THE HEASON WHY. 



How mighty are his wonders ! his kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and 

 his dominion is from generation to generation." DANIEL rv. 



smile upon the blessed work ; and then the clouds again gather In a golden 

 train, and one by one fill the high arches of the atmosphere, until the earth 

 once more grows thirsty, and the flower supplicates for drink. 



"With reference to Light, its wonders, and the curious but imperfect theories 

 respecting it, we have little to add, except with regard to its physiological action 

 upon the eyes of man and of animals, which will be given in another place. But 

 of its sister, Darkness for it would not do now to call darkness the antagonist 

 of light, since it will be seen that they work harmoniously for good we have 

 to say, that recent discoveries indicate that darkness is as necessary to the 

 health of nature as light. Not only is it necessary to compose man. and animals 

 to sleep, to give rest to the over- wrought nerves of the industrious but 

 light is the quickening power of vegetation, and although plants grow by night, 

 they grow, as man does, when stretched upon his bed but some of their func 

 tions, which are actively excited in the presence of light, are at rest in dark- 

 ness. Nor is this all : there is not an atom upon the face of the earth which is 

 not affected by the rays of the sun, their light, their heat, their actinism. Colours 

 change : some are bleached, others are darkened. All bodies are expanded. The 

 hardest rock sustains an effect from the sun's rays ; and an unceasing sun, shining 

 upon the hardest granite, would in time produce such a disturbance of its 

 atomic condition, that adamant would crumble away to dust. 



The going down of the sun, therefore, marks the period when not only does 

 the bird fly to her resting-place, and man turn to his couch ; but when every 

 atom of a vast hemisphere subsides into a state of quietude, and when homo- 

 geneous particles of matter return to their mutual rest. 



In a few succeeding lessons, we intend to point out some of the scientific 

 truths that are illustrated in the use of toys. We think we shall be able to 

 show to our young readers, that even the hours of play may be made the 

 periods of delightful instruction ; and that there is no "reason why" the acquire- 

 ment of knowledge should not sweetly accord with the occasional pursuit of 

 those pastimes by which health of body and vigour of mind are induced. 



But before we commence the discharge of that pleasant duty, let us say a few 

 words respecting Carbon, that important agent in the world's history. It is, 

 doubtless, perplexing to the minds of many persons, to understand how the 

 diamond can be pure carbon ; how charcoal can be carbon a little less pure 

 than the diamond ; and how coal and sugar can also be carbon, less pure than 

 the charcoal. The statement that in the diamond carbon exists in a different 

 atomic condition, is almost as instructive to the inquiring mind, as to say. " It 

 is so, because it is" 



Diamonds are expensive things, and so difficult to experiment upon, even if 

 they were not expensive, that the doors of inquiry seem locked. To turn 

 diamonds into charcoal, or into carbonic acid gas, is a very costly formula of 

 experiment. Charcoal fires, thus sustained, would soon burn a man out of his 

 house; and soda water, impregnated with carbonic acid gas, produced from 

 diamonds, would be a very expensive beverage. If we could only turn charcoal 

 into diamonds, and carbonic acid gas into brilliants, that would be quite 

 another affair. A new Eldorado would be discovered, and there would be so 

 many experimenters that, when they all succeeded, they would find that 

 diamonds had lost their value. However, as a fact for the encouragement cf 

 those who would like to be early >n the race, \vo may state that the atoms of 



