ACCEPTING THE UNIVERSE 



astronomic space, where suns and systems and 

 whole universes of worlds drift like bubbles on the 

 sea. Give Nature time enough, and the world of to- 

 day, or of any day, becomes an entire stranger to 

 you. Orion will no longer stalk across the winter 

 skies, the pole-star will no longer guide your ships, 

 if, indeed, there remains any ocean for your ships to 

 sail upon. 



The Natural Providence is not concerned about 

 you and me. In comparison it is concerned only 

 about our race, and not lastingly concerned about 

 that, since races, too, shall go. 



"Races rise and fall, 

 Nations come and go; 

 Time doth gently cover all 

 With violets and with snow." 



As I sit here under an old heavy-topped apple- 

 tree on a hot midsummer day, a yellow leaf lets go 

 its hold upon the branch over my head and comes 

 softly down upon the open book I am reading. It is 

 a perfect leaf, but it has had its day. The huge fam- 

 ily of leaves of which it was a member are still rank 

 and green and active in sustaining the life of the 

 tree, but this one has dropped out of the leafy ranks. 

 There are a few small dark spots upon it, which, 

 I see with my pocket glass, are fungus growths, 

 or else some germ disease of apple-tree leaves, per- 

 haps, like pneumonia, or diphtheria, or tuberculosis 

 among men. One leaf out of ten thousand has fallen. 



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