THE VEGETABLE AND ANIMAL KINGDOMS. 121 



it may be asked, if He, as appears, has chosen to employ 

 inferior organisms as a generative medium for the produc- 

 tion of hig-her ones, even including ourselves, what right 

 have we, his humble creatures, to find fault ? There is, 

 also, in this prejudice, an element of unkindliness towards 

 the lower animals, which is utterly out of place. These 

 creatures are all of them part products of the Almighty 

 Conception, as well as ourselves. All of them display 

 wondrous evidences of his wisdom and benevolence. All 

 of them have had assigned to them by their Great Father 

 a part in the drama of the organic world, as well as our- 

 selves. Why should they be held in such contempt? 

 Let us regard them in a proper spirit, as parts of the 

 grand plan, instead of contemplating them in the light 

 of frivolous prejudices, and we shall be altogether at a 

 loss to see how there should be any degradation in the 

 idea of our race having been genealogically connected 

 with them. 



MACLEAY SYSTEM OF ANIMATED NATURE. 



THIS SYSTEM CONSIDERED IN CONNEXION WITH THE 

 PROGRESS OF ORGANIC CREATION, AND AS INDICAT- 

 ING THE NATURAL STATUS OF MAN. 



It is now high time to advert to the system formed by 

 the animated tribes, both with a view to the possible il- 

 lustration of the preceding argument, and for the light 

 which it throws upon that general system of nature which 

 it is the more comprehensive object of this book toascer 

 tain. 



The vegetable and animal kingdoms are arranged upon 

 a scale, starting from simply organized forms, and going 

 on to the more complex, each of these forms being but 

 slightly different from those next to it on both sides. 

 The lowest and most slightly developed forms in the two 

 kingdoms are so closely connected, that it is impossible to 

 say where vegetable ends and animal begins. United at 

 what may be called their bases, they start away in diffe- 

 rent directions, but not altogether to lose sight of each 

 other. On the contrary they maintain a strict analogy 

 throughout the whole of their subsequent courses, sub- 

 kingdom for sub-kingdom, class for class: showing a 

 10 



