16 THE CONTAGIOUS TYPHUS 



condition enables them to sustain the fatigues 

 of their long and arduous journeys, and to 

 supply the rich countries of the West with 

 their flesh, fleece, and hides. 



When the seasons have thus conveyed a due 

 proportion of heat, water, and electricity to 

 the elements of the soil, both plants and 

 animals conduce to the comfort and health of 

 man, and fulfil his expectations. But the laws 

 of nature are involved in mystery. Good and 

 evil go hand in hand death and life travel 

 close together and a few years of prosperous 

 harvests are almost invariably followed by 

 blight, barrenness, and scarcity. Most men 

 think only of the present time, and this im- 

 prudence and want of foresight prevent 

 farmers and great cattle proprietors from col- 

 lecting and holding in reserve the requisite 

 stores of sustenance to supply their sheep and 

 oxen during these barren seasons. Sickness 

 then breaks out, and these helpless creatures 

 perish in vast numbers, to the detriment of 

 their owners' best interests. 



And truly, when continual rains cause the 

 rivers to overflow, when the plains are drenched 

 and soaked, or when a burning sun scorches 



