Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1896-09-26
An Unprecedented Years. Work by the
Life Saying Service.

There is no department of the pub
lie service wherein the great protect
ing arm of the government is seen to
be. so plainly stretched out in the in
terest of imperiled humanitysas in
the life saving service. ASS necessary
adjunct to the lighthouse, service,
both are placed in the same depart
ment under the direct control OF the
Secretary of the Treasury.
Dotting the dangerous Atlantic
Coast from Maine to Texas, on the
Pacific from Seattle to San Diego,
and even on the great inland lakes,
are the pretty little life saving sta
tions, the abode of the brave fellows
who risk danger, even death, in the
service of their endangered fellow
men. In these houses is also the
apparatus invented by the beneficent
geniuses for the purpose of render
ing somewhat safer the work of
rescue. There is the great surf boat,
which is launched through the break
ers to reach q disabled ship; the
small wheeled cannon. used to
fire shot line from the shore to ship
and the life car, which may be
hauled between the ship and the
shore, when it is impossible to launch
the surf boat.
The men on the stations are on
duty only during that portion of the
season when the coast is swept by
sudden and violent storms that sweep
up from the West Indies, wreaking
disaster upon shipping, and were it
not for the foresight of the govern
ment and the fidelity of the brave
coast guards, many more lives would
be lost every year than is now the
case
The service has just issued report
of its operations during the past
fiscal year, and it is highly inter
esting volume.
There are 251 stations in all, in
Guided in twelve districts.
The number of disasters to vessels
within the scope of possible aid from
the stations was 4S3. Aboard these
vessels were 5,402 persons, but twenty
of whom persisted. This is a Won
derful and highly flattering common
tary upon the value of the service.
The total value Of the property in
volved in these disasters was SO,
GIT ,235. Of this amount 50, l45, OS5
was saved to the owners, the property
loss being only about ten per cent.
The number of vessels totally lost
was 70.
During the year SOB shipwreclled
persons were cared for at the stations
near where the wrecks occurred, and
they were sometimes detained at the
stations for days at time.
In addition to those saved from
the imperiled vessels, ia persons
were rescued by surfmen, without
whose assistance they would IN
doubtedly have been drowned:
Twenty four of these persons had
fallen from piers, wharves,, ETC.;
fourteen were exhausted swimmers,
three were intoxicated, nine were
adrift on ice foes in Lake Michigan,
eleven were caught by rising tides,
and one was an aeronaut who fell
from his balloon into Lake Ontario.
In $50 instances stranded vessels
were worked off and safely piloted
away, and 249 ships in danger of
going ashore were warned off by the
lights of the beach patrol. During
the year $40 lives were saved in the
surf boat; 131 were taken off in the
life car; and 100 were in such i'm
minent danger that it was necessary
to take them off in the breeches-buoy.
These statistics are emphatic i'll
support Of the wisdom of maintain
ing service that is a boon to hui
manity, regardless of nationality, or
what net.