/ 
 
 THE UNIVERSITY 
 OF ILLINOIS 
 LIBRARY 
 
 ^6 £ 
 
 'SGR V 
 
Digitized by the Internet Archive 
 in 2016 
 
 https://archive.org/details/visittoindiansofOObloo 
 

MWV lSiC»'©D . 
 
 Who escaped from the AMAZON . 
 
A VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 ORIALLA, 
 
 I H i / 
 !•. 0 ) 1 , 1 - 
 
 REY, WILLIAM BLOOD, 
 
 TOGETHER WITH 
 
 TWO SERMONS ON THE DESTRUCTION, BY FIRE, 
 
 “ THE AMAZON/’ 
 
 ON THE 
 
 MIDNIGHT OF JANUARY 3, 1852, IN THE BAY OF BISCAY, 
 
 PREACHED BY HIM ON THE FIRST SUNDAY AFTER LANDING 
 FROM HIS ESCAPE FROM THE BURNING WRECK. 
 
 " We went through fire and through, water : by.t Thotj broughtest us 
 out, into a wealthy place." (Psalm lxvi. 12.) 
 
 Reported b» two youno ladies in phpnetic - shorthand. 
 
 LONDON: WHITTAKER AND CO. 
 
 AND SOLD BY ALL BOOKSELLERS. 
 
A MISSION 
 
 TO 
 
 THE INDIANS OE ORIALLA, 
 
 SOUTH AMERICA. 
 
 TO WHICH IS ADDED, 
 
 A NARRATIVE OE THE DESTRUCTION, 15Y EIRE, 
 OF “THE AMAZON.” • 
 
 WITH REFLECTIONS, BY THE 
 
 REV. WILLIAM BLOOI), v y 
 
 sV'" 
 
 v/ ' 
 
 C> 
 
 <b 
 
 ONE OF THE SURVIVORS. 
 
 ®xlfj Six Illustrations* 
 
 << 
 
 & 
 
 <c 
 
 4> 
 
 4^ 
 
 LONDON? 
 
 PARTRIDGE AND OAKEY, PATERNOSTER ROW, 
 AND 70, EDGWARE ROAD. 
 
vii a: mt! 
 
 
fL fct 
 
 - "EUv 
 
 CO 
 
 rH 
 
 ZZ 
 
 LIST OF ENGRAVINGS. 
 
 1. MOONLIGHT SCENE 
 
 2. THE INDIAN CONGREGATION . 
 
 3. THE INDIAN WARRIOR 
 
 4. LIFE SAYED BY A DOG 
 
 5. ESCAPE FROM A TIGER 
 
 6. THE AMAZON IN FLAMES 
 
 PAGE 
 
 4 
 
 . 24 
 . 28 
 . 56 
 . 86 
 . 140 
 
 q.q^'OOQ 
 
TO THE RIGHT HONOURABLE 
 
 €\t $arl nf CatlislE, 1.#., ki. 
 
 IN ADMIRATION OF HIS LORDSHIP’S 
 
 AMIABLE CHAKACTER 
 
 AND 
 
 INTELLECTUAL AND LITERARY ENDOWMENTS 
 
 AND IN 
 
 fratrful Jlrartuliraure 
 
 OF HIS 
 
 GENEROUS AND BENEVOLENT DISPOSITION, 
 
 THIS TRIBUTE OF 
 
 SINCERE ESTEEM AND AFFECTION, 
 is 
 
 Bitlj fjis ferafr f wttiissina, 
 
 DEDICATED 
 
 BY HIS OBLIGED AND HUMBLE SERVANT, 
 
 THE AUTHOR. 
 
TO THE 
 
 RIGHT HONOURABLE THE EARL OF CARLISLE, 
 
 HOWARD CASTLE. 
 
 My Lord, 
 
 In consonance with your Lordship’s 
 cheerful consent, a former edition of this work 
 was dedicated to you. It had been, however, 
 my intention to have transferred the dedi- 
 cation of the present edition to the Prince of 
 Wales, did his age permit of the dedication, as 
 the incidents and illustrations narrated in the 
 volume are in harmony with his youth, and 
 would have given interest to his intellect and 
 emotions. But I hope, in God’s providence, to 
 have the privilege of doing so as soon as his 
 Boyal Highness shall have attained that age, after 
 which period alone, works can be dedicated to him ; 
 because, until then, — as it is properly stated, — 
 he is not supposed to be competent to judge and 
 decide upon works of a literary character. 
 
 I will therefore anticipate that pleasure, when, 
 
DEDICATION. 
 
 V 
 
 with your Lordship’s approbation, I shall present 
 to our youthful Prince — the future King of Eng- 
 land — a copy with the following inscription. 
 And I will do so the more cheerfully, because of 
 the sentiment of holy writ which it embraces ; 
 viz., that it is only by the unadulterated Truth 
 of God, applied to the mind by the Holy Ghost, 
 that any soul can be truly regenerated. This is 
 the doctrine of the Church of Christ. 
 
 [TO 
 
 Mis llapl Higjrtt ess tlu prince nf Bales, 
 
 HEIR 
 
 TO THE KINGDOM OF GREAT BRITAIN, 
 
 fiiis Marne 
 
 is 
 
 RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED BY THE AUTHOR, 
 
 WITH THE FERVENT PRAYER 
 THAT, BY THE 
 
 PURE WORD OF GOD AND THE OPERATION OF THE HOLY 
 SPIRIT, HE MAY BE MADE 
 
 HEIR 
 
 OF A KINGDOM OF INFINITELY GREATER GLORY, 
 
 AND 
 
 BE CROWNED WITH A DIADEM WHICH SHALL NEVER 
 
 FADE AWAY.] 
 
VI 
 
 DEDICATION. 
 
 Hoping that the Almighty may for many years 
 spare your Lordship, as an ornament and an 
 honour to the Senate and the Kingdom, of whom 
 your countrymen may justly feel proud ; and at 
 last, when you shall have finished your commission 
 in this lower and imperfect state, He may, of His 
 infinite mercy, receive you into His kingdom of 
 eternal glory through Christ Jesus, our blessed 
 Kedeemer. 
 
 I have the honour to be, 
 
 My Lord, 
 
 Your Lordship’s grateful servant, 
 
 William Blood. 
 
 Ragley Parle, Warwickshire. 
 
PREFACE, 
 
 This interesting and graphic description, 
 which we have the permission of the writer 
 to publish, originally appeared in the Colo- 
 nial Magazine , with the following observa- 
 tions : — 
 
 “ Our Correspondent, the Rev. William 
 Blood, has forwarded to us an account of a 
 visit recently paid by him to an Indian Set- 
 tlement of Orialla, on the Corentyne river, 
 which we publish, not merely in consequence 
 of the intrinsic merits of the composition, 
 but also because we believe the subject of 
 his communication is one of no slight inte- 
 
Yin 
 
 PEEFACE. 
 
 rest to an intelligent and influential section 
 of our readers. 
 
 “ The writer, it will be observed, has not 
 any of the stirring adventures of the enter- 
 prising traveller to recount ; nor is it his 
 design to narrate any very novel or remark- 
 able facts. But his narrative derives an 
 interest from the circumstance of his faith- 
 fully and graphically delineating the objects 
 that met his eye on his route ; and whenever 
 this is done, a story, whatever it may be, 
 however unexciting, will always have the 
 freshness and charm of truth to recommend 
 it. 
 
 “ There is one reflection which a passage 
 in our Correspondent's communication for- 
 cibly suggests to us, and as it is of a practical 
 nature, it is one which it may not be inap- 
 propriate for journalism to indulge in. We 
 allude to the account that the writer gives 
 of himself after returning from Orialla, in 
 
PKEFACE. 
 
 IX 
 
 company with a servant who immediately 
 afterwards fell sick and left him, when, 
 being seized with a severe attack of fever, 
 he lay down for two days in a state of utter 
 helplessness, with no human being within a 
 mile to assist him, and was, at the expira- 
 tion of that time, saved from a lonely death 
 by the sagacity of a faithful dog, whose 
 barking attracted an aged African to the 
 house in which the exhausted invalid was 
 prostrated on the bed of sickness. Happily, 
 medical aid was, by these fortuitous means, 
 procured, and the sufferer recovered. The 
 only remark, which, in a becoming spirit of 
 resignation, the event calls up in his mind 
 is, c How beset is the life of the minister of 
 Christ with privations and dangers in a 
 foreign land/ 
 
 “ Man is a creature of art ; and therefore 
 amidst the grandeur and simplicity of nature 
 does he most feel his helplessness. There it 
 
X 
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 is that he wants most the brotherhood of his 
 fellow-worm. 
 
 “ Our Correspondent looks to the spiritual 
 part of his labours ; it is our province to 
 deal more with the expedient, and the use- 
 ful, and the things that belong to this sinful 
 world. Hence it is, that while the cou- 
 rageous ministers of the gospel are zealously 
 devoting themselves to the regeneration of 
 the Indian race, we conceive that we co- 
 operate in their benevolent work, by pointing 
 out the means by which the comforts of 
 these pioneers of civilization may be in- 
 creased, or, at all events, their privations 
 diminished; for accordingly as such ends 
 are attained by judicious foresight and 
 worldly regulations, so will the efficacy 
 of this meritorious order of clergymen be 
 advanced/' 
 
THE INDIANS OF ORIALL A. 
 
 On a most beautiful evening, while 
 sitting under the piazza in the front of 
 my residence, inhaling the balmy air of 
 this tropical clime, and admiring in the 
 foreground the splendid cocoa-nut and 
 palm trees waving their majestic branch- 
 es in the sunny breeze, my attention 
 was arrested by seeing a number of 
 half-naked Indians, with their bows and 
 arrows, spears, &c., approaching me. 
 I had, however, no occasion for alarm ; 
 
2 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 they were on a hunting excursion, and 
 this was a friendly visit. 
 
 Having accosted roe in their usual 
 style, “Well, massa, how you do?” 
 they said “You, massa, promise to 
 come up to our country to preach God’s 
 Word to us poor Indians; we be come 
 to fetch you.” 
 
 Having had, heretofore, frequent 
 visits from the Arrowac and Warrow 
 Indians, I had promised them that if 
 they would appoint a day, I would go 
 up to their country, spend a few days 
 with them, and give them Divine ser- 
 vice. They had agreed, and now, faith- 
 ful to their agreement, they came at 
 the appointed time. My system having 
 been greatly weakened by recent violent 
 fevers, I thought this a good oppor- 
 tunity of going to the upland country, 
 for the two-fold purpose of recruiting 
 
OF ORIALLA. 
 
 3 
 
 my strength and scattering amongst 
 them some seed of divine truth. 
 
 They brought with them a large 
 canoe, which had been hollowed out 
 of the solid tree, measuring nearly fifty 
 feet long, four feet wide, and three feet 
 deep. It was curved in crescent form 
 from stem to stern, so that the tree 
 must have been immense from which it 
 was hewn. 
 
 I committed myself to their care, and 
 on this lovely evening, leaving our 
 moorings, we directed our course to the 
 red man’s home. By the aid of the tide 
 we made about forty miles before mid- 
 night, and the river now beginning to 
 fall, we steered into a pretty little bay, 
 to take up our lodgings for the night. 
 The Indians sprang from the canoe, and 
 dashing into the thicket of the darksome 
 wood, left me in suspense, in the midst 
 
4 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 of mystery as to what were their inten- 
 tions. Certainly not to use the scalping 
 knife upon my worthless self, for this is 
 done only after battle, and we had had 
 no war — no, not even words. Not to 
 place a living victim upon their festal 
 board, for these Indians, unlike the 
 New Zealanders, are not cannibals. 
 And yet there were preparations going 
 forward, for in a moment they had made 
 a blazing fire from the dried leaves and 
 branches, and then they shouted “ Hale 
 yahe ! ” 
 
 Hearing these unearthly cries, and 
 not knowing the object of the fire, 
 I exclaimed, 
 
 “ What are you going to do?” 
 
 And their response was, “ Vohole la ya 
 mehovoo mo ho vohocee,” which left me 
 just as wise as I was before. 
 
 Anxious still to have some sign im- 
 

 
OF OEIALLA. 
 
 5 
 
 parted in reference to this fire, I 
 gave them a shorter question, “Why 
 you make fire ? ” 
 
 And again they responded, “ Mo ho 
 vohocee,” &c., for in their haste they for- 
 got to make use of their broken English ; 
 but the mystery was soon solved, for, 
 when they came back to the canoe to 
 announce that all was ready, I leaped 
 upon the beach, and found my hammock 
 swung between two trees, while the 
 hammocks of the Indians were similarly 
 suspended, forming a circle around the 
 cheerful blaze. 
 
 The fire which they had lighted by 
 the friction of two pieces of wood, was 
 an essential appendage, in not only 
 affording us a friendly light, but in 
 deterring the approach of tigers, vam- 
 pires, horrible musquitoes, and other 
 ferocious intruders. 
 
6 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 “ How happy,” thought I, as I lay in 
 my cot, “ to be free even for one night 
 from the impressive visits and serenading 
 music of those nocturnal vagrants. 0 
 give me the tiger who sinks deep his 
 talons and nobly strives for the victory; 
 for if you have courage, and a weapon, 
 you may strike him from you as you 
 would some deadly foe; — or, give me 
 the vampire, who, amidst the darkness 
 of the night, sits softly upon your 
 bosom, flaps you with his wing, while 
 during your sleeping moments he drinks 
 from your neck the vital fluid, for then 
 you are unconscious of the operation : 
 but save me from what some would call, 
 but which I do not name, ‘ the infernal 
 musquitoes’ — although their name is 
 legion, for they are many — who come 
 about you thirsting for your blood, — 
 who though satiated are not satisfied, 
 
OF ORIALLA. 
 
 7 
 
 whose cry is ever that of the grave, 
 ‘ Give, give ’ — whose existence is an 
 anomaly in creation which cannot be 
 solved.” 
 
 It was a glorious night, — the full- 
 orbed moon had just emerged from 
 behind a dark bank of clouds, and in 
 her silvery splendour was gliding on in 
 solemn majesty. Encircled with a host 
 of effulgent orbs, she appeared as queen 
 amid her brilliant attendants. The sur- 
 rounding trees, with their overshadow- 
 ing branches and transparent leaves, 
 received her light, and cast their fan- 
 tastic shadows in all directions. The 
 cocoa-nut tree, the tall and stately 
 palms, crowned with their luxuriant 
 plumes, stood erect, their out-stretching 
 gigantic leaves gracefully bending, and 
 yielding to the fanning breeze; while 
 further off, amidst the shades of the 
 
8 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 thicker foliage, the fire-flies, with their 
 varied coloured lights, ever and anon 
 shot athwart the gloom. 
 
 It required hut a slight stretch of 
 imagination to give, as it were, a talis- 
 manic influence to the scene. Those 
 stately timbers looked like so many 
 pillars with their beautiful capitals; the 
 over-hanging branches, curving on all 
 sides, formed every kind of arch, from 
 the Gothic to the Eoman — some taking 
 gentle sweeps, others tapering up and 
 meeting their fellows in obtuse and 
 acute angles. Then the overtopping 
 foliage and flowery pendants, and the 
 vines entwining their tendrils around 
 each arch, flowed in graceful festoons 
 from every apex. 
 
 Far away above me the resplendent 
 orbs were gleaming, as vigils looking 
 forth through the night watches, — some 
 
OP OEIALLA. 
 
 9 
 
 from their distant and solitary glory 
 were pouring down their light through 
 the opening spaces — others more near, 
 in bright and harmonious concord, 
 seemed to he smiling upon the earth 
 in a fellowship of worlds, as if to teach 
 men in their intercourse below, to imitate 
 the celestial harmony of God’s works 
 above — while in the darkened recesses 
 the flitting lights, some green, some 
 red, like moving lamps, illuminated the 
 drapery and decorations of Nature’s own 
 temple — a temple more magnificent 
 than any cathedral I have seen on the 
 continent of Europe. 
 
 True, there was not here the unifor- 
 mity and regularity of those splendid 
 superstructures. No massive pile of 
 columns, — no ponderous portico, — no 
 tesselated pavement here, — no groined 
 ceiling nor formal tracery; but there 
 
10 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 was the grandeur of Nature’s architec- 
 ture — the gracefulness and ease upon 
 which the eye delights to gaze; the true 
 elements of beauty — fitness and pro- 
 portion — with which Nature never fails 
 to invest all her works, were here. 
 Through the entrance I could see the 
 horizon refulgent with the coruscations 
 of the flashing lightning — flaming swords 
 brandished as if by angel-hands, keep- 
 ing sentinel at the vestibule of the 
 hallowed spot. 
 
 Thus encompassed by the solemn 
 grandeur of this midnight scene, made 
 visible and exquisitely impressive by the 
 softened light of those rolling glories, 
 amid their silent spheres — what mind 
 could remain uninfluenced ? Who could 
 not think in such circumstances of that 
 glorious Being, infinitely more glorious 
 than all his works, who presided here — 
 
OF OKIALLA. 
 
 11 
 
 who was present here — whose sweet in- 
 fluence was moving through the silence 
 and solemnity of night, giving to nature 
 its calm repose ? — of that Being, who 
 
 “ Warms in the sun, refreshes in the breeze, 
 Glows in the stars and blossoms in the trees, 
 Lives in all life, extends through all extent, 
 Spreads undivided, operates unspent, 
 
 Inspires the soul, and forms the vital part.” 
 
 No sound was heard now, save that 
 occasioned by the rustling of the gentle 
 breeze as it passed through the ex- 
 panding boughs, and the ripple of the 
 placid river as it glided on in its des- 
 tined course. 
 
 Looking round and seeing that my 
 Indian escorts were safely enclosed in 
 their hammocks, I sunk back and closed 
 my eyes in balmy sleep. The night 
 passed in refreshing slumber, and the 
 morning came. When I awoke, by the 
 
12 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 aid of the twilight I discovered my 
 peculiar position. The Indians were 
 asleep around the smoking embers, and 
 everything was quiet and still. As I 
 gazed upon my newly - invented bed- 
 chamber, I could not but smile at my 
 novel and unique situation, and the 
 question was suggested — What would 
 my friends at home think, if they knew 
 that I had turned Indian, and what 
 would they take to exchange their 
 downy couches for a night in the wild 
 woods with the red men of the forest? 
 
 As I lay musing, I heard distinctly 
 from the solitude of the woods, an 
 audible voice, asking, 
 
 “ Who are you? Who are you?” 
 
 A very appropriate question I thought 
 for one in my circumstances, intruding 
 upon the domain of the unknown and 
 mysterious inhabitants; and as it was 
 
OF OEIALLA. 
 
 13 
 
 reiterated every minute, tlie only re- 
 sponse I could make was, 
 
 “Who are you?”* — for whether the 
 sound came forth from frog, or owl, or 
 what, I then could not tell, only this I 
 knew, that it was plain English, and the 
 language was spoken more emphati- 
 cally than it could be by some of my 
 sable flock, at least so far as these 
 monosyllables were concerned. 
 
 This was indeed a lovely morning. 
 The air was cool and reviving, and all 
 nature delightfully calm and serene. I 
 stepped forth from my hammock, and 
 once more looked around at the sleeping 
 Indians, and said, 
 
 “ How securely have I rested in this 
 lonely wild, encircled by those dark 
 
 * These sounds are distinctly articulated by 
 the bird which is named after the sound which it 
 utters. 
 
14 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 children of the forest, four thousand 
 miles from home. But God is here, in 
 this distant and sequestered spot of His 
 own world; and where He is, the Chris- 
 tian can repose as on His bosom and 
 feel secure. How appropriate the beau- 
 tiful lines of Propertius in such circum- 
 stances, when applied to the true — the 
 only God : — 
 
 “ Sic ego desertis possim bene vivere sylvis, 
 
 Qud nulla humano sit via trita pede ; 
 
 Tu mihi curarum requies in nocte velatra 
 Lumen , et in solis tu mihi turba locis” 
 
 “ In desert woods, with Thee, my God, 
 
 Where human footsteps never trod ; 
 
 How happy could I be ! 
 
 Thou my repose from care, my light 
 Amidst the darkness of the night ; 
 
 In solitude my company.” 
 
 Nature now began to awake. There 
 went the plunge and splash of the 
 water-cow, as it laved in the river: 
 
OF ORIALLA. 
 
 15 
 
 there the hoarse croaking of the kra- 
 peau, mingling with the monotonous 
 song of the “ Kis-kid-dee,” while the 
 solitary and plaintive voice of the wild 
 dove was enlivened by the cheerful note 
 of the pretty wren, or what is vulgarly 
 called the “ God-bird.” 
 
 Then the parrots in their splendid 
 plumage, with a host of paroquets, com- 
 menced their carols, as they spread their 
 wings, and floated on the morning air. 
 
 The moon was visible, hut had lost 
 her splendour; she had faded to a 
 delicate paleness, as if conscious that 
 her empire was nearly ended, and that a 
 ruler far more magnificent was about to 
 appear. One or two of her brilliant 
 attendants still lingered at respectful 
 distance, but they too had lost their 
 charms, and in sickly light sympathized 
 with the departing glory. 
 
16 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 The Indians awoke, and having the 
 start of the sun, all were up before he 
 made his appearance; we embarked, and 
 our canoe shot up the stream. 
 
 Now the eastern horizon began to 
 glow, and in a few moments the gorgeous 
 sun would give his light. The gauze- 
 like and beautifully tinted clouds which 
 canopied the pavilion of the glorious 
 orb, were now drawn up by an invisible 
 hand, and becoming attenuated, they 
 melted into thin air. Then the splendid 
 luminary in all his glory arose from his 
 bed of brightness, and throwing aslant 
 his beams upon the opening prospect, 
 the midnight gloom which had cast its 
 dismal shades upon the far-off view 
 instantly vanished, and as a giant re- 
 freshed he commenced to run his race. 
 
 In the distance, where the river forms 
 an abrupt bend to the left, Orialla 
 
OF ORIALLA. 
 
 17 
 
 appeared. The land now begins to 
 rise, and the undulating embankments 
 and the perpendicular cliffs assure us 
 that we are leaving the land of swamps 
 and miasma behind us ! 
 
 But the view that was before us ! — 
 how splendid! The sand-hills, as far 
 as the eye could see, presented a peculiar 
 appearance, at least to one who had not 
 seen high land for some sixteen months. 
 Their chalky surface reflected the 
 dazzling light of the sun’s ravs amidst 
 the deep dark surrounding green, and 
 the brown and yellow clay fronts of the 
 cliffs which overhung the river, gave 
 forth a beautiful amber light, shining 
 with golden hues in the sombre distance. 
 
 Then there were just perceptible nar- 
 row strips of the erect banks, com- 
 pletely bare, from the summit to the 
 margin of the river, which presented the 
 c 
 
18 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 same appearance, and for a time it was 
 uncertain whether they were cascades 
 pouring down their silvery waters to the 
 bounding river. 
 
 "When adjacent to their homes, the 
 Indians screamed — if not the war-whoop, 
 at least to my ears something like it ; 
 but I soon understood its meaning, as it 
 was immediately answered by the echoes 
 of the sounds uttered by the squaws and 
 picaninies, who stood in the little valleys 
 and on the bluffs waving their hands in 
 token of gladness at their return. 
 
 At last we got to the beautiful Orialla. 
 We soon debarked and clambered up 
 the steep banks. "We were safe. Mr. 
 De "Wolff, the commissioner of rivers, is 
 stationed here, and lives in patriarchal 
 simplicity. His house is made of bam- 
 boo cane, the walls and partitions being 
 plastered with the tenacious muddy soil. 
 
OF ORIALLA. 
 
 19 
 
 While here I made several excursions to 
 the wigwams of the Indians, and found 
 them not devoid of politeness and hospi- 
 tality. While standing in one of those 
 rude but convenient dwellings, I turned 
 round and found my servant had already 
 made acquaintance, for one of the squaws 
 was in the act of taking some half-dozen 
 fish from the burning wood, and placing 
 them, with no inconsiderable supply of 
 cassava bread, in his hands. 
 
 There is no market here, so that the 
 old gentleman, with becoming industry, 
 attends to his well-provisioned gardens, 
 and cultivates his own vegetables. Then 
 he has a huntsman, an Indian, who 
 every day goes forth in search of game. 
 In his Nimrod exploits he disdains the 
 incumbrance of any clothing, esteeming 
 himself more at liberty to make his way 
 in the entangled forest without, as he 
 
20 
 
 VISIT TO THE INMANS 
 
 thinks, such a useless appendage. He 
 is a fine-looking man, and as he is a 
 good shot, either with the how and 
 arrow or the rifle, he always returns with 
 deer, fowl, wild rabbits, and sometimes 
 with Mannittee and Pedree. 
 
 Some of the views from the heights 
 adjacent to Orialla are truly magnificent. 
 I took a sketch of one from the spot 
 where it is said that Bishop Coleridge * 
 sat for hours gazing upon the magnifi- 
 cence of the scenery, fascinated with the 
 grandeur of the prospect. 
 
 * Bishop Coleridge is now no more. He died 
 suddenly while standing amidst scenery as beauti- 
 ful, though not so magnificent or sublime as that 
 which is here described. While standing admir- 
 ing the beauty of his own garden in Devonshire, 
 he suddenly fell down and expired. It may have 
 been while looking away from the loveliness of 
 this lower scene, to the more glorious — infinitely 
 more glorious scenery of the other world ; scenery, 
 in comparison with which all the beauty, and 
 
OF OKIALLA. 
 
 21 
 
 In consequence of the serpentine 
 bending of the majestic river, and the 
 projecting promontories of the hanks 
 upon either side, one is led to imagine 
 that he is looking upon extensive lakes 
 and thickly-wooded islands, and this 
 appears to be the case both in the fore- 
 ground and also in the distance, where 
 nature is seen to spread away until it is 
 lost in indistinctness, 
 
 “ Where distance lends enchantment to the view, 
 And robes the mountains in an azure hue.” 
 
 The exquisite beauty of the scene 
 
 grandeur, and sublimity of the universe, must 
 sink into insignificance. For the eye hath not 
 seen, nor the ear heard, neither hath the heart con- 
 ceived the splendour and the magnificence of 
 that world of surpassing glory. Perhaps it was, 
 while the eye of his soul was gazing upon the 
 sublime beauties of that state, his spirit was 
 caught away to realize, in all their amplitude and 
 power, those heavenly realities. 
 
22 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 brought to my recollection the poet’s 
 description of the Cyclades — 
 
 “ Crebris freta consita terris,” &c. 
 
 “ Liquid fields sown thick with sunny isles/’ <fcc. 
 
 Of course it is impossible for the pen 
 or pencil to picture motion, but this 
 would be necessary in order to give a 
 true idea of the sublimity of the scene, 
 for while the variety of beautiful trees on 
 the apparent islands bent gracefully to 
 every breeze, the rippling waters of the 
 imaginary lakes which embraced them, 
 flowed on with the rapidity of the falling 
 current. Then, above you, reminding 
 one of the sublime scenes of Switzer- 
 land, where mountains, piled aloft above 
 mountains, tower in the heavens, im- 
 mense masses of clouds (cumulo stratus ) 
 with their borders beautifully defined, 
 
OF OKIALLA. 
 
 23 
 
 rolled on in harmonious fellowship, con- 
 tinually evolving new combinations of 
 surpassing beauty, while their gorgeous 
 shadows, like spectres of the deep, 
 reflected their rapid movements down in 
 the depths of the bright liquid element 
 below. 
 
 Sunday, the wished-for day, came. 
 Notice having been previously given that 
 there would be Divine Service, it was 
 pleasing to see the Indians with their 
 squaws and children coming down from 
 the heights, and others in the light 
 canoes gliding swiftly on the placid river 
 — all converging to the spot appointed 
 for the worship of the Great Spirit. 
 
 They came in their best attire. The 
 women were prettily dressed, — if they 
 may be called dressed, who were only 
 covered from the waist downwards. 
 They have beautiful heads of jet-black 
 
24 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 hair, glossy and shining, which upon this 
 occasion was divided over the forehead, 
 drawn behind the ears, and platted and 
 twisted in European style at the back 
 of the head. They wore a profusion 
 of necklaces, bracelets and armlets, 
 made of different-coloured heads. The 
 men were not so particular, the dress of 
 each being, Indian a-la-mode, confined 
 to a simple covering. They were all, 
 however, clean, and behaved with the 
 greatest decorum. 
 
 There were between sixty and seventy 
 present, counting young and old. Some 
 sat upon the green sward, others upon 
 logs of timber, while I took my stand 
 beside the trunk of a venerable tamarind 
 tree, with a rude table as desk and pulpit 
 before me. 
 
 This majestic tree spread its im- 
 mense branches over the whole congre- 
 
Pa£e 24 
 
OF ORIALLA. 
 
 25 
 
 gation, who were screened from the mid- 
 day sun in its ample shade. 
 
 The Commissioner acted as clerk, and 
 occasionally as interpreter, while I read 
 the beautiful liturgy of our Church in 
 the hearing of those simple children of 
 nature. Most of them understand, and 
 some of them can converse in English. 
 They listened with becoming attention, 
 while I endeavoured, in as plain lan- 
 guage as possible, to direct their 
 thoughts to the love of God in the gift 
 and sufferings of His beloved Son. 
 
 At the conclusion of the service, 
 eleven of their little ones were presented 
 for baptism. As I received them in my 
 arms from the hands of their simple- 
 hearted and untutored parents, the 
 solemn benediction of Jehovah was 
 invoked that some of those young 
 immortals might become the harbingers 
 
26 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 of glad tidings to those living in this 
 land of darkness and of death. Some 
 few years since, Bishop Coleridge, on. 
 the same spot, dedicated about forty of 
 their offspring to the Almighty by the 
 same divine rite. They, with pleasure, 
 told the circumstance. 
 
 On this calm Sabbath, the sight and 
 the services were delightful. In the 
 front, the noble river was sweeping 
 onwards, reminding me of that graphic 
 passage in the Acts of the Apostles, 
 where it is said, “And on the Sabbath 
 we went out of the city by a river side, 
 where prayer was wont to be made, and 
 we sat down and spake to the women 
 who resorted thither.” 
 
 On every side the orange, the lemon, 
 the coffee, the banana, and the mango 
 trees were in bloom, interspersed with 
 the majestic wild cotton, the sand-box, 
 
OF OKIALLA. 
 
 27 
 
 and those “ living Corinthian columns,” 
 the magnificent palm-trees, which, while 
 looking down from their towering 
 altitude, upon their lowly fellows of 
 inferior growth, protected them in their 
 parental shade from the scorching ray. 
 In the rear was the primitive dwelling 
 of the old man, who, with his family, 
 were amongst the audience. All nature 
 seemed to accord in the solemnity of the 
 occasion; the air was cool and refresh- 
 ing, charged with odoriferous fragrance 
 from the spicy hills. Overhead the 
 rolling clouds occasionally passed hy, 
 and threw their dark shadows down to 
 solemnize the scene, and the innocent 
 birds springing from spray to spray, 
 chimed in with their sweet notes, 
 while we sung one of the sacred songs 
 of Zion. 
 
 The Indians here are far inferior to 
 
28 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 the Aborigines of North America in 
 size, in muscular formation, and in 
 general contour. The “ Sacs and 
 T oxes ” of the far west, especially, are a 
 noble-looking race, and whether you 
 gaze upon their gigantic and well-pro- 
 portioned figures, displaying, as they do, 
 athletic forms, powerful shoulders, and 
 well-set limbs, as they stand erect before 
 you, or see them on their fiery steeds, 
 wielding their javelins and glittering 
 spears, you involuntarily think of the 
 lion of the forest. There is nothing 
 mean nor small in the expression of their 
 steady eye and intelligent features, and 
 they are what they appear to he, for in 
 all their transactions, whether in war or 
 peace, they are honourable, their words 
 are truth. 
 
 When dressed in their war- costume, 
 with the richly decorated mocasins — 
 
' 
 
 Page 28. 
 
OF OFJALLA. 
 
 29 
 
 their ankle bells keeping music to their 
 march — their tomahawks, their spears, 
 clubs, hows and arrows — one is led to 
 see, that from their brethren here the 
 glory has faded. 
 
 But a brighter day I trust is dawning 
 for those and for these, when no longer 
 the white man will seek to overcome 
 right by might', but will make restitution 
 for the injuries inflicted, in sending 
 amongst them heralds, not to sound the 
 clarion of war, but the trumpet of the 
 Gospel of Peace. 
 
 Would it not be well if the Colonial 
 Government, or the Missionary Society, 
 which has shed so much light through- 
 out the world, would make provision for 
 the location of a teacher or catechist in 
 a place so interesting? This should, 
 however, be done without an extravagant 
 expenditure. 
 
30 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 It is true, that the Indians are few in 
 number in this region, hut there would 
 not be any great risk in making an 
 experiment on a small scale. They are 
 few and far between all over the country, 
 so that within a distance of fifty miles 
 from Orialla there are not more than a 
 hundred adults. 
 
 There had formerly been a Moravian 
 Missionary Settlement here, but when 
 the British got possession of the country, 
 the Missionaries abandoned the station, 
 removed to Surinam, taking with them 
 their converts, and leaving only a 
 few of their Catechumens behind. I 
 frequently sat beneath the shade of the 
 trees planted by the hands of those 
 Missionaries and their departed followers. 
 They have gone, but those splendid trees 
 remain as emblems and mementos of 
 what they aimed at, — to raise up plants 
 
OF ORIALLA. 
 
 31 
 
 for heaven — to bloom and blossom in 
 a more congenial soil. 
 
 The morning for my return had now 
 arrived. The canoe and Indians were 
 in waiting. Having bid those farewell 
 who had assembled on the hank, we 
 started; we were not suffered to come 
 away empty; for here I found fruits, 
 venison, fresh cocoa-nuts, &c. Here, 
 too, were specimens of vanilla, frankin- 
 cense, and other aromatic perfumes, 
 which we had taken from the trees 
 while rambling in the woods. 
 
 We were accompanied part of the 
 way by an old Christian Indian, nearly 
 eighty years of age, named Jeremiah. 
 He was perfectly blind, and his hair 
 quite white. He had a most benignant 
 expression of countenance, and a com- 
 placent smile was continually playing 
 over his features. The plaintive tones 
 
32 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 of his voice, as he told me of his 
 “ Christian Teacher, a long time ago,” 
 indicated great gentleness. As I looked 
 upon his happy visage and saw his 
 sightless eyeballs, I endeavoured to 
 read the musings of the intellect within : 
 this was difficult, but I knew the index 
 of that mind told of cheerful emotions, 
 and I hoped of blissful expectations. 
 
 When we came to a small inlet, some 
 way down the river, old Jeremiah was 
 to leave. Here a little Indian boy and 
 a dog were waiting as his guides. He 
 shook my hand, saying, 
 
 “ Good, bye, Massa.” 
 
 We left him on the sandy beach, and 
 as we shoved off, he stood waving his 
 hand, reiterating, 
 
 “ Good bye, Massa.” 
 
 While making for the centre of the 
 river, I saw the old man, with the aid of 
 
OF OEIALLA. 
 
 33 
 
 his long staff, scrambling up the steep 
 and rugged ravine towards his native 
 savanna and his own wigwam. 
 
 As we glided down the stream I thought 
 of the happy sabbath and my Indian 
 congregation, and the solemn reflection 
 came over the spirit. — What effect will 
 the thoughts then expressed have upon 
 those untutored minds ? Shall it be 
 evinced that they were as good seed 
 cast upon rich soil, or, as the silent 
 ripples which played on the river before 
 me, that came and are gone as things 
 that were, but are not. 
 
 How beautiful is this world of ours, 
 though fallen, and if now so lovely, what 
 must it have been in the days of pri- 
 meval innocence, when our first parents 
 walked amidst the beauties of Eden, 
 and gazed upon the loveliness of Para- 
 dise ? When they came forth pure and 
 
 D 
 
34 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 holy from the hand of our glorious 
 Creator, and looked around upon the 
 sublime panorama of nature, they saw 
 the image of God reflected in all His 
 works. They were holy and therefore 
 they were happy. The eye sparkled 
 with joy, the countenance glowed with 
 conscious innocence, the heart was the 
 seat of pure emotions and heavenly 
 feelings, and the presence of Jehovah 
 made everything around them appear 
 lovely and bright. Yes ! creation was to 
 them the mirror which reflected to their 
 view, God. They saw God in every- 
 thing, and everything in Him. 
 
 He was the object which filled their 
 hearts with delight and rapture. The 
 aspirations of their souls ascended to 
 Him as incense; and He was the source 
 and spring of all their happiness and 
 bliss. And just in proportion as we 
 
OF ORIALLA. 
 
 35 
 
 approximate to their holy state we too 
 shall be happy. We shall be happy if 
 we love our adorable Father, and see 
 Him in the works of His hands. 
 
 The Being who called us out of no- 
 thing, who alone every moment upholds 
 us, from whom exclusively we derive 
 whatever is good; He must needs claim 
 and deserve the highest love and homage 
 of His creatures. He who is infinite, in 
 whom all excellencies originate and cen- 
 tre, must needs be worthy of the utmost 
 reverence and adoration which the finite 
 can render. If we feel fully this claim, 
 and devotedly respond to it, loving our 
 Creator supremely, then we shall be 
 perfectly happy. But is this the case? 
 Do we thus maintain the essential order 
 and peaceful rectitude of our nature ? 
 No ! man is fallen and depraved. The 
 gold has become dim, and the fine gold 
 
36 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 is changed. The temple once dedicated 
 to God, the enshrinement of the Deity, 
 has become a ruin, though the shattered 
 fragments of the once glorious pile still 
 indicate the glory of its origin. Such, 
 however, was the case — such was the 
 blissful condition of our first progenitors, 
 amidst the lovely scenery of Paradise 
 while yet unfallen. 
 
 All that was fervent, tender, constant, 
 marked and cemented their mutual love ; 
 yet a far higher love was offered to the 
 divine Author of their being, who 
 deigned to commune with them, in 
 whom they beheld the source of all that 
 was precious, who alone could perpetuate 
 existence, loveliness, and bliss. They 
 rightly loved Him by whom alone they 
 had become, and could continue what 
 they were; Him in whom alone they 
 possessed their own, and each other’s 
 
OF OPJALLA. 
 
 37 
 
 being ; they . loved Him more than 
 their own being, — Him, the essential 
 Cause, more than the dependent effect ; 
 and while affection dwelt intensely on 
 its created object, it glanced evermore 
 upward, with a far loftier and more 
 adoring attachment and gratitude, to the 
 Fountain of life. Thus they were as we 
 should be, wholly and unchangingly 
 happy; for there was no disproportion 
 or disorder between the sentiments on 
 which their happiness primarily de- 
 pended, and those by which it was 
 enhanced. Nothing was exorbitant, 
 therefore all was peace ; nothing inor- 
 dinate, and all was joy. 
 
 Such being their holy and happy con- 
 dition, what a volume must not nature 
 have been to them ! As they gazed 
 from heaven to earth, and from earth to 
 heaven, and beheld with delight the 
 
38 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 proofs of God’s existence and character — 
 illuminated in the heavens above them, 
 and shining resplendently on the earth 
 around, sparkling in every star, painted 
 upon every flower, written upon every 
 leaf, and inscribed in broad and legible 
 characters upon all His works, did they 
 not mutually give expression to the holy 
 aspirations of their nature in the lan- 
 guage of praise? When the day of light 
 and beauty was passing away, and the 
 evening-tide approaching, and as the 
 sun’s last rays were gilding the western 
 horizon, and when looking from nature 
 up to nature's God, how enrapturing 
 it would be to them to sing a sun- 
 set hymn of love and praise to the 
 great Jehovah ! Might they not thus 
 celebrate His glory so manifested in 
 the beauty and loveliness of the ma- 
 nifold operations of His hands : — 
 
OF OEIALLA. 
 
 39 
 
 Adam and Eve. 
 
 Light of our loving soul, 
 
 Creator, Lord, a?nd Friend, 
 
 Who while the Day-Star, Thy faint emblem, sinks, 
 Now in Thy mildest majesty dost rise, 
 
 A gentler glory, ’midst the cooling shade ; 
 
 Our gladsome voice anew, 
 
 Thine evening advent hails ; 
 
 Immortal ! — Thou Unseen, 
 
 Eternal God, give ear 
 Propitious to our evening song of love : 
 
 Of love in all its joyous just ascent 
 Up through the diverse but harmonious scale 
 Of Thine own works, which lead 
 Through earth and heaven to Thee ! 
 
 Eve. 
 
 I love yon fragrant rose, 
 
 Which sheds Thine incense forth, 
 
 And meekly bends her dew-besprinkled head 
 As with glad tears, and blushes to Thy praise ; 
 How gratefully I love 
 Thy vermeil-tinctur’d rose ! 
 
 Adam. 
 
 I love the stately palm, 
 
 The broad banana’s wreath, 
 
40 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 Whose ample foliage waving to Thy breeze, 
 
 Gives fruits and umbrage to these happy bowers ; 
 I love each giant leaf, 
 
 Thy bounteous hand unrolls ! 
 
 Eve. 
 
 I love the glow-worm’s lamp, 
 
 The fire-fly’s quivering flame, 
 
 Illuming, as with softest sparks minute 
 Of Thy own lustre, the now gathering dusk ; 
 With fond delight I watch, 
 
 Thy insects’ vital fires ! 
 
 Adam. 
 
 I love Thy lucid star, 
 
 Clear harbinger of day, 
 
 Whose liquid gleamings pierce the odorous grove, 
 Where our first symphonies invite the dawn ; 
 Exultingly I love, 
 
 Its brilliant stainless ray ! 
 
 Eve. 
 
 I love the pliant moss, 
 
 Our couch in noontide’s glow ; 
 
 Its yielding leaflets rich with vivid green, 
 
 Fann’d by Thy zephyrs, freshen’d by Thy 
 showers ; 
 
 Admiringly I love 
 
 The lowliest life Thou breath’st ! 
 
OF OKI ALL A. 
 
 41 
 
 Adam. 
 
 I love the gnarled oak, 
 
 The smooth magnolia’s shade, 
 
 Beneath whose mingled canopy we own, 
 
 Thy hand which planted Eden in the wild ; 
 That plastic hand I love ; 
 
 In all their garniture, 
 
 Tracing its touch divine ! 
 
 Eve. 
 
 I love the playsome fawn, 
 
 Which in yon bubbling rill 
 Bathes her young lips, and to my side rebounds, 
 A trusting suppliant for the new-pluck’d spray ; 
 Her agile gentle step 
 Parentally I love ! 
 
 Adam. 
 
 I love the tall giraffes, 
 
 Which from yon summit gaze 
 O’er the world’s desert far, 
 
 With neck high arched and meek dilated eye, 
 As if they knew and priz’d Thy sylvan gift, 
 
 Our paradise and theirs ; 
 
 Half with a brother’s heart, 
 
 I love each life Thou giv’st ! 
 
 Eve. 
 
 I love Thy cherub choir, 
 
 Who float on purple wing, 
 
42 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 And wake high music in our starlight glades, 
 Hymning Thy secret glories yet to come ; 
 
 With almost fear I love 
 Those harpings to thy name ! 
 
 Adam. 
 
 I love Thy seraphim, 
 
 Sons of the lightning flash, 
 
 Who dart like meteors through our twilight calm, 
 And pour the glowing torrent of Thy praise ; 
 
 I emulously love 
 Their ardour in its might ! 
 
 Eve. 
 
 I love his radiant eyes, 
 
 For whom Thou bad’st me be — 
 Whence Thy blest Spirit, Lord of glory, beams ; 
 Soon as my own to conscious being woke, 
 
 They met those mutual rays ; 
 
 I love — oh, fervently, 
 
 My bosom’s lord and friend ! 
 
 Adam. 
 
 I love the tenderer light 
 Which pours its gentle streams 
 From the deep fountains of my Eva’s brow, 
 
 Sweet effluence of Thy gentleness divine ; 
 
 That better, dearer life, 
 
 How ardently I love ! 
 
OF OEIALLA. 
 
 43 
 
 Both. 
 
 True Life of all that lives, 
 
 Loud of our Eden’s joys, 
 
 Thou gav’st the sweetness to the dewy rose, 
 Flame to the gdow-worm’s dust, the seraph’s wing, 
 Speed to the tall giraffe, 
 
 Light to the morning star ; 
 
 And all Thy dews and fires, and light and life, 
 From the great deep — Thy loving kindness — flow ; 
 Thee how supremely, Thee 
 How filially, we love ! 
 
 Eve. 
 
 Lord of my bosom’s lord, 
 
 Life of my bosom’s friend, 
 
 Thou lend’st the radiance to his beaming eye, 
 Thou the bright smoothness to his lofty front, 
 The polish’d arch’d expanse 
 That pictures thought sublime ; 
 
 Thou, Tiiou dost nerve the arm, whose tenderness 
 Upholds this feebler step, and clasps this heart ! 
 
 Both. 
 
 The image Thou hast wrought, 
 
 The spirit Thou hast breath’d, 
 
 ’Tis Thine, immortal God, to immortalize, 
 
 And guard for each Thy best lov’d boon indeed ; 
 Thee, Lord, transcendently, 
 
 In that best boon we love ! 
 
44 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 Adam. 
 
 Loud of my life’s new life, 
 
 The self than self more dear, 
 
 Thou gav’st this priceless treasure to my soul, 
 Light’st the sweet dayspring in her waking eyes, 
 And mov’st each loving pulse 
 In her fond faithful breast ! 
 
 Both. 
 
 None else, O Light of light, 
 
 Can shield, inspire, renew, 
 
 For evermore with Thine infinitude, 
 
 The pure ethereal spark of life and love 
 Lit in that soul for me, 
 
 Yet first and last for Thee ! 
 
 Whom each, eternally, 
 
 Adoringly shall love ! 
 
 With such nmsings as these I glided 
 down the calm and majestic river in the 
 safe keeping of my swarthy companions. 
 
 Though our world has fallen from its 
 pristine glory, I thought I could yet trace 
 a faint resemblance to the beauty and 
 loveliness which dwelt amidst Eden’s 
 bright and blissful bowers, in the subli- 
 
OF ORIALLA. 
 
 45 
 
 mity of the scenery by which we were now 
 surrounded ; but alas ! what a contrast 
 between the happy state of our original 
 progenitors, and that of these their 
 descendants — the children of this sunny 
 clime? What a contrast between the 
 knowledge, the holiness, the innocence, 
 the happiness which reigned in the 
 bosoms of our holy ancestors • in their 
 primitive state of purity, and the igno- 
 rance, the sin, the misery of these their 
 fallen offspring? Our first parents knew 
 God — they loved Him and served Him. 
 These my poor benighted companions 
 had no knowledge of the God who made 
 them, but what they might obtain from 
 such visits as these. 
 
 Their case was something like that of 
 the poor Indian, who, one day while sit- 
 ting on the hank of a river gazing upon 
 his canoe as it floated upon the water 
 
46 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 before him, fell into a train of thought, 
 and said, “ I made that canoe, it could not 
 make itself, therefore I am greater ; ” then 
 he looked away to the trees laden with 
 fruit around him, and then to the bright 
 sun flooding creation with its light, and 
 said, “ But who made these trees to give 
 forth their sweet fruit so grateful to the 
 taste, and that bright Sun to give me 
 light amidst the gloom? I cannot tell!” 
 Then he looked at himself, and said, 
 “ Who made me — these arms so useful 
 to paddle onward my boat, to build my 
 wigwam — these limbs, these eyes, these 
 ears, so useful? I came from my pa- 
 rents, they from theirs ; but there must 
 have been a first — Who made them? 
 I cannot tell. Oh, that some one 
 would come and tell me of that good 
 Being who made all things, how I would 
 then love Him! — how good, and wise, 
 
OF O EI ALL A. 
 
 47 
 
 and great must that Being be ! ” But 
 there was no one to whisper in his ear 
 the knowledge of the true and living 
 God — none to tell the poor lost soul of 
 Jesus who came to seek and to save 
 the lost — none to tell of Him “ who 
 died the just One for the unjust, to 
 bring us to God by the sacrifice of 
 Himself.” 
 
 Dark clouds of error and superstition 
 are still brooding over the world, and 
 only here and there a few faint beams 
 of light are breaking through the dense 
 gloom, enlightening a few favoured spots; 
 but when, oh, when shall the light, the 
 true light of the pure gospel of the Lord 
 Jesus shine forth in all its splendour, 
 to illuminate the dark places of the 
 earth ? When shall “ the knowledge of 
 God cover the earth as the waters cover 
 the deep ” ? When shall the whole 
 
48 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 “ world be filled with the glory of the 
 Lord,” as predicted ? 
 
 Oh that some of the pious sods of 
 rich Christians would go forth to the 
 heathen world, on the glorious mission 
 of redeeming love ! Oh that they would 
 imitate the example of the Lord of life, 
 who left the realms of glory, and came 
 to earth on this mission of mercy! 
 When will the love of Christ constrain 
 such, who profess to be followers of 
 Jesus, to imitate Him in His imitable 
 perfections ? This is a work which 
 might well dignify angels, and on which, 
 if they were sent, they would fly upon 
 the wings of delight. 
 
 But that honour is not conferred upon 
 them. Men, fallen men — redeemed by 
 the blood of Jesus; — men, who them- 
 selves ‘‘have tasted that the Lord is 
 gracious;” — men, who can say from 
 
OF ORIALLA. 
 
 49 
 
 heart- felt experience, “that which we 
 have ourselves tasted and felt of the 
 love of G-od, declare we unto you, that 
 ye also may have fellowship with the 
 Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.” 
 These are the men who are wanted ; 
 men who will not draw largely upon the 
 funds of Societies; self-denying men, 
 who, like the apostle Paul, will “ go forth, 
 taking nothing of the Gentiles;” who 
 in his spirit will be enabled to say as 
 he did in the midst of threatening dan- 
 ger, “ None of these things move me, 
 neither count I my life dear unto myself, 
 so that I might finish my course with 
 joy, and the ministry which I have 
 received of the Lord Jesus, to testify 
 the Gospel of the grace of God.” “ I 
 am pure from the blood of all men; for 
 I have not shunned to declare unto you 
 all the counsel of God.” “I have coveted 
 
 E 
 
50 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 no man’s silver, or gold, or apparel.” 
 0 Spirit, Spirit of the living God, 
 raise up such men, and “ send them 
 forth into the vineyard ” of Christ. 
 
 God imposes not a burden 
 Heavier than man can bear ; 
 
 Nobly borne it proves a guerdon 
 Mortal man might hardly spare ; 
 
 Tear the burden from his heart, 
 
 Man and all he loves would part. 
 
 Fear thou not, encounter boldly 
 
 That which meets thee on thy way ; 
 He who went before hath told thee, 
 Thou slialt overcome one day. 
 
 Nerve thy heart with strong assurance, 
 Brace thy limbs to long endurance. 
 
 Soldiers, face the hottest battle, 
 Till the day is bravely won, 
 Disregard the cannon’s rattle, 
 And the carnage and the gun : 
 Victory achieved to-day 
 Helps to-morrow on its way. 
 
OF ORIALLA. 
 
 51 
 
 Busy hands, with toil unceasing, 
 
 Throw the shuttle to and fro — 
 
 rr 
 
 Li 
 
 -J 
 
 While the damask web increasing, 
 
 Gleams among the threads below. 
 
 
 Weary labour never ceaseth 
 
 
 While the lengthy web increaseth. 
 
 O 
 
 
 co 
 
 Fragrant herbs and tender grasses, 
 
 Cc 
 
 Flowering plants of fragile form, 
 
 
 Gather fertilizing gases 
 
 6 
 
 From the lightning and the storm£) 
 Using all by heaven sent O 
 
 For their growth and nourishment^ 
 
 Shrink thou not, nor be faint-hearted 
 In untoward circumstance ; 
 
 Fires are quenched and waters parted 
 For the saint’s deliverance : 
 
 Fear thou not what may befall thee, 
 Boldly go where duties call thee. 
 
 Patient striving, meek forbearing, 
 Prayer, and faithful diligence, 
 Love and sacrifice unsparing, 
 
 Fail not of their recompense : 
 Water, dropping day by day, 
 Wears the hardest stone away. 
 
52 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 This was a heavenly day, and we came 
 on swiftly towards my home. The 
 evening was now advancing, and in a 
 short time the sun would set. As the 
 splendid orh sunk beneath the horizon, 
 he threw upward his beams, which shone 
 with peculiar lustre as they marked 
 their outlines upon the clear blue sky. 
 There were several clouds of various 
 sizes and graceful forms hung round his 
 setting glory ; they caught his beams, 
 and his glory lingered. Some were of 
 the blazing red, some of the beauteous 
 azure, and others of the silvery grey : 
 here some were irradiated with purple 
 hues, and there others had their borders 
 fringed with golden light, — while be- 
 neath all, the broad surface of the 
 smooth and tranquil river reflected 
 their refulgence, and shone like bur- 
 nished silver. 
 
OF OKIALLA. 
 
 53 
 
 Having nothing else to occupy my 
 thoughts, I began to philosophize or 
 moralize. How various and beautiful 
 those clouds, but they owe all their 
 beauty and loveliness to the departed 
 sun, and while so lovely, they are recep- 
 tacles of water destined to descend in 
 fruitful showers to fructify the earth. 
 Thus should it be with the Christian 
 Church. However divided by nation and 
 language ; however various its different 
 aspects may be; whatever rays of divine 
 truth its scattered parts may reflect; 
 whatever of the beauty of holiness may 
 be presented, all the light and all the 
 beauty are borrowed and reflected from 
 the glory of the Sun of righteousness, 
 and like those fructifying clouds, are 
 destined to water and refresh the moral 
 world. 
 
 The glorious sun has disappeared 
 
54 . ‘VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 from our view' — his visible splendour 
 has vanished, but he is only gone for a 
 short time to shed his effulgence on 
 another sphere, and soon, very soon, he 
 will rise with healing in his beams, and 
 again will pour his glory on our earth. So 
 also will it he with the Sun of righteous- 
 ness. Yes ! He will soon again come — 
 He will arise — He will come in the glory 
 of His Father and the holy angels, and 
 the dark clouds which now brood over 
 us shall be dispersed — His glory shall 
 hurst forth, and the whole earth shall be 
 covered with the knowledge of the Lord, 
 and light, and beauty, and loveliness 
 shall be spread over the world; then 
 “ the wilderness shall become a fruitful 
 field, and the fruitful field be counted as 
 a forest, and the desert shall rejoice 
 and blossom as the rose.” 
 
 But night came on, and then mid- 
 
OF ORIALLA. 
 
 55 
 
 night. I felt cold after the intense 
 heat of the day, and lay for shelter at 
 the bottom of the canoe, but got chilled. 
 We arrived at my solitary abode, and 
 while making our way up from the river, 
 the air seemed to be teeming with mus- 
 quitoes and sand-flies. Not satisfied, 
 upon this occasion, with attacking the 
 ordinary parts of the body, they were 
 now experimenting upon eyes, ears, 
 nostrils, mouth, and all, rendering it 
 impossible to breathe without inhaling 
 those mimic monsters. 
 
 The Indians remained with me all 
 night, and left in the morning. I had 
 symptoms of fever. My servant was 
 also attacked, and left me, to have 
 himself taken care of elsewhere. The 
 fever having suddenly deprived me of 
 strength, and being completely alone, 
 with a mind confused, and a body weak, 
 
56 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 and a burning brow, I. lay helpless. 
 Two days and nights passed without 
 any one to wet my lips. There was no 
 residence nearer than a mile, and no 
 messenger nigh ; consciousness at times 
 became inoperative, which served to re- 
 lieve the excruciating agony attending 
 the fever; but providentially, a strange 
 dog, which had attached himself to me, 
 came, and although I had not strength to 
 rise to give him food, I believe he never 
 left me night nor day, for whenever con- 
 sciousness returned, I found him lying 
 at my feet. His barking at last brought 
 a poor African to my bed-side, to whom 
 I made signs of pain and distress, by 
 placing my hand alternately to my 
 parched lips and agonizing head. The 
 naked African silently retired, and I 
 closed my eyes as I had thought for 
 death. Is this to suffer for Jesus? Is 
 
Page 56. 
 
OF OBJALLA. 
 
 57 
 
 this missionary life? Had I then died, 
 the carrion vultures that hovered around 
 me might have devoured my flesh before 
 my death might have been known in 
 that lonely place. But then the soul 
 could not have been injured, and to 
 “rest in Christ” would have been sweet, 
 indeed. 
 
 It was Thy will, my Father, 
 
 That laid Thy servant low ; 
 
 It was Thy hand, my Father, 
 
 That dealt the chastening blow ; 
 
 It was Thy mercy bade me rest 
 My weary soul awhile, 
 
 And every blessing I receive, 
 Eeflects Thy gracious smile. 
 
 It is Thy care, my Father, 
 
 That cherishes me now ; 
 
 It is Thy peace, my Father, 
 
 That rests upon my brow ; 
 
 It is Thy truth, Thy truth alone, 
 That gives my spirit rest, 
 
 And soothes me like a happy child, 
 Upon its mother’s breast. 
 
58 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 I have known health, my Father, 
 Bright as a summer’s day ; 
 
 And earthly love, my Father, 
 
 But that too passed away ; 
 
 Now life’s small taper faintly burns, 
 A little flickering flame, 
 
 But Thine eternal love remains, 
 Unchangeably the same.” 
 
 There, amidst the loveliness and 
 grandeur of nature, my holiest and 
 happiest hours on earth have been 
 spent, — there the influence of the holy 
 Scriptures, with all them life-giving 
 power, and the promised joys and com- 
 forts of the Holy Ghost, have been 
 vouchsafed, — there the soul, chastened 
 and subdued, has been sent to obtain 
 succour alone from Christ, — that holy 
 peace and delight which none but Christ 
 can give ; for never can the sublime 
 emotions of which the soul even on earth 
 is susceptible be enjoyed, but in com- 
 
OF ORIALLA. 
 
 59 
 
 munion with God, and “alone with 
 Jesus.” Oh, how delightful the remem- 
 brance of those happy days. How truly 
 has that beautiful promise been fulfilled, 
 “ As your day is, so shall your strength 
 be.” 
 
 Do with me what Thou wilt, 
 Submissively and still 
 
 I will lie passive in Thy hands, 
 
 Do Thou Thy holy will ; 
 
 ’Tis Thine to choose, my portion let it be 
 To acquiesce with deep humility. 
 
 Imbue my soul with light, 
 
 My spirit unto Thine 
 
 Unite, and let me thus receive 
 Thy Spirit into mine ; 
 
 Absorbed in close communion, let me feel 
 The peace of God into my bosom steal. 
 
 Thou art the Sanctuary 
 Of the regenerate, 
 
 The Hope, the Comforter, the Strength 
 Of the disconsolate. 
 
 Enshrined within Thy presence, let me see 
 Thee only, and forget my misery. 
 
60 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 Is it in any way surprising that Lord 
 Byron, impressed by the benevolence of 
 his dog, in contrast with the selfishness 
 of man, which he sometimes witnessed, 
 erected a monument, and inscribed an 
 epitaph to the faithful animal? Surely, 
 the strongest proof to the statement of 
 Scripture as to man’s depravity, is given 
 by man himself. His was a mind of no 
 ordinary faculties, with a most vivid 
 imagination, and emotions which went 
 to the depth of being; a mind, too, of 
 comprehensive attainments and exten- 
 sive knowledge, which thus unwittingly 
 commemorated the truth of the sacred 
 record, that the human race are fallen 
 and depraved. 
 
 But I am now convalescent, and my 
 reminiscence of the visit to Orialla is 
 pleasant. In the vicissitudes of this 
 life, how chequered soever it may be, 
 
OF ORIALLA. 
 
 61 
 
 memory, as well as anticipation, has its 
 magic influence. In the form of remorse 
 it can plant our onward path with 
 thorns, but with the consciousness of 
 uprightness, in the recollection of pleas- 
 ing scenes, it can make fragrant our 
 path as with roses. 
 
 Let those in quest of health, instead 
 of encountering a long and expensive 
 voyage to Europe, take a trip to the 
 upland country of the Corentyne, inhale 
 there the mountain breezes, drink there 
 from the limpid spring, pass their 
 sabbaths with the Indians, and if they 
 have any taste for exporting the Chris- 
 tian knowledge which they have im- 
 ported, there they will have scope for 
 diffusing it to some good effect. If a 
 few of our spirited and wealthy mer- 
 chants or planters would direct their 
 attention to the erection of some neat 
 
62 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 country villas, upon the slopes of the 
 beautiful embankments of that part of 
 the river, or amidst the undulations 
 surrounding Orialla, perhaps they and 
 their families might find it a delightful 
 retreat during a few months of the year. 
 Would not this be better than con- 
 tinually delving and plodding under the 
 burning suns, and amidst the swamps 
 and mephitic effluvia of Guiana? No 
 venomous musquitoes — no offensive 
 cockroach nor poisonous reptiles there. 
 Broad and well-drained savannas, two 
 hundred feet above the river — hills and 
 valleys — mimic water- falls and mean- 
 dering streams — amaranthine bowers 
 and shady groves — cool ambrosial 
 breezes — beautiful prospects of sunny 
 isles and distant hills — overhanging 
 precipices and frightful ravines — fruits 
 and flowers in rich variety — birds of 
 
OF ORIALLA. 
 
 63 
 
 pretty note and gorgeous plumage — the 
 
 sporting fish — the hounding deer, &c. — 
 
 The wandering streams that shine between the 
 hills, 
 
 The grots that echo to the tinkling rills, 
 
 The dying gales that pant upon the trees, 
 
 The lakes that quiver to the curling breeze. 
 
 A short time after my excursion to 
 the Indians of Orialla, I had to go on 
 another missionary excursion in a dif- 
 ferent direction of the country. Indeed 
 it was part of my regular duty to do 
 so in this direction. Part of the jour- 
 ney was usually performed in a sailing 
 boat which I kept for that purpose, and 
 the remainder on horseback. In order 
 to get to the negro village, about sixteen 
 miles distant from my church, I had to 
 embrace the opportunity of the rising 
 tide, for it was only at such time that the 
 boat could be got away from her usual 
 moorings. 
 
64 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 The name of this village is Mary's 
 Hope, and inhabited solely by free 
 black people. There I had a very neat 
 chapel, and a willing, affectionate, and 
 attentive congregation. The people 
 were in very comfortable circumstances, 
 and this is not to be wondered at, when 
 it is borne in mind that the whole coun- 
 try around is to all intents and purposes 
 their own. It may, “in right,” belong 
 to our beloved Queen, but for all prac- 
 tical purposes it is possessed by those 
 sable denizens of this extensive savanna. 
 There they have their neat, pleasant 
 cottages, and well cultivated gardens, 
 and beautiful they appear the whole year 
 round. The wide spreading and luxu- 
 riant plantain leaves shading their 
 clustering fruit — the Cassava — the Yam 
 — and a rich variety of other esculents, 
 are not only useful and profitable, but 
 
OF ORIALLA. 
 
 65 
 
 highly ornamental. They have also 
 abundance of poultry, which they carry 
 to the sugar estates, where they find a 
 ready and very advantageous market. 
 Then several of the head men own fish- 
 ing-boats and canoes, so that between 
 the cultivation of their gardens, and 
 their profitable avocation on the majestic 
 river Corentyne, aided by the attention 
 and industry of their wives and children, 
 they live in comparative independence. 
 They have no rents nor taxes to pay, 
 and as they enjoy there a perpetual 
 summer, their expenses for clothing are 
 merely nominal. As to fuel, which they 
 only require for their kitchens, they have 
 the boundless forest to supply them 
 with more than they will ever need, 
 with none to dispute their title or their 
 right. 
 
 In some of my attempts to visit this 
 
 F 
 
66 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 part of my charge, I had a few very 
 narrow and providential escapes. In 
 this part of the world, it must be re- 
 membered, that there are no macadam- 
 ized roads as in England, nor, indeed, 
 any roads whatever. On one occasion, 
 I attempted to ride part of the way 
 along the bank, or rather shallow bed, 
 of the wide spreading river Corentyne 
 after its subsidence. This was not only 
 difficult, but hazardous, as the bed 
 of the river in many parts is quick- 
 sand, and it requires an experienced 
 person to know the parts which have 
 a solid foundation, so as to avoid those 
 places over which there may be hut a 
 thin stratum of sand, and in which, if he 
 unconsciously ventures, both himself and 
 horse may be suddenly and quickly sub- 
 merged. In such a predicament as this 
 I once had the pain of witnessing my 
 
OF OKIALLA. 
 
 67 
 
 poor horse, when it was only by the most 
 powerful plunges and boundings he at 
 last regained his footing. Besides, there 
 were several creeks and rivulets, which 
 emptied themselves into the river, to he 
 crossed, especially one, which at full tide 
 was at least a quarter of a mile wide, 
 and could not be got over but by 
 swimming the horse across. Upon this 
 occasion, being alone, I did not attempt 
 to ride on horseback except on those 
 parts of whose solidity I had confidence ; 
 therefore I had to walk a great part of 
 the way. As I had to swim my horse 
 over some of those creeks, and to wade 
 over others, I dispensed with the use of 
 my trowsers, which from their being 
 completely and continually saturated 
 with the water of the creeks, would 
 have proved rather an inconvenience 
 than a comfort. It so happened, that 
 
68 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 by the time I got down to the large 
 creek the river was rising to its usual 
 level, and now the creek, which was 
 infested with electric eels, had swollen 
 out to its widest extent. To return w r as 
 impossible — to mount the embankments 
 was equally so, for they were far above 
 me and thichly set to the margin of the 
 river with the native forest. If I were 
 to have continued where I was, the river 
 would soon have been up above the 
 horse’s back, and by its rapid and rush- 
 ing descent, might have swept both him 
 and myself away from terra firma. 
 
 What was to be done? To attempt to 
 swim the horse across the creek now so 
 wide, and deep, and rapid, and to risk a 
 shock from its electric eels, would have 
 been madness, even to one more expe- 
 rienced in horsemanship than myself; 
 besides, horses have been killed by 
 
OF OEIALLA. 
 
 69 
 
 electric shocks, produced by contact 
 with those eels. What then was to 
 be done ? To all human probability 
 escape was impossible. But God, who 
 never forsakes those who put their trust 
 in Him, provided a way of escape; for, 
 just at the moment when I arrived there, 
 a circumstance happened which scarcely 
 ever occurred before — a black man was 
 there in a boat, without having had any 
 previous knowledge of my intended ar- 
 rival. By the reward of a small trifle, 
 he willingly gave me a seat in his boat. 
 I took the saddle into it with me, and 
 holding the horse by the bridle he swam 
 safely over after the boat, while the 
 black man quickly paddled us across. 
 
 At the other side of the creek there 
 are hut few trees, and scarcely any 
 brushwood, and the sloping of the land 
 to the river is scarcely perceptible. 
 
70 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 When the river subsides, one of the 
 most beautiful natural roads in the 
 world presents itself, formed of con- 
 solidated sand, over which a cavalcade 
 of carriages, if they should ever appear 
 in those parts, might be driven with 
 impunity. In fact, it differs in nothing 
 from a sea-beach of several miles in 
 length, running parallel with the river, 
 only that it is not visited by sea- water. 
 The flowing up of the river at spring 
 tides carries with it vast quantities of 
 sand, which it deposits at this particular 
 place, which becomes consolidated, until 
 at periodical seasons it is again partially 
 washed away by the agitation of the 
 waters, after heavy descents of rain, and 
 when the river, which is here about ten 
 miles wide, is lashed into fury by the 
 stormy wind. It is also to be remem- 
 bered, that the country is inundated for 
 
OF OKIALLA. 
 
 71 
 
 thousands of miles during three or four 
 months in the year, and when the rainy 
 season is over, the accumulated waters 
 descend with rapidity to their parent 
 ocean, carrying with them in their course 
 the sand which they had previously de- 
 posited upon the margin of the river. 
 
 When I got within a mile or more of 
 the negro settlement another obstacle 
 was to be overcome. It was now ap- 
 proaching night; and as there is no 
 twilight in this latitude, I hastened for- 
 ward, but was retarded in my course by 
 a wide space of hollow ground, that 
 intervened between the beach and the 
 negro quarter, which was now completely 
 flooded to the depth of about four feet. 
 I was not, however, to be overcome by 
 difficulties, and dismounting from my 
 horse, I waded through the quagmire, 
 the surface of which was literally covered 
 
72 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 over with hosts of musquitoes, which 
 literally filled the air with their presence 
 and music, and not content with drawing 
 the blood from my face and ears, were 
 intruding into my mouth and nostrils at 
 every breath. 
 
 At last I arrived at one of the negro 
 cottages. The owner cheerfully lent me 
 a change of his clothing, and placed 
 before me a humble repast of milk and 
 fresh eggs, and some sweet cocoa-nut 
 water and roasted eddoes and plantains, 
 the sole property of this lord of the 
 soil. This black man was a man of 
 some consequence amongst his fellows, 
 and he knew it. 
 
 He was a blacksmith, and occa- 
 sionally worked upon a sugar estate, 
 about six miles distant from his home. 
 His poultry-yard was well stocked ; he 
 was owner also of a horse, and some 
 
OF OKIALLA. 
 
 73 
 
 dozen pigs, and had a host of healthy 
 children around him. The younger 
 ones, requiring no clothing in this warm 
 clime, where the thermometer never 
 sinks below eighty degrees, and is 
 mostly nearer to ninety in the shade, 
 were constantly either luxuriating in the 
 tossing billows of the river, or playing 
 in a state of nudity on the beach or 
 field. 
 
 When my repast, for which I had a 
 good appetite, was finished, all the family 
 were summoned together, when, having 
 read and expounded in plain and simple 
 language a portion of God’s most holy 
 word, we bowed around the family altar, 
 and poured out our hearts in prayer. 
 I then retired to rest, and indeed sweet 
 was that rest to my wearied self, and 
 refreshing my slumbers, as I lay upon 
 the rude boarded sofa prepared for the 
 
74 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 purpose. Beds are not essential in this 
 warm clime; the cool hard hoards are 
 much preferable and more healthy. 
 
 The next day was the sabbath, and 
 holy and blessed was that day of rest for 
 the soul as well as the body. The bell 
 was tolled, the children assembled at the 
 school, and beautiful was the sight to 
 witness my sable flock all dressed in 
 white in the usual style, in striking 
 contrast with their shining black faces, 
 all pursuing their different little bye- 
 paths from their dwellings, embosomed 
 as they were amongst the lively green 
 foliage ; but all converging to the 
 sacred spot, to which the tolling bell 
 summoned for the worship of Jehovah, 
 in His temple. 
 
 Here “Ethiopia’s” children stretched 
 out their hands to the God of Israel, a 
 type of what will yet he abundantly 
 
OS’ ORIALLA. 
 
 75 
 
 realized, “when the fulness of the Gen- 
 tiles shall be gathered in, and when all 
 Israel shall be saved.” 
 
 I was the only white face amongst 
 my sable flock; and although they were 
 not numerous, yet from my heart I 
 could say, 
 
 “ 0 ’twas a joyful sound to hear 
 This tribe devoutly say, 
 
 Up, Israel, to your temple haste, 
 
 And keep your festal day. 
 
 Ci At Salem’s court we must appear, 
 
 With our assembled powers, 
 
 In strong and beauteous order rang’d, 
 
 Like her united towers. 
 
 “’Tis thither, by divine command, 
 
 The tribes of God repair, 
 
 Before His ark to celebrate 
 
 His name with praise and pray’r. 
 
 “ 0 pray we then for Salem’s peace. 
 
 For they shall prosp’rous be 
 (Thou holy city of our God), 
 
 Who bear true love for thee. 
 
76 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 “ May peace within thy sacred walls, 
 
 A constant guest he found, 
 
 With plenty and prosperity, 
 
 Thy palaces be crown’d. 
 
 “ For my dear brethren’s sake, and friends 
 No less than brethren dear, 
 
 I’ll pray, — may peace in Salem’s towers, 
 A constant guest appear. 
 
 “ But most of all, I’ll seek thy good, 
 
 And ever with thee dwell, 
 
 For Sion and the temple’s sake, 
 
 Where God vouchsafes to dwell.” 
 
 On the Monday I returned home to my 
 usual residence in safety. That residence 
 was perfectly unique, and unlike any 
 house in England, being, as it was, over 
 the church. At the time of the erection 
 of the building this arrangement was 
 made with a two-fold view; first, as to 
 health, and secondly, as to economy. As 
 the country was a swamp all around, it 
 was deemed essential to have the resi- 
 
OF ORIALLA. 
 
 77 
 
 dence as high above the marshy land as 
 possible, to avoid the pestiferous exhala- 
 tions, and the approach of reptiles and 
 wild and ferocious animals. 
 
 It was also economical, as the roof, 
 which was the only one in the region 
 formed of slate, and was sent from Eng- 
 land, answered the two-fold purpose of 
 covering the church and the minister’s 
 house. In the front of the building above 
 the church, a broad Verandah covered by 
 the projecting roof and supported by 
 pillars, ran the whole breadth of the 
 building. The approach to this Verandah 
 was by two long flights of stairs outside 
 of the church, and the entrance to the 
 apartment was by large glass doors. 
 These glass doors were an essential ac- 
 commodation, as they admitted the free 
 ingress of the cool air; and from the 
 elevated Verandah glorious and sublime 
 
78 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 was the prospect which spread far away 
 in the distance, basking under the clear 
 transparent light of day in the glowing 
 sun of this torrid zone. How delicious, 
 when health permitted me, to sit in the 
 evening after the duties of the day, on 
 this elevated height, gazing upon the 
 splendid palm trees waving their majes- 
 tic branches in the sunny breeze, and 
 watching the flight, and listening to the 
 cheerful carols of the beautifully-coloured 
 parrots, and paroquets, as they floated 
 on the evening air, as in gayful circuits 
 they leisurely wended their way to their 
 homes, directly in the front of mine. 
 
 My only companion in this solitary, 
 but in a spiritual point of view, happy 
 home, was my black servant Clauda. My 
 manner of life in this solitary spot was as 
 follows : — In the morning rose between 
 five and six all the year through. Spent 
 
OF OEIALLA. 
 
 79 
 
 the first hour in reading and explaining 
 the Scriptures with him and in prayer. 
 And often have I seen the tears roll down 
 his sahle cheeks, while my own heart 
 responded in joyful and grateful feelings 
 to God my heavenly Father. Yes, sweet 
 and holy were those early hours spent 
 in sacred and serene communion with 
 God, by the Holy Spirit, through “ Jesus 
 the Mediator of the New Covenant.” 
 After our devotional exercises, we had 
 our cup of coffee, so necessary as a tonic 
 to repel the influence of the damp and 
 poisonous exhalations. This was fol- 
 lowed by a daily cold ablution, which 
 tended to invigorate the system, and 
 also to purify the whole physical, and, I 
 believe, mental being. Then another hour 
 was spent in reading the Greek Testa- 
 ment in private, &c., while Clauda pre- 
 pared his lessons, for when he first 
 
80 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 came to me he could not read. My 
 meals were necessarily of the most 
 frugal description, consisting of roasted 
 plantains, when they could be obtained, 
 and a little American salt beef, which 
 had been previously soaked in water, to 
 remove the excessive salt. But during 
 the last year of my residence here, this 
 luxury could not be obtained. During 
 the day I usually spent some time in 
 visiting the sick, the old, and ignorant, 
 on the estates, which lay about a mile 
 distant on either side of the church. 
 
 Every evening, about six o’clock, all 
 the doors and windows of the rooms 
 were obliged to be closed to prevent the 
 ingress of the musquitoes, for in this 
 particular locality, they swarmed the 
 atmosphere as the sun set. But even 
 with this precaution, then - entrance 
 could not be prevented. No candle 
 
OF ORIALLA. 
 
 81 
 
 could be lighted lest the light would 
 attract them. My plan then was to 
 retire within the musquito netting, im- 
 mediately after prayer, and there to spend 
 a couple of hours repeating portions of 
 the Scriptures, describing the life of the 
 blessed Jesus, and explaining the doc- 
 trines of the holy Gospel to my hitherto 
 untutored servant. He on his part on 
 alternate nights repeated to me what 
 he had previously heard, and what I 
 have reason to believe he also felt 
 and enjoyed. 0 God, grant that the 
 seed then sown in weakness, may yet 
 flourish and bring forth fruit. 
 
 In this manner we continued together, 
 not quite so lonely as Robinson Crusoe 
 and his man Friday, but I hope as 
 happily. Yes! more so; but that happi- 
 ness could not have been obtained from 
 anything temporal, for here, frequently 
 o 
 
S3 
 
 ■ VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 even the necessaries of life at times 
 could not be obtained; but solely and 
 alone from the pure life-giving Word of 
 God, and the comforts which none but 
 the Holy Ghost can impart. 0 how 
 sweet and delightful is the remembrance 
 of the peaceful communion enjoyed there 
 in intercourse with the Lord Jesus Christ. 
 Truly His promise was there fulfilled, 
 “I will not leave you comfortless, I will 
 send you another Comforter, that He may 
 abide with you for ever.” No joy com- 
 parable to the joy which the Holy Spirit 
 of God can impart at all times and in 
 all places. That happiness does not 
 consist in things, but in thoughts ; and 
 when by grace the blessed Spirit subdues 
 the heart and blends the will into ac- 
 quiescence with the will of God the 
 Father, then holy peace and joy will 
 flow into the soul. In all circum- 
 
OF OBIALLA. 
 
 83 
 
 stances, and in all seasons, the believer 
 in Christ ought to be enabled to sing 
 that lovely Hymn, 
 
 “ My God, my Father, while I stray 
 Far from my home in life’s rough way, 
 
 0 teach me from my heart to say, 
 
 Thy will my God, Thy will be done. 
 
 “ Though dark my path and sad my lot. 
 
 Let me be still and murmur not, 
 
 But breathe the prayer divinely taught, 
 
 Thy will my God, Thy will be done. 
 
 “ If thou shouldst call me to resign 
 What most I prize, it ne’er was mine ; 
 
 1 only yield Thee what was Thine, 
 
 Thy will my God, Thy will be done. 
 
 “ What though in lonely grief I sigh 
 For friends beloved, no longer nigh ? 
 Submissive, still I would reply, 
 
 Thy will my God, Thy will be done. 
 
 “ Should pining sickness waste away 
 My life in premature decay, 
 
 In life or death I’ll strive to say, 
 
 Thy will my God, Thy will be done. 
 
84 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 “ Renew my will from day to day, 
 
 Blend it with Thine, and take away 
 All that now makes it hard to say, 
 
 Thy will my God, Thy will be done. 
 
 “ Then when on earth I breathe no more 
 The prayer oft mixed with tears before, 
 I’ll sing upon a happier shore, 
 
 Thy will my God, Thy will be done.” 
 
 On one day, while riding over the 
 country, not a very great distance from 
 my residence, I met with surprise an 
 immense animal, apparently in hunger, 
 seeking for food. It was running on 
 before me, in a long trench or ditch, 
 which ran parallel with the abandoned 
 road on which I was riding. I hastened 
 my speed towards it (thinking that it 
 was a water horse) in order that I might 
 obtain a better view of his form. The 
 trench, or canal, was half full of water, 
 and partly covered with weeds and rushes, 
 
OF ORIALLA. 
 
 85 
 
 so that I could not well see it without 
 coming nearer. Every moment as I 
 followed, the animal was alternately 
 dipping his head in the water, as if 
 seeking for fish, or his food, and then 
 throwing round his head, watching as if 
 in fear. Fortunately, he did not turn 
 round his head sufficiently for his eyes 
 to get a glance at myself and horse, for 
 if he had, he would not have left with- 
 out making a good meal of either, or 
 part of both of us, for he could easily 
 have manifested his predilection with- 
 out any resistance on our part. What 
 could I have done without a weapon? 
 His tusks and talons, his fierceness and 
 powerful limbs, would have made short 
 work with either of us. When I got 
 nearly parallel with him, and within 
 about eight feet of his body, I suddenly 
 shouted aloud with the full power of my 
 
86 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 voice, and clapped my hands together, 
 when he as suddenly, with one spring, 
 bounded out of the trench into a beauti- 
 ful bamboo forest, and as quickly fled in 
 apparent terror; and then, to my 
 astonishment, I beheld the head, claws, 
 and long slim body of an enormous 
 Tiger ! 
 
 Yes ! I saw him in his fearful 
 development, as he bounded away to 
 the right, while, as quickly, I bounded 
 onwards. It was a reciprocal move- 
 ment, and I believe it arose from the 
 reciprocal feeling, fear. He did not, 
 I should think, look behind him, and 
 I am sure I did not. If he did not 
 feel over pleased at my disturbing him 
 in his piscatory excursion, I am certain I 
 felt pleased at the rapidity of his flight, 
 and his not condescending to take even 
 one glance at myself and horse, because 
 
T 
 

OF OKI ALLA. 
 
 87 
 
 if lie had seen us, I am pretty sure he 
 would have given up his chase after fish. 
 It was the wet season of the year, and 
 as the country here is inundated during 
 four months out of the twelve, I think 
 he was driven out of his usual places 
 of resort, and came down on a hunting 
 or fishing excursion to the river side, 
 near which I had the happiness of the 
 escape from him, the lord of that forest; 
 if he had only met me on his own do- 
 main, I certainly should not have fared 
 so well. But I should not ascribe that 
 singular escape to chance, and certainly 
 not to my bravery. I had no weapon 
 with me, and even if I had possessed 
 one, what could I have done in a ren- 
 contre with a fierce hungry Tiger ? His 
 tusks and talons and rapid movements 
 would surely have been an overmatch 
 for one not skilled in martial conflicts 
 
88 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS 
 
 and scenes of blood. A weapon ! if I 
 had one, could I use it? No; my 
 avocation is with the sword of the Spirit, 
 and my conflicts are with beings of 
 another nature. 
 
 True it is, that human nature is de- 
 scribed in the Word of God under the 
 illustration of the viper, the "tiger, the 
 lion, the serpent, &c., &c. “0 genera- 
 
 tion of vipers, who hath warned you to 
 flee from the wrath to come ? ” And 
 the estimate which the all-seeing eye 
 of God forms of it must therefore 
 be awful; but to subdue that nature, 
 “ the weapons of our warfare are not 
 carnal but spiritual, and mighty through 
 God.” But my escape from that natu- 
 rally fierce and powerful animal was not 
 accidental. There is no such thing as 
 chance; no, my heavenly Father, He 
 was watching over His feeble and un- 
 
OF ORIALLA. 
 
 89 
 
 worthy servant, and He succoured and 
 protected me in the time of danger. 
 
 When I returned home, 0 how grate- 
 ful my poor heart felt to that gracious 
 Being who is everywhere present — who 
 is in the desert wild, as well as in the 
 crowded town. All places are alike to 
 Him ; the lonely wilderness, the seques- 
 tered glen, the dreary forest; all are the 
 same to Him. With the mariner in his 
 solitary barque, tossed about upon the 
 raging billows, and with the sons of 
 God, safe in the regions of glory, He is 
 equally present; with the heart-broken 
 captive in his dismal cell, the dying Laza- 
 rus at the gate of death, and with the 
 subdued penitent, cast off by all but His 
 blessed Self, He , yes, He is present to 
 soothe and to bless. “ Whither shall I go 
 from Thy Spirit ? or whither shall I flee 
 from Thy presence ? If I ascend into 
 
90 
 
 VISIT TO THE INDIANS. 
 
 heaven, Thou art there ; if I make my 
 bed in hell, behold Thou art there. If I 
 take the wmgs of the morning, and dwell 
 in the uttermost parts of the sea, even 
 there shall Thy hand lead me, and Thy 
 right hand shall hold me. If I say, 
 Surely the darkness shall cover me, 
 even the night shall he light about me. 
 Yea, the darkness hideth not from Thee, 
 but the night shineth as the day; the 
 darkness and the light are both alike to 
 Thee.” (Psalm cxxxix. 7 — 13.) 
 
 Alone, yet not alone, for where 
 
 Can man be hidden from his God ? 
 
 The soul committed to His care 
 Dwells ever in a blest abode. 
 
 The night is passing ; hour by hour 
 Go gliding solemnly away ; 
 
 Light of my life, with soothing power, 
 Shed on my soul Thy tranquil ray. 
 
“THE AMAZON 
 
 >* 
 
 1 ^Brmnii 
 
 PREACHED ON THE DESTRUCTION, BY FIRE, 
 
 OF 
 
 “ THE AMAZON/’ 
 
 ON THE MIDNIGHT OF JANUARY 3, 1852, IN THE BAY 
 OF BISCAY, 
 
 BY THE REV. WILLIAM BLOOD, 
 
 IN 
 
 ST. ANDREW’S CHURCH, PLYMOUTH, 
 
 THE FIRST SUNDAY MORNING AFTER HIS LANDING, ON HAYING 
 ESCAPED FROM THE BURNING WRECK- 
 
 REPORTED BY TWO YOUNG LADIES IN PHONETIC SHORTHAND 
 
 “When thon passest through the waters, I wiU be with thee; 
 and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee : when thou 
 walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned ; neither shall 
 the flame kindle upon thee. ” — Isaiah xliii. 2. 
 
THE LOYE OE GOD 
 
 IN THE 
 
 GIFT OF HIS SON— THE LORD JESUS CHRIST. 
 A SERMON, 
 
 AS REPORTED. 
 
 The Rev. William Blood, whose 
 miraculous escape, with two other pas- 
 sengers and nine of the crew, from the 
 burning ship, the “ Amazon,” has been 
 much spoken of, preached the following 
 Sermon, in connexion with the awful 
 calamity, in the Parish Church of St. 
 Andrew’s, Plymouth. The Rev. Preacher 
 had landed at Plymouth late on the 
 
94 
 
 THE LOVE OF GOD: 
 
 night of the Thursday previous, and 
 was much too ill during Friday and 
 Saturday following, to make any pre- 
 paration whatever for committing his 
 thoughts to paper; and therefore the 
 sermon was literally, and in the true 
 sense of the word, extempore ; and 
 though but little notice of it had been 
 given beyond public rumour, the church 
 had become crowded in every part from 
 an early hour, by an eager and attentive 
 congregation. At least, four thousand 
 persons were computed to have been 
 present. 
 
 When the reverend gentleman as- 
 cended the pulpit, he seemed deeply 
 affected, and occupied a few minutes 
 in mental prayer; after which, he pro- 
 ceeded to address his auditory, amidst 
 the most profound silence, in the follow- 
 ing words : — 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 95 
 
 Beloved Brethren, 
 
 A few minutes before I entered 
 the pulpit this morning, I received a 
 letter from a reverend brother in Christ, 
 the Rev Isaac Winslow, a kind-hearted 
 and valued friend of mine, in which he 
 addresses the following words of con- 
 gratulation to me upon my almost mira- 
 culous escape from a fearful death by 
 fire and water : — 
 
 “37, Southampton Row, Russell Square, 
 Jan. 16 th, 1852. 
 
 “My dear Friend, 
 
 Most thankful are we all to find, by the 
 papers to-day, that the Lord has been so merciful 
 to you in saving your life. From the circum- 
 stance of your lameness, we feared the worst. I 
 got the intelligence in the afternoon of last Sun- 
 day, and it made a solemn impression on me. 
 But you have now another Ebenezer to raise, and 
 can say, ‘ Bless the Lord, 0 my soul, and forget 
 not all his benefits.’ I shall be glad of a line 
 from you if your strength is sufficiently restored. 
 
96 
 
 THE LOVE OF GOD I 
 
 No doubt you have lost everything you had with 
 you. Can I be of any service to you in a pecu- 
 niary point of view ? If you want any money, 
 pray let me know, and I will forward you the 
 amount you requirefor yourimmediate necessities.* 
 I go home (D.V.) to-morrow for my duties, but 
 return again on Monday ; so a letter addressed 
 here will find me. I seem almost writing to one 
 in another world, and can scarcely realize the fact 
 that you are the Eev. William Blood, in the land 
 of the living, I hope you will not run off again 
 without letting your friends know where you have 
 gone. Your old landlady is greatly pleased to 
 hear you are safe. 
 
 “ My dear friend, how near we are to eternity 
 at all times, and what a loud call Providence gives 
 us. c Prepare to meet thy God.’ Hoping to find 
 a letter on my return to town, &c., &c., 
 
 “ Believe me, yours affectionately, 
 
 “Isaac D. Winslow.”* 
 
 The writer goes on to address me in 
 the same language of kindness and 
 friendship, and offers of assistance ; I 
 
 * We understand that Mr. Blood did not avail 
 himself of the generous offer. 
 
 t The Vicar of Napton. 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 97 
 
 will not, however, weary you by reading 
 the whole of it, but I may truly say, 
 with him, that the providence of the 
 all-seeing God has indeed been made 
 manifest in a most peculiar manner, on 
 behalf of me and my fellow-men in that 
 frail life-boat — by our wonderful pre- 
 servation from the dreadful death of 
 being burned alive, or engulphed in the 
 awful deep, and our ultimate safe arrival 
 on land, and the kind and hospitable 
 reception we have met with here. 
 
 In coming to this church to-day, to 
 ask you, dear brethren, to join with me in 
 offering up to our great God — the God 
 of love, in the name of Christ Jesus, 
 humble prayer and thanksgiving for our 
 truly wonderful escape from that fright- 
 ful-doom which threatened us, and to 
 which, I fear, alas ! many of our fellow- 
 creatures have been consigned; I am 
 
 H 
 
98 
 
 THE LOVE OF GOD : 
 
 acting upon a kind suggestion, and also 
 for the purpose of soliciting from you 
 such aid as you can afford to give to- 
 wards relieving the wants, not of any 
 who have escaped that terrible death, 
 but of those who have been so suddenly 
 and so awfully deprived of their pro- 
 tectors, and made destitute widows and 
 orphans. I can truly say that I have 
 had no time whatever to make any pre- 
 paration for this purpose; and, therefore, 
 I trust you will extend to me your kind 
 indulgence, and bear with me if I should 
 seem to occupy your time at greater 
 length than I intend. I will endeavour 
 to be as brief as possible ; and, indeed, 
 I may state, that it was only since I 
 entered this church that I have had 
 time to reflect, and a passage has oc- 
 curred to me to adopt as my text. I 
 will, therefore, begin by directing your 
 
A SEKM0N. 
 
 99 
 
 attention to the words contained in the 
 sixteenth verse of the third chapter of 
 the Gospel according to St. John, which 
 are as follows : — 
 
 “ For God so loved the world, that he 
 gave his only-begotten Son, that whoso- 
 ever believeth in him should not perish, 
 but have everlasting life.” 
 
 Yes ! How truly, my dear friends, 
 may we this day exclaim, in the lan- 
 guage of the inspired writer, that God 
 is a God of love — that the God of all 
 nature is a God of love. 
 
 Was it not because of His great, His 
 unbounded, His immeasurable love to 
 us, that He gave His only beloved Son 
 to die for us — to be sacrificed, that we, 
 His creatures, might be saved ? This 
 is the grand doctrine of revelation — 
 the message which the preacher of the 
 
100 
 
 THE LOVE OF GOD: 
 
 Gospel would wish to be ever reiterating 
 in the hearing of all. But I fear there 
 are some here this morning, who have 
 come out of mere curiosity, in the spirit 
 of the Jews of old, who sought a sign 
 from heaven. If so, to them I must 
 return the answer of our Lord, and say, 
 “ There shall no sign be given.” But I 
 trust there are others who have come in 
 the spirit and with the feelings of true 
 and humble followers of Christ, desir- 
 ing to hear of the providential circum- 
 stances manifested in the terrific and 
 awful events to which I shall direct 
 your attention. Oh, that when you 
 hear of them, you may lift up your 
 hearts in thanksgiving, and say, how 
 truly does the God of love continually 
 exemplify to us His providential kind- 
 ness, watching over us with an ever- 
 wakeful eye, and preserving us from 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 101 
 
 danger. May you be led to acknow- 
 ledge that the preservation of myself 
 and my fellow-sufferers who have escaped 
 with me that dreadful calamity, is only 
 another proof of the unbounded, the 
 inestimable love which the great God 
 bears to us ; and may you be made to 
 feel how deserving He is of all the 
 honour and glory we can offer, of any 
 sacrifice we can make, in return for that 
 love which made the God of love and 
 glory give up His only Son for our 
 redemption. Yes, here am I, a humble 
 minister of that gracious God, who, but 
 this day two weeks, so miraculously 
 escaped with my fellow- sufferers from a 
 violent, a torturing, a horrible death, by 
 the flaming element, or from a not less 
 certain, though, perhaps, less painful 
 doom, of a grave in the depths of the 
 mighty ocean. 
 
102 
 
 THE LOVE OF GOD : 
 
 And now, saved through the pro- 
 vidence of God, I stand before you as 
 one raised from the dead, and I call upon 
 you to turn your thoughts to God — to 
 give yourselves up with all your hearts to 
 Him, and to His Son, who suffered the 
 horrible death of crucifixion for sin- 
 ners. Let us exclaim, “ Bless the Lord, 
 0 mv soul, and all that is within me, 
 praise His holy name.” 
 
 My dear hearers, owing to the con- 
 flicting thoughts in my mind, arising 
 from the circumstances I have passed 
 through, and from the painful conscious- 
 ness of the loss of some of my companions 
 on the deep, — owing also to the interrup- 
 tions occasioned by the constant visits 
 of many kind friends, I had found it 
 impossible to fix upon a passage of 
 Scripture before coming to the house 
 of God this morning, which appeared 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 103 
 
 to me applicable to this subject; but my 
 earnest prayer to our heavenly Father 
 through Christ His Son was, that He 
 would direct my thoughts aright; and 
 He has guided me to that which will 
 redo mid most to His glory and our 
 welfare. 
 
 When I look around me, upon the 
 vast multitudes who are here present, 
 my mind is filled with the reflection, 
 that within the body of each, — the frail 
 tenement of every one of those persons, 
 youthful or aged, there exists a spirit, 
 an immortal spirit, infused into it by 
 the Almighty, whose image it bears, 
 which, when the body shall have become 
 as dust and ashes, shall be consigned 
 to a life of eternal misery or glory. 
 And now, my dear hearers, in order 
 that we may prepare ourselves for that 
 awful event, that death of the body and 
 
104 
 
 THE LOVE OF GOD : 
 
 eternity of the soul, — in order that we 
 may hope for life everlasting in the king- 
 dom of God’s glory, let me humbly, 
 but hopefully and sincerely, direct your 
 thoughts to the text I have chosen. 
 Let us bear in mind that we need the 
 presence of the Spirit of God to make 
 the word about to be spoken effectual ; 
 for as it is in the operations of nature, 
 so it is in the kingdom of grace, — we 
 need Divine agency. Unless the rain 
 descend upon the earth, — unless heaven 
 pour over the fields the dews of the 
 evening, the industry of the husband- 
 man would be of no avail, for the seeds 
 which he had sown would not take root, 
 nor bring forth fruit; so, likewise, wall 
 not the words we shall utter take root 
 in our hearts, or bring forth the fruits 
 of eternal life, unless God shall shed 
 over us the blessing of His divine Spirit 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 105 
 
 
 V 
 
 of mercy and forgiveness, as bountiful 
 even as the rain and dews; of heaven 
 upon the earth, so that we may reap 
 the rich harvest of life everlasting. Let 
 me, therefore, beg of you, my dear 
 fellow-christians, to follow me this day 
 in humble and fervent prayer to our 
 heavenly Father, that He will pour into 
 our minds His Holy Spirit, that He 
 may operate upon our hearts, and by 
 His refreshing and invigorating in- 
 fluence, cause the seed we sow to take 
 root, and bring forth fruit abundantly. 
 
 Oh Grod, I implore Thee to look upon 
 these multitudes of immortal souls ; do 
 Thou illuminate their minds, — do Thou 
 send Thy Spirit into their hearts. Thou 
 knowest how little separates between 
 them and death ; oh ! may they be 
 alarmed by the warning which they 
 shall this day hear, to flee from the 
 
106 
 
 THE LOVE OF GOD : 
 
 wrath to come, to the Saviour of 
 sinners. 
 
 Receive, too, oh heavenly Father, our 
 feeble thanks and praise for all Thy 
 goodness to us, — Thy especial goodness 
 to some of us, — Thy marvellous loving- 
 kindness in saving us from sudden death, 
 — in snatching us upon that awful night 
 from the burning ship, and in saving us 
 from being overwhelmed in the deep 
 waters. We thank Thee for Thy pre- 
 serving care over us, in providing for 
 our safety, and sending to us such 
 timely aid; and we desire to magnify 
 Thy holy name, for bringing us to this 
 friendly port, and for the kind, generous 
 feeling, manifested by our tender-hearted 
 and benevolent friends. They greeted 
 us with tearful eyes and sympathizing 
 hearts. The Lord screen and succour 
 them — preserve them from every danger 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 107 
 
 and peril. Lift upon us all the light of 
 Thy countenance, and make us joyful in 
 Thy salvation. May the love of God be 
 shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy 
 Ghost given unto us, and may the Gos- 
 pel about to be spoken by Thy feeble 
 servant, be blessed to the salvation of 
 some precious soul. 
 
 In accordance with the arrangements 
 of Jehovah, — in accordance with His 
 wise disposal of all things, I am per- 
 mitted, my beloved friends, to stand 
 before you this morning, and call your 
 attention to these words, “ God so loved 
 the world, that He gave His only- 
 begotten Son, that whosoever believeth 
 in Him, should not perish, but have 
 everlasting life.” And oh ! how different 
 were the circumstances by which I was 
 surrounded a fortnight ago, — on this day 
 too, — the Sabbath day, away upon the 
 
108 
 
 THE LOVE OF GOD : 
 
 mighty sea, seated in an open boat with 
 my twelve fellow-sufferers, amidst the 
 wilderness of waters, without an oar, — 
 without a sail, — without a compass, — 
 away upon the stormy deep, tossed upon 
 the billows. How different were those 
 circumstances from these of the present 
 occasion. And when, instead of having 
 a congregation like this to hear me, 
 when I ventured to speak on the sub- 
 ject of religion to those who were saved 
 from the burning wreck, and said, “Let 
 us thank God, let us pray for His help,” 
 the reply made then was, “ We want no 
 religion here ; ” but I thank God that 
 circumstances transpired after wards which 
 changed that scene, and gave me hopes 
 in reference to the salvation, even of 
 those who had used such ungodly 
 words. 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 109 
 
 Our text speaks of the love of God ; 
 “ God so loved the world.” 
 
 I. The love of God is manifested in 
 all His works of creation. Behold the 
 heavens above ! See that glorious sun 
 which sheds its light over the face of 
 nature, imprinting beauty and loveliness 
 upon all around; he is even now pour- 
 ing his warming, refulgent beams through 
 those windows, and by their brilliancy, 
 bringing to light objects the most in- 
 significant. Then when that splendid 
 orb disappears, as the evening advances, 
 the moon shines forth, — the lamp of 
 night suspended by the hand of God in 
 the blue vault of heaven, hung out, as 
 it were, from His throne of glory, to 
 lend us light amidst the gloom ; while 
 all the stars gemming the heavens in 
 countless myriads, as they glitter and 
 revolve in their different spheres, pub- 
 
110 
 
 THE LOVE OF GOD : 
 
 lish to every land that the hand which 
 made them, the God who formed them, 
 is a God of love. Turn then from the 
 stars to the flowers, springing up beneath 
 your feet; and while you admire the 
 delicacy of their forms, the various tints 
 and lovely colours of the rose, the lily, 
 and the jessamine, — while you inhale 
 the sweets of their fragrance, do you 
 not at the same time perceive that the 
 God of nature is a God of love ? 
 
 Behold the earth spread before you, 
 as a volume wherein you may read the 
 same glorious truth. 
 
 Go, take your stand upon the lofty 
 mountain, and look abroad upon the 
 wide panorama before you, and does not 
 nature testify to the truth of nature’s 
 God, that He is love? Look over the 
 extended scene, the hills and the valleys, 
 see the golden fields of corn waving and 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 Ill 
 
 courting the sickle of the husbandman ; 
 the rivers and meandering streams which 
 intersect the earth, fertilizing its soil, 
 and making it bring forth seed to the 
 sower and bread to the eater; look on 
 the sea, the picture of the eternity and 
 infinity of God, pouring its majestic 
 waters upon the sea-shore, and forming 
 a means of communication between man 
 and his fellow-man in far- distant climes, 
 and you will find all speaking the same 
 language, that “ God is love.” 
 
 Does not all animated nature say the 
 same? The animals feeding or sporting 
 around you, the humble insect moving 
 on the ground, the bird winging its way 
 through the air, and uttering as it goes 
 its note of praise; — do they not all tell 
 us of the love of God ? But, alas ! how 
 few there are who, though they see 
 these proofs from day to day, can read 
 
112 
 
 THE LOVE OF GOD : 
 
 this truth ; while all nature is speaking 
 to them, they are like the “ deaf adder 
 which stoppeth her ears, which refusetli 
 to hear the voice of the charmer, charm 
 he never so wisely.” Oh, yes, and in 
 the language of lamentation, God Him- 
 self cries, “ The ox knoweth his owner, 
 and the ass his master’s crib ; hut Israel 
 doth not know, my people do not con- 
 sider.” Why, the very horse and the 
 dog testify against the ingratitude of 
 man; for the horse knows the hand 
 that feeds him, and the dog feels plea- 
 sure in obeying his master’s commands ; 
 but man, ungrateful man, neither serves 
 nor loves that gracious Being from 
 whom all his blessings come ! We 
 know not the God who made us, we 
 are ungrateful to our heavenly Master 
 and Benefactor. 
 
 Like the dove which left the ark of 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 113 
 
 Noah, which flew over the wide waste 
 of waters, seeking rest and finding none, 
 amidst the clashing elements of nature, 
 the pouring rain, and the stormy tem- 
 pest, — so the soul has wandered away 
 from God, and can find no peace amidst 
 the pains and sorrows which sin occa- 
 sions ; for “ the wicked are like the 
 troubled sea which cannot rest, whose 
 waters cast up mire and dirt.” Were it 
 not for the love of God, we should 
 wander away for ever, with no desire 
 to return. Oh, immortal soul ! thou 
 hast lost the centre of attraction, and 
 like the wandering star, thou art stray- 
 ing amidst midnight gloom. Oh, may 
 God attract and lead thee hack to Him- 
 self, the only Ark of safety — to Himself, 
 the only sure Refuge, “ the shelter from 
 the storm, the hiding-place from the 
 tempest,” where thou mayest know and 
 
 i 
 
114 
 
 THE LOVE OF GOD : 
 
 feel that God is a “ God of love.” Yes, 
 my dear hearers. But it is not only to 
 the love of God in creation, however 
 glorious, that we would direct your 
 attention. No ! the ambassador of the 
 eternal God has a higher, a greater 
 commission. He must lead you not 
 merely to the love of God as shewn in 
 nature, but to the yet more wonderful 
 — the infinitely more wonderful display 
 of His love in Redemption. And so 
 great was the love of God manifested 
 here, that even the angels, though they 
 are not personally interested in it, for 
 they have never sinned, yet they desire 
 to look into it ; they long to explore 
 its wide extent, to fathom its wondrous 
 depths. 
 
 They come as it were to the precipice 
 of this unfathomable abyss of the love 
 of God, and bending over, they look 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 115 
 
 down into it, but they cannot penetrate 
 its depth. They are disappointed in 
 the attempt; it is too vast, too sublime, 
 too glorious, even for their vision ; and 
 now rising, they exclaim in rapture, 
 “ Glory to God in the highest; and on 
 earth peace,” — peace, peace ! — “ and good 
 will towards men.” Yes, nothing hut 
 God’s redeeming love in Christ could 
 bring peace to guilty man, lost and 
 ruined by his fall. And well might the 
 angels admire and adore, when they 
 heard that God, the God of heaven “ so 
 loved the world,” a guilty and rebellious 
 world; that He, who might in justice 
 have spurned the rebel from His pre- 
 sence, who might have banished him 
 to the regions of eternal woe, have con- 
 signed not only his body to the dust, 
 but his soul to everlasting darkness ; 
 that that glorious and gracious Being 
 
116 
 
 THE LOVE OF GOD : 
 
 so loved the sinner, notwithstanding his 
 rebellion and his vileness, as to give for 
 him His own, and only Son. Eternally 
 they may gaze upon the sublimity of 
 this divine truth ! “ Be astonished, O 
 
 heavens, and stand amazed, 0 earth,” 
 at this wonderful display of benevolence ! 
 But, — do you believe it? is it a fact? 
 or is it because you have been so accus- 
 tomed to hear it, that you imagine you 
 believe it, when in reality you do not? 
 Oh ! were this congregation to be suffi- 
 ciently impressed with the truth of it, — 
 that God so loved you, as to give His 
 only Son for you ; would not every eye 
 sparkle with joy, and every heart beat 
 with rapture at the thought ? 
 
 But do you believe it ? Examine 
 your own heart and tell me, are you 
 merely assenting to the truth, or does 
 your heart believe it? Do you love 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 117 
 
 God who first loved you? I remember 
 having read some years ago an illus- 
 tration of this great fact, and although 
 it is a long time since I read it, yet I 
 recollect it distinctly still, for it deeply 
 impressed my mind: may God grant 
 that it may impress yours in the same 
 way. 
 
 It is recorded in the early part of the 
 history of Germany, that at one time a 
 famine prevailed in that land ; the people 
 had not the means of providing against 
 such a season of distress then, as we now 
 have; there were no railways, nor elec- 
 tric telegraphs, nor other expeditious 
 means of communication with distant 
 countries, ■whence supplies might be ob- 
 tained, and therefore the people were 
 starving. Amongst the sufferers, there 
 was a family, consisting of a father, mo- 
 ther, and four children, — they moved in 
 
118 
 
 THE LOVE OF GOD : 
 
 the higher spheres of life, but amidst the 
 prevailing distress they, too, were reduced 
 to poverty, and had taken refuge in a 
 poor hovel. Here they continued for 
 three days, without clothing, without 
 fire, without food for their starving 
 children, who were clinging to their 
 parents, crying for bread, but their pa- 
 rents had none to give them. 
 
 The mother, whose heart was break- 
 ing, cried to the father, “ What shall we 
 do for our children, to save them from 
 death?” the father said, “Let us sell 
 one, to provide for the others.” Then 
 came the question, “Which shall it be?” 
 The father pointed to the eldest, but the 
 mother looking on that one, cried, “ No ! 
 no ! he is our first-born, the first pledge 
 of our love, I cannot part with him, but 
 I will give the next.” It was a daugh- 
 ter ; the father looked upon his little 
 
A SEE, MON. 
 
 119 
 
 girl, it was his favourite child, he 
 pressed her to his bosom, while tears 
 rolled down his manly cheeks: — he 
 could not part with her ! but he pro- 
 posed the third. It was a boy ; he was 
 the image of his father, and the mother 
 exclaimed as she clasped him wildly in 
 her embrace, “No! no! my heart is 
 entwined round my boy, he must not go 
 for a slave, it would break my heart.” 
 The next was a babe which needed their 
 care the most, and they said, “ This is 
 our little Benjamin, we cannot part with 
 him.” 
 
 Thus they found they could not give 
 up one. “ No ! ” said they, “ we will 
 keep together, we will suffer and die 
 together” — and so they did. They found 
 it too hard to give up one of their chil- 
 dren. But what does this remind us 
 of? That God had but one — His only 
 
120 
 
 THE LOVE OF GOD : 
 
 Son, and He freely gave Him up for us ! 
 Oh ! the love of God ! What could 
 He do more? What could heaven give 
 greater? If God had given all the 
 angels of glory — if He had commanded 
 them to leave their bright and lofty 
 thrones, and come down and suffer, and 
 die, it would not have been such a proof 
 of His love, as the gift of His own dear 
 Son, His equal, the co- eternal Son of 
 God; the one “ in whom His soul de- 
 lighted.” How vast is the love of God ! 
 
 And for whom did He give Him? 
 For rebels who had broken His laws, 
 who deserved nothing but wrath at His 
 hands. And to what did He give Him 
 up? The Lord Jesus descended from 
 heaven; He left the glory of the Father, 
 His more immediate presence — the so- 
 ciety of angels — all the bliss and joys 
 of that glorious world — He descended 
 
A SEEM0N. 
 
 121 
 
 to earth, to the very verge of hell, to 
 this world of ruin, to man, who, by his 
 ungodly life, proves that he dwells upon 
 the very precincts of hell. He came 
 down from heaven, to come to those be- 
 ings, who were more like the demons of 
 darkness than like the angels of heaven. 
 He assumed our nature ; He became 
 “bone of our bone, and flesh of our 
 flesh.” Though “He thought it not 
 robbery to be equal with God, yet He 
 made Himself of no reputation, He took 
 upon Him the form of a servant.” 
 
 Trace the love of God in the life and 
 death of Jesus, and witness the proofs 
 of that love in the career of our divine 
 Kedeemer upon earth. Follow Him 
 from His birth-place in a humble 
 manger, to the scene of His death, His 
 shameful, torturing death, upon Calvary; 
 and do you not see Him from His in- 
 
122 
 
 THE LOVE OF GOD : 
 
 fancy, to the hour of His death, endur- 
 ing pain, and grief, and sorrow for us! 
 
 Follow Him to the mount of Olives, 
 where He was often wont to go, and 
 behold Him, during the long and lonely 
 hours of darkness, engaged in fervent 
 prayer to G-od for sinners. While night 
 spreads her sable mantle over all nature, 
 and every eye is closed in slumber, and 
 every head laid upon the pillow for 
 repose, He gives no sleep to his eyes, 
 nor slumber to His eyelids. Often did 
 the stars of heaven witness His tears, 
 while the angels of God listened to His 
 sighs of sorrow — to His cries of distress 
 as He wept over fallen human nature — 
 as He poured out His soul in earnest 
 prayer to His heavenly Father, for sin- 
 ners who had ruined themselves. Yes, 
 
 “ Cold mountains and the midnight air 
 Witnessed the fervour of His prayer.” 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 123 
 
 Follow Him to the garden of Geth- 
 semane ; behold the Son of God in 
 agony ! blood oozing from every pore ! 
 What mean those cries of sorrow? why 
 those tears of anguish ? why that 
 agonizing prayer, “ If it be possible let 
 this cup pass from me.” Even He shrank 
 at the thought of the cup of torture, but 
 He adds, “ Nevertheless, not my will, 
 but Thine be done.” 
 
 Follow Jesus, — see Him standing be- 
 fore Pilate, condemned to death, the 
 people crying, “ Away with Him, away 
 with Him:” See His robes torn from 
 off Him, whilst He gives “ His hack to 
 the plowers, who made long and deep 
 their furrows.” His flesh is torn with 
 scourges, yet still He complains not! 
 Oh, the innocent, the holy Lamb of 
 God! He is disgraced and spat upon, 
 His head is crowned with thorns, which 
 
124 
 
 THE LOVE OF GOD : 
 
 pierce His sacred temples, and agonize 
 His brain ! 
 
 Follow Jesus to Calvary, and view Him 
 fainting under the cross, — but it was 
 not the cross which bore Him down, it 
 was the mental sorrow. He bends be- 
 neath the load of our sins. What are 
 His own words, “Daughters of Jerusalem, 
 weep not for me, but weep for your- 
 selves and for your children.” Follow 
 Jesus, — behold Him laid on the bloody 
 tree, made fast with nails to that cross, 
 suspended between heaven and earth, a 
 gazing-stock to angels and to men — for- 
 saken by His disciples — forsaken by 
 angels — forsaken even by God the Fa- 
 ther! Midnight darkness rested upon 
 the earth in that dreary hour, when the 
 Lord Jesus lifted His languishing eyes 
 to heaven, and cried, “ Eloi, Eloi, 
 lama sabacthani ! ” — “ My God, my 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 125 
 
 God, whv hast Thou forsaken me?” 
 Why? Is it not enough that my dis- 
 ciples have left me and fled ? Is it not 
 enough that the angels have forsaken 
 me? but ivhy Thou? Why? — Why, 
 
 my hearers, but that we wretched sin- 
 ners, might be enabled to pass easily 
 through the dark valley of the shadow 
 of death. Christ bore the whole weight 
 of Divine vengeance, He paid that which 
 infinite justice demanded, the penalty 
 of the violated law of God, that we 
 might be saved from wrath to come. 
 
 “When I survey the wondrous cross, 
 
 On which the Prince of Glory died, 
 My richest gain I count but loss, 
 
 And pour contempt on all my pride. 
 
 “ See from His head, His hands, His feet, 
 Sorrow and love flow mingled down, 
 Did e’er such love and sorrow meet, 
 
 Or thorns compose so rich a crown ? 
 
126 
 
 THE LOVE OF GOD ! 
 
 “Were the whole realm of nature mine, 
 
 That were a present far too small ; 
 
 Love so amazing, so divine, 
 
 Demands my life, my soul, my all.” 
 
 Oh, immortal souls, gather round 
 the cross of Jesus, and see the love of 
 God. But do you heed it, or, are you 
 asleep in sin ? Will nothing awake the 
 sinner? Oh, that the voice of God 
 may cry, “Awake, thou that sleepest, 
 and arise from the dead, and Christ will 
 give thee light.” 
 
 Come, look at Jesus ; see His bleeding 
 wounds ! Oh, eternal Spirit of God, 
 give life to these dead souls, breathe 
 upon them; cause the dead bones to 
 arise and stand erect. 
 
 II. — But what was the object which 
 God had in view in giving His Son to 
 die for us? “That whosoever be- 
 lieveth in Him should not perish.” 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 127 
 
 Perish ! Perish ! But what is it to 
 perish? Oh, my hearers, amidst the 
 darkness of midnight, even that night 
 when away on the dismal deep, I stood 
 on deck, and through the tempest and 
 the flaming fire, I heard the shrieks of 
 the dying, of those who were momentarily 
 expecting death; the flames were send- 
 ing up their columns to heaven, lighting 
 up the sky, while all around was the 
 wild wilderness of waters; there were 
 parents and children, the husband and 
 the wife, clinging together, and they 
 screamed amidst the burning flames, 
 “ We perish! ” The flesh was burning off 
 their bones, their limbs were quivering 
 in the fire, and they cried, “We perish!” 
 Then again, when some were trying to 
 escape by the boats, and I was hanging 
 by the tackling rope, about to make the 
 spring, but drew back, fearful for the 
 
128 
 
 THE LOVE OF GOD : 
 
 instant of refracturing my leg, which had 
 been so recently broken ; then, just at 
 that moment, the rope which held the 
 boat gave way ; the waves swept over 
 her ; she sunk. The people in her were 
 immediately thrown out; there they 
 were, striving to grasp at something, 
 but in vain ! Can my soul ever forget 
 it? They sank beneath the watery grave, 
 and, oh, how their dying shrieks fell 
 on my ears, and appalled me ! They 
 perished! But this only has reference 
 to the body; but the soul , — what is it 
 for the soul to perish 1 The intellect 
 cannot grasp the meaning of the word 
 as applied to the immortal soul. I 
 cannot conceive the idea, and yet it is 
 more easily conceived than expressed. 
 Only think of the sinner on the bed 
 of death, in the midst of his rebellion 
 against God, dying impenitent; his eyes 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 129 
 
 close in their last sleep, his heart ceases 
 to throb, he dies ! Now follow that 
 soul to the bar of the eternal God, — 
 hear the great Judge utter the awful 
 words, “ Depart from me, thou cursed ! 
 I never knew thee, I never approved of 
 thee !” Follow it to the regions of eter- 
 nal darkness ; hear its shrieks and un- 
 ending sighs, and then you may know 
 what it is to perish ! Not knowing, not 
 loving God in time, He has forsaken it 
 in eternity. To perish ! It is for the 
 soul to meet death without a friend, — to 
 enter the eternal world without a guar- 
 dian, there to be condemned to the 
 blight of an irrevocable curse, — to be 
 banished from the face of God, — to 
 wander houseless and homeless amidst 
 the trackless deserts of ruin, where re- 
 lentless tempests beat against the naked 
 soul for ever and ever. This is what it 
 
 K 
 
130 
 
 THE LOVE OF GOD : 
 
 is for the soul to perish ! But I check 
 myself ; it is not ye shall perish, but ye 
 shall “ not perish”; the words are in the 
 negative. “ For God so loved the world, 
 that He gave His only begotten Son, that 
 whosoever believeth in Him should not 
 perish." Oh ! immortal souls, upon the 
 verge of ruin, before death comes upon 
 you, flee to the Ark of safety; let not 
 the spirit pass away before you are 
 saved ; flee to the Refuge, lay hold on 
 eternal life ! Cling to Christ like the 
 drowning mariner to the rope, or the 
 shattered wreck on which the waves 
 might cast him. 
 
 I remember that when I and my 
 fellow- sufferers were crowded together 
 in the small cabin of the Dutch vessel, 
 which the God of love had sent to 
 rescue us, while I was preaching to 
 them, — and would to God I could preach 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 131 
 
 to you now as I then preached to them, 
 that you could feel as they felt, — I re- 
 member that I related to them the 
 following anecdote of Whitefield : — 
 When once the immortal Whitefield 
 was preaching on board a ship, and had 
 for his congregation the sailors, he de- 
 scribed their state as sinners, and their 
 consequent danger, by the illustration 
 of a shipwreck. He spoke of the dark- 
 ness of night — the storm — the tempest 
 — the clashing elements of nature. He 
 spoke of the cry, “ Breakers a-head !” 
 “Breakers a-head again!” “The ship 
 has sprung a leak !” “ She has sprung 
 
 a leak ! ” His description was so true 
 to nature, that«the sailors almost thought 
 it a reality. “ And then,” exclaimed the 
 preacher, “ what is to he done?” when 
 one of the sailors cried out, “ To the 
 life-boat! to the life-boat!” “Yes,” 
 
132 
 
 THE LOVE OF GOD : 
 
 cried Whitefield, “to the Life-boat! and 
 who is this Life-boat? who but Christ 
 Jesus? And, fellow-men, will you not 
 flee from the wrath to come, and seek 
 eternal life?” So it was on board the 
 burning ship; when some of the other 
 boats were swamped, every one on deck 
 was running to the life-boat, — every 
 person striving to get hold of it, — all 
 crying, “ To the life-boat, the life-boat !” 
 Every hand was laid upon it, and every 
 one that could sprung into it. And so 
 now I say to you, immortal souls, 
 wrecked on the billows of this world, — 
 not knowing what is to be done amidst 
 the storm which sin and its consequences 
 produce, I say to you, — To the Life- 
 boat ! — the Life-boat ! — the Life-boat ! 
 — to Jesus, the Life-boat ! Will no soul 
 here, tossed about by the trials and cares 
 of this world, flee to Jesus the Life-boat 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 133 
 
 for the poor shipwrecked sinner? Where 
 else can you find rest? Within it you 
 will find a sure and certain refuge from 
 all your sins and sorrows. Oh ! flee to 
 Jesus, the Ark of safety, ere it be too late. 
 
 But I was requested by your zealous 
 and devoted pastor, to give you some 
 account of the circumstances of my 
 escape from the “ Amazon.” Having 
 lately — about six months ago — met with 
 a severe accident by which my leg was 
 broken, and that being followed by an 
 attack of pleurisy, which was so violent 
 that my life was despaired of; when I 
 was in measure recovered, my beloved 
 bishop desired that I should have a 
 year’s rest. After six months of the 
 time had expired, I felt a wish for 
 some complete change. I longed to 
 go to those sunny islands of the West, 
 of which I already knew something, and 
 
134 
 
 THE LOVE OF GOD : 
 
 where I had many kind friends; I there- 
 fore determined to spend the remainder 
 of my holiday there, and accordingly 
 took my passage on board — what the 
 world would call the unfortunate — ship, 
 “ The Amazon.” The first day, Friday, 
 passed very quietly, and that night 
 when I retired to my cabin, I undressed 
 just as if I had been in my own home. 
 I relate this in order to show you the 
 contrast of the circumstances between 
 the first and second night. The next 
 day passed like the one before, but at 
 night I had a feeling in my mind which 
 I can hardly describe to you ; it was not 
 that I had any presentiment of danger, 
 but it was something which induced me 
 to lie down without removing the cloth- 
 ing which I had had on through the 
 day. I retired early, about half- past 
 eight o’clock. I lay down with all my 
 
A SEE, MON. 
 
 135 
 
 clothes on except my coat; I did not 
 even go between the sheets, as I had 
 done on the previous night, but lay on 
 the outside of the bed; and what was 
 very remarkable, I did not remove my 
 spectacles, and by this apparent accident, 
 amongst others, my life was saved ; for, 
 being near-sighted, it is not probable I 
 could have seen the means of escape 
 without them. About three hours and 
 a half after I awoke, not, as has been 
 erroneously reported in some of the 
 papers, being disturbed by the alarm of 
 fire, but quite naturally; it was merely 
 that the natural time of my peaceful 
 sleep had expired. I did not hear any 
 noise ; on the contrary, everything 
 seemed to be remarkably still. I re- 
 member being impressed with a sense 
 of vacancy, — of stillness throughout the 
 vessel. I then closed my eyes and 
 
136 
 
 THE LOVE OF GOD : 
 
 attempted to gain sleep, but could not. 
 As I could not sleep, I resolved to rise 
 and go on deck. I accordingly drew on 
 my coat quite slowly; I did not even 
 take my watch, which lay under my 
 pillow. As I proceeded through the 
 saloon all was perfectly still and quiet, 
 but as I approached the stairs, I heard 
 a voice at some distance say, “ The ship 
 is on fire !” Then as I hastened up the 
 stairs to the deck, I saw flames rushing 
 all around the engine, filling the fore- 
 cabin; but when I stood on the deck of 
 that doomed ship, 0 what a scene of 
 horror struck my sight ! The wind was 
 blowing, — the tempest howling, — the 
 billows foaming, but that was not the 
 horror ! No ; the vessel was in one uni- 
 versal blaze, from the bowsprit to near 
 the spot where I stood. The flames 
 ascending high to the heavens, — the ship 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 137 
 
 dashing madly on in the teeth of the 
 wind, so that I drew back my body from 
 the raging blaze as it approached me. 
 
 The night was dark and gloomy, but 
 now the heavens above, and the ocean 
 around, were illumined by the horrid 
 glare of the blazing pile. At that 
 moment I saw no people, and heard no 
 shouting, and but few shrieks, so that 
 most of the agony of the destroyed must 
 have been over by that time. Yes, 
 while I was lying in unconscious sleep, 
 many of the sufferers were being burned 
 to death — some suffocated in their 
 rooms, and others had perished in their 
 vain attempts to escape in the boats 
 that swamped. Being now fully aware 
 of the terrible position in which I was 
 placed, I walked across the deck and 
 looked down over the bulwarks, and Saw 
 a boat full of people low down near the 
 
138 
 
 THE LOVE OF GOD: 
 
 water, still suspended by the tackle to 
 the ship’s side. I climbed over the bul- 
 warks, and seized a rope ; and just as I 
 was about to spring into the boat, I 
 paused for a moment, waiting for it to 
 swing back once more, and at that very 
 instant the rope by which it was sus- 
 pended at one end broke, the other end 
 holding fast, and all within the boat 
 were flung out into the swelling billows. 
 That boat beneath my feet was swamped, 
 and every person in her perished amidst 
 the dark waters. I remained suspended 
 by the rope, holding by it with one 
 hand, five and twenty feet above the 
 sea, so lofty and noble was that mighty 
 ship ! With some effort I regained the 
 deck, feeling that I had been saved thus 
 far by the providence of God, and while 
 exclaiming, “ Bless the Lord, 0 my 
 soul,” I hastened across the blazing ship 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 139 
 
 to the other side, where I saw a man in 
 another boat high up by the side of the 
 vessel. He was endeavouring to loose 
 the ropes, and to let her swing, hut she 
 could not be detached from the cranes, 
 or crutches, on which she rested. I 
 climbed up into this boat ; at the same 
 time the man got out and stepped upon 
 the burning deck. He did something to 
 the boat, and she capsized. I was in 
 her, when, as she hung between fire and 
 water, she turned right over, with the keel 
 upwards, and the oars were flung out of 
 her. I remember the sensation I then 
 had when I felt as if descending into the 
 deep beneath me, my head downwards, — 
 I felt as if drowning. When she righted 
 I was still in her ; I cannot tell by what 
 means, except that the eye of God 
 was watching over me. 0 God, my 
 Father, I thank Thee. 
 
140 
 
 THE LOVE OF GOD : 
 
 There were also two small casks, or 
 kegs, in the boat, which were not flung 
 out. How wonderful that they were not 
 thrown out with the oars, for without 
 them we could not but have swamped. 
 In a minute or two she was lowered into 
 the water, and several persons leaped 
 into her; the ropes that bound her to 
 the blazing ship were cut, and she 
 dropped quickly astern. There were 
 now thirteen in her altogether, and then 
 it was that we made the terrible dis- 
 covery, that there was a large hole in 
 the bottom of the boat, and that she 
 was fast filling with water. Some cried, 
 out, “ She’s sinking ! ” “ She is filling ! ” 
 One poor fellow, Michael Fox, lay down 
 in the bottom of the boat, in the water, 
 endeavouring with his body to prevent 
 the ingress of the water; he then cried, 
 “ Give me something to stop up the hole.” 
 
Page 140 
 

A SERMON. 
 
 141 
 
 I immediately pulled off my cap and 
 gave it to him ; others gave their drawers, 
 stockings, waistcoats, &c., and thus the 
 aperture was partially staunched. 
 
 But the water still came in, and the 
 waves dashed over our little boat. But 
 now look again at the providence of 
 God. Why had those two small casks re- 
 mained in the boat ? By means of them 
 our lives were now preserved; we drove 
 in their heads, and used them to bail 
 out the water. We were not all able to 
 work, some appeared quite paralysed; 
 one poor fellow had two of his fin- 
 gers nearly torn off ; but those who 
 could do anything kept baling all 
 through the night. We were still in 
 sight of the burning ship when a barque 
 passed near her. We could see her sails 
 against the blazing pile, in the back- 
 ground, as she moved round it, hut she 
 
142 
 
 THE LOVE OF GOD : 
 
 departed without rendering us any help, 
 and thus all hope from her was taken 
 away. 
 
 At about five in the morning, the 
 magazine of the ship caught fire, and in 
 an instant she exploded. We saw her 
 flaming timbers thrown high into the 
 air, scattering around their fires, then 
 fall hissing into the roaring waters; and 
 in another moment all that remained 
 unconsumable of that once noble speci- 
 men of our mercantile marine, had 
 vanished like a shot beneath the waves. 
 With the early dawn we looked out 
 anxiously for a sail, but none was to 
 be seen; not a boat dotted the wide 
 waters except our own. The sea now be- 
 came calm, the storm died away; and in 
 this was manifested the providence of 
 God again. Instead of the wind raging 
 as it did the day and night before, it had 
 
A SEEMON. 
 
 143 
 
 now ceased to blow; the sun shone out 
 brightly as on a summer’s morn, all 
 looked bright and beautiful on that 
 Sabbath-day. What a glorious day it 
 was ! We still kept baling the boat. 
 Then arose the thought, What will our 
 fate be? I remembered having read 
 when a boy an account of men, who, in 
 circumstances like ours, were driven at 
 last, by want of food, to cast lots which 
 of them should first be killed to save the 
 others from starvation. Then I remem- 
 bered that in a recent severe illness, I 
 had been three weeks without partaking 
 of any nourishment; and I thought that, 
 at all events, I could fast that time 
 again. There was a peculiar death-like 
 feeling produced by being obliged to sit 
 in the water so long, and from the 
 whole body having been saturated by 
 the rain and the billows, which dashed 
 
144 
 
 THE LOVE OF GOD : 
 
 over us ; I do not remember having ever 
 felt such cold before. 
 
 Being still at the mercy of the waves, 
 we drifted over the spot where the ship 
 had gone down. There we saw the 
 huge timbers of the wreck, tossed upon 
 the billows, and feared to be stove in 
 by them, but we passed in safety. A 
 short time after, one of the crew uttered 
 the joyful cry, “ A sail ! a sail ! ” but 
 alas ! it merely passed across the verge 
 of the horizon, and then disappeared. 
 But before long, thanks be to God, 
 another sail came in sight. Then we 
 tore up the boards from the bottom of 
 the boat, and converted them into pad- 
 dles; with one we made a mast, and 
 hoisted Lieut. Gryll’s shirt as a signal 
 of distress. For hours we continued 
 toiling with the pieces of boards ; 
 and, at length, those on the deck of 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 145 
 
 the vessel saw us, heard us, bore down 
 upon us, and took us on board. Had 
 not the great G-od sent us this timely 
 succour, no account of our fate could 
 have ever been made known ; for any 
 one of the storms which prevailed 
 during the following eight or nine days 
 must have destroyed us. We were 
 hauled on board by means of ropes, 
 and stowed in a little cabin, 6 feet by 
 4J only; but yet, what a palace com- 
 pared to the horrors from which we 
 had just been rescued ! This vessel 
 was a small Dutch galliot, and had a 
 cargo of sugar from Amsterdam, con- 
 signed to Leghorn; and was, therefore, 
 desirous of landing us at Gibraltar, it 
 being on her course. However, adverse 
 winds set in ; the captain of the galliot 
 knew not his position. He was unable 
 to take an observation; and was, in 
 
 L 
 
146 
 
 THE LOVE OF GOD : 
 
 consequence, knocked about for nine 
 days, with this serious addition to his 
 crew. I had been visiting the house of 
 a noble friend but a few weeks before, 
 but what was it compared to our present 
 little home ? 
 
 After contending in vain for eight 
 days, with contrary winds and a boiste- 
 rous sea, in our efforts to make for 
 Gibraltar, we at last changed our course, 
 and after three days more, obtained the 
 friendly port of Plymouth, where we 
 were met by many kind-hearted, with 
 tearful eyes. 
 
 During every day, we were enabled 
 to seek the guidance of that Almighty 
 Being, who so mercifully delivered us 
 when in great distress ; for I had suc- 
 ceeded, with the aid of Lieut. Grylls 
 and Mr. Kilkelly, though a Roman 
 Catholic, in establishing a regular form 
 
A SEEMON. 
 
 147 
 
 of daily worship, and it had begun to 
 have its effect when we came in sight 
 of Plymouth. Every day to us was a 
 Sabbath, and our little barque our 
 church, within which, our feeble voice 
 of prayer ascended, and our notes of 
 praise mingled with the music of nature, 
 in the whistling winds and the roaring 
 billows, while the great God of nature — 
 of the storm and the tempest — heard 
 our supplications and sheltered us as in 
 His pavilion. Often too, His blessing 
 descended, which softened the hardened 
 heart, and brought forth the tears of 
 holy sorrow for sin, and of joy and 
 gratitude for His mercies, so bountifully 
 bestowed ; while the penitent listened to 
 the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ. 
 
 On Friday evening last, my little flock 
 came in a body, newly clad, to hid me 
 “ Good bye,” and to offer their thanks. 
 
148 
 
 THE LOVE OF GOD : 
 
 They bowed down in the house of the 
 Christian friend,* who gave me shelter 
 beneath his hospitable roof, and lent me 
 his own clothes to cover me. I commit- 
 ted them once more to the care of that 
 gracious Being, who snatched us from 
 the double death by fire and water, and 
 provided for us a home, and preserved 
 us upon the stormy ocean. In the midst 
 of prayer I was overpowered by emotions 
 of gratitude, and had to pause, when 
 my beloved friend continued the prayer, 
 in committing them to the guidance of 
 the great and glorious God. 
 
 The little cabin in which we were 
 huddled together on board the galliot, 
 and in which we worshipped every day, 
 was small indeed. It answered for 
 kitchen, sleeping-room, and a temple 
 for God’s service, and never did He 
 
 * Surgeon Derry. 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 149 
 
 enable me so to preach His word as 
 then, or give me so attentive an audi- 
 ence. Often was my own soul so over- 
 powered in prayer and preaching, that 
 deep feeling and tears interrupted for 
 some time utterance, while I listened 
 to the sobs that responded in sweet 
 and holy sympathy. Oh ! that I could 
 always so utter His blessed truth, hut 
 “ As your day is, so shall your strength 
 be.” My happiest and holiest hours in 
 sweet communion with a reconciled 
 Father in Christ, were spent on board 
 that little barque. We had no Bible or 
 prayer-book in English, but memory, 
 with God’s assistance, supplied their 
 want. We had a Bible, the captain’s 
 companion, but it was in Dutch. He was 
 a godly man, and often during the 
 moonlight nights, did I sit upon the 
 deck with him, while my companions 
 
150 
 
 THE LOVE OE GOD : 
 
 were asleep, as he sang the songs of 
 the sweet singer of Israel, in his own 
 native tongue. Frequently, too, in the 
 day had he his faithful Bible with him, 
 thoughtfully perusing it, and no doubt 
 his effort to pick us up, and his kind- 
 ness to us while on board, may be 
 attributed to his religious principles and 
 feeling. Our food was coarse, and at 
 times scanty, but he gave us willingly 
 the best he had. But having food and 
 water, we should be content ; and never 
 was food more highly relished, and 
 appetites more keen than ours. Indeed 
 our health has been improved by our 
 buffettings with the billows — our exer- 
 cise — the continued effort to retain our 
 equilibrium in the rocking barque, — and 
 by the refreshing wind, which tossed 
 about our little vessel. She rode gal- 
 lantly over the breakers and the swelling 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 151 
 
 waves, until we were safely landed in 
 Plymouth. Never can I forget the 
 feeling by which I was then greeted. 
 One gentleman, in particular, took my 
 hand in his, and said, while the tears 
 rolled down his handsome and noble 
 countenance, “Oh! sir, you are as one 
 risen from the dead; I cannot but 
 weep.” I could stand it no longer; 
 and, turning away from him, I gave 
 vent to my own feelings in a flood of 
 tears, — in humble praise and gratitude 
 to my heavenly Father. 
 
 Time will not permit me to dwell 
 further upon the subject. I will only 
 say, in closing, that at the doors of the 
 church persons will stand with plates to 
 collect your contributions to aid in rais- 
 ing a fund, commenced by our beloved 
 Queen, for the purpose of relieving the 
 widows and orphans of those who were 
 
152 
 
 THE LOVE OF GOD : 
 
 lost in the “ Amazon.” Let it be dis- 
 tinctly understood that this money is 
 not to be employed for the assistance of 
 the survivors, but for those who have 
 been widowed, and rendered fatherless. 
 
 And here, beloved friends, I cannot 
 but express my gratitude for all the 
 kindness which has been shown to me 
 since my landing in this town. When 
 I went to the hotel, I was almost bereft 
 of clothing ; even the shoes I now have 
 on my feet are a pair which had been 
 taken from a box which was washed 
 towards our boat from amongst the 
 pieces of the wreck ; but I was soon met 
 by kind friends, who presented whatever 
 we required. Half the sovereign which 
 was privately placed on my table, I 
 divided amongst my fellow- sufferers, and 
 with the remainder, I shall to-morrow 
 purchase a hat. 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 153 
 
 And now, before I close, I must again 
 entreat you all to remember the object 
 of my preaching. It is not to satisfy 
 mere curiosity — God forbid — but to im- 
 plore you, as one raised from the dead, 
 to repent and turn to God, and not to 
 be indifferent as to the salvation of your 
 souls ; it is to direct your immortal 
 spirits to the only sure Refuge provided 
 for us by the love of God ; to guide you, 
 my fellow-travellers, through a world of 
 trial to the only safe path ; to lead you 
 to “ the blood of sprinkling,” — to Jesus, 
 whose precious blood “ cleanseth from 
 all sin.” The Lord be with you all 
 and bless you all, for Christ’s sake. 
 Amen. 
 
 Now to God the Father, &c., &c. 
 
 The Reverend Gentleman then sat down in the 
 pulpit, evidently quite exhausted, while tears 
 came to his relief ; and they flowed more than 
 
154 
 
 THE LOVE OF GOD. 
 
 once during the Sermon, not only from himself, 
 but from many of the congregation, who listened 
 throughout with the deepest interest and atten- 
 tion. 
 
 We understand that the collection made after 
 the Sermon, together with the donations, amounted 
 to nearly £200. 
 
r 0 R G I V E NESS 
 
 SI intitmt 
 
 PREACHED ON THE DESTRUCTION, BY FTRE, 
 
 OF 
 
 “THE AMAZON/’ 
 
 OX THE MIDNIGHT OF JANUARY 3, 1852, TN THE BAY 
 OF BISCAY, 
 
 BY THE REY. WILLIAM BLOOD, 
 
 CHAPLAIN TO THE MOST NOBLE THE MARQUIS OF HERTFORD, 
 AND INCUMBENT OF TEMPLE GRAFTON, WARWICKSHIRE, 
 
 IN ST. ANDREW’S CHURCH, PLYMOUTH, 
 
 THE FIRST SUNDAY EVENING AFTER HIS LANDING, ON HAVING 
 ESCAPED FROM THE BURNING WRECK. 
 
 REFORTED BY A YOUNG LADY IN PHONETIC SHORT-HAND, 
 
 TOGETHER WITH LINES WRITTEN ON THE CATASTROPHE, 
 
 BY THE BEY. THOMAS GREENFIELD, M.A. 
 
 “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 .” — Psalm cvii. 23, 24. 
 
FORGIVENESS: A SERMON, 
 
 AS REPORTED. 
 
 “ There is forgiveness with Thee, that Thou 
 mayest be feared .”' — Psalm cxxx. 4. 
 
 The great inquiry, my beloved brethren, 
 of the whole human race, of the rich 
 as well as the poor, of the young as well 
 as of the old, should he, “ Is there for- 
 giveness with God ?” — the great question 
 of every individual should be, “ How can 
 man be just before God?” 
 
 But is this the inquiry of the human 
 race? Is this the feeling which man 
 endeavours to maintain ? Alas ! he puts 
 
156 
 
 FORGIVENESS : 
 
 away the great question, and lives as if 
 he should never die, as if there were no 
 God, no judgment, no eternal world! 
 
 Oh ! Spirit of God, descend on these 
 immortal souls, awaken them by the ap- 
 plication of divine truth — awaken their 
 hearts, arouse their souls, make them to 
 think of their eternal destiny; teach them 
 to make the solemn inquiry, “How can 
 man be just before God ! ” 
 
 But does man need forgiveness? is 
 man a sinner? is man culpable in the 
 presence of eternal justice? is man what 
 the Scriptures represent him to be, a 
 sinner who deserves eternal wrath ? If 
 you believe the Holy Scriptures to be 
 inspired — to be a revelation from the 
 eternal God in reference to the human 
 race, you must believe the declaration of 
 that written word ; what God, the God 
 of truth has told in reference to the 
 
A SERMOK. 
 
 157 
 
 whole family of man. And what is the 
 testimony of God, speaking through the 
 Apostles and Prophets, by His Holy 
 Spirit? We read, “The whole head is 
 sick, and the whole heart faint. From 
 the sole of the foot even unto the head, 
 there is no soundness in it; but wounds, 
 and bruises, and putrefying sores : they 
 have not been closed, neither bound 
 up, neither mollified with ointment.” 
 (Isa. i. 5, 6.) The whole soul is one 
 mass of corruption, it is altogether pol- 
 luted, loathsome. We read, that “ all the 
 imaginations of the thoughts of man’s 
 heart are only evil continually; ” nothing 
 but evil, unmixed evil — the whole soul 
 of man, with all the powers of his intel- 
 lect, all the feelings of his heart, his 
 emotions, dispositions, and propensities, 
 are only evil continually. 
 
 But is this the case with every one ? 
 
158 
 
 FORGIVENESS : 
 
 are all equally corrupt? Yes! for God’s 
 Word testifies, “They are all gone out 
 of the way, they are together become 
 unprofitable, there is none that doeth 
 good, no, not one.” (Rom. iii. 12.) 
 And then, what does the Word of God 
 tell us of the consequence of this 
 state? We are told that “the wages 
 of sin is death ” — not annihilation, 
 but death — death is not destruction — 
 that which man most dreads — that from 
 which every one, if he could, would flee. 
 In reference to the soul it is stated, 
 “ The soul that sinneth, it shall die ” — 
 must suffer eternal pain. Let us refer 
 to the words of Jesus Christ himself 
 as to what will he His sentence pro- 
 nounced upon those who shall be placed 
 at His left hand : “ Depart from me 
 
 ye cursed into everlasting fire prepared 
 for the devil and his angels.” (Matt, xxv.) 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 159 
 
 But is the corruption of man — 
 the universal depravity of his race — is 
 it a fact? Is it not corroborated by ob- 
 servation and experience? What is the 
 testimony of profane history ? Are not 
 its pages dyed with the blood, with the 
 crimes of men? — nation rising against 
 nation, kingdom against kingdom, man 
 opposed to his fellow-man. What is 
 the testimony, not merely of heathen 
 nations, but of the world in general, 
 hut a corroboration of the Word of 
 God? We need not the testimony of 
 far off countries; what is the state of 
 the entire population of this land, 
 favoured, as it is, with Gospel truth? 
 Have they bowed down in heart before 
 God ? Have they proved by their lives 
 and conduct that they are holy? 
 
 What is the meaning of the govern- 
 ment of our country ? — what is the mean- 
 
160 
 
 FORGIVENESS : 
 
 ing of its laws, its prisons, its judges, 
 and juries ; — of those settled periods 
 when they assemble together to deliberate 
 on the punishment due to those who 
 have broken the laws of their country? 
 Does it not all show us that man is 
 debased, that he is a fallen and ruined 
 creature? But we refer not only to 
 those whose crimes have been dreadful , 
 who have outwardly violated the laws of 
 God and of man. In reference even to 
 this congregation, we say, that you 
 have broken the divine law — that you 
 have bidden defiance to the command- 
 ments of God. 
 
 Have you not forgotten and despised 
 that God who created you, who has 
 preserved you; who has watched over 
 you from the beginning of your life 
 till the present moment; who has sur- 
 rounded you with blessings; whose sun 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 161 
 
 illuminates your path, and causes the 
 earth to produce food for your suste- 
 nance? All comes from God, who is 
 the Father of the universe, and of man. 
 He has formed the body, and has so 
 identified the body with external nature, 
 that everything around ministers to its 
 enjoyment. He has surrounded him with 
 beauty, filling every sense with delight; 
 and yet man lives amidst the display of 
 all this wisdom and love, as if there 
 were no God ! 
 
 And does not conscience corroborate 
 the testimony of God in reference to 
 man ? Christ says, “ Out of the heart 
 proceed evil thoughts, murders, adul- 
 teries, fornications, thefts, false witness, 
 blasphemies, and these are the things 
 which defile the man.” (Matt. xv. 19.) 
 Look within upon your soul, and reflect 
 upon the tenour of its thoughts and 
 
 M 
 
162 
 
 FORGIVENESS : 
 
 feelings, and you will see that it is 
 what the word of God declares it to be. 
 What angry feelings ! what unholy de- 
 sires ! what impure propensities ! what 
 broken vows ! what forgetfulness of God ! 
 How have you loved the world, instead 
 of God ! What does memory say ? As 
 you look back upon your past life — your 
 acts — your words — your thoughts — 
 amidst companions, or in secret ! — does 
 not conscience write, like the hand 
 upon the wall of Belshazzar, “ thou 
 art weighed in the balances, and art 
 found wanting!” (Dan. v. 27.) 
 
 And do you think that God is such 
 an one as thyself, that He will patronize 
 your crimes, and be an accomplice in 
 your guilt? No! God will bring every 
 secret thought to light; you stand ar- 
 raigned before the tribunal of omnipotent 
 justice — you are shipwrecked — undone — 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 163 
 
 in a lost state, and in danger of being 
 banished eternally from the presence of 
 God, for HE is a God of justice ! 
 
 Then have you not cause to ask, “Is 
 there forgiveness with God ? ” 
 
 If you dare to stand up before the bar 
 of Jehovah, in vindication of your offen- 
 ces, a voice within you will pronounce 
 that you are guilty ; you know that you 
 have sinned and broken God’s law. 
 Before the judgment-seat of God, you 
 cannot , you dare not say that you are 
 not guilty! Memory, experience, obser- 
 vation, conscience, stand forward as 
 witnesses against you, and you knoio 
 that you have sinned. 
 
 What then should be your great 
 inquiry ? what should be the concern 
 of your lives? 
 
 This should be your all-important 
 question, “ Is there forgiveness with God? 
 
164 
 
 FORGIVENESS : 
 
 How am I to be reconciled to Him?” 
 Oh, if you had not the Word of God, 
 that blessing which is denied to many, 
 but given so freely to you — if you had 
 not this Record of God’s mercy to appeal 
 to, who could answer you? Who could 
 give the response to your soul, as you 
 ask the question, “ Is there forgiveness 
 with God ? ” 
 
 When the culprit stands before the 
 judge, the judge is bound to say the 
 truth, and he is bound according to the 
 principles of equity, to punish the crimi- 
 nal who is proved to be guilty. If the 
 judge were to declare that man clear, 
 who has assassinated his fellow-man, or 
 who has stolen into your house at night, 
 to rob you of your property, would not 
 the whole population of our country rise 
 up in indignation against him, and ex- 
 claim that he had violated the laws of 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 165 
 
 equity. The judge is bound to act ac- 
 cording to the principles of justice, and 
 if the man, upon whom he sits in 
 judgment, be proved guilty, he is bound 
 to pronounce sentence against him. 
 
 And “ shall not the Judge of all the 
 earth do right?” Shall man be more 
 just than his Maker? Is God not a 
 holy God ? Yes ! He tells us in His word 
 that, “ He will not let sin go unpunish- 
 ed, that the soul that sinneth, it shall 
 die,” and if he were to break His word — 
 to violate His truth — might not all hea- 
 ven rise against Him ? The fallen angels, 
 might not they stand up in astonish- 
 ment and indignation, remembering that 
 their crime was punished, whilst that of 
 man was disregarded ? 0 yes, God is a 
 
 holy, a just, a righteous God ! It 
 is attempting to rob God of his attri- 
 butes of justice and truth, to suppose 
 
166 
 
 FORGIVENESS I 
 
 that He can be merciful at the expense 
 of justice. The sinner is guilty — he is 
 arraigned before the tribunal of justice, 
 and deserves to be condemned. 
 
 But what does experience tell us, as 
 to the punishment of sin? Go, ask 
 the population of our globe ! Do not 
 the sorrows, the afflictions, the troubles, 
 the pain, which prevail amongst the 
 human race, — and death, universal 
 death, do not all proclaim that God does 
 punish sin ? What do the records of 
 Sacred History tell us? Look at our 
 first parents; as they were expelled 
 from Paradise (Gen iii. 23) ; as they 
 went from the happy garden, sent forth 
 as outcasts upon the face of the earth; 
 their hearts rending within them, as 
 they went into banishment; listen to 
 their cries and groans ; do they not seem 
 to tell you, “ There is not forgiveness?” 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 167 
 
 Ask the inhabitants of the ante- 
 diluvian world, when the windows of 
 heaven were opened (Gen. vii. 11), and 
 poured down their waters from above, to 
 commingle with the waters from beneath, 
 for their destruction. See them climbing 
 to the summits of the mountains, cling- 
 ing to the branches of the trees ; witness 
 their agony, as they struggled amidst the 
 rising waters — do they not tell you, 
 “ There is not forgiveness! ” 
 
 Look at the vengeance of God poured 
 out upon Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen. 
 xix. 24); brimstone and fire rained 
 down upon them ; the rolling of the 
 thunder mingling with the despairing 
 cries of the dying, as the smoke of their 
 city ascended up to heaven, and ask 
 whether “ there - is forgiveness?” 
 
 Go ! my hearers, in imagination, to 
 the bar of God — go! and as you stand 
 
168 
 
 FORGIVENESS : 
 
 at the last day before that God of jus- 
 tice, and see all men summoned before 
 His judgment-seat, ask whether there is 
 forgiveness ! Hear their doom cor- 
 roborate the testimony of Scripture, that 
 there is retribution for sin; the flames of 
 their torment ascending up for ever and 
 ever, show that God is a holy God ! 
 Yes! my hearers, this is the conclusion 
 of the whole matter — the united testi- 
 mony of all creation, of history, of obser- 
 vation, and of experience, that strictly 
 speaking, there is not forgiveness! But 
 ascend from this earth — move amidst 
 boundless space, amidst the worlds of 
 glory, and ask, “ How can my guilty soul 
 obtain forgiveness?” Alas, there is no re- 
 sponse — no answer. We may see the 
 wisdom of God in the formation and 
 preservation of all things — all His works 
 tell of power, wisdom, goodness, hut not 
 of mercy. 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 169 
 
 Where then can the soul of the in- 
 quirer find a response? Let him turn 
 to that great body assuming the name of 
 Christ, and professing to be His only 
 church, and ask, “Is there forgive- 
 ness?” “No,” say they, “you may buy 
 salvation, you may purchase forgiveness 
 by alms-giving, by self-torture, by fasting 
 and prayers, but there is no pardon;" 
 where there is purchase there cannot be 
 pardon — where there is payment there 
 is not free forgiveness. Nay more, they 
 will follow the soul even after its flight 
 from this world; they tell you of purga- 
 tory, and say that there for an indefinite 
 period, there for a long course of years, 
 the soul may go on in torment to pur- 
 chase its salvation; but they do not tell 
 of forgiveness ! 
 
 Where then can the soul obtain an 
 answer to its question? We turn to 
 
170 
 
 FORGIVENESS : 
 
 the Bible, and there God tells us “ there 
 is forgiveness.” Oh ! if we had not this 
 holy Book, if we had not the Record of 
 revelation, in vain might we ask, “ Is 
 there forgiveness?” But turn to this 
 Bible, this blessed Book, “ the Booh,” 
 as it is emphatically called, and the 
 problem is solved — the difficulty vanishes 
 — God himself says there is forgiveness ! 
 Oh! let every heart rejoice, and every 
 soul he glad, whilst upon the authority 
 of God Himself, I declare, “ there is, 
 there is forgiveness.” 
 
 Oh ! trembling sinner, hear God say, 
 as He said to his servant of old, “ The 
 Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to 
 anger and of great kindness.’' (Joel ii. 
 13.) Hear Him say, “Let the wicked 
 forsake his way, and the unrighteous 
 man his thoughts, and let him return 
 unto the Lord, and He will have mercy 
 
A SEKMON. 
 
 171 
 
 upon him, and to our God, for He will 
 abundantly pardon.” (Isa. lv. 7.) Free- 
 ly and abundantly will He pardon ! 
 Hear the language of the Lord Jesus 
 Christ, who by His sufferings procured 
 our pardon, and whose “ blood cleanseth 
 from all sin;” hear Him say, “Go ye 
 into all the world, and preach the Gos- 
 pel to every creature” (Mark xvi. 15); 
 proclaim to every creature the good tidings 
 of salvation by my death. The testi- 
 monies of the Bible are numerous; and 
 I would entreat you, when you return 
 home from the house of God this night, 
 and to-morrow, and every day, to turn 
 over the pages of this blessed Book, and 
 search and see for yourselves how nume- 
 rous and how free are its promises of 
 forgiveness ! 
 
 But do you need facts to corroborate 
 its promises ? Go to David, who had 
 
172 
 
 FORGIVENESS I 
 
 violated the law of God by the crimes of 
 murder and adultery, yet he was par- 
 doned. (2 Sam. xii. 13.) • Listen to the 
 humble confidence of his language in 
 that beautiful prayer, “ Have mercy 
 upon me, oh God, according to Thy 
 loving- kindness, according unto the mul- 
 titude of Thy tender mercies, blot out my 
 transgressions.” (Psa. li. 1.) It was 
 not only mercy, but tender mercy, and 
 not only one tender mercy, but a multi- 
 tude of tender mercies ! 
 
 Go to Manasseh, who had filled the 
 streets of Jerusalem with blood, yet he 
 was pardoned. (2 Chron. xxxiii. 1 — 20.) 
 Go to Peter, who had perjured his own 
 soul, and denied his Lord and Master; 
 could he have been pardoned? — had he 
 any hope of forgiveness? Yes! see 
 that sorrowful look which Jesus turns 
 upon him — see the strong evidence 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 173 
 
 which Peter gives of repentance, when 
 he goes out and weeps bitterly (Luke 
 xxii. 62); and hear the Saviour restore 
 to him His apostle’s work, when, in the 
 presence of His apostles, He tells him, 
 “Feed my sheep.” (John xxi. 16.) 
 And then see how he went forth and 
 published to every sinner the glad 
 tidings, that “ there is forgiveness with 
 God.” 
 
 Go and see Jesus upon the cross — 
 behold beside Him, a man whose crimes 
 were so great, that he was . condemned 
 to death by the law of his country, and 
 when he prayed “Lord, remember me 
 when Thou comest into Thy kingdom,” 
 hear the voice of Jesus proclaim his 
 pardon in those words, which have been 
 the comfort of every repentant sinner 
 since, “ To-day shalt thou be with me 
 in Paradise.” (Luke xxiii. 43.) 
 
174 
 
 FORGIVENESS : 
 
 And do I not speak to some soul 
 who was once blind, but is now light 
 in the Lord ; who was once in rebellion, 
 hastening on to his own destruction, 
 but who has been stopped, arrested, 
 made to see his blindness, and to fall 
 at the feet of his Saviour, exclaiming, 
 “ Lord, what wouldest thou have me 
 to do ? ” Then remembering the time 
 when the first ray of light broke in 
 upon his soul, when the sigh — the tear 
 of penitence, was answered by the God 
 of heaven, and life flowed to the soul 
 from the death of Jesus; does not the 
 recollection of the peace, the joy then 
 felt, testify, “ There is forgiveness with 
 God?” Remembering the happy hour 
 when first the love of God was shed 
 abroad in your heart, do you not ex- 
 claim, “There is forgiveness?” Though 
 my crimes are great, though my sins are 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 175 
 
 numerous, though I am often pressed 
 down to the earth and am ready to 
 fear, I can still say, “There is for- 
 giveness.” The knowledge that He has 
 set His seal to my soul, fills my heart 
 with peace and joy, flowing from Him; 
 “being justified by faith, I have peace 
 with God,” and the peace I enjoy comes 
 from the Spirit of adoption. I can look 
 to God and say, “My Father.” I am 
 reconciled to God; I was a wanderer 
 once, hut I have been brought back, and 
 have fellowship with the Father, and 
 with His Son Jesus Christ. The peace of 
 heaven is in my soul here, with the hope 
 of glory hereafter; my spirit may now rise 
 up like the eagle, while with humble con- 
 fidence I exclaim, “ Oh Lord, I know 
 that there is forgiveness with Thee.” 
 But how is this forgiveness to be 
 obtained? How is this peace to be pro- 
 
176 
 
 FORGIVENESS : 
 
 cured? We have seen that God is a 
 God of justice; how then can He acquit 
 the sinner? It is not, as some in their 
 darkness believe, that the mercy of God 
 is so boundless, that it may be displayed 
 at the expense of His justice. No, God’s 
 justice is as infinite as His mercy; all 
 His attributes are perfect. As the rays 
 which emanate from the sun are all of 
 equal length and brightness, so the per- 
 fections of God are all equal ; not one is 
 greater than another, — one cannot be 
 displayed at the expense of another. 
 No; man, the sinner, is saved by a just 
 mercy — by a merciful justice; the justice 
 of God cannot be infringed upon. 
 
 How then can God be just, and yet 
 save the sinner? If the judge, when 
 the criminal is condemned, were to ac- 
 quit him, and say he was just, he would 
 do so at the expense of justice; hut 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 177 
 
 God is just and merciful too. How can 
 this be? It is because Christ died, — 
 because “ He has borne our sins in His 
 own body on the tree;” therefore, and 
 thereby, can God acquit the sinner; 
 send him away not merely pardoned, 
 but justified. “ God has laid upon Jesus 
 the iniquity of us all,” and the Christian 
 that has obtained pardon, the soul that 
 has received forgiveness — that soul has 
 salvation solely and alone by Him. 
 
 When the sinner is weighed in the 
 balances of God’s perfect justice, what 
 has he that will satisfy the claims of 
 Justice, — what has he to put in the 
 opposite scale to balance the require- 
 ments of the law ? Will his good works, 
 his alms-giving, his prayers — will they 
 bring down the opposing scale? No, 
 the beam still hangs unequal ; they are 
 
 N 
 
178 
 
 FORGIVENESS : 
 
 altogether lighter than vanity. Is there, 
 then, nothing that will balance it? 
 
 Yes ! Christ’s righteousness, His love 
 and sorrow, His suffering, agony, and 
 death, — they may enter the scale — 
 they will bring it down ; His work is 
 the only sufficient counterpoise ! Thus 
 the law is balanced, the curse is re- 
 moved, and the sinner, though guilty, 
 may come, and Justice will receive him ; 
 he is acquitted by the death of Christ, 
 so that by mercy and justice combined, 
 the soul enters heaven justified. We are 
 saved therefore by a just, as well as a 
 merciful God. “ God can be just, and 
 yet the justifier of him which believeth in 
 Jesus.” (Rom. iii. 26 .) So that heaven 
 cannot now stand amazed, and hell can- 
 not hear witness against the justice of 
 God, for He has saved the sinner not at 
 the expense of, but by justice. The pay- 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 179 
 
 ment has been made — the blood of 
 Christ has been shed — His death is suffi- 
 cient, and God is glorified in acquitting 
 the sinner who believes in, wdio confides 
 in Christ. “ There is forgiveness with 
 God;” no soul therefore, need now be 
 alarmed, but may come boldly to the 
 throne of grace, because Christ has died 
 for the guilty who cling to Him. 
 
 But why is it said “ There is forgive- 
 ness with Thee, that Thou mayest he 
 feared ?” If it were said, that there is 
 justice or power with God, that He may 
 he feared, that would appear natural and 
 consistent; hut when it is said, there is 
 forgiveness with God that He may he 
 feared, we ask, “How can pardon pro- 
 duce fear? It may produce love, grati- 
 tude, but how fear?” Yes ! it is perfectly 
 consistent; there are two kinds of fear; 
 there is a slavish fear, like that of the 
 
180 
 
 FOEGIVENESS : 
 
 slave trembling beneath the lash of his 
 master, he fears; but there is another 
 fear — a calm, tender fear, the fear which 
 is felt towards a father, by the child 
 whom he loves, and whom he has par- 
 doned. The child knows the tender, 
 loving heart of his father — the father 
 pardons the child, that he may be feared 
 by him, and the child is led by that very 
 forgiveness to dread to disobey and 
 grieve its father; it feels a loving fear. 
 It is this fear which God implants in 
 the hearts of His children; He pardons 
 them that they may fear Him. Yes ! 
 there is forgiveness with Him, that He 
 may be feared. And does not the soul 
 that has sinned, and that is forgiven, 
 know it? Does not the pardoned sinner 
 who has come to the cross of Christ, 
 and felt the burden of sin removed, 
 know it, and fear to disobey his heavenly 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 181 
 
 Father? Yes! love can affect the soul 
 more than terror. When Elijah stood 
 upon the mount before the Lord, and 
 there came a great and strong wind 
 which rent the mountain, and brake in 
 pieces the rocks, God was not in the 
 wind — He was not in the earthquake 
 which shook the mountains, amidst the 
 lightning’s flash, and the thunder’s roll — 
 He was not in the consuming fire — but 
 by-and-by there came a still small 
 voice, and the soul of the Prophet, 
 humbled and subdued, felt that God 
 was in the still small voice. (1 Kings 
 xix. 11 — 13.) 
 
 The scorching flames, the heaving 
 billows, the cries of agony and despair, 
 the sight of death in its most fearful 
 forms, could not move the souls of those 
 men who were tossed adrift in a small 
 boat upon the stormy deep, after the 
 
182 
 
 FORGIVENESS : 
 
 destruction of the ship, “ Amazon,” when 
 they uttered that ungodly expression, 
 “We want no religion here!” 
 
 The thought of judgment to come, of 
 the sinner’s doom, of the torments of 
 the damned, cannot shake the soul that 
 is hardened in sin ; hut when the sweet 
 silvery sound of the Gospel of Jesus, 
 glowing with Divine love and power, is 
 brought home to the heart of the sinner, 
 does he not then fear to offend? does he 
 not bear witness to the truth of those 
 words, “There is forgiveness with Thee, 
 that Thou mayest be feared”? 
 
 Saved by the providence of God from 
 double death by fire and water, I am per- 
 mitted this day to preach to you the glori- 
 ous Gospel of salvation by the death of 
 Christ — to proclaim to you the glad tid- 
 ings that there is forgiveness. But have 
 you heeded it? Do you desire it? Oh! if 
 
A SERMON. 
 
 183 
 
 you have hitherto disregarded it, will you 
 not now r seek it? Are there not some in 
 this congregation that will go home this 
 night, and in private bow down to 
 obtain God’s promised forgiveness? 
 
 But, perhaps, I am also speaking to 
 the stout-hearted sinner, or to the lingerer 
 who still turns away from the door of 
 mercy — oh! sinner, why art thou so 
 hardened? why so indifferent to thine 
 own eternal welfare? Are there no 
 longings in thy spirit for something 
 more than the pleasures of this world? 
 Do you not feel that the things of time 
 and sense are not sufficient to satisfy 
 the cravings of thy immortal soul? 
 Oh! relinquish those things which bind 
 thee down to earth, do not reject the 
 voice of mercy,- do not refuse to come to 
 God, through Christ, and obtain pardon 
 and forgiveness ! 
 
184 
 
 FORGIVENESS : 
 
 I am requested to make known to the 
 congregation, that persons will stand at 
 the doors of the church, to receive the 
 contributions of those whose hearts have 
 been touched with pity for the widows 
 and orphans of those who perished by 
 the destruction of the Amazon. 
 
 And here I cannot but express my 
 thanks and grateful feelings to the in- 
 habitants of this town, who have mani- 
 fested so much kindness to me; and 
 especially to that noble friend* in whose 
 house I am staying. 
 
 I thank Thee, 0 God, who hast saved 
 me from a watery grave, and permitted 
 me to stand up this day, and tell my fellow- 
 sinners of Thy love, — of the cross of 
 Jesus, to speak of the eternal world, to 
 lead their hearts to the Saviour who died 
 
 * That devoted Christian, who was then present, 
 died a few da) T s after. (See Mr. Blood’s Sermon 
 on his death.) 
 
A SEEMON. 
 
 185 
 
 for them ! Oh Jesus ! blessed Jesus, come 
 to these immortal souls, fill them with 
 love, faith, joy, let heaven as to them be 
 begun on earth! May the Lord bless 
 you, may the Lord lift up the light of 
 His countenance upon you, and give 
 you peace, — and when you die, may 
 heaven open to you, and may you hear 
 the voice of Jesus saying, “Come ye 
 blessed of my Father, inherit the king- 
 dom prepared for you, before the 
 foundation of the world.” Grant it, oh 
 holy Father, for Christ’s sake! Amen. 
 
 The Collections after the Sermons at Christ 
 Church, the Parish Church, and St. Thomas’s, Clif- 
 ton, amounted to £ 102 . The Collections after the 
 Sermons preached by Mr. Blood at Plymouth, 
 Bath, and Bristol, for the relief of the widows 
 and orphans of those who perished by the destruc- 
 tion of the “Amazon,” already amount to upwards 
 of £330. At the Chapel of the British Embassy, 
 Paris, 168 frs. 
 
THE PRAYER OF THE SAVED ONE. 
 
 BY THE REV. J. R. LEIFCHILD, A.M. 
 
 Lines addressed to the Rev. William Blood, one 
 of the survivors from the Amazon, immediately 
 after hearing one of his Sermons. 
 
 Rescued from the stormy deep, 
 Rescued from the raging fire, 
 Oft in lowliness I weep, 
 
 Tears express my heart’s desire. 
 
 Let the life so well preserved, 
 Still so wonderfully mine, 
 
 Be, Lord, as thou hast desired, 
 Kept and consecrated thine ! 
 
 Let me preach to dying men 
 As a man escaped from dying, 
 Let me ever pray as when 
 On the swelling billow lying. 
 
THE PRAYER OF THE SAVED ONE. 18 
 
 Let me live as if the grave 
 Had released me for an hour, 
 Let me fear as if the wave 
 Still retained me in its power. 
 
 All thy billows, Lord, have gone 
 Over me, but I am saved ; 
 
 Be the love I thus have known 
 Ever on my heart engraved ! 
 
 When at last the billows roll 
 Bound me in the stream of Death, 
 
 O preserve my rescued soul, 
 
 Since thou hast preserved my breath ! 
 
 J. B, Leifchild, a.m. 
 Clifton, March 12, 1852. 
 
 o- 
 
 <v 
 
 v/ 
 
 Cv/ 
 
 v ■' * 
 
 r 
 
 Co 
 
 c • 
 
 / 
 
LINES, 
 
 BY THE BEY. THOMAS GREENFIELD, OF CLIFTON. 
 
 “Written after hearing a pathetic Sermon preached by 
 the Rev. W. Blood, m.a., Incumbent of Temple Grafton, 
 on Friday Morning, March 12, 1852, in Clifton Church, 
 in reference to his marvellous escape (in company 
 with twelve others) from the burning wreck of the 
 Amazon Steam Ship, on the Sabbath morning of 
 Jan. 4, 1852, in the Bay of Biscay.” 
 
 N on timui (fateor) ne, qua tot iere carinae, 
 
 Naufraga, servatis omnibus, una foret. — Ovid. Trist. 
 
 Could I, where countless barks had pass’d, expect 
 That ours alone was destined to be wreck’d ? 
 
 The peerless Amazon ! she ploughs her way ; 
 
 Within her all enjoy the bright blue day ; 
 
 And all retire to rest with hopeful spirits gay. 
 
 How sweet the moment when, as newly born, 
 
 From deep, unbroken sleep, we wake at morn ! 
 
 But oh, to wake at midnight, with that word, 
 
 “ Fire ! Ship on Fire ! ” from horror’s death-knell heard ! __ 
 The fiery deluge blazes broad and high : 
 
 Startled to dreadful consciousness, all cry, 
 
 “ The Life-boat ! launch the Life-boat ere we die ! ” 
 
t 
 
 LINES. 
 
 189 
 
 ’Tis launch’d — in vain for some : beneath the surge 
 With frantic scream they vanish ; none emerge. 
 
 A second launched ; in one small crazy boat 
 Its little band o’er Biscay’s wild waves float. 
 
 Snatch’d from the flaming Ship, those favour’d few 
 Her hideous doom, with joy-mix’d anguish, view, 
 
 Pierced with the dying shrieks of that devoted crew ; 
 And, like delivered Lot, by mercy see 
 The burning city, while themselves are free. 
 
 Drenched, famished, reckless save of life, they seek 
 With half their dress to choke the fatal leak : 
 
 (Brave Michael Fox, thy name let grateful memory speak !) 
 And midst their toil, one * friend of Jesus there, 
 
 Like shipwreck’d Paul, pours fervent praise and prayer. 
 Merciful Heaven ! — a Father’s eye of love 
 Marks their distress : their cry is heard above. 
 
 But she, so late magnificent and gay, 
 
 Where is she now ? — still, still, she ploughs her way ! 
 With none to guide her engine, none her helm : 
 
 Horribly grand, along the billowy realm, 
 
 Volcano-like, she hurries fierce and fast, 
 
 Scattering her beams aloft, before the driving blast ! 
 Sudden, her flames no more the deep illume ; 
 
 Her hellish glare is quench’d in death-like gloom ! 
 
 Aghast we gaze ; and (wondrous to relate) 
 
 Drift to the scene, her funeral pyre so late ; 
 
 Strewn fragments wide around point her disastrous fate. 
 
 The Rev. W. Blood : — see his account as given in the Sermon. 
 
190 
 
 LINES. 
 
 Ere sunset of that awful sabbath day, 
 
 A sail appear’d, but far, too far away. 
 
 She vanish’d ; vanish’d hope ; she left us dark dismay. 
 
 A second : — oh if us she may but spy ! 
 
 Two fearful hours we toil to catch her eye : 
 
 Joy, joy ! — She sees our signal ! She draws nigh ! 
 
 Just as the last faint light forsakes the sky • 
 
 Kind stranger, welcomes all our wave- worn band ; 
 
 And bears us home to England’s happy land ! 
 
 Our crowded cabin day by day portrays 
 A little sanctuary of prayer and praise. 
 
 Merciful Heaven ! — a Father’s eye of love 
 Mark’d our distress ; our cry was heard above ! 
 
 Not ours alone; two sister life-boats braved 
 Atlantic perils, and like us were saved. 
 
 We disembark, ’mid tears of rapture shed 
 From eyes that on us gaze as risen from the dead ! 
 
 Oh, who can hear a tale so dark with awe. 
 
 So bright with mercy, nor instruction draw 
 From the glad Gospel and the threatening Law ? 
 
 “ Awake, thou sleeper ! fly the quenchless fire, 
 
 “ For guilt prepared by God’s all-righteous ire ’. 
 
 “ With deep repentance, earnest faith, embark 
 “ In the soul’s Life-boat, Christ, Redemption’s Ark ! 
 
 “ And stem temptation’s waves, and reach the heavenly 
 mark ! ” 
 
 BATH : PRINTED BY BINNS AND GOODWIN. 
 
WORKS 
 
 BY THE REV. WILLIAM BLOOD. M A., 
 
 INCUMBENT OF TEMPLE GRAFTON, WARWICKSHIRE. 
 
 Shortly will be Published, 
 
 “THE AMAZON/’ 
 
 A Narrative of Facts and Incidents; with Reflections on the 
 
 destruction of the above splendid Steam-Ship by fire. 
 
 The above Work has no connexion with an anonymous 
 publication bearing the same name, nor with any other 
 spurious work without the name of the author. The 
 book will be neatly got up, and printed in the best man- 
 ner, with Engravings. 
 
 Subscribers names are respectfully requested to be 
 forwarded immediately to Hamilton and Co., Whittaker 
 and Co., Nisbet, Shaw, London; Jones, Bristol ; and W. J. 
 Taylor, Bookseller, 16 and 17, East Street, Brighton, 
 and all Booksellers. 
 
 II. 
 
 Just Published, 'price 8 d., 
 
 LOSS OF “THE AMAZON/' 
 
 A COPIOUS and AUTHENTIC DETAIL of this 
 TERRIFIC CATASTROPHE is contained in the SER- 
 MON, preached by the Rev. Wm. Blood (one of the sur- 
 vivors), in the Church of St. Andrew, Plymouth, on the 
 Sunday Morning following his Providential Escape, Jan. 
 18th, 1852. 
 
 ‘ ‘ It contains a graphic description of the Rev. Gentleman’s escape 
 from the doomed ship, and the horrors of the great catastrophe — of 
 startling interest. ” — Plymouth Times. 
 
 “From the graphic narrative which it furnishes of the destruc- 
 tion of ‘ The Amazon, ’ and the subsequent trials of Mr. Blood and 
 his fellow-sufferers, it will be perused with very considerable inte- 
 rest.” — West of England Conservative (Plymouth). 
 
 III. 
 
 THE “AMAZON.” 6d. 
 
 “A graphic description of the terrific catastrophe — of startling- 
 interest. ” — PlymouthHerald. 
 
 “Other excellent sermons have been preached upon the awful 
 subject ; but there is this difference between them and this : they 
 are from mere hearsay — this is from the actual eye-witness of the 
 dreadful' midnight scene.” — Plymouth Times. 
 
 Whittaker and Co., Seeley, Shaw, Nisbet, London ; 
 and all Booksellers. 
 
IV. 
 
 THE DEAD IN CHRIST; a Sermon upon tlie-death 
 of Surgeon Derry, the Friend with whom the Author 
 was a guest after his escape from the “ Amazon.” Is.; 
 by post, Is. 4d. 
 
 “Beautiful in sentiment, and eloquent in style .” — Bristol Mirror. 
 
 V. 
 
 MERCY TO THE CHIEF OF SINNERS; with a 
 short account of the destruction of the “ Amazon.” All 
 the profits to be given to the fund of £15,000, now being 
 raised for the Widows and Orphans of those who have 
 perished. Is. 6d. ; by post, Is. lOd. 
 
 “It details one of the most striking illustrations of the power, and 
 riches, and sovereignty of Divine grace .” — Christian Journal. 
 
 VI. 
 
 MERCY TO THE CHIEF OF SINNERS, in French 
 and English, interleaved. 
 
 Simpkin and Marshall. 
 
 VII. 
 
 M1SERECORDE AU PLUS GRAND DES PECHEURS. 
 
 VIII. 
 
 SPEECH before the American Bible Society in Phila- 
 delphia. 
 
 IX. 
 
 THE CONNEXION BETWEEN FAITH AND PER- 
 SONAL SALVATION. 
 
 X. 
 
 REFLECTIONS upon the CHARGE of Dr. ELRING- 
 TON, Lord Bishop of Leighlin and Ferns. 
 
 XI. 
 
 A LETTER ON NATIONAL EDUCATION, intro- 
 duced by the Right Hon. Earl of Derby, late Lord 
 Stanley. 
 
 XII. 
 
 The RESULT of COMBINATION in RELIGION. 
 
 XIII. 
 
 THE LOVE AND EXAMPLE OF CHRIST: the 
 Stimulus to Practical Christianity. 
 

 
 . 
 
 »