68 
THE BEAUTIFUL LADDER. 
a rare collection of gems curiously endowed 
with the power of independent motion. Could 
the fact not be readily substantiated, it would 
not be easily credited that these splendid bril¬ 
liants are only exquisite forms of vegetation, 
which may be fished from the slimy deposits 
of a frog-pond. But such is the fact, incred¬ 
ible as it may seem, and it is not the only 
striking instance wherein some grand secret 
of Nature is unexpectedly brought into clear 
observation by the wonderful instrument we 
are using. Many a burden of superstition and 
dread has been rolled from the mind by its 
truthful illuminations; as, for instance, in the 
case of reputed showers of blood. These phe¬ 
nomena have filled whole neighborhoods with 
horror and dismay. Now, a moment’s inspec¬ 
tion of these sanguine drops in comparison with 
true human blood will dispel the ghastly terror 
at once. The irregular blotches of Palmella 
crimita^ which these dreaded drops prove to 
be, bear little or no resemblance to the beau¬ 
tiful and perfectly-formed blood-disks of the 
human veins and arteries. Ignorance and su¬ 
perstition are blind guides in Nature’s pathways, 
ever mistaking her revelations and purposes, 
