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there certainly is, and you must one day appear before him to give an account of the deeds done in the body, change your system of working on the Lord's day. I leave the planning of your changing the system to your better judgment. In the mean time, I humbly beg you will consider what is written, and that it is also said, He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life; and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abideth upon him.' John iii, 36."

AND

SHIPPING AND COMMERCIAL NOTICES.

Trade of France with her Colonies and Foreign Powers in 1834.

FROM the Report of the Director of the Customs, the following gives the state of trade of France with her colonies and foreign countries in 1834.

Amount of importations, 720,194,336 fr.; of goods sold for consumption, 503,933,048 fr.; ditto exported, 714,705,038 fr.; ditto entered in the bonding warehouses, 469,330,593 fr.; ditto taken out of bond, 438,968,771 fr.; ditto upon which the transit duty was paid, 123,770,328 fr.; premiums on exportations, 9,272,221; amount of bullion (not included in the above) imported, 192,408,884 fr. ; exported, 97,286,744 fr. Goods seized, 1,315,022 fr. 10,089 vessels (3,965 French) entered, and 9,304 (4,221 French) sailed from the ports of France during the same

year.

Commerce of Tripoli.-In 1834, 70 vessels (tonnage 5,004) entered, and 69 (tonnage 4,742) took their departure from the ports of the regency. 273,200 fr. worth of merchandize was imported, viz.-From Malta, 114,000; Tunis, 84,600; Tuscany, 42,700; Albania, 10,800; Candia, 7,200; Austria, 6,700; from the Archipelago, 5,500; and from the Two Sicilies, 1,700.-103,800 fr. worth was exported, of which 11,900 to Malta; 30,100 to Tunis ;) 4,500 to Tuscany; and 57,500 to Austria.

Commerce of Morocco.-Total amount of goods imported in 1834, 9,176,500 fr.; of which 5,444,900 from England, and 3,105,500 from France. Exportations, 8,891,700 fr.; of which, 4,161,000 from England, and 3,724,200 from France. Vessels entered, 306 (tonnage 26,682); ditto sailed, 305 (tonnage 25,420.)

Increase of British Trade in the Mediterranean.

In the course of the year 1821, 84 English traders, measuring 12,000 tons, entered the different ports of the Mediterranean; but, in 1831, that number had increased to 336 (tonnage 54,698).

AN AMERICAN SKIPPER PUNISHED.

"THE population of Nahant is almost proverbial for its industry, and for the summary mode with which they dispense justice amongst themselves on points of local polity affecting the general welfare.

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"One instance," says Mr. Power, was fresh enough in memory to be still talked of. A townsman, returning from the banks with a cargo, passed a vessel in a sinking state, turning a blind eye to their repeated anxious signals. Contrary to all expectation, the crippled bark, after being given up as lost, reached the harbour, and the conduct of the hard-hearted skipper was made public. He was seized instanter, triced up, served out with a dozen or two, well told, covered with tar, clothed in feathers, and, in this plight, was carted about the boundaries of the township, having a label hung about his neck, describing his crime and sentence in good set rhyme, which ran thus:

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This here's old John Hort,

'That for his hard heart

'Is tar-ed and feather-ed,

'And carry-ed in this cart.'"

"This is an example not likely to be lost upon a maritime people."-Literary Gazette, No. 994.

NELSON WOUNDED AT ABOUKIR.

EARLY in the battle Admiral Nelson received a severe wound on the head from a piece of langridge shot. Captain Berry caught him in his arms as he was falling. Nelson and all around him thought, from the great effusion of blood, that he was killed. When he was carried to the cockpit, the surgeon quitted the seamen whose wounds he was dressing, to attend to the Admiral. "No," said Nel

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son, "I will take my turn with my brave fellows." Nor would he suffer his wound to be examined, "till every man who had been previously brought down was properly attended to." Fully believing that the wound was mortal, and that he was about to die, as he had ever desired, in the moment of victory, he called for the chaplain, and desired him to deliver what he conceived to be his dying remem brance to Lady Nelson; and seizing a pen, contrived to write a few words, marking his devout sense of the success which had already been obtained. When the surgeon came in due time to inspect the wound, for no entreaties could prevail on him to let it be examined sooner, the most anxious silence prevailed; and the joy of the wounded men and of the whole crew, when they found the injury was only superficial, gave Nelson deeper pleasure than the unexpected assurance that his own life was in no danger. When the cry arose that the L'Orient (the French admiral's ship,) was on fire, he contrived to make his way alone and unassisted to the quarter-deck, where he instantly gave orders that boats should be dispatched to the relief of the enemy.

While we have naval commanders and conquerors, may they all be as humane as Nelson!

PHILO-NAVIGATOR.

THE GREAT STORM IN 1703.

MANY of the readers of the PILOT may have heard of the Great Storm in the year 1703. They may also be aware that a Mr. Joseph Taylor, in order to communicate his own merciful preservation at the time, instituted an Annual Sermon. He was a member of the church assembling in Little Wild Street, Lincoln's Inn Fields, and I believe the sermon is continued at that place to the present period.

The following are extracts from an anonymous work, entitled "The Storm," printed in 1704. Should they prove acceptable, they may perhaps be followed by a few others for your next number.

«The rear-admiral of the blue, in the ship called the Mary, sunk with Admiral Beaumont, and above five hundred men drowned. The ship called the Northumberland, about five hundred men, all sunk and drowned. The ship called the Stirling Castle, all sunk and drowned, above

five hundred souls; and the ship called the Restoration, all sunk and drowned. These ships were all close by us, which I saw; they fired their guns all night and day for help, but the storm being so fierce and raging, could have none to save them.

"A man belonging to the Mary, all the ship's company but himself being lost, by the help of a piece of the broken ship, got on board the Northumberland; but the violence of the storm continuing, the Northumberland ran the same fate with the Mary, and was split to pieces; yet this person, by a singular providence, was one of sixty-four that were delivered out of that ship, all the rest perishing in the sea.

"A ship, homeward bound from the West Indies, was in the utmost danger of foundering, when the captain saw all, as he thought, lost; and expecting every moment to sink, he calls to him the surgeon of the ship, and by a fatal contract, as soon made as hastily executed, they resolved to prevent the death they feared by one more certain, and, going into the cabin, they both shot themselves. It pleased God the ship recovered the distress, and the captain just lived to see the desperate course he took might have been spared. The surgeon died immediately." Page 71.

The above, as relating particularly to seafaring persons, cannot fail to interest many of your readers. Nor can I omit the following, because it relates to a place, the vast importance of which, both as to the East and West Indies, and in reference to our coasting sailors, is at length in some measure appreciated. I refer to Poplar, where I am happy to find your operations as a Society are now carried

on.

"A gang of hardened rogues assaulted a family at Poplar in the very height of the storm, broke into the house, and robbed them. The people cried Thieves! and after that cried Fire! in hopes to raise the neighbourhood, and to get some assistance; but such is the power of selfpreservation, and such was the fear the minds of the people were possessed with, that nobody would venture out to the assistance of the distressed family, who were rifled and plundered in the middle of all the extremity of the tempest."-Page 35.

J. U.

ORIGIN OF "SHIP PRAYER-MEETINGS," AND RETROSPECT OF AN OLD BETHEL CAPTAIN.

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REV. J. UPTON, in his last month's Report of labours among the sailors at Blackwall and Poplar, mentions " aged captain, an old veteran in the cause," whose "Retrospect "could not be inserted in the PILOT for April [see page 137]. Its statements relative to the origin of "Ship Prayer-Meetings," will be read with great pleasure by those who know the delightful progress of religion among sailors during the last twenty years. The letter is addressed to Mr. Upton.

"Blackwall, Jan. 26, 1836.

"Rev. Sir,-Agreeably to your request, I have very briefly drawn up an outline of what I know, and have been eye-witness to, relative to the rise and progress of Ship Prayer-Meetings.

"In 1814, being mate of the brig Venus, of North Shields, I became a member of the Wesleyan Methodist Society; and having a pious captain, I got family worship ⚫ established in the ship. Shortly after, becoming acquainted with some more pious friends, when we happened to be lying in the Thames, we began to meet together for religious conversation, reading the Scriptures and prayer, till towards winter. Mr. Wilkins, mate of the Zeno, went a voyage, at this time, as master, the owner being sick; and while lodging in London, he thought that these meetings should be more public, and went on board another ship, the Happy Return,' and asked the captain to hold a meeting in his ship, which was granted. He next went on board the James, and desired to have a meeting; this was also granted. Then, he being about to leave London, he called on our ship, desiring us to follow his example. I immediately set about it, and held one on board our own ship; and Mr. Simpson, then commanding the Friendship,' joined me, and also two pious seamen, W. Masiger and John Robson, and others. We continued our meetings in different ships for two weeks; and being about to leave, we solicited Zachariah Rogers, who had come off from Rotherhithe, to come twice in the week and conduct them, and he entered into the work.

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"Mr. Jennings, a respectable timber-merchant in Rotherhithe, then took an active part in our social meetings; he

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