amazing energies of eternal power which are displayed in the stupendous fabric and movements of the orbs of heaven. He who sees God only in the general appearances of nature, but neglects to penetrate into His minute operations, must remain ignorant of those astonishing manifestations of Divine wisdom and skill which appear in the contrivances, adaptations, and functions of the animal and the vegetable kingdoms. For the more we know of the work, the more accurate and comprehensive will be our views of the Intelligence by whom it was designed; and the farther we carry our investigations of the works of God, the more admirable and astonishing will His plans and perfections appear.

In short, a devout contemplation of the works of nature tends to ennoble the human soul, and to dignify and exalt the affections. It inspires the mind with a relish of the beauty, the harmony, and order which subsist in the universe around us; it elevates the soul to the love and admiration of that Being who is the author of our comforts, and of all that is sublime and beneficent in creation, and excites us to join with all holy beings in the chorus of praise to the God and Father of all. For they

"Whom nature's works can charm, with God Himself
Hold converse, grow familiar day by day
With His conceptions, act upon His plan,
And form to His the relish of their souls."

The man who surveys the vast field of nature, with the eye of reason and devotion, will not only gain a more comprehensive view of that illimitable power which organized the universe, but will find his sources of enjoyment continually increased, and will feel an ardent desire after that glorious world, where the veil which now hides from our sight some of the grandest manifestations of Deity will be withdrawn, and the wonders of Omnipotence be displayed in all their splendor and perfection.

In conformity with these sentiments, we find the inspired writers, in numerous instances, calling our attention to the wonders of creating power and wisdom. In one of the first speeches in which the Almighty is introduced as addressing the sons of men, and the longest one in the Bible, (Job, chap. xxxviii, xxxix, xl, xli,) our attention is exclusively directed to the subjects of natural history;-the whole address having a reference to the economy of Divine wisdom in the arrangement of the world at its first creation-the wonders of the ocean, and of light and darkness-the phenomena of thunder and lightning, rain, hail, snow, frost, and other meteors in the atmosphere-the intellectual faculties of man, and the economy and instincts of quadrupeds, birds, fishes, and other tribes of animated existence. Indeed, the greater part of the sublime descriptions contained in the book of Job has a direct reference to the agency of God in the material creation, and to the course of His providence in relation to the different characters of men; and the reasonings of the different speakers in that sacred drama proceed on the supposition that their auditors were intimately acquainted with the varied appearances of nature, and their tendency to exhibit the character and perfections of the omnipotent Creator. We find the psalmist, in the 104th Psalm, employed in a devout de

scription of similar objects, from the contemplation of which his mind is raised to adoring views of their almighty Author; and, from the whole of his survey, he deduces the following conclusions:-" How manifold are thy works, O Lord! In wisdom thou hast made them all! The earth is full of thy riches; so is this great and wide sea, wherein are things creeping innumerable, both small and great beasts. The glory of the Lord shall endure for ever; the Lord shall rejoice in all His works.* I will sing unto the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praises to my God while I have my being."

But, in order to enter into the spirit of such sublime reflections, we must not content ourselves with a superficial and cursory view of the objects and operations of nature; we must not think it sufficient to acquiesce in such vague propositions as these "The glory of God is seen in every blade of grass, and every drop of water; all nature is full of wonders, from the dust of the earth to the stars of the firmament." We must study the works of creation with ardor, survey them with minute attention, and endeavor to acquire a specific and comprehensive knowledge of the Creator's designs. We must endeavor to acquire a knowledge of the particular modes, circumstances, contexture, configurations, adaptations, structure, functions, and relations of those objects in which benevolence and design conspicuously appearin the animal and the vegetable world, in the ocean, the atmosphere, and the heavens-that the mind may be enabled to draw the conclusion with full conviction and intelligence, " In wisdom thou hast made them all." The pointed interrogatories which Jehovah addressed to Job, evidently imply that Job had previously acquired an intimate acquaintance with the works of nature. It seems to be taken for granted, as a matter of course, that he made himself acquainted with the general range of facts in the visible creation; and the intention of the several questions presented to his consideration evidently was to impress him with a sense of his own impotency, and to lead him to the investigation of the wonders of creating power which he had formerly overlooked. The conclusion which the psalmist draws respecting the wisdom displayed throughout all the works of God, plainly intimates that he had made the different parts of nature the subject of minute examination, and of deep reflection; otherwise he could not have rationally deduced his conclusion, or felt those emotions which filled his mind with the pious rapture so beautifully expressed in that hymn of praise to the Creator of the world.

We have therefore reason to believe, from these and other instances, that pious men, "in the days of old," were much more accustomed than modern Christians to contemplate and admire the visible works.

*The glory of the Lord, in this passage, denotes the display of His perfections in the material universe; and the declaration of the inspired writer plainly intimates that this display will continue for ever, and will remain as an object of unceasing contemplation to all intelligences, and as an eternal monument of His power and wisdom. For although the earth and the aerial heavens will be changed at the close of that dispensation of Providence which respects our world, yet the general frame of the universe, in its other parts, will remain substantially the same; and not only so, but will in all probability be perpetually increasing in magnitude and grandeur. And the change which will be affected in respect to the terraqueous globe and its appendages will be such, that Jehovah will have reason to "rejoice" in this, as well as in all His other works.

of the Lord; and it is surely much to be regretted, that we who enjoy so many superior means of information, and who have access to the brilliant discoveries of later and more enlightened times, should manifest so much disregard to "the works of Jehovah and the operations of His hands." To enable the common mass of Christians to enter into the spirit of this delightful study and Christian duty should, therefore, be one object of those periodical and other religious works which are put into their hands; so that they may be enabled, with vigor and intelligence, to form the pious resolution of Asaph, "I will meditate on all thy works, O Lord! and talk of thy doings." "I will utter abundantly the memory of thy great goodness, and tell of thy wondrous works."'

We conclude our extracts with some of the author's remarks on the relation which the inventions of human art bear to the objects of religion:

In this chapter, I shall briefly notice a few philosophical and mechanical inventions which have an obvious bearing on religion, and on the general propagation of Christianity among the nations.

The first, and perhaps the most important of the inventions to which I allude, is the ART OF PRINTING. This art appears to have been invented (at least in Europe) about the year 1430, by one Laurentius, or Lawrence Kostor, a native of Haerlem, a town in Holland. As he was walking in a wood near the city, he began to cut some letters upon the rind of a beach tree, which, for the sake of gratifying his fancy, being impressed on paper, he printed one or two lines as a specimen for his grandchildren to follow. This having succeeded, he meditated greater things; and first of all, invented a more glutinous writing ink, because he found the common ink sunk and spread; and thus formed whole pages of wood, with letters cut upon them.* By the gradual improvement of this art, and its application to the diffusion of knowledge, a new era was formed in the annals of the human race, and in the progress of science, religion, and morals. To it we are chiefly indebted for our deliverance from ignorance and error, and for most of

* I am aware that the honor of this invention has been claimed by other cities beside Haerlem, particularly by Strasburg, and Mentz, a city of Germany; and by other individuals beside Laurentius, chiefly by one Fust, commonly called Dr. Faustus; by Schoeffer, and by Guttenberg. It appears that the art, with many of its implements, was stolen from Laurentius by one of his servants, whom he had bound by an oath to secrecy, who fled to Mentz, and first commenced the process of printing in that city. Here the art was improved by Fust and Schoef. fer, by their invention of metallic instead of wooden types, which were first used. When Fust was in Paris, disposing of some Bibles he had printed, at the low price (as was then thought) of sixty crowns, the number, and the uniformity of the copies he possessed, created universal agitation and astonishment. Informations were given to the police against him as a magician, his lodgings were searched, and a great number of copies being found, they were seized. The red ink with which they were embellished was said to be his blood: it was seriously adjudged that he was in league with the devil; and if he had not fled from the city, most probably he would have shared the fate of those whom ignorant and superstitious judges, at that time, condemned for witchcraft! From this circumstance, let us learn to beware how we view the inventions of genius, and how we treat those whose ingenious contrivances may afterward be the means of enlightening and meliorating mankind.

VOL. VI.-April, 1835.

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those scientific discoveries and improvements in the arts which distinguish the period in which we live. Without its aid the reformation from popery could scarcely have been achieved; for, had the books of Luther, one of the first reformers, been multiplied by the slow process of hand writing and copying, they could never have been diffused to any extent; and the influence of bribery and of power might have been sufficient to have arrested their progress, or even to have erased their existence. But, being poured forth from the press in thousands at a time, they spread over the nations. of Europe like an inundation, and with a rapidity which neither the authority of princes, nor the schemes of priests and cardinals, nor the bulls of popes, could counteract or suspend. To this noble invention it is owing that copies of the Bible have been multiplied to the extent of many millions-that ten thousands of them are to be found in every Protestant country-and that the poorest individual, who expresses a desire for it, may be furnished with the "word of life," which will guide him to a blessed immortality. That Divine light which is destined to illuminate every region of the globe, and to sanctify and reform men of all nations, and kindreds, and tongues, is accelerated in its movements, and directed in its course through the nations, by the invention of the art of printing; and ere long it will distribute among the inhabitants of every land the "law and the testimony of the Most High," to guide their steps to the regions of eternal bliss. In short, there is not a more powerful engine in the hands of Providence for diffusing the knowledge of the nature and will of the Deity, and for accomplishing the grand objects of revelation, than the art of multiplying books, and of conveying intelligence through the medium of the press. Were no such art in existence, we cannot conceive how an extensive and universal propagation of the doctrines of revelation could be effected, unless after the lapse of an indefinite number of ages. But, with the assistance of this invention, in its present improved state, the island of Great Britain alone, within less than a hundred years, could furnish a copy of the Scriptures to every inhabitant of the world, and would defray the expense of such an undertaking, with much more ease, and with a smaller sum, than were necessary to furnish the political warfare in which we were lately engaged.

These considerations teach us, that the ingenious inventions of the human mind are under the direction and control of the Governor of the world-are intimately connected with the accomplishment of the plan of His providence-and have a tendency, either directly or indirectly, to promote over every region of the earth the progress and extension of the kingdom of the Redeemer. They also show us from what small beginnings the most magnificent operations of the Divine economy may derive their origin. Who could have imagined that the simple circumstance of a person amusing himself by cutting a few letters on the bark of a tree, and impressing them on paper, was intimately connected with the mental illumination of mankind; and that the art which sprung from this casual process was destined to be the principal means of illuminating the nations, and of conveying to the ends of the earth" the salvation of our God?" But, "He who rules in the armies of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth," and who sees "the end from the beginning," overrules the most minute

movement of all His creatures, in subserviency to His ultimate designs, and shows Himself in this respect to be "wonderful in counsel, and excellent in working."

THE MARINER'S COMPASS.-Another invention which has an intimate relation to religion is the Art of Navigation, and the invention of the Mariner's Compass. Navigation is the art of conducting a ship through the sea from one port to another. This art was partly known and practised in the early ages of antiquity by the Phenicians, the Carthaginians, the Egyptians, the Romans, and other nations of Europe and Asia. But they had no guide to direct them in their voyages, except the sun in the day time, and the stars by night. When the sky was overcast with clouds they were thrown into alarms, and durst not venture to any great distance from the coast, lest they should be carried forward in a course opposite to that which they intended, or be driven against hidden rocks or unknown shores. The danger and difficulty of the navigation of the ancients on this account may be learned from the deliberations, the great preparations, and the alarms of Homer's heroes, when they were about to cross the Egean Sea, an extent of not more than one hundred and fifty miles; and the expedition of the Argonauts under Jason, across the sea of Marmora and the Euxine, to the island of Colchis, a distance of only four or five hundred miles, was viewed as a most wonderful exploit at which even the gods themselves were said to be amazed. The same thing appears from the narration we have in the Acts of the Apostles of Paul's voyage from Cesarea to Rome. "When," says Luke, “neither sun nor stars in many days appeared, and no small tempests lay on us, all hope that we should be saved was then taken away." Being deprived of these guides, they were tossed about in the Mediterranean, not knowing whether they were carried to north, south, east, or west. So that the voyages of antiquity consisted chiefly in creeping along the coast, and seldom venturing beyond sight of land. They could not therefore extend their excursions by sea to distant continents and nations; and hence the greater portion of the terraqueous globe and its inhabitants were to them altogether unknown. It was not before the invention of the mariner's compass that distant voyages could be undertaken, that extensive oceans could be traversed, and an intercourse carried on between remote continents and the islands of the ocean.

It is somewhat uncertain at what precise period this noble discovery was made; but it appears pretty evident that the mariner's compass was not commonly used in navigation before the year 1420, or only a few years before the invention of printing.* The loadstone in all ages was known to have the property of attracting iron; but its tendency to point toward the north and south seems to have been unnoticed till the

* The invention of the compass is usually ascribed to Falvio Gioia, of Amalfi, in Campania, about the year 1302; and the Italians are strenuous in supporting this claim. Others affirm that Marcus Paulus, a Venetian, having made a journey to China, brought back the invention with him in 1260. The French also lay claim to the honor of this invention, from the circumstance that all nations distinguish the north point of the card by a fleur de lis; and, with equal reason, the English have laid claim to the same honor, from the name compass, by which most nations have agreed to distinguish it. But, whoever were the inventors, or at whatever period this instrumeut was first constructed, it does not appear that it was brought into general use before the period mentioned in the text.