15 



is thus at once overwhelmed ; and the child of 

 mortality, perceiving that all is dim and myste- 

 rious here below, longs to burst his prison-house 

 and to expatiate in those higher regions, where 

 he shall be able to look through the surface to 

 the essence ; and in the immediate presence of 

 his Creator, " to see even as He is seen, and to 

 know even as He is known." 



There is no department of natural science 

 which does not amply repay the enquirer for all 

 the zeal and diligence he can bestow upon it, 

 provided only he begin the study in a right spirit, 

 and prosecute it with a candid and an humble 

 mind. Whatever be the subject to which he 

 directs his attention whether the earth or the 

 skies whether the great laws of nature, as ex- 

 hibited in the vast universe, or their minute 

 combinations and relations, in reference to ob- 

 jects with which he is daily familiar whether 

 the mighty masses of inanimate substances, or 

 the properties of organized matter and beings 

 in every instance the superficial view to which 

 he was accustomed quickly disappears, and he 

 is introduced, as it were, into a new world, in 

 which he traces more distinctly, at eveiy turn, 

 the footsteps of an intelligent and omniscient 

 Creator ; and while his mind is enlightened by 

 new knowledge, his reasoning faculties are 

 strengthened, his views are enlarged, and his 

 moral perceptions become more acute and ac- 

 curate. 



Take, for example, the starry heavens. The 



