_FOOTSTEPS AMONG SEAMEN--Continued._
No one interested in seamen can fail to extend his interest to their
orphans. Sailors’ lives are exposed to exceptional risks. Of our 200,000
British seamen, it is found that on the average, besides those whose
deaths occur at home, more than 4000 annually die abroad, and of these,
much more than a half perish by drowning. The returns from the Board of
Trade show that in the sixteen years following the establishment of the
Liverpool Seamen’s Orphanage, no less than 66,667 sailors died in
English ships abroad, of whom 40,551 were drowned. In what condition are
their families left? We give the answer in the words of Canon Drummond
Anderson, chaplain of the Liverpool Seamen’s Orphanage, than whom few
persons, if any, have more frequent contact with the families of sailors
whose lives have been lost at sea. “His experience with regard to common
sailors was, that whenever poor Jack died, his family were left
destitute. If there were any who were better off, or had anything to the
fore for a dark and cloudy day, they did not come in his way. The cases
with which he had to deal were those in which the loss of poor Jack was
the loss of all the support of his family.”[F]
Allowing for the circumstance that the chaplain’s duties call for his
presence at the most distressful cases, his avowal reveals a state of
things among British common sailors, which should never have existed,
and which surely will not be permitted to continue. That expression, “if
there were any who were better off,” opens up a field for melancholy
reflection. That a large section of our fellow-citizens, subject to
painful exposure, and incurring serious peril in their daily
calling--men to whom all classes of the community are indebted every day
of life--men on whose labours the fortunes of the shipowning and
mercantile classes are built--that such men should make no provision for
the future, should live literally from hand to mouth, and, when life is
cut short, should, as a rule, leave their widows and children destitute,
is a thought to touch and trouble the dullest heart. This state of
matters cannot exist without something being wrong in the system in
which our sailor-citizens have to take their part, something which our
seaport communities would do well to search out, something for which the
Church of Christ is not without grave responsibility. To diminish a
little the desolation, and to soften a little the sorrow of the
shipwrecked sailors’ home, is but a small part of our duty. Destitution
is not the uniform accompaniment of the bread-winner’s death among
toilers on the shore, why should it be so among toilers on the sea? This
problem awaits solution. It demands the thought and effort of all good
citizens. Who will arise and lead the way? A compulsory system of
life-assurance has been suggested, and might be of material value, but
the whole condition of our seafaring population needs to be raised, and
far more than hitherto leavened with Christian influence. Much valuable
work is now done through special missions for seamen, but if the inquiry
were made how many of them are members of any of our churches, a most
disappointing answer would be the result.
In the meantime an imperative duty is incumbent upon us. The children
who, by a single sweep of the hungry sea, are deprived at once of father
and of food, must be cared for. They are England’s orphans, and England
must provide for them. One case out of hundreds which have come before
the chaplain may be cited. He says: “I was sitting in my study reading
one morning, when a visitor was shown in. It was a poor young woman with
two little infants, twins, in her arms: she sat down in a chair and
began to cry; and oh, how she cried! It was a sorrowful sight to see the
pale wan face wet with tears. She had been decently brought up, and
married a sailor who had gone on a long voyage. The children were born,
and were maintained principally by his monthly money. ‘Yesterday,’ she
said, ‘I went down to the office, and was told there would be no money
for me any more, for the news had just come that the ship was lost with
all hands.’ The widow and her children were at once assisted.”
Perhaps we may best convey an idea of the kind of cases admitted to the
Orphanage if we transcribe from the register of children in the
institution those occurring in the girls’ department under one letter,
viz., W, taken almost at random.
_West, Emily._--Father was engineer on board the _Laconia_, and died
from pressure on the brain. Seven children dependent on the widow, who
has since (with the infant,) died in childbirth.
_Williams, Mary._--Father was chief mate on board the _Zephyr_, and died
at sea of fever. Five children dependent on the widow.
_Williams, Mary Ellen._--Father was a fireman on board the steam-tug
_Tartar_, and was drowned. Six children dependent on the widow.
_Wooley, Ellen._--Father was steward on board the _Palm_, and died of
fever on the coast of Africa. Three children dependent on the widow.
_Wylie, Jane._--Father was chief engineer on board the S.S. _Virago_,
and died at sea of apoplexy. Five children dependent on the widow.
In the case of those who are acquainted with the homes of the poor,
imagination will have no hard task in picturing the desolation and
dismay which fill such households as those above referred to. A family
is living in quietness and modest comfort, when suddenly the brief dark
message comes, “Lost at sea.” The light of the house has gone out, the
bread-winner wins bread no more, and the wan widow and her cheerless
children have, unprovided and unprepared, to face the cold world alone,
and to fight their way through, as best they may.
Mr. Balfour was one of those who could not contemplate scenes like these
without his whole nature being moved. The thought of alleviating sorrow
so deep, and of making such provision as the sad circumstances would
permit, for the mourning and the destitute, laid firm hold upon his head
and heart. To provide for the sailor’s orphans, and to do it on a scale
worthy of the great port of Liverpool, was his consuming desire. He was
all aglow with this benevolent purpose when first it took tangible form.
It was inspiring to meet him and to hear his fervent words. No business
aim, no prospect of advantage for himself, ever took possession of him
as this object did. He felt, and spoke as if his friends _must_
sympathise with the seamen’s orphans, and be ready to fling themselves
into the scheme with an enthusiasm like his own. It was almost
impossible to escape the contagion of compassion like his. Embers of
mercy, in some about him, were fanned into a flame. He loved to keep in
the background, if only instruments were found and the work was done.
Those most intimately acquainted with the history of the Orphanage know
best, to how large an extent its inception and success were due to his
burning zeal and unflagging perseverance.
He had the joy of seeing men raised up able and willing to carry through
this noble enterprise, men like Mr. Ralph Brocklebank, the president,
whose mind and purse were at the service of the institution, and Mr.
James Beazley, the honorary treasurer and chairman of the executive
committee, who flung himself with all the energy of his warm heart into
the scheme, not to mention a host of fellow-workers.
At an early stage the project was well-nigh extinguished. “I remember,”
says his partner, “the anxiety and trouble on his countenance when he
told me that, by the narrowest chance, the idea was not rejected by the
meeting. It was pointed out by some, that the town abounded with
benevolent institutions; feelings were expressed that another for the
orphans of seamen could not be maintained. It was with difficulty he got
the meeting adjourned, without there and then coming to an adverse
decision. He carefully prepared himself, with the aid of Mr. Hanmer of
the Sailors’ Home and others, for the adjourned meeting; and I remember
with what joyous and triumphant tones he told me that in the end, it had
been resolved to go on with the enterprise.”
When the stately building, which was to be the home of the fatherless,
was approaching completion, Mr. Balfour claimed the privilege of placing
a tablet over the porch, bearing the inscription which so strikingly
tells the story of the Orphanage, “In Thee the fatherless findeth
mercy.”
When it was completed and tenanted, Mr. Balfour would often spend the
night at the home of the present writer, not distant from the
institution, and would be off about seven in the morning to refresh
himself, before breakfast, with a sight of the healthy and happy faces
of the children, to speak to them a word of counsel, and to leave behind
him fresh encouragement with chaplain, matron, and all who cared for the
orphans. On such occasions he would return to the house radiant with
thankfulness and joy, and prepared to start on the duties of a day,
which was to be filled with words and works of thoughtful kindness.
One who had the best opportunities of knowing Mr. Balfour’s ways in the
Orphanage writes to us: “When he was on the committee investigating
applications for help, often and often, as the widow turned away to
leave the room with her children, have I seen him slip a gold coin into
her hand.” “When the ear heard me, then it blessed me, and when the eye
saw me, it gave witness to me, because I delivered the poor that cried,
and the fatherless, and him that had none to help him: the blessing of
him that was ready to perish came upon me; and I caused the widow’s
heart to sing for joy.”
Mr. Balfour was a strong advocate for supplementing the aid given
within the institution by a system of relief, in the homes of deceased
sailors, which are found scattered through every district of Liverpool.
Thus, for example, he pleaded at one of the annual meetings: “If it were
necessary, I could convince the meeting that we require, in conducting
this institution successfully, to attend both to cases of outdoor and
cases of indoor relief. We meet with such an instance as this: a
respectable Christian widow, the mother of a family, applies to us for
relief. She would prefer to train her own children herself, and does not
want to give them up to us. Surely, for such a reason as strong maternal
affection, a poor woman such as this ought not to be deprived of the
benefits of our institution. Such is the mind of the committee, and I
believe that it will be the mind of the general community.... I entreat
you, on behalf of myself and colleagues of the committee, not to put us
in the position of being a responsible executive, without ample funds
being given us to deal adequately, by means of outdoor and indoor
relief, with this refuge of the orphan and the widow. Oh, the pain! I
declare it is heart-breaking to sit and hear the applications of those
widows. I have pitied the chairman again and again in going through
these cases, knowing all their sadness without being able adequately to
relieve it.... We have only to do our duty, and I know we shall not be
the poorer, but shall have the blessing of God on what we give and what
we have. Oh, don’t let us stint the widow and orphan in this community,
I do beseech you.” Powerful was the pleading of this earnest man, backed
as it was by open-handed generosity on his own part.
One advantage, springing from this noble institution, is that it has
called forth miscellaneous and widespread liberality. Scarcely an
Atlantic steamer leaves or returns to Liverpool, without the claims of
the Orphanage being brought before the passengers on Sunday, or on some
other suitable occasion. Hearts, grateful for God’s goodness in granting
a safe passage, go forth in ready sympathy with the orphans whose
fathers have perished on the melancholy main. Commanders and officers of
the vessels willingly give prominence to this subject. Englishmen,
Americans, and foreigners from many lands respond, by casting their
thank-offerings into the treasury of the institution. The pilots of
Liverpool, the employés of the Mersey Docks and Harbour Board, take a
willing part in the annual contribution. Thus, while rivulets of
kindness from many different quarters concentrate themselves upon the
Orphanage, multitudes of hearts are the better for having had tenderness
stirred within them, by the tale of sorrow that comes from the drowned
sailor’s child. To stimulate this floating fountain of beneficence was
the earnest aim of Mr. Balfour.
The Orphanage has grown to goodly proportions. On the 1st of July 1887
there were 360 in the institution, and 372 on the outdoor list. The cost
of the former for food, clothing, and education is £15 per head per
annum, and of the latter, or outdoor class, £8 per head per annum. Since
its first establishment 2660 children have been cared for in one or
other of these ways.
At the age of fourteen the boys are sent out to fight their way in the
world, some to sea, some to trades, some to offices. It is a valuable
testimony to the thoroughness of their instruction and the excellence of
their training, that railway companies and great employers of labour are
always ready to take the Orphanage boys. The girls are retained, if
their mothers desire it, till they attain the age of fifteen. The last
year is devoted mainly to training in all branches of household work. So
equipped, the girls become useful in their own homes, or find employment
as domestic servants, &c. Results like these filled the warm and tender
heart of Mr. Balfour with thankfulness and joy.
The Church of Christ, in its various branches, was all too slow in
awaking to a sense of its duty to seamen, and to the conviction that
special agencies were required, to meet the necessities of their case.
The character and habits of our sailors not only seriously affect their
own condition, but influence the most distant lands of earth to which
they sail. The entrance of God’s Word in distant and in heathen lands is
helped or hindered by their conduct. A number of years ago the Colonial
Bishops were asked to give their opinion as to the influence of British
seamen on the inhabitants of the ports they visited. They pronounced a
unanimous judgment, “That the influence of British seamen was
undoubtedly prejudicial to the people, and their conduct a sad obstacle
to the reception of the gospel.”
The Church of Christ has been awaking to her duty, and matters are
improving. Sailors, like winged seed, are wafted from England to many a
distant shore. Were they, speaking generally, to carry our good report,
and not our evil report, were they to be won from the side of evil to
the side of truth and righteousness, who can estimate the blessed effect
which would be produced in colonial lands, and in fields of missionary
effort among the heathen?
For the sake of the sailor, for the sake of England, and for the sake
of the world, the cry is loud to make direct and sustained efforts for
the spiritual welfare of seamen. To win them to the Saviour, and at the
same time to help them toward all goodness, comfort, and well-being, is
what is needed. Among the societies which aim at this great result,
there is one--the Mersey Mission to Seamen--with which Mr. Balfour was
closely associated from its origin in 1857 till his death. For many
years he acted as Honorary Secretary. He attended its committee meetings
with unfailing assiduity, and by the warmth of his enthusiasm he won for
it many a friend and supporter. On Sunday afternoons and week-day
evenings, his visits were welcome alike to seamen and to Christian
workers. At Christmas-tide, when the sailors assembled at tea or
gathered round a Christmas-tree, he would give utterance to fervid
heart-stirring addresses which are not forgotten.
In addition to the liberal pecuniary support given by his firm to this
Society, Mr. Balfour was personally a large contributor to special
branches of the work. For many years he defrayed the entire cost of a
mission-room to seamen at the north end of the town. He also paid the
salary of a colporteur to circulate the Scriptures among seamen.
The Society has extended its work to Birkenhead, Garston, Ellesmere
Port, and Runcorn. It promotes wholesome reading for the men, carries on
Temperance effort, aims at the elevation of the sailor in many ways,
material and spiritual. In all of these spheres of agency Mr. Balfour
took the deepest interest.
Among the many objects contemplated by this Society, there was one on
which he specially set his heart. It is thus referred to by Mr. Charles
J. Bushell, the chairman of committee. “The handsome and commodious
Seamen’s Institute in Hanover Street may be said to owe its existence to
Mr. Balfour’s munificence. For some years the committee had been vainly
seeking for a site on which to erect a suitable building. When the
Corporation carried out their improvements in Paradise Street and
Hanover Street, which necessitated the pulling down of a number of
public-houses and beer-houses, an eligible site near the Sailors’ Home
was advertised for sale by public auction. Mr. Balfour, with his wonted
ardour and enthusiasm, made up his mind that this site _must_ be bought.
Whatever its cost, he offered to guarantee the amount, not for a moment
lacking the faith that the requisite funds would be forthcoming.
“The site accordingly was purchased for £7050. The half of the site
sufficing for the Institute, the other half was sold to the British
Workman Public-House Company for the erection of a ‘Cocoa Room.’ Funds
for the half of the site which was retained were ere long subscribed,
Mr. Balfour himself contributing £500 in addition to a like sum from his
firm. On this piece of land was erected a beautiful building, well
adapted for the important work to be carried on therein, at a total cost
of £8580. ‘He being dead yet speaketh.’ For countless years, as sailors
meet for prayer, praise, and social converse, will the beneficent work
commenced in his life-time fructify and increase.”
The institute was opened on the 10th December 1885, under the presidency
of the Mayor,--the Bishop of Liverpool, Mr. Balfour himself and others
taking part on the important occasion.
The work which was thus accomplished was one after Mr. Balfour’s own
heart. There was a double blessing in it. It was the removal of a trap
to catch poor “Jack” for his destruction, and the substitution of a
house of shelter, of social fellowship, of prayer, to draw him upward
for his deliverance. This was at one blow to destroy the works of the
devil, and to replace them by works on which the Master smiles. It did
one good to meet Mr. Balfour at this time, and to hear him on this
topic. His thankfulness and hopefulness were unbounded. A vast
gin-palace demolished and its place occupied by the twin agencies of a
Seaman’s Institute and a “Cocoa Room!” It seemed to him a symbol of the
dawn of better days for seamen and for his beloved Liverpool; it
pointed, in his sanguine view, to the triumph of Christianity and
humanity over selfishness and rapacity. On these themes, the outpourings
of his grateful and rejoicing heart did not fail to refresh the spirits
of the friends among whom he moved. It was easy to discern that a boon
to the people was a blessing to himself.
There is in Liverpool an older Society which seeks the good of seamen.
It is “The Seamen’s Friend Society,” and was established so far back as
1820. Though not so engrossingly employed in the work of this Society,
Mr. Balfour was one of its committee, and was deeply interested in all
its concerns. When times of difficulty occurred especially, he was ever
ready both to plead and to give in its behalf. The Mersey Mission is
mainly supported by the Church of England; the Seamen’s Friend Society
mainly by Nonconformists. But wherever the welfare of the sailor was
earnestly and faithfully promoted, Mr. Balfour’s heart, hand, and purse
were open.
Among the agencies which are brought into play by the Seamen’s Friend
Society is one, long actively employed, which called forth the fullest
sympathy of Mr. Balfour. A library of thirty books, deposited in a
strong box, is supplied, as far as possible, to every captain leaving
Liverpool who desires to receive it. The effect is found to be
excellent. Hours which otherwise would have been unoccupied, and
therefore likely to be productive of evil, are in many cases pleasantly
and usefully employed. Where the floating libraries are valued, they are
sometimes exchanged by passing vessels in mid-ocean, and so fresh
reading is secured. A number of libraries are every year lost at sea,
often, alas! together with the poor sailors, who used to while away
their leisure-time in the pleasant company of the books.
Numbers of useful magazines, like the _Leisure Hour_, _Sunday at Home_,
&c., are put by considerate friends at the disposal of the committee.
These are given to sailors as they embark, and often keep their minds
helpfully employed, in the spare time which fine weather brings at sea.
The value of such literature cannot easily be realised by dwellers in
cities, where bookshops and free libraries are found. The barren ocean
affords no such mental food to the unfortunate reader who has sailed on
a long voyage, without a book. On one occasion a sailor called at the
“South Bethel” to ask the chief agent of the Society to hear him his
lesson, as he had been trying to improve himself, while at sea, in
reading and committing to memory. Mr. Wilkie willingly complied, but was
taken aback to find that his “lesson” consisted of the first page of the
_Liverpool Mercury_, a broad sheet of advertisements, which, in the
absence of all other literature, the diligent Tar had learnt by heart.
The cultivation of a taste for reading, and the supply of wholesome
material, are most worthy aims of the Society.
Various means and methods are employed, but the spiritual and moral
elevation of the sailor is the object supremely kept in view. The room
known as “The Forecastle,” which has happily been secured close to the
Sailors’ Home, and therefore in the very centre of the haunts of the
men, is greatly valued. There, newspapers and magazines may be read;
there, letters may be written, by or for the sailors, to distant
friends; and there, daily at noon, a brief and lively prayer-meeting is
held, and the gospel invitation is proclaimed. Many a message of
gratitude and praise has come back from the ends of the earth, for the
glad tidings heard and the first step in repentance and amendment taken
in “The Forecastle.” In that room Mr. Balfour’s was a familiar voice.
The agents of this Society bear witness to the improvement which is
manifested around the Sailors’ Home, since a number of public-houses in
the district have been improved out of existence. A former publican of
that neighbourhood, speaking of one of the missionaries, said, “That man
has ruined my trade, but thank God, he has saved my soul.” And now the
rescued publican is spreading the glad tidings which once he despised.
Another Society contemplating the good of British and foreign sailors
and emigrants, as well as foreigners of all kinds who choose to avail
themselves of its help, owed much in its origin and growth, to the
liberal support and kindly counsel of Mr. Balfour. It is called “The
Stranger’s Rest,” and supplements the efforts of the Associations
already described. A grateful shelter is provided for strangers, with
reading and writing room. Christian meetings for the reading and the
explanation of Scripture are held in the English, French, German,
Italian, Spanish, Finnish, Norse, and other languages. The work is
largely carried on by Christian ladies, to whom the sailor invariably
gives ready and respectful hearing. In a quiet, unobtrusive way much
good has been done, wanderers have been brought back to the fold,
sinners have been converted, prodigals have been restored to sorrowing
parents, good seed has been sown in hearts which have carried it to all
lands. We may add that Mr. and Mrs. Reginald Radcliffe throw their zeal
and their energies into this excellent movement.
There is yet a great work before us, to be prosecuted on the same lines.
There are great deliverances to be wrought out for our city and our
sailors. We need only more work, more prayer, and more faith. Then shall
we see the hopes, by many thought illusory, of men like Mr. Balfour,
converted into glad realities.