4 
THE HATUHALISTS’ COMPAHIOH. 
Leaving the torpid python and the 
basking crocodile, we turn to the 
whale, the great leviathan of the 
deep; and, through all gradations of 
aquatic life to the smallest minnow, 
we perceive in each and every speci¬ 
men something new—-something to 
admire. 
We look aloft and marvel at the 
swift flight of the swallow,the grace¬ 
ful undulations of the oriole, the 
easy movement of the hawk and the 
majestic poise of the eagle. And 
vLen we have beheld the varied and 
gorgeous plumage of the entire feath¬ 
ered race, ornithology will have 
made an impression on our minds 
never to he effaced. 
Turning over another page on the 
book of nature we come to a science 
scarcel}^ less interesting,certninly no 
less important,—botany. In the 
vegetable world it is that our physi¬ 
cal needs are most bountifully sup¬ 
plied and our aesthetic taste most 
fully gratified. From this division 
of nature we principally derive our 
sustenance, construct our dwellings 
and manufacture our clothing. 
The earth would look dismal indeed 
were not the waving carpet of verd¬ 
ant grass spread o’er its broad land¬ 
scape, its hillsides he decked with 
stately trees and the valleys perfum¬ 
ed with the odor of incense rising 
from the numberless sweet smelling 
dovr‘^‘ bewildering the eye with 
their inflnite variety and gorgeous 
array. The. mind is lost in contem¬ 
plation as it views, througli the ever- 
changing kaleidoscope ofnature,the 
long procession pass before it. The 
delicate fungi, the drooping sensi¬ 
tive plant, the modest violet, the 
blushing rose, the gigantic rafflesia 
give but a faint conception of the 
beauties and wonders of plant life. 
But not until we soar out, into 
worlds beyond our own does the 
immensity of creation dawn upon us. 
Gr<oat though our world is, it sinks 
into insignificance when compared 
to the worlds around us. While to 
us Jupiter is one of the brightest of 
the planets, our world is altogether 
invisible to Jupiter; which, in size, 
is equal to 1,300 such, worlds as this. 
And, though the great center of our 
solar system, if divided, would form 
no less than 1,384,000 globes the 
size of the earth, there are, in the 
great beyond, suns proportionally 
larger than our great luminary. 
But our earth is large enough for 
our requirments. Let us study the 
manifold manifestations of our ben¬ 
eficent Creator and we will find 
much remains to he unfolded; and 
in our researches in nature’s great 
lahratory, we will derive much pleas¬ 
ure and constantly be adding to our 
acquirement of knowledge. 
Plumage of Birds. 
PAPER BY H. L. WARD-OBJECT OF 
FEATHERS—MOULTmO SEASON. 
At the board of education rooms, 
Bochester, H. Y., Henry L. 
Ward recently read a paper on 
“Feathers,” before the Society 
of Hatural Sciences. A number of 
stufied birds were used in illustra¬ 
ting the points made by the speaker 
After dwelling in detail on the struc¬ 
ture of feathers Mr. Ward said: 
“Connected with the growth of 
the feather are the moults, and in 
these we find many curious facts. 
Probably all birds acquire a change 
