T ten in the morning we failed from KingRoad for New-York. A breeze foon fprung up, which carried us with the help of the tides, about a hundred leagues from Briftol by Monday morning. St. Auftin's Meditations were this day made no small bleffing to my foul.

Sunday 19. This day we intended to give two fermons to the company, but all was fickness: we were disabled from doing any thing but cafting our care upon God.

Wednesday 22. I paffed a night of trial. The ftorm was high the fea frequently washed the deck. My thirft was exceffive, and all the failors were at work upon deck, except a few that were gone to reft: fleep had forfaken me, but my truft was truly in the Lord.

Thursday 23. This and the three former days we loft feveral leagues, being now nearer Briftol confiderably than on Monday morning. The ftorms were high and frequent, and the fhip obliged to tack backwards and forwards every four hours between the coafts of England and France. It appeared doubtful fome time, whether we should not be obliged to take refuge in the port of Breft.

For

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For the five laft days, my brethren and myfelf tafted no flesh, nor hardly any kind of meat or drink that would stay upon our stomachs.

Friday 24. This morning I was hungry, and breakfafted on water gruel. I now begin to recover my strength, and employ myself in reading the Life of Francis Xavier. O for a foul like: his! But, glory be to God, there is nothing impoffible with him. I feem to want the wings. of an Eagle, and the voice of a trumpet, that I may proclaim the gofpel through the Eaft and the Weft and the North and the South..

The wind has veered from North-West to SouthWeft, and our fhip fails from three to five miles an hour towards America.

I enjoy one peculiar bleffing-a place of retirement, a little fecret corner in the fhip; which Ishall hereafter call my ftudy. It is fo fmall that I have hardly room to roll about, and there is a window in it which opens to the fea, and makes it the most delightful place under deck.. Here, God willing, I fhall fpend the greatest part of my time.

Saturday 25, We have now failed one hundred and fifty leagues towards America. My brethren and myself are tolerably recovered. May we improve this time of reft to the profit of our fouls and the preparation of them for the work of God. A failor dangerously ill, affords us an opportunity of vifiting the crew in the fteerage, and preaching to them through him the Lord. Jefus Christ.

The Captain of our fhip, I believe, never fwears: nor does he füffer any of his men, as far as he can prevent it, to game or get drunk. And. though the men are, 1 find, like the reft of their brethren, prophane to the laft degree, yet when we are on deck, there is feldom an oath to be heard.

Sunday

Sunday 26. This day we performed divine fer vice both morning and afternoon, and the failors except those on immediate duty, attended. A French fhip paffed us with her colours hoifted, and of course expecting the fame compliment from ours, whilst I was enforcing the history and example of the trembling jailor converted by Paul and Silas; which much interrupted us. The little congregation appeared, indeed, to give clofe attention to Brother Whatcoat in the afternoon, while he explained to them, the wages of fin, and the gift of God. But alas! I am ready to defpair of our doing them any effential good.

Tuesday 28. For the two last days the winds were contrary, and we hardly gained a league; but they are again favourable, and we are come two hundred and fifty leagues from Briftol. The failors now attend us daily at morning-prayer. For these few days paft I have been reading the life of David Brainerd. O that I may follow him as he followed Chrift. His humility, his felf-denial, his perfe verance, and his flaming zeal for God, were exemplary indeed.

This morning a whale played round the fhip for an hour and a half: it was a noble fight! And after him an innumerable company of Parpoiles. How manifold are thy works, O God!

Friday, O&. 1. I devoted the morning to fasting and prayer, and found fome degree of refreshment, and a facred longing after more fervency and activity in the fervice of my God.

Saturday 2. Hitherto the wind had not blown from any one of the fixteen eaftern points of the compass; but now a brifk gale from the Eaft carries us directly to our point. We are about three-hundred and fifty leagues from Bristol, but probably have not failed in all fewer than feven hundred.

I am entering on the works of Virgil. Indeed I can fay in a much better fenfe than the

poet

poet,

"Deus nobis hæc otia fecit,

Namque erit ille mihi femper Deus."*

Sunday 3. Brother Vafey this morning described to the failors the tremendous tranfactions of the day of judgment; and in the afternoon I endeavoured to make them fenfible of the neceffity of being born again. They gave apparent attention, and that is. all I can fay. We also distributed among them,

the Word to a Sailor.

Monday 4. I have finifhed the life of David Brainerd. The moft furprizing circumstance in the whole, I think, is this, That the great work which (by the bleffing of God) he wrought among the Indians, was all done through the medium of an interpreter. We are come about four hundred. leagues.

Tuesday 5. I have just finished the Confeffional and believe the author does not fpeak without reafon in his obfervations concerning National Churches, that the kingdom of Chrift is not of this. world that in proportion to the degrees of union which fubfift between the Church and State, religion is liable to be fecularized and made the tool of finifter and ambitious men.

Wednesday 6 I devoted this morning to fafting and prayer. It was a good time. O that never may lose any thing, I gain in the divine life.

Thursday 7. In the morning we had a perfect calm, and the Captain fpread all his fails; the confequence of which was, that a fudden fquall attacking us at dinner time, our main-mast was very near being fnapt in two. The mate has been juft informing me, that during the fquall, and the amazing buftle in which they were not a fingle

Which may be thus tranflated: "God has provided for us thefe fweet hours of retirement: and he fhall be my God for

oath

oath was heard among the failors. So far hath Gođ wrought! We are above five hundred leagues on our voyage.

Friday 8. I devoted the morning to fafting and prayer, and reading the fcriptures, and found it a truly profitable time.

Sunday 10. Brother Whatcoat and Vafey preached to the failors, and I expounded in the evening: but, alas! I do not perceive that we reach their hearts, though they now attend morning and evening on the week days.

Friday 15. I fet apart this morning for fafting = and prayer, as I did alfo laft Wednesday, and found it a refreshing season to my foul. For many days we had contrary winds till yesterday; but within these two days we have made a confiderable progrefs.

Sunday 17 Two dolphins vifited our fhip, and immediately the failors brought out their fpear and lines. I knew not whether I fhould oppofe them or not on account of the day : but 1. as the difficulty I fhould have to convince them of the fin would be very great, and as they now confent to have public worship three times on the Lord's day, I forbore for this time, hoping to bring them in gradually. They killed one of them with the fpear, and we are to dine upon it tomorrow. It is more like a falmon, than any other fish I know. We have failed about seven hundred Eleagues.

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Monday 18. I have waded thro' Bishop Hoadley's Tréatifes on Conformity and Epifcopacy; S five hundred and fixty-fix pages, octavo. He is a powerful reafoner, but is I believe wrong in his premifes. However he is very candid. In one place he allows the truth of St. Jerom's account of the Prefbyters of Alexandria, who, as Jerom informs us, elected their own Bishops for two hundred years, from the time of St. Mark, to the time of Dionyfius. In another place he makes this grand conceffion, viz. "I think not

an