to-be-pitied woman to the most degraded state possible in this life, and to the most hopeless for the life to come; or he assists in perpetuating that unhappy state. Let every man feel for a poor prostitute, as he would if his own mother or his sister were in that state. It is not true that drunkenness and debauchery injure only a man's self: however, if it were true, still every man, (a sailor as well as any other man,) should in duty to himself avoid making his mind the servant or slave of the merely brutal part of his person; and should employ reason and religion to regulate his appetites. All a man's duties to himself and to others, are moreover sanctioned by the approbation of God, and a violation of those duties is followed by his displeasure. Providence has attached, as an usual consequence, disease and penury to intemperance and lewdness; and the Bible says, "for these things' sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience."

In China the British Sailor too commonly misuses the leisure of the Sunday; and on liberty days abandons himself to the grossest, and most unrestrained indulgence of his beastly appetites; even when on duty at Canton, he sometimes allows himself to get drunk in Hog-lane; and in so doing, not only injures his health, but exposes his person, his country, and his religion to the scorn of the Pagan Chinese; and he, in common with every unjust, covetous, avaricious, lying, drunken, debauched European, in Pagan countries, causes God our Saviour to be blasphemed amongst the heathen; such men, whatever their station, or whatever their cloth, not only neglect their own salvation; but also hinder the salvation of others. These are awful views of the subject, and not alone applicable to sailors in China.

But to return,-British Sailors! it is allowed on all hands that you possess courage and generosity; that you can fight hard, when your commander bids; and that you will jump overboard at the risk of your own lives to save a person drowning: still war and danger are evils; you do not wish an eternal continuance of strife and of hurricanes. What is your character in peace! I will tell you; you are

accused in the British Parliament, and in the English newspapers, and in the conversation of some gentlemen, of being ungrateful, turbulent, and riotous; and of getting drunk, and of quarrelling, and fighting, and sometimes of causing the death of the natives; and by such conduct, in China particularly, of occasioning an immense loss of property to your employers, by involving them, through your misconduct, in discussions with the Chinese Government, to prevent your being tortured and strangled unjustly in cases of accidental homicide. The Chinese law will not excuse a man who kills another in a fight, because the other man struck him first, or insulted him by words or looks. The English law does not allow of slight pretexts for killing a man; and the Chinese law is more strict than the English law is. If therefore you get drunk, or put yourselves in a passion, and fight and kill a native, you will not only be censured by your countrymen, but your own life may be sacrificed, should the facts be proved against you; for nobody should screen a murderer. The sailors of other countries are commended as more reasonable and better behaved than you are; and even the Chinamen are preferred before you, as an orderly sober people. Now, as a man, and a man bred up in a Christian land, every sailor in the Chinese fleet should reflect, and see how far these accusations are true in reference to himself; and if his conduct has heretofore given just occasion for these censures, let him resolve to alter his conduct. Let him think of his home, of his kindred, of his country, and of his Saviour, and no longer by his misconduct cause injurious reflections to be thrown on them. And let him think of his duty to himself; that he has a soul to be saved, as well as a body to be fed and clothed; and let him resolve to be true to her who is, or whom he intends (if Heaven will) to make his wife. Thus with God's help, a general reformation in the conduct and character of British Seamen who frequent China will take place, and the shameful excesses of liberty-days will be discontinued.

I might here reason with seamen on their duties to mankind generally, to Hindoos and to Chinese, to Malays or

to any other people,-to act justly and kindly, and to behave peaceably; for all these men are (as the Lord's Prayer implies) God's creatures, nay, God's children; hence these words which begin the Prayer, and which may be used by all men, "Our Father which art in heaven," and so on. All nations, it is true, are not the same in character, any more than all the sons of a family are the same in temper and conduct. Some sons are dutiful, others are undutiful; some are clever fellows, others are great blockheads; still they should in a family be all kind to each other. These members of the human family, the rascally Chinamen, as they are sometimes called, are shrewd fellows; and I am sorry to say, they too often take in the honest-hearted British Sailor. They sell him bad poisonous grog or spirits, and they pretend to be friends till he is drunk, and then they rob him of his money. These fellows should be shunned and guarded against. All Chinese are not so bad. They have both good and bad men amongst them. But all of them, even when saucy, are not worth fighting with. A British seaman's courage is well known; he need not show it in fighting with the Chinamen, but he should try to be quite as sober, and as well behaved as the best of these people are and he should not allow himself to be taken aback by a spirit-drinking breeze, whilst the bad Chinamen are sipping tea with a final intention of coolly robbing poor Jack's pockets. This simplicity of the Sailor is what every body blames; and those who most love and admire a True British Tar, still weep over his too frequent thoughtlessness and folly.

Wishing you, Men and Lads, health and every good, and I say it very seriously, Peace with God, by repentance and faith in the merits of our Saviour; for then you will study to" live a godly, righteous, and sober life," wherever you go.

I remain,

Your's sincerely,

AMICUS.

SAILOR'S PRAYER.

Written in the Atlantic Ocean, on board the Ship Mexico.

Guide us, O! thou great Jehovah,
Wanderers on the mighty deep;
From the storm and raging tempest
Deign our floating bark to keep;
Lord of Heaven!

Bid the breeze propitious blow.

Be our safe guard thro' the night-watch,
And our guardian all the day,

To our destin'd port in safety,

Give us fleet and gladsome way;
Strong Deliv'rer!

Be thou still our strength and shield.

And when life's short voyage is over,

In the haven of the blest,
May we, guided by thy Spirit,

Find an everlasting rest;

Father hear us!

For the great Redeemer's sake.

A

BRIEF INQUIRY

INTO

WHAT MAY REASONABLY BE EXPECTED OF

(απόστολοι εκκλησίων)

"MESSENGERS OR APOSTLES OF THE CHURCHES,"

TO UNEVANGELIZED NATIONS.*

1.-"The great principles of moral science require every individual first to study and practice virtue himself, and then to communicate the knowledge and practice of virtue to others."-(CONFUCIUS.) 2.-"Touching the preferment of the contemplative, or active life — Christianity decideth it against Aristotle." For contemplation, which should be finished in itself, without casting beams on society, assuredly (Christian) divinity knoweth it not."

"There is formed in every thing a double nature of good: the one, as every thing, is a total in itself; the other, as it is a part or member of a greater body, whereof the latter is in a degree the greater and the worthier, because it tendeth to the conservation of a more general form. Therefore we see the iron in particular sympathy moveth to the loadstone, but yet, if it exceed a certain quantity,

*The English Version renders

ATOOTOλOS-Apostle and Messenger ;
EKKλnora Assembly and Church;
Yanρerns-Minister, Officer and Servant ;

Alakovos-Minister; and Deacon and Servant.

This, in my opinion, is a defect, because it does not afford the English Reader an opportunity of judging for himself of the use of these and suchlike epithets. Jesus himself is called "The Apostle" of our profession. The difference between the Twelve Apostles, and other Messengers, did not consist in, nor is it marked by, the term employed to designate them, but in the Person sending, and in the qualifications he bestowed upon them. The immediate "Apostles of Christ," and the "Apostles of Churches," either in the primitive or any subsequent age, hold very different offices in degrec, although similar in kind, for both carry God's message of mercy to perishing sinners.