276 
aspects of Nature are always mentioned in connection with the glory of God: 
they are introduced often in strains of the boldest poetry, to teach the infinite 
power and goodness of Jehovah. We there find the noblest descriptions of natu¬ 
ral objects ever penned; and one great moral runs through them all. Every 
masterly picture of the grand or the beautiful in Nature is but a delineation of 
God’s wondrous attributes. It is, therefore, a positive duty, sublimely taught us 
both by precept and example, to cherish a sense of the infinite skill and bounty 
displayed in the creation. We should associate, with all that attracts the eye by 
its beauty or excites our admiration by its delicate structure, the liveliest expres¬ 
sions of adoration and gratitude. Every survey of natural scenery, every exami¬ 
nation of even the smallest of God’s works, should be to us a devotional exercise. 
To a mind accustomed to consecrate all its perceptions of beauty and design to the 
inward worship of God, every mountain and field, every leaf and flower, teems 
with instruction. The lustrous wing of the ephemeral insect, as well as the 
noblest animal form, affords food for the loftiest admiration. The man of true 
piety and refined feeling enjoys the beauties of Nature with the keenest relish ; 
for Nature is but a pictured volume, in which he reads the character of the 
Divinity. Every object that meets his eye—be it vast or minute, simple or com¬ 
plex—suggests the most exalted conceptions of Him 
“ Who gives its lustre to an insect’s wing, 
And wheels his throne upon the rolling worlds.”—pp. 169—170. 
In respect to the scientific details, they are gleaned from the best authorities, 
generally from very recent ones. The Bridgewater Treatises have supplied much 
of the materials ; and, indeed, as far as natural phenomena are concerned, what¬ 
ever was available for his purpose in these bulky and expensive volumes has, by 
our author, been brought together and placed within the limits of the purse, as 
well as the time, of ordinary readers. When completed it will form an excellent 
epitome of these treatises, and be more in accordance with what we are persuaded 
was the intention of the noble testator than the plan adopted by those who under¬ 
took to give effect to his will. The author says, modestly, “ The most important 
and animating views of the Creator and His operations, in reference to the seasons, 
are found scattered through many publications, which it has been the agreeable 
task of the writer to combine in a new series and render generally accessible. In 
doing this he has frequently quoted the precise words of the various authors from 
whom he has borrowed his facts. He has no ambition to acquire fame as an 
original writer ; his more humble, but perhaps not less useful, aim being to in¬ 
struct and edify those who may not be in possession of many works on Natural 
Theology, by rendering them acquainted with the discoveries which have been 
made by others in the most interesting of all sciences.”—Preface, iii. 
