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was the conduct of another captain; his being the first vessel I boarded; it was outside where I commenced my canvassing for the service I said, "Sir, we are about to hold a Bethel meeting on board the Prosperous in the middle of the tier; we should feel a pleasure in having your company." His reply was, "Have you any pipes and tobacco on board?" I replied, "There may be, sir, but we are not about attending to smoking or any such gratifications." "What then?" said he. 66 Why, sir, to the more important duties of religion." "Ah! then I suppose you think you can save them, do you?" "It is our object, sir," replied I. "But you must try to save yourself first, and that I know you cannot do. Ah, you cannot give me more knowledge than I have. I am as good a man as you are, or as any in the world; you cannot make sailors better men than they are.' "Our object is, sir, to save them from the many excesses to which they are liable." "What excesses?" "Why, sir, drunkenness for one." "What have you to do with a man getting drunk? May he not do so if he pleases? The first sailor that I read of after his long voyage came ashore and got drunk, and that was your Noah. If a man plants the vine, has he not a right to drink of the fruit of it?" I attempted expostulation, but in vain; and after

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many arguments with him, I bade him good evening. There were many sailors leaning over the side of the adjoining vessel, before whom he attempted to hold the Bible, religion, and ministers in entire contempt and ridicule; but most of them, at my invitation, followed me to the service, where, instead of pursuing my usual plan of addressing them from some select portion of Scripture, as far as my recollection served, I met the objector's objections, pointing out their fallacy as well as their evil tendency; showing the difference between this man whose mind appeared all perturbation and dissatisfaction, and the man whose principles were truly Scriptural, and enjoyed peace and comfort in his soul; read several portions of Scripture, and explained their practical character. At the close I questioned the men as to their satisfaction of what they had heard They all said what they had heard was satisfactory to them. In going from the vessel I again crossed the tier, and the men as I passed over assisted me and thanked me. At first I thought they were disciples of my objector; the conversation I afterwards had with them proved the contrary. I dare not venture to speak of conversions; but believing as I do the good seed cannot be scattered in vain, I wait for the appointed season of harvest.

PROVINCIAL OPERATIONS.

SHOREHAM.

On Wednesday, August 19th, the following paragraph appeared in the Brighton Guardian. It bears honourable testimony to the labours of our agent in that port :

THE HALF-MAST FLAG.

The flag when seen at half-mast high,
Draws from the bravest tar a sigh,
And oft an honest tear;

It tells of one who brav'd the storm,
And fac'd the billows' awful form

Without a lurking fear.

--

Ah! he no more thy mess shall share,
No more with thee the danger dare
To reef the splitting sail;

No more in calm he'll pace the deck,
No more in storm he'll board the wreck,
And save the sailor frail.

The hardy hand that oft held fast,
'Mid riven sails and falling mast,
No more the gear shall hold;
Those nimble feet aloft that flew,
And upward cheer'd a fainting crew,
Are powerless and cold.

Brave Ocean's sons, list, list to me,
That flag with veneration see,

Now, now for mercy call;

And like your messmate, though so young,
Prayer and praise shall fill your tongue,
As in Christ's arms you fall.

The above lines were written by Mr. Caiger, the Independent minister of this town, on seeing the flags flying half-mast high in Shoreham harbour for a very promising young sailor* whose death was reported in last week's Brighton Guardian. They were also quoted in a lecture given to " young seamen" at the above place of worship on Sunday evening, the place being completely filled; and the “sons of the ocean paid the most devout attention.

Mr. C. takes a deep interest in the spiritual and moral welfare of sailors in this port, and is well known to most of them. The following quotation from the lecture may be interesting to our readers :—

"I have heard it said, 'it's only a sailor.' And pray, who are you? Do you belong to a more useful class in society? You cannot! Though he be left, as he too often is, by Churchmen and Dissenters to labour in ignorance, and die, crying, 'No man careth for my soul,' can you point me to a more useful, brave, and generous class of men than those to which he belongs? Many names of classes of men in the higher circles, now bowed down to and worshipped, who live indolently and die uselessly, might be obliterated and the world no worse, perhaps something better. Not so with the sailor. Your commerce, your comfort, your philanthropy to other lands, your safety, depend on his exertions, toils, and dangers. Only a sailor!' Pray, who braves the stormy Baltic for your timber, the Atlantic for the invaluable productions of the Western Indies? Who dares the hurricanes of the Indian Ocean for your tea, or paces the cold deck on the watch on a winter's night, while you are sitting by your gleaming fire? He it is that has brought you those coals which make the family circle in the evening happy. Honour to him to whom honour is due.' Were it put to me, Who would you delight to honour? It would not be often the coroneted brow, it would not be the monster of a man who has gloried in seeing thousands of his countrymen butchered and buried; no, but it should be that useful, though neglected man, a sailor. Not only useful, but who is more benevolent? İ have seen misery passed by, and the noble (?) within the splendid carriage turn away his head with a sneer; but the sailor would stop, out with his purse, and make the pale cripple almost leap for joy."

The death of William Merrix has led to very unexpected results, and has, with other events, created extraordinary excitement. The father of the young man was desirous of erecting a stone in the churchyard to the memory of his son, and the

* William Merrix.

Rev. E. Caiger was requested to write an epitaph. In compliance with which request he wrote the following lines:

'Sons of Ocean, young and brave,
Ponder o'er a sailor's grave;

Shape your course for Zion's land,
Clear sin's dangers, rocks, and sand:
Let your Pilot, Christ the Lord,
Have command of all on board,
Then should death your cable sever,

You are safe-and safe for ever.'

Half of this epitaph was inscribed on the head-stone, when the vicar, who is a most decided Puseyite, learning by whom it was written, called on Merrix and declared that the stone should never be put up in the parish churchyard.

Of course a general feeling of indignation has been created, but as resistance is vain, the stone has been erected without the epitaph, and has been painted black, as a standing monument of the spirit of persecution which has unhappily been manifested on the occasion.

The following is Mr. Caiger's report of recent labours :

October 12, 1846. It is with much pleasure I report to you, that never was the sailor's cause at Shoreham in a more flourishing condition than it is at present.

We have nine captains of ships who, when in port, sit with their wives and little ones at our chapel. All have taken sittings. If nothing else had been done here, where scarcely a sailor was ever seen, it would be good ground for rejoicing.

I have, during the last two months, added three new ships to the Bethel list. I am to have them for the Lord's service whenever they are here, and as they trade here during the winter, we shall have three more cabins open for teaching the sailor in during the winter; and nothing, I can say, affords me greater pleasure on earth than to go down to the wharfs in the evening, and assemble two or three crews in a ship's cabin for the exposition of the word of God and prayer.

According to your advice, I have kept a journal of every ship that has been boarded, her name, that of the captain, and of the port from which she sails (excepting French, Dutch, and English fishing-boats, &c.). I find, since March, when I commenced the journal, 202 large ships have been boarded, and 180 small craft; total, 382. Among these vessels, 1,135 magazines, tracts, &c. in various languages, have been circulated. Twenty-one Bethel services for the spiritual instruction of sailors have been held; only eight of these on deck, on account of my delicate health; besides which, two services every Lord's day, and one in the week, to which sailors are invited-and, thank God, not in vain.

EMERY CAIGER.

PLYMOUTH.

Plymouth, September 12, 1846.

Dear Sir-We arrived here in safety and in good health, through the good hand of our God upon us, after a pleasant passage of thirty-six hours, and I now proceed to fulfil my promise, by informing you of my more recent proceedings at Shields. I shall commence from the 11th day of March, as our report previous to that is already in print.

I have to state, that from March 11, 1846, to September 8, 1846, there have been 6300 families visited, and 2600 vessels boarded (the principal part of these vessels are strangers and foreigners), among which have been sold 524 volumes of the Holy Scriptures; ten volumes only having been given away, and those to widows, and one

or two to ships or sailors. Total, 534 volumes. Bibles, 259; Testaments, 275; in English, German, Norwegian, Danish, Swedish, Italian, and French. Also, eighty "Sailors' Magazines," sixty "Children's Bethel Flags," 14,000 tracts in English, German, Norwegian, Danish, Swedish, Italian, French, Greek, and Welsh. We might have sold Bibles in the Russian and Turkish languages if we had had them. Nine libraries to ships and seamen, with 150 Reports and abstracts of the Naval and Military and British and Foreign Bible Society; eighteen open air services in the streets of North Shields, forty services in seamen's houses in North and South Shields. Also, about 2000 handbills on Sabbath profanation have been distributed. Our friends may probably wish to know my method of working, so I shall insert it for their information. I usually go on the river at half-past eight or nine o'clock. I then labour among the shipping, averaging till one; then, after dinner, among the families. My method of conversing with foreign sailors is to put the Bible, in their own language, in their hands, and turn to the passage of Scripture I wish to impress on their minds. I then tell the man to read it aloud, so that the rest of the sailors may hear, which he generally does. The passages I generally make them read, are John iii. 3; Romans iii. 23-25; Deut. vi. 6; Romans xv. 14; John xiv. 6. Many of them read it very earnestly; others laugh, and the servants of the beast-i. e., the Papacy-sometimes frown. To those sailors who can understand me, I show the importance of searching the Scriptures, because "The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul" (Ps. xix. 7); and that our Lord hath told us, unless we are converted, we shall not inherit the kingdom of God. So that if we must be converted, the Scriptures are the instrument in the hand of God for their conversion, under the teaching of his Spirit. If they will not use the means, they cannot expect to obtain the end; and the more than probable consequence will be, that they will be shut out of that kingdom where nothing that defileth can enter; and we know those that are without receive their portion with the abominable unbelievers, &c. spoken of in Rev. xxii. 15. I pursue the same method with the families. I press upon them the importance of searching the Scriptures in the same manner, and for the same end; if I meet with persons in distress, I show them the evil of not being connected with some Christian congregation, since, if they were, the brethren would visit them in their distress, and assist them, as is our duty to do; also, the importance of sending their children to Sabbath-school, and teaching them, both by example and precept, to remember the Sabbath-day to keep it holy.

With regard to the fruit of my labour, I cannot say I have seen much as yet. One woman died blessing me for having come to her house; another has seen it wrong to buy and sell on the Lord's day, and several of them, when I leave them, say, "When will you come to read and pray with us again?"

Notwithstanding so much has been done, far more might have been accomplished if I had only a small yacht, about fourteen tons, in which to keep my Bibles, and to visit the fishing ports on the coast between Shields and Cockett Island. I would just mention a case in point, to show the necessity of this. I travelled on foot to one of the fishing villages, and sold five Bibles. One woman carried one of them to a little village twelve miles distant, where she told me nobody visited, and they knew but little about God or the Bible either; so that if any Christian lady or gentleman has a few pounds to dispose of in the Lord's cause, I should feel grateful to them if they would help me to purchase the yacht, which would be so useful to me. I expect her cost would be about £50 or £60. By so doing they will help our cause, and greatly assist their most humble and obliged servant, for Christ's sake,

HENRY SPRY.

P. S.-You will also please to insert, in what you think the proper place, that I have to row my own boat, and my sphere of labour on the river is four miles long, from Low Lights to Howden; a sphere that has far more foreigners in it than between Newcastle and Howden; and far more vessels, English as well as foreign.

No. 96.

THE

SAILORS' MAGAZINE.

DECEMBER-MDCCCXLVI.

NEW SERIES.

BIOGRAPHY OF THOMAS TODD, ONE OF
ADMIRAL NELSON'S COXSWAINS.

Thomas Todd was born at Dundee in the year 1770, and, at the early age of eleven years, entered the naval service. In 1789, he was in the Spanish disturbance respecting the Falkland Islands, and, from his earliest youth, was distinguished by a bold and courageous spirit. He was not, however, at this time, very fond of the service, and obtaining his liberty, sought to return home. He was on his way thither when he was impressed at North Shields, and never again saw his native town. This was at the commencement of the war connected with the French Revolution. In consequence of his sobriety and attention, he was selected by Captain Nesbit as his coxswain on board the Thalia frigate, and through him, in all probability, was introduced to his father-in-law, Lord Nelson. He was much respected at this period of his history, both by officers and men. His kindness to the young obtained for him the appellation of Father Todd, and he appears to have been, throughout the whole of his naval career, a steady and brave seaman, upon whose word and conduct might be placed the fullest confidence.

In the Life of Admiral Lord Nelson it is recorded that, at a critical moment in the battle of Copenhagen, he availed himself of an advantage he had gained to open a negociation with the Crown Prince. Retiring into the stern gallery, he wrote a letter, and when folding it, asked for a light and sealing wax. Some one standing by suggested that, under the circumstances, a wafer would be sufficient. Nelson replied, "No, no; do not let it appear as though I had been in a hurry." Amid the thunder of the cannon the letter was sealed with as much care as though the hero had been in a quiet chamber. At this period Thomas Todd was coxswain to his lordship, and held the light for melting the wax during this characteristic scene. He was

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