196 TEXTURE OF VEGETABLES. 



to professorships, or other lucrative preferment. These 

 views are not blameable, but they are not the sole end of 

 human existence. Is it not desirable to call the soul from 

 the feverish agitation of worldly pursuits, to the contempla- 

 tion of divine wisdom in the beautiful economy of nature 1 

 Is it not desirable to walk with God in the garden of crea- 

 tion, and hold converse with his providence ? If such ele- 

 vated feelings do not lead to the study of nature, it cannot 

 be far pursued without rewarding the student by exciting 

 them. The more we study the works of the Creator, the 

 more wisdom, beauty, and harmony become manifest ; and 

 while we admire, it is impossible not to adore. 



" Soft roll your incense, herbs, and fruits, and flowers, 



In mingled clouds, to Him, whose sun exalts, 



Whose breath perfumes you, and whose pencil paints !" 



Questions. — 1. What is Botany? 2. Why is the study of this 

 science not a trifling employment ? 3. What renders it a field for in- 

 struction and admiration ? 4. What may we expect when a know- 

 ledge of this science is more generally diffused ? 5. Why did Dr. 

 Dwight often direct the attention of his pupils to Sweden ? 6. How 

 is botany a source of mental improvement ? 7. How do some people 

 regard a botanist ? 8. How are these views to be considered, and what 

 reply is made to thera .' 



LESSON 88. 



Texture of Vegetables. 



Longitu'dlnally, running in the longest direction. 

 Concen'tric, having one common centre. 



Every part of a living plant is covered with a skin or mem- 

 brane called the cuticle. In the root and trunk it is coarse 

 and hard, while in the leaves, flowers, and tender shoots, 

 it is a fine, colourless, and transparent film, not thicker than 

 a cobweb. It is porous and admits of the passage of fluids 

 from within as well as from without, but in a due and defi- 

 nite proportion in every plant. It not only protects the 

 young tree from external injury, but it preserves our choicest 

 fruit from premature decay, and without it, the leaf would 

 lose its verdure, the flower its fragrance, and their transitory 

 beauty would become still more evanescent. To wheat, 



