The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1913-01-23
NEGLECTED. Life-Savers."

To THE EDITOR OF THE TRANSCRIPT:
have read with keen interest and much
satisfaction the editorial in recent
Transcript on the "Neglected Life
Savers"
Its writer has evidently felt deeply the
valve of the services they render and
the inadeauacy of their rewards.
Having been myself, man and boy, off
and on. for the last twenty-five years.
hauled through the surf, or had my craft
pulled off the rocks by various crews of
the u. S. L. S. S., in most of the States
along our entire Atlantic seaboard from
Maine to Florida, have come to know
some of these men we'll, and am interest
ed in what is being done for them, both
by our Government and by individuals:
and the following facts may be of timely
interest as footnote to your editorial.
Two bills relative to the subject of pen
sioning superannuated life-savers are
now pending in Congress, as follows:
One provides directly for longevity pay
and retirement, the other embraces a
proposition to combine the life-saying
service and the revenue-cutter service
under the name of the United States
Coast Guard Service, the two services,
however, to work as separate branches,
under one head, each branch assisting
the other. The former bill meets with
objection in the Committee on Interstate
and Foreign Commerce, in the House of
Representatives, on the ground that it is
thought by those who oppose it that it
would be used as precedent or entering
wedge for civil pension list embracing
postmasters, internal revenue officers,
j <,1 H. otto l.. -:
the life-saving service and the revenue
military branch of the Government SER
vice, as contemplated by the latter bill,
the objection raised in the Committee on
Interstate and Foreign Commerce is OBJ
waited The straight longevity pay and
retirement bill referred to has been twice
passed by the Senate, but could not get
through the House Committee on Inter-
state and Foreign Commerce, to which
bills relating to this service are referred.
The bill to combine the life-saving SER
vice and the revenue-cutter service
meets with favor in the House Commit
tee, but is opposed in the Committee on.
Commerce in the Senate. Between the
two bills and the conflicting views of the
committees of the two Houses of Con-
gress, the service fingers without the
much needed relief sought to be obtained
by the bills referred to.
Up to the present time the only special
form OF recognition given the life-savers
for heroism in the line of duty finds its
authority in acts of Congress- which pro-
vide that gold medals may be awarded to
those persons who by extreme and heroic
daring have endangered their lives in
saving or endeavoring to save lives from
the perils of the sea in waters over
which the United States has jurisdiction,
or upon an American vessel; and silver
medals to those who, in cases not suffi-
GENTLY distinguished to deserve the gold
medal, have endangered their lives in
saving or endeavoring to save life from
the perils of the seas, etc., or who have
made such signal exertions in rescuing
and succoring the shipwrecked and saw
! ing persons from drowning as in the
opinion of the Secretary Of the Treas
ury shall merit such recognition.
Entirely apart from what has been
done or contemplated by the Govern
ment many public spirited individuals
have felt that some recognition should
/ be given to the members of this branch
of our national service, who in the per-
Torrance of their routine duties often
risk their own lives, quite as much as do
the members of our fire departments,
police forces, our army or our navy.
In fact commencing with the year 1897
sum of money has been donated an
nually by two benevolent ladies in New
York city, which at their request has
been disbursed under the supervision of
the officials of the service in the shape
of Christmas presents in sums ranging
! from So to SIS to destitute and worthy
| former members of crews of life-saving
stations, and to the families of decease
members of the crews. The beneficiar-
les are selected each year with great
care and with the aid of reports from
the officers in the various life-savlng dis
/ trlcts, and of information obtained from
miscellaneous sources. Various other
small sums that have been contributed
/ by charitable persons from time to time
/ have bee disbursed by the Department
in the manner above described; but as a
matter Of fact the demand for financial
assistance is too great to be met with
the contributions made for the purpose,
ard many worthy requests have to be
denied each year for the want of funds.
One stormy day last winter while en-
joying the hospitality of one Of the re-
mote Houses of Refuge" manned by
one keeper and maintained by the ser
vice, on those isolated strips of Florida
sandbeach, | was interested in hearing
the life story of superannuated life
saver and his wife, the sole companion
for thirty years of his lonely watches
and patrols. The declining years of this
heroic couple were being made comfort
able, l learned, by legacy from some
| IN m RI no n
cality to shoot, from way up North. .
Upon further inquiry found the name
of the benefactor to be the late DR.
Weld of Brookline. ALFRED JOHNSON.
Arlington street, Boston, Mass.
Topuoru 1919