afflictions through which they have been preserved, and they will joyfully unite with angels in glorifying the God of Heaven.

AUGUST XXVIII.

SHELL-FISH.

Shell-fish, or testaceous animals, form a very considerable part of the animal kingdom. They live in shells formed of a calcareous matter. These are either univalve, of one piece; or bivalve, and multivalve, of two or several pieces. Testaceous animals form two great families that of muscles, the shells of which are of more than one piece and that of snails, whose shell is of one piece, and spiral. The structure of the former is the most simple. Muscles have neither head, horns, nor jaws: a mouth, windpipe, and sometimes a species of foot, is all that can be distinguished in them. The greater part of the snail species have, on the contrary, a head, horns, eyes, and a foot.

Shell-fish differ considerably in their mode of generation. In some the sex may be discovered; others are hermaphrodites; and in some no particular sex can be distinguished. Some are oviparous; others viviparous. They are born with their shell; and as they grow, the shell, the interior of which is lined with a fine membrane, increases both in thickness and circumference. The shells are formed by a viscous liquid which exudes from the animal, and gradually thickens and becomes harder. Shell-fish live both in fresh water and the sea; near the shore as well as in the main ocean: some are carnivorous, and others eat vegetables: some keep at the bottom of the sea, or adhere fast to the rocks. Oysters, and some others with hard shells, attach themselves to different bodies, and remain firmly united to them by means of a glutinous gritty liquid: and they are often cemented fast to each other. This adhesion is voluntary in some shell-fish, which have the power of fastening themselves as occasion may require but in others it is involuntary; and they always continue to the rocks on which they first fastened.

The knowledge that we have of these various animals is still very imperfect. As they generally live below the surface of the water, it is difficult to make exact observations upon their structure, mode of receiving nourishment, of propagating, and of moving, &c.; and as yet very few classes of them are known. But little as is our acquaintance with them, it is sufficient to make us admire the infinite grandeur of God. How immense is his empire! We every where find creatures which testify his power and wisdom. How beautiful is the variety we observe in the form, richness, and colour of shells, which human art can never equal!

AUGUST XXIX.

UPON THE GOVERNMENT OF GOD.

A God, who from his supreme elevation, could be an indifferent spectator of all the revolutions which take place in the world, would not be worthy of our homage. Happily for us, the government of our God whom we adore embraces the whole creation. We every where find the centre of his empire, but can no where discover its limits. All his works are continually before his view: he at once perceives the past, the present, and the future; and comprehends all their bearings and dependences. Nothing, however trivial and minute, escapes his notice; every thing concurs to perfect the plan he has formed, and to complete his wise purposes, which all tend to the advantage and felicity of his creatures. All his laws are uttered in wisdom, and his commandments are a source of joy and happiness.

God, by his providence, preserves every creature which he formed in the beginning of the world. As one animal dies, another supplies its place; and one generation of men succeeds another. The master of the world makes use of inanimate creatures to preserve those which live; he subjects all to man, who, of all created beings, is the only one that is capable of knowing and worshipping the infinite God; who, all pure and holy himself, also wills that his rational creatures should know and feel the beauty of holiness. By the continual proofs which he gives them of his love for goodness, and abhorrence of evil, he speaks to their hearts, and unceasingly exhorts them to walk in the path of virtue; to this end he directs their actions, renders their designs abortive when they are contrary to his merciful views, and offers them the means of avoiding the snares of iniquity.

How infinitely wise were the measures which he used to conduct the children of Israel to the blessed ends that he proposed! In vain did the nations wrapped in idolatry oppose the progress, and conspire the destruction of a people who marched under the eternal banners of their God, and followed a pure and holy religion, which pre-eminently distinguished them from, and raised them above, all the surrounding nations, blinded by superstition, and persisting in their errors.

The God of our faith dwells in light inaccessible; the wisdom of his government is too profound for human nature to penetrate; our understanding is not capable of comprehending all his plans, or to form just ideas of his views before the event has unfolded them; and our knowledge is too limited to scan the counsels of an infinitely wise Being, and to discover beforehand the motives of his conduct and dispensations. The seat of the wicked is often with princes, whilst the righteous man hides his head in the dust: villany triumphs, and integrity is oppressed; fortune smiles upon iniquity, and the friend of religion experiences disappointment and adversity. Yet there is a Providence, a Father tender of his creatures, a God infinitely wise, a King just and righteous. All his dispensations are worthy of adora

tion, however impenetrable they may appear. His counsels are marvellous, his plans past finding out; but they are always formed and executed with supreme wisdom: and let us in silent reverence adore our God, and question not his ways, though affliction inay visit, and misfortune bear heavy upon us.

AUGUST XXX.

6

HARVEST HYMN.

Our fields, crowned with blossoms and ears of corn, are as a hymn of praise to the Creator; the joy which sparkles in the eyes of the reaper is a hymn to the God of nature. It is he who causes bread to spring out of the earth, and who loads us with his blessings. Come, let us assemble and sing unto our God; let his praise ever be the subject of our songs; let us listen to the glad voice which rises from the bosom of our fields, the year shall crown thee with its blessings, O world, whose happiness is my work. I have called forth the spring, the harvest is the work of my power; the fields which support thee, and the little hills covered with corn, are mine.' O Lord, we behold thy majesty, and feel the value of thy beneficence. By thee we exist; our life and preservation are thy gifts. Blessed be the fields that nourish man! Flourish, ye beautiful meadows! Be covered with thick foliage, ye forests! And thou, great God of nature, be ever beneficent towards thy creatures, and suffer thy children to repeatthe God of heaven is their Father!

AUGUST XXXI.

THANKSGIVING FOR GOD'S PROVIDENTIAL CARE OF HIS CREATURES.

Lord God! my redeemer, my rock, and sure protector! Thou alone art worthy to receive glory, honour, and praise! My soul blesses thee, and I will declare thy wonders. I will rejoice and be glad in thee, and will celebrate the name of the most high God.

I thank thee for that immortal soul which thou hast given me; which thou hast redeemed by thy blessed Son, and sanctified by thy grace.

Eternal Source of life and happiness! it is by thee that I exist, and I will for ever bless thy holy name. I thank thee for that parental care which provides my daily support, and for all thy numberless blessings. I thank thee for those dear connexions thou hast enabled me to form; and for the glorious hope of finally experiencing, when my mortal career is terminated, the blessed inheritance of the just in the everlasting kingdom of joy and celestial beatitude, where

my now feeble accents will join the loud anthem swelling from myriads of angels that harmonious sing thy praise in endless felicity.

SEPTEMBER I.

HYMN IN PRAISE OF THE MOST HIGH.

Sing with holy rapture, sing a new song to our God. The Lord is great! Let us for ever celebrate that Being who is all good, all wise, and from whose eyes nothing can be hid.

He has extended the starry sky, as a pavilion over our heads. There, encompassed by the radiance of innumerable suns, he has established his throne; there he dwells in light inaccessible to mortals.

O God, I am lost in this splendour: but thou, in thy infinite goodness, art continually present. Ravished with the wisdom of thy ways, and penetrated with admiration, I praise and exalt thy holy name.

I glorify thee, who governest the earth with paternal care, who enlightenest it by the beams of the star of day, who waterest it by the rains, who refreshest it by the dew.

Thou coverest it with smiling verdure; thou crownest it with flowers; thou enrichest it with harvests; and thou renewest its ornaments and blessings year by year.

Thy cares extend to all that exists, and the least of thy creatures is the object of thy benevolence. The young raven, which cries to thee from the summit of the snow-capped rock, is sustained by thy hand.

Thou commandest the cooling stream to flow from the bosom of the desert mountains: thou orderest the sun to mature the vines which adorn our hills, and to ripen the fruits which enrich our orchards; thou sendest the breeze through our forests.

When thy sun arises to enliven the world with the splendour of his fires, he invites thy creatures to labour; every thing is active in nature till the moment in which the shade and the silence of night bring the desired repose.

But when the day begins to dawn, the choir of birds breaks the stillness of the grove with songs of gratitude and joy: then all the nations of the world, all the regions under heaven, lift up one concert of praise unto thee.

To thee they raise the voice of thanksgiving, Father of all beings! thou lovest them all, thou loadest them with thy gifts, thou hast designed all men for happiness, provided that they themselves wish to be happy.

May thy name be glorified throughout all the worlds which form thy empire! and let every voice conspire in one universal hymn to extol thee, the all-wise, the all-beneficent Deity!

SEPTEMBER II.

THE OMNIPRESENCE OF GOD.

Thou art every where present, O Almighty God! Yes, thou art here, thou art afar off, thou fillest the universe. Here grows a flower; there shines a sun; thou art there, thou art also here. Thou art in the breeze and in the tempest; in the light and in the darkness; in an atom and in a world. Thou art here in this flowery valley; thou lendest thine ear to my feeble accents, and thou hearest from the foot of thy throne the sublime songs which accompany the harps of the seraphim. O thou, who art the God of the seraphim; thou art also my God, thou hearest also the joyful notes which pervade the air from yonder lark, and the humming of this young bee which flutters on the rose. Omnipresent Being, as thou hearest me, deign likewise to grant my request; may I never forget that I am in thy sight; may I always think and act as being in thy presence, to the end that when summoned to appear at the tribunal of my Judge with the whole world of spirits, I may not be constrained to flee from before the face of the Holy of holies.

SEPTEMBER III.

THE BEAUTY AVD VARIETY OF BUTTERFLIES.

Let us observe these beautiful creatures whilst they yet enjoy their transitory existence; the examination may perhaps be interesting both to the mind and to the heart.

The first thing which attracts our attention on beholding these aerial inhabitants, is the clothing with which they are adorned. Yet some of them have nothing very striking in this respect to engage our notice; their vestment is plain and simple; others have a few ornaments on the wings; but with some those ornaments amount to profusion, and they are covered with them all over. Let us reflect. awhile upon this last species. How beautiful are the gradations of colour which decorate them! What harmony in those spots which relieve the other parts of their attire! With what delicacy has nature pencilled them! But whatever may be my admiration when I consider this insect by the naked eye, how greatly is it augmented when I behold this beautiful object through the medium of the microscope! Would any one ever have imagined that the wings of butterflies were furnished with feathers? Nothing however is more true, and what we commonly call dust is found in reality to be feathers. Their structure and arrangement are as full of symmetry as their colours are soft and brilliant. The parts which form the centre of those little feathers, and which immediately touch the wing, are the strongest ;