to hardened hearts, as to the Israelites on Mount Sinai, with lightnings and with a voice of thunder. With others he makes use of opposite measures: He endeavours to snatch them from vice and vanity, and to draw them to him by the gentle ways of blessings and goodness. I am of this a living witness; and I acknowledge, O Lord! to the praise of thy mercy, that thou hast done every thing to lead me to thee. Sometimes it has pleased thee to lay thy heavy hand upon me, and to humble my pride with chastisement. Thou hast sent me sickness, and other misfortunes, to lead me to reflect upon my errors. At other times thou hast endeavoured to draw me by milder ways; thou hast loaded me with blessings; and thy mercies, like the refreshing rains of spring, have fallen abundantly upon me. But what hast thou obtained from me, in giving me so many means of grace? Have I borne the fruit which a good soil never refuses when the sky is favourable to it? Alas! my heart was like a rock which no thunder could move, no rain could soften. Hitherto most of the means thou hast used have been fruitless: But will they always be so? It is time to be more docile, more obedient. The longer I defer my repentance, the more my sins and follies will increase, and the more difficult it will be to banish them from my heart.-I ask but one favour, O my God! It is, that thou wilt never cease to assist my conversion. Thou mayest either intimidate me by threats, or encourage me by thy promises; lead me to thee by the rigours of punishment, or by the persuasion of mercies. I bless, before hand, all the means of salvation thou mayest choose: Only grant that I may return to thee, and become fruitful in good works. No. MARCH MARCH XII. THE ADVANTAGES THE SEA PROCURES US. A SUPERFICIAL glance cast on our globe might give reason to think there is not a just proportion of water and of land. At first sight, it appears as if the immense quantity of water, which takes up so great a part of it, was inconsistent with the idea we ought to have of the Divine Wisdom and Goodness. We fancy it might be more advantageous, if the Creator had changed into firm land the enormous space which comprehends the ocean, the seas, the lakes, and rivers. But in this, as in a thousand other things, we only shew our ignorance and want of judgement. If the ocean was reduced to half what it is, it could only produce half the vapours it exhales; consequently, we could not have so many rivers, and the earth would not be sufficiently watered: For the quantity of the waters which rise is in proportion to the surface of the sea, and the heat which draws them. Thus the Creator has wisely ordained, that the sea should be large enough to furnish the necessary vapours for watering the earth, which would not have been possible, if it had filled a less space. The sea, then, has been made a general reservoir of the waters, in order that the heat of the sun should draw vapours from it, which afterwards fall in rain, or, when they gather at the tops of mountains, become sources of rivers. If the extent of the sea was more confined, there would be many more deserts and barren countries, because there would fall less rain, and there would be fewer rivers. What would become of the advantages which result from com merce, if that great heap of water did not exist? 'God did not design that one part of the globe should be totally independent of the other. On the contrary, he designed that there should be intercourse among all the people of the earth. It was for that purpose he intermixed it with seas, in order to open a communication between those at the greatest distance from each other. How could we bring over our riches and treasures, if we had no other means but horses and carriages? How could commerce go on, if navigation did not open unto us the easiest way? In this division of water and land on our globe, I can see a new proof of the wisdom and goodness of the Creator. However distant I may be from the sea, I daily experience the happy effects of it. Oh! why are we not still more grateful to God for this blessing! The knowledge of his adorable attributes, which the earth and seas impress upon us, ought it not to excite us to glorify his holy name? Yes, Lord, my heart is disposed to render the thanks due unto thee; assist me, by thy Holy Spirit, that my gratitude may be acceptable to thee. Perhaps I am not as sensible of this blessing as I ought. Other nations, possibly, feel the value of it more than I do. But, were not any people to remember thy mercies, the sea itself would bear testimony of thy power, and be the herald of thy wondrous goodness: For all thy creatures, the sea, the earth, and all its inhabitants, celebrate thy praise. MARCH MARCH XIII. THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ANIMALS AND THE difference between animals and plants is so great, and so visible, that it requires but a very slight observation to be convinced of it. Undoubtedly, one remarkable difference consists in the animals having the faculty of moving and changing place, a faculty of which the vegetables are totally deprived. A much more essential difference is the faculty of feeling, which cannot be denied to animals, while it cannot be granted to plants. To this must be added, the manner of being nourished, which is still another distinction between them. Animals, by means of exterior organs, are capable of choosing their proper food; plants, on the contrary, are obliged to take what nourishment the earth affords, without any choice. This is given them from the moisture of the earth, and by the action of the veins in the leaves, which pump and draw in the nourishing juices with which the air is filled. The number of species is much greater in the animal than in the vegetable kingdom. In the insects alone, there may, perhaps, be a greater number of classes (taking in those which can only be seen with a microscope) than there are of visible plants on the surface of the globe; neither have the animals such conformity with each other as the plants have, whose resemblance makes it difficult to class them. Another circumstance, which marks the difference between the two kingdoms, is the manner in which they propagate, very dis H 3 tinct. tinct from each other, notwithstanding the accidental similarity found between them. Who can avoid observing another remarkable difference, as to the place where they live? The earth is the only place where plants can grow and multiply; most of them rise above its surface, and are fastened to the soil by roots more or less strong. Others are entirely under ground. A small number grow in the water; but, in order to live, it is necessary they should take root in the earth. Animals, on the contrary, are less limited in place. An innumerable multitude people the surface and the interior parts of the earth. Some inhabit the bottom of the sea. Others live in the waters, at a considerable depth. Many live in the air, in vegetables, in the bodies of men and animals, in fluid matter, and also in stones. If we consider animals and plants, in respect to size, we shall find still a striking difference. Between the size of a whale and that of a mite, the distinction is much greater than between the highest cak and a bit of moss. Lastly, it is particularly in the form of animals and plants, that the general and most striking difference subsists. Most of the latter have, in that respect, so distinct a character, that it is impossible to confound them with vegetables. However, let us not imagine we have perfectly discovered the limits which divide the animal from the vegetable kingdom, or that we have found out all that distinguishes them. Nature, to diversify her works, makes use of almost imperceptible shades. In the chain of beings, perfection increases successively, and rises by millions of degrees, so that a more perfect species differs very little from that which preceded it. How narrow are the bounds which separate the plant from the animal! There are plants which appear |