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A Token for Mariners

[Page] A TOKEN FOR MARINERS, CONTAINING Many Famous and Wonderful In­stances of God's Providence in Sea Dan­gers and Deliverances, in Mercifully preserving the Lives of his poor Crea­tures, when, in Humane Probability, at the Point of Perishing by Shipwrack, Famine, or other Accidents.

Much Enlarg'd, with the Addition of ma­ny New Relations, one whereof happening this Present Year, and never before Printed. Mostly Attested by the Persons Themselves.

ALSO The Seaman's Preacher, Being a Sermon on the Right Improvement of such MERCIES. And Prayers for Seamen on all Occasions.

LONDON, Printed by Hugh Newman, and Sold at his Shop at the Grashopper in the Poultry. 1698.

THE Preface to the Reader. And Particularly to Mariners, and other Seafaring-Men.

THough God's Wonders are every where visible, and his Mercies no where hid from the Eyes of Men; yet more particular­ly are they Evident to Sea-faring Men, whose Business is in the Great Waters, and their Lives Exposed more than others to Iunume­rable hazards and dangers, of Contending Winds and Seas, Rocks, Quicksands, and Inhospitable Shoaers: These, as it were, carry their Lives in their hands, and their best Security is Wholly to Rely on the Provi­dence and Protection of him whose Power the Winds and Waves obey: Seeing there is so small a partition between them and Eternity, the Striking on a Treacherous Rock, over which, many times, the Flatter­ing Water smoothly glides, gives them their [Page] Winding-sheet in a Rumpled Wave. Nor is this all their danger, the Springing of a Plank, a Leak not to be found, nor suddenly stopped, Running on a Shoal, or the Falling of a Water-spout, frequently carry with them the same Inevitable Fate, and often makes them at their Wits Ends before they end their Lives; for, a certain Prospect of Ʋna­voidable Death must needs be Terrible to Flesh and Blood, and, in a great measure, remove that Constant Presence of Mind that should support their Spirits amidst all Dan­gers: From this there is no way to secure themselves, but by laying hold on him that is Mighty, and able to save to the utmost, on God, who is a present help at need, whose eyes are in all places, in Heaven and Earth, and in the Great Deep; and those that Cry to him in their Distress, he will surely hear them and Deliver them out of all their Troubles, if they are sincere in heart, and walk uprightly with him. For a Praying-Paul's sake, we find, though the Ship was broken, and perished on a Rock on the Coast of the Island, antient­ly Melita, now called Malta, all that were in it were saved, when they expected nothing less than to be swallowed up in that dange­rous Ocean, as we find it in the Acts, Chap. 27. Therefore the best thing I can Recom­mend to Mariners, and others that Navi­gate [Page] the Deep, is to have a stedfast Relyance on God in all their Dangers, nay, at all times, for that is the best and surest Anchor-hold and Security that can be had recourse to, and therefore I have furnished this Book with ma­ny Wonderful and Remarkable Sea-Delive­rances, to show them that their hopes are not in vain; for, the Wonders he has already wrought, he will doubtless continue to all that fear and put their Trust in him.

This Collection is taken mostly from the Mouths of those who have experienc'd God's Mercy this way, and whose Dangers have been as great as any could be on this side the Grave; yet God, in his Mercy, delivered them out of all. The rest are taken from such Reverend Authors, that their Credit and Integrity is Indisputable, being purpose­ly Written to raise the Minds of Men to Contemplate and Adore the Love and Good­ness of the All-wise Creator of the Ʋniverse, and may indifferently serve to this end as well at Land as Sea, though chiefly intended for Sea-faring Men, to put them in Mind, when they Read it, of their Danger, and what they may expect in their Danger, from the Death they apprehend in it, if they apply their hearts to true Wisdom. When all help or hopes fail, or seem to be at a loss, then fix your hearts and eyes stedfastly on him who is [Page] able to do all things, and to whom nothing is impossible; on him, in whose hands is all the Breath of Life, who can stop the shafts of Death in their winged motion, check the Bel­lowing Thunder in the Midd-Volley, and turn the Raging of the Winds to a sudden Calm.

But not to be Tedious in a Preface; I re­commend this to you, as a suitable Compa­nion in your Voyages or Travels, nay in your houses, or at all times, that you may know these things are the Lord's doing, tho they are Marvellous in our eyes. And so Conclude, subscribing my self,

Christian Reader,
Your Friend and Servant, J. J.

REMARKABLE SEA Deliverances.

ONe Major Gibbons, a man well known in new England, a Gentleman of good educa­tion, good parts, and of good Conversation, (as the Author hath been credibly informed by them that knew him) was bound upon a voyage to Sea, himself being Supra Cargo with such commoditys as those parts of America doth afford, after going out from Boston several days, by hard weather, and con­trary winds, the Ships company were much distressed, and through the Continuance of the contrary winds Provisions now begin to faile them; and O how feeble doth Spirit [Page 2] grow, when Bread, the Staffe of life faileth! now Hunger becomes more dreadfull to them, then the every moment threatning Billows of the devouring Ocean; and they that one while feared drowning, now fears Starving; they are brought to the last meal in the Barrel, and the last oyl in the Cruse, and say as she did We will Eat this little that is left, and dye: and now when they thought they had eaten the last, what conflicts must they needs have within themselves? who knew not where to have another morsel to fortify the tyred and spent Spi­rits with the constant toyl, and hard la­bour: how they look one upon another, as men already under a Sentence of death; and by one anothers looks, Strike terror to one anothers Hearts; They look on every side, Psal. 142. 4, 5. (as David says) I looked on my right hand, but there was no man that would know me; Refuge failed me; or perished from me. They look downward, and see nothing but the Bel­ly of destruction opening for them; they look upward, the onely, and last refuge, and remedy, in this deplorable estate was, out of the depths, they cry'd to the Lord,

But though they look out of the Ship, as Noah did out of his Ark, upon the wa­ters [Page 3] and send forth the Dove of Prayer, that winged Messenger, to Heaven, yet she brings no Olive branch, no Answer; the waters asswage not, the winds calm not, they are like the Prophets Servant, when he bid him 1 Kings 18. 43. go up now; and look to-wards the Sea, and he went up and looked and said, there is nothing; and this strikes them into dolefull and dismall La­mentations; out of which Lamentations, at last Springs up a tragical and sorrow­full Motion. The Motion is, that which the Marriners, in Jonahs Vessel, put in execution, Come let us cast Lots, &c. only with this difference, they cast Lots to find out the dilinquent; and these, which of them should dye first, to be a Sacrifice for ravenous Hunger to feed upon: Con­cluding, as he in that case, John. 11. 50. It is expedient for us that one man should dye for the People, and that the whole Ships Com­pany perish not. Life being sweet, Skin for Skin, and all a man hath will he give for his life, they at last bring it, through many a sad debate, to a result, they cast the Lott, the disposing of which is of the Lord; one of the Company is arrested by the Lott; here is the Condemned Prisoner: O but where is the Executioner to be found to act his office upon a poor Innocent? is it not [Page 4] death to them now, to think who shall act this bloody part in the Tragedy? But be­fore they fall upon their involuntary Exe­cution, Major Gibbons calls them to Prayer, considering, that in the Mount, the Lord is often seen, and that many times our extremity proves Gods opportunity; he also askes the poor man if he was willing to dye; but O what a hard Question is that to Answer! He replys, if it might preserve the rest of the lives, he could be the more willing; to which he hath this Answer: All events are in the hands of God, we must not dispute them, to Pra­yer they go: and, O sure these Prayers must melt hearts of Adamant! and Be­hold, while they are at it, God sends a visible commentary upon that Scripture: Esay 58. 9. Then shalt thou call, and the Lord shall Answer; thou shalt Cry, and he shall say here I am: For while they were calling, God was Answering; there leaps a mighty Fish into the Boat; and as it is said of the Whale: that swallowed up Jonah, God prepared a Fish, for the Lord here prepared, or provided a Fish, that a poor creature might not be swallowed up: but O what joy was here at such a token for good! not only it at present releiving and refreshing their huuger, which no Queston [Page 5] made them quick Cooks; but when they looked upon the Finger of God in it, send­ing it as an answer to prayer, they con­clude it an happy Omen of their delive­rance, and a pledg of approaching mercy: but alas, it is not long before their hearts grow faint again, their Countenances pale, their Spirits sink now as low as they were lifted up high; and now the poor Sea-men are like their Ship, one while mounted up in the hopes to Heaven, and another while they are sunk down again in despair as low as hell; they know not now of another cake, another Morsell, they are reduced to their former exigency, which brings them to a resolve to steer in this strait their old course; to Lotts they go again the Second time, only they have such an honour for the Providence of God, they will not put him into condemnation, that God hath acquited; the Lott now falls upon another person, and O now they re­ceive the old trouble, and intestine Com­bats, how they shall find in their Hearts, to punish one, that never had offended any of them; and while one thinks of it, sayes he, Alas poor man, what hath he done to deserve this sentence? another crys, Will not this blood cleave to my Conscience another day? though I went to this expe­dition [Page 6] a Prest Souldier? another says, for his part he sees no way but death, therefore he cannot take away life, when he sees not any life can be preserved by it: but they are called again to look upward, before they put the Knife to the Throat of this Sacrifice, and they remember the last encouragement to put life into the almost dead-mens Prayers; they pray now with a pledge in their hands, and are ready to tell God, the last time he gave them a Pawn, an Earnest; and O it is not vain to seek the Lord! for lo [...], while they are seeking to him, he is sending to them; as the Prayers flye to Heaven, Mercy is dis­patched upon the wing from Heaven.

O turn aside, and see this great sight, while they are praying. Behold a second Answer from above; A great Bird lights and fixes her self upon the Mast, which one in the Company espies, and up he goes and there she stands until he took her with his hand by the wing, & brought her down to the Company; and O what life from the dead is this to them a second time! Sure they will hearken to the voyce of the second Sign, if not to the voyce of the first; and now that which they hoped by the first Providence (viz) that it was a fore-runner of the compleat delive­rance; Now they are by this second con­firmed [Page 7] in the Faith, and now they begin to think (as I can easily imagin) if God will save them out of this distress, O what manner of persons they will become! what manner of lives they will live! what Sacrifices of Thanksgiving will they offer up to God! but while they are thus think­ing they have no visible hopes, but that it must be a third Miracle that brings them out of this their miserable condition; they have the same disappointments upon them still, only now they divert their Hunger all they can, by telling of, and remem­bring the Loaves, (as I may say) their experiences in this extremity of theirs, and comforting themselves, that if they come to a third strait, it would (they hoped) be an outlet from their present misery and calamity: They are reduced the third time to the former course and strait, to cast Lotts; and when they were to go to the heart-aking work, to put him to death, upon whom the Lott fell, they go to their Old Friend, in a day of Adver­sity, (to God) by hearty and humble Prayer; And O now they do, as the Pro­phets man at the Sea-side, look again and again, but alas Master they cry, there is nothing. Prayer is done, concluded, no­thing appears; O but as the Prophets [Page 8] Man looked seaven times, so says this good man Major Gibbons, look again, as Jonah, I will look again towards his Holy Temple (says he to one of the Company) Go up to the top, and see what you can espy; and at last he makes a Sayl, (viz.) espys a Ship; this puts new life into all their spirits; they bear up with the Vessel, they Man their Boat, they desire, in the manner of perishing humble Suppliants, to Board them, which they are Admitted; the Vessel proves a French Vessel, yea, a French Pyrate; Major Gibbons Petitions him for a little Bread to sustain their lives, who had been several days wishing for death, but could not find it in their Extre­mity; and take the Ship and Cargo. So sweet is life, that all that a man hath will he give for his life; and now behold, God draws forth to these Poor Perishing men his best Wine to the last, nay, turns the Water of Affliction into the Wine of Con­solation. The Commander of the Vessel knows the Major, and replys readily and chearfully, Major Gibbons, not one hair of your head shall perish, nor any of your Ships Company, if it lye in my power ei­ther to supply you, or preserve you. O the Wisdom of God that hath ways we know not of, to Relieve in the greatest [Page 9] straits, and cause himself to be seen in the Mount. The Commander of this French Pyrat was one that some years before, Ma­jor Gibbons had shown signal Kindness to, when his life was in danger at Boston in New England. Thus the Lord appeared a God, hearing Prayers in Extremitys, which appearances are not to be forgotten in succeeding Generations. O that men would praise the Lord for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the Chil­dren of men.

Secondly. About the year 1636. there arising a storm and tempest of troubles in the Church of Scotland, five Ministers, eminent for Piety, Learning, and their Honourable success in the Ministry, were so hard born under by a prevailing Party imposing upon their Consciences, that they were forced to Embarque them­selves for America; three of their names were Mr. Levinston, Mr. Mackleland; and Mr. Blaire, with two more whom my Au­thor could not call to mind.

These good men Say [...]d half the Chan­nel over, about 500. Leagues, where they met with great distress of weather, which broke off the Rudder of their Ship, and occasioned a desperate leak to spring in her, which exposed them to eminent [Page 10] danger; but they in this distress endea­vour to hang on their Rudder again, but often were they frustrated in their at­tempt, to a total despair of effecting it. They also laboured with the like unsuc­cessfulness to find out and stop the leak; this poor Ships Crew had laboured also by pumping, to keep the Ship above wa­ter, until all their few hands were feeble, and all their hearts faint; so that as so many dispairing persons of life, they cease all endeavours, and yield themselves to death, expecting every moment to be En­tombed in the belly of the devouring deeps; during the time of this their great distress, the Ministers kept on their course, as at other times of Worship, (viz) the reading of a Chapter in course, and taking observations from it, with Prayers and Preaching, which they did by turns; at the crisis of this deplorable case, it fell to be the Lott of Mr. Mackleland to per­form this Exercise, a man Austeer in his life, reserved in his speech, and of great Piety, who was often observed to let fall many remarkable Prophetical Expressions of future events; the Chapter that at that time came to be read in course by him, was the 3 [...] of Exodus, which he had read all along (until he came to the 12th. [Page 11] verse.) where he made a full stop; the verses run thus.

And Moses besought the Lord his God, and said, Lord, why doth thy Wrath wax hot against thy people, which thou hast brought out of the Land of Egypt with great Power, and a mighty hand? Where­fore should the Egyptians say, for mischief did he bring them out to slay them in the Mountains, and to consume them from the face of the Earth? Turn from thy severe Wrath, and repent of this Evil against thy People,—upon the reading of these ver­ses over again he declared to them, the Case which Moses was here intercee­ding for, compared with his Expostula­tion in the 12 verse, did parallel their case, and considering the happy event of that Argument, which Moses used (mentio­ned in the 14 verse, which runs thus:) and the Lord Repented of the Evil which he thought to doe unto his People—he could not but comfortably hope, that they might have the same Effect: Nay he goes further, and his Spirit raised into a peremptory prediction, that he durst as­sure them from his great Lord and Ma­ster, that not one hair of their heads should fall to the ground; after this he went to Prayer, urging God with the [Page 12] same Argument, and then rose up com­fortably assuring his stedfastness in be­lieving the same; he advises the Sea-men and the Company in the Ship to refresh themselves by taking some meat, the long fasting and hard labour having much in­feebled them. Then he encouraged them to make another Attempt to fasten the Rudder, without which they could not possible make towards any point for shore. He after advised them to clear the ship, as well as they could, from wa­ter by pumping, which they did happily Effect, the Leak being stopt providen­tially of it self—whether it was some noak of a plank started by the de­stress of weather which occasioned the Leak, and by the surges of the Sea, clapt into the place again, or what it was else could not be known. But however this lookes like life from the dead to these poor men, who had received but a little before a sentence of Death in them­selves, that they might trust in him who raiseth the Dead. Soon after this, God who had heard in Heaven great Tears and Prayers, Commands the Wind Tack about to the West, and to blow so strong a gale that they were forced to bear up before it, and it continued so [Page 13] long, that it brought them back to the North of Ireland, where they continued some time; although but short, they were very instrumental in the Converting of many souls, which seed-plot remains to this day; and soon after they passed in­to Scotland. This Relation was given by several Ministers of the North of Ireland: also the Reader may take notice, the Author of that Book called the Full­filling of the Scriptures, pag. 487. mentions this remarkable Providence, though not so largely, with these two additional, but very considerable circumstances; first, That a poor Sea-man was made the in­strument to preserve the same Vessel, by fastening the Rudder, whose company they had all shun'd, others having given it over. Secondly, Several Passengers being Aboard, who shipt themselves for America, upon only external accounts, expecting a fat soyle, and outward ad­vantage in that place, and not as the o­thers upon the account of Conscience, to enjoy the purity of Ordinances; they did all dye upon the Sea save one, being five in number. And who is so blind, as can­not see here the out stretched Arm of an Omnipotent God, commanding delive­rance for his poor distressed, persecuted, [Page 14] praying, believing Servants, and also for all them that Sayled with them? O who would not Pray at Sea, and trust in him who raises the dead in the saddest of their Extremities and distress! and speaks forth much of the power and goodness of God, calling upon all to trust in him, let the dangers and straits be never so great.

3. A Vessel of ours about the year 1636. being at New-found Land a Fishing, being somewhat of the latest in the year, until the Ice came in great flakes; and be­ing ready to hoise Sayle for the return home, they sent out in the Boat six of the men to weigh their Anchor; but while they were about it, a sad Providence pre­vents them, a great flake of Ice interposes between them and their ship, and carryes them adrift, so that by all means that they and the ship could use, they could not re­cover their Vessel again, whereby they were exposed to an inevitable ruine, nei­ther having Food, nor any other Accomo­dation to keep them warm; they having continued thus three daysand three nights, they began to be Hunger-starv'd, and ac­counting themselves all dead men, they began to consult one with another what course to take; they at last, though with [Page 15] great regret and grief, resolve one of them must dye to become Food for the rest; each person begg'd to have it his Lot to dye first, to be freed from that tor­ment that they languished under; so that they were forced to determine it by Lot: He upon whom the Lot fell, desired to go to one end of the Boat, there to re­commend his soul to God by Prayer, be­fore he dyed; the rest being in a deep A­gony upon apprehension of shedding the blood of one of their Comerades: But while they were sat together, lamenting and imploring God's favour to prevent such a fact according to that they wished and desired: The person separated by Lot for death, dyed upon the place where he was praying, which in their deplorable Condition occasioned great Joy to the rest, that hereby they were not forced a­gainst their wills to take his life; so look­ing upon this as a good Omen, they pro­ceeded to satisfie their Hungers upon the dead body: the Boat was still A-drift, not frozen up; so that by that time, their Food was spent, they were brought ashore many Leagues to the Norward of New-England, where the five landed alive, where the poor Barbarians did commise­rate them, and help them as they could; [Page 16] three of them dyed with the distress they had been in, the other two made a shift to get to New-England, and so at last, by a good hand of God upon them, came to their Habitations in the West of England, having both lost their heels with the ex­tremity of the cold in the Boat. This Re­lation my Author had from one of these two Sea-men, with whom he came after­wards a Passenger from Ireland, to whom he shewed his heels so lost.

4. A small Vessel, about 45 Tun, the Masters name Phillip Hangare, coming upon the Coast of New-England, they suddenly sprang a leak, and so foundred: There were in this poor miscarrying Vessel 18 Sea-men and Passengers; 12 of the men got into the Long-boat, and as that was suddenly brought to their minds in this surprise, they threw into their Boat also some small matters of Provisions, but they were wholly without fire: These 12 men at that time of the year about Micha­elmas, (and as Paul said in his Voyage, Sayling was become dangerous) Sayled five hundred Leagues, and were to a Miracle preserved all that time in this small Boat, five weeks; but it pleased the Lord, who appears in our straits most, to send them [Page 17] great relief, by causing some flying Fish to fall into the Boat, which they eat raw, and were unto them more acceptable than the greatest rarities and dainties at another time; God's Providence now proving the Caterer, they catch'd a Shark, and that Ravenous Fish that uses to prey upon men, now becomes a prey to these poor distressed Creatures; but they were glad of food in the want of fire, and have an heat in their Stomacks, to eat that raw, and digest at this time what would have made them sick at other times; but alas, another want they had, was drink as well as fire, but they were forced to open the belly of this Shark, and suck his blood for drink; at last, that God who hath a desire to the work of his own hands, gives them hopes to release them out of this insupportable misery, by letting them come to a discovery of Land in the West-Indies; but alas, they were so weak, that when they came a­shore, one or two of them dyed; but most of them lived to declare the works of the Lord. This the Author had from one of the 12 that were thus miraculously preserved, but since cast away at Sea.

[Page 18] 5. Captain Jonas Clark, of New-Eng­land, going for Virginia, the Vessel was Cast away in a strange amazing manner, about two hours before day, among the Indians where the Ship-wrackt men lay a­shore in great fear; but three days after they thought to get their ship off again; to which end the Master, with some others, went into the boat, they came threescore Fathom from the shore, where there a­rose a great Sea, and broke in upon them; but the second Sea came and turned the boat up; four men under water, all were drowned, but Captain Clark, who was kept under water by one of the men, un­til his breath was gone, but then God ap­peared, and set him at liberty from him in a most Miraculous way, and inabled him to swim to the shore; they that were a­live now, were in great straits and per­plexities, not knowing what to do, but yet some of their eyes were up to God; at last they Unanimously resolve to Tra­vel, and when they had Travelled one night, and part of a day, meeting with many Swamps and thick places, so that all hope failed them of going along, so they stood still as (wayfaring men) asto­nish'd, not knowing what course to take; and though before they were afraid of any [Page 19] Indians, now they were glad to pray to the Lord for the sight of an Indian, which in this extremity and perplexity, within half an hour the Lord was pleased to grant: The Indian was all alone, which was observable also; when they got to him, they asked the way to the English, and they did perswade him by entreaty to go along with them, but within one hours time, he carryed them to a Town of the Indians, which did sadly fright and amaze them; but they still looked up to the Lord to help and save them; and at last they got to the English, and so were preserved.

This Relation the Author had from Captain Clarks own hand, a person of known Godliness and Integrity.

6. The last Providence called to mind a strange and stupendious passage of a Godly Gentlewoman, who in the first breaking forth of the Rebellion in Ireland, was forced to fly for her life, with some o­ther persons in her Company; especially three Children, one of them upon her Breast: But alas, these poor trembling Travellers had not gone long before they were striped Naked by the Irish, who to admiration spared their lives; but passing [Page 20] on to the foot of a River, others met them and would have cast them into the River but this Godly Woman not being dis­may'd, ask'd a little liberty to Pray, and as she lay on frozen ground Naked, she got a little resolution not to go on her own feet to so unjust a death; upon which having call'd her, upon her resolution, they drag'd her by the heels along the ground, with the rest of the Company; she turns upon them, and on her knees says, You should I am sure be Christians, and men I see you are; in taking away our mise­rable lives you do us a pleasure; but know, as we never wrong'd you, nor yours, you must dye also your selves, and one day give an account of this Cruelty to the Judge of Heaven and Earth. Suddenly upon which, an Irish Priest says, Let us not take their lives, but we will put them in this Island of the Lake; a Boat being at the River, all the eight Naked, and without Meat, are turn'd into that Island, where after four days staying, some of the Com­pany dy'd with Hunger and Cold, but not this Woman, nor any of her Children; a day after, the two Boys found the Hyde of a Beast which had been kill'd at the root of a Tree, which they and the Mo­ther endeavoured to cast over them; then [Page 21] [...]ying upon the Snow, the next day a little [...]oat goes by, to whom she calls for God's [...]ake to take her out, but they refus'd, [...]eing Irish; she desir'd a little Bread, but [...]hey said they had none; she begs a Coal [...]f Fire, which she obtain'd, for they had [...]ome fewel in the Boat, and thus with [...]ome fallen Chips, made a fire; and the [...]oys taking a piece of the Hyde, lay'd it [...]pon the Coals, and began to gnaw the [...]eather; but alas, without an extraordi­ [...]ary Divine support, what could this do? Thus they lived ten days without any vi­ [...]ble supplies, and that good Woman pro­ [...]est it was by Faith and Joy in God she [...]iv'd; nor had she any Bread but Ice and [...]now, nor any Drink but Water, but she [...]hought God put more substance in it, and [...]ound it as it were clammy. The next [...]ay a Boat carryed her out to the side of [...]he Band-water, where yet she had been [...]ost, but that she could not suffer to see her Children dye in her sight; and therefore [...] though the two Boys were young, and so [...]tarv'd, that they had no strength) she [...]ressed them to go out of her sight, under [...]retence of seeking some fire; the poor Children had not gone far until they saw [...]wo or 3 great Dogs eating a man who had [...]een kill'd; the Children were not afraid [Page 22] of the Dogs, (who needed not fear any thing but to live in such a Condition) and one of them came running, and leap­ed upon one of the Children, without doing him the least hurt, and would run a little before, and then tarry until the Children come up, and so led them on where an House whence Smoke appeared, which was an Irish mans, Protected by the English in Antrum, by which means they were marvellously pleased, and the Mo­ther sent for, and succour'd by a party from Antrum. Although this Providence be not a Sea-deliverance, yet it is a remar­kable preservation from danger by Wa­ter, and Hunger at Land.

7. In the first setling of the Bohemi [...] Islands off the Cape of Florida, about the year 1642. there were at that present great troubles in the Burmoudas, one Cap­taine Sale who had been Governour the year before, comes for London, and here informing some of his Acquaintance and Persons of Worth and Estate, how things then stood, they undertake fo [...] him, and got him a Ship, and all thing [...] necessary for the discovery of these Island [...] which he had inform'd them of, s [...] they proceeded to Burmoudas, whe [...] they took in several Passengers, Captai [...] [Page 23] Sale being Cheif, and Captain Lane and his Family which came from London with him as his Assistant in the management of the Designe, so they in pursute of the Voyage, came to an Island call'd Cicatra, [...]he lay down in the Platts, where they could not at present find an Harbour. So they sent out their Shallop upon a dis­covery, which upon Return inform'd them of a better place to Ride in.—But sending out the Shallop again up­on a discovery, before she Return'd, there arose a dreadful Storm that car­ried her immediately upon the Rocks, and stav'd her, with very much diffi­culty most of the People were sav'd, and some Provisions. Then were they Reduc'd to very great straits formida­ble to flesh and blood, a Barren Island, no inhabitants, no likelyhood of Re­leif, little Provisions left; in this great strait most of them resolv'd to travel up to the wester end of the Island and there to abide. (Captaine Lane and his Family, and his Son who was his Leiute­nant) they Resolv'd to seek for some kind of Provisions, and so stay'd on the Island. But Captaine Sale and one Mr. Bounly who had been Master of the Ship, and some other Sea-men, and one Mr. Shad­wel; [Page] [Page] [Page 22] [...] [Page 23] [...] [Page 24] in all eight, Resolv'd to go to Vir­ginia, and took what Provisions they could get, which was one Shark; but before they made to the Land they were in very great wants; For from this Island from whence they departed to Virginia, was three hundred Leagues: in their now great Extreamity, Providence car'd for them, so that they got another Shark, and were glad to eat him Raw. They were a 11 days going to Virginia, and the Boat a very little one, that they could scarcely Steer in her for fear of danger. Yet the Lord in this deep Distress, made his Arm bare for their Salvation, and brought them safe to a place call'd Nuse mum; to one Mr. Richard Brunkets House, where they were curtiously En­tertain'd; and after the Relation upon what account they were put to these Hardships and Necessities, Captain Sale had a Vessel provided laden with ne­cessaries, to go for Cicatra, to Relieve those they had left there in such Di­stress, and they arriv'd there. And O now what Comfort must this be, after such long wishing and gradual Dying, to see that there was now Hopes of Life brought to them; but several of them were starv'd to Death before their [Page 25] Arrival. Captain Lane is now sent to fetch some Provisions who had been in unspeakable Extreamity. He came down in a little Boat, his Son also the Lieute­nant and two Servants, but when they had gotten in their Provision, and going home with hopes of a new Life; Behold, the stupendious providence of God, all of a sudden Death creeps in and Arrests them. For in a narrow place where the Tyde runs swiftly, the Boat is sunk, all are drowned but one man, who car­ried the desolate Widdow the sad Ty­dings [...] what an unwelcome Messen­ger this was you may easily conjecture; about three months after arrived a Vessel to them (the master of her my Author,) and so Mrs. Lane, her Son and Daugh­ter, Maid Servant and Man Servant, where all brought up about forty miles, where they were entertain'd by my Author for six weeks, and gave an account of some notable passages of Gods Providence in preserving them. Worthy never to be forgotten! Her Husband and the men went out to see what they could get for [...] every Day, and they had for the most part just for the Day, and she told my Author that she as a tender hearted Mother would lay something [Page 26] by for her younger Children; but she observ'd that the next Day they never got any thing.

And thus Providence train'd them up in the School of Faith; but further she gave an account of one Remarkable thing, In the last day of the week, upon a time it proved a very stormy Day, and they being abroad a hunting for some support, could get nothing. The Husband and Son comes home very much troub­led, and the men that were gon into the Woods they could get nothing; and they being very much troubled, one took up a Resolution not to come home, knowing their Captain would not suf­fer them to go and hunt on the Lords Day; on the other hand they thought he would wounder what was become of them, and fear lest evil had befallen them; so they alter their Resolution to come home, but empty of any Reliefe; this very Evening before the Sabbath in this perplexety of thoughts, there flys over their Heads three gray Geese; a won­der it was for such Geese that were ne­ver seen before nor after. O says she to her Husband, that we had some of them against to morrow! observing they lighted in a Bottome, she acquaints her [Page 27] Husband, he says they have no shot left. O says she, here is a Porrenger, melt it or cut it into peices, which he did for ex­pedition, and charged his Peice, and at the first shot kill'd them all,—These things, and many more my Author had from her own Mouth, after her marvellous Preservation. O that men would Praise the Lord, for his wonderful Works to the Children of Men.

8. We have a very wonderful Delive­rance recorded, an honest poor man in Maulden in Essex, one Gregory Crow, who with his man and boy, was in his Boat go­ing to fetch Fullers-Earth; but by the way meeting with a Stom his Boat was driven upon a banck of sand, and there sunk; The men were glad to hang upon the Mast, but poor Crow seeing his New-Testament in the water, which he prized highly, caught it up, and took it into his Bosom; the tyde being gone, they were left upon the sand, at least ten miles from land; now in this great Distresse they made their Pra­yers to the Lord, that he would send some means of Deliverance, For now within half an hour it would be flood, but in this little time before Flood, they found a Chest wherein was five pounds six Shil­lings [Page 28] eight pence, but honest Crow cast it into the Sea again saying, If the Lord will please to save our lives he will provide us a little food; and so they went again up the Mast, where they to Admiration hung by the Arms and Leggs for ten hours toge­ther, only the Boy was so weary, and bea­ten with the Waves that he fell off, and was drowned; now their fears encrease upon them, and they know not what to do. But Crow advises his man to cut down the Mast and when the F [...]ood comes again, to fit upon it, and so, sayes he, it may please God to drive us to some Ship; this Coun­cel was taken, they commit themselves to God upon this Mast, and thus continu'd Tuesday Night, Wednesday, and Wednesday Night; in which time the man was so tir'd out with Hunger, Watching, and Cold, that he dyed; now was Crow left alone in this sad and deplorable Condition, who pray'd now the more earnestly for some Succor and Relief, but durst not Sleep, lest the Sea should beat him off the Mast; and when this distress'd miserable object was almost spent, his flesh sodden with Sea water, and his eyes almost closed up with the Salt, now in his Extremity the Lord makes it his opportunity, and s [...]eps in by his Providence, persents a Ship go­ing [Page 29] for Antwerp: (observe here the Finger of God:) The Wind not being favourable was driven out of the way, and espying something a far off in the Sea, but suppose­ing it to be some Fisher-boy steer'd from it. Crow seeing this, held up his Cap and shaked it over his head, whereby at length they were mov'd to go to him, and so they took him in; when he came into the Ship, being half dead, careful of his New Testament, he pluckt it out of his Bosome and gave it to some to dry. They in the Ship were careful of him, and with great difficulty recover'd him, and carryed him with them to Antwerp, where the fame of his being miraculously deliver'd, drew ma­ny to see him, and relieve him with neces­saries. Fox's Book of Martyrs.

9. A Ship of Holland being driven a­gainst her will, came to a Place call'd Zembla, where the Pole is elevated Seventy Six degrees; they among many delays, and great dangers, scarce reach'd the Aurange Islands; for now they were set fast in a Consolidated body of continu'd Ice, which threatn'd them every moment; at last being reduc'd to their ultimate hope, they resolve to return the same way they came, but now they find the [Page 30] Ship quite frozen up, not far from shore, and now they think they should winter in Zembla and waite for a better Season, wherefore taking out Boards and Plancks, they built for themselves, and their Stuffe, a poor shelter, and by a good Providence, the Tide had thrown up a good quantity of Timber, they not knowing from whence it came, it proved a great advantage to them during their abode; here they had continual fights with Bears, which some­times were driven away with making great out-crys, other whiles with Shot [...] they found their flesh unwholesome for food. (For in this place the Maritine wild Beasts, are the food to the wild Beasts of the land) the fat of the Bears they made use of to burn for lights in the night; these poor creatures were at last, after all other Humane Benefits, left by the Sun, in this Barren Country, and left amongst none but wild Beasts: The vast Moun­tains of Snow, with great difficulty they remove, lest the Habitation should be o­verwhelm'd, and if at any time they went forth, their jawes were so benum'd they could scarce recover their former heat; now the Bears in the dark, being dull of fight did not venture out to disturbe them, but multitudes of Foxes, which [Page 31] they took in Traps, and made of them both Victuals and Rayment; and yet after all these dangers and difficultys God preser­ved them, though indeed some of them dyed, they were 12 of them: The chief of them was one Jacob Hamskerk, who re­turned afterwards to Amsterdam. Gro­ [...]ius in his Annalls.

10. In the year 1616 a flemming named Pickman, well known in England and Hol­land, for the art he had in getting out of the Sea, the great Guns of that Spanish Fleet, that was forced upon the Coast of Ireland and Scotland, in the year 1588. coming from Dronthem in Norway, laden with Boards, was overtaken by a Calm, during which, the current of the Sea carryed him on a Rock or a little Island to­wards the extremity of Scotland, where he was in some danger of being cast away; to avoide a wrack, he commanded some of his men to go into the shallop, and to tow off the Ship: these having done so, would needs go upon a certain Rock to seek for eggs, but as soon as they were got up into it, they espy'd a man, whence they imagine there were others lay there a­bout, and that he had made an Escape thither to avoid some Pirats which might Surprize their Ship, so that they made all [Page 32] the hast they could to the Shallop, and re­turn'd to the Ship; but the Calme con­tinuing, and the current of the Sea driving the Vessel against the Island, they were forc'd to get into the Long-boat and Tow her off again; the man they saw before, was in the mean time come to the brink of the Island, and made signes to them with his hands, entreating them to come nearer; and falling on his Knees, and joyning his Hands together, he beg'd Relief from them; at last coming near the Island, they saw something more like a Ghost than a living Person, a body stark Naked, black, hairy, of a meager and de­form'd Countenance, hollow and di­storted Eyes, which raised such Com­passion in them, that they proffer'd to take him into their Boat; at last with some difficulty they took him in; they found upon the Island no Grass nor Trees, nothing for Food, nor any shelter, but the ruins of a boat, wherewith he had made himself an Hut, under which he might be cover'd from Rain and injuries of the Weather; when they came to ask him who he was, and how he came into that un-inhabited place, he reply'd to them he was an English Man, and that a year before he was to go from England [Page 33] to Dublin in Ireland in the Passage-Boat, and that they were taken by a French-Py­rate, who by a Storm that immediately arose, was forc'd to let go the Passage-Boat, left us to the mercy of the Waves, which carryed us between Ireland and Scotland, into the main Sea, expecting to be cast away every minute, as at last we were: For the Bark being split against the Rock, where you took me in, I esca­ped with one of my Comrades into the Island, in a more wretched condition than if swallow'd up by the Sea; who then had been deliver'd out of the Extremities we were in for want of meat and drink; of some of the boards of our Boat we made the Hutt you saw, and we took some Sea­mews which we set a drying in the Wind and Sun, and so eat them raw; we found also in the crevices of the Rock, by the Sea-side, some Eggs: Thus were we kept from starving; but what we thought most insupportable, was Thirst; for there was no Water, but what fell from Heaven; we liv'd thus six weeks, comforting one another, and finding some ease in our common misfortune, till that being left a­lone, it began to grow insupportable to me; for one day, awaking in the morn­ing, and missing my Comrade, I fell into [Page 34] such a Despair, that I had some though [...] of casting my self head-long, and so put a final period to that Affliction, whereof I had but endur'd the one half while I had a Friend suffering with me: I know not what became of him, but I am of that o­pinion that he fell into the Sea, seeking for Eggs; I left with him my Knife, with which we kill'd the Sea-Doggs, and the Mews, upon which we lived; so I was forc'd to get out of my Hut a great Nail, which I made a shift to sharpen upon the Rock, that it serv'd me for a Knife: I was also forc'd to lade a little stick, with a little Sea-dogg fat, and put it out of a crevice of my Hut, and so got some Mews to keep me from starving: I liv'd in this condition and solitude Eleven Months, and was resolv'd to end my days in it, when God sent you to deliver me out of the greatest misery that ever man was in, and this Sea-man after this misery and miraculous preservation, liv'd to return to England. Ambasadors Travels.

A Remarkable Providence of God in wonder­fully preserving of Eleven or Thirteen poor distressed mens lives.

11. In the year 68. a Ketch Sailed from Salom in New-England for the Barbadoes; [Page 35] and when they came into the Latitude of 35. it began to look like foul weather, so they took in their Top-sail, and because it was towards night, they struck down the Main sail, and Rafed it; and all this time there was but a little wind (which was remarkable, if the ensuing story be observ'd) but still it looked like bad wea­ther; so they sent up one to Tallow tho Mast, and made no great hast to set Sayll; the man at the Top thinks he sees some black thing float upon the Sea, and look­ing upon it very fixtly, he conceives it to be a Boat, and so calls to the men below, so they hasten'd to hoise Sayl and make towards it; and when they came to them, there was a Long-boat with a 11 or 13 men, (my Author could not absolutely remember the just number) which poor distressed Creatures, had been bound for Virginia; and the ship in which they were, prov'd very Leaky, and so exceedingly encreas'd, that in a very little time, she was ready to sink; so all hands hasten'd to get out the boat, but the Master stept into the Cabbin to fetch a Compass, and took some Canvas, a Sayl-needle and twine which he thought might be useful to them in their Need and Extremity, but while [...]his poor industrious man was endeavour­ing [Page 36] to be useful to some other mens lives, he was in danger to lose his own; for the boat was put off, and the ship sinking, so he crys to them in this distress, if they would leave him, and let him there Perish; so they came back, and took him in; they had in their boat a Capstone-bar, which they made use of for a Mast, and the piece of Canvas for a Sayl, and so Sayled afore the wind, and had no kind of Food; and now comes dreadful and inexpressible di­stress upon them, making them wish for death it self to give them a deliverance, now all hopes of Relief fail'd them; thus they continu'd five days, some grew Lame, others Feeble, and all much dis­hearten'd by despair of Life; and now upon the 6th. day, they had concluded to cast Lotts for their lives, who should dye to preserve others; and they put their Resolution into Execution, and that poor Creature, upon whom the Lott fell, begs for time; but alas, what will a Reprieve be in this case, where there is no hope of Relief; but O what difficult work is it to dye? what a strait was here? Live he could not, and Dye he could not; well, a little time is defer'd, and behold a won­der-working God appears now for him, and for them all; before night, they e­spy'd [Page 37] this Ketch, which rais'd them all to Admiration; but they had fears in this distress, that the Ketch did not see them; but when they perceiv'd the Ketch made to them, O what a new life did it put in­to these dying men; so they all got safe Aboard: And see here the goodness of God: In one hour after there arose a most dreadful Storm which continu'd for forty hours, and all of them safely Arriv'd at Barbadoes.

The Masters name of the Ketch was Thomas Woodberry of Salom. This the Author had from a very known person of Integrity and Godliness, now living at Salom.

12. In the year 1606. in the Wars be­twixt the Netherlands and the Spaniards, upon the Spanish Ocean, fell out this ob­servable and remarkable action, taken notice of by Grotius, in his Annals of the Low-Country Wars. Admiral Hauteen being sent to intercept the Spanish Fleet, coming from America and the Indies, he had with him four and twenty Vessels; but of these, six were beaten back by Tempests; soon after Frasciardo, with eight great Gallions, having a prospe­rous Gale, fell upon them unprovided, [Page 38] and e're they were aware; but the Galleys that were with him, not being driven by the Wind, kept by the shore; but one of them being grappl'd with a ship of Zea­land, that was next the Admiral, so af­frighted the rest, that as soon as they saw it, they in the very beginning of the Night, Retreated with all hast. Hauteen thus left by his Companions, being a man of an Undaunted spirit, for two whole days did not leave off the Fight, though most of his men were in that time lost; but with his torne ship, casting off all fear of danger, protracted the Victory; but after he saw no hopes of Relief, and that the Waves pour'd in upon him, that none of them might come alive into the Ene­mies hands, at once they Unanimously agreed upon a Resolute and Terrible action: For kneeling down upon their Knees, they like dying, but desperate men, beg of God, that he would please to pardon in that they sought to shun the Mockeries and Cruelties of the Spaniards, by that sad and lamentable death; so they set fire to the Gun powder, by which blow threescore men were kill'd, two half dead lived a little while, being taken by the Spaniards with wonder, beholding their dreadful Countenances, and their words, [Page 39] with their strange Resolution and Obsti­nacy in Death.

13. In the year 1607. about the time when the Plantations of Virginia began to be a little settled by King James, some Britains went to Guyana, but a dange­rous Sedition arose in the Voyage, and the Ship being lost, part of the Company remained in the Island, where continually vexing the Barbarians with their unkind usage, they, at last, were set upon by War as Enemies; by force of which, and the want of Victuals, they committed them­selves to the Sea in a Boat made only of an Hollow Tree; there these poor di­stressed Creatures were tossed with conti­nual Tempests, betwixt Despair and Hope of Life; but at last they were driven up­on the Rocks, after great misery endured by them in their little Boat for Ten days together; and now their danger was les­lessen'd, for here they must fall into the hands of the Spaniard, who pardon'd them, in regard they came not to those Parts of their own accord, but by the stress of Weather. Thus were these poor distressed Men saved and preserved, when all hope of being saved was taken away.

[Page 40] 14. The Phoenix Frigot, in the time when Captain Wheston Commanded her, and Mr. May was Master, being Com­manded to carry some Persons of Quality from Rye to Deep in France; the Captain and several of the Gentlemen that be­longed to the Frigot was Ashore; the Captain sends the Long-boat Aboard, and Order'd the Frigot to weigh and come to sayl, and stand too and fro off in the Bay, and he would come out in his Pinnis; and the Gentlemen that was with him, were namely Sunebank Giles his Chyrurgion, Mr. Goodwin his Chaplain, Mr. Perkins his Barbar and Gentleman, Mr. Richards, and some three more Gentlemen Refor­madoes, Abraham Car Coxswain, and about 12 Seamen for his Crew, that set out of Rye, and crossed the Bay to meet the Frigot under Sayl; and when they came near, being a good way a-head, wa­ved to the Frigot to keep her way, and not to come a playse for her, which she did with a fresh Top-sail Gail of Wind, till she came up with the Pinnis, and then the Coxen would a-laid her Aboard of the Larboard-side; but the Captain supposing himself far enough a-head, Commanded him to shout a-head of her, and lay her a­board of the Starboard-side, which he assu­ming [Page 41] to do, the Ship giving a saw, and ha­ving fresh way, the Pinnis was not past, but the Cotwater of the Ship cut the Pinnis in the middle, and run right over, that she lay in a moment of time in 100 pieces, and all the Men floating for their lives; in the interim of which time, with a Cry, they gave a leap, in which leap, the Captain catcht hold o [...] the Railes of the Head, Mr. Richards on the Captain's heels, Mr. Giles the Chyrurgion on Richard's heels, Mr. Goodwin on Giles's heels, and some other person on his; so that with that spring, or leap, no less than 4 or 5 pro­videntially catcht about one the others heels or middle, as Boys when at play­ing Truss; and in hoysting in the Cap­tain, they preserved 4 or 5 more with him; the Coxen sunk down, and brought some of the Tallow of the Lower part of the ship on his cloaths, and came up again at the Stern, where he was taken up by the Seamen; some by swiming, others by the assistance of the Oar, and pieces of the Boat, by God's blessing kept them from drowning, till the Long-boat took them all up, except the Captain's Barber Mr. Perkins, whom it seems had sunk, its thought his last time; but Providence so order'd it, that the Man in the main [Page 42] Channel having the hand Lead, there fell a chrockle in the dipsey-Line, and in that very interim, the Lead fell in the very place where the Barber was sunk, and the chinckle of the Line fell about the Bar­bers Fingers, hitcht about his Ring, and so providentially fasten'd it self, so that as the Man in the Sceanes haling up his Lead, found it to come heavier than it used to do; admiring, at last up comes the Barber fastned in the chinkle by his Ring, which the Spectators amazed at, immediately took hold of him, and pulled him into the Frigot, with his Eyes fixed, and Teeth set, and little appearance of Life; but by the blessing of God on the immediate means used, and care of him, he soon came to himself, and recovered; so that notwithstanding this shrewd disa­ster, which might have proved fatal to all, or most of them, yet there was not one Man of them all miscarry'd, but was recover'd to their health again, as Mo­numents of God's Mercy. For truth of this, many of the Men are alive at this day; the Chyr [...]rgion now living in Grays-Inn-Lane; and at the very interim of time I was then aboard the said Frigot, and was not only an Eye-spectator, but an Instrument to help in preserving of some [Page 43] of them, and therefore may Aver it to be Truth. Ezekiel Fog.

15. About Ten years ago, in the Island of Barbados, there did arrive one Mr. John Blackleach (from New England) a very honest Man, who gave account, that in his then Voyage, his Son being Ma­ster of the Vessel, and himself Merchant, their Men at Sea did Mutiny, at which occasion he and his Son was forced to stand on their Guard for some time, casting his care on the Lord: But whilst under this trouble, being in the Long-Reach, in or near the Latitude of Bar­badoes, they all did see a Great Ship which stood toward them; and while they were Looking on her, to see how fast she came towards them (she being pretty near) vanish'd away, which struck the Men with Great Fear, and made them humble themselves to the Good Old Man, and desired his Prayers for them.

16. In the Month of November, 1669, the Ship Prosperous of Bristol, [...]ailed from thence, being bound for Galloway in Ireland, but was forced into Bruts-Bay in Cornwal, where the Ship brake in pieces, six Per­sons [Page 44] being Drowned, others wonder­fully cast on Shore and bruised; amongst the rest John Denny (a Skinner of Bri­stol) was cast a Shore by a Great Sea, be­ing much bruised and almost Dead; and was by some stript naked, and laid a­mongst the other Dead Folk that were taken up, being only cover'd with some Straw or Rubbish. But by Providence, an Old Man looking on the Dead People, did perceive some Life in the said Denny, and the Lord open'd his heart, that he stript himself of his own Shirt and some Cloaths, and put on him, and took him from amongst the Dead: through his La­bour and Love, by God's blessing, the said Denny is now well and liveth at Bri­stol. This my Author had from John Denny's own Mouth.

17. In the Year 1671, I being at Boston in New-England, I oft went to see an Acquaintance of mine, one Abraham Darby, a sober honest Man, a Master of a Vessel, who relates the following Sto­ry, which he attesteth to be Truth. That some few years ago, he the said Darby being Master of a small Ketch, was bound from Barbadoes to Virginia, he having an Irish Woman, a Servant, on [...] Board, to be deliver'd in Virginia, but [Page 45] she was a vile Person, and having often of­fended, at last was punish'd, for which she said they should not carry her to Virginia, tho the Wind was very fair, and carried them in sounding of the Capps of Virginia: That they had bent one Cable to the Anckor, thinking soon to get in; but she still said they should not: then the Wind sprang up of a sud­den, in a meer fret, which forced them many days off, and their Provisions near spent (it being, if I mistake not, in Mar [...]h) then the Wind came fair again, a fresh Gaile, and they before it, in hopes to gain their passage; but on a sudden there came a Great Sea that cast the Vessel on her side (she having but little beside Ballast in her) that her Goods and things in hold shifteth. But it pleased God they clapt the Helm a weather, and she wore, and all hands as could in the Hold brought her to rights, and the Wind continued fair till they came near the place that it took them short before, and then took them as before, that they were forc'd off again for many days, having then but two or three pieces of Beefe, and no Bread, nor (I think) above a Gallon of fresh Water: But after some time the Wind came fair, they making Sail to [Page 46] get back, it being fine weather, there came a great Sea and laid her down a­gain, and carried her Mast away, and a part of the Partners that hould the Mast, that as she lay on one side, the Sea rush'd into her; but the Master with his Bed and Rug stopt the force, till it pleased God they had shifted the things in the hould and brought her to rights again, (now these poor Souls were left as a Wrack in the Ocean, and neither Victu­als nor Drink, but strong Water and Su­gar, to help them) but finding a Spar or Oars, in the hould, made shift to get out a smal Sail (I had like to have omit­ted, that whilst they had any Food, they would have given this wicked Woman a part, but she would not Eat any thing) then it pleased God to send a fine Gale, and they got on the Cost of New-England, and sounding, round about forty Fathom Water, and very calme; then they chopt to an Anckor there, and that Night got two or three Fish, wherewith they Re­freshed themselves (but the Woman would not Eat) but could get no more: and finding a fine Gale, weighed Anckor, and thought to have got with­in Cape-Cod, not being far of; but the Wind came fresh against them, and drove [Page 47] them off again to Sea, and then 'twas [...]alm; and about that time the Woman [...]ad fasted about 21 Days, and yet could Curse and Damn, and say, She should not go Ashore; but that Night the Master and some others being on the Deck, spied a Great Black Thing Rise out of the Sea, to their thinking, much bigger than the Ketch, the Sea being Light all about, and the Woman in the Hold made a Great Noyse; and when she had given a Great Screach or Groan, this Great Black Thing Vanish'd, the Water seeming like Fire all round, and made a Great Sea and Noise: And when the Men came to them selves, they looking for the Woman, found her Dead; and after they had [...]ung her over-Board, they had a brave Wind and Weather, and got safe to Pli­mouth in New-England.

18. At New-England, in the year 1671, [...] spoke with John Grafting of Sal [...]m, and others of good Repute, who told me, not [...]ong before the said Grafting suffered Shipwrack amongst the Leward Islands, [...] the Name of the Place I forget) the Ship or Ketch being broken to pieces, himself [...]nd Mate, and one or two were cast with [...]he Sea ashore amongst the Rocks most [Page 48] wonderfully, not knowing of each other till by Providence they met amongst the Rocks, it being an Island without Inhabi­tants (if I mistake not) and they bruised yet the Lord provided for them in a won­derful manner, and not only there, but in their getting off that place, and bringin [...] them safe to their Friends and Relation [...] in Salem in New-England; where Praise [...] was returned to the Lord, who wonder­fully preserves the Children of Men. hope this ere long will be enlarged from the Party himself.

19. I being well Acquainted with on [...] Jeffery Howard a Marriner, who is a Man of Good Repute, he told me as followeth [...] That about Twelve or Fourteen year [...] since, he was coming through the City o [...] Salisbury, he was looking on the Stree [...] Rivers, and spies something move on th [...] Water; but looking earnestly saw it to have Life, steps in and got it out, and found it to be a Man-child, only inrapt a [...] it came into the World from its Mother and it was put to Nurse, and now is become a fine Youth.

20. At Bristol, a place well known, no [...] many years ago, a Man fell into the River [...] [Page 49] near about the marsh, and not being seen, was carri'd down with the tide someway; and, I think, could not swim, but lay as dead on the water, driving with the tide, but by providence, some being in the mea­dow going to work, or coming from the Lymekils, Being by the water side play­ing with a Spaniel, saw somthing floating, slung in things to make the dog fetch it; and the dog accordingly took hold of the man by the cloaths, and brought him a shore; and finding some symptoms of Life, took care of him; and he came to Life, and dwels in New-Bristol. This I had from the Spectators.

21. In the year 1671 one Mr. Savage, Master of the Society Ketch, bound from Bristol to Boston in New-England, met on the coast of N. E. the Ship called the George of Bristol, being in distress, spake with them; the ship having sprang a lcak, their men tired and spent with Pumping; the Master and all his Company went on Board the Ketch with speed, and soon af­ter the ship sunk.

This I had from Mr. Savage and other Passengers with him, who affirmed it to be truth. David Fogg.

[Page 50] 22. Captain John Trankmore, Commander of a Ship belonging to Apsom, near Exe­ter; in one of his Voyages of late years, being at Sea in a dark night, and foul wea­ther, fell foul of another ship unexpect­edly, not then knowing what each other were, but a Sea parting them again; in the interim Captain Trankmore's ship, shipt a great Sea which wash'd the said Trank­more over-board; and another Sea, cast, or hove him into the other ship, which fell out to be an English-man, bound for Plymouth: Thus in the dark, the Wind and Sea parts the said ship, without having knowledge of each other, Captain Trankmore concluding that his own ship was foundred and all his men Lost, and God had wrought a wonder of mercy in his Preservation; but so it fell out, that one Samuel Snytal, who was his Appren­tice, had obtain'd such knowledge of the Art of Navigation, and his Master being gone, and as they suppos'd drown'd, being wash'd over-board, was necessitated to improve his skill, and by Gods blessing, he carry'd the ship safe home to Apsom, where Arriving, although they had made [...] good Voyaye, yet the sorrow for the los [...] of the Master, [...]at up all the Comfort [...] and Smiles a Prosperous Voyage otherwise [Page 51] would have made; but so Providence or­der'd it, that about the same time, three or four days after, the other ship Arrives safe in Plymouth; where the said Trank­more Landed, very sorrowful and dejected, having (as he supposed) lost his Ship (wherein he was deeply concern'd as an Adventurer himself) and all his Men; as he was in the Morning walking on the Hope at Plymouth very Dejectedly, he Providen­tially meets with one of his Executors, or Apsom Neighbours, who looks him in the Face with Astonishment, knowing him well, and yet believing the Report of his being dead, or lost, in amaze Salutes him with these Expressions; What, Captain Trankmore? who replyes, A poor Cap­tain; having lost my Ship richly Laden, and after a good Voyage, with all my Men, not a soul saved but my self Whom, by a Miracle, God wrought Salvation for, (as before-Recited) giving the Gentleman, his Neigh­bour, an account of the Providence to­wards him; when, after a little pause, his Friend imbraces him, and with admiring of the Providence, bids him be of good heart, for his Ship and all his Compa­ny was well and safe Arrived at Apsom; for his Man Samuel Snytal had brought her safe home, and all the Sorrow [Page 52] and cry there, was for the loss of him. Which reply, struck the said Trankmore in as much amaze on the other hand, being almost Incredulous of truth, till his Friend possitively affirming it, and then consult­ing his own Mercy, saw, and was made sensible, there was no Mercy too great for God to work, and from thence took heart, recovering himself, went home rejoycing, where he found his expectation answer'd, and a wellcome given him by all persons with him concern'd.

For the truth, I have heard it acknow­ledg'd by Captain Trankmore's own mouth at my House in Bristol; and farther, the same Snytal was my Predecessor's Son, and I have heard his Mother-in-law speak of it to several, and hath affirmed it to me for a truth.

23. The Bristol Frigot, when Captain Fenn was Commander, being in the Straits in Chace of Captain Popoctiene, a Spanish Knight of Malto, who at that time our Squadron took and brought Prisoner to the Tower; in pursuit of which Chace, the Wind began to rise, the Captain Commands presently to get the Top-gal­lant sails abroad; and the Yards being not then Aloaft, three Men run up presently, [Page 53] where one stood on the top of the Shroud, under the Main Top-mast-cross-trees, a second stood a top of the Cross-trees, and the other stood by the Top-gallant-mast on the Cape, at the Main Top-mast-head; all expediting their work in getting the Top-gallant-sail abroad; at which time the wind freshen'd, and carry'd our Main­top-mast by the board; in which disaster the Man that was lowermost, and least in danger, fell over-board and was drown­ed; and the other two which were in Greatest danger (one of their Names was Roger Dennis, under the Denomination of a Quaker) instead of being bruis'd and their bones broken all to pieces, which the eye of Reason could not otherwise imagine by such a fall; they both fell for­ward upon the Bunt of the Main-course, and one catches hold of the Main Bunt­lines, and the other of the Leech-lines, and slacke of a bowling. and so both comes down to the Deck, and neither of them in the least prejudic'd.

For the truth of this, my Author was then Aboard the said Frigot, and was an Eye-witness of this Providence.

24. An Account of two Ships bound for New-found-Land, from some part in the [Page 54] West of England, who by distress of Weather lost Company; some days after being fair weather, one of the Ships sprang a Leak, and foundred in the Sea, where every Soul perish'd, except one Old Man, who had lasht himself on the main Hatch, and committed himself to the Mercy o [...] the Sea and God's Providence, where he was floating three days and three nights; in which time, about the middle of the second day, the Devil assuming the shape of a Mare-maid, starts up before him, and bids him be of good heart, for, i [...] he would but make a Contract with him he would ingage a Deliverance for him in 24 hours; the Old Man being sensible it was the Devil, and doubtless, having been a proving of his heart to God, as the Circumstance of Providence he was under more immediately called for, found in himself a renewed strength put into him, inabling him to hold up his head, and looking the Tempter in the Face; Replyes, Ah Satan, if thou canst prophesy deliverance for me; know, my God in whom I trust, will deliver me without thy help; but however, know, I will not com­ply to thy wiles, therefore avoid Satan, a­void; so immediately he Vanish'd, and appear'd no more to him: But so it fell [Page 55] out, the other Ship being at that time in the same Peril or Latitude, that Night▪ the Cabbin-Boy Dreams a Dream, that such a Ship thereabouts was Foundred, and every Soul lost, except such an Old Man, naming his Name, who was saved on a piece of a Ship, and floating in the Sea; which Dream, the Boy in the Morn­ing confidently tells to the Company and his Master; at last, the Boy began to shew more Confidence, affirming it, as if it must be true; insomuch, he receiv'd some Checks from his Master; but how­ever, at last, the Boy grew so restless, that he, running up from one Mast to a­nother, sometimes at Fore-top-mast­head, and then on the Main-top-mast­head, looking abroad, that at last, crying out aloud; Alow there, I see him, I see him under our Lee-bon; thus confidently affirming it, some of the Men stept up, and spy'd something at a distance no big­ger than a Crow to appearance, floating, and advised the Master of it, who pre­sently commanded the Helm to be born up, and stood away to it; and when they came near, found it to be the Old Man, as the Boy said; so they hoyst out their Boat, and took him in, who then was speech­less, and almost spent; but by the care of [Page 56] the Master and the Chyrurgion, with God's Blessing, recover'd, and gave a ver­bal account of his Misfortune, and yet wonderful deliverance; together with Sa­tan's Temptation as before recited; which Ship, in due time, Arriv'd safe at her Port in New-found-Land, where this Man was well Landed a-shore.

For Confirmation, I had this, and heard it related at my Father's House in Salom in New-England, by Mr. John Blackledge a Merchant, who is a Person of a sober life, and in Fellowship there, who then came from New-found-land, and did af­firm that he spake with the Man himself, whom God wrought this wonderful deli­verance for, he being then at New-found-Land when the said Ship Arriv'd there, and the Man went first ashore.

25. Anno Christi. 1630. May the first, the Moscory Merchants of London sent a Ship called the Salutation of London for Greenland, which arriv'd there in safe­ty the Eleventh of June following, toge­ther with two other Ships, all which were commanded by Captaiu William Goodler. The Ship wherein the Captain was stay­ed at Bell-sound; This of the Salutation at the Foreland: And the Captain meet­ing [Page 57] with store of Whales, quickly made a Great Voyage, and so sent for the Sa­lutation to take in part of his Train-Oyl: By the way, as they went to him, meet­ing with Cross-Winds, the Master set-Eight of his Men on Shore to kill some Venison, in a place where there used to be good store. These Men taking with them a Brace of Dogs, a Snaphance, two Lances, and a Tinder-box, went on shore, and that day they laid Fourteen Good Deer upon the Ground: And then, be­ing weary, and the Night coming on, they betook themselves to Rest, intending the next day to make an end of their Hunt­ing, and so to return to their Ship: But the next day proved Foggy, and there was much Ice between the Shore and the Ship, and the Wind coming Southerly, the Ship was [...]ain to stand so far off into the Sea to be clear of the Ice, that they lost the sight of her; and the Weather growing thicker and thicker, they thought fit to Hunt along the Shoar to Green-Harbour, and there to stay aboard the Ship, till their own Ship should come in­to the Port.

In this passage they killed Eight Deer more, and so having laden their Shallop with Venison, they kept on their course [Page 56] [...] [Page 57] [...] [Page 58] to Green Harbour: But when they came thither, they found, to their Great Asto­nishment, that the Ship was departed. Being thus frustrated of their Expectati­on, and having but three days to the ut­termost expiration of their limitted time for their departure out of that Country, they thought it their best course to make all speed possible to Bell-Sound, to their Captain; and lest delay should prove dangerous, they lightned their Shallop by heaving their Venison over-board into the Sea, and so they hasted all they might, and that night got half-way: But the dark Fog increasing, they were forced to cove in a point of Land till the next day at Noon: At which time the Weather be­ing clearer, they hasted forward; but having no Compass to direct their course by, they wandred up and down so long, till the Ships were departed. This filled them with fear and astonishment, know­ing that neither Christian nor Heathen had ever Inhabited those desolate Cli­mates: Yea, they had heard that the Merchants had endeavour'd, with proffers of Great Rewards, and of sufficient Furni­ture, and Provision of all things necessa­ry, to hire some to undertake to Winter in those parts, but could never meet with [Page 59] any that would adventure their lives in so hazardous an undertaking: They had heard also, that the Company of Moscovy Merchants had once procur'd the Reprieve of some Malefactors condemned to death here in England, unto whom they pro­mised Pardon, together with Rewards and Provision of Cloaths, Victuals, and all o­ther Necessaries, if they would stay one Winter there: But when they came thither and took a view of the desolateness of the place, they conceiv'd such horrour and fear in their hearts, that they chose rather to return for England, and there to satisfie the Law with the loss of their lives, than to stay in so desolate and darksom a Coun­try. They remembred also a more terri­ble Example, of Nine Good and Able Men left there formerly by the same Master that had now left them, who all died mi­serably upon the place; and whose bodies were fearfully disfigured by the Savage Bears, and Hungry Foxes, which are the only Inhabitants of that comfortless Coun­try: All which made them, like amazed Men, to stand one looking upon another, every one fore-seeing the future Calami­ties both of himself and of his Fellows: and that which much encreased their hor­rour, was, their want of all necessary pro­vision [Page 60] for the life of Man, having neither Cloaths to keep them warm, and for shift, or food to prevent the Miseries of cruel Famine, nor a house wherein to shroud themselves from the extremity of Cold.

But after a space, knowing that delay in extremities is the Mother of all danger, they began to conceive hope out of the depth of despair; and therefore they con­sulted together of the likeliest course for their preservation in that place, and re­solved upon the opportunity of the next fair weather to go to Green-Harbour to kill some Venison for part of their winter Provision, which accordingly ther did, but found not so many Deer as they ex­pected; yet the first day they killed Se­ven, and Four Bears to boot, which they also intended to eat: The next day they killed Six Deer more, and as they return­ed, they killed Six more, and then the weather proving foul and cold, they laded their Shallop with the Dear and Bears; and finding another Shallop left there as usually they do from year to year, they laded it with Graves of Whales that had been boiled there that year; and so divi­ding themselves into those two Shallops, they took the first opportunity of return­ing to Bell-Sound to their Tent, where they [Page 61] intended to take up their rest for the Winter.

But in their passage, the night coming on, and the wind blowing hard, they were forc'd to stay in the midst way at Bottel Cove for that night: There they fasten'd their Shallops one to another, and casting out their Anchor, they left them riding in the Cove.

But here again, for the tryal of their patience, and to teach them to relie more upon God's Providence, than upon any outward means of their own, this mis­chance befel them: The wind blowing hard into the Cove, and their Anchor coming home, their Shallop sunk into the Sea, and so wet all their Provision, and some of it they found swimming up and down by the shoar: The sight thereof, wonderfully troubled them, to see the best part of their Provision, the only hope of their lives under God, in danger either utterly to be lost, or to be spoil'd by the Sea-water, for which they had taken such pains, and run so many adventures in the getting of it: and in this their misery, they saw but one remedy, and that was a desperate one, viz. to run into the high­wrote Sea to their Shallops to save the remainder of their Provisions, now ready [Page 62] to be washed away by the billows: This they did, and by main force drew the Shallops to the shore; then they went a­long by the Sea-side to gather up such of their Provisions as was swimming up and down: and when the weather prov'd fair, they went on to Bell-sound: where being arrived, they took out their provi­sion, and viewed the great Tent which was built of Timber and Boards, and co­vered with Flemish Tiles: The use of it was for the Coopers to work and lodge in whilst they made Cask for the putting up of the Traine-Oyle; and they resolved to build another smaller Tent within that for their Habitations; and accordingly, taking down a lesser Tent that stood near to it, wherein the Landmen lay whilst they made their Oyle, they fetched their materials from thence, both Boards, Posts, and Rafters, and from the Chimnies of the Furnaces, they took a thousand Bricks; they found also four Hogsheads of Lime, which mingled with sand from the shoar, made good morter: But the weather was grown so extream cold, that they were fain to make two fires on both sides, to keep their morter from freezing; then they raised a wall of one Brick thick­ness against the inner planks of the side of [Page 63] the Tent; but by that time they had wall'd two sides of their house, their Bricks fail­ed, so that they were forc'd to build the other two sides of boards; which being nail'd on both sides the posts, they were hollow between, which they fill'd up with sand, that made it so tite, that the least breath of air could not possibly annoy them. The length of their Tent was twenty foot, and the breadth sixteen; their Chimney was the breadth of a deal board, and four foot high; they ciel'd it with boards five or six times double, that no wind could possibly get through: The door they made as close as they could, and lin'd it with a bed that they found there, which came over both the opening and shutting of it: they made no Windows, having no light but what came through the Chimney: then set they up four Ca­bins, quartering themselves two and two in a Cabin; their Beds were the Deer­skins dry'd, which was a warm and com­fortable lodging for them in their distress: their next care was for firing, and finding seven old Shallops which were unservice­able, they brake them up, and stow'd them over the beams in the great Tent to make it the warmer, and to keep the Snow from driving through the Tiles into [Page 64] the Tent: and by this time the cold en­creasing, and scarce having any day at all, they stav'd some empty Cask, and brake two old coolers (wherein they coole their Oile) providing whatsoever firing they could without prejudice to the next years Voyage: yet considering the small quantity of fuel, the extremity of cold, and the long time of their aboad, they husbanded it as thriftily as possibly they could.

Having thus fitted every thing in the best manner they could, on the twelfth of September, looking out into the Sound, they espied two Sea-horses lying asleep on a piece of Ice, whereupon, taking up an old harping-iron, they hastn'd to them, and first slew the old one, and then the young; and so bringing them ashore, they [...] them, roasted, and eat them. Not long after they kill'd another; but the nights and cold weather encreasing on them, and they viewing their Provision, found it too small by half; whereupon they stinted themselves to one reasonable meal a day, and agreed to fast Wednes­days and Fridays, excepting from the Graves or Fritters of the Whale (which was a very loathsome meat) of which they allow'd themselves sufficient for [Page 65] their present hunger: at which diet they continu'd about three months.

Having finished whatever they could invent for their preservation; they found that all their Cloaths and Shooes were worn, and torn; to repair which, they had this new devise; of Rope-yarn they made thread, and of Whale-bones nee­dles to sew their Cloaths withal: But October the tenth, the nights being grown very long, and the cold so violent, that all the Sea was frozen over; and they having now nothing to exercise their minds upon, were troubled with a thou­sand imaginations: Sometimes they be­wail'd their absence from their Wives and Children, thinking what grief it would be to them to hear of their miscar­riage: then thought they of their Pa­rents, and what a cutting corrasive it would be to them to hear of their untimely deaths, &c. and being thus tormented in their minds with fear, and grief, and pinch­ed in their bodies with hunger, and cold, the hideous monster of desperation pre­sented his ugliest shape unto them: But thinking it not best to give way to grief and fear, they doubled their prayers to Al­mighty God for strength and patience in their miseries, by whose assistance, they [Page 66] shook off their former thoughts, and cheared up themselves to use the best means for their preservation.

Then for the preservation of their Ve­nison, and lengthening of their firing, they thought best to roast every day half a Deer, and to stow it in Hogsheads, which accordingly they did, leaving so much raw as would serve to roast every Sab­bath day a quarter, &c. And when this was over, they began again to think of their ensuing misery, that in case God should give them life, yet they were to live as Banished men from all Company; and as if their sorrows had been too little, they presently found an encrease of it; for their Whale-Fritters, after they had been drenched in the Sea-water, lying close together, were grown mouldy, and spoyl­ed: and again surveying their Bear, and Venison, they found that it would not af­ford them five meals a week, whereupon they were fain to cut off one meal more; so that for three months after, four day [...] in the week they fed upon the unsavory mouldy Whale-Fritters, and the other three they feasted with Bear and Veni­son: But besides the want of meat, they now began to want light, so that all thei [...] Meals were Suppers: For, from the four­teenth [Page 67] of October, to the third of February, they never saw the Sun so much as peep above the Horizon: But the Moon, when not obscured with Clouds, they always saw shining as bright as in England: All which darksome time, they could not cer­tainly tell when it should be day, and when night.

In the beginning of this darkness, they sought some means to preserve light, and finding a piece of sheet-lead, and some Oyl in the Coopers Tent, and Rope-yarn, they made a Lamp, which they kept con­tinually burning, which was a great com­fort to them in their extremity; yet their wants and miseries were so many, and great, that sometimes they brake forth into impatient speeches against the causers of them, but then their Consciences a­gain minded them of their own evil de­serts, and so they took it as a just hand of God for their former wicked lives, or that God intended to make them exam­ples of his Mercy in their wonderful deli­verance: Humbling themselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, they pro­strated themselves in prayer two or three times a day, which course they constantly held all the time of their misery.

[Page 68] In the beginning of January, as the days began to lengthen, the cold began to strengthen; which proceeded to that extremity, that it raised blisters on their flesh as if they had been burnt with fire, and if at any time they touched Iron, it would stick to their fingers like bird­lime: If they went out a doors to fetch in a little water, it would so pinch them, that they were sore as if they had been beaten. In the beginning of Winter, with Pick-axes breaking the Ice daily, they got some water on the Sea-shore: but after the tenth of January, they had none but Snow water which they mel­ted with hot Irons, which was their on­ly Drink till the twentieth of May fol­lowing.

By the last of January the days were seven or eight hours long, and then view­ing their victuals again, they found that it would not last above six weeks longer, which made them fear further Famine; but they had recourse to God, who they knew, could supply them beyond their hopes.

Looking out on a bright day, they saw a great she Bear with her Cub coming towards their Tent, whereupon arming themselves with their Lances, they went [Page 69] forth, and stay'd her coming; she soon cast her greedy Eyes upon them, and hoping to devour them, hasted towards them: But with their Lances they gave her such an hearty welcome, that she tumbled upon the ground, biting the Snow for anger: the Cub seeing this, escap'd by flight: The weather was so extream cold, that they were fain presently to retire into the Tent, and having warmed themselves, they drew in the dead Bear, wherewith they dined merrily; and this Bear served them twenty days: Only this mischance they had, eating her Liver, it made their skins peel off; when she was spent, they yet fear'd that their Venison would not hold out till the Fleet came out of England; but God sent many Bears to their Tent, by times, at least forty, whereof they kill'd seven; One of which was exceeding great, at least six foot high; so that their Food encreasing, they kept not themselves to such short com­mons, but oft eat two or three meals a Day, which much encreased their strength.

By this, the chearful days lengthen'd so fast, that several sorts of Fowl resorted thither. March 16th one of their Ma­stiffs [Page 70] went abroad which they never saw after; upon the coming of the Fowls, the Foxes, which all winter had kept their Burroughs under the Rocks, came abroad to seek for their livings; where­upon they set up Traps, which they bai­ted with the skin of these Fowls, by which means they caught at times fifty Foxes; all which they rosted, and found to be good meat: then taking the Bear­skins, [...]aying the fleshy side upwards, and making springs of Whale-bone, they caught about sixty Fowls as big as Pigeons.

May the first, the weather began to be pretty warm, so that they went dayly abroad to seek for Provision: but no­thing they could find for many days, till at length they met with abundance of Willocks eggs; of which they carried home thirty, intending the next day to fetch a thousand more, but the day prov'd so cold that they could not stir out of their Tent. The same day there came two ships of Hull into the Sound, who knowing that some men had been left there the year before, being very desirous to know whether they were dead or alive, the Master mann'd forth a shallop to go as near the shore as they [Page 71] could, and so over the Ice to the Tent: When these men came near the Tent, they haled them with the usual word of the Sea, crying Hey: to which one of them in the Tent answered again Hoe; which sud­den answer almost amaz'd them all: but perceiving them to be the very men left there, with joyful hearts they embrac'd one another, and so coming into the Tent, they shew'd the Hull-Men the curtesie of the House, giving them some Venison which was roasted four months before, and a cup of cold Water, which for novelty sake, they kindly accepted of them.

After a little discourse, these eight men resolved to leave their Tent, and to go with them to their ship, where they were welcom'd after the heartiest and kindest English manner: and so they staid with them till the London Fleet came, which was three days after: At which time they went aboard the Admiral, in which Cap­tain William Goodler was, who made them very welcome, and gave order that they should have any thing that was in the ship that might do them good: he gave them Apparel also, to the value of twen­ty pounds. So that after fourteen days refreshment, they grew all perfectly [Page 72] well: But when some of them went to their own Master that had left them there, he fell foul upon them, calling them Run­aways, with other harsh terms far enough from the Civility of an honest man. Thus they continu'd in the Fleet until the twentieth of August, at which time, with joyful hearts, they set sayl through the foaming Ocean; and though sometimes crossed with contrary winds, yet at last they came safely to an Anchor in the Ri­ver of Thames: and the Muscovie Mer­chants dealt very well by them.

The names of these men, were William Fakely Gunner: Edward Pelham Gun­ners Mate, that wrote this story. John Wise, and Robert Good-fellow, Sea-men Thomas Ayers, Whale-cutter: Henry Bet, Cooper: John Dawns, and Richard Kellet, Land-men.

Greenland, is a Country that lies very far North-ward in seventy-seven De­grees, and forty minutes, It's wonderful Mountainous, which Mountains are all the year long covered with Ice and Snow▪ The plains in part are bare in Summer▪ But there grows neither Tree nor He [...] in it, except Scurvey-grass and Sorrel [...] The Sea is as barren as the Land, affor­ding [Page 73] no Fish but Whales, Sea-horses, Seals, and some few small Fishes.

26. In June 1668. the Peach-tree of Lon­don, a small Vessel of the Burthen of a­bout sixty Tuns, Edward Dixon Master, came into the Downs, bound for Guinny, intending there to take in Negroes, and to transport them to the Barbadoes, and from thence to come for London, where John Watts, the Son of John Watts, of El­tham, in the Country of Kent, Chyrurgi­on, shipt himself with the consent of Ri­chard Watts, publick Notary of Deal; little dreading that his Nephew, being not above eighteen years old, should meet with such a calamitous Accident. The ship had not been long in the Downs, but a fair gale presenting, they suddenly hoisted Sail, God's Providence seeming to fill their Sails with prosperous success; the first place they touched at, was the Gold Coast, where they staid not long, but sail­ed to old Calabar, in the Bith of Guinny. They entered a River, called the Cross Ri­ver into Piratts Island. After they had taken in their Negroes, and ready to sail, [...] Anchor being a peek, the Master [...] up the Boatswain and three men more, whereof the relater was one, and [Page 74] commands them to look out the Copper Barrs that were left, and carry them on shore to try if they could sell them: the Boatswain, with his small Company de­sired that they might have Arms with them, not believing the report of some that inform'd them they were a harmless, and innocent people: they took with them three Musquets and a Pistol, and so row'd towards the shore, but not far from it, unhappily our Match fell into the water, and the ship being faln down from that narrow part of the River, nearer the Sea, quite out of our sight, we were con­sulting what should be safest for us to do▪ we were not willing to precipitate our own Ruine, and were also ashamed to re­turn to our ship before we had dispatched what we were commanded to: at length the Boatswain commanded the Relator John Watts on shore, to the first house to light our Match, which we recover'd out of the water, after it was extinct, which he readily obeyed: but before he was twenty Rods from the water-side, he was seiz'd on by two blacks (or rather Tawny moors) and by them haled above half [...] mile up into the Country, and throw [...] with great violence upon his belly, and so compell'd to lye till they stript him; an [...] [Page 75] more Company coming to them, they were so eager for his poor Canvas appa­rel, that some they tore off, others they cut off, and with that several pieces of his flesh, to his intolerable pain: with these rags, they made little Childrens Aprons to cover their Privities; Linnen and Woolen being scarce there. The Boat­swain seeing this John Watts was thus carried away, was resolv'd with his other two Companions to have him again, or else to venture all their lives for him: They arm themselves; but whilst they were consulting what to do, whether to venture on shore, or not, of a sudden they were beset with about a dozen men in several Canoes, but they valiantly maintained their Boat about the space of three hours, for after two of their three Musquets were discharged, they defended themselves with their Oars, and Boat-hooks. The Boatswain receiv'd a mortal wound in his Groin, and fell down in the Boat; the o­ther two adventur'd in the River, endea­vouring by swimming to escape the mer­ciless hands of cruel Infidels; but the Ne­groes with their swift Canoes soon over­took them, and brought them on shore to the place where the relator was. The Negroes took out the Boatswain out of [Page 76] the ships boat; and instead of endeavour­ing at all to preserve life which remained in him, immediately they rob'd him of it; one of them with a keen weapon cut­ting off his head before his Companions faces; and then they prepare for their rare banquet, while he was yet reeking in his blood: they in a barbarous manner cutting off pieces of flesh from off his But­tocks, and his Thighs, and his Arms, and Shoulders, and broiled them on the coals, and with a great deal of impatience, ea­gerly eat it before our faces, to our great astonishment. About fourteen days af­ter, one of the Company fell sick, and in­stead of being Physicians to cure him, they were his Butchers to murther him. They served him as they did the Boatswain, cut off his head, and broil'd and eat up his flesh, and rejoyced exceedingly at this rich Banquet. About ten days after, the third fell sick, whom they served in the same manner.

This was no small cause of sorrow to the Relator; the thoughts of their Inhumane and Barbarous actions sometimes sur­rounded him with fears and sorrows, hourly expecting to tast of the said Cru­elty. Death did not seem so terrible to him, as the violent manner of it; being [Page 77] left now alone, in a strange Country, de­stitute of friends or acquaintance, or any thing that might keep up his Spirits: dye he would fain, but not by the hands of Infidels and barbarous Monsters. But the great God that is most compassionate in the greatest extremities had pity on him, and notwithstanding the alteration of the Climate, and the want of Cloaths, and the strangeness of his food, which was only herbs, he continued in good health, and had time enough to lament this dire­ful providence. The Natives who were daily expecting another banquet, met with a disappointment: either their customs, or the over-ruling power of God, would not suffer them to destroy him, he continuing still in health. There­fore they resolve to sell him: his Arannia, or Master, was pretty free to discourse him, which the Relater was capable of, being about three years before in the West-Indies, where he had learned the Tata language, which is easily attain'd, being comprehended in a very few words, and all the Negroes [...]peak it. He be­gan to discourse his Master, to know the reason of their Cruelty, who told him that he should rest himself contented, who if he were not sick, should not have [Page 78] his head cut off. In the Boat, which in the beginning they took with them, was a Musquet saved of the three which was not discharged; which his Master, some time after he had been with him, brought to him to know the use of it: he endea­vour'd as much as he could to make him apprehend the use of it, but still they pro­fest their ignorance: but they command­ed and threatned him to shew the use of it. The fear of his masters displeasure and their inhumanity, caused him to shoot it off; but the Negroes, which expected some delightful thing, were frustrated, and at the suddain noise and flash of fire (which they very much dread) ran from him, and were greatly affrighted; but quickly after, hearing no more of that noise, they came up to him again, and commanded him to do the like: he told them he had not powder, which was the cause of the noise; but this would not sa­tisfie these Barbarians. He not being a­ble to answer their expectation, they concluded he was not willing, they pro­ceed to threaten him, and were about to murder him, had not his master rescued him. Upon discourse after with this Ar­rannia, or Master, he began to understand the reason of their barbarous dealing [Page 79] with him and his Friends, he telling him that naturally the People were civil and simply honest, but if provoked full of revenge; and that this Cruelty was oc­casion'd by some unhandsome action of carrying a Native away without their leave, about a year before; they resol­ving, if any came ashore, they should never go off alive. He had not been a­bove seven weeks in the Country, but his Master presented him to his King, whose name was E-fa-me, King of the Blacka­mores, who immediately gave him to his Daughter, whose name was Oni-jah, and when the King went abroad, he attend­ed him also as his Page, throughout the whole Circuit of his Dominions, which was not above twelve miles, yet boasting extremely of his power and strength, but glorying exceedingly that he had a White to attend him, whom he employ­ed to carry his Bow and Arrows; at seve­ral places remote from the Sea-side, the people would run away from him for fear, others would fall down and seem to worship him, and use those actions as they do to their God. Their progress was never so long, but they could return home at night, but never without a hand­some load of a cup of the Creature. Du­ring [Page 80] all the time of the Relators servi­tude there he never knew him go abroad and come home sober. They drink of the best Palm Wine, and another sort of strong liquor, call'd Penrore. The Re­lator quickly knew how to humour this profound Prince, and if any of the Na­tives abused him, upon his complaint he had redress, as once by striving with a Negroe, his arm was broke, which by providence, more than skill, was set a­gain. After some months, the King of Ca-la-nanch, whose name was E-fn [...]man­cha, hearing of this beautiful white, courted his Neighbour Prince, that he would sell him to him; at length they struck a bargain, and the Relator was sold for a Cow and a Goat; this King was a very sober and moderate person, free from treacheries and mischiefs, that the other was subject unto; and he would often discourse the Relator, and ask him of his King and Country, and if his King­doms and Dominions were as big as his, which were not above twenty-five miles in length, and fifteen in breadth. He told him as much as his understanding and years made him capable of, keeping still in the bounds of modesty, and yet re­lating as much as possible to the honour, [Page 81] and dignity of his Soveraign; first in­forming him of the greatness of one of his Kingdoms, the several Shires and Coun­ties it contained, with number of its Ci­ties, Towns and Castles, and the strength of each, the infinite Inhabitants, and va­lour of his Subjects. One of these King­doms was enough to amaze sufficiently this petty Governour, that he need not to mention any more of his Majesties Glory and Dignity. It put him into such a profound consternation, that he re­solved to find out some way to tender his respects to this mighty Prince, and no way could he find so convenient, as to tell the Relator, that if he could find but a pas­sage, he would let him go to England, to tell his Majesty of the great favour and respect he had for him. This did not a little rejoyce our English-man. Withall the King told him, that he would send him a Present, which should be two Ca­bareets or Goats, which they do value at a very high rate; the King having not a­bove 16 or 18. He tells the King, that the King of England had many thousands of his Subjects that were under the de­gree of Gentlemen, which had a thousand of Sheep a piece; the flesh of which, they valu'd at a very much higher rate than [Page 82] Goats. Though our English-man lived very handsomely with this E-fn-man-cha, King of the Ca-la-nanch, yet his desires and his hopes were still for his Native Country: at length he obtain'd a promise from his King, that the first English ship that came into that Road, should have li­berty to Release or Purchase him; this very much rejoyced his heart: now he thought every day a year, till he could hear of, or see some English ship arrived. Many times when he was alone, his heart would be opprest with sighs and sob­bings, when ke thought of his Relations, and the comfortable society that they had together; that it should be his sad lot to be captivated amongst barbarous Infidels. Oftentimes did he walk down to the Sea-side, sometimes with hopes, sometimes with fear, earnestly expecting the wind of Gods providence to blow in some English Ship thither: his often re­course to the Sea-side was discerned by one Ja-ga, a Wizard, and the chiefest in three or four Kingdoms there-abouts; they are persons that the Natives give very much credit to, and on any difficult occasion, run to them for satisfaction. The famous Delphean Oracle was never had in greater adoration, than the pro­phetical [Page 83] Speeches of these Morish Wi­zards. Though they have infinite num­bers of them in every place, yet this Ja-ga had the most renown amongst them; and one day he comes to him, and very kindly ask'd him, Why he so very of­ten frequented that place? he told him, To see if he could discover any English Vessel to come in there: but he being not acquainted with his Great fame, Askt him When he did believe there would one come in? not that he was willing to give credit to any of their Divinations, but sup­posing that he thereby should please him and answer his expectation. Ja-ga imme­diately told him, That the Fifteenth day after an English Ship should come into the Road. Then he askt him, Whether that Ship should carry him away. To this he answer'd doubtfully, but told him, That he should be offer'd to the Master of the ship, and if they could not agree, but that he should come to Shore again, he should not be Sold, and that in a very short time after he should dye for Grief. These Fif­teen days seem'd very long and tedious; many a look did he cast on the Sea with an Aking heart: The Fourteenth day he went to the highest Hill [...], but to no purpose, for he could discover no [Page 84] Ship: next Morning he went again two or three times, but saw none: about two or three hours after came running into E-fn-man-cha, some of the Moores, and told him there was a Canoe coming, so they called our Ships; at which our En­glish-man heartily rejoyc'd, hoping then to be releast forthwith, yet durst not shew his joy for fear of punishment or of death; for though he lived better now than with his first Master, yet his service was far worse than the Slaves in Turkey, and their Diet worse than Dogs-meat; therefore had he cause enough of inward Joy; the Ship came immediately in, and he highs away presently to Ja-ga, to know if it were an English Ship, who resolved him that it was; it happened to be the St. Maloes Merchant, Captain Royden Com­mander, who hasten'd to dispatch his Bu­siness, took in his Negroes, and was rea­dy to sail, and our English-man heard ne­ver a word what should become of him, the King never offering to sell him; this put him on a resolution to endeavour to make an escape, and to that end had pre­pared a piece of Timber which he had drawn near the water-side, on which he intended to paddle to the Ship, which then lay about a League from the Shore. Just [Page 85] by the Sea-side; as he was about to launch his little floating Stick, he espied a Great Aligator, which will devour a Man at a Mouthful; this made him alter his Reso­lution, and resolve rather to live with Inhumane Infidels, than to throw himself into so imminent a danger, which would have been little less than self-murther. But the next day, which I may call a day of Jubilee, Almighty God opened the heart of the King to let the poor English Man go: he sent him in a Canoe, placed between a Negroe's Legs, with some o­thers to Guide this small Vessel, for fear he should leap over board and swim to the Ship. At a distance from the Ship he hail'd her in the English Tongue, which was no small cause of admi [...]ation to those on Board to hear an English Tongue out of their Canoes: The Negroes gave him leave to stand up and shew himself to the Captain, to whom he gave an Account how four were left there, and only he preserv'd. It was a pretty while before they could strike a B [...]rgain, though the Captain was resolv'd not to leave him behind. Several times the Negroes pad­led away with their Canoe, resolving not to part with him; but what with his en­treaties and promises, he perswaded them [Page 86] to the Ship again, and they deliver'd him on board for Forty five Copper Bars and Iron Bars; each Copper bar being about the bigness of a Youths little finger, the Iron bars a little bigger. Now were his joys compleated, he thought himself, as it were, caught up into the Third Hea­vens; he could hardly perswade himself but it was a Dream or Vision, and that he did not really see English faces, or em­brace English bodies. It was some time before he could throw himself at the Cap­tains feet, and acknwledge his infinite cause of joy in himself, and thankfulness to him for his deliverance from such a se­vere Captivity; that he that lately was a slave to Infidels, that worship they know not what, should now see the Faces of Christians, and joyn with them in Wor­shiping the true God; and to him first he offer'd up the Sacrifice of hearty thanks­giving, that had sent his Angel to redeem him from so cruel a bondage. When he came on board, his hair was very long, and his skin tawny (Malatto-like) having gone naked all the time he was there, and frequently anointing himself with Palm-Oyl he looked like a Tawny Moore; but immediately the Seamen aboard with Christian-like hearts, apparelled him. The [Page 87] Master commanded to hoist sail, and having a fair wind, they sailed to Barba­does, where Captain Royden was to tarry some time; but the Relator earnestly de­siring to go to his Native Country, and his Relations, got passage to the Downs, in the Katherine of London, Captain South Commander, which through Gods goodness in a few weeks arrived in the Downs, where the Relator was put on shore to his Unkle Mr. Richard Watts of Deal, his great joy and satisfaction, who took this relation from his own mouth.

The Relation of Dr. William Johnson, con­cerning a most Remarkable Sea-Deliver­ance; in his own words.

27. We went aboard from Harwich, on Michaelmas day, Sept. 29. 1648. in the William and John of Ipswich, Daniel Morgan, Master, and having a fair wind, we set Sail; I being Sea-sick, went to bed, but about four a Clock in the Afternoon, the Master of the Ship came into our Cabin with more hast than he was wont, which made me ask him whither all was well, who like a tender-hearted man, who is loth to tell his dying Friend, that he is so nigh his end, replyed all is well, yet when I saw him shift himself with such [Page 88] hast, I rose from my Bed, and crawled upon the Deck, where I saw a sad spectacle, the Ship having sprung a leak, or rather a plank, was ready to sink, upon which, every man was affrighted, one was at his Prayers, another wringing his Hands, a third his eyes shedding of tears, when he had no need of more salt water; but after this, they fell to work, but were busie in doing nothing: The Masters Mate, who went to search the Leak, told us with a sad countenance, trembling hands, gnashing of Teeth, a quivering Tongue, and words half spoken, ‘That the Leak could not be stopt, and the water came in so fast upon us, that we must perish in this moment.’ Upon which we presently cast out our Long-boat, and shot off eight or nine Guns to another Ship, who came out with us, to come to our relief, then with some diffi­culty we all got into the Boat, and God be thanked, came clear of the Ship, whose sails now lay flat upon the Water, and now we were rowing we know not whi­ther, for the other Ship came not to our relief, which made us have hard thoughts of them without cause, for we understood that both the Ship, and all the men perish­ed in the same hour. Now were we [Page 89] without all hope, for it blew half a storm, and we were in a small Vessel, many Leagues from the Shore, without Com­pass, or provision to sustain us, being starved likewise with Cold, as well as for want of Victuals, having nothing in our Boat, but a small Kettle which served to cast out the water, and three bags of pieces of eight of three hundred pound Sterling, which would neither feed us, nor keep us warm; in this distress we went to Prayers, and it pleased God to hear us, and send a Ship to us, even in the moment of Death, which we endeavoured to come to, and he likewise to us, but the storm was so great, we could not reach one ano­ther, though when it was dark, he hung out a light, and we to let him know we were alive, ordered that when a wave took us up, we should give a great shout, which we did so loud, that I believe our cry was heard to Heaven, for by Gods miraculous assistance we got near the Ship, and soon after, all safe into it; the next day it blew fair for Norway, whither we were bound, and about twelve at noon we saw the Coast, which being ragged, and full of Rocks, we resolved to stay till next morning before we went in, and then sate down to meat, and eat very [Page 90] heartily, being kindly entertain'd by the honest Norwegian; about ten a clock at night, we laid us down to rest, after having prayed, and set our watch, but immediately this our second Ship ran with full Sails upon a Rock, and gave so great a Crack, as was able to awake the most dead asleep among us, and the Mar­riners cryed out, Mercy, Mercy, it pleased God, that the Ship struck it self so fast in the cleft of a Rock, with her Bow over the main Rock, that the former part of her stood firm, but breaking in the storm, one of the Sea-men leaped from the bow of the Ship, upon the Rock, with a Rope in his hand, which was fastened to one of our Masts, and held it with so stiff a hand, that another slipt down by it, and so all our Company that escaped, being Twenty Eight in number, came safe to the Rock; I was the last that came down the Ship that way, for in that very moment she gave way, which the Master perceiving, who was still aboard, made lamentable moan to us, to help him, which we endeavoured to the utmost, but the Ship broke, and sunk im­mediately; there was this good man, and four of the Marriners drowned; I saw the Master, with a light in his hand fall [Page 91] into the Sea, the saddest sight that I ever yet beheld in this world, and that which pierced my very Soul, to see him that saved our Lives, lose his own: Now were we in the dark, upon the Rock, but knew not where, our feet being cut upon the sharp stones, at length, we happened of a hole in the Rock, which was a warm shelter against the wind; and when morning came, where we could see no Land, only had a Glimps of the Coast of Norway at a great distance; We grew hungry, but had nothing to fish, but our Arms, with which we drew up some small Muscles, and they we eat heartily, but we burnt with thirst, and I would have given all I had for a draught of fresh water, which would have been more wel­come than the Gold of Ophir, though nothing is so mean in our esteem; but we were forced to drink Salt-water, which increased our thirst; we now saw a Ship coming towards us with full Sails, and we waved our hats to them, but they went off, and never came near us; we be­took our selves to our old Remedy, Prayers, the Danes first singing one of [...]ther's Psalms, fell to their Prayers, and I prayed as long as I was able to speak, and then lay'd my self down on the Rock, [Page 92] thinking I should rise no more in this World: But I overheard one of the Sea-men say, ‘Let us make a Raft, and ven­ture to Sea, I had rather be drowned than lye here and be starved;’ They all concluded of it, though dangerous, and the Sea having fallen from the Rock, had left our Sails, Masts, and Anchors, with part of the Ship thereon, wherewith they soon made a slight Boat, and it being a great calm, the rest past through the beaches with four men in it, and had it touched only on them, they would have rent it in pieces, however through Gods goodness, they arrived safe in Norway, and returned with several Boats, so that we came all of us once more to Land, and were entertained at an honest Lutheran Parsons house, where after we had con­tinued for some days, with little money and much thanks we parted, and came to Frederick [...], where the People run after us in the Street, and with compassi­onate Eyes gave us what we wanted, without asking; from thence we went to Osterson [...], and there went aboard an English Ship, we had not been above two or three [...] at Sea, but there was a sad destraction, the Marriners again cry­ing for Mercy, Mercy, for we had almost [Page 93] fallen foul on a Rock under water, which we did not spy till we were upon it, but by the mercy of God, we sailed close by [...]t, and yet escaped it, the least touch of [...]t had been our ruine; about noon we [...]ame clear of all the Rocks on the Coast of Norway, and were sailing for England, with a fair Gale of Wind, but in this prosperity, another sad accident befel us, [...]his third Ship sprang a leak, and began [...]o swim within, as well as without, and we had no way to relieve our selves, but [...]y pumping (for the Leak could not be [...]ound) which we did day and night, or four or five days together, when it [...]leased God, we came safe, though in a [...]reat deal of danger, because of our otten Ship; into Yarmouth Road, for the [...]ind being very high, had like to have [...]riven us upon a Scotch Vessel, who cryed [...]ut as well as we, but we happily mist [...]m, and so safely arrived in Yarmouth [...]own, through the wonderful mercy of God. Deus Nobiscum.

The great Dangers, and Merciful Deliver­ances of William Okely and his Company from Slavery in a Canvas Boat, &c.

In the Year 1639. We took Ship at [...]avesend, in the Mary of London, Mr. [Page 94] Boarder Master, bound for the Isle of Pro­vidence in the West-Indies, five weeks we lay in the Downs, waiting for a wind, and then we set Sail, and came to an Anchor near the Isle of Wight, but by this time all the Beer in our Ship stunk, and we were forced to throw it overboard, and so take in Vinegar to mix with Water for our Voyage; the next Lords day we set Sail again, and coming between the Island, and the main Land, we stuck fas [...] in the Sands, but the Tide coming in [...] heaved us off: the sixth day after ou [...] setting Sail from the Isle of Wight, we discovered three Turks men of War, wh [...] chased us, and at break of day boarde [...] and took us; having kept us clo [...] Prisoners at Sea, at the end of five or six weeks, they brought us to Algiers, when I was sold for a slave the first Market da [...] to a Patron, who told me, ‘I must allow him two Dollars a Month, and live ashore where I would, and get it when I could, though I knew not where t [...] levy the least Mite of it:’ Wandring u [...] and down I met with an English-man [...] his little Shop, who Traded with T [...] ­bacco, and a few other things; I beca [...] his Partner with a little Money I h [...] reserved, and a small modicum my Patr [...] [Page 95] had allowed me for my stock; Here I got money and hired a Celler, where I laid up some other of my Goods; when weary of my slavery, I formed a design for my Liberty, and communicated it to John Anthony Carpenter, William Adams Brick-layer, John Jephs Seaman, John a Carpenter, and two others, men of able Bodies, and useful in the intended project, which was to contrive the Model of a Boat, which being formed in parcels, and afterward put together, might be the means of our escape: They approved the Proposal, and in my Cellar we began our work, we provided first a piece of Timber of twelve foot long to make the Keel, but because it was impossible to convey it of that length out of the City, but it must be seen and suspected; we therefore cut it in two pieces and fitted it for jointing just at the middle, and then we provided Ribs, after which we made the Boat Water-tight, and because boards would require much hammering, and that noise was like to betray us, we bought as much strong Canvas as would cover our Boat twice over upon the Convex of the Carine; we provided also as much Pitch, Tar, and Tallow, as would serve to make it a kind of Tarpawling Cerecloth [Page 96] to swaddle the Naked Body of our Infant Boat; of two Pipe staves sawed at the Corners, we made two things to serve for Oars, and for our Provision, we had a little Bread, and two Leather Bottles full of fresh Water, we also remembered to buy as much Canvas as would serve for a Sail, we carried out these in parts and parcels fitted them together in the Valley about half a mile from the Sea, whither Four of our Company carried the Boat on their Shoulders, and the rest followed them, at the Sea-side we stript, put our clothes into the Boat, and carried it and them as far into the Sea as we could wade, and then all seven got into the Boat, but finding she was over laden, two of the Sea-men were content to stay on shore; having bid them farewel, we lanched out, June 30. 1644. The Bill of Lading was John Anthony, William Adams, John Jephs, John the Carpenter, and William Okely; Four of us wrought continually at the Oar, the Fifth was to free the Boat of that Water, which by degrees leaked through our Canvas, our Bread was soon spoiled with the soaking in the Salt-water, our Fresh-water stunk of the Tanned Skins, and Owze, yet we complained not, three days with good [Page 97] Husbandry our Bread lasted us, but then Pale Famine star'd us in the Face; Wa­ter indeed we might have, but it must be Salt, out of the Sea, or that which had been strain'd through our own Bodies, and that we chose of the two; but we must not have that after a while, unless we would accept of the other first; and the misery was, that did not asswage our Thirst, but increase it; the Wind too, for some time was full against us, but God rebuked it, and made it our Friend; a se­cond inconvenience was, that our Labour was without intermission; and a third, the extremity of the Heat by day, the season raging hot, the beginning of July, and we wanted fresh-water to cool the Heat, our Labour made it insupportable to our Bodies, and our little hope made it as grievous to our Souls; one help we had, a poor one, he that emptied the Boat, threw the Water on the Bodies of the other to cool them; but our Bodies thus schorched and cooled rose up in Bli­sters all over; great pain we felt, great dangers we were in, great miseries we in­dur'd, great wants we were under, and had nothing but a little hope, food, and strength: If any Ask by what Directi­ons we Steered our course to Mayorck, [Page 98] whither we design'd to go; for the day a Pocket Dial did supply the place of a Compass, by Night the Stars when they appear'd, and when not, we guessed our way by the motion of the Clouds: Four days and nights were we in this woful plight; on the fifth, all hope that we should be sav'd was perish'd, so that we left off our Labour, because we had no strength left, only we emptied the Boat of Water; but then God sent us some Relief, for as we lay hulling up and down, we discover'd a Tortoise, not far from us asleep in the Sea; had Drake discover'd the Spanish Fleet, he could not have more Rejoyc'd; we took up our Oars, silently rowed to our Prey, took it into the Boat with Great Triumph; we cut off her Head, and let her Bleed into a Pot, we drank the Blood, eat the Liver, and sucked the flesh: it wonderfully refresh­ed our Spirits, and we picked up some crumbs of hope: about Noon we thought we discover'd Land; it's impossible to express the joy of our raised Souls at this apprehension, we Wrought hard, and af­ter further Labour were fully satisfy'd that it was Land, and proved to be May­ork, which we kept within sight of all day. July the 6th. about Ten at Night we [Page 99] came under the Island, and crept as near the Shore as we could or durst, till we found a convenient place, where we might thrust in our Weather-beaten Boat; when we were come to Land we were not insensible of our deliverance; but though we had escap'd the Sea, we might die at Land; We had no Food since we eat the Liver, and drank the Blood of the Tortoise; therefore John Anthony and my self were sent out to Scout abroad for Fresh-Water, because we spake some Spanish; We came to a Watch-Tower of the Spaniards, spake to them on the Watch, told them our Con­dition, earnestly begged some Fresh-Wa­ter, and some Bread; he threw us down an old Mouldy Cake, but so long as it was a Cake, Hunger did not consider its Mouldiness; then he directed us to Fresh-Water which was hard by; We stood not telling of Stories, we remembred our Brethren left with our Boat, and observ­ing the Centinels Directions, came to a Well, where there was a Pot with strings to draw with; we drank a little Water, and eat a bit of our Cake, but the pas­sage was so disused, that we had much a­do to force our Throats to relieve our clamorous Stomachs; we return to our [Page 100] Boat, and acquaint them with the Good Successes of our Embassy, and all prepare to make to the Well, so tying our Boat as fast as we could to the shore, we left her to Mercy: Now we are at the Well which hath Water therein, and we have something to draw, but God must give us a Throat to swallow; for William A­dams attempting to drink, after many Es­says, was not able to swallow it, but still the Water return'd, so that he sunk down to the ground, fainting, saying, I am a dead Man: but after much striving he took a little; so refreshed with our Cake and Water, we lay by the Well side till the Morning; when it was clear day, we again went to the Watchman, intreating him to direct us the ready way to the next House or Town, where we might find re­lief; he civilly pointed us to one about Two Miles off, and long it was ere our Blistering Feet could overcome the tedi­ousness of that little way: When we came thither, the honest Farmer moved with our Relation, sent us Bread and Water, and Olives, and seeing us Thank­ful Beggars, inlarged his Civility to us, called us into his House, and gave us good warm Bean Pottage, which seem'd to me the most pleasant Food that ever I eat in [Page 101] my Life, then we advanced to the City of Mayorck, about Ten Miles from that place; that Night we lay by a Well side, and in the Morning we entred the Sub­urbs; the Vice-Roy was informed of us, and we were commanded to appear be­fore him, who, after he had Examin'd us, and heard our Story, order'd we should be maintain'd at his own Cost, till we could have Passage to our own Countrey, But our English Ships seldom Trading thither, we Petition'd the Vice-Roy for Passage in the King of Spain's Gallies, which were in the Road bound for Ali­cant, which he graciously granted us; af­ter some other Troubles we met with contrary Winds, and it was five Weeks ere we could reach the Downs, where we arriv'd in Sept. 1644. The Commander of the Ship was Captain Smith of Rother­hithe, Mr. Thomas Saunders, my Wives Brother, being in Mayorck not long af­ter we came from thence, saw our Boat hung for a Monument upon the side of the Great Church there; and Mr. Robert Hales was there 1671. and assures me, that he saw the Naked Ribs and Skele­ton of it then hanging in the same place. Wanly's Hist. Man, p. 642.

The Merciful Preservation and Deliverance of Captain Blose and his ships Company, who were Cast away in an Island of Ice near Russia, this present year 1697.

October the 7th. 1696. We came from Archangel in Russia in the Riga Merchant, Burthen 300 Tuns, 18 Guns, Samuel Blose Commander. The 8th we had the Wind at North West by West, we plied to Wind­ward, and it blew very hard; the 10th we took two Reefs in our Topsails; the 12th we took in our Topsails, and Ree­fed Costs; the 13th about One in the Morning we Sprung a Leak, in so much that we were forced to set both our Pumps to Work, and bear away before the Wind; yet still the Water increa­sed; and the 14th we cut our Main-Sail from the Yard, and let him fly over-board, the Weather being so excessive thick by reason of the extraordinary much Snow that then fell, that we could not see the Land, nor any place where we could run our Ship Ashore to save our Lives; The 15th in the Morning, about One of the Clock, by Fortune, un­expected of us, before we see any Land, we struck upon an Island, called by the [Page 103] Russes, Mussoves, lying in the Missen Gulf, which by the Miraculous hand of God [...] gotten well a­shore, for as God of his wonderful goodness so order'd it, we struck about High Water, and as the Water fell a­way, our Ship dryed, so that we got all safe to Land without any harm; and if it had pleased God we happen'd ever so little, either to one side or the other, we should have all perish'd amongst the I­slands of Ice. When we got all ashore, we made us a Tent, and when it was Day, looking about us, saw something like Houses; so our Captain and a Dutch Merchant Passenger that we had on Board of our Ship, and our Doctor, went to see what they were, thinking to find some Inhabitants, but they could [...]ind none: then we went Aboard our Ship, and got all our Beef ashore that we could find, about One hundred Weight of Bisket Bread, which was all the Bread we could find; then we Calculated that our Beef at Four Pieces a day, would serve us till the middle of May, and every Man one Bisket a Day; but that would last but a small time: Besides, we got a shore Three Boxes of Candles, which was a great com­fort to us in our necessity, by reason we [Page 104] had not above Three hours Day. Then we got all our things we had saved to the House that we saw; and going about discover'd a great many more Houses, and we went to them to see what we could find, expecting to see some People, but there was none but empty Cask, so we came home to the place that we had car­ried our things to again; but, as God would have it, just against the House that we had taken for our Habitation, in the Snow, we saw Two Cask, and we went and found them both full of Rye Meal, which was a Joy beyond measure to us in our Extremity; and then we found another Cask with a Kneeding-Tub in it: December the First, the Dutch Merchant, and Four more of our hands went out and took a Compass, and Provision with them, upon Discovery, hoping to see some body to speak to, that we might know where we were, but they could find no Inhabitants, the Course they steered was S. E. but when they came to turn back, their Compass unhung, and they not minding it, went up and down a long time, and at length came to the same place where they were when they first turned back; then they looked more earnestly upon their Compass, and [Page 105] found it unhung, they hung it, and came the direct way home again; but when they came in sight of a House that was a­bout Two Miles off of our House, the Merchant and one more Travelling bet­ter than the other Three, went before, and promis'd them to make a Fire against they came; but the Weather being so severe, they were not able to come a­long, but were Starved with the Cold before they could get up to us: So the Lord, of his great Mercy, made Provi­sion for us until the First of March, it being a Sabbath day, and we at our Devotion, one of our Boys being at a­nother Ho [...]se Boiling of our Victuals, saw some Men upon the Island, he fell down, being much surpriz'd, but soon got up again, and run and told us; upon which we left our Prayers, and run to see what they were; our Merchant could speak the Language, which was the pre­servation of all our Lives, for otherways they would have Murther'd us for break­ing down their Houses, and Eating their Provisions that we found upon the Island, for they would not be perswaded but we were Pirats and Robbers, by reason that we werre Building of a Small Vessel for our own Security, of carrying us to the [Page 106] Main when the Ice broke up; but our Merchant speaking their Language, per­swaded them, and promised them to make them Satisfaction for what Dam­mage we had done them; for we broke down Two of their Houses for Firing: So they [...]rned us out of our Houses, and took our Meal from us. The Men that came over were in Number 500, Ten Men in a Boat, they came there to kill Seales: They asked us what we had seen? We told them, Nothing but Two Ravens. They made very strange of it, and would not believe it: For they told us, That none of them could live there but Six Weeks in the Year, whether they catcht Fish or not, the Island was so Haunted. Soon after the Russians came there, that Man that saved his Life, and got well home with the Merchant, when the other Three were Starved with the Cold Died, that was Four that was Dead, our Complyment at first was 27, but then we had but 23 Living: Then our Merchant went to the Russians, and desired them to put us [...]ver, and he would satisfie them for it: They grant­ed we should have Six Boats, and 60 Men to Drag us over the Ice, for it was Seven Leagues from the Main, and [Page 107] all full of Islands of Ice between, inso­much that they were 24 hours coming over when they came upon the said I­sland: But it pleased the Lord so to or­der it that after they had dragg'd us o­ver Two small Islands of Ice, that as God parted the Red-Sea for the Chil­dren of Israel to pass through, so he parted the Ice from us, insomuch that we got over in Six houres times, which the Russians told us was never so before. But when we came over we lay where there was 1000 Men a Fishing, The first Night: and the next Morning we hired Sledges to drag us to some place Inhabited: The Beasts that dragg'd the Sledges along they call Roeys, they are like Dear, but larger: We were forc'd to be Dragg'd, we could not Tra­vel our Limbs were so disabled with the Cold before we got off the aforesaid I­sland: besides the Snow was of such a vast thickness, and so hard Frozen, that we could find no Path, if we could Tra­vel never so well, If the Shamakes, as they call them, had not shown us the way; the first Night of our Journey up­on the Sledges our Carpenters Mate di­ed, so we made a Hole in the Snow and put him in, and left him. Then our [Page 108] Captain, and the Merchant, and the Do­ctor, being but single in a Sledge, and we near double, went faster than us to the next Town to provide Victuals and fresh Sledges for us against we came; and when we came to that Town we got Sledges that had Horses to draw them a­long, so we Rid Night and Day till we came to Archangel; the Third day of our Travels another of our Men Died, and the Fifth day another; the former we Buryed in the Ground, because we were nigh a Town, but the other we Bu­ryed in the Snow: So that when we came to Archangel, out of our 27 Men, we had but 20 left. March the 17th we came off the aforesaid Island, and we Travell'd Night and Day, except the first Night, until the 25th of the same Month. Two days after we came to Archangel we lost another Man. At Archangel our Captain got Stoves for us to inhabit in, and sent us Provision, where we remain'd till the 6th day of June, when there came in Six Sail of Hollan­ders, being the First that came that year, who divided us amongst them, and brought us to Greenland, and from thence some of us were brought to Holland, and some to Hamborough, from whence Six­teen [Page 109] of us got Passage to England, where we Arriv'd the Fifteenth of November, 1697. Two went to the Straits, and our Dutch Merchant tarried in Holland.

This Account is given by Francis Lee, who was Boatswain of the Ship, and Attested by others now Living in London.

THE Seaman's Preacher; OR, Sea-Dangers and Deliverances Improv'd; in a SERMON.

Acts 27. 18, 19, 20.

18. And being exceedingly tossed with a Tem­pest, the next day they lightned the Ship.

19. And the third day, we cast out with our own hands, the tackling of the Ship.

20. And when neither Sun nor Stars appear­ed, and no small Tempest lay on us, all hope that we should be saved, was then taken away.

IN this Chapter we have a full Nar­rative of Paul's Voyage to Rome, in all the circumstances of it; it seems Paul [Page 111] kept a Journal, and so Recorded this me­morable Voyage for the use of succeed­ing Generations. 1. We have the oc­casion of his Voyage, (viz.) Paul being then a Sufferer and a Prisoner, he ap­peals to Caesar, and so is sent to Rome, and there bears a faithful Testimony for Jesus Christ, (vers. 1.) 2. We have the Dangers that occurred in the Voyage, and these are also carefully Commemo­rated (vers. 9.) Now much time was spent, and Sailing was now dangerous, be­cause the Fast was already past: This was the yearly Fast of the Jews, on which the attonement for all the people was made by the High-Priest, in the holy of holies; which day was the 10. of the 7th Month, (Lev. 16. 29.) which partly agreed with our September and October, in which time the Sea, was not Sailed in, by the Ancients, until the beginning of March, because of the shortness of the days, and the violence of the Tempests, they were prone to in those Parts, this is the sense of Interpreters upon the place. 1. Dan­ger of the Voyage we read of, is this, the winds were contrary, (vers. 4.) this is spoken of the Voyage of the Disciples, The winds were contrary. 2. Danger, there arose not only a contrary wind, [Page 112] but a violent wind, called an Euroclydon, (vers. 14.) some read it a Whirle-wind, but it is ment of an East-wind, which raises the Sea mightily. 3. The Tem­pest was so great and violent upon them, that they were glad to let the Ship drive, (vers. 15.)

3. We have not only the Danger in this Voyage, but their marvelous Deli­verance and Preservation; for they came off all of them with their lives, (vers. 44.) the particulars whereof you may see.

In the Text we have three things ob­servable. 1. Their endeavors in this great distress to preserve themselves. 1. They lightned the Ship, and what was it she was laden with? it was Wheat, (vers. 38.) They lightned the Ship, and cast the Wheat into the Sea; thus did Jonah's Mariners cast out the Wares. Alas, what are these things, but lumber to lives? if it were Gold, it must go for Life. Skin for skin and all that a man hath will he give for his life. Then what should a man give for his Soul? what will a man give for his Soul? what will a man give in exchange for his Soul? 2. Endeavor; they cast out the Tack­ling of their Ship; any thing they part with to save their lives, though never so useful to them; even that which was [Page 113] necessary for their Voyage, they are un­der a necessity to part with it, for the preservation of their lives.

2. We have their Dangers as well as Endeavors. 1. It is exprest in the vio­lence of the Tempest; they were ex­ceedingly tossed with a Tempest. 2. It was dark weather, neither Sun nor Stars appeared, which used to be great com­forts and helps to poor men at Sea. 3. Their Danger is exprest in this, they were brought to the brink of the black pit of Despair; all Hope now was taken away. O what a sad distressed condition was this! their Hope, which is called the Anchor of the Soul, yea which is the Sheet-Anchor of the Soul, was lost; they gave all their lives over for gone and lost: And oh, what could now a company of men do that had lost their Hopes and Hearts? could these that had lost their Hopes find their hands? they were now saying, as the Jews did in their Captivity, Our Hope is lost, we are cut off for our parts, (Ezek. 37. 11.)

3. We have their Deliverance and Preservation, coming in at such a time and season as this was; now that they are brought to an extremity, God makes it his opportunity; and now that all hope [Page 114] of being saved is taken away, salvation will be most seasonable: and now the Angel appears to Paul, and tells him, all their lives are ensured, only the ship shall be lost.

Observations are these:
  • 1. Dangers and Deliverances are to be care­fully recorded and remembred; therefore Paul takes an account of both, here in this Voyage.
  • 2. Salvations and Deliverances many times are not sent, until persons be left hopeless in themselves.

I shall speak a little to both these upon this present occasion, that what you read here, may be remarked and remembred.

1. Dangers and Deliverances are to be care­fully recorded and remembred. This Ob­servation hath two parts: 1. Dangers are to be remembred. 2. Deliverances are to be remembred.

Thus the Lords poor people used to do in all Ages: When Jacob was in danger of his Brother Esau, you see how he comme­morates it, and gives us an exact narrative of it, and tells us how he feared him: [Page 115] Lord, I fear my Brother Esau, (Psal. 34. 4.) How often was David in danger by Saul, who was his sworn Enemy? and how many Psalms have we, taking occasion to remember what danger he was in, and how comfortably he was brought off: I sought the Lord, and he heard me; and delivered me out of all my fears. (2 Cor. 1. 9, 10.) As Paul tells the Corinthians what danger they were in; they were prest out of mea­sure, out of strength, in so much that they despaired of life, &c. And so at Sea as well as Land, he would have dan­gers remembred; how that they go up to the Heaven one while, and sink into the deeps another; their Soul melted be­cause of trouble, and they at their wits ends, &c. Peter's danger at Sea is record­ed, when he began to sink, and cried out, Master, save me, or I perish, (Matth. 14. 28, 29, 30.) And the Disciples, when they cried o [...]t, Carest thou not that we pe­rish? (Mark 4. 38.) It is observed the Ship now was full, and now comes salva­tion and deliverance. Here was their dan­ger recorded, the Ship was full, and Christ asleep in the hinder part of the Ship.

  • 1. Query is, How Dangers should be remembred?
  • 2. How Deliverances should be re­membred?

[Page 116] 1. Dangers should be remembred, considering we may come into them again. Many when dangers are not, they sing to their Souls that song, and delude themselves, The bitterness of Death is past; they think they are out of one strom, and they shall never come in such another. Just as persons do with their Sickness at Land, so many do with their Dangers at Sea, if God bring them off: O they grow hardned and secure again. But if God hath brought home one dangerous Voyage, we should think, it may be the next will be as dangerous; Have I escaped one at Sea, one at Land? if I do not improve it, if I do not walk suitable under it, O how easily can God bring me into another. You never were in such Dangers, but you may come to the like again, whether at Sea or Land.

2. Dangers should be remembred with consideration to the greatness of them; great things should be remembred, a great God, great Mercies, great Deli­verances, great Sins, and great Dangers. How should we think, O what a Danger was I in at this time by such a Storm at Sea! by such a Sickness ashore! not only my Life in danger, but Lord, was not my Soul in danger? was I fit to die at [Page 117] such a time? had I gotten an interest in Christ, if I had been cast away at such a time? Men think dangers great for their Bodies, but they do not think them so for their Souls; they think them great for their Ships, for their E­states, but they do not think them so for their Eternal conditions; O, had not my Body, Soul, Ship, and all perished to­gether. And was not this a great dan­ger? thy Souls danger was the greatest danger; hadst thou been drowned at such a time, thy Soul had been shipwrackt to all Eternity.

3. Dangers should be remembred with consideration to their suddenness; how many times do they come suddenly up­on us? As there is sudden fear, so there is sudden danger. When the Lord sends the Winds out of his Treasury suddenly, and threatens men at Sea with sudden destruction, when desolation seems to come as a Whirl-wind, &c. we should think, What if sudden death had come upon me, what a condition was my poor Soul in? what a dreadful thing would it have been if I had been sur­prised on a sudden, and sent into an Eternal condition, in the twinkling of an eye? I, to be threatned to be swal­lowed [Page 118] up, only with a formal God have mercy upon thee in thy mouth; not to have time to pray, repent, reflect upon thy past life: O what a sad thing is this?

4. We should think of our Danger with consideration to the frames of our heart [...] what frames of heart we were then under. 1. To the frames of our hearts when in our dangers. 2. The frames of our hearts when brought from under them. 1. The frames of the heart when in and under them: were not you under great fears and hurries of Soul? it may be, not knowing how it would go with your Souls, if you had gone off the stage of this life at the present. David when he was in danger, took especial notice of the frame of his spirit; In­numerable evils have compassed me about. (Psal. 40. 12. 13.) He was compassed a­bout on every side with danger; and how was it with him then? he calls to mind, Mine iniquities have taken hold upon me, so that I am not able to look up, 57. 7.) And what then? O see how he prays▪ Be pleased, O Lord, to deliver me; O Lord make hast to help me. Remember what the frames of our hearts were in our dan­gers, in reference to our fears; and secondly, what in reference to our faith [Page 119] so also did David, when pursued in dan­ger by Saul. My heart is fixed, my heart is fixed; I will sing and give praise. We are to remember our fears under our dangers, that we may be prepared better for future tryals; we are to remember our faith under dangers past, that we may be encouraged for the time to come in after straits.

2. We are to remember our frames of spirit when God brings us out of our dangers; how then we were melted with the present sense of the mercy; as those Israelites, when God brought them out of danger, they believed God, they sang and gave praise; O what re­solutions were there then upon the Soul to be given up anew to God; to walk be­fore the Lord in the light of the living. Thus also did David, when brought out of danger; Thy vows are upon me, O God, &c. and at another time, The Lord pre­serveth the simple: I was brought low, &c. and thou helpedst me, (Psal. 56. 12, 13.) And then what a frame of heart was up­on him? Return unto thy rest, O my Soul, &c. (Psal. 116. 6, 7.) Then he was all for returning to God: O now there was fresh endearments betwixt the Soul and God. These we are to remember, that [Page 120] we may not wear totally the sense of them off our spirits.

5. We should remember our dangers, with consideration to the frequency of them; how frequently we were in them. Paul remembred this, in Perils by Sea often, in Perils by the Heathen, &c. (2 Cor. 11. 26.) O how often have we been near Drowning, near Taking, near Sink­ing, near Dying, and yet God brought us off; these things we should call to mind often; go out upon dangerous Voyages, and often come home; the oftner and more frequent our dangers, the more should we think upon them.

2. We should Remember our Deliver­ances, but how? 1. We should Remem­ber them, so as to admire them; thus did the people of the Jews in Ezra, Who hath given them such deliverance as this? O! they admire it, and write a Non-such upon the Head of it, as David admired the good­ness of God, when he had spoken of his House to come. Is this the manner of men, O God? He was in an holy Extasy of Heavenly admiration; so should you say now; to carry out, and bring home, in such a dangerous time as this; To hide from Enemies, when sought for in such a time such a Voyage as this: Oh! [...] [Page 121] am I? And what is my Fathers house, that he should bring me hitherto? You should turn the Deliverance on every side, and admire the goodness of God, the wis­dom of God, the mercy of God, the power of God, the faithfulness of God in it, and say, O Lord, what a Deliverance is this? What a Voyage is this? God loves to have his Mercies admired by us.

2. We should Remember our Delive­rances, to have our Hearts raised up in gratitude, and thankfulness to God for them; Thus did David, I will pay my Vows unto the Lord, in presence of all his peo­ple: I will take the Cup of Salvation, and call upon the Name of the Lord, Psal. 116. 12, 13, 14. We are to remember to pay our Thank-offerings unto God, after our Deliverance from God: What, for­get such a Deliverance as this? What, not be thankful for such a Preservation as this?

3. We should Remember our Delive­rances, so as to endear our Hearts to God; Thus we find David, I will love thee, O Lord, I will love the Lord dearly, ( [...]o the Heb.) The Lord is my Rock, my Fortress, and my Deliverer, &c. Psal. 18. 1. O! now how should Souls, after their De­liverance; boil, and burn in Love to God! [Page 122] How are we engaged to a Friend that is at any time but an Instrument in God's hand to Deliver us? And shall we be en­deared to the Instrument, and not to the Author? O! How was David en­deared to God, when he said, He having Redeemed him, he would walk before the Lord in the Land of the Living, Psal. 56. ult.

4. We should Remember our Delive­rances to improve them in a way of acting Faith, when the next danger and straits comes: I will remember thee from the Land of Jordan, from the Hill Missar, Psal. 42. 6, 7. This was to encourage him from his former Deliverances in his fu­ture straits and exigencies. What, now distrust God, who hath delivered in six Troubles, and now shall we give way to Unbelief in the Seventh? Did not holy David thus? He hath delivered me out of the Paw of the Lyon, and out of the Paw of the Bear, and he will deliver me out of the hand of the uncircumcised Philistine. Thus Paul remembers his Deliverance from Nero. And I was delivered out of the mouth of the Lyon, and the Lord shall delive me from every evil work, 1 Tim. 4. 17, 18.

5. We should remember our Delive­rances, to be often inculcating, and im­printing [Page 123] them upon our own hearts: A­las, when we receive them, they are a lit­tle fresh it may be upon our spirits, but O how soon do they die, because they are not written upon our hearts; they are not Engraven there as a Man that would Remember a thing, be it a Notion, or any Resolution, he will be often turning it o­ver in his thoughts; Alas, if we write our Deliverances, Is it not in the Dust? whereas we should write them in Mar­ble: We should write them with a Pen of Iron, and the point of a Diamond.

1. We should Commemorate our Dan­gers with our Deliverances, because God gives them to that end. The Lord doth not give us our Deliverances to cast them at our heels, nor brings us out of our Dangers, that we might forget them, as tho we had never been in any of them. God expects that we should faithfully Re­gister and Record them; therefore it was a great Provocation to the Lord, that the Children of Israel so soon forgot his works: If you do but forget the kindness of a Friend, you think it is disingenious; but O then, What is it to forget that God that hath delivered you out of six trou­bles, and in seven troubles? God loves and expects his kindness should be kept upon Record.

[Page 124] 2. We should Commemorate our Dangers and Deliverances, because it was freely of his grace to bring us out of the one, and put us under the other; Is it not of his meer mercy that he rescu'd and pull'd us out of our dangers? Might not we else been swallow'd up of them? And may not we all say in this case, as the Psalmist in that? Had it not been the Lord who was on our side then, the waters had overwhelmed us, the stream had gone o­ver our Soul, then the proud Waves had gone over our Soul, Psal. 124. 4, 5. May not you who have been so often deliver'd at Sea in eminent dangers sing this Song▪ What, and now forget such dangers? and cast behind your backs such Delive­rances. Oh! the freer any favour is, the more it should be remembred; Doth God see any thing in us, or in our Fami­lies, more then others, to bestow such deliverances for? One Man goes to Sea, and he is taken; another goes to Sea, and he is sunk; another goes to Sea, and he dies the Term of the Voyage; And why doth the Lord preserve you? Is not this Free-Grace? not because you are more Righteous, but because he is more Gra­cious; And should not this be Remem­bred?

[Page 125] 3. Our Dangers and Deliverances should be remembred, because God hath gracious ends and designs both in the one and the other; What ends hath God to bring us into dangers? 1. He by this hath an end and design to quicken up to duty; it may be there may be some omitted duty; neglected duties often bring Men into great and e­minent dangers; it may be a Person is convinced of the duty of Prayer, but it may be neglected; Oh then God will bring into danger to quicken to duty; Oh, says God, In their affliction they will seek me early. The very Heathen Marri­ners called out for Prayer in time of danger. Observe it, that Persons con­vinced of duties, either Personal or Do­mestical, and yet neglected, God usually whips them to their Duties, by one dan­ger, affliction or another. The Proverb is good, if you would teach a Man to Pray, send him to Sea. 2. God by bringing us into dangers, hath a design upon us to convince us of sin; many Convictions hath come into the Soul at this door; Dangers have often proved inlets to Convictions. Oh! What Convictions have many poor Souls lain under while in danger, when it may be the dangers hath [Page 126] given them a view of Eternity; when Dangers hath presented Death to the Man, and Conscience hath cried, Now thou art sinking, now there is but a step betwixt thee and Eternity, betwixt thee and another World? Oh then what Convictions hath the Soul lyen under? and yet it may be when the Danger is over, the Conviction is over too. Well, though we may forget all, yet God re­members all. 3. God hath a design up­on us in our Dangers, to prepare us for our latter end. The danger thou art in, and hath escaped, calls for to pre­pare for thy Death, which must certainly come to pass shortly. God by Dangers would have you prepare for Death: And Oh! VVhat a cutting Consideration will this be when thou com'st to die? that thou who hast been in so many dangers by Sea and Land, should have no more learned to die, nor ready to die. Alas, you escaped the last, that you might pre­pare for the next. 4. God hath a design upon our Graces by bringing us into dan­ger; Danger is to exert and draw forth Grace. Thus the Disciples Dangers at Sea were to draw forth their Faith. Faith and Patience comes most visibly upon the stage in times of most eminent danger. [Page 127] 5. God by bringing us into Dangers, hath a design upon our Souls; he some­times by danger of drowning the Body, hath saved the Soul, and hath caused it to say, Periissem nisi periissem: I had pe­rished, if I had not perished. Some have escaped Shipwrack of Soul, by Shipwrack of Body; And shall we forget such Dan­gers, when God hath such gracious de­signs in them upon us?

2. He drives on gracious ends and de­signs in our Deliverances, And shall we then forget them? &c. 1. He spares us, that we may account his long-suffering Salvation; he gives, by sparing of us, space to Repent; and Oh! What [...] dreadful thing is it not to remember wherefore we are spared and delivered? He gave her space to Repent, but she repented not, Psal. 56. ult. The Prisoner is Re­prieved, that he might sue out his Par­don, And will he forget the end for which he is Reprieved? 2. He delivers, that we may live to him. Why was Da­vid's feet deliver'd from falling? it was, that he might walk before the Lord in the light of the living. He gives us our lives, that we might give them back again to God, Jer. 7. 10. Men are not deliver'd from dangers to live to themselves, to [Page 128] live to their lusts, to Drink, and Swear, and Rant, and Roar, as a great many poor Wretches do. That say as they did, We are deliver'd to do all these abomi­nations, Psal. 50. 15. 3. God hath ano­ther end in Deliverance, that we might glorifie him, in paying our Vows to him. I will deliver thee; And what then when out of Trouble never remember it more, cast it behind thy back; O no; And thou shalt glorifie me. He aims at a revenue of glory out of your deliveran­ces. 4. God hath another end in deli­vering of us; that we might enter into New Engagements, to be more the Lords; as in times of great dangers, there use to be great engagements betwixt God and the Soul; so in times of Great Deliveran­ces, there are great Engagements pass be­twixt God and the Soul, New Dedicati­ons to God; New Deliverances call for New Dedications of the Soul to God; now the Soul should be set apart for God more than ever. 5. God hath a­nother end in delivering of us, that we might break off our league with sin; thus it was with them, Shall we break his Com­mandments, after such great deliverance as this?

APPLICATION.

Is it so, that our Dangers and Delive­rances should be remembred by us? then it is a word of Information.

1. Learn we here how acceptable it is to God, that we thankfully congratu­late our Mercies. No Musick like a sound of Trumpets off the VVaters: so, O what sweet Musick doth it make in God's Eares, that you thankfully record Sea-Mercies, and Sea-Deliverances; this is Musick of the VVaters; this makes Melody in God's Eares. Sea-Prayers and Sea-Praises come up acceptably be­fore the Lord; he is so pleased with them, that he hath called them Sacrifices. O that Men would offer the Sacrifice of Praise; this is the found of Trumpets you should carry to Sea with you, out­ward bound, and homeward bound.

2. Learn we hence what a Great E­vil it is to lose the remembrance of our Dangers and Deliverances. VVhat do many Families? VVhat do many Persons with the Sea-Dangers, with the Sea-Deli­verances? Do not they write them in the dust? Do not they bury them in the [...] of Oblivion? Do not they cast [Page 130] them behind their backs? Do not they trample them under foot? O poor Souls! they little know what they do. 1. Such Deliverances will have a Resur­rection in their Consciences one day; though they bury them now, O they will rise again: And Oh! How will they then dread and terrifie a poor Soul? 2. Such Deliverances will another day be witnesses and evidences against you. Oh! VVhat a cutting testimony will they give in against the Soul? Hast not thou been graciously and wonderfully de­livered in such a Voyage, in such a Storm at Sea, in such a Sickness at Shore, and yet walked unsuitably under all thefe? To be cast out by mercy, O what a dreadful thing is this! 3. Such deli­verances forgotten by us, harden us; either they soften or harden. These Providences are like God's Ordinances in this respect, they either harden or soften. Oh! VVhat a dreadful thing it is to be harden'd by Deliverances and Preservation, and yet many are. Sentence being not speedily executed, the hearts of Men are fully set in them to do evil. 4. Such Deliverances will be Great aggravations both of man's sin and misery, if forgot­ten by them. The goodness of God [Page 131] was the aggravation of the sin of David, says God, When I had done so and so for thee, nay, and I would have done more, where­fore hast thou despised the Commandment of the Lord, to do evil in his sight, 2 Sam. 12. 8, 9. VVhat, for you that had such deli­verances as these, to break his Command­ment; as Ezra says; O this is an high aggravation! 5. Deliverances and Dan­gers forgotten will cause the Lord to pull in his hand in a way of mercy, will cause God to give up Persons, and take his Pro­tecting Presence from them, take them from the shadow of his VVings. Souls by forgetting past dangers and delive­rances, may put themselves from under God's Protection for the future.

Ʋse 2. Is it so that we are to Remem­ber our Sea-dangers and deliverances? then it is a word of Exhortation; be exhorted then to call to mind, and keep in mind, what God hath done for you; and in this Exhortation I address my self to Sea-faring men, whose lives are a course and series of VVonders in their frequent Salvations and Preservations, (witness this Treatise) as you see the wonders of God in the Deeps, (viz.) The wonders of his Creation, so do you see the wonders of his Salvation: [Page 132] How often may Wonderful be Written upon the Head of Salvations that you are every Voyage receiving from God? you never go out, and come home, but God works Wonderfully, and appears Wonder­fully for you; Is not he a Wonder-working-God for you every Voyage?

The Exhortation is to call to mind, and keep in mind, to Record and Regi­ster your Dangers and Deliverances, and not to do as Israel is said to do, who soon forgot his Works. How often doth God bring in this sin of theirs in one Psalm? They forgot his works, and the wonders he had shewed them, Psal. 106. 13. Psal. 78. 11.

1. Keep them in mind, for they are wonderful Dangers and Deliverances; They are Wonders, these are to be re­membred. Marvellous thin [...]s did he for them, in the sight of their Fathers, &c. He devided the Sea, and caused them to pass through, and he made the waters to stand as an heap, Psal. 78. 12, 13. And it is brought in again in that Psalm. They remembred not his hand, nor the day when God delivered them out of the hand of the E­ne [...]y, &c. Psal.. 73. 42. And in ano­ther place, Th [...]y forgot God their Savi­our, which had done great things in Egypt, [Page 133] Wondrous works in the Land of Ham, Psal. 106. 21. 22. This heightens the sin exceedingly to forget such Great and Wonderful Dangers and Deliverances.

1. Your Dangers are Wonderful in this Respect, they are often such as threa­ten a sentence of Death to be executed upon you. May it not be said of poor Sea-men, as was of them; For we would not (Brethren) have you ignorant of our trouble, which came to us in Asia, that we were pressed out of measure, above strength, insomuch that we despaired of Life, but we had the sentence of death in our selves, that we should not trust in our selves, but in him that raiseth the dead, who deliverid us from so great a Death, and doth Deliver, 2 Cor. 1. 8, 9, 10. O how many Sea-faring Men may say thus! Our Dangers have been such, as we have often despaired of Life; there hath but been a little be­twixt us and Death; nay, betwixt us and Eternity; And shall we forget such dangers, when we have been so near death in them? As he said to David, As the Lord lives, there is but one step betwixt thee and death. O how often have you been near sinking, near drowning, and yet God hath then appeared for you, with an outstretched Arm, and in the [Page 134] Mount hath been seen, And will you not remember this?

2. Your Dangers are Wonderful in this Respect, they are sudden and sur­prizing, they are wonderfully sudden; How are you often, all on a sudden, threatned with nothing but present Death and Destruction? It may be said of Sea-men, as of those in Job, Snares compasses them about, and sudden fear trou­bleth them, Job 22. 10. It doth not on­ly trouble them, but all on a sudden trou­ble them, before they know almost where they are (as we say;) VVe read of some whose Calamity shall come suddenly. Suddenly shall he be broken without Remedy, Prov. 6. 15. O how terrible is such a case, or such a danger And hath not God often threatned to make this your case and condition? O then do not forget such dangers that have so suddenly lookt you in the Face!

3. Your Dangers are VVonderful in this Respect, they are not Dangers in which your Bodies are concerned only, but they are Dangers in which your Souls are concerned; It is not only the danger of a Ship-wrack'd Vessel, and a Ship-wrack'd Estate, and a Shipwrack'd Body, but a Shipwrack'd Soul. Here [Page 135] is the great danger, lest thou make a lost Voyage for thy Soul: If thou had died in such a Storm, or died in the Term of such a Voyage; Oh! VVhat would have become of thy Soul, thy precious, thy immortal Soul? Had not thou died in a Carnal, in a Christless state and con­dition? Had not thy poor Soul perish'd to all Eternity, if thou then had mis­carried? VVas not thou then a stran­ger altogether to Christ, and a VVork of Saving Grace upon thy Heart? Had not thou then the guilt of all thy sins upon the back of thy Soul unpardoned? And O what danger was this! And wilt thou forget such dangers?

4. Your Dangers are such at Sea, as none but a God can deliver from; all your skill cannot; O, then is the greatest Artist at his Wits end! The Psalmist tells us, (Psal. 107. 27.) the Marriners in their Storms, are at their wits end; (or as some read it) all their wisdom is swal­lowed up, they know not what course to Steer, (the Dutch Annorators carry it,) Now their very Pilots are at a loss; Now all their courage cannot contribute to their deliverance, though men of the greatest natural courage and magnanimity in the world: Yet now their hearts melt [Page 136] because of troubles; as it is said of the Marriners in Jonahs Ship, The Marriners were afraid. O now, when Death and E­ternity, the Grave and Judgment to come looks them in the face! Then they are Magor-Missabibs, terror to themselves, and to all about them; O now, the dan­ger is such, it must be the only finger of God that can help! I have heard of a Ship in Yarmouth Road, that in a great Storm, they feared the Anchor would come home, and the Master discoursing with a Youth in the Ship, that God had be­gun lately to work some Convictions up­on, O says he, Master if God do but lay a Finger upon one Strand of the Cable, it will hold; and in the morning many Ships were lost near them, and there was but one Strand in the Cable left. O the finger of God only can sometimes save in dangers. It was a good saying of a Godly Commander of a Ship in eminent dangers, None now but that God that saved the Chil­dren of Israel at the Red Sea, can save us out of this distress; and as soon as he had said it, the Wind altered, and saved them; And will you forget such dangers as none but a God can save from?

5. Your dangers at Sea are such as ma­ny thousands have perished in; how many [Page 137] have gone to Sea, that never returned more? that have been swallowed up in the belly of the great Deeps? How many have perished by the Sword at Sea? how many by violent Storms? and that God should put a difference betwixt you and others, and you should forget it, this ex­ceedingly heightens and aggravates the guilt. How many have lost their lives? how many have lost their limbs? and yet in such dangers God hath brought you off; this is never to be forgotten.

2. Your dangers are not only wonder­ful, but your deliverances are so too, and therefore should be remembred. There is never a deliverance, but you may read a wonder in it; so many deliverances and salvations at Sea, so many wonders. God saves you in a miraculous way.

1. Is not this a wonder, that persons of such great sins and provocations, should be persons of such great salvations and preservations? that such as sin every Voyage, nay, it may be at an high rate sin every Voyage, should be saved and de­livered at such an high rate every Voyage? is not this a wonder, that men of such sins, should be men of such salvations? that men that sin against these salvations, should not have these deliverances shorten [Page 138] upon them. Oh what a wonder is this! We should wonder if a person should be continually disobliging any of us, and yet we should be still heaping up kindnesses upon him: This made the Prophet Ezra say, Shall we again break his Commandments, after such deliverance as this? O do not you provoke the Lord every time that you go out, and still he delivers you, still he returns you to your Relations, to visit your habitations in peace! and is not this a wonder?

2. Your deliverances are wonderful, if you consider your deliverances are great deliverances. We read of such; And the Lord saved them with a great deliverance; or with a great salvation. Thus said Sampson, Thou hast given this great deliver­ance into the hand of thy servant, (Judg. 15. 18.) Now any great transactions are remembred and recorded. Your de­liverances are great, if we consider these things; 1. They are commanded deli­verances by the great God; his word of command brings all our deliverances a­bout, whether at Sea or Land. Which made the Church in distress pray, Thou art my King, O God, command deliverances for Jacob, (Psal. 44. 4.) He commands every thing tending to deliverance at Sea; in order to deliverance, he com­mands [Page 139] the Winds; He maketh the storm a calm, (Psal. 107. 29.) He also com­mands the Seas; he says to the proud Waves, So far, and no farther. You read of a decree set to the Sea, that it cannot pass; Though the Waves thereof toss them­selves, yet can they not prevail; though they roar, yet can they not pass over it, (Jer. 5. 22.) It is the great God only that rides Lord Admiral at Sea, to command the Seas and the Waves thereof. God is said to shut up the Sea with doors, and set bars upon it. Hitherto shalt thou come, and no further; and here shall thy proud waves be stayed, (Job. 38. 8, 11.) Xerxes presumed he could tame the Hellespont, for attempting his Bridge of Boats; but all this was in vain, this is a flower in Gods Crown alone, to command the Sea. Your deliverances are a fruit and effect of Gods commanding Power, therefore great. 2. They are great deliverances, as they are the curious workmanship (as I may call them) of the Attributes of a great God. Deliverance is said to be wrought for us, it is the handy work of God; If God will work, who can let? (as the Prophet saith, Isa. 43. 13, 14.) And he seems to speak it upon the account of the deliverance of his People; For your sake I have sent down to Babylon, and have [Page 140] brought down all their Nobles, and the Cal­deans, whose cry is in their ships. In every deliverance there is the excellent work of the Attributes of God; we may in such a deliverance say, Here is the Power of God, and here is the Wisdom of God, and here is the Love of God, and here is the Faithfulness of God, &c. For as God in the confounding of the Languages at Babel, said, Go too, let us go down, (as if he derected himself to his glorious Attri­butes, compassing about his glorious Throne) Come, let us go down. Gen. 11. 7. (Or, as some take it of the Trinity, as in the Creation.) So when God sends us deliverances in our distresses, he sets his Attributes at work; Go Power, go Mercy, go Love, go Faithfulness, go and act your respective parts in this deliver­ance; and must not this be then an ex­cellent and curious Piece that Gods At­tributes bring forth? 3. They are great deliverances, if we consider the great sins and provocations they come over the heads of, the great unworthiness of the receiver, heightens much the mercy and favour received; the reason why persons do not greaten their deliverances, is be­cause they do not greaten their sins, in the deep sense and aggravations of them. [Page 141] O such a Soul would say, as David, Is this the manner of men? O God, is not this a great deliverance for such a great sinner to receive? 4. They are great deliver­ances, if we consider the time and season of their coming in; as this deliverance of the Ships Company where Paul was, it was when all hope of being saved was taken away; and so were many of the de­liverances mentioned in this Treatise. So Peter's Sea-deliverance, when he began to sink, Christ stretched forth his hand immediately; he was now sinking and go­ing, but see how ready Christ was to save; He stretched forth his hand and caught Peter, (Matth. 14. 28, 29, 30.) Our sinking time, is Jesus Christs saving time. In the Mount is the Lord seen; our extremity is Gods opportunity; and are not then these great deliverances never to be for­gotten? 5. They are great deliverances, if we consider they are not only deliver­ances of Bodies, and Ships, and Estates sometimes, but Souls; and where the Ship is lost, and the Estate is lost, yet for the life to be saved, and the Soul deliver­ed, is a very great Deliverance; a Re­prieve when a Prisoner is under the sen­tence of Death, is a great Mercy: O when God Reprieves a poor Prisoner, [Page 142] this is some Deliverance; we read o [...] some Deliverance God gave to Israel in the days of Shishak; a Reprieve is some Deliverance, but if it end in suing out the Prisoners Pardon, then it is a great De­liverance. If it be such a Deliverance in a Storm at Sea, as Hezekiah had from a Sickness at Shoar, Thou hast delivered me in love to my Soul, and cast all my sins behind thy back, (Isa. 38.) This is a double De­liverance, and sure such Deliverances as these are worth Recording; These are to be written in Marble and not in Dust, with the Pen of Iron, (as the Prophet says) and not with with point of a Diamond.

3. Your Deliverances are wonderful, if you consider the many thousands that have perished in less Dangers to an eye of Reason; they are distinguishing Deliver­ances, and therefore wonderful hath God dealt with all men that go to Sea as with you. Hath not thousands perished by the Sword at Sea in bloody Engagements? Miscarried at Sea in dreadful and terrible Storms; Hath not the Sea been a Sepul­cher for thousands? Are not there Millions of the Dead that the Sea must one day give up, and yet you Delivered, and yet you spared? O what distinguish­ing Mercy is this! And shall this be for­gotten [Page 143] by you? Should not you keep Re­cords of distinguishing Mercy? How ma­ny sunk sometimes, and perished by your sides? How many that went out with you that never Returned? One taken, and an­other left; one sunk, and another saved.

4. Your Deliverances are Wonderful, if you consider the way that sometimes God takes to bring them about; O what strange ways doth God take to deliver, when he hath a mind to deliver; some­times he brings down to the very Gate of the Grave, he brings to the Doors and Bars of the Sea, and then shuts these doors; as Job speaks, He brings to the next door to perishing, and then he de­livers; Master save me, or I perish; and then he lends an Arm, witness many of these deliverances here mentioned. Some­times he doth it by strange means, low and contemptible, as the poor man that we Read of, that delivered the City, (Eccles. 9. 15.) sometimes by unthought of and unexpected means, as he that Re­lieved Major Gibbons, as this Story men­tions, he was a French Pyrate. As that Ship I have heard off, that when she sprang a Leak, and they all had like to have perished, all on a sudden the Leak stopt, and they knew no Reason, but when they [Page 144] came into the next Port to search her, there was a great Fish had wrought him­self into the Leak, that they were glad to cut him out; was not here a miraculous deliverance? That Jonah should be swal­lowed up by the Whale, O what a mira­cle was this! and so he was preserved! and how have some been saved by sudden shifts of Winds when near sinking and perishing? these are to be remembred to the Lord while you live: Oh! methinks this one Motive should set on the Exhor­tation, if I should use no more, to Remem­ber your Dangers and your Deliverances.

But secondly, another Motive is this, to Remember your Dangers with your Deliverances; this will in your great di­stresses and extremities, contribute some hope to you; to read over your Register, your ancient Records, how good God hath been at such a time, and such a time; how seasonably he stept in and delivered in such a strait and such a strait; Oh then says the Soul, why should I despair, and cast off all hope now? hath not he ap­peared and saved in Deaths often before now? for past experiences are good sup­ports for Hope in present exigencies and extremities; thus David argues, when at a great strait, Thou hast delivered me, and [Page 145] wilt deliver me; and thus Paul, Thou hast delivered me, and wilt deliver me. Haman found this a good way to Remember the years of the Lords right hand.

3. Remember your Dangers and De­liverances, for God Records them; they are filled up by God, and he will mind you of them another day if you forget them now; he keeps his Journals and Records; he hath his Book of Remembrance of your forgotten Mercies, as well as your for­gotten sins; God will one day read over all those Deliverances you have forgotten; Oh poor Soul! did not I deliver thee in such a Danger, in such a Distress, in such a Death, when there was no Hope, when there was no Help, yet all this hast thou forgotten; forgotten thy Mercy, and for­gotten the God of thy Mercy; Oh! will not this sting you to the Heart, when God shall cause your strangled, and murdered Mercies to walk in your Consciences? when he shall give them a Resurrection there?

4. Motive to Remember your Dangers and Deliverances: the Vows of God are upon you; Oh! what did you say to God in the day of your distress and calamity? Lord, if thou wilt now appear, and be a present help in time of trouble, it shall [Page 146] [...] [Page 147] [...] [Page 148] [...] [Page 149] [...] [Page 146] never be forgotten, i [...] shall be remembred to the Lord as long as we have a day to live; but when God brings poor Souls off, many do not only forget their Vows, but deny them; In Ancient times it was usual in eminent dangers, whether at Sea or Land, to make Vows; We read that Jonahs Mariners they Vowed Vows, (Jonah 1. 16.) David did thus, Thy Vows are upon me, O God! I will render praises unto thee, &c. Psal. 56 11. (and in ano­ther place) I will pay thee my Vows, which my lips have uttered, and my mouth hath spo­ken when I was in trouble, (Psal. 66. 13, 14.) But because this is so ordinary to make Vows at Sea, and brake them a Shoar, let me enlarge a little upon it. 1. Why should you forget your Vows after your Deliverances? They were not rash Vows, there might have been some excuse, if you had made them rashly, you might then have had a Plea, for saying it was an Error; but in times of distress, men are serious, when Death and Eternity is set before them, and they upon the brink of another world; dare you sinners rashly Vow, in this day of your distress; O no, your Consciences will bear witness against you, that you were in sober-sad­ness at that day. 2. Why should you [Page 147] forget your Vows after your Deliveran­ces, for God will require payment? Nay, this is not only the Reason why we should not forget to pay, but why we should not delay to pay; When thou vows a vow to the Lord thy God, thou shouldst not slack to pay it, for the Lord thy God will require it, yea, will surely require it of thee, and is would [...]e sin in thee, (Deut. 23. 21.) Take it for granted he will do it, yea, he will surely do it. 1. He will require it, so as to call to a payment day, he will demand it, he will send unto you a Summons to pay the Vows you made to him in the day of your Distress. Oh! how often is Conscience Gods Officer, that he sends to you to de­mand Payment? O says Cons [...]ience, Sin­ner, pay what thou owest to the God of thy deliverances; is not he a God to whom the Vows must be performed? 2. He will require it, so as to punish the non-payment; and so requiring is here taken, and in many other places, the Lord doth very often severely punish Vow­breaking; breaking of Vows doth cause God often to destroy the works of your hands. Say not before the Angel, It was an error, wherefore should God be angry at thy Vows, and destroy the works of thy hands? (Eccles. 5. 4, 5.) Some Expositors refer [Page 148] this to the Priest, before whom the sin of rash vows was to be confest; others carry it to Christ, the Angel of the Covenant. who sees through all our subtil excuses and equivocations, and punishes them. O, God is angry when men go so flatly a­gainst their Vows; O then God is angry, and destroys the work of their hands, viz. disappoints their endeavours, and denies them success.

Lastly, to forget your deliverances and dangers, is the greatest ingratitude and unthankfulness in the world; hath God given you so many wonderful deliveran­ces, so many miraculous preservations, to be buried in the grave of oblivion? will you murder your mercies, and then bury them? It is commonly said, Murder will out. Murdered Mercies will one day make terrible work, in walking in your Consciences.

The next Observation is this, That Salvations and Deliverances many times are not sent until persons be left helpless and hopeless. I shall give you a touch of this. Now all hope of being saved was taken away, no small tempest lay upon them; now they were gulft in despair of ever coming off with their lives: Yet this often is the condition of Nations, [Page 149] Ship-Companies, and Persons, where God intends to save and deliver. The proofs of the last Observation about Dangers and Deliverances being recorded and remem­bred, proves this also. Thus was Peter sa­ved, the Disciples saved, when just at sinking

But why doth God stay so long before he sends deliverances and salvations? 1. Because he delights to draw forth a spirit of prayer; if men will not pray when sinking, when drowning, when dy­ing, they will never pray. O see how Jonah prays in his distress: And Jonah prayed to the Lord out of the Fishes belly, and said, I cried by reason of mine affliction unto the Lord, and he heard me; out of the belly of Hell cried I, and thou heardst my voice, &c. When my Soul fainted within me, I re­membred the Lord; and my Prayer came in unto thy holy Temple, (Jonah 2. 1, 2, 3, 7.) O Sirs, God loves prayer so well; that he stayes with his deliverances, that we might sue them out by prayer. Out of the Depths have I cried unto thee, saith David, (Psal. 130. 1.) Driven to it by deep and bot­tomless straits, into which I am plunged. And it seems to be an allusion to Mar­riners, in their distresses and dangers of being shipwrackt, crying unto the Lord. What will any man perish, and never pray [...] [Page 152] House, when he had so long been star­ving in the Fields, with his Husks, a­mongst the Swine!

4. Because God will have all his Salva­tions and Deliverances look like his own hand and arm, his own arm brings salva­tion with him; he will have the print of his own hand upon it, that poor sinners may say, This is the finger of God, the do­ings of God, and it is marvellous in our eyes. Alas, Men would attribute it to themselves, if Salvation did not come in such a way, when all hope of being sa­ved is taken away. Oh! every thing is beautiful in its season; Is not Salvation and Deliverance now in season? now they begin to despair, as to probable or visible hopes. O now God works like himself, now he appears in a deliverance to be God; which set the Disciples a wondring, What manner of Man is this, that the Winds and Sea obey him? Mark 4. 41. And at another time, when he de­liver'd his Disciples at Sea, and calmed the Winds, then they that were in the Ship worshipped him, saying, Of a truth thou are the Son of God, Matth. 14. 32, 33.

5. Because he will by such salvations set off his love to poor Souls: Was not the love of Christ set off highly, in taking [Page 153] that season to save the Ship when it was full; to save them when they were fink­ing; Is not that great Love, that steps forth to save in an Extremity? O what Love was this, to save this Ships Com­pany, when all hope of being saved was taken away? Love always chuses the fit­test times to appear and evidence it self.

Lastly, Because he will have his deli­verances, endearing deliverances to Souls. O how doth such an appearance of God, at such a time, endear the Soul of the Receiver. Therefore, saith David, I will love the Lord, (or love the Lord dear­ly) my Rock and my Deliverer, &c.

But I will proceed to give you also a taste of the Application, and not be large, because I have been large upon the for­mer, which was mainly intended.

1. Then learn we hence, that God may for gracious ends, known to himself, delay a mercy or a deliverance, and yet fully intends to give in that mercy. Ja­cob may wrestle all night, and yet be put off; but in the break of day the mercy comes. The Woman of Canaan may cry to Christ for her Daughter, and at pre­sent be put off, yet at last she shall carry it. The believing Soul may not have [Page 154] the Dove come with an Olive-branch in her Mouth until Evening. Christ's ma­nifesting of his love to poor Souls, is called his Supping with them; And I will sup with you: Now supper comes not up till Evening.

2. Learn we hence, that God's timing our deliverances and salvations, is best for us; his time is the best time. Our time is always ready, (but saith Christ) My [...] is not yet. If we had our Mer­cies in our time, we should not see that beauty in them; for every thing is beau­tiful in its season: and God chuses the fit­test seasons to seud them, because he will put a beauty upon them.

3. Learn we hence, that no case is de­sperate to God, though it be so to Man: One would have thought this a desperate case, in such a Storm, lightning the Ship, the casting out of the Tackling of the Ship, neither Sun nor Stars appeared, and all hope of being saved taken away; yet all this was but desperate to them, it was not so to God: now their extremity be­comes God's opportunity, and he takes this juncture of time to appear in. Thus David, Psal. 42. 7, 8. all God's waves and God's billows had gone over him; a desperate case! yet God (then he be­lieves) [Page 155] would command his loving kind­ness in the day-time, and his Song should be with him in the Night. Faith is an excellent Grace at a desperate stand.

4. Learn we hence, that God's thoughts are not as our thoughts; when we think of nothing but sinking and perishing, then doth God think of saving and delivering. They thought all hope of being saved was taken away, but God looks through the Storm and Cloud, and comforts them. As the Disciples, when they thought it had been a Spirit in their Storm that appear­ed to them; No, saith Christ, be not a­fraid; be of good chear, it is I, Mark 6. 50, 51, 52.

Ʋse 2. Is it so, that the salvations and deliverances that many of us have, are not until we be brought to extremities? then it is a word of Exhortation; Then look up to God in the most desperate case, when you know not what to do in your Storms at Sea, in your Straits at Land. O then let your eyes be up unto the Lord; you see how many deliveran­ces have come down in extremities, as answers to Prayer. O Pray hard; let go­ing to Sea, being in Storms at Sea, being brought to Extremities at Sea, learn you to Pray.

FINIS.

PRAYERS.

The Mariners Prayer.

O GOD the great Creator of Heaven and Earth, thou dost whatsoever thou pleasest in the Sea, and in all deep places; I, the most unworthiest of all thy Servants am at this time called upon to be­hold thy Wonders in the Deep, and to perform my Duty in great Waters. Guide me, I be­seech thee, in all times and in all places: Be thou our skilful Pilot to steer us, and protect us from all Dangers, and rebuke the Winds and the Seas when they molest us, preserve our Vessel from being rent by the loud cracks of Thunder, or from being burnt by Lightning or any other ac­cident; keep us and save us from tempestuous Weather, from bitter Frosts, Hail, Ice, Snow, or Whirlwinds, and from Captivity and Slavery.

TEACH me, O God, to remember thee my Creator in the days of my Youth, to continually think upon thee, and to praise thy Name for all thy Mercies: Bless all our Friends, I beseech thee, that are on Land, and let their Prayers for us be acceptable in thy sight, and grant that our next meeting together may be for the better, and not for the worse, even to the praising and magnifying of thy Holy Name, and Salvation of our own Souls in the great day of the Lord Jesus, to whom with thee, and thy blessed Spirit, be ascribed all Honour, Power, and Glory, Adoration, and Subjection, now and for evermore.

Amen.

A Prayer before a Voyage.

O ETERNAL God, even the God of our Salvation, the hope of all the ends of the Earth, and of them that remain in the wide [Page] Ocean, under the shadow of whose Wings we are always secure, and without whose protection we cannot expect safety; I have been, O Lord, preserved by thee until this moment from many dangers, for which I have not expressed my thank­fulness in acknowledging those dayly blessings I have received from thee; but, O Lord, forget and forgive those mani [...]old sins which I have committed against thee, and blot them out of thy Book of remembrance.

PURGE me, O Lord, I beseech thee, from all vile affections; and grant I may bring forth the fruits of thy Spirit; go along with me with thy blessed Spirit in this my Voyage, preserve me from Pirates, Robbers and Enemies, defend me from Rocks, Sands and Shelves, and keep me from Thunder and Lightning, Storms and tem­pestuous Weather, or any other danger that may dismay me. To thee, O Lord, I commend my Body and Spirit, to dispose of me according to thy holy Will and Pleasure; if thou art pleas'd to call for my life upon the surface of the Waters; I know thy Almighty Word can command the Sea to give up her Dead at the last and great audit.

But if thou hast determin'd to bring me safe to my desired Haven, give me thy Grace which is sufficient for me to walk according to thy holy Will in all things; make me to lay hold of Eternal Life, which as the Anchor of Hope, is both sure and stedfast; keep me from all tem­ptations ghostly and bodily, and from sudden Death, and in thy good time bring me to the Land of the Living, there to reign with thee for evermore.

Amen.

A Thanksgiving after a Voyage.

O IMMORTAL God, I have seen thy Works O Lord, and thy Wonders in the [Page] deep; thou spakest the Word and the storm Wind arose, which lifted up the Waves thereof but when we cried unto thee, thou madest the storm to cease, so that the Waves thereof were still; then did we rejoyce because we were a [...] ­rest, and thou broughtest us safe to that Haven [...] where we would be: O that men would there­fore praise thee, O Lord, for thy Goodness, and de­clare the Wonders thou dost continually for them.

I BLESS thy Holy Name, for conducting me through those many dangers which encompassed me, and praise thy Mercy that the Deep hath not swallowed me up, and that I am not gone down into the place of silence. I also praise thy holy Name, and admire thy loving Kindness to­wards me, that thou hast not delivered up my Body and Goods as a prey into the hands of un­reasonable Men, but hast brought me to my desired Haven, and at last returned me back in safety to my Habitation.

O LET me never forget to pay those Vows I made to thee, when I was in trouble; but give me an awful sense and apprehension of thy great Power, and possess my Soul with a true Reverence of thy Divine Majesty; that I may evermore serve thee in holiness and Righteous­ness all the days of my Life: Endue me with thy Holy Spirit; that I may become acceptable in thy sight, and may be fitted at length for future Glories, this I beg for thy Son Jesus Christs sake, my only Saviour.

Amen.

A Prayer in a Storm.

O LORD our God, thou hast commanded us in the day of Calamity to call upon thy Name, and thou hast promised to hear us; Lord, I fly unto thee, who art a sure refuge; thy Flood­gates [Page] are opened, and the Floods lift up their [...]ofty Waves. But thou, O Lord most high, art mightier than the noise of many Waters: yea, than the mighty Waves of the Sea: Thou canst in a moment, if it stand with thy Divine will and pleasure, rebuke the Winds and the Sea, and turn this Storm into a Calm.

I KNOW I justly deserve to be cast away, and utterly to be rejected by thee; but Lord save us, or else we perish; accept of my unfeigned sorrow for all my sins and transgressions, and en­due me with a stedfast resolution to forsake them; be merciful unto us O God, be merciful unto us and save us from perishing in these deep Waters; O refresh us with thy Mercy, and that soon, lest we go down into the place of silence, O comfort us in this great distress, that though the Sea rage and swell, our Hearts may be quiet and still in this time of our disconsolation.

AND as I earnestly desire to be protected from this great peril and danger which now terrifies us, so I earnestly beseech thee, that thou wilt for ever fill my heart with [...]ch an awful dread of thy Ma­jesty, that I may fear thy Name, and praise thy power in the great Congregation; awake my dull and drowsie Soul, from the sloth of Sin, and renew a right Spirit within me; fill me with the gifts and Graces of thy Holy Spirit, that I may live the life of the Righteous, and never forget thy loving-kindness; save us now from Death I beseech thee, from the mercile [...]s Waves who are now ready to swallow us up, and bring us home in safety for thy Son Jesus Christ his sake, our only Lord and Saviour.

Amen.

A Thanksgiving after a Storm.

I PRAISE and glorifie thy holy Name, O Lord, for all thy mercies and blessings vouchsafed unto me, especially for this thy last great De­liverance, wherein I was incompassed in that wide Ocean, whom thou hast set bounds and limits to; if thou, O Lord, hadst not been on my side, the Sea had swallowed me up quick, and I had gone down into the deep of silence; but thou hast been my God and my Deliverer, and hast put a new Song into my Mouth, even a Song of Praise and Thanksgiving unto my God.

I ACKNOWLEDGE O Lord, that thou art the God of all the Earth, and of them that re­main in the broad Sea: Blessed for ever, and magnified be thy Name, that thou hast not cast me out of thy sight, nor turned thy Mercy from me; I have escaped thy raging Sea, and the noise of the proud Waves have done me no harm, if thy Almighty Providence had not pro­tected me, the streams had gone over my Soul: But the stormy Wind and Tempest I have nar­rowly escaped, the storm is ceased, and I am safely delivered.

AND now what shall I render to thee O Lord, for this, and all other thy great benefits? I will offer up unto thee the Sacrifice of Thanksgiving, and will pay those vows I so solemnly made unto thee when I was in trouble; I will evermore re­member, that my help is in the Lord, who made Heaven and Earth, and that thou art that God that can and will deliver me; let this thy mercy and loving kindness never depart my memory, but let me praise thy goodness, and sing of thy power, unto my lives end.

Amen.

FINIS.

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