The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1854-05-16 00:00:00

TO THE EDITOR OF THE LIVERPOOL STANDARD.

SIR,—A series of letters, or, rather, advertisements, has
lately appeared in The Mercury, signed " James Buck,
Liverpool Seamen's Friend Society and Bethel Union,"
each headed, " Religious Services on Board Emigrant
Ships." These letters contain generally an account of Mr.
Buck's voyage from the pier to the vessel, the beauty of
the ship, the excellence of the provisions, the efficiency of
the crew, the completeness of all the arrangements, and,
finally, the extraordinary success of Mr. Buck's ministra-
tions on board. After the service he announces that a full
and authentic account of his visit will be published in the
next Mercury, a copy of which paper he will be happy to
forward to any person who will favour him with his address,
and the price of the newspaper. On one occasion (his visit
to the Red Jacket,) Mr. Buck says he received orders for
150 copies. .
Now, sir, all this, so far, I do not complain of, although
the Church of England has suffered considerably by these
letters, from an erroneous impression which has for some
time prevailed, that the writer was one of her ministers.
But, in the Mercury of last Tuesday, a letter appears from
the same gentleman, containing an insinuation of which I
have just cause to complain. Mr. Buck says, in describing
his visit to the Carpentaria, " As the work of preaching
to the Australian emigrants who leave the port of
'Liver-
pool seems to fall to me, the seemed to cry out— Come
over and help us.' "
This insinuation I consider a piece of downright imper-
tinence. During the last five years I have devoted myself
entirely to the spiritual instruction and consolation of all
emigrants sailing from the' Mersey. Appointed by the-
Rector of Liverpool, and licensed by the Bishop of Chester,.
I entered upon my duties, not as' a private adventurer, but
as an accredited, public functionary. How I have been
enabled, by God's grace and assistance, to perform the task
committed to me- is not for me to say. Every respectable
shipowner, whether Australian or American, is well aware
that through many a difficulty which lay in my way at
first, from the novelty of the appointment which I held, I
still persevered in the performance of my duty, as in the
sight of God. For nearly four years from the commence-
ment of my labours, no' dissenting minister ever, as far as
I could learn, entered an emigrant ship, to preach. It was
not until Iliad opened the way, and the'ship owners—who
at first were somewhat reluctant to allow divine' service to
be performed on board their vessels—had one and all
begun teesee its practical benefit to the crews and pas-
sengers, that Mr. Buck stepped forward from his- former
duties, as-minister to the seamen at the Bethel:Union., and
entered " upon another man's-line of things, made-ready to
his hand."

There is plenty of room, Gocnnows, for him to'exereise
his talentsamongst the emigrants in-this port. The Lord
forbid that I should for a moment be thought tedisrespect
or question the. zeal with which he may be animated.
But when he arrogates to himself the entire credit of
preaching the gospel of Christ to Australian emigrants
from this port, •I must be excused: for thus appeacing.in
print, in vindication of my office andcharacter.
During the last five years I have been enabled to perfOrm
services for emigrants, averaging nearly one service aday.•
It is true, I have not published these-services in the news-
papers, in order to lit the public know how much I de:- I
trust I have a far higher motive.
Last Sunday—the -eery day on which Mr. Buck seemed,
to himself to be " the only preacher to Australian mall-
grantar—besides twefiall services to Australian emigrants-
on shore, I spent four' hours on the Mersey, ministering:.
from ship to ship, including a service onboard the Great
Britain—an occasion so interesting and...delightful that,
had Mr-Buck been in my place, the next Mercury would
require an extra supplement to make room for his
descriptinn of it.
I have-been obliged, sir, most reluctantly', to speak thus
of my pow imperfect labours amongst the emigrants in
this port. • I do not intend to obtrude myself again upon
the attention of the public, and I trust ne clergyman of
the Church of England will ever be found so destitute of
good taste,,and right feelings, as regularly to parade his
labours and merits, his sayings and doings, in the columns
of newspapers.—l am, &c.,. J. W.- WELSH,
Emigration Chaplain for the Port of Liverpool. •
Liverpool, May 13, 1854.

ELECTION OF BIRKENHEAD COM-
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