LIGHT, THE ORIGIN OF HEALTH. 737 
they are removed from the light they pine away and die, 
whilst the more light they get the faster they grow. In a 
very similar way, our bodies are built up by sun—influence, 
and our energy, comes from the sun; our bodily heat also 
comes from the sun; and even the energy which at this 
minute is producing ideas in my brain-cells came from the 
same source. : 
As all the work of our gum-tree is thus carried on by 
light, it follows that every expedient will be adopted to 
catch and store as much light as possible ; and thisisdone by 
green particles—called chlorophyll—-which circulate in the 
blood of the plant just as red cells or corpuscles do similar 
work in our bodies. When you see a plant a deep-green 
colour you know it is healthy and strong; and when you 
see your child with rosy cheeks and ruby lips, you call it 
ruddy health. Light has produced these effects in both 
eases. And in both organisms all the work of each body 
is carried on by this blood. The blood of the plant gathers 
lime and carbon and nitrogen and a host of other things 
’ from the earth, and, after sundry mixings and dilutings, the 
compound is exposed to the light, and these green particles 
use the light to mould them into the most beautiful forms. 
But a few months ago these beautiful flowers and luscious 
fruits were contained in a heap of particularly offensive 
manure. Now we see some of the sun’s exquisite handi- 
work in manufacturing, from such material, things which 
not only charm our eyes, but others which delight our 
palates, whilst they give health to our bodies. But this is 
what I want to enforce. This result has only been obtained 
by constant exposure to an abundance of light. The same 
materials placed even in your living or bedrooms would 
have produced very different results, 
A young English student came to Tasmania two years 
ago with pale cheeks, diseased body, miserable digestion, 
bad appetite, and practically no strength On my 
suggestion, he took light work on a farm, but work which 
demanded that he should be in the open sunlight from 
sunrise to sunset. After being there six months, he called 
to see me, and, really, I scarcely knew him. The pale 
cheeks had become a ruddy brown, and the hands and arms, 
which had been exposed to the sun constantly, were even 
browner than the cheeks, and big enough to floor a bullock. 
Disease was disappearing from the body; the digestion was 
equal to damper and bacon; whilst the appetite was a 
match for any bushman’s—which is saying a lot. That 
all this meant additional strength goes without the saying. 
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