166 BOOK OF NATURE LAID OPEN. 



ing out some of its most remarkable peculiarities ; 

 and all we have now to do is, to notice a few, and 

 but a very few more, of the man} 7 unspeakable bless- 

 ings and advantages derived from this necessary ap- 

 pendage, which the bountiful Benefactor of the hu- 

 man race has attached to our globe. 



The air, in a peculiar manner, may be said to con- 

 stitute the very essence of which life is made. When 

 the Lord created man of the dust of the ground, he 

 breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, when 

 man became a living soul ; and the experience of all 

 ages amply testifies, that when men cease to breathe, 

 which is performed by means of the air, they cease 

 to live. Many days, it has been observed, we might 

 live, or even whole months, without the light of the 

 sun, or the glimmering of a star; whereas, if we are 

 deprived only for a few minutes of this aerial sup- 

 port, we sicken, we faint, we die. How thankful, 

 then, ought we to be, that of this indispensable ne- 

 cessary of life no person can deprive us. The trea- 

 sures of the earth, the verdure of the fields, and even 

 the refreshments of the stream, often contribute to 

 the luxuries of the great, while the less fortunate can 

 only behold them as humble spectators ; but, in the 

 words of an eminent naturalist, " the air no limi- 

 tations can bound, nor any landmarks restrain. In 

 this benign element, all mankind can boast an equal 

 possession; and for this we have all equal obligations 

 to Heaven." 



It is equally beneficial to all the branches of the 

 animal creation; for, although some creatures dwell 



