His reply was, "I like your father, Jack, for he is a
straightforward, honest, good-tempered man, and, moreover, has a good
natural judgment. I think it a great pity that such a man as he is
should be so early in life lost, as it were, to the country. He is a
first-rate seaman; and although there are many like him, still there are
none to spare. However, if his country loses, he may himself gain, by
being so soon called away from a service of great temptation. The sailor
who has fought for his country, Jack, has much to be thankful for when
he takes in moorings at Greenwich Hospital. He is well fed, well
clothed, tended in sickness, and buried with respect; but all these are
nothing compared with the greatest boon. When I reflect what lives
sailors live, how reckless they are, how often they have been on the
brink of eternity, and wonderfully preserved, without even a feeling of
gratitude to Him who has watched over them, or taking their escapes as
warnings; when I consider how they pass their whole lives in excess,
intemperance, and, too often, blasphemy, it is indeed a mercy that they
are allowed to repose here after such a venturous and careless career;
that they have time to reflect upon what has passed, to listen to the
words of the Gospel, to hate their former life, and trusting in God's
mercy to secure their salvation.
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