Wisconsin State Agricultural Society. 
303 
mation of soil, and even in the present day, where no seeds are 
furnished, plants have their origin in this way. 
But on this particular point, Moses, rather than Huxley or 
Haeckel, is the best authority. On this part of the work of crea¬ 
tion we have in his own language the following: “And God said, 
let the earth bring forth grass; the herb yielding seed, and the fruit 
tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself upon the 
earth.” Mark the language. Let the earth bring forth. In this 
beautiful sketch of the divine plan of creation, we have brought 
out in plain language the fact which science is trying to explain, 
namely: To the earth—that is the soil—under certain physical 
conditions, is given the power to give birth to vegetable life. From 
this we may infer that the treasuring up of a portion of this ger¬ 
minal matter in the seeds of plants, was a subsequent provision, 
adapting it to the wants of the human race, inasmuch as it allows 
more to select from for cultivation among the natural products of 
the soil and such plants as are best adapted to man’s wants. 
Now let us return again to our little film of dust, forming as we 
now know it is, not only from the dust of decaying minerals, but 
from gaseous matter gathered from the atmosphere, and other 
sources by the power of absorption with which it is peculiarly en¬ 
dowed, and by which it is enabled to build itself up, and resto r e its 
wasted powers from the common matter of the universe. It is in¬ 
teresting to remember also, as we come back again to watch and 
study those “ Natural Methods,” that here too are concentrated the 
natural forces of the vegetable kingdom. Like laborers in a fac¬ 
tor}^ the Physical, Chemical, and Vital forces are each in their own 
department. Some taking this raw material to pieces, others put¬ 
ting it together again in other forms, while still others with a more 
refined process, appear to be infusing into this dead matter, the 
principles of life. Our investigations must be carried on with cau¬ 
tion here, for we are on the verge of the vegetable kingdom, and 
almost in the presence of its phenomena and forces. Indeed, with 
more extended vision, and a keener sense of hearing, we should no 
doubt witness the activity of force here set up, and listen with de¬ 
light to the clashing of atoms as matter is being prepared and 
transferred from the mineral and gaseous condition into the vege¬ 
table forms of life. But while these forces and their modes of 
operation are beyond the range of our senses, we infer their exis- 
