310 JAMES CLERK MAXWELL. [CHAP. X. 



made us part of His world ; but then He has given us the 

 power of coming nearer to Himself, and so we ought to use 

 the world and our bodies as means towards the knowledge 

 of Him, and stretch always as far as our state will permit 

 towards Him. If we do not, but wilfully seek back again 

 to the elements as the Israelites to Egypt, then we are not 

 like infants or even brutes, but far worse, as recoiling from 

 God and His blessedness. Here are manifest the works of 

 the flesh, which are not only not those of righteousness, but 

 opposed to them ; but the fruit of the spirit comes when, like 

 good trees, we stretch our best affections upwards till we see 

 the sun, and breathe the air and drink the rain, and receive 

 all free gifts, instead of sending our branches after our roots, 

 down among things that once had life but now are decaying, 

 and seeking there for nourishment that can only be had from 

 above. 



See the order of ripening of the fruit. Now, love brings 

 joy to ourselves, and this, peace with others, and this, long- 

 suffering of their attacks, for why should we be angry ? 

 Gentleness is a higher degree of this, being active. Good- 

 ness is used in a less general sense than we use it. It 

 seems something like "good nature," only better and more 

 manly, and refers to the good disposition of a man among 

 men. Faith is put in here as the result of good living ; 

 which is true, for it is nourished thereby. Then see what 

 comes of adding faith to a good disposition, meekness, 

 which we cannot afford to have without faith ; and lastly, 

 temperance or moderation, which is also founded on faith, 

 and is a virtue that can never be perfect till all the rest 

 are so. 



To THE SAME. 



Milford, Lymington (Hants), 

 9th May 1858. 



To-day we were called at seven ; were down soon there- 

 after, and had everything leisurely and comfortably till ten, 

 when we went to school. I had a class of youths just be- 

 ginning to read, and some of them knew not what swine 

 were, still less what a herd was. At eleven to church 



