I do not know of anything in the way of
quarry observation more full of interest than the splitting and forming
of slates.
quarry observation more full of interest than the splitting and forming
of slates.
Childrens - The Creation
53
stones; it is found in Pegu and Ceylon, also in Hungary and in Brazil.
When the Ruby exceeds 20 carats or 80 grains, it is called a Car-
buncle. This was the first stone in the breast-plate of the High Priest
.
Emerald ; a green, brilliant, precious stone, exceedingly hard, found
in the East and in Peru.
Topaz is the third order of precious stones, and is of a yellowish
gold colour. It is found in each quarter of the globe, India, Ethiopia,
Bohemia, and Peru.
The Chrysolite is the Topaz of the ancients; it is the least hard
of all the gems, and is found in Egypt, Ceylon, and the Brazils.
The Sapphire is of an azure or beautiful sky colour; it is found in
Ceylon, Brazil, Bohemia, and Silesia; sapphires brought from the
latter place are of less value than the oriental or eastern ones.
The Amethyst is of a violet colour, bordering on blue;--found in
the East and in Europe.
The Beryl is a beautiful stone, like the diamond, of a pale green
colour, and is sometimes mistaken for it; it is found in Ceylon, Pegu,
the East, and Bohemia.
Agate. Many stones bear this name, but they are all generally
composed of quartz, with varied tinges of colours, veins, and spots, but
they never exhibit orange or green; they are finest in Germany.
Chalcedony is semi-transparent, very hard, and of a milky grey
colour, said to be originally found in Chalcedon in Asia;--found in
Saxony, Silesia, and the British Isles.
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54 THE CREATION.
The Onyx is an agate of a greyish brown colour. White zones or
girdles are essential to the onyx. This gem was on the shoulder-
pieces of the ephod of the High Priest, as well as on the breast-plate.
The Opal is an exceedingly beautiful stone, with an amazing
diversity of colours on a ground of white. Pliny mentions one in his
time that had sixty colours. It is found in Mexico, Hungary, and
the British Islands.
The Jacinth is a purple gem, mingled with a deep yellow, ap-
proaching to a flame colour. It is found in the East, and Bohemia
and Portugal.
The Cornelian, a species of Chalcedony, is generally of a blood-red
colour, but sometimes white; it is easily engraved on, and receives a
brilliant polish. It is found near Babylon, also in Hindostan, and in
Bohemia.
Crystal may be reckoned among the precious gems: it is found in
India and Europe. *
Pearl is a hard, cream-white, round gem-like substance, of con-
siderable lustre, found in shell-fish, both of the mussel and oyster
kind ; and although an animal production, it is reckoned among the
gems. The oyster in which the pearl is most generally found inhabits
both the American and Indian seas, and is sometimes met with on the
coast of Scotland. The old fish yield the best pearls.
The use of most of the precious gems is not very manifest: they
* See Appendix.
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55
are worn chiefly for ornament; but the most beautiful jewels are found
in that sweet verse in Proverbs iii. , " Let not mercy and truth forsake
thee; bind them about thy neck, write them upon the tablet of thine
heart:" and the christian female is exhorted to let her adornments not
be of gold or costly apparel, but the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit,
which is in God's sight of great price. (1 Pet. iii. 3,4; 1 Tim. ii. 9,10. )
II. OF THE METALS.
Our second subject of consideration is the metals. The ancients
knew only seven; and these they represented under the signs of the
heavenly bodies,--Gold had the Sun for its emblem--Silver, the Moon
--Quicksilver, Mercury--Copper, Venus--Iron, Mars--Tin, Jupiter
--Lead, Saturn. The moderns have discovered thirty-seven others.
Gold, which is the heaviest* of all the metals, excepting platinum
and iridium, is found in the four quarters of the globe; but in small
quantities. The largest lump ever known was dug out of the gold
mountains of the County Wicklow, and is, I think, in the British
Museum. You remember we saw the mountain in our way to the
Glen of Imale. The gold of Asia is the finest;--but that of America
is comparatively the most abundant. Gold has a variety of uses: --
the Tabernacle of the Wilderness had silver for its foundations, and
boards covered with gold for its superstructure; and all the furniture
? See Appendix.
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? 56
THE CREATION.
of the Lord's dwelling was covered with gold. In the temple the
pavement and the ceiling of the Most Holy were of the same. Gold is
also used for the diadems of kings, and the coronets of nobles. The
richest coins of the realm, as well as medals commemorating any event
of moment, are also struck from this noble metal. Its tenacity is
amazing; for it has been proved that a gold wire, whose diameter is
only one-tenth of an inch, will support a weight of 500 pounds; and
its malleability is almost beyond belief: for Mr. Reaumur asserts, that
he beat a grain of gold into forty-two square inches of leaf-gold.
Silver is the metal next precious to Gold and Platinum. It is also
found in all quarters of the globe, but abounds in South America.
It is a metal in great request: all the common coin of the realm is
struck from it. If you remember, the reflectors of our Light-house
at Wicklow were made from this precious metal; besides which, its
uses are various. It is a metal of great brilliancy.
Quicksilver is a metal--fluid at very low temperature. It was well
known to the ancients, and called by them hydrargyrum, or, water of
silver. Quicksilver is found in Germany, Hungary, Spain, and Peru.
This metal is used in a variety of ways, and is most valuable to man.
I suppose you remember seeing it frequently in the tube of the
weather glass; its use there is to indicate the variations of the weight
of the air--heavy dry air pressing it up, and light air allowing it to
descend. The state of the weather is so connected with the weight of
the atmosphere, that the Barometer becomes a useful index of its
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57
changes also. It is also in great demand for our manufactories; and
especially in gilding copper; for these two metals have no affinity
whatever with each other, and seem inflexibly set against any union;
but the Quicksilver has friendship with both parties, and is used to
amalgamate the surface of the copper substance intended to be gilt--
say, for instance, buttons,--these are then covered with a certain
quantity of gold amalgam, which immediately adheres; afterwards
heat is applied, which drives off the Quicksilver, and leaves the gold
firmly fixed to the button. Until these few years past, the Quicksilver
thus evaporated was lost; but now it is made to pass into water, when
it instantly condenses and falls to the bottom. The Quicksilver in
this case is a beautiful emblem of the Peace-maker, that brings two
hostile parties together, and never leaves them until they are one,
and then passes away ready again for any fresh act of love.
Mercury is also a most valuable medicine in the hands of educated
men. Hydrarge, or Silver-water, is its name in the Pharmacopoeia.
Copper ranks next in value. Sweden supplies vast quantities of
this metal, as does also the Isle of Anglesea in Wales. Many of our
domestic utensils and vessels are made of Copper. Beaten out into thin
sheets, it is used to cover the bottoms of sailing vessels, keeping them
at once clean, dry, and free from the operations of marine worms.
These sheets are also sometimes used as the covering of buildings.
Brass is a mixture of copper with zinc; and bell metal also has copper
(which is the most sonorous of metals) for its chief ingredient. Most
d3
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. 58
THE CREATION.
of our engravings also are executed on copper sheets. The rust of
copper, if we may so call it, is verdigris: and from this is made the
brightest of our green paints. So in every point of view it is useful.
Iron is the most useful and the most abounding of all metals. It is
found in England in great abundance, especially in our neighbouring
county of Gloucester; also in Wales: and close to the Iron mines,
generally speaking, there is a boundless supply of coals to work the
Iron. And this, my dear children, with thousands of other things
with which we are surrounded, tells us of God's merciful goodness;
and proves that He (and not chance or fortuity) made and furnished
the world as a habitation fitted and suited for Man, destined to be its
occupant. The uses of Iron cannot be enumerated; for look around
on every side, and there is not a thing of art that you gaze on, but, in
one form or another, Iron lent its aid to make it what it is; and even
when it is cast aside, the very rust of the old despised Iron hoops is a
valuable medicine (oxide of Iron), as our dear S. full well knows; but
in God's creation nothing is wanting--nothing is lost.
Tin is a most useful metal in all our domestic concerns. It is
softer than silver; but harder than lead. Tin is found in the East
Indies, France, Spain, and Saxony; and it abounds in Devonshire and
Cornwall, which in a great measure supply the demands of Europe.
It is used among other things to coat over copper, iron, and brass
kitchen utensils, to defend what is cooked in them from the action of
those metals.
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Lead is a coarse, heavy metal, of a whitish grey colour; it is found
in great quantities in England. Its uses are innumerable; for, being
so easily melted, it may soon be cast into any shape; but lead could
not supply the place of iron or tin, for it will not bear to come in
contact with fire. White and red lead are produced by chemical means
from this valuable metal, and are used for paints and glazing earthen
vessels. In medicine the sugar of lead, a combination of lead with
vinegar, is useful in many cases; indeed, almost all the metals, under
one form or another, come into the pharmacopoeia; and (as I said
of the quicksilver) in the hands of skilful men, by God's blessing, are
sometimes of great service.
The later discovered metals I do not go at large into; but just
mention a few of them.
Platinum. This ranks in value above gold, from its scarcity, ex-
ceeding weight, ductility, and infusibility. It is found in New
Granada, South America. It is of great value for chemical purposes,
making the best crucibles; it is also used for the indexes of nautical
and other instruments. In colour it is like silver.
Iridium is a heavy metal; it was discovered in 1803. In colour it
is like platinum.
Zinc is a metal that lias come much into use these few years. It
forms an excellent substitute for lead, and is not so expensive. It is
found in many parts of Great Britain. It looks like lead, but is not
so heavy.
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THE CREATION.
In addition to these metals there are Antimony, Arsenic, Bismuth,
Chromium, &c. ; most of which are poisonous: but used as medicine,
in very small quantities, by God's blessing on them, are efficacious in
healing many disorders.
Plumbago, of which our black-lead pencils are made, is a natural
composition of iron and carbon. It is found in such abundance in
Borrowdale, Cumberland, that not only is the whole island of Great
Britain supplied from it, but many parte of the Continent . It is also
useful in the Electrotype process, as the friendly medium between the
copper deposit and the wax model.
ROCKS AND STONE.
Stone is a general name for hard brittle substances, not metallic,
that do not melt away in water. We will consider these substances
as follows:--1, Granite; 2, Marble; 3, Slate; and then the Chalks
and Clays.
1. Granite; so called from its appearing to be formed of a number
of little grains. The loftiest mountains usually consist of granite. *
You remember also the granite hills in Devonshire. Granite is
always used when great durability is desired. It looks beautiful in
columns, and also makes excellent pavements, &c. It is found both
white and red; and is composed of quartz, felspar, and mica.
2. Marble is a most valuable stone. When hewn from the quarry
* See Appendix.
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61
and polished, the most beautiful statues are made from it, and the
chisel of the intelligent artist throws life and animation, figuratively
speaking, into that which but now was a huge unsightly mass.
Whenever I think of Marble, the remark of the old Irish steward
in the county of Wicklow comes to my mind:--" The lime dust, sir,
is gold dust to our crops. '" All Marble, when burnt in the lime-kiln,
produces that invaluable manure, Lime. Houses, floors, pavements,
and the most sumptuous galleries, also are indebted to the marble
quarry for material. Italy has the finest marble, though the Devon-
shire* and Derbyshire quarries are also very beautiful. But marble
would not do in any wise to cover the roofs of our houses. Well;
we go again and dig in the earth, and there we find another substance
equally suited, in every possible way, for our want--indeed, evidently
created for the purpose.
I do not know of anything in the way of
quarry observation more full of interest than the splitting and forming
of slates. The chief supplies in England are found in Kendal and
Cornwall, but I believe the largest quarries in the empire are those in
North Wales. The number of people employed there is amazing.
A large quarry has also been lately discovered in the county of
Wicklow, in Ireland, close to Ashford, on the high road from Dublin
to Wicklow and Wexford, twenty-five miles from the capital. I have
seen the slate there; and the quarry promises, when dug sufficiently
deep, to be of the best quality, and if so, it will be an invaluable boon
* See Appendix.
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62
THE CREATION.
to that part of Ireland. It is a fact of exceeding interest, that it
seems to be a continuation of the southernmost strata of the Welsh
quarry, and also of the same quality, being more of a crystalline
substance than clayey. The quarry is opened in the Park of Glan-
more, and close to the little hamlet called Clorah, where we passed
so many happy years.
The various Chalks--white, red, and black--are very useful, both to
the physician and the artist. Chalks abound in Kent and Essex; and
frequently embedded in them are strata of Flint.
Clay. There is a great variety of earths or clays, which bear the
name of the thing each is used for. Thus Porcelain-clay;--this clay
is found in Cornwall, Saxony, Japan, and China, and is used in the
manufacture of china. The English wares, especially those of Wor-
cester, are said now to equal those of China. Flint, burnt and pow-
dered very fine, is added to this clay for the manufacture of porcelain.
Pipe-clay is of a greyish white, and found in abundance in this
country.
Potters-clay is found of various shades. Of this clay all our common
wares are made, whilst the yellow clay affords an excellent material
for bricks. Now, beloved children, just sum up all these together,
and surely we may say, " The earth is full of the goodness of the
Lord;" for from the beautiful gem that glistens in the diadem of the
Queen, down to the common brick of which our houses are built, the
earth has supplied our wants in all their untold varieties. But we
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LETTER V.
63
have not yet exhausted the subject; there are two things which I must
take pains to explain to you; and these are not left to the last, because
of the least importance, but that they might be spoken of separately.
I mean Coal and Salt.
Coal. Some have said that Great Britain has reached her place of
eminence among the nations, because it possesses Coal. This is a large
statement, and requires a little qualification; yet there is some degree
of truth in it; but we must never forget that God has said, that
" Righteousness exalteth a nation, but sin is the bane of any people. "
But in a subordinate point of view, (I use this word in its fullest sense,)
no doubt England has reached her present position owing to her manu-
factures ; and what could they do without coal ? Yes, coal is a great
blessing--an invaluable blessing; and yet, when discovered in this
kingdom, after sixty-six years' use it was prohibited, because it injured
the sale of wood ! This was in 1306, but the interdict was soon taken off.
Coal is found in inexhaustible abundance in England, Scotland, and
Wales; it has also been discovered in America and India. Besides its
most grateful daily service to us, in warming our domestic hearths, it is,
as has been observed, the mainspring of our manufactories; and now
that the carburetted hydrogen gas, produced from coal, illumines our
streets, one wonders that, with a fire for nine months continually under
our eyes, it was not before discovered. Of the coal mines of England,
the purest are supposed to be Whitehaven; but the most important
to England are those at Newcastle and Sunderland. An amazing
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? 64
THE CREATION.
number of vessels daily leave these ports for all parts of the kingdom:
and thus the Northern coal trade has been called, with great point,
" The nursery of British seamen. " The commanders of some of our
present merchant ships had their earliest lessons in this home navi-
gation. Coals were early known in Scotland. Pope Pius II. , in his
description of Europe, mentions that he beheld with wonder in Scot-
land, black stones given to the poor as alms. This was in the fifteenth
century, but they may be traced back three centuries earlier. In
Somersetshire the Mendip coal-mines are distinguished for their pro-
ductiveness. The beds of coal are not horizontal, but sloping,
dipping towards the south-east, at the rate of twenty-two inches per
fathom. The description of the mines, and the manner of working
them, I may another time give you; but for the present my object is
to bring before you a general view of those mercies with which we
are perpetually surrounded; and coal is indeed a mercy whose value
cannot be told.
The common fuel of Ireland is Turf, which is a partially decom-
posed vegetable production, found just under the surface of the ground.
It is divided into slane turf, or that which is cut with a sharp instru-
ment, and hand turf, which is the common turf trodden down by
horses and men in water, until it becomes a thick clay like paste,
which is then moulded by hand and laid out to dry. The Irish peasant,
as you will remember, in the bogs of Roundwood, county Wicklow,
looks as much for a dry season for his turf, as we do for our wheat.
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LETTER V.
65
Salt. Of all the productions of the earth that call for man's thank-
fulness, salt ranks among the first; and as our wants are great and
continual, so the mighty storehouse of this mineral is perfectly inex-
haustible. But we will consider, 1st, rock salt, or salt found in solid
masses, and, 2nd, salt springs.
1. Rock Salt. Most countries have mines of this invaluable mineral,
but the most renowned are those of Cracow, Tyrol, Poland, Castile,
and Cheshire in our own country. The East also is not destitute of it,
as there is a mountain of Hindostan, in the province of Lahore, nearly
equal to the famous one of Cordova in Spain, which is 500 feet high,
and three miles in circumference, entirely composed of salt. The mines
of Cracow * being the best known, I will enlarge upon them. Our
poet Darwin thus beautifully speaks of the subterranean town formed
by the excavation of the salt:--
" Thus cavern'd round in Cracow's mighty mines,
With crystal walls a gorgeous city shines;
Scoop'd in the living rock long streets extend
Their hoary course, and glittering domes ascend.
? ? ? >>
Long lines of lustre pour their trembling rays,
And the bright vaults resound with dazzling blaze. "
One can hardly conceive of the exceeding beauty of this magic
scene. I think I have somewhere read, that when travellers go to view
this mine they are taken down blindfolded, and that when arrived in
? These mines are upwards of 6000 feet long; 2000 feet broad; 800 feet deep.
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? 6C
THE CREATION.
the midst of this most brilliant city, the bandage is removed. The
salt mines of Cheshire are very extensive, and supply the northern
parts of the empire.
2. Salt springs* Though the whole ocean is salt, yet compared with
the briny springs of Droitwich it is fresh; for I think I was told,
when examining them, that the springs were thirty times salter than
sea water. The process by which the salt is procured is most simple:
the springs have pumps applied to them, which, by means of an engine,
are continually kept worked, emptying the water into a large iron
reservoir, of a square form (like a large pan in which loaves are baked):
under this reservoir there are blazing fires, keeping the water at a
high temperature, which rapidly passes off in evaporation, leaving the
salt at the bottom of the pan; this is taken up by the workpeople with
scoops having long handles, (women are usually employed,) and placed
in large upright wooden vessels, rather larger at the top than the
base. The salt drains in these, and is soon hard and ready for expor-
tation. In some countries the same result is produced, though in a
much longer period, by the rays of the sun: in this case the pans are
superficial excavations, in general near the sea. There is an incident
in the history of Holland, which (though one shudders in reading it,
for it was a dark blot on the legislation of that country) shows us,
perhaps more than anything, the invaluable character of salt. The
food of prisoners, under condemnation for some particularly aggravated
* See Appendix.
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LETTEH V.
67
crimes, was bread unmixed with salt, and the effect was horrible to
relate,--these wretched criminals are said to have been devoured by
worms engendered in their own stomachs. This law no longer
exists!
But the various uses of salt are beyond description. * I have some-
times thought, if on getting up in the morning, salt in every form was
to be prohibited through the day, how miserable we should all be;--
the bread would be insipid,--the meat we could not touch; indeed,
we should in a thousand ways know its value by its loss. All the
Jewish sacrifices were salted with salt; and whilst, in the king
Artaxerxes's gift to Ezra the Scribe, all other things were measured,
concerning this it was said, " And salt, without prescribing how much. "
(Ezra vii. 22. ) The Arab keeps salt in his girdle, and when he has
given you some, there is a covenant of salt established, that nothing
may break. What salt is naturally, such should the Christian [he
spiritually; for remember His words that said," Ye are the salt of the
earth. " (Matt. v. 13. ) But on this I will enlarge in my next letter.
Having thus, my dear children, sought to explain to you, in a gene-
ral point of view, the mineral productions of the earth, as arranged
under the heads of Precious Stones, Metals, Rocks, Slate, Clays,
Chalks, Coal, and Salt, I will now endeavour to take up the second
? The whole animal creation seems to demand salt as a natural stimulant for
the digestive organs. Children that neglect the use of salt, have generally an
enemy at the doors, and a worm fever often follows such neglect.
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THE CREATION.
part I promised, and speak to you a little of the fruits of the earth--
(as Moses says) " for the precious fruits brought forth by the sun, and
for the precious things put forth by the moon, and for the chief things
of the ancient mountains, and for the precious things of the lasting
hills, and for the precious things of the earth, and fulness thereof. "
(Deut . xxxiii. 14--16. ) This is the way that holy man of God spake
of God's gifts: to him they were all precious: and so they should be
to us. In one sense, dear children, never seek to be independent;
but depend on the Lord God--even the good-will of him that dwelt
in the bush--for every thing: so that every drop of water, and every
thread of raiment, and every grain of wheat, may all be received by
you, not as coming by chance--no, nor yet from nature--but from God,
the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the Father of all such as
flee to him as their alone Saviour; for in him, and in him only, they
can call God, Abba, Father. (Rom. viii. 15. )
Sweet is that Hymn, and happy the man or child that can from the
heart sing it (1 Cor. xiv. 15):--
" Abba, Father," Lord! we call thee,
(Hallow'd name! ) from day to day;--
"Pis thy children's right to know thee,
None but children " Abba " say.
This high glory we inherit,
Thy free gift, through Jesus' blood;
God the Spirit, with our spirit,
Witncsseth we're sons of God.
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LETTER V.
69
, The world, even in its fallen state, is fertile beyond calculation: and
when cultivated is capable of being covered with beauty: indeed, on
walking out on a summer's morning, when the sun is high enough to
have opened the flowers, and the birds are singing, and all seems happy
around, one can hardly imagine it to be the world of which it was said,
" Cursed be the ground for thy sake;" if so beautiful in its ruins, what
must it have been in its primeval beauty--what will it be in " the
times of the restitution of all things ! " (Acts iii. 21. )
FRUITS OF THE EARTH.
But I will now detail to you a little of the Lord's goodness, as shown
forth in that part of the vegetable kingdom which provides food for
man; and the first thing I will speak of, is Wheat.
" The Staff of Life. " This is the name given by common consent
to this most precious gift, put forth by the sun; wheat grows almost
in all quarters of the globe, and is pre-eminent for nutrition among all
the fruits of the earth. Sir Humphry Davy, the great naturalist, on
analyzing this grain, gave this as the result of his labour,--that of the
wheat he examined (grown in Middlesex) 955 parts of 1000 were
nutritive; 765 parts being starch, and 190 gluten. Gluten is a pecu-
liar substance that approaches nearer to animal matter than any other;
and wheat produces twofold more of this than any other grain. Be-
sides starch and gluten there is a small proportion of sugar in wheat
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70
THE CREATION.
I have spoken of Wheat* separately; but Barley, Oats, Rice,
Maize, Potatoes, Tea, Coffee, Cocoa, Sugar, and numberless low-grown
vegetables, called in the first of Genesis " Herbs," come in boundless
variety to supply the wants of man.
In Judea the barley harvest was the first reaped; and ere it was
gathered, there took place, according to Jewish historians, this most
solemn ceremony. The High Priest of Israel (God's family on earth)
went into the barley-field with a golden basket, reaped a sheaf of the
first-fruits, and then laid it up in the Tabernacle before and during
the sabbath; but on the morning after the sabbath, (Lev. xxiii. 10,)
he took the sheaf, and, standing at the brazen altar, waved it on high
before the Lord, to the four quarters of the land, acknowledging
thereby that all that sprang from the earth, in the north, east, south,
or west, was the Lord's; and theirs only by first being acknowledged
to be his--the great Lord of the harvest. The whole of this, in
its various parts, is applied in the New Testament spiritually ; but I
will tell you of it in the next letter.
If this order of vegetation is boundless, dear children, yet the trees
that are good for food, in variety at least, abound more; and man's
delight seems to be more contemplated in them than his sustenance;
for every stage of the fruit, on to maturity, is replete with interest--
? In Europe, wheat is the staff of life; in China and the East, rice; in Ireland,
potatoes seem with the poor almost to supersede all other food. The annual value
of grain grown in Britain in one year (1831) was 112,000,000/. sterling.
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stones; it is found in Pegu and Ceylon, also in Hungary and in Brazil.
When the Ruby exceeds 20 carats or 80 grains, it is called a Car-
buncle. This was the first stone in the breast-plate of the High Priest
.
Emerald ; a green, brilliant, precious stone, exceedingly hard, found
in the East and in Peru.
Topaz is the third order of precious stones, and is of a yellowish
gold colour. It is found in each quarter of the globe, India, Ethiopia,
Bohemia, and Peru.
The Chrysolite is the Topaz of the ancients; it is the least hard
of all the gems, and is found in Egypt, Ceylon, and the Brazils.
The Sapphire is of an azure or beautiful sky colour; it is found in
Ceylon, Brazil, Bohemia, and Silesia; sapphires brought from the
latter place are of less value than the oriental or eastern ones.
The Amethyst is of a violet colour, bordering on blue;--found in
the East and in Europe.
The Beryl is a beautiful stone, like the diamond, of a pale green
colour, and is sometimes mistaken for it; it is found in Ceylon, Pegu,
the East, and Bohemia.
Agate. Many stones bear this name, but they are all generally
composed of quartz, with varied tinges of colours, veins, and spots, but
they never exhibit orange or green; they are finest in Germany.
Chalcedony is semi-transparent, very hard, and of a milky grey
colour, said to be originally found in Chalcedon in Asia;--found in
Saxony, Silesia, and the British Isles.
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54 THE CREATION.
The Onyx is an agate of a greyish brown colour. White zones or
girdles are essential to the onyx. This gem was on the shoulder-
pieces of the ephod of the High Priest, as well as on the breast-plate.
The Opal is an exceedingly beautiful stone, with an amazing
diversity of colours on a ground of white. Pliny mentions one in his
time that had sixty colours. It is found in Mexico, Hungary, and
the British Islands.
The Jacinth is a purple gem, mingled with a deep yellow, ap-
proaching to a flame colour. It is found in the East, and Bohemia
and Portugal.
The Cornelian, a species of Chalcedony, is generally of a blood-red
colour, but sometimes white; it is easily engraved on, and receives a
brilliant polish. It is found near Babylon, also in Hindostan, and in
Bohemia.
Crystal may be reckoned among the precious gems: it is found in
India and Europe. *
Pearl is a hard, cream-white, round gem-like substance, of con-
siderable lustre, found in shell-fish, both of the mussel and oyster
kind ; and although an animal production, it is reckoned among the
gems. The oyster in which the pearl is most generally found inhabits
both the American and Indian seas, and is sometimes met with on the
coast of Scotland. The old fish yield the best pearls.
The use of most of the precious gems is not very manifest: they
* See Appendix.
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55
are worn chiefly for ornament; but the most beautiful jewels are found
in that sweet verse in Proverbs iii. , " Let not mercy and truth forsake
thee; bind them about thy neck, write them upon the tablet of thine
heart:" and the christian female is exhorted to let her adornments not
be of gold or costly apparel, but the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit,
which is in God's sight of great price. (1 Pet. iii. 3,4; 1 Tim. ii. 9,10. )
II. OF THE METALS.
Our second subject of consideration is the metals. The ancients
knew only seven; and these they represented under the signs of the
heavenly bodies,--Gold had the Sun for its emblem--Silver, the Moon
--Quicksilver, Mercury--Copper, Venus--Iron, Mars--Tin, Jupiter
--Lead, Saturn. The moderns have discovered thirty-seven others.
Gold, which is the heaviest* of all the metals, excepting platinum
and iridium, is found in the four quarters of the globe; but in small
quantities. The largest lump ever known was dug out of the gold
mountains of the County Wicklow, and is, I think, in the British
Museum. You remember we saw the mountain in our way to the
Glen of Imale. The gold of Asia is the finest;--but that of America
is comparatively the most abundant. Gold has a variety of uses: --
the Tabernacle of the Wilderness had silver for its foundations, and
boards covered with gold for its superstructure; and all the furniture
? See Appendix.
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? 56
THE CREATION.
of the Lord's dwelling was covered with gold. In the temple the
pavement and the ceiling of the Most Holy were of the same. Gold is
also used for the diadems of kings, and the coronets of nobles. The
richest coins of the realm, as well as medals commemorating any event
of moment, are also struck from this noble metal. Its tenacity is
amazing; for it has been proved that a gold wire, whose diameter is
only one-tenth of an inch, will support a weight of 500 pounds; and
its malleability is almost beyond belief: for Mr. Reaumur asserts, that
he beat a grain of gold into forty-two square inches of leaf-gold.
Silver is the metal next precious to Gold and Platinum. It is also
found in all quarters of the globe, but abounds in South America.
It is a metal in great request: all the common coin of the realm is
struck from it. If you remember, the reflectors of our Light-house
at Wicklow were made from this precious metal; besides which, its
uses are various. It is a metal of great brilliancy.
Quicksilver is a metal--fluid at very low temperature. It was well
known to the ancients, and called by them hydrargyrum, or, water of
silver. Quicksilver is found in Germany, Hungary, Spain, and Peru.
This metal is used in a variety of ways, and is most valuable to man.
I suppose you remember seeing it frequently in the tube of the
weather glass; its use there is to indicate the variations of the weight
of the air--heavy dry air pressing it up, and light air allowing it to
descend. The state of the weather is so connected with the weight of
the atmosphere, that the Barometer becomes a useful index of its
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? LETTER V.
57
changes also. It is also in great demand for our manufactories; and
especially in gilding copper; for these two metals have no affinity
whatever with each other, and seem inflexibly set against any union;
but the Quicksilver has friendship with both parties, and is used to
amalgamate the surface of the copper substance intended to be gilt--
say, for instance, buttons,--these are then covered with a certain
quantity of gold amalgam, which immediately adheres; afterwards
heat is applied, which drives off the Quicksilver, and leaves the gold
firmly fixed to the button. Until these few years past, the Quicksilver
thus evaporated was lost; but now it is made to pass into water, when
it instantly condenses and falls to the bottom. The Quicksilver in
this case is a beautiful emblem of the Peace-maker, that brings two
hostile parties together, and never leaves them until they are one,
and then passes away ready again for any fresh act of love.
Mercury is also a most valuable medicine in the hands of educated
men. Hydrarge, or Silver-water, is its name in the Pharmacopoeia.
Copper ranks next in value. Sweden supplies vast quantities of
this metal, as does also the Isle of Anglesea in Wales. Many of our
domestic utensils and vessels are made of Copper. Beaten out into thin
sheets, it is used to cover the bottoms of sailing vessels, keeping them
at once clean, dry, and free from the operations of marine worms.
These sheets are also sometimes used as the covering of buildings.
Brass is a mixture of copper with zinc; and bell metal also has copper
(which is the most sonorous of metals) for its chief ingredient. Most
d3
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. 58
THE CREATION.
of our engravings also are executed on copper sheets. The rust of
copper, if we may so call it, is verdigris: and from this is made the
brightest of our green paints. So in every point of view it is useful.
Iron is the most useful and the most abounding of all metals. It is
found in England in great abundance, especially in our neighbouring
county of Gloucester; also in Wales: and close to the Iron mines,
generally speaking, there is a boundless supply of coals to work the
Iron. And this, my dear children, with thousands of other things
with which we are surrounded, tells us of God's merciful goodness;
and proves that He (and not chance or fortuity) made and furnished
the world as a habitation fitted and suited for Man, destined to be its
occupant. The uses of Iron cannot be enumerated; for look around
on every side, and there is not a thing of art that you gaze on, but, in
one form or another, Iron lent its aid to make it what it is; and even
when it is cast aside, the very rust of the old despised Iron hoops is a
valuable medicine (oxide of Iron), as our dear S. full well knows; but
in God's creation nothing is wanting--nothing is lost.
Tin is a most useful metal in all our domestic concerns. It is
softer than silver; but harder than lead. Tin is found in the East
Indies, France, Spain, and Saxony; and it abounds in Devonshire and
Cornwall, which in a great measure supply the demands of Europe.
It is used among other things to coat over copper, iron, and brass
kitchen utensils, to defend what is cooked in them from the action of
those metals.
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59
Lead is a coarse, heavy metal, of a whitish grey colour; it is found
in great quantities in England. Its uses are innumerable; for, being
so easily melted, it may soon be cast into any shape; but lead could
not supply the place of iron or tin, for it will not bear to come in
contact with fire. White and red lead are produced by chemical means
from this valuable metal, and are used for paints and glazing earthen
vessels. In medicine the sugar of lead, a combination of lead with
vinegar, is useful in many cases; indeed, almost all the metals, under
one form or another, come into the pharmacopoeia; and (as I said
of the quicksilver) in the hands of skilful men, by God's blessing, are
sometimes of great service.
The later discovered metals I do not go at large into; but just
mention a few of them.
Platinum. This ranks in value above gold, from its scarcity, ex-
ceeding weight, ductility, and infusibility. It is found in New
Granada, South America. It is of great value for chemical purposes,
making the best crucibles; it is also used for the indexes of nautical
and other instruments. In colour it is like silver.
Iridium is a heavy metal; it was discovered in 1803. In colour it
is like platinum.
Zinc is a metal that lias come much into use these few years. It
forms an excellent substitute for lead, and is not so expensive. It is
found in many parts of Great Britain. It looks like lead, but is not
so heavy.
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? 60
THE CREATION.
In addition to these metals there are Antimony, Arsenic, Bismuth,
Chromium, &c. ; most of which are poisonous: but used as medicine,
in very small quantities, by God's blessing on them, are efficacious in
healing many disorders.
Plumbago, of which our black-lead pencils are made, is a natural
composition of iron and carbon. It is found in such abundance in
Borrowdale, Cumberland, that not only is the whole island of Great
Britain supplied from it, but many parte of the Continent . It is also
useful in the Electrotype process, as the friendly medium between the
copper deposit and the wax model.
ROCKS AND STONE.
Stone is a general name for hard brittle substances, not metallic,
that do not melt away in water. We will consider these substances
as follows:--1, Granite; 2, Marble; 3, Slate; and then the Chalks
and Clays.
1. Granite; so called from its appearing to be formed of a number
of little grains. The loftiest mountains usually consist of granite. *
You remember also the granite hills in Devonshire. Granite is
always used when great durability is desired. It looks beautiful in
columns, and also makes excellent pavements, &c. It is found both
white and red; and is composed of quartz, felspar, and mica.
2. Marble is a most valuable stone. When hewn from the quarry
* See Appendix.
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? LETTER V.
61
and polished, the most beautiful statues are made from it, and the
chisel of the intelligent artist throws life and animation, figuratively
speaking, into that which but now was a huge unsightly mass.
Whenever I think of Marble, the remark of the old Irish steward
in the county of Wicklow comes to my mind:--" The lime dust, sir,
is gold dust to our crops. '" All Marble, when burnt in the lime-kiln,
produces that invaluable manure, Lime. Houses, floors, pavements,
and the most sumptuous galleries, also are indebted to the marble
quarry for material. Italy has the finest marble, though the Devon-
shire* and Derbyshire quarries are also very beautiful. But marble
would not do in any wise to cover the roofs of our houses. Well;
we go again and dig in the earth, and there we find another substance
equally suited, in every possible way, for our want--indeed, evidently
created for the purpose.
I do not know of anything in the way of
quarry observation more full of interest than the splitting and forming
of slates. The chief supplies in England are found in Kendal and
Cornwall, but I believe the largest quarries in the empire are those in
North Wales. The number of people employed there is amazing.
A large quarry has also been lately discovered in the county of
Wicklow, in Ireland, close to Ashford, on the high road from Dublin
to Wicklow and Wexford, twenty-five miles from the capital. I have
seen the slate there; and the quarry promises, when dug sufficiently
deep, to be of the best quality, and if so, it will be an invaluable boon
* See Appendix.
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62
THE CREATION.
to that part of Ireland. It is a fact of exceeding interest, that it
seems to be a continuation of the southernmost strata of the Welsh
quarry, and also of the same quality, being more of a crystalline
substance than clayey. The quarry is opened in the Park of Glan-
more, and close to the little hamlet called Clorah, where we passed
so many happy years.
The various Chalks--white, red, and black--are very useful, both to
the physician and the artist. Chalks abound in Kent and Essex; and
frequently embedded in them are strata of Flint.
Clay. There is a great variety of earths or clays, which bear the
name of the thing each is used for. Thus Porcelain-clay;--this clay
is found in Cornwall, Saxony, Japan, and China, and is used in the
manufacture of china. The English wares, especially those of Wor-
cester, are said now to equal those of China. Flint, burnt and pow-
dered very fine, is added to this clay for the manufacture of porcelain.
Pipe-clay is of a greyish white, and found in abundance in this
country.
Potters-clay is found of various shades. Of this clay all our common
wares are made, whilst the yellow clay affords an excellent material
for bricks. Now, beloved children, just sum up all these together,
and surely we may say, " The earth is full of the goodness of the
Lord;" for from the beautiful gem that glistens in the diadem of the
Queen, down to the common brick of which our houses are built, the
earth has supplied our wants in all their untold varieties. But we
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LETTER V.
63
have not yet exhausted the subject; there are two things which I must
take pains to explain to you; and these are not left to the last, because
of the least importance, but that they might be spoken of separately.
I mean Coal and Salt.
Coal. Some have said that Great Britain has reached her place of
eminence among the nations, because it possesses Coal. This is a large
statement, and requires a little qualification; yet there is some degree
of truth in it; but we must never forget that God has said, that
" Righteousness exalteth a nation, but sin is the bane of any people. "
But in a subordinate point of view, (I use this word in its fullest sense,)
no doubt England has reached her present position owing to her manu-
factures ; and what could they do without coal ? Yes, coal is a great
blessing--an invaluable blessing; and yet, when discovered in this
kingdom, after sixty-six years' use it was prohibited, because it injured
the sale of wood ! This was in 1306, but the interdict was soon taken off.
Coal is found in inexhaustible abundance in England, Scotland, and
Wales; it has also been discovered in America and India. Besides its
most grateful daily service to us, in warming our domestic hearths, it is,
as has been observed, the mainspring of our manufactories; and now
that the carburetted hydrogen gas, produced from coal, illumines our
streets, one wonders that, with a fire for nine months continually under
our eyes, it was not before discovered. Of the coal mines of England,
the purest are supposed to be Whitehaven; but the most important
to England are those at Newcastle and Sunderland. An amazing
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THE CREATION.
number of vessels daily leave these ports for all parts of the kingdom:
and thus the Northern coal trade has been called, with great point,
" The nursery of British seamen. " The commanders of some of our
present merchant ships had their earliest lessons in this home navi-
gation. Coals were early known in Scotland. Pope Pius II. , in his
description of Europe, mentions that he beheld with wonder in Scot-
land, black stones given to the poor as alms. This was in the fifteenth
century, but they may be traced back three centuries earlier. In
Somersetshire the Mendip coal-mines are distinguished for their pro-
ductiveness. The beds of coal are not horizontal, but sloping,
dipping towards the south-east, at the rate of twenty-two inches per
fathom. The description of the mines, and the manner of working
them, I may another time give you; but for the present my object is
to bring before you a general view of those mercies with which we
are perpetually surrounded; and coal is indeed a mercy whose value
cannot be told.
The common fuel of Ireland is Turf, which is a partially decom-
posed vegetable production, found just under the surface of the ground.
It is divided into slane turf, or that which is cut with a sharp instru-
ment, and hand turf, which is the common turf trodden down by
horses and men in water, until it becomes a thick clay like paste,
which is then moulded by hand and laid out to dry. The Irish peasant,
as you will remember, in the bogs of Roundwood, county Wicklow,
looks as much for a dry season for his turf, as we do for our wheat.
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LETTER V.
65
Salt. Of all the productions of the earth that call for man's thank-
fulness, salt ranks among the first; and as our wants are great and
continual, so the mighty storehouse of this mineral is perfectly inex-
haustible. But we will consider, 1st, rock salt, or salt found in solid
masses, and, 2nd, salt springs.
1. Rock Salt. Most countries have mines of this invaluable mineral,
but the most renowned are those of Cracow, Tyrol, Poland, Castile,
and Cheshire in our own country. The East also is not destitute of it,
as there is a mountain of Hindostan, in the province of Lahore, nearly
equal to the famous one of Cordova in Spain, which is 500 feet high,
and three miles in circumference, entirely composed of salt. The mines
of Cracow * being the best known, I will enlarge upon them. Our
poet Darwin thus beautifully speaks of the subterranean town formed
by the excavation of the salt:--
" Thus cavern'd round in Cracow's mighty mines,
With crystal walls a gorgeous city shines;
Scoop'd in the living rock long streets extend
Their hoary course, and glittering domes ascend.
? ? ? >>
Long lines of lustre pour their trembling rays,
And the bright vaults resound with dazzling blaze. "
One can hardly conceive of the exceeding beauty of this magic
scene. I think I have somewhere read, that when travellers go to view
this mine they are taken down blindfolded, and that when arrived in
? These mines are upwards of 6000 feet long; 2000 feet broad; 800 feet deep.
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? 6C
THE CREATION.
the midst of this most brilliant city, the bandage is removed. The
salt mines of Cheshire are very extensive, and supply the northern
parts of the empire.
2. Salt springs* Though the whole ocean is salt, yet compared with
the briny springs of Droitwich it is fresh; for I think I was told,
when examining them, that the springs were thirty times salter than
sea water. The process by which the salt is procured is most simple:
the springs have pumps applied to them, which, by means of an engine,
are continually kept worked, emptying the water into a large iron
reservoir, of a square form (like a large pan in which loaves are baked):
under this reservoir there are blazing fires, keeping the water at a
high temperature, which rapidly passes off in evaporation, leaving the
salt at the bottom of the pan; this is taken up by the workpeople with
scoops having long handles, (women are usually employed,) and placed
in large upright wooden vessels, rather larger at the top than the
base. The salt drains in these, and is soon hard and ready for expor-
tation. In some countries the same result is produced, though in a
much longer period, by the rays of the sun: in this case the pans are
superficial excavations, in general near the sea. There is an incident
in the history of Holland, which (though one shudders in reading it,
for it was a dark blot on the legislation of that country) shows us,
perhaps more than anything, the invaluable character of salt. The
food of prisoners, under condemnation for some particularly aggravated
* See Appendix.
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LETTEH V.
67
crimes, was bread unmixed with salt, and the effect was horrible to
relate,--these wretched criminals are said to have been devoured by
worms engendered in their own stomachs. This law no longer
exists!
But the various uses of salt are beyond description. * I have some-
times thought, if on getting up in the morning, salt in every form was
to be prohibited through the day, how miserable we should all be;--
the bread would be insipid,--the meat we could not touch; indeed,
we should in a thousand ways know its value by its loss. All the
Jewish sacrifices were salted with salt; and whilst, in the king
Artaxerxes's gift to Ezra the Scribe, all other things were measured,
concerning this it was said, " And salt, without prescribing how much. "
(Ezra vii. 22. ) The Arab keeps salt in his girdle, and when he has
given you some, there is a covenant of salt established, that nothing
may break. What salt is naturally, such should the Christian [he
spiritually; for remember His words that said," Ye are the salt of the
earth. " (Matt. v. 13. ) But on this I will enlarge in my next letter.
Having thus, my dear children, sought to explain to you, in a gene-
ral point of view, the mineral productions of the earth, as arranged
under the heads of Precious Stones, Metals, Rocks, Slate, Clays,
Chalks, Coal, and Salt, I will now endeavour to take up the second
? The whole animal creation seems to demand salt as a natural stimulant for
the digestive organs. Children that neglect the use of salt, have generally an
enemy at the doors, and a worm fever often follows such neglect.
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THE CREATION.
part I promised, and speak to you a little of the fruits of the earth--
(as Moses says) " for the precious fruits brought forth by the sun, and
for the precious things put forth by the moon, and for the chief things
of the ancient mountains, and for the precious things of the lasting
hills, and for the precious things of the earth, and fulness thereof. "
(Deut . xxxiii. 14--16. ) This is the way that holy man of God spake
of God's gifts: to him they were all precious: and so they should be
to us. In one sense, dear children, never seek to be independent;
but depend on the Lord God--even the good-will of him that dwelt
in the bush--for every thing: so that every drop of water, and every
thread of raiment, and every grain of wheat, may all be received by
you, not as coming by chance--no, nor yet from nature--but from God,
the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the Father of all such as
flee to him as their alone Saviour; for in him, and in him only, they
can call God, Abba, Father. (Rom. viii. 15. )
Sweet is that Hymn, and happy the man or child that can from the
heart sing it (1 Cor. xiv. 15):--
" Abba, Father," Lord! we call thee,
(Hallow'd name! ) from day to day;--
"Pis thy children's right to know thee,
None but children " Abba " say.
This high glory we inherit,
Thy free gift, through Jesus' blood;
God the Spirit, with our spirit,
Witncsseth we're sons of God.
? ? Generated for (University of Chicago) on 2014-12-24 14:33 GMT / http://hdl. handle. net/2027/hvd. 32044024073470 Public Domain, Google-digitized / http://www. hathitrust. org/access_use#pd-google
LETTER V.
69
, The world, even in its fallen state, is fertile beyond calculation: and
when cultivated is capable of being covered with beauty: indeed, on
walking out on a summer's morning, when the sun is high enough to
have opened the flowers, and the birds are singing, and all seems happy
around, one can hardly imagine it to be the world of which it was said,
" Cursed be the ground for thy sake;" if so beautiful in its ruins, what
must it have been in its primeval beauty--what will it be in " the
times of the restitution of all things ! " (Acts iii. 21. )
FRUITS OF THE EARTH.
But I will now detail to you a little of the Lord's goodness, as shown
forth in that part of the vegetable kingdom which provides food for
man; and the first thing I will speak of, is Wheat.
" The Staff of Life. " This is the name given by common consent
to this most precious gift, put forth by the sun; wheat grows almost
in all quarters of the globe, and is pre-eminent for nutrition among all
the fruits of the earth. Sir Humphry Davy, the great naturalist, on
analyzing this grain, gave this as the result of his labour,--that of the
wheat he examined (grown in Middlesex) 955 parts of 1000 were
nutritive; 765 parts being starch, and 190 gluten. Gluten is a pecu-
liar substance that approaches nearer to animal matter than any other;
and wheat produces twofold more of this than any other grain. Be-
sides starch and gluten there is a small proportion of sugar in wheat
? ? ? Generated for (University of Chicago) on 2014-12-24 14:33 GMT / http://hdl. handle. net/2027/hvd. 32044024073470 Public Domain, Google-digitized / http://www. hathitrust. org/access_use#pd-google
70
THE CREATION.
I have spoken of Wheat* separately; but Barley, Oats, Rice,
Maize, Potatoes, Tea, Coffee, Cocoa, Sugar, and numberless low-grown
vegetables, called in the first of Genesis " Herbs," come in boundless
variety to supply the wants of man.
In Judea the barley harvest was the first reaped; and ere it was
gathered, there took place, according to Jewish historians, this most
solemn ceremony. The High Priest of Israel (God's family on earth)
went into the barley-field with a golden basket, reaped a sheaf of the
first-fruits, and then laid it up in the Tabernacle before and during
the sabbath; but on the morning after the sabbath, (Lev. xxiii. 10,)
he took the sheaf, and, standing at the brazen altar, waved it on high
before the Lord, to the four quarters of the land, acknowledging
thereby that all that sprang from the earth, in the north, east, south,
or west, was the Lord's; and theirs only by first being acknowledged
to be his--the great Lord of the harvest. The whole of this, in
its various parts, is applied in the New Testament spiritually ; but I
will tell you of it in the next letter.
If this order of vegetation is boundless, dear children, yet the trees
that are good for food, in variety at least, abound more; and man's
delight seems to be more contemplated in them than his sustenance;
for every stage of the fruit, on to maturity, is replete with interest--
? In Europe, wheat is the staff of life; in China and the East, rice; in Ireland,
potatoes seem with the poor almost to supersede all other food. The annual value
of grain grown in Britain in one year (1831) was 112,000,000/. sterling.
? ? ? Generated for (University of Chicago) on 2014-12-24 14:33 GMT / http://hdl.
