18J1. 
REASONABLE VIEWS OF THE CREATION. 
505 
Doomed to breathe the thick air of Insensibihtj ; to feed on the gross 
food, and wallow in the mire, of Sensuality and Selfishness ; greedy of 
every thing which, among men, passes by the name of enjoyment, 
they never dream of the genuine pleasure which Nature bestows 
only on those who view, with a broad admiring eye, the beauty 
and perfection of all her works, equally stupendous in the smallest 
insect, and the glorious picture of the starry heavens. 
It must not be supposed that these charms are produced by the 
mere discovery of new objects : it is the harmony with which they 
have been adapted by the Creator to each other, and to the situ- 
ations in which they are found, which delights the observer in 
countries where Art has not yet introduced her discords. To him 
who is satisfied with amassing collections of curious objects, simply 
for the pleasure of possessing them, such objects can afford, at best, 
but a childish gratification, faint and fleeting ; while he who extends 
his view beyond the narrow field of nomenclature, beholds a bound- 
less expanse, the exploring of which is worthy of the philosopher, 
and of the best talents of a reasonable being. 
