Sea Scouting History on the Hamble River

This is an account taken from one of Sir Baden Powell's books for scouts, entitled Young Knights of the Empire, published in 1917.

The lads of the training ship Mercury were manning one of the boats to go ashore. There was a heavy wind blowing - it was still dark - when one of the boys, named Hewitt, fell into the water (from one of the ship's booms) and was swept away by the tide. Two of his shipmates at once dived in to his rescue. One of these, Frederick Yateman, was quickly picked up by the ship's boat in mistake for the drowning lad. But the other boy, Maurice Driver, a Patrol Leader belonging to the 8th Southampton (Mercury) Scout Troop, succeeded in getting hold of Newitt and swam towards the pier with him. But Driver was hampered with the suit of oilskins which he was wearing, and battling with the tide and wind, he himself was nearly drowned although he was a good swimmer. A boat which put out from the pier got to him just in time to save him, and he was pulled on board in an unconscious condition, from which he did not recover for nearly two hours. The poor fellow Hewitt had slipped from his grasp and was drowned. Driver had done all he possibly could. He had not thought of the danger to himself but on the first alarm, had with the true spirit of the Scout, at once sprang to the assistance of his comrade in distress. For this he was awarded the Bronze Cross, the highest award for gallantry.

Frederick Yateman was awarded the Scout Association Silver Cross. The rescue took place December 1910.(not April as previously written in our history).

Unfortunately Arthur Maurice Driver was lost at sea, 1st November 1914 when serving on H.M.S. Good Hope during the Battle of Coronel, he was 19 years old and 15 years old at the time of the rescue.

There was a boat moored in the River Hamble, named Arthur Maurice in his memory.

This information was kindly sent to us by Arthur's niece Joyce Toms