422 
by the final accomplishment of ends. 
We may also add another distinction, 
peculiar, we believe, to reason, namely, 
the deliberate choice of a small present 
evil, to obtain a greater distant good.— 
Lacon, p, 259. 
The human intellect, indeed, presents 
so wide and various a range, that ade- 
quately and perfectly to comprehend 
its nature and operations, is a task far, 
perhaps, beyond the power of man te 
accomplish. Even the profound re- 
flections of \a Locke and a Bacon 
have not explained all the sublime 
and mysterious principles of our “ in- 
tellectual being ;” and although man is 
capable of high and noble attainments, 
he will never, perhaps, be enabled to 
unravel the mighty workings of his own 
wonderful mind. 
Having thus partially exhibited the 
gradation which exists throughout the 
different species of animals, we will 
proceed to develope, as concisely as 
possible, the continuation of the chain 
into the vegetable kingdom. The con- 
neciing link does not, indeed, appear 
very obvious, @ priori; but a brief re- 
capitulation of the different parts and 
prnciples of vegetables, will more 
clarly elucidate ‘the subject, and enable 
usto perceive the connection more ac- 
cirately. We find, then, that as a cer- 
tan set of vessels and organs, and their 
twalthiness, are necessary to supply and 
ontinue animal, so are others requisite 
r the existence of vegetable vitality ; 
and as blood is the grand vital stream of 
he animal body, so is sap the nourisher 
if vegetable matter. However simple 
nay be the materials of which vege- 
tables are composed,* their organiza- 
tion is exceedingly curious and compli- 
eated, and far beyond any thing that 
the mineral world presents to our no- 
tice. The different parts which natura- 
lists are accustomed to consider as dis- 
tinct, in their nature and functions, are 
six—the stem or trunk, the root,j the 
leaf, the flower, the fruit, and the séed. 
1, The stem or trunk (which includes 
also the woody portion of the branches) 
_ * The constituent, or elementary prin- 
ciples of vegetables, are hydrogen, oxygen, 
and chareeal. These, as far as has been 
hitherto discovered, are. common to all 
vegetables. There are some other sub- 
stances, such as calcareous earth, iron 
and azote, which are occasionally found in 
plants; but as they are not common to all, 
they cannot be considered as essential to 
the constitution of vegetable matter— Gre- 
gory’s Economy of Nature, vol. iii. 
Gradation of Universal Being. 
(Dee. 1, 
consists of three parts, the bark, the 
wood, and the pith. i 
The bark may be compared to the 
integuments of animals, without any 
violation of probability; for it is found 
to consist of an epidermis, or scarf- 
skin, copiously supplied with exhalent. 
vessels, and of an inner cuticle or true 
skin, also abundantly furnished with 
vessels, differently situated, and destined 
for various uses. 
The wood lies between the bark and 
the pith, defending the latter, and inclos- 
ing it as a cylindrical bone does its mar- 
row. It differs from the bark, not only 
in its greater density and hardness, but 
also in its structure, being composed 
chiefly of spiral vessels, running from 
one end of the tree to the other. 
The pith is situated in the centre of 
the stem, and in young plants is very 
plentiful. It is said, by some botanists, 
to be formed by a number of small ves- 
sels or bladders, generally of a circular 
shape, though sometimes (as in the 
borage and thistle) they are angular. 
In most plants, the pith gradually dies 
away as they approach to maturity, and 
in old trees it is almost wholly oblite- 
rated. In this, it is strikingly analogous 
to human marrow, which, in old peo- 
ple, loses much of its original oily qua- 
lity, and becomes watery. 
2. The root may be said to bear some 
little resemblance to the heart of an 
animal, inasmuch as it is the chief 
source whence vegetable vitality de- 
vives its nourishment. All roots, how- 
ever, are fibrous at their extremities; 
and these fibres are, for the most part, 
the organs by which the plant is 
nourished. Like the trunk, they are 
furnished with a variety of vessels for 
the purpose of conveying air, and the 
fluids necessary for the sustenance of 
the plant. ae 
3. The leaves of vegetables have been’ 
compared to the lungs of animals, and 
are organs particularly essential to the 
existence of plants. Trees, or shrubs, 
when totally divested of them, perish, 
and, in general, when stripped of any 
considerable portion, they do not shoot 
vigorously. These organs are formed 
by the expansion of the vessels of the 
stalk into a net-work, which exhibits.a 
beautiful appearance, when the inter- 
mediate matter is consumed by putré= 
faction. Both surfaces of the leayes. 
are covered by a delicate membrane. 
which is consumed from the.scarf-skip,. 
or outer bark, of the plant. . .,.% =>) 
4, The flower is highly requisite for 
the 
