on the water, and, by that means, draw a great number of aquatic birds, who feed on them, and being afterwards taken by the Laponese, become themselves the chief food of those people. The Greenlanders generally prefer animal food to the vegetable; and it is true there are very few vegetables in that barren country. There are however some plants in it, which the inhabitants make great use of; for example, sorrel, angelica, and particularly the spoon herb, cochlearia. But their chief food is the fish which they call angmarset. After they have dried it in the open air upon the rocks, it serves them every day instead of bread or greens; and they preserve it for winter in great leather sacks. In Iceland, where there is no agriculture, owing to the severe cold, the people live on dried fish instead of bread. The Dalecarlians, who inhabit the north of Sweden, having no wheat, make bread of the bark of birch and pine, and a certain root which grows in marshes. The inhabitants of Kamtschatka feed on the stalk or trunk of the bear's-foot plant, which they eat raw, after they have peeled it. In Siberia, they make much use of the roots of mountain-lily.

Adorable Father of all mankind! such are the tender mercies of thy providence for our preservation. With what goodness hast thou spread over the whole earth that which is requisite for our subsistence! Thy wisdom saw, before the foundation of the world, the dangers to which the lives of mortals would be exposed, and ordained that we should every where find sufficient food. Such a relation, connection, and communication, was formed by the decree, between the inhabitants of the earth, that people separated from one another by vast seas, labour notwithstanding, for their mutual ease and sub

sistence,

Can we enough admire and revere the Divine Wisdom, which has given us bodies so formed as

not to be confined to such or such particular food, but to be able to make use of every kind of nourishment! Thus, by a goodness which cannot be too highly praised, man does not live by bread alone, but by the word of God also; that is to say, on all that God ordains, on all things to which he has given the virtue of food and sustenance.

APRIL 1.

Abuse of Animals.

SO improper an use is made of animals, and in so many ways, that it would be difficult to enumerate them. These abuses, however, may be confined to two chief points; that of too much or too little value being set on them; and, in either case, we act contrary to the intention of the Creator. On one hand, we lower the brutes too much, when, under the pretence of being permitted the use of them by God, we assume an unlimited power over them, and think we have a right to treat them according to our caprice. But how can we prove that we have that right? And suppose even that we had, would it be just that our power should degenerate into cruelty and tyranny? All who are not corrupted by passions, or bad habits, are naturally inclined to compassion towards every being that has life and feeling. This disposition undoubtedly does honour to man, and is so deeply engraved on our minds, that any one who had rooted it out, would prove to what a degree he was degraded and fallen from the dignity of his nature. He would have but one step more to make (to refuse to man the compassion he does not grant to beasts), and he would then be a monster. Experience but too well justifies this remark, and many examples of it may be recollected. History furnishes us with them,

We see by it, that nations, where the people took pleasure in bull-baiting, distinguished themselves in cruelty towards their fellow-creatures. So true it is, that our treatment of beasts has an influence on our moral characters, and on the gentleness of our manners. It may be said, that we have a right to destroy hurtful animals. I confess it. But does it follow from thence, that we are authorised to take from them, without pity or regret, a life which is so dear to every creature; and that, when necessity forces us to it, we should find a barbarous pleasure in it, or think we have a right, in thus depriving them of life, to make them suffer torments, often more cruel than death itself? I grant that the Creator has given us the animals for our use and pleasure, and that they are designed, by their labour, to spare ours. But does it follow, that we must unnecessarily fatigue them, exhaust them with labour beyond their strength, refuse them sustenance merited by their services; in fine, aggravate their sufferings by severe treatment? But no more need to be said, in regard to this kind of abuse. Men fall sometimes into the other extreme, by setting too high a value on animals. Those of a social character, which are more connected with us, which live in our houses, which amuse, or are useful to us, inspire us often with an extravagant and ridiculous affection. I am almost ashamed to say, there are men and women extravagant enough to love those creatures to such a degree, as to sacrifice to them, without scruple, the essential duties they owe to their fellow-creatures. Let war be kindled between nations, let armies destroy one another; the news will not make the least impression on a lady, who some days before was inconsolable for the loss of her spaniel. How much might be said on this! but I wave it, in order to conclude these reflections by a very important remark. Parents, and all who have the charge of children's educa

tion, or who live with them, cannot be too attentive to avoid scrupulously themselves any abuse of animals. It is the more necessary to dwell on this maxim, because, in general, it is much neglected; and very bad examples of this kind are given to children, which has sometimes influence upon their whole education. No beast ought to be killed in their sight: much less should they be employed to do it. Let them be taught to treat animals, as beings which have life and feeling, and towards whom we have duties to fulfil. But, on the other hand, take great care that children do not attach themselves too much to animals, or grow passionately fond of them, as they are apt to do. In guarding carefully against children's making a bad use of animals, either way, they should also be taught to make a good use of them, that they may, from their earliest age, be accus tomed to acknowledge, even in those creatures, an impression of the perfections of the Creator..

APRIL II.

The Motion of the Earth.

WHEN the delightful prospect of the rising 'sun renews each inorning in our souls the gratitude and admiration due to the sublime Author of the universe, we may at the same time ohserve, that the place in which this magnificent sight is beheld, changes with the seasons. To be convinced of this with our own eyes, we need only examine the place where the sun rises in spring and autumn: we shall perceive it afterwards in summer more to the north, and in winter more to the south. We shall reasonably conclude from thence, that some motion must be the cause of these changes; for we cannot see a body of any sort change its place, without being

occasioned either by its own motion, or that of another body. We are naturally led to think that it is the sun which moves, as we see it sometimes on one side, and sometimes on another. But, as the same phenomena would take place, supposing the sun to remain immoveable, and that we with the earth were turning round it, we ought to depend less on our own conjectures, than on the repeated observations made by astronomers upon this subject, which prove the mo tion of the earth. Let us, in the first place, represent to ourselves the immense space in which the celestial bodies are placed. It is either empty, or filled with a substance, infinitely subtile, called ather. In that space it is that our globe floats, as well as all the other planets which compose our solar system. The sun, the dimensions of which have been mentioned already, is placed in the centre, surrounded by its worlds, which it surpasses greatly in size. The weight which our globe has in common with all other bodies, draws it towards that centre, or else the sun draws the earth, by the power which the greater bodies have of attracting the lesser. Thus, each time the earth inclines to move from the sun, it is drawn back again. It moves in a circle round itself, in the same manner as we have seen a sling turn round; or, to make use of an example still more analogous, like a cannon ball, which de. scribes a curved or crooked line. It is true, it falls again on the ground, after having gone over a certain distance; but perhaps it would continue the same line for the space of some miles, if it had been sent off from the top of a high moun. tain. Suppose a still greater height, it would go farther in proportion. Add still to that height, and it would go as far as our Antipodes, to return at Jast to the point from whence it set out. All these effects would take place from the laws of gravita tion, or the attractive power of our globe; and it