peace, order, beauty, and justice, will render our future abode more happy than the most ardent imagination can conceive to be possible. When the heat of the sun's rays has penetrated the earth, thousands of plants and flowers rise up out of its bosom. So will it be on the great day, when thousands of generations shall arise from the dust in which they have been buried. As the flowers of spring come forth from their seed decked in beauty and splendour, so the bodies of the righteous which have been deposited in the earth shall one day arise, encompassed with glory and arrayed in beauty. Spring is the epoch of vegetation for grass, flowers, and every species of plants; it is then that every thing which has pushed above the surface of the earth develops itself more and more every day, and visibly increases its strength and beauty: and the day of the resurreetion shall be to the soul of the Christian the epoch of the boundless progress he will make in all good; no weakness will detain, no obstacle impede him on his way in the path of perfection; he will proceed from virtue to virtue, and from felicity to felicity. In spring all nature seems to arise as from a state of sleep to praise its Author; the notes of all the inhabitants of the air swell in one universal hymn to glorify the Being who formed them; and, in the joyful hour of resurrection, similar songs shall ascend from the children of God, who have received new life and immortality. MAY XXVI. Attractive Power of Bodies. WE often see two bodies approach each other without being impelled by any external force. The cause which produces this effect is called attraction, or that principle whereby the minuter particles of matter tend towards one another. This power of attraction is one of the principal agents of nature: by its operation fluids ascend in capillary tubes; and it is in some degree the cause of the juices circulating in the capillary vessels of plants and animals. The expansive power of the air also contributes in plants to this effect, for a portion of air is found in the fluid by which they are nourished. Vegetables are also provided with air-vessels, which imbibe the external air, and assist the ascent of the sap; but the chief cause of this phenomenon is capillary attraction. It is well known that a series of capillary tubes exists in the human body, where the fluids are in continual motion; and this motion is partly regulated by the laws of attraction. Many of the phenomena we observe in the material world have this attractive power for their principle, and by it is most satisfactorily explained the motion of the heavenly bodies. These spheres, separated from each other by immense intervals, must be united by some secret bond, to form such a perfect whole as the solar system. It is now generally admitted, that the union of these heavenly bodies, their direction, the law which prevents them from deviating from their prescribed route; the motion of the planets and the comets round the sun, all depend upon the attractive power of that star, and the gravitation of these bodies towards him. How admirable is that wisdom which, by means of the same law, causes the vegetation of grass and the motion of the universe. All these reflections lead us to glorify the Supreme Wisdom. If it manifests itself in the government of the celestial bodies, it is equally apparent in that of rational creatures. The Creator always acts upon principles equally wise, after the same laws, accomplishing every thing with the greatest simplicity. But we are often so blind as not to acknowledge him, because we imagine that he only appears in things which possess grandeur and brilliancy. When cities and provinces are devastated by an earthquake, inundated with water, or consumed by fire, our attention is arrested; and in these convulsions of nature we perceive the traces of Providence. But why do we not perceive him equally in small things? why do we not behold the marks of his wisdom in the common occurrences of life? Is it only extraordinary events that proclaim the power and justice of God? Is it not equally displayed in the smallest blade of grass as in the motion of the heavenly bodies? To be convinced of the wisdom and goodness which are manifested throughout the kingdom of God, we need not go to distant places, or seek amidst remote objects. We need only dwell on what relates to ourselves, and the particular dispensation of Providence in our own behalf. MAY XXVII. Complaints of Men against the Laws of Nature. "WHY is the human body, from its constitution, subject to so many accidents and infirmities?" Let him who asks this question say if it is possible to figure to himself a body which can unite more advantages than that which he has received from his Creator! It was incompatible with the nature and catenation of things below, that man should be provided with a body that was invulnerable. Though some are deformed, others lame, and deaf and dumb, we have no reason to murmur at the decrees of Providence. These defects are not so frequent as to give us occasion to repine; and those who are still disposed to complain would do well to reflect on the following truths. It is useful to the generality of men that some ex amples of the defects to which the human body is liable should now and then occur; for when a healthy and sound person compares himself with one who is not so, he at once perceives all the advantages of perfect and well-formed limbs; he learns to prize a gift of whose value he was before ignorant, and is more careful to preserve it. How precious is each eye, each organ of sense, each joint and limb-more dear to us than the richest treasure! Our body is more beautiful and regular than the most superb building, more excellent than the most exquisitely wrought machine; and yet, inferior as these are, we are far from attributing them to blind chance. "Why are some countries of the earth so different from one another; sometimes cold, sometimes wet, sometimes low, at others elevated ?" If thou, O man! hadst the power of forming a globe, where every thing should contribute to the welfare of men and animals, would thy understanding furnish thee with the plan of one better than that of our sphere? The countries of the earth produce, by means of their diversity, exhalations and different winds, from which results that medium of air, which experience teaches us is best adapted to the health and comfort of animal life, and the promotion of vegetation. "It is, however, incontestable that the variations of weather are not advantageous to all men and to all countries." But has not the weather which has preceded an influence upon that which follows? and the temperature of one country an influence upon that of another? Is it in our power to judge of the whole? Are a thousand husbandmen to sigh for a shower, because the continuance of a drought will accommodate the arrangements of one housewife? A certain state of air will occasion in some places a degree of sterility; but can that be called an evil which prevents the impurity of the atmosphere? Should an east, wind, benefiting a whole country, cease to blow, because from its violence some ships are wrecked, and some par ticular people injured? Is it just or reasonable to blame or remark imperfections in a part, when we cannot comprehend the whole? " Why are there so many noxious animals?" Does any one think that no rapacious animals should exist upon the earth? Let such people reflect, that, by the beasts of prey, the number of animals which would be troublesome to us is diminished. And it is because many animals serve for food to beasts of prey, that the number of living creatures is preserved. If these rapacious beasts did not exist, the carcasses of the animals they devour would be rather prejudicial than useful. The animals thus devoured are replaced by others, and the population is regulated by the means of subsistence; hence flies and many insects would perish from want, if the animals which feed upon them did not thin their numbers. "Whence is it that the Creator has regulated the course of nature by such invariable laws?" Is it not precisely by means of this arrangement that man, assisted by nature and guided by experience, is enabled to make use of his understanding and of his powers, and become in some degree the worker of his own good? Would we wish to dwell in a world where we should have no occasion for activity; where none of our pleasures could be increased by any exertions on our part; where there was no rule or fundamental law; and where the alternations of good and evil, of pleasure and of pain, being unknown, we should have nothing to render us attentive to the laws of nature? There will ever be a number of things in nature, the designs of which, and the relations they bear to each other, must remain concealed; and we may find some, which, to our limited understanding, appear contradictory, and little adapted to the plan of the Deity. But in such cases, let us bear in mind that God performs every thing with the wisest and most beneficent views; and when any doubts and difficulties shall arise, let us say with the apostle-" O the |