - Страница 6

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o Lionel Lukin, a coachbuilder of Long Acre, London, belongs the honour of inventing the lifeboat. As early as the year 1784 he designed and fitted a boat, which was intended "to save the lives of mariners wrecked on the coast." It had a projecting gunwale of cork, and air-tight lockers or enclosures under the seats. These gave the boat great buoyancy, but it was liable to be disabled by having the sides stove in. Though Lukin was encouraged in his efforts by the Prince of Wales--afterwards George the Fourth--his invention did not meet with the approval of those in power at the Admiralty, and Lukin's only lifeboat which came into use was a coble that he fitted up for the Rev. Dr. Shairp of Bamborough. For many years this was the only lifeboat on the coast, and it is said to have saved many lives.

In the churchyard of Hythe, in Kent, the following inscription may be read on the tombstone, which marks the last resting-place of the "Father of the Lifeboat":--

"This LIONEL LUKIN

was the first who built a lifeboat, and was the

original inventor of that quality of safety, by

which many lives and much property have been

preserved from shipwreck, and he obtained for

it the King's Patent in the year 1785."

The honour of having been the first inventor of the lifeboat is also claimed by two other men. In the parish church of St. Hilda, South Shields, there is a stone "Sacred to the Memory of William Wouldhave, who died September 28, 1821, aged 70 years, Clerk of this Church, and Inventor of that invaluable blessing to mankind, the Lifeboat." Another similar record tells us that "Mr. Henry Greathead, a shrewd boatbuilder at South Shields, has very generally been credited with designing and building the first lifeboat, about the year 1789." As we have seen, Lukin had received the king's patent for his invention four years before Greathead brought forward his plan. This proves conclusively that the proud distinction belongs by right to Lionel Lukin.

In September 1789 a terrible wreck took place at the mouth of the Tyne. The ship Adventure of Newcastle went aground on the Herd Sands, within three hundred yards of the shore. The crew took to the rigging, where they remained till, benumbed by cold and exhaustion, they dropped one by one into the midst of the tremendous breakers, and were drowned in the presence of thousands of spectators, who were powerless to render them any assistance.

Deeply impressed by this melancholy catastrophe, the gentlemen of South Shields called a meeting, and offered prizes for the best model of a lifeboat "calculated to brave the dangers of the sea, particularly of broken water." From the many plans sent in, those of William Wouldhave and Henry Greathead were selected, and after due consideration the prize was awarded to "the shrewd boatbuilder at South Shields." He was instructed to build a boat on his own plan with several of Wouldhave's ideas introduced. This boat had five thwarts, or seats for rowers, double banked, to be manned by ten oars. It was lined with cork, and had a cork fender or pad outside, 16 inches deep. The chief point about Greathead's invention was that the keel was curved instead of being straight. This circumstance, simple as it appears, caused him to be regarded as the inventor of the first practicable lifeboat, for experience has proved that a boat with a curved keel is much more easily launched and beached than one with a straight keel.

Lifeboats on this plan were afterwards placed on different parts of the coast, and were the means of saving altogether some hundreds of lives. By the end of the year 1803 Greathead had built no fewer than thirty-one lifeboats, eight of which were sent to foreign countries. He applied to Parliament for a national reward, and received the sum of £1200. The Trinity House and Lloyd's each gave him £105. From the Society of Arts he received a gold medal and fifty guineas, and a diamond ring from the Emperor of Russia.

The attention thus drawn to the needs of the shipwrecked mariner might have been expected to be productive of good results, but, unfortunately, it was not so. The chief reason for this apathy is probably to be found in the fact that, though the lifeboats had done much good work, several serious disasters had befallen them, which caused many people to regard the remedy as worse than the disease. Of this there was a deplorable instance in 1810, when one of Greathead's lifeboats, manned by fifteen men, went out to the rescue of some fishermen who had been caught in a gale off Tynemouth. They succeeded in taking the men on board, but on nearing the shore a huge wave swept the lifeboat on to a reef of rocks, where it was smashed to atoms. Thirty-four poor fellows--the rescued and the rescuers--were drowned.

It was not until twelve years after this that the subject of the preservation of life from shipwreck on our coast was successfully taken up. Sir William Hillary, himself a lifeboat hero, published a striking appeal to the nation on behalf of the perishing mariner, and as the result of his exertions the Royal National Institution for the Preservation of Life from Shipwreck was established in 1824. This Society still exists under the well-known name of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution. It commenced its splendid career with about £10,000, and in its first year built and stationed a dozen lifeboats on different parts of the coast.

For many years the Society did good work, though sadly crippled for want of funds. In 1850 the Duke of Northumberland offered the sum of one hundred guineas for the best model of a lifeboat. Not only from all parts of Great Britain, but also from America, France, Holland, and Germany, plans and models were sent in to the number of two hundred and eighty. After six months' examination, the prize was awarded to James Beeching of Great Yarmouth, and his was the first self-righting lifeboat ever built. The committee were not altogether satisfied with Beeching's boat, and Mr. Peake, of Her Majesty's Dockyard at Woolwich, was instructed to design a boat embodying all the best features in the plans which had been sent in. This was accordingly done, and his model, gradually improved as time went on, was adopted by the Institution for their boats.

LAUNCHING THE LIFEBOAT

The lifeboats now in use measure from 30 to 40 feet in length, and 8 in breadth. Buoyancy is obtained by air-chambers at the ends and on both sides. The two large air-chambers at the stem and stern, together with a heavy iron keel, make the boat self-righting, so that should she be upset she cannot remain bottom up. Between the floor and the outer skin of the boat there is a space stuffed with cork and light hard wood, so that even if a hole was made in the outer covering the boat would not sink. To insure the safety of the crew in the event of a sea being shipped, the floor is pierced with holes, into which are placed tubes communicating with the sea, and valves so arranged that the water cannot come up into the boat, but should she ship a sea the valves open downwards and drain off the water. A new departure in lifeboat construction was made in 1890, when a steam lifeboat, named the Duke of Northumberland, was launched. Since then it has saved many lives, and has proved itself to be a thoroughly good sea boat. While an ordinary lifeboat is obliged to beat about and lose valuable time, the steam lifeboat goes straight to its mark even in the roughest sea, so that probably before long the use of steam in combating the storm will become general.

Nearly every lifeboat is provided with a transporting carriage on which she constantly stands ready to be launched at a moment's notice. By means of this carriage, which is simply a framework on four wheels, the lifeboat can be used along a greater extent of coast than would otherwise be possible. It is quicker and less laborious to convey the boat by land to the point nearest the wreck, than to proceed by sea, perhaps in the teeth of a furious gale. In addition to this a carriage is of great use in launching a boat from the beach, and there are instances on record when, but for the carriage, it would have been impossible for the lifeboat to leave the shore on account of the high surf.

THE LIFEBOAT HOUSE.

The boats belonging to the National Lifeboat Institution are kept in roomy and substantial boathouses under lock and key. The coxswain has full charge of the boat, both when afloat and ashore. He receives a salary of £8 a year, and his assistant £2 a year. The crew of the lifeboat consists of a bowman and as many men as the boat pulls oars. On every occasion of going afloat to save life, each man receives ten shillings, if by day; and £1, if by night. This money is paid to the men out of the funds of the Institution, whether they have been successful or not. During the winter months these payments are now increased by one half.

MEDAL OF THE ROYAL NATIONAL LIFEBOAT INSTITUTION.

The cost of a boat with its equipment of stores--cork lifebelts, anchors, lines, lifebuoys, lanterns, and other articles--is upwards of £700, and the expense of building the boathouse amounts to £300, while the cost of maintaining it is £70 a year. The Institution also awards medals to those who have distinguished themselves by their bravery in saving life from shipwreck. One side of this medal is adorned with a bust of Her Majesty, Queen Victoria, who is the patroness of the Institution. The other side represents three sailors in a lifeboat, one of whom is rescuing an exhausted mariner from the waves with the inscription, "Let not the deep swallow me up." Additional displays of heroism are rewarded by clasps bearing the number of the service.

"When we think of the vast extent of our dangerous coasts, and of our immense interest in shipping, averaging arrivals and departures of some 600,000 vessels a year; when we think of the number of lives engaged, some 200,000 men and boys, besides untold thousands of passengers, and goods amounting to many millions of pounds in value, the immense importance of the lifeboat service cannot be over-estimated." Well may we then, "when the storm howls loudest," pray that God will bless that noble Society, and the band of humble heroes who man the three hundred lifeboats stationed around the coasts of the British Isles.