Help for the Shipwrecked

Admiral Sir Thomas Williams, a straight-forward and excellent man, was in command of a ship crossing the Atlantic Ocean. His course brought him in sight of the Island of Ascension, at that time uninhabited, and _never visited by any ship_, except for the purpose of collecting turtles, which abound on the coast. The island was barely descried on the horizon, and was not to be noticed at all; but as Sir Thomas looked at it, he was _seized by an unaccountable desire to steer toward it_.

He felt how strange such a wish would appear to his crew, and _tried to disregard it; but in vain_.

His desire became more and more urgent and distressing, and foreseeing that it would soon be more difficult to gratify it, he told his lieutenant to prepare to "_put about ship_" and steer for Ascension. _The officer to whom he spoke ventured to respectfully represent that changing their course would greatly delay them_—that just at that moment the men were going to their dinner—that at least some delay might be allowed.

But these arguments seemed, to increase Captain Williams' anxiety, and the ship was steered toward the uninteresting little island. All eyes and spy-glasses were now fixed upon it, and soon something was perceived on the shore.

"It is white—it is a flag—it must be a signal!" And when they neared the shore, it was ascertained that sixteen men, wrecked on the coast many days before, and suffering the extremity of hunger, had set up a signal, though almost without hope of relief. What made the captain steer his ship in the very opposite direction to what he and his crew wanted to go, but the _superhuman Spirit of God_.