MTST, EA1N, AND HAIL. 119 



immediate attention which it secures ; but apart 

 altogether from such a personal reason for our 

 interest, there can be no doubt that the spectacle 

 itself is wonder-moving, when it is manifested with 

 force. The sudden rattle of a violent hail-storm 

 similarly excites not only wonder, but admi- 

 ration : and this wonder and admiration are 

 mainly, we think, attributable to the conscious or 

 unconscious reverence which man feels for the 

 works of the Almighty. 



The least educated, following the commonest 

 instincts of Nature, are attracted and their at- 

 tention riveted by the violence of the elements ; 

 but mist, that noiselessly creeps over the land- 

 scape and makes its presence felt gently and 

 insensibly, seldom occasions any wonder by its 

 manifestations, and it requires an artistic eye and 

 artistic feeling to appreciate the delicacy, beauty, 

 and suggestiveness which accompany the advent 

 of mist. Fog, which is mist intensified, has its 

 beauty ; but it is in the earlier stage of what 

 may be called transparency that the greatest 

 beauty is discoverable. The origin of both are 

 well understood. Yet to many persons it would 



