lishment of this institution, in which the presence of woman was allowed, and in which her influence was felt, was, inconsiderable as it may seem, the most important innovation of the age.

Here was laid the foundation upon which the grand superstructure of female greatness has since rested. This edifice, however, has gone up, not like the first temple at Jerusalem, "without the click of a hammer;" but like the second, amid strife and contention, where every workman has worn his armor, and while his tools have been in one hand, he has borne in the other his weapons of defense. It has been opposed by "reverend opinion," bold ignorance, and ghostly superstition. Still has the building gone up. The roof has been completed, that the storms may not beat in; but the parapets and dome are yet to be finished.

VIII. THE SAILOR'S HOME.

(1845.)

"O'er the glad waters of the dark blue sea,
Our thoughts as boundless, and our souls as free,
Far as the breeze can bear the billow's foam,
Survey our empire and behold our home!"

Byron.

SCARCELY thirty years have elapsed since the attention of the Christian public was first directed to the moral condition and improvement of the sailor.

Hitherto he had lived in sorrowful isolation-cut off, like an ocean islet, from the great continent of humanity-scarcely permitted to hang upon the skirts of civilization-a sojourner in every land, a citizen in none-useful and necessary to all men, and by all men neglected and forgotten-as if he had been the offspring of the ocean and the storm, and fit only for fraternity with the scaly tribes of the deep. The name and the garb of a sailor were sufficient to bar against him the portals of society, and close up the avenues of sympathy and affection, and cast him out upon the sea of circumstances, to drift, like a worthless weed, wherever the changeful winds and waves might bear him. Nay, morehe was trampled upon, insulted and robbed, by the very men for whom he consented to be thus exiled from humanity, and endure the hardships and dare the perils of the deep. Thus repudiated and despised, no wonder the bitter corrosion of misanthropy gathered over his heart. No wonder he retired within himself, and dwelt alone, with his own gloomy and despairing thoughts. No wonder the fountain of his affection was diverted into unlawful channels-that, forgetful of his pride, he became the prey of his passions, and sought in sinful pleasures that which society had denied him. Yet we condemned and denounced him for these very consequences of our own injustice. We hurled him to the earth, and then reproached him for his fall. We placed our foot upon his neck, and required

him to smile while we were grinding him into the dust!

But his condition at length came up for a memorial before God; and the voice of his sins and sorrows appealed to the humanity of his species with greater effect than the most powerful display of eloquence. A fire was kindled which many waters cannot quench, neither can the floods drown. A chord was touched whose vibration thrilled throughout Christendom, awaking a spirit of benevolent enterprise, which, it is earnestly hoped, will never languish, till the son of the sea shall be elevated to a position corresponding to his capacities and his claims. The breath of Christian kindness has fallen upon his withered affections, and they have revived like the wounded plant beneath the gentle distillations of heaven. The American Seamen's Friends Society is now exerting an influence in his behalf, which is felt to the ends of the earth. With the gospel for their lever and the human heart for their fulcrum, they are moving the world. They are beating down the separating walls which have been thrown up between the sailor and society. Wherever their enterprise has been carried, the sailor's interest is fast becoming the interest of the mass; and he the alien and outcast-is welcomed back to the sympathy of the great human brotherhood. Society begins to look upon seamen with the solicitude of a fostering mother, exclaiming-"Ye are the feathers of my wing!" And while she elevates

she seeks also to renovate. Floating Bethels, Mariners' Churches, and Sailor's Homes, are scattered all along our coast-so many moral light-houses, to guide the bewildered and periled wanderer to a port of peace. The enterprise commenced in this city twenty-four years ago; but transatlantic philanthropy soon caught the spirit, echoed the sentiment, and followed the example.

One of the most interesting and efficient auxiliaries in this enterprise is the Sailor's Home in Cherry Street. This institution is under the supervision of Capt. Edward Richardson. Himself a former ship-master, he understands the character and wants of the sailor, and knows how to enter into his sympathies. Combining the qualities of the gentleman with those of the Christian philanthropist, he is eminently and every way qualified for the important post which he occupies. The benignity of his features, the affability of his manners, and a bearing at once dignified and commanding, render him very popular and influential among his boarders; while his admirable tact in government, his superior talent for business-his promptness and decision-his vigilance and diligencesecure a confidence and a harmony which very few men would be capable of maintaining in such an establishment; making the Home one of the chief attractions to the mariner along the Atlantic coasta beacon which invites him to moor his bark "quite in the verge of heaven."

The Home is a beautiful edifice, of ample dimensions, five stories high, surmounted by an observatory, which commands a view of the city, the harbor, the incomparable bay, and a vast area of the surrounding country. From this delightful elevation, the mariner may look out upon his own blue ocean, and watch the gallant ship as she comes proudly into port, "walking the water like a thing of life." This structure was erected by the American Seamen's Friends Society, and has been in operation only about three years. Thus far it has more than realized the expectations of its patrons and friends. It accommodates about four thousand and five hundred seamen a year, many of them gratuitously. The poor, shipwrecked sailor, who has lost his all, is never turned unheeded from the door. The present number of boarders is about one hundred and seventy, most of whom are of sober habits, and many of them professors of religion. Home is conducted on strict temperance principles, no spiritous liquor being allowed within its walls. This renders it the favorite resort of such as wish to maintain a good moral character, and secure for themselves an honorable reputation.

The

As soon as the sailor enters the Home, he finds himself environed by new associations and influences, of the most conservative and salutary character. A thousand inducements to a life of sobriety and virtue are presented; and he soon learns to love what he once hated, and hate what he once loved.