ON VEGETATION. 41 



dry or preserve in any manner the animal or vegeta- 

 ble, yet finally in the course of time, it will crumble 

 to dust. How wisely has the Great Disposer of 

 Events ordered this ! By this universal decay of an- 

 imal and vegetable matter, by thus returning to origi- 

 nal principles, which go back into the earth, the 

 new plant and the new animal are nourished and sus- 

 tained. Thus one vegetable rises out of the earth, 

 flourishes, decays, dies, and returns to first principles, 

 from which another plant is nourished, and that plant 

 nourishes another animal. Who knows but the dust 

 of the mighty Caesar, or the famed Alexander, may 

 have stopped the chink of some peasant's log cabin, 

 or have nourished some gay flower or noxious weed? 

 It is not at all improbable. The bones of the heroes 

 who fell upon the field of Waterloo, when the star of 

 Napoleon's glory went down in blood, have been sold 

 by the load to feed and fatten the soil. No doubt 

 but many an ear of corn has sprung from the relics of 

 those, to whom Napoleon once spoke and pointed to 

 the path of fame. O Tempora ! O Mores ! What 

 is human glory ! What the blast of fame ! 



There is a mutual reciprocity throughout nature. 

 From the dead animal and vegetable spring the living 

 ones ; and there is, besides, a mutual dependence ex- 

 isting between man and the vegetable kingdom. It 

 is well known, that neither flame nor animal life can 

 exist without oxygen ; and it is equally well known, 



that plants, trees, &c. are continually throwing off in- 

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