130 THE HALL OP SHELLS. 



There is a crown whose jewels, like yours, are 

 wrought in obedience and love, and of them 

 it is said, 'They shall shine forever and 

 ever ! ' " And the wave with the silvery crest 

 sped on. 



The Tubipwa musica (organ-pipe coral) 

 continued : " It was near the morning of crea- 

 tion ; upon the sand stood One whom the earth 

 and the sea adore, and at whose feet the white 

 waves bow their heads. He gathered the hol- 

 low reeds that grew at his feet, and, pressing 

 them together, he said to us : ' Build te on 

 this wise ! ' 



" We knew not how ; yet the sea and all 

 things that are therein praise him and do his 

 will. We gave ourselves to the work, and be- 

 hold ! he hath blessed it, and that hath made 

 it good." 



A wave touched the tiny " organ pipes " of 

 coral and a wind breathed upon them ; a soft 

 melody arose, in key with that harmony heard 

 when the morning stars sang together. The 

 wave with the silvery crest sped on. 



"And to us," said one of the arborescent 

 corals — the Mandrepora formosa — " the vision 

 was given on this wise : The branching trees 

 of the forest were reflected in the mirror of 

 the ocean, and while in our feebleness we won- 



