On the night of December 16, 1884, a boy named Hoskings fell overboard the fishing lugger Water Nymph,' of Looe, seven miles east-south-east of the Eddystone. The captain, Alfred Collins, immediately jumped to the rescue, carrying the end of a rope with him ; he was clothed in oilskins and boots. After a great deal of difficulty Hoskings was reached and pulled on board. At the time there was a gale of wind blowing with heavy rain, and the night was very dark.
For this act Collins received the silver medal of the Royal Humane Society, and later the Stanhope medal.
The Soar at Leicester being frozen, a girl named Annie Fuer attempted to cross it on the ice, when she broke through and became immersed in fourteen feet of water. A man went out part of the way to the girl's assistance, but returned, failing in his attempt to reach her, whereupon Albert Battison, aged 17 a boy of H.M.S. 'Impregnable,' went to the spot and actually dived through the opening under the ice and got hold of the girl. In coming up he had to break through the ice with his head, and eventually succeeded in bringing the girl to the shore in safety. The officer in command of the boy's ship states that he cannot imagine a greater act of bravery than diving under the ice for a drowning person. If the lad had been unable to break the ice, he would in all probability have been drowned. For this act of gallantry he was awarded the Stanhope gold medal for 1887 by the Royal Humane Society.
On April 8, 189o, whilst the P. and 0. steamship Massilia ' was proceeding from Bombay to London, a lascar fell overboard in the Gulf of Aden. The ship was going at the rate of thirteen knots an hour. Mr. Alfred John Cooper, fourth officer of the vessel, who was in the saloon at the time, on hearing the cry of `Man overboard ! ' rushed on deck and jumped into the sea, swam after the man, seized hold of him and kept him afloat until a boat was lowered and went to his assistance. This officer encountered serious risk, as he was encumbered with clothes and the native clung to him in the water. The Gulf is known to be infested with sharks about the place where the rescue occurred.
On December .15, 189o, the Indian marine survey ship ' Investigator' was trawling in r,800 fathoms of water in the middle of the Bay of Bengal. Whilst engaged in the operation the men observed two sharks swimming round the ship, and on lowering a baited hook they succeeded shortly afterwards in hooking one of them. The shark, however, dashed forward, and fouled the trawl-rope by swimming round it. Mr. Peterson, the gunner, thereupon fetched a rifle with the intention of shooting it, but while getting over the head rails he fell over board. Mr. W. B. Huddleston, the officer on the forecastle,
being aware that the gunner could not swim, immediatelyjumped overboard to his assistance, and the two were afterwards got on board without hurt. The personal risk incurred in this act is apparent from the following circumstances. One shark, seven feet long, was a captive, dashing round and round under the ship's bows, while a second was in attendance, free, no great distance off. The shark-line might have been at a moment's notice entwined around the seamen's bodies in addition to the usual risk incurred in entering the water in the presence of sharks.
On the occasion of the wreck of the Utopia' on March t 7, 1891, in Gibraltar Bay, William Seed, chief officer of police at Gibraltar; and Corporal William McQue, 2nd Battalion King's Royal Rifles, were on duty on the breakwater, a low line of very rough rocks, on which foothold even under ordinary cir cumstances is always difficult. It was blowing a gale, and there was a heavy sea and strong current. The two men made out a launch with men on board being rapidly driven to shore, and, knowing that in all probability the boat would be dashed to pieces in a few minutes unless assistance were rendered, they gallantly dashed into the sea, swam out some eighty yards with a rope, and were able to save the apparently doomed seamen. The night was intensely dark, and the men ran great risk of being dashed against the breakwater. Two other gallant fellows received the Society's silver medal for equally plucky deeds on the occasion of the same terrible wreck. They were able seamen on the Swedish war frigate Freija,' by name Bjorkander and Werner. In the midst of the gale they jumped overboard from their own ship and rendered assistance to several drowning persons. Bjorkander was especially mentioned for his heroic exertions. The dis tance from shore was half a mile, and both men had to swim back to their ship, about 200 yards of Prince Oscar Carl Auguste Bernadotte, Royal Swedish Navy, sub-lieutenants G. Bergman and A. Bergin, together with thirty-six men of I-I.S.M. corvette Freija,' all received testimonials on vellum for their exertions on this terrible night, whilst a number of Englishmen belonging to the Port Department, the yacht Resolute,' the cable-ship Amber,' &c., were awarded either bronze medals or testimonials. To Cavendish Boyle, Colonial Secretary at Gibraltar, and Robert Greey, commander, cable ship Amber,' were awarded testimonials for their excellent organisation and presence of mind on the occasion.