United States Life-Saving Service: 1880

by John Henry Merryman, William R. Jones (Editor)

Book by Merryman, John Henry

Paperback

First published June 1, 1981

Reviews

[Mary]

Transport yourself back into the 1800’s when serving in the USLSS wasn’t for the faint of heart; when rescues were made from a row boat which was hauled across the sand by the rescuers; when the rescuers worked together as a team to save mariners’ lives as well as their own; when a skilled serviceman could launch a line to the stricken vessel with one shot and bring the passengers back to station by way of the breeches buoy or life-saving car. The small booklet recounts these interesting stories, many of which appeared in Harper’s Magazine. The print is small (very small) but the line drawings depicting the events makes up for that bit of inconvenience. The booklet ends in a poem by Walt Whitman that begins “Wild, wild the storm, and sea high running” . . . can’t you just hear the waves rushing?