STUDY XI. 



*37 



vegetables, entirely in the view of facilitating alli- 

 ances of this fort, and of opening a paffage for the 

 graffes, the verdure and delicacy of whofe Items 

 form with them an infinity of contrails. Of this 

 inftances innumerable may be feen in uncultivated 

 fields, where tufts of grafs pierce through the 

 broad plants of the thiftle and the echium. This 

 arrangement has, likewife, been made, in or- 

 der that the graffes, which are mod ufeful of all 

 vegetables, might receive a portion of the rain 

 from Heaven, through the interfaces of the broad 

 foliage of thofe privileged children of Nature, 

 which would ftifle every thing around them, but 

 for thofe profound incifions. Nature does nothing 

 merely for the pleafure of doing it, but always 

 connects with it fome reafon of utility : this ap- 

 pears to me the fo much more decidedly marked, 

 that the incifions in leaves are much more com- 

 mon, and deeper in the plants and under-flirub- 

 bery, which rife to no great height, than in trees. 



The harmonies refulting from contraft, are to 

 be found even in the waters. The reed, on the 

 brink of rivers, raifes into the air it's radiating 

 leaves, and it's embrowned diftaff, whereas the 

 nymphasa extends at it's feet a broad heart-formed 

 foliage, and rofes of yellow gold : the one prefents, 

 on the waters, a continued pallifade, and the other 

 a platform of verdure. 



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