MEMOIR OF RAT. 53 



mote the spiritual good of others led him, therefore, 

 to attempt through the press what he could not ac- 

 complish otherwise. The subject which he first 

 selected for this purpose was admirably fitted to 

 call forth the qualities in which he most excelled, 

 and his instructive and enlightened manner of treat- 

 ing it has been acknowledged by all. " The Wisdom 

 of God, manifested in the Works of the Creation," 

 the volume to which we allude, has been universally 

 admired as an able exposition of the power, the 

 goodness, and other attributes of the Deity, as they 

 are reflected from the mirror of creation, and as far 

 as they can be " understood by the things that are 

 made." The tendency of his studies, and the cha- 

 racteristic qualities of his mind, enabled him to il- 

 lustrate the subject with a profusion of facts and 

 observations of the most interesting kind ; and 

 the work is pervaded by a spirit of sound philoso- 

 phy and ardent piety, which confer on it a high 

 value. Such was its popularity, that it soon passed 

 through many editions, and was translated into se- 

 veral languages. It has suggested the plan, and 

 furnished many of the most valuable materials, of 

 most of the works that have since been written on 

 the same topic, and has made the name of Ray fa- 

 miliar to the generality of readers even in the pre- 

 sent day. 



The success of this work led him to prepare an- 

 other of a somewhat similar nature, entitled " Phy- 

 sico- Theological Discourses concerning the primitive 



