An Old Salt | AdventAI

Seventh-day Adventist Missionary Society · Oakland, California · Nov 2, 1882

An Old Salt.

Canon Basil Wilberforce, at a meeting of the Southwark Help-Myself Society, described a recent visit to a mission room at the London Docks, where he had asked any one who wished to, to get up and say what God had done for him.

An old sailor rose and said how bad he had been—felt that he was even a devil's castaway; but six years ago, in that little room, he was led to see that he was a great sinner, but that Christ was a great Saviour, and that on the cross was nailed every one of his sins. He signed the pledge, and threw away his pipe; and had been upheld by God; because every morning he prayed that he might be protected.

Returning recently from Hongkong, this old sailor had an accident, and was badly scalded; he was very ill.

When he began to recover the doctor said :—

“You must take some port wine.”

“No,” said the old sailor, “I am a teetotaler.”

“But,” said the doctor, “you need it to strengthen you.”

“Doctor,” said the old man, “do you think I shall die if I don’t take the wine?”

“Yes,” said the doctor.

“Then,” said the sailor, “when you get into the St. Katherine’s Docks, go round to the little room, and tell them that the old man died sober.”

But he did not die.