WISDOM OF THE DEITY. 



47 



of these globes how many eyes of sentient 

 beings might be affected by the diversities of 

 colour, shape, and motion, which would thus be 

 produced and what a variety of shades of light 

 and colour, and what a diversity of scenery, 

 would be produced, according to the distances 

 of the respective globes from the central lumi 

 nary. After what we have just now stated, how 

 ever, we may rest satisfied with joining in the 

 pious exclamation of one who had just finished 

 a devout survey of the structure of the human 

 frame: &quot;Marvellous are thy works, and that 

 my soul knoweth right well. How precious are 

 thy thoughts unto me, O God!&quot; (or, as the words 

 might be rendered,) &quot; How precious are thy 

 wonderful contrivances concerning me, O God! 

 how great is the sum of them ! If I should count 

 them, they are more in number than the sand.&quot; 

 In what direction soever I turn mine eyes, what 

 ever portion of thy works I investigate, &quot; lam 

 still with thee.&quot;* Thine infinity and unsearch 

 able wisdom are impressed on every object, so 

 that I feel myself every moment encompassed 

 by thine immensity, and am irresistibly led to 

 wonder and adore. 



I shall now conclude these reflections on vi 

 sion, with two or three additional remarks. It 

 is worthy of notice, in the first place, that the 

 eye has the power of adapting itself to objects 

 placed at different distances. By means of some 

 delicate pieces of mechanism, not hitherto satis 

 factorily explained, it can perceive, with dis 

 tinctness, a large object, at the distance of six 

 miles, and the next moment it can adjust itself 

 to the distinct perception of an object at the dis 

 tance of six inches ; so that it acts the part both 

 of a telescope and a microscope, and can be in 

 stantaneously adjusted to perform either as the 

 one instrument or as the other. This necessarily 

 supposes a corresponding alteration in the state 

 of the organ, every time we l^ft our eye from a 

 near, to look at a distant object. Either the cor 

 nea is somewhat flattened, or the crystalline 

 humour is pushed backwards, or both these 

 changes, in combination with others, may con 

 cur in causing the rays from distant obje cts to 

 unite exactly on the retina, without which distinct 

 vision cannot be produced. This contrivance, in 

 whatever kind of mechanism it may consist, is 

 one which art would vainly attempt to imitate. 

 We can see objects that are near us, with a mi 

 croscope, and those that are distant, with a tele 

 scope ; but we would in vain attempt to see dis 

 tant objects with the former, or those that are 

 onljjiR few inches from us with the latter, with 

 out a variety of changes being made in the aper 

 tures and positions of the glasses belonging to 

 the respective instruments. In this respect, there- 

 fore, as well as in every other, the eye is an 

 optical instrument, incomparably superior to any 



Psalm cxxxlx. 14, 17, is. 



instrument or imitation that art ran produce . and, 

 were it not for the peculiar property now de 

 scribed, it would be almost unfit for the purpose 

 of vision, notwithstanding all the other delicate 

 contrivances which enter into its construction. If 

 it were adjusted only for the distinct perception 

 of distant objects, every object within the limits 

 of an ordinary apartment would appear a mass of 

 confusion ; arid were it adjusted solely for viewing 

 objects within the limits of a few feet or inches, 

 the glories of the heavens, and the beautiful land 

 scape of the earth, would be veiled from our sight 

 as ifthey were enveloped in a mist. 



Another circumstance worthy of attention, is, 

 the power which the pupil of the eye possesses 

 of contracting or enlarging the aperture or hole 

 through which the light is admitted. When the 

 light is too weak, the pupil is enlarged ; when it 

 is too strong, it is again contracted. Accord ingly, 

 we find, that when we enter a darksome apart 

 ment, though, at first, nothing can be accurately 

 distinguished, yet, in the course of a minute or 

 two, when the pupil has had time to dilate, we 

 can perceive most objects with considerable 

 distinctness. And, on the other handj when we 

 pass from a dark room to an apartment lighted 

 up with a number of lustres, we feel uneasy at 

 the sudden glare, till the pupil Has contracted 

 itself, and excluded a portion of the superfluous 

 rays. Were it not for this property, we should for 

 the most part either be surrounded with a disagree 

 able gloom or oppressed with an excessive splen 

 dour. It is for this reason, that we are unable to 

 look upon the sun without being dazzled, and are 

 under the necessity of closing the eyelids, or of 

 turning away the head, when a strong light sud 

 denly succeeds to darkness. 



Again, it may not be improper to observe, how 

 wisely the Author of nature has fixed the dis 

 tance at which we ordinarily see near objects most 

 distinctly. This distance is generally from five 

 to eight inches from the eye. But had the eye 

 been formed for distinct vision at the distance of 

 only one inch, the object would have obstructed 

 the light, and room would have been wanting for 

 the performance of many necessary operations, 

 which require the hand to intervene between the 

 eye and the object. And had the limits of dis 

 tinct vision for near objects been beyond two or 

 three feet, sufficient light wouid not have been 

 afforded for the inspection of minute objects, and 

 we could neither have written a letter, nor have 

 read a book, with the same convenience and ease 

 we are now enabled to do. 



From the preceding descriptions and remarks, 

 it will evidently appear, with what admirable skill 

 the different parts of the organs of vision are con 

 structed, and how nicely they are adapted to the 

 several ends they were intended to subserve. 

 Were any one of ihese parts wanting, or obstruct 

 ed in its functions, vision would either be im 

 peded, or rendered painful and distressing, or 



