Trial of the Victoria Lifeboat
A Plucky Launch. On the afternoon of Thursday, the 8th of August, the lifeboat Victoria was drawn by horses to the sea-front opposite to the Saxon hotel, St. Leonards, where with its crew of coastguards and Brinley, the coxswain, it put to sea for practice. The launch was superintended by Capt. Gough and the Rev. W. W. Hume, and after some difficulty in combatting the “surging billows”, was successfully got off. It was at first believed by such persons as were versed in nautical tactics that it would be impossible to get “her Majesty fairly afloat without the aid of a rope made fast at sea, and this belief was strengthened by the fact that on her first encounter with the huge waves she was driven back broadside on to the beach, one or two of her oars with which she was being propelled snapping asunder like match-wood. Nothing daunted, however, the crew disembarked, and proceeded to remount the boat upon its carriage for another attempt. All things being again adjusted, a favourable opportunity was seized, and the Victoria was rowed off in gallant style. On getting some distance to sea, the sail was hoisted, and then, as though on some errand of mercy, the bonny bark dashed through the waves to the delight of some hundreds of persons who had congregated on the shore. She was ultimately safely beached, and the trial (in a rough sea) was pronounced to be the best that had taken place.
Improvement and Recreation Society
Roast Beef and Plum Pudding. The Rev. W. W. Hume, who greatly exerted himself in getting the Life-boat, also established the St. Leonards Recreation and Improvement Society, and, not the least important was that among the other societies which celebrated their anniversaries on Whit Monday. The society was chiefly composed of boys and youths, taken, as it were, from the haunts of vice and trained to habits of industry, frugality, athletic exercises and mental refinement. Reports of this and other meetings of the society are given in Vol. 3, Historico-Biographies, and it will be only here stated that the society met in the Alfred-street reading room, where, after satisfying their corporealities with roast-beef and plum-pudding, the members were good-humouredly addressed by Mr. Hume and other gentlemen.
Invalid Gentlewomen’s Home
On the 28th of May an Amateur sacred concert, arranged by the Messrs. Coventry, was given in the Magdalen Schoolrooms on the 28th of May which realised £42 in aid of the Invalid Ladies Home, which was then in course of erection. Afterwards, a grand bazaar was held, under distinguished patronage, at Knightsbridge, for the joint purpose of assisting the St. Leonards “Home” and a similar institution at Torquay. This resulted in about £500 for each. Ano-
