The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1893-10-18
LIFE-SAvING AT SEA.
Apparatus Used by Stations and Crews
England and the United States

IIFE-SAvlNG AT SEA
Apparatus Csed by Stations and Crews In
England and the United States.
Recently there died in the state OF
New York an old man who had well
won the gratitude of his fellows He
was Joseph Francis, the first person
who made life-boat in America He
was ninety-three years old; he was
born before the advent of the nine
teenth century, and it was not until he
had reached the age of ninety that he
received the honor OF a gold medal
from congress, acknowledging and
concentrating his services in saving
the lives of his fellow-men.
This was the more remarkable from
the fact that Francis was but small
boy when he did his work as a life
boat maker. When he was eleven years
old he built small boat with cork in
the bow and stern; and this boat is
said, very likely with truth, to have
been the first life-boat built in America
Joseph Francis has been called the
inventor of the life-boat, but he had no
claim to the title. Before his birth life
boats, made after the design of Lionel
Lukin. patented in England in 1875,
and fully described in pamphlet of
about that date, had been launched in
England. These early life-boats Were
made on the principle still in use, OF
extra buoyancy obtained by means OF
water-tight air cases in the sides and
ends
The English inventor had the same
apathy to contend with in bringing
about the adoption of his boat that the
American Francis found. Though a
considerable number of life-boats had
been built in England by the year
1893, public interest in them was not
aroused until 1928, when the Royal
Life-boat Institution was formed and
boats were built.
The use of the invention has devel-
oped, until now this famous institution
keeps nearly three hundred boats man.
ned on the British coasts, and every
years saves directly several hundred
lives from wrecks, besides saving an
nually twenty or thirty ships whose
crews would become hopelessly ex-
hausted but for the opportunity of es-
cape afforded by the life-boat.
Joseph Francis was cele brated more
for his corrugated iron water-tight life
car than for his life-boats. With this
invention he achieved a great success
in 1850, when the british ship Ayrshire
went ashore on the coast of New Jersey
with two hundred people on board.
Francis life-car made forty trips to the
vessel, and with one exception brought
off all on board.
Comparatively few life-boats are used
by the life-saving stations in the United
States. On our shores. which for the
most part are low, good surf-boats are
more easily launched and handled, and
serve the purpose even better in many
cases than the more buoyant life-boats
would do-Youth's Companion.
There comes times when all of us
sympathize with the Episcopal bishop
who was righteously indignant at some
wrong, and who arose in the convo-
cation saying: 'Mr. President, think
it is the duty of this right reverend
house to set forth a form of sound
words to be used by man under strong
provocation.
The late Duke Ernst, of SAKE
Ceburg- Gotha. had utterly ignored the
existence of Emperor William for sew
eral years past. He kept away from
Berlin and carefully absented himself
from his own dominions whenever his
imperial granddaughter was in the
neighborhood. He resented Prince Bis
marck's dismissal, which made COM
plete breach between himself and the
emperor, and they never met since.
Miss Kitty c. Wilkins. of Idaho,
conducts large cattle range, aided by
her father and brothers, who do most
of the heavy work, while she looks
after the buying and selling, and su-
pervises other business connected with
the enterprise Miss Wilkins is about
thirty years of age. She raises horses
for the city markets, chiefly for draught
purposes, and has at present about
1000 horses on her range. She has
also nearly 2,eo0 head Of cattle.
Herr Ehlers, the German traveller,
was received by the German emperor,
when his majesty particularly de.'ired
to see the servant he had brought with
him-a black boy fourteen years old
On his majesty asking him how he liked
Berlin. the little fellow-half African.
half Asiatic-replied, it is said, without
any shyness: The town is fine, but
the people are not intelligent or they
would not laugh at me and perpetually
make fun of me in the streets"