ed with rivulets, and one to which nature has denied this assistance! One is a barren dry desert; the other, on the contrary, is in some sort a garden of delights, where woods and valleys, meadows and fields, present a thousand beauties, and the most pleasing variety. A river, winding through it, makes all the difference between the two countries: It every where conveys health, prosperity, and plenty. It not only waters the country, in moistening the roots of plants, but it also makes the earth fruitful by its constant evaporations and inundations. Who can be so inattentive, or rather so ungrateful, as not to acknowledge how useful rivers are to whole countries and provinces, when we daily draw such numberless advantages from them? How could commerce be so conveniently carried on, if we could not, by means of rivers, obtain from the most distant nations, the merchandise and goods we require? How many machines and mills should we be deprived of, if they were not put in motion by rivers? How many kinds of delicate fish should we want, if rivers did not furnish us with abundance of them? But, say they, if there were no rivers, we should escape those inunda.. tions which sometimes do so much mischief. I allow, that when rivers overflow their banks, they may make great havock and devastation in flat countries. But, is this inconvenience sufficient to prevent rivers from being a blessing of Providence? Do not the numberless advantages which accrue from them, much exceed the harm they sometimes do? Inundations seldom happen, and they extend over very little country. Besides, whatever destruction they occasion by overflowing lands, there still results much good from them. For the very inundations manure, and. and enrich the ground; and to an attentive observer, they are a proof, that God blesses with one hand, while he appears to chastise with the other. Thus, then, the rivers ought to convince us of that divine goodness which is over all the earth. We see that all parts of nature, and all the elements combine to make us happy, and to procure us a thousand conveniences. If only one of the blessings of God failed us, its privation would destroy much of our happiness. If there were no rivers there would be no fertility, and the earth would be but a barren heap of sand. What shoals, what innumerable multitudes of creatures, who can neither live in the air nor on land, would suddenly perish, if the Almighty Hand, which created rivers, was to dry them up! JUNE VI. THE VARIETY OF FLOWERS. WE cannot be but struck with astonishment, when we consider the prodigious number of flowers which are produced in spring, summer, and autumn. But the variety among this numerous host is perhaps still more surprising. Certainly nothing but a Divine Power could cause suchnumbers to grow; while this power must have been united with wisdom equally great, to produce such infinite variety. If they had all been perfectly alike, the sameness would have fatigued the senses; and if summer produced no fruit or flowers, but such as spring affords, they would give us no pleasure, and we should soon tire of the cultivation they require. It is consequently, an an effect of divine goodness, to have varied the vegetable productions so agreeably; and to have added that charm to their other perfections.This variety does not only extend to whole tribes of plants, but to the individuals also: The carnation differs from the rose, the rose from the tulip, the tulip from the auricula, and the auricula from the lily. But each carnation, rose, &c. has also its own particular beauty and character. Each has something peculiar to itself. There are not two flowers of the same species perfectly alike in form and shades. Take a view of a bed of flowers in a parterre: There you may behold some of a great height, that seem to soar above the rest; some of a middling rank,, some that bear their stately heads above the height of man, others that creep upon the ground;, some that dazzle with their rich colours, others. that are simple and make no show; some perfume the air with exquisite odours, whilst others only please the sight with their beautiful colours. The flowers no less vary with respect to their seasons: In spring, when men leave the cities in order to go and view the productions which a bountiful Creator grants for their subsistence,. they then see the blossoms in full. bloom and beauty. Towards summer a thousand and a thousand flowers present themselves to the sight,, and form a beautiful scene. They succeed one another regularly, and in the order designed. When winter at last arrives, it brings other plants with it; which, though they may not please the eye, have their uses nevertheless. And if we go through the race of vegetables, we shall still find more and more varieties of them. What a difference! How many degrees between the grass which grows amongst the stones, and that useful useful plant, to which we are indebted for the most wholesome food, and that which we can the least dispense with! Amongst the creeping winding plants, what difference between the weak ivy and the vine, whose grapes afford us such delicious drink! Amongst the trees, what a difference between the wild plumb-tree and the oak ! Lord God! With what wisdom hast thou planned all thy works! This is the most natural conclusion to be drawn from these reflections. With what wisdom the whole plan of the vegetable kingdom is formed, and how perfectly executed! In all his works the useful and the agreeable are joined. For, is it not to procure us pleasures, equally varied and inexaustible, that there is such astonishing variety amongst the plants ? There is not a month of the year that is not marked with his blessings. Each of them affords new pleasures to our senses, and new proofs to our hearts of his tender mercies. JUNE VII. THE USE OF VENOMOUS PLANTS AND EVERY thing on earth, considered separately, is good and wholesome; and, if any thing becomes hurtful, it is because we make a bad use of it, instead of that for which it was designed. From thence it is, that a sort of food, which preserves the life of one animal, destroys another; and that a plant, which, in some cases, is considered as poisonous, is, on other occasions, very useful and salutary. Thus, for example, hemlock was for merly merly supposed deadly poison, and now a number of experiments assure us, it makes admirable cures. The multitude and variety of vegetables which grow upon the earth is prodigious; but we must not imagine they were all created for the use of man. Some plants are designed for beasts, others furnish us with dress and ornaments; some please our taste and smell, and a great number of them are medicinal, and would be of great use in many maladies which men and animals are subject to, if they did not mix bad ingredients with them. The same thing may be said of many living creatures, which, though very dangerous to us, are very useful to other animals, either as food or medicine. Most birds make their chief food of insects, commonly thought hurtful. Domestic birds eagerly swallow spiders. Peacocks and swans delight in all sorts of snakes. If we also consider how many excellent medicines are composed of the most poisonous herbs, nothing can be more easy than to justify the wisdom and goodness of God in forming creatures useful to us in so many ways. The following reflections will more and more convince us of it. The number of noxious plants and animals is nothing in comparison of the multitude of those that are of the greatest use to us. The Creator has also implanted a natural instinct in men and animals, which gives them an aversion for whatever is hurtful to them. The mischievous beasts have a certain fear of man, and scarce ever make use of their offensive arms, unless they are attacked or provoked. Besides, the most noxious animals have evident marks and characters, by which their dangerous properties are easily known; that, by being warned, we may avoid, or prevent the danger. The rattle-snake, which |