310 THE MOOR AND THE LOCH. 



the male, there was nothing startling in its appearance on 

 wing. This dwarf specimen of the ostrich family was most 

 likely driven by stress of weather from the Continent, and 

 being bewildered, had concealed itself in ground quite foreign 

 to its nature. 



Those who take the trouble to look around them, must 

 observe how naturally every bird or beast chooses the ground 

 best fitted to afford it sustenance and comfort, and that the 

 perfect organisation of each bird or animal to its own mode of 

 life fully testifies to the Hand that formed it. Every " neuk " 

 of the globe is what may be called " utilised," and even the 

 most barren corners are all taken possession of by creatures 

 whose physical conformation is expressly fitted for obtaining 

 a livelihood in such sterile spots, and nowhere else. But man, 

 intellectual man, who alone of all living things is scattered 

 over the whole world, and reigns above the beasts of the 

 earth and the fowls of the air, if turned loose to support 

 himself even on the most fertile parts of his dominion with 

 no other weapons or resources save what nature gave him, 

 would be the only helpless creature in the whole creation of 

 God. 



Humbling though this may appear to be, it ia in reality one 

 great proof of his grandeur and dignity, that with him alone 

 the immortal soul is all in all ; and with this stupendous gift, 

 if he will only accept it on the free terms offered, he has the 

 promise not only of " the life that now is, but of that which 

 is to come." It is true that in the gloomy trackless forests 

 where " the noble savage still runs," the red man is given far 

 superior power to help and sustain himself than his white 

 brother ; but even he has recourse to artificial means for aid 

 in his hunting craft, and when brought under the power of 

 civilisation and religion, is forced to admit that his natural 

 instinct has forsaken him, and that so far as regards wood-life 

 he has become weak and powerless as a " paleface." 



If, therefore, the only rational being on the face of God's 



