90 The Natural Hifl&ry Part II, 



rantly fruitful) and preetpitating 

 ^Fid. conf. (at the time of the fubfidence || of the 

 J. fufra. general Mafs of Earth and other Bo* 

 dies, which were before railed up in^ 

 to the Water) to fueh a depth as to 

 bury it, leaving only fb much of it 

 near the Surface as might juft fuffici^ 

 ently fatisfie the Wants of humane Na- 

 ture, but little or no mofe , and eVefa 

 that not pure, not free from the intCF* 

 mixture of meer fteril mineral Mattel, 

 and fucli as is in no \yiie fit for the 

 , Nutrition of Vegetables; but fb th^t 

 it fliould require Induftry and LaboUf 

 to excite it, and not yeild a competerit 

 Crop without Tillage and Manures, 

 That by this means, a great part |)f 

 that time, which the Inhabitam& of 

 the former Earth had to fpare, aE)d 

 whereof they made lb ill ule, was em- 

 ployed, and taken up in Digging and 

 Plowing , in making provifion fot 

 bread, and for the Neeeiiities of Life-: 

 and the Excels of Fertility, which cone 

 tributed fb much to their Milcarriages, 

 was retracted and cut off. 



That had the Deluge been aimed 

 only at Mankind : and its utmoft defigji 

 meerly to puniflh that Generation, and 

 thereby to deterr Pofterity from the 



like 



