RELIEF TO FISHERMEN AND MARINERS, THEIR WIDOWS, ORPHANS, &c. LEAVE THY FATHERLESS CHILDREN, I WILL PRESERVE THEM ALIVE; AND LET THY WIDOWS TRUST IN ME."-JEREMIAH XLIX. 11. Statement of Relief afforded by the "Shipwrecked Mariners' Society" to Fishermen and Mariners, to assist to restore their Boats or Clothes, and to the Widows, Orphans, and Aged Parents of the Drowned, &c. between the 1st March, and 31st May 1879. NOTE. In the following tables M stands for mariner, whether of the Royal Navy, Transport, or Merchant Service; MM master mariner; A apprentice; F fisherman; PB pilot and boatman; W widow; O orphan; AP aged parent. The figures following signify the amount of relief, and Agency where it was given. SUMMARY OF RELIEF DURING THE PAST QUARTER.-Widows, 146; Orphans, 259, Aged Parents, 34; Master Mariners, 48; Mariners and Apprentices, 191; Fishermen, 102; Pilots and Boatmen, 48; Shipwrecked persons-Subscribers, 187, and Non-Subscribers, 268; in all, 1,288 persons relieved, at an expense, inclusive of that in the succeeding tables, of £3,951 1ls. 9d! 1 F, 1 PB, 1 A, 1 W, 1 AP ... 27 15 0 Whitby. 1 MM, 1 W.. 14 15 0 Whitehaven. 1 W, 4 0. 6 10 0 Whithorn. 2 M, 1 W, 10. 10 17 6 Whitstable. 7 13 9 Wisbech. 5 14 6 Wivenhoe. 51 4 6 Yarmouth. RELIEF TO SHIPWRECKED CREWS. 6 THERE IS SORROW ON THE SEA."-JEREMIAH XLIX. 23. The Crews of the following Vessels, wrecked on various parts of the Coast or foundered at sea, have been boarded, lodged, clothed, and forwarded to their homes by the Secretary at the Central Office and Honorary Agents of the "Shipwrecked Mariners' Society," between the 1st March, 1878, and 31st May, 1879. *The Hon. Agent at Bristol reports, 22nd May, that the Master states that, at 11.30 p.m. of the 18th instant,being foggy, he fell in with the 'NorthBishop,' that he tried to stay his vessel, but that she missed stays, and was drifted on the rocks. He then, with a man and a boy, got on to the rock, and remained until 3 p.m. of the 21st, with no other sustenance than three gull's eggs, when they were rescued by the s.s. Severn,' Captain G. Mills, and brought to the Sailors' Home, and forwarded." †The Hon. Agent at North Shields reports, the 5th March, that "this brig was in collision with s.s. Aberfoyle,' of Leith, and that one man was drowned, and the crew lost everything." The Hon. Agent at Scilly reports, 3rd May, that "this steamer struck on a reef, and foundered in a few minutes. All the crew were lost except three, who were landed here this morning from the s.s. Recovery,' of Liverpool, just in time to get on board the Queen of the Bay' for Penzance." The Standard reported on the 22nd April that: "Fifteen of the crew of the London barque 'St. Hilda' have arrived at Liverpool, and report the foundering of their vessel whilst on a voyage from Bristol to St. John's, New Brunswick. The vessel left Bristol in ballast, and after being four days out was dismasted, and had to put into Queenstown. The repairs being completed, she again sailed for her destination, and for three weeks encountered a succession of heavy gales with strong seas. The vessel was so strained that she sprang a leak, and for two days and two nights the crew kept at the pumps, but the inrush of water was so great, that the vessel could not be freed. Fortunately, when the 'St. Hilda' was twenty William Whitehaven Ysusquiza Zora Woodbridge 1 2 6 Whitehaven 700 Arbroath 0 15 0 Salcombe 0 16 0 four days out, she was fallen in with by the Norwegian barque, 'Andreas Reis,' which bore down to the assistance of the crew. There was a very heavy sea running at the time, but the men got safely away from the St. Hilda.' The rescue was most timely, as the vessel had not been abandoned above an hour and a half before she foundered, going down head foremost with a loud report. The crew, 18 in number, were subsequently landed at Sligo, from which place they were brought to Liverpool. The St. Hilda' was a vessel of 1,001 tons, built at Bath, United States, in 1858, and was owned by Q. Lidgett, of London. The men were taken care of by the Shipwrecked Mariners' Society. A WORD IN SEASON, HOW GOOD IT IS. "How were you first brought to know the Lord?" I asked one day of a young woman, who was in great bodily suffering, and with no prospect of recovery. "It was a godly man's prayer for me that first touched my heart, and made me think," was the answer she made; and then went on to say:I was living as servant in a clergyman's house, and though I went in to prayers morning and evening, and thought it quite right and proper, I never thought about my soul or its eternal welfare-never prayed for myself. After a time another clergyman came to stay with my master and mistress, and the first morning he was there, and each morning while he stayed he took morning prayers, and, before closing, he prayed for my master and my mistress, and then for me. Many clergymen had stayed there before, and I was used to hearing my master and mistress prayed for, but to my knowledge I had never been prayed for in my life before, and he prayed for me as though he really wanted me to be blessed and saved. I went about my work as usual, but I could not forget it. It seemed so strange that anyone should do for me what I had never done for myself-ask for my salvation. Next morning it was the same; again that man of God prayed for me. How I listened to every word! He seemed to think the Lord was interested even in me, and I wondered if he could be right. It evidently struck my master, for at evening prayers he, too, prayed for me; he had never done so before, nor did he after that visit of the clergyman's. Three days passed so, and now I was terribly anxious to know how I could be saved. Now I was crying to God to let me see how I might be saved. I did not like to speak to my master or mistress, still less to their stranger guest, and I longed for Sunday and church-time. The strange clergyman occupied my master's pulpit. I listened eagerly for every word of the sermon. The text was, God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life.' He showed our lost condition by nature, God's great love, the work of Christ by which we can be saved, and the simplicity of what our part is-we have nothing to do but to believe it all, and trust the blood of Jesus. He spoke of salvation as God's gift, which we must have as a gift, or not at all. I saw then how I might be saved, but I was not sure if I trusted enough in Jesus, if I believed aright, and I came home still miserable. I was putting the tea on the table, when the clergyman who had preached came into the dining-room. Perhaps he noticed that I had been crying; I do not know; but he asked me very kindly if I had understood the sermon. I said, 'Yes.' Then he asked me, If I had this gift of everlasting life?' and I said, I was afraid I had not.' 'Did I want to have it?' he asked; and now I could not keep back the tears any more: I want it more than anything! I said; 'I would give everything to know I had it. 'Come into the study with me,' he said. I said something about my work, but he said, 'I will speak to your mistress;' and I followed him into the study. He prayed first very earnestly, asking the Lord to open my eyes, to show me how simple a thing it is to trust Jesus. And then he read me two or three Scriptures, such as, 'Him that cometh unto Me I will in no wise cast out; and showed me it is the One we come to who saves, the One we believe in who gives everlasting life, and not the greatness of our faith, the strength of our belief, that gains it for us. That God delights to give it to every soul who wants it. I left the study knowing that God had given it to me, and ever since then I have never had a doubt. It is five years since, and I have had sickness and sorrow, but the Lord has been with me in it all; and oh! I shall bless Him for ever and ever, that He put it into His servant's heart to pray for me, only the servant of the house, whom he had never seen before. But for that I might be dying without Christ now."-" Sow ye beside all waters." |