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Show MANY DISASTERS IN 0. S, WATERS i Congress Urged to Provide for Life Savers Service Is Deteriorating De-teriorating Appropriations Appropria-tions Needed. Washington, Jan. 19 There were 1,476 disasters on the waters of the United States during the last fiscal year in which the lifesavlng service worked alone according to its report today to congress. The vessels involved in-volved carried 5.295 persons and the property was valued at $4, 542. OSS. In 323 other instances, the service worked work-ed in conjunction with the revenue cutter sendee or other agencies and took part in the rescue of 2,691 persons per-sons from vessels valued at $10 641,-655. 641,-655. The year's record the report declares, de-clares, was made " in the face of an unfortunate situation, a deteriorated HfeRaving service." It again urges on congress the need for legislation to provide for retirement pay for life-savers. life-savers. "It should be stated." 8as the report, re-port, "that if the present state of af- fairs is permitted much longer to co unremedied, it is bound seriously to Impair tli" usoiulness of the service, if it does not actually bring it Into disrepute Must Provide for Veterans- "To put the establishment upon a proper basis of efficiency it Is obviously obvi-ously npresvar to provide for the retirement re-tirement of the veterans still in the service and for filling their places, as well as the places now occupied by substitutes, with the best type of waterman to be found on the coasts " The report approves the bill pond-inr pond-inr in '-on!.' res; t consolidate the revenue cutter and lifesavlng services into a coast guard. "It is inconceivable,' it sas. 'that congresi will allow tho service" to run down and lose its efficiency for want of legislation that alone will rehabilitate and preserve it." In a general summary' of its forty-three forty-three years of existence, the servioo is shown to hn. figured in giving as- ' iistance to 28,121 vessels, valued with thoir cargoes at $".55. 401 .084. of which property valued at $28S,87i.2'7 was saved. On these vessels were 178.741 persons and only 1.455 lives were lost, a less number, it is pointed out, than .erishod on the Tintanlc. |