PREFACE TO THIS EDITION. 



THE following pages were written under the impression that the visible 

 manifestations of the attributes of the Deity are too frequently overlooked by 

 Christians in their views of the great objects of Religion, and&quot; in the worship 

 they offer to the Father of their spirits; and are intended to show, that the 

 Teachers of Religion, in imparting instruction either to the old or to the yal.ng, 

 ought to embrace a wider range of illustration, in reference to Divine subjects, 

 than that to which they are usually confined. 



Throughout the whole of the discussions contained in this work, the Author 

 has pursued his own train of thought; and, in so doing, he trusts that he has 

 been enabled to render some of his illustrations more interesting to the young 

 and untutored mind than if he had adhered rigidly to the sentiments of others, 

 and to the technical language of science. The&quot; sketches of the different sciences 

 are not mere extracts, or compilations, but are, for the most part, orio-inal com 

 position in which it has been his main object to imbody as many iacts as his 

 limits would permit in order to excite the inquiring mind to farther investiga 

 tions into the different departments of physical science. 



It is presumed, that no Christian reader will for once imagine, that the views 

 illustrated in this work are intended to be substituted in place of the peculiar 

 revelations of the Bible. The object of the volume is to illustrate the harmony 

 which subsists between the system of Nature and the system of Revelation ; and 

 to show, that the manifestations of God in the material universe ought to be 

 blended with our views of the facts and doctrines recorded in the volume oi 

 Inspiration. 



It is taken for granted, throughout the whole rancre of the following illustra 

 tions, that the Scriptures contain a Revelation from Heaven ; and, under a firm 

 belief of this important truth, the Author has embellished his work with frequent 

 quotations from the energetic and sublime language of this Sacred Book. It 

 wouid, therefore, be unfair in any critic, who entertains doubts on this point, to 

 find fault with such quotations, or with the allusions to Bible phraseology which 

 occur, unless they can be shown to be introduced without judgment or dis 

 crimination. 



The Author has carefully revised every portion of the present editic n, and 

 introduced a variety of corrections and modifications. He has likewise intro 

 duced additional matter, to the extent of between 20 and 30 pages, and also 



