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A
Christian gentleman while crossing the Atlantic
was standing on the deck one day with the captain of the steamship, a brave
but irreligious man, when he accidentally dropped a book from his coat
pocket. The captain, seeing it fall, picked it up and handed it to him. The
gentleman thanked him warmly, saying that he valued it beyond price, and that
he should have been exceedingly sorry to lose it. "what book is it?"
the captain asked. "why, it's my chart and compass," was the reply.
"You have yours for sailing your ship; this New Testament is mine for
guiding my life. And, captain," he added smilingly, "I wish you
were always as sure of your way as I am of mine." No more was said; but
some time afterward the captain hunted up his friendly passenger in order to
tell him that the arrow shot apparently into the air had reached its mark.
"If you had tried to preach to me," he said, "I should have
given you a rough answer; but the few words you said, and the way you said
them, took such hold upon me that I could not shake off the impression until
I became a Christian."
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