Year: 1871

cdIIIl, anu Ill tndC In tnem is you


would very properly answer, God;
and if you should be asked who
made all the crecds, you would say
men, and be right in both cases.
Now creeds, like Joseph's coat of
many colors, made of patches, no
two of them alike, nor one of them
to-day what it was when first made.
Even our new friends, the Miller
ties, since they broke their crank in
trying to wind the world up, have
been compelled to add a new patch
to their creed to explain the blum
ders in their figuring. No man
shall make creed for me; and
am sure | do not wish to make a
creed for any one. Ny sea-faring
friends know as well as myself that
common danger gives men com
mon creed. A few days ago one OF
the brethren just returned from sea
told me story that will explain
what mean by common danger
giving men a common creed, or il
you like the phrase better, a com.
mon religion. He was one Of the
crew of large ship bound from
Liverpool for New York, with over
400 souls on board, mostly stecrage
passengers. Half passage out she
was besct by hurricane, which
blew all her sails from her bolt
ropes; the sea swept away her boats.
bulwarks, and everything movable
from her decks, and to add to the
horror, when the storm moderated


she caught fire below. New sails
were bent and she was headed to1
the Western Islands, while the pas.
sengers were employed pouring wa
ter below, in the hope Of drowning
the fire. 1t was all in vain. The
fire increased. The pitch began to
melt from the seams Of the planking,
the lower parts Of the hold pumps
were burned, so that there was no
means left to pump the water out;
in short, after doing all that men
could do to save the ship, they
found themselves at their wits ends.
Then they cried unto the Lord in
their trouble, and he delivered them
ont Of their distresses. All work
ceased; the captain called the pas
scngers and crew together, and told
them it was hardly possible for the
ship to continue atloat another day,
for she was lcaky as well as on fire,
and he therefore advised each one
to pray for himself, in his own way.
AS if moved by common impulse,
they prostrated themselves on the
deck without uttering a word.


Now what do you think they
prayed for? A little more Method
ism, a little more Catholicism, lit
tie more Prcsbyterianism, a little
more Unitarianism, Univcrsalism,
or any other ism? No, no, breth-
rcn. \ common danger had given
them common religion. Every
soul communed with the same God.
When they rose from the deck a
young sailor bounded alott, and
when he reached the royal masthead,
shouted with all his might-"Sail
ho! steering in our wake" In a
moment the ship was hove to, after
which the sailors swarmed up the
rigging to see for themselves. Now
wait 4 minute, shipmates, and /
will show you how these poor souls
who but few minutes before were
all praying to common Father,
began to differ and make creeds ac-
cording to their range of vision.
Only one small square sail could be
seen above the horison, for the YES
sci was end on, and from this the
sailors began to reason whether the
craft was ship, a barque ora brig.
And this controversy continued un-
til she was hull on, with the stud
ding sails set on both sides. The
signal of distress had been seen,
and as if by magic she was clothed
with all her drawing sail. Now
what mattered it whether she was a
ship, barque or a brig? She was
a savior. Was not that enough ?
No; men are by nature so crooked
that they will even question the ex-
istence Of God in whom they
live, move and have their being.
1t was y British frigate. She
rounded to and saved every soul.
Were they grateful? ! think they
were. But suppose it had been
night, for God works at all times,
and III all weathers; and the poor
souls could only have seen her
lights rising and falling with every
roll of the waves, they would have
been just as much given to specula-
tion. Even in the darkness, some
body would have thought that he
saw something better than his ship
mates, and so on probably through
the whole ships company. Sailors
as well as landsmcn are not willing