THE EARLY LIFE OF E. J. PECK 5 



sailor began to read a Bible which his sister had 

 given him when they parted. Illness had awakened 

 him to his need of spiritual and eternal things, and, 

 in his own words, he &quot; made great efforts to secure 

 peace to his soul.&quot; These efforts, however, were in 

 vain, for they were made in his own strength only, 

 and &quot; in the energy of the flesh.&quot; Mr. Peck con 

 cludes the review of this portion of his life with the 

 expressive sentence, &quot; While weakness lasted, I 

 went on in what I may term the trying-to-be-a- 

 Christian state.&quot; 



As his health did not improve, he was invalided 

 home to England in the autumn of 1868. After 

 some time on furlough he was sent to Nelson s old 

 flag-ship, the Victory. Speaking of this time. 

 Mr. Peck says : &quot; Many strange thoughts stirred 

 within me as I looked upon that spot upon the 

 Victory s quarterdeck where England s noblest 

 naval hero fell fighting the battle which freed Eng 

 land from her foes. But little did I think at that 

 time that the Lord would call me to a conflict 

 mightier than that of earthly battles, because 

 eternal destinies hang upon the triumphs of the 

 host of God.&quot; 



When drafted from the Victory he joined his old 

 vessel, the Caledonia, though with a new crew. At 

 this time there seems to have been some retrogression 

 in the struggle for spiritual life. With returning 

 health, as often happens, good resolutions grew 



