LUNCH BY THE BROOKSIDE. 79 



also "fearfully and wonderfully made." En- 

 closed in that burnished tiny shell is a complete 

 nervous system, a complete digestive apparatus, 

 and organs of generation for the propagation of 

 its kind. There are delicate muscles to move the 

 wings and legs. There is a system for the circu- 

 lation of blood, organs for breathing air, and a 

 marvellous brain to preside over all, to receive 

 messages from the eyes and ears, and act upon the 

 messages intelligently. The eyes are constructed 

 of hundreds of little crystal facets or lenses on 

 the outside, while within, the mechanism of vis- 

 ion is more complicated still. We do not know 

 what such a creature has for a world. He can 

 see and hear and feel, he can suffer from hunger 

 and fear, he can act intelligently, he knows his 

 kind and likes to have great numbers of them 

 about him. He does not know much beyond his 

 little cove or eddy, and neither do we ; he soon 

 comes to the limits of his knowledge, so do we. 

 Our special advantage is in a wider range of in- 

 telligence, but in an infinite universe neither man 

 nor beetle ever does more than learn a little. It is 

 our privilege to extend our knowledge by study- 

 ing this wonderful world. No greater nor grander 

 is likely to be found anywhere, and nothing that 

 lives is insignificant, because all are the products 

 of infinite resources. 



