A NEW LIFE-SAVING APPARATUS.

Bruce Herald, Volume XI, Issue 1081, 24 January 1879, Page 7

A NEW LIFE-SAVING APPARATUS.

A conte|Bporary says : — "The disaster to the Princess Alice has been a prolific cause of suggestions tor inventions of lifeBavins apparatus, capable of being easily conveyed; arid so formed as to be useful for others as well as the prime object of their construction. Among those which have been patented is RoseV life-buoy seat and fire-bucketa combined, which ia made of bock tin, in the form of an hour glaae, and is capable of being unscrewed in the centre, so as to form two buoys if necessary ; or one end can be filled with fresh water, flour, biscuits, ship's papers, or any other valuable property, and the other will still be buoyant enough to sus* tain a couple of men above water with the utmost security. This, was shown, at experiments recently made. After some-bathers had tried to sink it by their accumulated weight in the water, several dead weights in the shape of 461 b and 281 b were added, and it was nofc until 1001 b bad been attached to it in the shape of solid metal that tli3 hwoy was -totally submerged. The "Life-buoy " is made so as to form a seat, and would supply the place, of camp stools all round the quarter-deck. By simply running a line through the brass rods that form the means ot grasping the buoy at both ends, it would be fast., and secure from getting adrift in any weather. Then there is a corkwood cushion on each life-buoy seat, capable of supporting a single person in the water, so that, in case the ship went down: suddenly, one cut with a knife of the cord whiph forms the lashing would be sufficient to set the whole of the buojs on board free, and as each buoy could sustain the weight of a half a dozen people, it there, were time for boats to. be launched, there could belittle doubt that all would be picked up. In case an alarm of fire wjis raised aboard, in less than two minuteaj every buoyvcouid be unscrewed in the middle . and formed into two buckets, containing four gallons each. To dip these over the side, by means of a rope that' is attached to the centre, and would form a lanyard for such a purpose, every seat could be brought into immediate requisition and so a ship having 100 such seats aboard could have ationce 200 fire buckets in use." The Mr Rose referred to was recently a residelftbin Christciiurch.