Centre Democrat. [volume] (Bellefonte, Pa.) 1848-1989, 1883-08-23

How the United states Government He
wards Those Persons who save Others
from Drowning.
The Washington correspondent Of
The Philadelphia RecDrd says II you
jump into the Delaware and, at the
imminent risk Of your own life, save
the life Of another, the secretary Of the
treasury viii give you a medal. If
your risk was extra hazardous" or
your services particularly distinguished
you viii get gold medal; If your risk
was Of a lower degree 1t viii be silver.
When the life-saving service was reor- I
ganized under it's present efficient chief,
Sumner j. Kimball, congress establish
ed these rewards. They were then
called the frst-class and the second
class medals, and were given only for
the actual saving of life at the aetna
risk Of life. People who had saved
life at the risk Of life objected, however,
70 receiving sccOnd-cIass medal for
what they deemed Grst-class service.
One spirited young lady returned the
silver sccDnd-class medal sent 70 her.
She wanted the best OF none. and it
now rcposes on its velvet bed in Mr.
Kimball's Office safely. II was found,
too, that men often saved life at risk
Of property or Of limb not tantamOunt
70 a risk Of life, but deserving Of some
recognition. l. was thought. for in
stance, that the master Of laden YES
sci who delayed his voyage to save a
wrecked crew at great personal expense
and inconvenience deserved a medal
equally with the man who simply
moistcned his clothes In the surf. -
congress, TO meet these suggestions,
changed the names Of the medals 70
/ gold medal" and silver medal" and
made the provisions Of award 20
/ comprehensive as 10 take in all life
( savers at risk. The terms of award
/ are, however. not loose. This is evil
/ dent from the fact that while many
applications are rccicvci through my
congressman, Of cuurscj. few medals
are issued in a year; sometimes as few
As four or five, and never more than a
score. Thcapplica,iouS whichmust De
supported by aGdayits, 20 70 a com
/ mittec composed Of the chief Of the life
saving service. the chief # the nayiga-
ton division 81 the treasury depart
ment, and the chief Of the steam
vessels inspection service. These
gentlemen have O. be- convinced hy
evidence that would satisfy court Of
/ law. They cannot be hullIozed by
/ "y0ur member once convinced,
I however, they recommend YOU to the
secretary Of the treasury. ard he sends
/ you your melal with handsome little
letter, The medals are very handsome
/ IN themselves. 4 new series. some
what differing from the old. is now
being prepared in the Philadelphia
mint These have not seen. but the
old ones were good enough The gold
one hai a life-boat in the act Of rcscu-
ing drowning man on the diverse
and an angel or two on the reverse
with the necessary inscriptions 1t is
Dot strange, perhaps, that a man or
woman should deserve medal Of this
I sort several times in the course Of
useful life As matter Of fact, these
medals have been earned, again and
again hy the same person. They never
/ get more than one medal Of each class
though: but for each subsequent
achieyment deserving Of a medal, they
are given bar Of gold or silver, as the
case may be. to he placed on the ribbon
Of the decoration as the clasps are on
/ European war medals.