98 THE USE OF CLOSED CASES 
my spirits began to fail me. I considered my 
fate as certain, and that I had no alternative 
but to lie down and perish. The influence of 
religion, however, aided and supported me. I 
reflected that no human prudence or foresight 
could possibly have averted my present sufferings. 
I was, indeed, a stranger in a strange land, yet I 
was still under the protecting eye of that Pro- 
vidence who has condescended to call himself the 
stranger’s friend. At this moment, painful as 
my reflections were, the extraordinary beauty of 
a small moss * in fructification, irresistibly caught 
my eye. I mention this to show from what 
trifling circumstances the mind will sometimes 
derive consolation, for though the whole plant 
was no larger than the tip of one of my fingers, 
I could not contemplate the delicate confor- 
mation of its roots, leaves and capsules, without 
admiration. Can that Being (thought I) who 
planted, watered, and brought to perfection, in 
this obscure part of the world, a thing which 
appears of so small importance, look with un- 
concern upon the situation and sufferings of crea- 
* The moss which engaged Mnngo Park’s attention so much in the 
desert, is the Fissidens bryoides , as I have ascertained by means of 
original specimens given to me by his brother-in-law, Mr. Dickson,— 
Sir J. W. Hooker. 
