is a pressure equal to fifteen pounds avoirdupois upon every square inch on a medium. Now, if we suppose the surface of a full sized human body to be ten square feet, which is not too much, we shall find, (as it is the nature of the air to press equally in all directions,) that a man sustains a pressure of no less than 21,600 pounds. The air taken into the body by respiration is sufficient to resist this outward pressure, or death would immediately ensue. How stately are those lofty MOUNTAINS which lift up their towering heads above the clouds! The atheist may call them blemishes and irregularities in the formation of the earth: but, surely, he never considered how necessary and beneficial they are for arresting the clouds in their flight, and conveying waters through imperceptible channels, till meeting in some common receptacle, they burst out in springs, water the lower grounds, and afford drink to men and beasts. They open a far greater variety of prospect, as one observes, than the boundless extent of a flat insipid level, which would rather fatigue than please the eye. They yield the best support, and furnish the most commodious habitations to numerous animals; and also afford the richest store house and repository for the fossil kingdom. Thus, so far from wishing our globe destitute of these advantageous and majestic elevations, we must own, their beauty alone would well compensate for their want of use, and the benefits we derive from them render us an ample recompense for their seeming de formity. It is not an easy thing for man to contemplate nature on an enlarged scale so as distinctly to see objects in their proportions: but God sees all things as they are in themselves, perfectly, without any defect or confusion; all things are unveiled and open to his all-comprehensive and penetrating eye; yea, even the hearts of the children of men! Some parts of the earth's surface are barren and unfruitful, yielding no pleasant herbage: but the bowels of the earth in such places are commonly stored with rich mines and useful metals. The infinitely wise Architect has made nothing in vain. May I as truly answer the end for which I was formed, as do all the other works around me! What an object of contemplation is that vast collection of waters called SEAS! What a restless and powerful element! Though it separates lands and continents, yet, by means of ships an intercourse is opened, and commercial transactions are rendered easy and productive. What a reservoir for watering and replenishing the earth! Dr. Halley, from an experiment made on the high mountains at St. Helena, calculates the quantity of water raised by evaporation from the Mediterranean Sea, to be at least five thousand two hundred and eighty millions of tons in a day; and from the river Thames twenty millions three hundred thousand tons per day, on an average! What an instrument is the sun, acting thus on the face of the seas! And what an inexhaustible storehouse is the mighty deep, in which there are innumerable living creatures, both small and great, and all amply supplied with necessary food! If I consider the various species of CREATURES that dwell upon the earth, I am still surrounded with causes of wonder. What surprising skill and sagacity do some animals display, such as might make many, who pride themselves in their reason, blush and be confounded. Who does not admire the exquisite wisdom and contrivance with which birds build their nests! The subtlety of several creatures, in seeking and procuring food, is truly astonishing! Some birds, says Sturm, though not aquatic, live on fish; they must necessarily find it more difficult to seize their prey than water fowl. Who teaches them their natural instinct in this case. They stand on the brink of the strange element, and when a shoal of fish comes, (which they can discover at a distance,) they pursue it, skim along the surface, and, suddenly diving in, carry off one of the finny tribe. Who gave the birds of prey their piercing sight, courage, and the weapons, without which they could not possibly subsist? Who points out to the stork the place where she may find frogs and insects to feed on? In order to find them, she must seek them not only in the meadows, but also in the furrows of the field; she must continue her search till near morning, when the other birds awake. What amazing strength must the condor have, seeing it can carry away a sheep, or a deer, or prey upon an ox? What cunning does the crow use to secure the prey which she cannot devour at once! She hides it in places such as other crows do not frequent; and when she is hungry again, how well does she know the magazine where she has deposited it! How surprising is the sagacity and industry of the bee in building her combs, and replenishing them with so pleasant a food! Astonishing ingenuity is seen in the construction of the cells in a hive! And bees are so indefatigable, that we are assured, a comb with double cells set back to back, sufficient for the accommodation of three thousand bees to lodge in, is finished in twenty-four hours! The season of flowers is with great diligence and perseverance improved in collecting provisions for the winter. The bee is an example of industry and provident care. "He, ever busy, still from flower to flower, Though in ten thousand cells of varied shape, To steal the dear ambrosia from within." O may I as faithfully improve my day of grace, that I may as certainly secure my eternal salvation! The provident care of the ant, in laying up store against the winter, is recorded by the pen of Divine inspiration, for our instruction and benefit; "Go to the ant, thou sluggard, consider her ways and be wise: which having no guide, overseer, or ruler, provideth her meat in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest." The severe labour of ants to collect provisions during the summer, says Sturm, has principally for its object the support of their young; for as to themselves, they have no need of nourishment during the winter, since they continue asleep, or in a state of insensibility till the return of spring. Naturalists say, that the ants watch the fittest season for all things; that they provide most plentifully against the time of famine; that they never hinder, but always assist one another in their work, and unite their force together to carry away such things as are too large or heavy for one of them; that they prepare fit cells or repositories in the ground for their corn, and such as the rain cannot easily reach; and if through excessive rain their corn be wet, they bring it forth to be dried, and bite off the ends of the grains of corn, that they may not grow. In the meanest reptile the Divine wisdom and power are displayed; and nothing can be more strange than that some pretenders to philosophy should be so absurd as to ascribe the formation of this regular and beautiful world and the numerous and excellent creatures in it, to a blind chance, rather than to a being who is infinitely wise, powerful, good, and eternal! But, O thou bountiful Author of my existence, give me an understanding to know thee! Impart to me the wisdom I observe in the serpent, with the innocence of the dove. Inspire me with the industry discoverable in the bee, and the provi dent care of the ant. May I be wise to under |