8o HIDDEN BEAUTIES OF NATURE 



existence, are highly useful, and play a most im- 

 portant part in the great plan of creation. 



We ought not to find it a very laborious task 

 to ascertain definite information respecting these 

 hidden beauties, for in the effort we shall be 

 certain to grasp very easily one of the grand 

 geological problems connected with the history of 

 our earth. It is advisable then to cultivate a closer 

 acquaintance with these marvels, to enquire some- 

 what into their history, and to find out the methods 

 adopted by microscopists whereby they are able 

 to unfold incomparable beauty. 



We will select, in the first instance, the fossil 

 forms found in the rocks of the island of Bar- 

 bados for our special attention, and afterwards 

 we shall notice the living forms of the oceans. 

 The numerical strength of these microscopic shells 

 in this stratum baffles our imagination. A piece 

 of rock which we could carry under one arm 

 would contain more specimens than there are people 

 on this earth. 



For one shilling we can purchase a sample, 

 prepared and mounted for the microscope, which 

 will prove a lasting pleasure. 



A space on the slide as small as that covered 

 by a needle's eye is represented in the accom- 

 panying illustration. But this is only from a drawing 

 in white, reduced by photography, and falls far short 

 of the real specimens. Drawings and words fail to 

 convey an impression to the mind at all equal to that 



