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Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume IX, Issue 1518, 6 January 1887, Page 2

The Star. (PUBLISHED DAILY.) THURSDAY, JANUARY 6, 1887. ROYAL HUMANE SOCIETY OF AUSTRALASIA.

We have read with considerable interest the twelfth annual report of the Royal Huuiaue Society of Australasia, for a copy of which we are indebted to Captain Wray, Resident Magistrate, who is local correspondent of the Society. It is pleasantly in accord with the fitness of things that one of the first, if not actually the first, truly federaljnovement which baa bean sucsess^lly institute I in Australasia should be a society of this kind, whose object it is to increase

the knowledge and multiply the machinery by which life is saved, and to publicly recognise the conduct of those who have exhibited most distinguished humanity in themselves, at personal risk, saving their fellow creatures. The Society was started in Victoria, but gradually it has extended its influence to all the colonies. It now receives subsidies from nearly all Australasian colonies, including one of £50 a year from New Zealand ; it takes cognizance of and rewards acts of bravery in all the colonies ; it possesses correspondents in all the colonies ; it has substituted the word " Australasian " tor Victorian in its title; and proposes to hold its annual demonstrations in various colonies in turn. Therefore, it is quite a federal institution, and one in which New Zealand cau take as much interest as if it were located in this colony, more especially in view of the rather peculiar circumstance that of 106 cases in which awards were made or of which consideration was pending at the date of the report, not less than 47 were from New Zealand. As a matter of local interest, it may be mentioned that of ten awards sent to New Zealand last year, two fell to this coast: a silver medal to Const. Ryan who saved Inspector Pardy from drowning in the Waitotoroa, Parihaka, in June 1885, and a certificate of merit to William Bruce for gallantry at Wanganui Heads. But though these awards were for saving persons from death by drowning, and though it happens that it is in this clnss of accident that bravery is most often exhibited, still the scope of the sociecy's operations embraces the rewarding of bravery in saving life not only in the case of drowning, but in case of risk from lire, from railway trains, in case of accidents in mines, &c. The President, in his address at last demonstration, after referring to this point, continued :—": — " So you will see that the scope of the society is very large, and ought to attract the sympathy and the help of all classes of our colonists. Since its commencement we have distributed over five hundred awards to persons who have attempted to save human life. There are at the present moment over three hundred life-buoys placed in different 'parts of the Australasian colonies, and as everyone of the colonies has now an equal amount of life-saving apparatus forwarded to it for its own use. In addition to that the Society has distributed tens of thousands of placards containing instructions for saving life either from drowning, sunstroke, snakebite, apoplexy, or other causes, and we have been most gratified — every individual here to-night must be gratified — to know of Uih many cases in which, although the Society is so young, the knowledge obtained from these directions has been the means of saving many valuable lives by these directions having been put into use by the bystanders. Only a few weeks ago we had an account from New Zealand of a distressing accident. A boat's crew of women and children were capsized in the hatbour of Port Chalmers. A lady, three daughters, and two boys were all brought to land apparently dead. The two youngest unfortunately succumbed, and the mother and the three daughters were not only apparently dead, but, so i'iii■as the bystanders could observe, actually dead. A gentleman who undertook to resuscitate them according to the directions of the Society, which he had studied, was actually laughed to scorn when he attempted it. But what was the gratification of the bystanders when one after another of these unfortunate individuals were brought back to life — one actually after two hours' operation." There were many other remarks made at the demonstration which we should like to quote as showing the aims and methods of the society, but space will not permit of more than one other extract, this being from a speech made by the Chief Secretary of Victoria, who observed very forcibly and eloquently that much of the gran'leur of the actions recognised bj r t' ( e society " is due to the fact that when these heroic deeds are being performed deliberation has no part in them whatever The trial, when it comes, comes iv a single instant. There is no time to summon up resolution — no time to become nerved by reflection. The action has to be done then and there — at the second or not at all ; and the very fact that the app?al is so instantaneous kindles within us all our natural love of life, all our feelings of physical fear, and causes an almost irresistible response to fill the heart and fire the brain. It is iv that instant thai divine com age is needed, and often appears. It must be a noble nature which could endure such a trial, and, with such swiftness of impulse, conquer the animil instinct and risk all. We are here to-night to honour those who have gone through trials of [\vs discription — who have passed through tho furnace, and who have come out of it pure gold. We are met here to honour thum, and in honouring them we arc honouring ourselves. At all events wo are honouring the race to which we belong." We have only to add that a society of this kind must commend itself to the higher nature of all. The impulse to show appreciation of brave deeds itself comes of the nobility of mind which prompts brave deed% at great crises ; and those who desire to see bravery appreciated must recognise such a society as the Royal Humaue Society is worthy of sympathy and support. Should any of our reacers desire to assist the society we have no doubt that the local correspondent would be happy to hear from them.