was a skilful seaman, and was well acquainted with the science of navigation both in theory and in practice. And finding that his nephew was a very quick lad, he took considerable pains to instruct him in whatever it was essential for him to know; but he had scarcely entered on his apprenticeship ere he fell from the masthead of a ship in the Bridlington harbour, was taken up in a state of unconsciousness, and remained insensible for several hours. That he was not killed on the spot was most remarkable, for he received a deep cut under his chin, which bled profusely, and which left a mark upon him for life. In later life he often alluded to this fall, and to his recovery from its effects, as one of many instances in which the providence of God was over him; and it taught him moreover a lesson of caution which he did not soon forget. Nor was he disheartened by the accident, but diligently prosecuted his duties on ship-board, learnt very readily, and soon became clever in his profession. Passionately fond of the sea, as some youths are, he never was, and perhaps he would have preferred from the first an occupation of a different kind; yet he gave himself heartily to his work, and by the time his apprenticeship terminated, he was well fitted to take the place of a mate on board a merchant ship. That a child's inclinations should, to some extent, be BECOMES A SAILOR. 7 studied in the choice of a profession, where it can be done, there is little doubt, notwithstanding what Lord Bacon says in the passage I have placed at the head of this chapter; yet in many instances the parents must choose after all, and among the poorer classes of society they are frequently shut up to one particular line of life, whether it be agreeable to follow it or not. In such cases all that can be done is to make the best of it, and there is a remarkable law of our constitution in virtue of which we can adapt ourselves, in course of time, to almost any work that we may undertake, so that though at first a task, it will afterwards become a pleasure and a joy. When at sea George Smith did not forget the lessons taught him by his mother, nor the chapters and the hymns which he had learnt at the Sabbath-school, but prayed to God to be kept from sin, and to be preserved from the temptations to which he was exposed. It is difficult, but not impossible, to serve God on board ship. There are many pious sailors, though there are very many godless ones. And perhaps there is no station in life in which a young man may exemplify, in so many different ways, the power of religion as he may at sea. It will teach him to be patient in a calm, and fearless in a storm; it will enable him to encounter hardships with fortitude, and perils with resignation and hope; and it will sustain him when far from friends and home with the assurance that God, if it please Him, can bring him back to them again; and that if not, there is for him a better home in heaven. "They that go down to the sea in ships, that do business in great waters; these see the works of the Lord, and His wonders in the deep" (Ps. cvii. 24, 25). If, then, they are godly men, they acknowledge His power, adore His wisdom, and reverence His name, and with a true and noble heroism they brave the dangers that surround them, and, in their greatest troubles, cry unto Him who alone can save them. Would that our brave British tars were all God-fearing men; but, alas! the majority of them are, it is to be feared, depraved and dissolute, and many of them when they land on foreign shores bring their country into sad disgrace. We have, however, some of a very different spirit, in whom the Christian character has been displayed both at sea and on land in its brightest forms, and who have been, and still are, a blessing to thousands both of their countrymen and of foreigners. Whenever George Smith was on shore he attended a Methodist chapel, if he could find one; and always took pleasure in the pursuit of what was good. On one occasion he landed at Virginia, in the southern States of America, and on entering the town one Sabbath LOVE OF PARENTS. day, found a Methodist chapel, where a number of negroes were holding a love-feast. He went in, and was greatly delighted with the tales he heard of their conversion, and of the manifestations he witnessed of the power of religion on their minds. He was not at this time a member of the Methodist Society, for his seafaring life prevented him from regular attendance on the means of grace; nor is it known whether he lived in the enjoyment of the Divine favour. He did, however, fear God; and one feature in his character was his regard for his parents, whom it was his delight to aid by every means in his power. Earnestly would I recommend the youthful reader to cultivate this admirable disposition. As a rule, "the children ought not to lay up for the parents, but the parents for the children” (2 Cor. xii. 14), but when the parents are poor, and are cast upon the children by the providence of God, the children are bound to help them, and should ever deem it an honour and a privilege to do so, even at the cost of many personal enjoyments. This did George Smith; and, in the end, he was no loser, for God rewarded him for it both in his earlier and in his later life. During his apprenticeship George Smith encountered many a fearful storm, and was once wrecked in the Baltic Sea. The particulars of the event have not been preserved, but all hands were saved, and on his return home he did not forget to give thanks to that God who had preserved him from a watery grave. 0 the joy of the mariner, when, after a long and perilous voyage, he sees the port on entering which he will be greeted by his friends with many a hearty cheer. "Hark, to the sailors' shout the rocks rebound, To view the port descried, he only knows Hath lost, aweary of the ocean way; And watched all anxious every wind that blows." Thus wrote Southey; and doubtless such joy as is here described compensates to some extent for the trials and the perils passed through. For a law of compensation runs through the entire life of man, in virtue of which the hardest labour conduces to the sweetest rest; and the greatest conflict, manfully sustained, to the greater pleasure of the triumphs won. "He stayeth his rough wind in the day of the east wind." The apprenticeship of George Smith lasted seven years, but though long, it was, on the whole pleasant; for his uncle was a kind and considerate man;-not one of those captains who think that their special call |