Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1886-1890, 1888-03-17
FOR THE LIFEBOAT.
AN ENGINE NEEDED TO DRIVE IT
THROUGH THE SURF.

SCcu AHSSHufty A1dS
Failed-Dangers of succoring the Ship
wrecked-Exhaus.ed Men at the Oars.
1t is not little discouraging to those inter-
ested in maritime affairs, and particularly
to those interested in devices and schemes for
saving the lives Of the shipwrecked, to read
that the efforts Of a committee appointed on
Oct. L. 1887, by the Royal National Lifeboat
Institution Of Great Britain, to obtain a plan
for propelling lifeboat By some other means
than oars in the hands Of its crew, had en-
tirely failed. In December, 1885, while en-
deavorins TO save the crew Of a vessel wrecked
on the coast Of Lancashire, q lifeboat and her
crew were overwhelmed by the waves and
lost The disaster was Of the sort to rouse
the attention of the entire British nation, and
the Royal Lifeboat institute at once set about
improving the lifeboats in service along the
British coasts.
Among ether steps taken was the appoint
ment Of a committee, consisting Of Sir Fred
erick Bramwell, F. r. S. :; Sir Digby Murray,
Bart, and Mr.. John Thornycroft, all men
having special knowledge in the matter be-
fore them, 20 solicit drawings and models
from inventors and manufacturers OF life
bosts Of some new craft to be propelled by
some power other than manual labor 81 the
oars; such, for instance, as steam or cleo
tricity. The committee were empowered 10
offer gold and silver medals for the best Of
these proposed devices, should any be offered,
whils the successful inventor would, Of
course, have received q number Of orders for
boats from the institution as soon IS the
award was made. Entries closed on Oct. l,
at which time so many had been presented at
tho rooms Of the committee that it Gas taken
all tbs time OF the committee for nearly four
months to complete their examination of the
devices Sir Frederick Bramwell, who writes
the report, says that no design worthy of a
silver medal, or even Of special mention, was
found. The British inventor having failed,
perhaps some Yankee may now succeed
LAUNCHING THE LIFEBoAr.
Tho need Of some such device for propelling
lifeboats becomes apparent when the condi-
tions under which the lives Of the ship
wrecked are saved are considered. The
wrecked ship drives ashore in furious gale,
taking ground perhaps half mile from the
beach whence the hfebost must be launched
and always, too, if along the American coast
south of Montauk Point On bar good
many hundred feet from shore. The patrol
man brings word to the crew, and, if it be
night, the men must jump from their warm
hunks and hasten out into the wind and sees
or snow that chill them through and through
The labor of dragging heavy boat over thu
sand is not enough 10 warm them before they
must wade out into the icy surf that drenches
every thread they wear, and then, IS the boat
floats, leap in and grasp with benumbed
fingers the heavy fifteen foot oars and pull
for their own lives as well as TIE lives Of the
sailors on the stranded ship. The next wave,
IL it does not hurl them back on to the sand,
half buries them in its freezing cold depths,
and thsn leaves them with coats and wraps
weighed down with ice.
Unmindful of the discomfoTts and terrors
around and before them, the life savers
struggle on, and eventually reach tho lee side
Of tho wreck to find their labor only just
begun, and their danger, especially from
floating and falling spars greatly increased.
A limo must be made fast to the ship, over
which the solid water sweeps with tremen-
dous force. and then the sailors, who are
dashed in the rigging and are helpless, must
be lowered into tho lifeboats 1t is a work
requiring the nerve and strength of man
in his prime, undiminished BY previous e1er-
ton, but it is performed by men who have
been perhaps for an hour or more, straining
every nerve to its utmost tension in the effort
to reach the ship.
LANDING THROUGH TIE SURF.
One hour, may be two or three must pass
before the sailors are all in the boat. Human
powers. even in the hsst trained men, have a
limit beyond which they cannot be strained
and stand the test. Encumbered by the load
in their boat, exhausted by their labors in
securing the load. the life savers at last cast
of tho line that holds them to Che wreck, and
with weakened grasp take UP the heavy oars
TO face the grSvest danger TO which mariner
is ever exposed, the danger Of landing through
D heavy surf Small wonder if even the
thought of this danger fails to Gag into ade-
quste action tie worn out muscles Of the
men, and they drift toward shore rather
than row with the wind and waves, and fail
ut the critical moment to pull toward the
open sea, and are caught by a booming roller
and thrown headlonS into the black dcpths
1t its base, and finally are cast dead on the
5and, from watch they lad launched their
BOAT to save the lives Of others.
The propeilins power Of the lifeboat is gons
'eHctl II Is HlOst lir-ucu IL OuknG EOJ 10 be
either difficult or an expensive thing to
provide such boat with some other sort Of
irving power. The boat is not hard to
3ropsl. 1t is about % feet long, wide and
81 deep. IL is decScd over on the plane OF
ne water line, and the hold beneath IS divided
nto compartments, which are usually filed
With cork and psrsHinc waI or some such
light substance, 50 that il tbs compartment
- broken open il will not I'll with water. It
equires q crew OF six oarsnen and . coIswain.
f an adequate propellins scheme were pro-
7ided, one of these men might be dispensed
With After tbs boat WAS launched and his |
weight saved, if the propelling device weighed |
100 pounds il would therefore ncs but little |
,ver 800 pounds additional weight for the !
ooat. but something ought to be made in !
hese days Of tempered steel and aluminium |
hat would weigh less. II some of the men /
rno are taking out patents for car couplers, |
abroad switches, and washing machines ct !
he rate of dozen a week with no reason |
bis hope Of ever getting the price OF the .
,asents out OF their devices, were 20 turn their
ttention to hfeboats, something worthy the
ttention at least OF the Royal National Life
'ost institution, perhaps even Of silver
medal, might be produced. When II is con-
id.red thst such boats would readily sell for
2 500. perhaps 5000, each. the margin for
roflt is apparent at least to boat builder.
New York Sun.
A Theatrical Superstition.