his health began to fail, during the present season, he was very rarely absent from any religious meeting; and his familiarity with the scriptures, acquired by the constant perusal of them, was truly wonderful. When I have met him, and inquired casually after his health, nothing was more common than for him to reply in some such terms as these, showing the channel in which his thoughts habitually flowed-' very well, master, in body; but, O! this wicked heart! I want a great deal more grace.' He complained much of a disposition of worldliness. His little matters of business engrossed so much of his attention, he was compelled, he said, to be praying constantly against it. He wondered how rich christians could keep along.

Jacob was a useful christian. Such а christian could hardly be otherwise. I do believe that it may be said of him, he hath done what he could.' I attribute the last revival of religion in this church, in no small degree, to the influence of his prayers, and to his direct instrumentality. There are not a few in this village who owe their conversion, under God, to his faithfulness; and I doubt not there are some now listening to my voice, who are ready to rise up and call him blessed. His uniform and consistent life of piety cannot but have had a happy influence on all who have observed him; and I doubt not there are those before me, yet impenitent, who would confess, if asked, that they have felt religion to be strongly commended to them by his holy example. He loved and longed to do good. I once asked him why he was so anxious to be rendering services to me, for he was constantly inquiring if he could not do something for me. His reply was, that it seemed almost the same as if he was preaching the gospel, when he was helping his minister.

There is an anecdote of him, highly illustrative of his character, which, though a proper place has not seemed to occur for it in this hurried sketch, I am unwilling to omit, because it shows so strikingly his feelings on a subject, in relation to which every christian needs constantly to examine himself. Some two years ago, he had a violent attack of the same disorder (inflammation of the lungs) of which he died; and it was supposed then that he could not recover. In one of the many delightful interviews which I had with him, I recollect to have asked him this question :- Are you quite sure, Jacob, that you hate sin?' I never can forget the earnestness of his manner, and the

foreign stations-independently of services rendered to the institution by ministers and missionaries in various parts of the world. The duties devolving on these agents are- -to visit the shipping and hold conversation with the crews on the subject of religion-to conduct Bethel services-distribute tracts-supply copies of the sacred scripturesfurnish loan libraries to ships whithersoever bound,—and promote the cause of temperance among the seamen.

It is the glory of our age, that missionaries are crowding into the wide field of the world; but does it not subject us to the charge of inconsistency, when it is ascertained and established by a mass of afflictive evidence, that the character and conduct of our seamen have done incalculable prejudice to the cause of religion in almost every land, constraining our missionary brethren to dread even the approach of a British ship to their shores? Whereas, had these men, in the largeness of our philanthropy, been cared for, they would have proved efficient pioneers and auxiliaries of the gospel,-while our brethren, pointing them out to the heathen, could have exclaimed-Lo! these are our countrymen, our epistles known and read of all men!

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We would not for a moment depreciate the claims and operations of the christian church in other departments of holy effort, but we ask most earnestly that we may share in your sympathy and support. No individual can present a stronger claim upon us than the British sailor, when it is considered how exclusive is his vocation, and how powerful an instrument of good or evil to the whole earth that vocation renders him. Is he a man? Then why not treat him as becomes the dignity of his race? Is he an intellectual and moral being? Then why leave his mind untutored and untaught? Has the sailor a heart, and is that heart the seat of feeling? Then why not bring the mightiest and yet sweetest influence in the universe to act upon it,the love of God and grace of Christ? All that we ask is a christian response to the cry of "souls perishing" with the stains of personal and relative guilt upon them. Oh! think with what infinite compassion our divine Lord listened to the voice of a sinking sailor, when he cried,-" Lord, save, or I perish!" and how he immediately put forth his hand and rescued him. Has He not set an example to his church worthy of being followed? Did He not commence his ministry among seamen, and select from their class some of his most efficient heralds and ambassadors ? A great work remains to be accomplished. There are above two HUNDRED AND FIFTY THOUSAND BRITISH SEAMEN who have no practicalsaving knowledge of christianity. For them we plead. We appeal to the whole christian church. The facilities for action are numerous-the

and who told me of the dread he had that he should never return to them. The boy went up. I watched him at first, and then listened to him; he had gained the first steeple, now flew to the second-had put his foot upon the yard and grasped the tackling, when-when-but my brain reels-for what I heard was a sudden fall, and then a gurgling in the waters."

Nothing could have been more in character with my thoughts than this affecting narrative, for I was at the moment reflecting on the dangers of the billow-tossed mariner, in seasons when landsmen, tucked up in their warm blankets, repose in comfort and security.

Very little rest did I obtain that night, for the wind howled and raged as if it had a quarrel with the earth. The thunder too roared, the rain descended, the lightning flashed, and I thought of heaving billows and shattered ships, and ship-wrecked seamen. While the storm lasted, oh what sympathy I felt for sailors!

The morning came-the storm was over-the sun shone upon the

ground, and when I seated myself at the breakfast table, my sympathy for sailors was well nigh gone. Thus it is with us all; subjects which ought to lay hold of our very souls, and wring from us strong compassion, are only reflected on when some arresting fact or fiction, or some unusual circumstance brings them vividly to our transitory remembrance. The debt we owe to sailors is great, yet how little we regard it. No wonder that our proverbial neglect of seamen should have called forth the pungent rebuke—

"God and our sailor we adore

In times of danger, not before :

The danger o'er, both are alike requited-
God is forgotten and the sailor slighted."

AN OLD SAILOR'S REFLECTIONS.

Communicated in a Letter written to an intimate Friend.

I am glad that your sentiments coincide with my own, as to the lethargic state of the church concerning sailors; and yet I rejoice that a stir is being made by some on behalf of this long-neglected class. My christian friend-the sailors do not ask charity, they want only evenhanded justice. As to their being irrecoverable, it is an insult to common honesty. Their feelings are as tender and acute as those of any class of beings under the sun. They are generous to an extreme, and when their minds are enlightened by divine truth, they nobly manifest this spirit. I read your letter to our good friend and pastor on the eve of his departure on a missionary excursion. I think he felt

your remarks to be most poignant-a home-thrust-for he said he must acknowledge that there was not half enough done for sailors.

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As a sailor, I think there is too much of the spirit of a false liberality in expending so much money for the conversion of foreigners, and neglecting, or at the most, stinting out a few pounds for that valuable class of our own countrymen,-BRITISH SAILORS, without whom we know (or at least ought to know) that we should have but few of the articles of life, or of the luxuries and beautiful furniture with which our houses are replenished, to say nothing of gold and silver. Now my bible tells me that charity begins at home; for if a man will not provide for his own, and especially for those of his own household, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel.' Again-our blessed Redeemer set the example. Sailors were his companions and associates on the sea and on the sea-coast. With them and for them, he performed his greatest miracles. Oh how few reverends do I read of in the papers who take an active part on the platform or otherwise, in advocating the cause of the widow and fatherless children of our shipwrecked mariners. Fie-fie on it Britons-where is your gratitude to the defenders of your country-the conquerors of Syria, China, in every power that has been, or will be brought to bear against England. If the world is ever to be converted, so also must the sailor, for the sailor is a missionary for good or for evil. What has been the cause of some of the disasters which have befallen our missionaries in the South Seas and elsewhere-unconverted sailors. If ONE missionary lose his life, the whole religious public is called upon to remember the widow and family. I say if a THOUSAND sailors have found a watery grave, it is merely stated that it has happened. No stir is made-no contributions are solicited, except it may be in the locality where it happens. I was applied to when in F—— by a minister, commissioned by a committee to present the claims of seamen. I directed him to some of the religious

community-he went to a banker, who said he knew nothing of sailorshe subscribed to the missionary cause, &c. &c.; the minister got scarcely enough to pay his travelling expenses. Another had permission to preach in a Baptist chapel, but was told he must not make a collection, or say anything about it. After perambulating the town for two whole days he got FIVE pounds. No men earn their bread harder than seamen, or are exposed to half the dangers. Why not send a missionary on board every ship that has twenty men, and let the expenses be paid by the various missionary societies, and the agent mess with the captain. It would not cost so much as it does to fit out one missionary for the colonies or for China. Six young men might be employed in six ships with the sum necessary to fit out one missionary for China. This is my opinion.

How seldom do you hear a minister pray for our sailors and soldiers. But if a missionary or two are going out, every pulpit and congregation are called upon to pray for them. Not a word is offered up for the sailors who are toiling hard at their duty, while the missionary is

“I feel love to him who gave himself for my justification.” “Do you believe there is any Holy Ghost?"

"You believe something has been done in your heart ?”

"I believe my heart has been changed."

He seemed pleased with the views which were given him of the Holy Ghost.

Where would you have been if you had not been arrested ? ”

“I should have been this day in torment; for I was going swift to destruction."

He was asked if he loved Mr. Curtis. He said he poured out his whole heart in prayer for Mr. Curtis. He finished this interview in language expressive of so much humility and brokenness of heart, and, at the same time, of so much spirituality and christian affection, and in a manner so endearing, that I did not attempt to write, or stop him that I might take the words from his mouth, lest I should break the beautiful flow of his language and thought. When he took my hand, with a giant's grasp, to bid me "good-by," the great tears rolled down his cheeks, and he turned and walked away from us with great gravity and humility. As he shut the door, Mr. Curtis said, "I have not a brother in the world whom I love more than that negro." I will only add to the narrative, in this place, what I have often said, that Jack Hodges was the only man that ever reminded me, by his air, his gravity, his native dignity, his step and tread, of Washington. He always did. And, as some proof that it was not my eye alone that was thus moved by seeing him, it may be stated that, when this remark was made concerning him, some years since, to the superintendent of the Baltimore Penitentiary, who had just returned to Baltimore from a visit to the Auburn Prison, he instantly said, "I saw that man when I was there, and marked him in the yard among six hundred convicts, for his air. Did he not lead one of the gangs in their daily marches through the yard?” The place allotted to him was always as a leader of one of the gangs.

LIFE PRESERVER.

[The following important intelligence was communicated by a gentlemen in a letter to one of the Scotch public prints, and is entitled to immediate attention.]

SIR,-Permit me, to draw public attention to a matter of very great importance, though as yet it has been but little known or attended to— I mean the advantage of individuals being provided with the “ Caoutchouc Life Preserver," when on a sea voyage.

The caoutchouc jacket, or the belt, can, on being used, be inflated in less than one minute-it can be fitted on the body in two or three seconds -in fact, as quickly and simply as any ordinary waistcoat could be put