A FAMOUS BAND OF HOPE.
Possibly the most unique Band of Hope in the world is that which is held in the Royal Naval School, Greenwich. It was founded so far back as 1871, by Samuel Sims, an honoured agent of the National Temperance League, and upon his death, in 1892, was taken over by Mr. W. S. Campbell, as the League's representative. No pressure at all is put upon the lads to induce them to join the Band of Hope, but, as a matter of fact, most of the lads in the school readily do so, and the present membership is fully a thousand strong. Regular weekly meetings are held, and the annual gathering, which is held in the great gymnasium, is a most inspiriting spectacle. A visit to the Royal Naval School, if it should happen to be in recreation time, cannot fail to afford considerable satisfaction to those who like to see Young England at play. Every type of healthy pastime is encouraged in its turn, and these young abstainers have frequently shown that they are well able to hold their own. It is encouraging to know that the principles of total abstinence are not discarded when the lads pass out into the Royal Navy or Mercantile Marine, for every year large numbers of them are drafted into Miss Weston's well-known temperance society.