12 



On to the furrow, on to the field — 



Dust to dust is the claim ; 

 'Tis what the prince and the pilgrim yield, 



And ihe Sea-weed giveth the same. 

 The land must be tilled, the tiller must feed, 

 But he'll mingle at last with the good Sea-weed. 



Then I think that a knowledge of these things is of some pecu- 

 niary importance. But we need not pause here in our relation, for 

 many are the articles of luxury made from these same Algae. But 

 if we are not so arrogant that we measure the usefulness of God's 

 creation by the dollars it will place in our pockets, we shall direct 

 our attention to the services it supplies to all the other parts of the 

 great unity. We shall not be forgetful of its agency in diffusing 

 oxygen and other chemical bodies through the water, rendering 

 them thereby healthful and sweet. We should think of the shelter 

 and food they afford to the myriads of animated creatures with 

 which the same God vff\o formed us has peopled the very depths of 

 the sea; and we should then humbly acknowledge that God is great, 

 and the works of his hands are necessary, good, and well to be 

 known. 



And, moreover, there is another and still greater advantage 

 derived from the study of natural objects. It secures to the col- 

 lector a cheerful and healthful exercise, which cannot fail to yield 

 its reward. But the Rev. Dr. Landsborough hath written words 

 upon this subject which I cannot equal, wherefore his paragraph 

 shall answer my purpose. 



" The naturalist knows nothing of tedium vita — that vampire 

 ennui which renders life a burden to thousands. To him every 

 hour is precious. He may have little leisure for his favorite pur- 

 suit ; but even those scraps of time which occur in the busiest life, 

 and which many allow to be lost, he gathers up as precious frag- 

 ments. Habits of observation, of patient research, of accurate 

 discrimination, and orderly arrangement, are gradually acquired. 

 Wherever he is — on the wild moor or on ihe shore of the sea — he 

 learns to see thousands of beautiful, wonderful things, which the 

 untrained, uninitiated eye never observes. Is he healthy? His 

 rural rambles are conducive to the continuance of health. Is he in 

 the pursuit of health ? Health flees from the man who sets out in 

 direct pursuit of it. But let him have an interest in the wonders of 

 nature — in the works of God's hand ;— meditating on them, he for- 



