his master. It was during this time that he was first induced to attend the Methodist New Connexion Chapel in Blyth.

While he was loitering about on a Lord's day, one of his acquaintances invited him to go with him to the Sabbathschool; he immediately consented. He then entered upon duties in which he afterwards found great pleasure, and to which he attended with exemplary diligence. Through the invitation thus given him he was brought under the roof of the sanctuary, where he heard the simple yet sublime truths of Christianity expounded and enforced by the ministers who then laboured in this locality; and the good seed of the kingdom brought forth in him its lovely fruits, to the praise and glory of God.

Brother Davison united himself with the church about twenty-one years ago. God has a variety of ways in bringing sinners to a knowledge of themselves. He has also a variety of ways in leading them into the green pastures of his love. The subject of this memoir was not arrested in a course of avowed hostility to the Saviour, as Saul of Tarsus was, but rather, like Lydia, his heart was opened by the Lord. The enlightening rays of divine truth were gradually diffused through his mind, and while he saw his pollutions and his sinfulness, he was directed to Calvary, and there he beheld the Lamb of God, the great, the atoning sacrifice of the cross; and believing that God had laid on him the iniquities of all men, he felt that the blood of Christ did indeed cleanse from sin. He believed that Jesus was his Saviour, his Lord, and his God; and thus believing, he was justified from all things from which he could not have been justified by the law of Moses. And having obtained pardon and a comfortable assurance of the divine favour, he ever regarded the doctrine of the atonement as the foundation of his hope and the source of his consolation. He loved to linger around the fountain which was opened for sin and uncleanness; and having actual experience of the benefit he had obtained by applying to that fountain, and believing it to be accessible to all, he urged one for whom he felt a pure affection, and who is now left his sorrowful widow, to resort to it, and to plunge into its ever-flowing and its ever-efficacious streams. In the first letter he ever wrote to her, and which was written some years before their marriage, he says, "I hope you enjoy much happiness arising from an interest in the death and sufferings of Jesus Christ; since nothing but this can make us happy in this world, and prepare us for that happiness which is at God's right hand. Consider that we are the

purchase of the Redeemer's blood, and ought to give our hearts to him who gave his life for us." And being at that time gone on a voyage to Ireland, he said, "Should either of us be called away before we see each other again, I hope to meet you in a happier world."

Previously to our brother's entering on a seafaring life, he was remarkable for his regular attendance on the social means of grace. It may be said of him, that he loved to tread the dust of the sanctuary, and to unite with the attendants of Zion in their sacred exercises. His attendance was not at one time regular, and at another time irregular; his love to the house of God and its ordinances was ardent and uniform. In this respect his conduct is worthy of the notice and imitation of the members of our churches. He embraced every opportunity of hearing the gospel; he appreciated highly prayer meetings, class, and fellowship meetings. Were this the case with those who profess to be members of the church -were it more decidedly and more uniformly the case, the greatest advantages would arise from it. There would be more spirituality of mind, more brotherly love, more vigorous and constant co-operation amongst the members; the flame of zeal for the church's prosperity and the Redeemer's glory would be more ardent, and the means of grace would yield more ample profit to those who attend them.

But

When brother Davison first went to sea, he felt most keenly the privations to which seafaring men are unavoidably subjected. He lamented the loss of the Christian fellowship to which he had been accustomed, and of the religious ordinances he had so much enjoyed. When meditating on the manner in which he had formerly spent his Sabbaths, the duties in which he engaged, and the society in which he mingled, he would exclaim with one who had been deprived of the pleasures of public worship, and say, "How amiable are thy tabernacles, O Lord of hosts; my soul longeth, yea, even fainteth for the courts of the Lord." though he was, to a considerable extent, deprived of those means which he had found so advantageous to him, yet he did not allow the sacred flame of divine love to become extinct. No, he had his Bible for a companion, and there he found the wisest, the best, the holiest society; there he met and conversed with patriarchs and prophets, with evangelists and apostles, and the Three glorious Persons who constitute the one Godhead. From their society and intercourse he obtained instruction and encouragement. In the Bible he found a chart to guide him to the land which lies beyond the swellings

of Jordan, to that better country where no storms arise, and where no dangers threaten.

But such was his sense of duty, and such his knowledge of the advantages of the means of grace, that whenever he arrived at a port, and had an opportunity of leaving the ship and worshipping with the people of God, he eagerly embraced it; and while he thus seized the opportunity of hearing the gospel, he did not undervalue or neglect meetings for prayer and Christian experience.

Hence he would frequently attend Bethel prayer-meetings, &c. in different places; and when any sailor was invited to pray, if there was a pause for any time, indicating, as it too often did, the absence of praying seamen, he would engage with pleasure to himself and profit to others. And such was his thirst for the waters of life, such was his love to the house and service of God, that when he arrived in a port one of his first inquiries was, "Where is there a place of worship?" Many seamen when they go ashore to spend the time with their jovial companions, visit the tavern, squander away their hardearned wages, and impoverish themselves and their families. Not so with brother Davison, he went ashore to offer his grateful acknowledgments to God for his mercies, and to unite with the disciples of Jesus in their sacred and delightful exercises. And what may seem surprising to many, he has been heard to pay, that wherever he went he could always find a place for prayer. This however was not always done without some effort. At one time he searched for nearly a whole day, before he could find a place of worship. But such an instance shows the high value which he set upon religious ordinances. The hungry soul sought for food, and sought with diligence, and how sweet and reviving would the provisions of God's house be to him!

The piety of our friend was not alloyed with a bigoted or sectarian spirit. While he loved the community of which he was a member, and was steady in his adherence to its principles, he entertained liberal and enlightened views on the subject of Christian communion; for whatever denomination of true Christians he found himself surrounded with, whether they were Episcopalians or Methodists, Presbyterians or Independents, with them he could unite, with them he could worship. He could feed in the same pastures with them, for he knew the voice of the great and good Shepherd, who laid down his life for the sheep. He could recognise in them the features of the children of God, heirs of immortal blessedness, and expectants of those pleasures and honours which

will be the portion of all the faithful followers of the Lord Jesus. While he was pursuing his worldly calling-while he was traversing the mighty deep, he had a lively consciousness of the dangers of a seafaring life. He had not only heard, as many of the inhabitants of inland places do, of the awful catastrophes which had overtaken many of the same calling with himself, but he had seen the fierceness of the winds and the fury of the raging billows. He had witnessed these things, and had been forcibly reminded that there was but one step between him and death. Scenes of this kind exerted their proper influence on his mind, and he acted wisely in making himself conversant with the solemnities of death, judgment, and eternity. This is not the case with all those who are engaged in the calling, and who have to witness these scenes. It would be well if every seaman would act in this respect as brother Davison did. When he had been preserved by a gracious Providence, and had been brought to his desired haven; when, after an absence of weeks and months from home, he was permitted to meet his dear wife and children again, he would call them around the family altar, and with a grateful heart he would lay on it his sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving. And when he was called to leave them again, he would commit them to the care, kindness, and love of him who has promised he will never leave or forsake those who put their trust in him. And often when engaged in prayer with them previously to his leaving them, and when referring to the uncertainty of their ever meeting again on earth, has he prayed with the utmost earnestness and affection, that if he should be called from them by sudden death, he might have the happiness to meet them all in heaven, where tears, and grief, and partings, would be seen and felt no

more.

Thus did his conduct harmonize with his profession. In his deportment there was a true exemplification of the Christian character; and though his vocation was attended with many privations, and also with numerous temptations, yet a uniform consistency was displayed by him in the relationships he sustained in the world, and in his union with the church. Could this be said of all who profess to be the disciples of Christ, then would the church even in her militant state appear clear as the sun, fair as the moon, and terrible as an army with banners. Discord, envy, malice, spiritual pride and jealousy, and every root of bitterness, would be removed from the vineyard; and peace, love, faith, zeal, charity, and every virtue, would be seen to flourish in it and to adorn it.

Then would the fertilizing showers of holy influence descend more copiously, the beams of the divine approbation would be more sensibly felt, and the pleasing results would gratify and recompense all the ministers of Christ.

In giving a delineation of brother Davison's character, there is no wish felt. to represent him as faultless, or free from imperfection. He no doubt would be better acquainted with the workings of his own heart than any other person, and would see more of the infirmities which he had to contend with. But to outward observers he presented an humble, a becoming, and a uniform deportment; and his neighbours and acquaintances have borne testimony to his amiable disposition, his unimpeachable integrity, his genuine piety, his warm affection for his partner and children, and to the ardency of his love to the church with which he was identified.

The interest which he took in the spiritual and temporal welfare of his family, and the prosperity of the church of which he was a member, may be seen from the letters he wrote when from home. In one of the last letters he wrote to Mrs. Davison, he says,

May we each apply our hearts to wisdom, that wisdom which will yield us happiness in this world, and will bear up our minds amid the troubles and afflictions of the present life, and, when this short life is ended, will fit us for the felicity of heaven, where we shall praise God for ever and ever. My dear, in the strength of grace let us form fresh resolutions to give our hearts and lives to him who bought us with his blood. I much regret that so small a portion of my time is spent

with you and my dear little family."

In a letter written January 19th, 1845, little supposing that it would be the last he would ever write, or that it would give the latest evidence of his affection for his family and his love for the church, he says, "The objection I have to sailing out of Hartlepool is, the loss of your society and that of my dear children, and likewise the society of my Christian friends. I feel a warm heart towards Zion "our Chapel in Blyth is called Zion Chapel; and he prayed "May the Lord prosper Zion!" The individual who was the subject of emotions of this kind might truly adopt the language of the poet, and say,

"My soul shall pray for Zion still,

While life or breath remains; There my best friends, my kindred dwell, There God my Saviour reigns."

The exemplary and pious life of brother Davison was brought to a close on the

Sabbath morning, January 26th, just a week from the time he had written the letter to which reference has just been made. On the Saturday evening and the Sunday morning a tremendous gale blew, and many of those who do business on the great waters were in jeopardy-were the subjects of an awful suspense and of untold anxiety-and amongst them was brother Davison. The ship of which he was mate, with many more, was tossing on the raging element; it was seen about eight o'clock in the morning and it is supposed that about ten o'clock, two hours after, our brother and all the crew were engulphed in the furious billows. In hope of safety, and of being rescued from their perilous condition, they had lashed themselves to the masts. The crews of two other ships had been in a similar situation, but had been saved by the vigorous and praiseworthy efforts of some who braved imminent danger to save their fellow-menfrom a watery grave. But though no less vigorous efforts were made to save brother Davison and those who were with him, all was unavailing. The boat which had rescued and brought others safe to shore, in attempting their deliverance was dashed to pieces, and some of those who had manned it, sunk into the deep, and the others with difficulty got safe to shore. And after fear and hope had been allowed alternately to excite the breasts of the unfortunate crew, the furious and fatal billow came that carried the masts away to which they were lashed. Thus suddenly and awfully were they plunged into a watery grave. In vain do we attempt to describe, or even to conceive, the nature of the thoughts that would rush through their minds when they were suspended between life and death, between time and eternity when their prospects of deliverance became more gloomy, and they expected every approaching wave would summon them to the bar of God. Thoughts of death, and a watery grave-thoughts of life gone, and eternity beginningthoughts of beloved relatives plunged into sorrow children left fatherless, and partners left widows-would naturally rush upon them; and oh! what could sustain and tranquillize the mind in such circumstances, but the grace that is sufficient for all things? what but the conscious pos-session of the favour of God? what but the victory over death, and an assurance that to die would be gain? Such, there is reason to believe, would be the experience of brother Davison in that critical, that all-important hour. Though the bereaved widow and three children he has left, with other relatives, could not hear his dying testimony, nor the biographer record any songs of triumpho that was