en proved true by many
another company of the Master's servants afloat upon the broad waters
from that day to this. There they sat on the wooden benches, with
spray breaking over them, the faithful men and women who were daring
all for the Truth. Only three times in the whole voyage was the
weather so bad that storms prevented their assembling together. Much
of the actual navigation of the vessel seems to have been left to the
strange passengers to determine. The Captain's narrative continues:
'Thus it was all the voyage with the faithful, who were carried far
above storms and tempests, that when the ship went either to the right
hand or to the left, their hands joined all as one, and did direct her
way; so that we have seen and said, "We see the Lord leading our
vessel even as it were a man leading a horse by the head; we regarding
neither latitude nor longitude, but kept to our line, which was and is
our Leader, Guide, and Rule."'

Besides the guidance vouchsafed to the Friends as a group, some of
them had special intimations given to them.

'The sea was my figure,' says Robert Fowler, 'for if anything got up
within, the sea without rose up against me, and then the floods
clapped their hands, of which in time I took notice and told Humphrey
Norton.'[35]

In this account Humphrey Norton always seems to hear voices directing
their course, while Robert Fowler generally 'sees figures'--sights
that teach him what to do. Guidance may come in different ways to
different people, but it does come surely to those who seek for it.

The inward Voice spoke to Robert Fowler also when they were in mid
Atlantic after they had been at sea some two weeks:

'We saw another great ship making up to us which did appear far off
to be a frigate, and made her sign for us to come to them, which was
to me a great cross, we being to windward of them; and it was said "GO
SPEAK TO HIM, THE CROSS IS SURE; DID I EVER FAIL THEE THEREIN?" And
unto others there appeared no danger in it, so that we did, and it
proved a tradesman of London, by whom we writ back.'

The hardest test of their faith came some three weeks later, when
after five weeks at sea they had still accomplished only 300 leagues,
scarcely a third part of their voyage, and their destination still
seemed hopelessly distant. The strong faith of Humphrey Norton carried
them all over this trial. 'He (Humphrey Norton) falling into communion
with God, told me that he had received a comf