And serve for oars to row, and helm to guide.
’Tis thus they sail, pleased with the wanton game,
The fish, the sailor, and the ship the same.
But, when the swimmers dread some danger near,
The sportive pleasure yields to stronger fear:
No more they wanton drive before the blasts,
But strike the sails, and bring down all the masts.
The rolling waves their sinking shells o’erflow,
And dash them down again to sands below.”
Thus, we see, according to the beneficent purpose and blessing of God, the “waters bring forth abundantly.” The finny tribes are numerous beyond all calculation; they crowd to our shores in vast abundance, from which our markets are regularly and plentifully supplied. And, as one judiciously observes, what a merciful provision is this for the necessities of man! Many hundreds of thousands of mankind live, during a great part of the year, on fish only. Fishes, which are liable to few diseases, afford not only a wholesome, but a very nutritive diet; and generally come in vast quantities to our shores, when in their greatest perfection. In this also we may perceive that the kind providence of God goes hand in hand with his creating energy; for, while manifesting his wisdom and power, he is making a permanent provision for the sustenance of man through all his generations. The Mackerel, the Herring, and various other kinds, when lean, wander up and down the ocean: but when fat they throng our creeks and bays, or haunt the running streams. Who bids these creatures leave our shores when they become unfit for our service? Who rallies and recalls the undisciplined vagrants, as soon as they are improved into desirable food? Surely the furlough is signed, the summons issued, and the point of re-union settled, by a Providence ever indulgent to mankind, and loading us with benefits.