not have thought of prayer
to heaven in face of a human foe, but now that the 'last enemy' glared
upon them in so fearful a shape, they felt compelled to fly to Him who
hath said, 'Call upon me in the day of trouble.'

The booming of the guns, as they exploded, echoed far and wide over
the waters, and added to the horrors of that awful night.

In the midst of his people stood the captain, endeavouring to sustain
their sinking spirits, and exhorting them to be firm and to depend
upon the boats which were now heaving in sight. He then bade them
farewell, and sprung into the sea; he breasted the waves for a length
of time, but his strength was nearly exhausted, when, happily, he was
seen, and picked up by one of the boats of the Canopus.

As the boats from the squadron neared the Ajax, the agonizing fears of
the sufferers were changed into wild transports of joy; so sudden was
the transition from despair to hope, that many of the crew lost all
self-possession, and perished by jumping into the sea in their
impatience to reach the boats.

Such details as these, showing the effects of fear upon untutored
minds, make us thankful that a great change for the better has been
effected within the last forty years with respect to the religious and
moral instruction of our sailors.

Every ship's company is exposed to casualties similar to that which
befel the crew of the Ajax,--to shipwreck, fire, and sudden
destruction,--and no man will deny that in times of extreme peril, a
calm and composed mind is the greatest of blessings--the want of it,
the greatest misery. Few will be sceptical enough to deny, on the
other hand, that the best security for such composure, in a moment of
unforeseen danger, or of unlooked-for deliverance, is a firm and sure
trust that there is a God above, who 'ruleth over all;' whom the winds
and the sea obey, and who is 'mighty to save,' even in the hour of
man's direst extremity. To instil this knowledge and trust into the
hearts of our seamen, and by it to make them both better men, and
better sailors, should be the chief object of every improvement in
education.

Lieut. Willoughby, of the St. George, had hastened in a cutter to
assist the crew of the Ajax, and he very soon rescued as many men as
his boat could carry. Numbers, however, were still surrounding him,
who, for the safety of those in the already overladen boat, were, with
much reluctance, left to their fate. Fortunately some launches and a