210 BERTHA'S VISIT TO HER 



to their activity, and mutually enriches both 

 themselves and the countries to which they trade. 

 But it does much more it brings distant nations 

 into contact with each other it makes up for 

 the partial distribution of soil and climate it 

 may be said to equalize the bounties of Provi- 

 dence, and it is the grand means of spreading 

 knowledge and civilization to the most remote 

 corners of the world." 



26th. In consequence of our breakfast con- 

 versation yesterday on the productions of various 

 countries, we invented a very amusing play in 

 the evening, and I assure you that it was con- 

 ducted with great precision. 



Each person wrote on a bit of paper the 

 name of some town, country, or province ; these 

 tickets were then shuffled together in a little 

 basket, and whoever drew one out was obliged 

 to give an account of some production, either 

 natural or manufactured, for which that place 

 was remarkable. This new-fashioned game was 

 highly entertaining, for it brought out a number 

 of curious bits of information which we had 

 picked up, and which we might never have 

 mentioned to each other, only from some such 

 motive. 



One of these was, that in Persia they have 

 the art of carving spoons out of pear wood, 

 which are so delicate and so thin, that the bowl 



