70 LOCUSTS AND WILD HONEY 



yet reached the condition of the cooling and amelio- 

 rating rains, while in Mars vapor appears to be pre- 

 cipitated only in the form of snow; he is probably 

 past the period of the summer shower. There 

 are clouds and vapors in the sun itself, clouds of 

 flaming hydrogen and metallic vapors, and a rain 

 every drop of which is a burning or molten meteor. 

 Our earth itself has doubtless passed through the 

 period of the fiery and consuming rains. Mr. Proc- 

 tor thinks there may have been a time when its 

 showers were downpourings of " muriatic, nitric, and 

 sulphuric acid, not only intensely hot, but fiercely 

 burning through their chemical activity." Think 

 of a dew that would blister and destroy like the 

 oil of vitriol! but that period is far behind us now. 

 When this fearful fever was past and the earth be- 

 gan to "sweat;" when these soft, delicious drops 

 began to come down, or this impalpable rain of the 

 cloudless nights to fall, the period of organic life 

 was inaugurated. Then there was hope and a prom- 

 ise of the future. The first rain was the turning- 

 point, the spell was broken, relief was at hand. 

 Then the blazing furies of the fore world began to 

 give place to the gentler divinities of later times. 



The first water, how much it means ! Seven 

 tenths of man himself is water. Seven tenths of the 

 human race rained down but yesterday ! It is much 

 more probable that Alexander will flow out of a bung- 

 hole than that any part of his remains will ever stop 

 one. Our life is indeed a vapor, a breath, a little 

 moisture condensed upon the pane. We carry our- 



