The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1880-01-23
what Our Llfe.Savihg Service Has Done,

The perils and achievements Of the United
States Life-SavinR Service are but little un-
derstood, and an illustrated paper in the
January Scribner on this subject by Capt j.
II. Mcryman, one Of the inspectors, has the
quality Of freshness at least. After descibing
in detail the actual work Of the coast crews,
the writer adds.
But, it will be asked, what results have
been attained by the service2 AT this writing
the last published report is that Of the fiscal
year ending June 30th, 1878. From this it
appears that during that year there were III
disasters to vessels within the limits of the
operations Of the service. There were on
board these vessels 1857 persons. The num-
Der Of lives saved was 1881, the number lost
225, and the number days succor afforded to
shipwrecked persons at the stations was 949'
Of the 226 lost, 1873 perished at the disasters
to the steamers Huron and Metropolis the
former occurring tour days prior to the mann
ing of the stations, which the appropriations
for the maintenance of the service did not
then permit to take place until the first OF
December, and the latter occurring at dis
tance 80 remote from the nearest station as
to render prompt aid impossible defects
which the reports Of the service had fire.
quently pointed out and asked to have rem
edied. The loss of fourteen others occurred
where service was impeded by distance, or
where the stations were not open. Making
allowance for these, the loss of life legiti-
| mately within the scope of life-saving opera
tions was twenty-niue. The sad catastrophes
of the Huron and Metropolis contributed
largely in securing the passage Of the effective
bill Of June, 1873, which was introduced and
warmly advocated by Hon. s. s. Cox, and
| which established the service on stable basis
with powers and functions somewhat COM
mensurate with its purposes and capabilities
From November, 1871, the date Of the inau'
guration of the present system, to the 3Oth
of June, 1873, the number Of disasters stated
to have occurred within the field of operations
of the service was 57s the number Of persons
on board the vessels involved was 6,2S7; the
number saved was 5,9Sl; the number lost,
| 9O6, and the number of days relief afforded
to shipwrecked persons at the stations, S,7l6
| 1t should be observed that during the first
! of these seven years the service was limited
] to the coasts Of Long Island and New Jer'
sey; the two following years to those coasts
with the addition of Cape Cod; the next veal
tojthe foregoing with the addition of the
coasts of New England and the coast from
Cape Henry to Cape Hatteras; the next, to
the foregoing, with the addition of the coast
from Cape Henlopen to Cape Charles; the
next, to all the foregoing, with the addition
of Florida and the lake coasts; and the last
year to the coast at present included.
it's not claimed that the entire number Of
persons designated in the above figures al
saved would have perished but for the aid Of
, | the life saving crews, since not unfrequently
, | in the cases of shipwreck by stranding,
| portion of the imperiled succeed in escaping
to the shore, as did several in the instance Of
, | the Huron and it often happens that the
sudden subsidence of the sea spares the
| threatened vessels from destruction. But it is
8 certain that large proportion Of the number
would have perished. A closer approxima'
| ton to the real efficacy of the service could
he reached, if statistics Of the loss of life II
! former years upon the coasts where life'savinf
stations are now established could be obtain
ed. Unfortunately, no such record exists
:. except an imperfect one, consisting of meagrt
. data relative to disasters between 1850 ant
@ | 1870 in vicinity Of the rude station huts o
a the Long Island and New jersey coasts. Il
;, is known that this record by no means includes
g near all the disasters which occurred on thest
coasts. A comparison, however. of the rec
ords of the service since 1871 with this lis
shows an annual average reduction in the los
, of life of about 81 per cent.
The record is shining one. How much
taf Il is due to official organization may read
Z tily be conceived, but it is less easy to realz'
= how much belongs to the gallant crews of th'
;, stations, some of whose hardships, togethe
!. with the methods they employ, the foregoing
u pages disclose. The professional ski u o
: these men, their unfatering energy and en-
durance, their steady bravery in the hour
% supreme ordeal, and at all times their sobe
fidelity to duty, however hard or irksome
are beyond all tribute. None can bette
a know it than the officers in charge Of tn
d service, whose main reliance must be, afte
= all, upon the manly virtues of these crews
!" What, indeed, can ever stand in lieu Q
'r men