The Grand Lodge Life-Boats.

a Committee , as here given , was nominated and approved : — Bros , the Right Hon . the Earl of Carnarvon , Pro G . M . ; the Right Hon . Lord Skelmersdale , Dep . G . M . ; the Right Hon . the Earl of Donoughmore , S . G . W . ; the Hon . W . Warren Vernon , J . G . W . ; the Right Hon . Lord Leigh , Prov .

G . M . Warwickshire ; the Right Hon . Lord Tenterden , C . B ., P . G . W . ; John M . P . Montagu , Dep . Prov . G . M . Dorset ; John Havers , P . G . W . ; ^ Eneas J . Mclntyre , Q . C ., G . Reg . ; Jabez Hogg , P . G . D . ; Erasmus Wilson , Deputy Master 2 ; Octavius H . Pearson , W . M . 10 ; Hamon Le Strange , P . M .

10 ; Nathan B . Headon , P . M . 1426 ; J . Baxter Langley , W . M . 1423 ; Macrae Moir , P . M . 66 ; Edwin March , W . M . Grand Stewards' Lodge ; the Rev . Robert J . Simpson , P . G . Chaplain ; Samuel Tomkins , G . Treas . ; John B . Monckton , President of the Board of General Purposes ;

John A . Rucker , P . G . D ., President of the Colonial Board ; John M . Clabon , P . G . D ., President of the Lodge of Benevolence ; Sir Albert W . Woods , Garter , P . G . W ., G . D . of Ceremonies ; Frederick A . Philbrick , Q . C ., P . G . D . ; and all Provincial Grand Masters .

By order of the Pro Grand Master , an Especial Grand Lodge was summoned on the 3 rd January , 18 77 , for the purpose of receiving and considering the

REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE . " The Committee have carefully considered the matter submitted to them , and beg to report as follows : — " 1 st . That the sum of £ 4 , 000 be voted to the Royal National Life-boat Institution for the purpose of founding

two life-boat stations in perpetuity in such localities on the English coast as the Sub-Committee hereafter mentioned shall decide . " 2 nd . That a Sub-Committee , consisting of the Most Worship ful the Pro Grand Master , the Right Worshipful the

Deputy Grand Master , and the Right Worshipful the Senior Grand Warden , be appointed to confer with the Secretary of the Royal National Life-boat Institution , with full powers to arrange all matters as to locality , details , & c . " 3 d . That a memorial tablet be erected in Grand Lodge

in commemoration of the event . " In an exhaustive address , described b y one of the opponents of the scheme as " of unsurpassed eloquence , " the Pro Grand Master earnestly advocated the adoption of the report for recommendation to Grand Lodge at its next regular meeting . His lordship , in the course of his remarks ,

endeavoured to anticipate all possible opposition , and was so far successful that the slight resistance of two members , finding no support , suddenly collapsed . An amendment having been withdrawn , the following resolution was put from the chair : — "That this report be received , and that the scheme it

proposes be recommended for adoption to the next Quarterly Communication , " which was carried unanimously .

At a Quarterly Communication , held on the 7 th March following , the proceedings relating to the proposed Lifeboats , were merely of a formal character , and consisted of passing the foregoing resolutions unanimously . The next appearance of the life-boat question in the records of the Grand Lodge is on the 6 th June , 1 877 , "d

as the steps taken by the Committee and the motives which had influenced their actions are there described at length , the statement then made by the late Earl of Donoughmore appears to be of sufficient historical interest to warrant reproduction . The Minutes of the Quarterly Communication of the

7 th March and of the Grand Festival having been read and confirmed , "The EAKI . OK DOXOUGHMORK , P . G . W ., said , that in the absence of the two distinguished brethren who did him the honour to assist him on this Committee it devolved upon him ,

now that the Minutes of the Grand Lodge had been confirmed , to state what progress the Committee had made witli the task entrusted to them , and lie was charged specially ,

before proceeding to explain what had been done , to express great regret on the part of both ( lie Earl of Carnarvon and of Lord Skelmersdale that they were not able to be here in person . Lord Carnarvon himself was particularly anxious to inform them of what had been done , and it was only b y

the unavoidable pressure of business that he had been prevented from being present . The Committee had kept carefully in view the principles which were notably laid down in Lord Carnarvon ' s speech in Grand Lodge , which he was sure was still in the recollection of Grand Lodge . Lord Carnarvon told them in that speech that he desired , and that

he felt that this Grand Lodge would desire , that this memorial should be as serviceable as possible , and the Committee had had that idea on their minds in choosing the localities in which these life-boats should be stationed . They had had two or three difficulties to guard against—two particularly . One was that they should avoid going to some

place where a life-boat had been before , that the station should be entirely a new one , that it should be a new work , known as having been founded by the Freemasons of England ; and , secondly , they wished to avoid going to anv locality where a life-boat , though it might be a very

desirablething , yet from the peculiar circumstances of the place , it might be very difficult to make it efficient . For instance , they might put a life-boat in a place where the life-boat house might look very nice and where the boat would be very serviceable if they could only get a crew to manage it ; many things of that sort occurred to them . Thev were

guided in their choice very much by that principle . There was another thing they thought desirable , namely , as there were to be two life-boats provided , they thought it would meet with the approval of the Grand Lodge and the Craft generally , if one of those life-boats was placed in some locality near London , where it might be , so to speak , more

immediately under the eyes of the London brethren , who would thereby take a greater interest , if possible , in the success of its work ; the second they desired to place in the most deserving locality thev could find in the provinces . He might say now that they consulted with the Life-boat

Institution , and he would like to tell the brethren the cordial co-operation and great assistance that the Committee had received from Bro . Lewis , the Secretary of that Institution , in all they had done . Bro . Lewis had just received a return from the Lloyd ' s agents , stating the localities where life-boats

were most wanted , and he submitted a list of six places , amongst which he gave the Committee the free choice . For the London Life-boat there were two places . The first of them was Ramsgate , a most important place , near the Goodwin Sands , and he need not tell Grand Lodge , or remind

them of the services of the Ramsgate Life-boat ; but there was this disadvantage about it—there was already one lifeboat there , therefore , they would not be founding an entirel y new station . Then the Committee went over to the north shore of the Thames Estuary , and he was happy to say that from the representations made to him ( Lord Donoughmore ) the Committee had anticipated in some degree the wishes of certain brethren—he hoped of a large majority of them—in

the place they had fixed upon . They had fixed upon the village of Clacton-npon-Sea , which had an immense area of quicksand in front of it ; and it was only very lately , last year , he believed , that a very disastrous wreck c ccurred there , and wrecks constantl y occurred there . With regard to the Provincial Life-boat , there were two places in Yorkshire

submitted to them , but they were open to the objection he had mentioned—the difficulty of procuring a crew , and , further , from a donation which had already been made to the Life-boat Institution the first choice in Yorkshire bad gone . The Committee then turned their thoughts to that

part of the coast which was adjacent to the greatest highway of our commerce , and they thought of Devon and Cornwall , and they found on the coast of Devon two very important places , where , at that time , there were no life-boats , on a rock - hi - . unci coast , where he ( Lord Donoughmore ) had himself" seen several unpleasant south-