The Chronicle PUBLISHED DAILY. LEVIN. FRIDAY, JANUARY 14, 1916. THE ROYAL LIFE SAVING SOCIETY.

Horowhenua Chronicle, 14 January 1916, Page 2

The Chronicle PUBLISHED DAILY. LEVIN. FRIDAY, JANUARY 14, 1916. THE ROYAL LIFE SAVING SOCIETY.

li' consucpience of the many sad diouing accidents that have from time to time occurred in this district the secretary of the Wellington liead centre of the Royal Life Saving Society has called our attention to the aims mid objects of that body. and. a.sks that ive publish as tar its' possible a. brief .article describing ttie recognised methods adopted in the teaching o. su-imming and life saving, and in the icsuseitation of t'he apparently drowned, with the object of creating interest 111 the ~ work, nnd inducing those possessed of ordinary ability as swimmers to qual-

ify as -competent life-savers. The object is such a worthy one that w have pleasure in submitting the article en bloc for the information ana careful consideration of our readers. The inception of the Royal Life Saving iSociety was the out-come of the oft-expressed desire to minimize the loss of life by drowing by teaching those possessed ot ordinary courage how best to deal with a. drowing per-

son. The desire to assist a fellow creature in trouble, the sympathy with distress which many feel but know little how to express, so greatly underlie the work of this now famous organization that it is little wonder it has found its way to the remotest parts of the world, far from Loudon, its birthplace. It work lias so appealed to people of all classes and natonalities that at present the Society is known throughout the whole British Empire and many foreign countries whose Governments have had the handbook oi instruction printed, in their own particular languages. As an instance of the growth and popularity of the work i may be stated that in 1892 only o persons qualified as proficient in lifesaving, while during 1913 no less than

IT.oOO persons underwent examjination successfully. The total number of persons who at "Ene end of 191.3 lia ■ been registered as efficient life-savers was ri7,20-f. Life saving instruction had its practical birth in New Zoa land in 1910 when the country was visited by Mr William Henry, chiei secretary and founder of tlie society. Six centres were given charters— Auckland, Wanganui, Hawke's Bay, Wellington, Canterbury anil Otago— and as each year since then has passed, these centre shave gradually extended their spheres of operations until at the present time there ai\> very few places in the Dominion that have not had the practical utility of the methods of the Society demonstrated.. In New Zealand' there is particular need tor the work of such a society, mid this need is the more apparent when we dwell upon the insular position. our deep and swift-flowing rivers and multitudinous lakes. Deaths by dronwing are of such frequent occurence that one can seldom glance through the pages of « newspaper without seeing one or two sad tragedies of the kind recorded. Statistics go to show tliat during the ten years ended 1912 no less tßan 1737 lives were thus lost. For tlie five years ended 1907 there were 86.3, and irom that year to 1912 there 874 fatai drowning accidents. Close study oi the circumstances surrounding the majo'rify of these fatalities reveals some remarkable facts. A great number wi '.i owned in sight of people who wr>- by .--t-iison of their lack of swimming We saving ability min'-* j t.i r> ud'.'i asistanee. In other cases I the intending rescuer has been dragg«H! t" death by being clutched, so j tln.i he h;: been unable to free hrn-

self, resulting in a dual tragedy. But again, the saddest circumstance, where the drowning person has been brought to safety and no one of the rescuers or bystanders was able to take the necessary measures to effectually rstore animation. Any one

who has witnessed a drowning accident of this kind can understand what agony it is to be ignorant oi knowledge of resuscitation. Among our best life savers to-day are those who Have had their ignorance thus forcibly brought home to them. Close examination of tlie subject of life saving as taught by the Royal Life Saving Society reveals the "fact that the methods adopted are easily acquired "and. put into practical use by even the moderate swimmer. The compact little handbook of instruction dieals with every branch of t-fre art of natation in such a manner tliat everybody may understand. It emphasises the need for everyone being possessed ol the ability to swim, and details the means to that end. The subject of resuscitation should be studied by the multitude, swimmer or non-swimmer, so that in case ol emergency the right course to Follow will not be unknown. There is not space here to go exhaustively into the various methods taught, but it may suffice to say that the training, if carried out consistently, should not occupy more than eight weeks or about fifteen lessons. The great necessity is tlie ability to float and swim back and brcst strokes well.

There are champion swimmers in <jiir midst today who cannot- swim or float on the back, merely because tliev have not practised. Every swimmer should be a life-saver, and he should not consider himself efficient until he has qualified as such. This Sodiety does not recognize a swimmer who lias not the knowledge to save life, and the man or woman who enn .swim and omits to seek this knowledge is doing his or her fellows a grave injustice, especially when the means of acquiring it are so readily available. This plain statement may apply to many, perhaps to a minority. but let each one sincerely ask himself wether it is not true. Ability to swim is a lion-altruistic pleasure. hut ability to save life from drowning in the most iiuman virtue a swimmer may possess. It must be humiliating and heart-rending for the non-swimmer to have to stand by and .si-.' his friend or near relative drown, degrading to the fraternity for a swimmer to hestitate because of the tear that he might be drowned in attempting a rescue, and madness to make an attempt which is defeated by ignorance before it is undertaken. It is often said, "Poor chap, lie wn,' drowned, in attempting to save so-and-so from drowning: grasped and dragged under by his drowning friend" . Such an one deserves a place" on the roll of courage, but his sympatllfzers deserve no such place if their turn comes ultimately to act in similar cir-t.-u instances. and the result is the ramo. when by taking their Jesson and. seeking the .knowledge this .Society is able to give they may successfully undertake any rescue iu any circumstances. The work o'i the Society found a wealth of support in His Late Majesty King Edward A 11. who directed that the organization should be known as the "Royal" Life Saving Society to which he extended his patronage. His Majesty King George A . takes a similar interest in it- and is its present patron. Tiie lir. Hon. Lord Desborough, K.0.V.0., is President, and has shown by his steady interest in the work that it is wort'i while. The brandies whic-li have been established and which are flourishing throughout the Eritist limp're and in many foreign countries are indications of its usefulness. It is to be earnestly hoped that this outline of the necessity universal lifesaving ability will serve to bring abo it a more wide-spread knowledge of the art and add a special stimulus locally. Hundreds of lives have been saved, in the past by reason of the instructi >n given by the Society's "honorary work- 1 ers, and opportunities tor the saving of hundreds, and, thousands, more will T>e afforded for our qualified men and women. The knowledge never goes amiss and it not very troublesome to acquire. The assistanct of the "Wellington head centre is at command, and people are requested to take the fullest advantage of it. It gives sincers pleasure to the officers if the Centre to impart instruction to any man. woman, or child, who is earnestly desirous of benefiting by it. The Hon Secretary's address is P.O. "Box 192, Wellington, and interested persons are invited to write for information at once. 11 costs nothing to make enquiries and the handbook of instruction is obtainable for the modest sum of Is.