Sir: I have the honor to transmit herewith a life-saving medal of the first class, which has been awarded to you, under the authority of the provisions of the seventh section of the Act of the Congress of the United States, approved June 20, 1874, for the extreme and heroic daring manifested by you in the rescue, under circumstances of peculiar danger and difficulty, of seventeen persons from the wreck of the American ship "Ellen Southard," on the 27th of September, 1875, at the mouth of the river Mersey, near Liverpool.
It is the first time this nation has had an opportunity to offer to other than its own citizens the medal of the life-saving service, and it is a matter of congratulation that the occasion is more than worthy of the token. No words, it is felt, can do justice to the conduct of the men of the Liverpool life-boat upon the scene of the wreck of the "Ellen Southard," and the fatal disaster which followed the rescue, whereby nine persons belonging to the ship and three of your gallant comrades perished, while it saddens the glory of the deliverance, yet throws into bolder relief the noble courage of the life-boat crew by disclosing the dreadful hazards they dared to encounter. Upon you, as upon each of the survivors, it is my privilege to bestow, in behalf of the United States, this medal, provided by law in grateful recognition of such deeds, and I beg you will accept it with this expression of the appreciation of the gallant conduct it commemorates.
I have the honor to be, Sir, your obedient servant,
Charles F. Conant,
Acting Secretary of the Treasury.
Treasury Department, Office of the Secretary,
Washington, D. C., March 3, 1877
To
Mr. John Dean,[132]
Member of the crew of the Life-Boat
of the Royal National Life-Boat Institution at New Brighton, England.
Sir: I have the honor to transmit herewith a life-saving medal of the first class which has been awarded to you, under the authority of the provisions of the seventh section of the Act of the Congress of the United States, approved June 20, 1874, for the extreme and heroic daring manifested by you in the rescue, under circumstances of peculiar danger and difficulty, of eight persons from the wreck of the American ship "Ellen Southard," at the mouth of the river Mersey, near Liverpool.
In transmitting this offering to you, as to each member of the crew of the Life-Boat of the Royal National Life-Boat Institution stationed at New Brighton, it is proper to remark that it is the first time an opportunity has arisen for bestowing the medal of the life-saving service of this country upon subjects of a foreign nation. It was the fortune of your crew to arrive upon the scene of disaster after the Liverpool life-boat men had effected a deliverance, and been in turn subjected to a dreadful casualty, whereby nine of the persons they had rescued and three of their own number were drowned: and the remaining eight persons from the vessel and the twelve men of the Liverpool crew, clinging to the capsized boat in a fearful sea, owe their lives to you and your comrades. The extreme jeopardy and hardships you encountered upon the occasion of their rescue are deeply appreciated, and, in behalf of the United States, I beg you to accept this testimonial, provided by law in recognition of such deeds of bravery and compassion. In sending it, allow me to add the expression of the sense of the gallantry and the devotion to high human duty which marked the conduct of yourself and of your comrades upon the occasion under notice, and of the assurance that each member of your crew, in his own person, by this deed of valor and mercy, confers fresh and just honor upon the great name of England.
I have the honor to be, Sir, your obedient servant,
Charles F. Conant,
Acting Secretary of the Treasury.