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like to Thee." Answers to the aforesaid queries may be also found, peradventure, in the following lines:

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Among the deepest shades of night,

Can there be One, who sees our way?
Yes, God is like a shining light,

That turns the darkness into day.
When every eye around us sleeps,
May we not sin, without control?
No; for a constant watch He keeps,
On every thought of every soul.
If you could find some cave unknown,
Where human feet had never trod,
Yet, there you could not be alone,

On every side there would be God!"

"The eyes of the Lord are far brighter than the sun, beholding round about the ways of men, and the bottom of the deep, and looking into the hearts of men." (Ec. xxix.)

Though infinitely less in comparison with its Maker's glance; yet, how comprehensive is not human sight! Objects, which cover a thousand square miles in extent, are accurately delineated on the eye's diminutive tablet! How exquisitely delicate must be that divine pencil, which foreshortens, and compresses so large a panorama, within such a limited space! In Nature's different realms, the provident care taken of irrational beings has been already shown, at least, in part; but, who can estimate the value and profusion of Heaven's gifts to the children of men?

Lost in amazement at Jehovah's condescension in making man little less than the angels, the psalmist exclaims: "Thou hast crowned him with glory, and honour; and set him over the works of Thy hands." (Ps. viii.)

Imbued with similar sentiments of gratitude, to use an ascetic writer's words: "I contemplate, in spirit, my own entire being, my soul, my body, my powers, and faculties; and around me, I behold all the creatures, with which, the Almighty has peopled heaven, earth, and the elements; the angels of heaven, the beasts of the forest; the inhabitants of the water, the plants of the earth, the sand of the sea; the atoms which float in the air, and in the beams of the sun, the flakes of the snow, and the pearls of dew: I reflect that all creatures, even to the world's remotest extremities, obey God, and contribute as much as they can to that mysterious harmony, which uprises without ceasing, to praise and bless the Creator: I imagine myself in the midst of this concert, like the director of a choir, and I apply all my faculties to beat time for the music. By the most lively of my heart's affections, I excite the soul's deepest emotions to joyously chaunt Sursum Corda,' to render thanks to the Lord. our God."

Moreover, not satisfied with appointing the children of men to be His stewards, and friends, the Lord bestowed upon them a still more singular mark of His predilection: "Behold," says the apostle of love, "what manner of charity the Father hath bestowed on us, that we should be called, and should be the sons of God." (John iii.)

Noteworthy is the provision made for man's bodily existence. During twenty-four hours, every adult requires 535 cubic feet of air for respiration! An ethereal ocean of air above supplies this want!

"The balmy air, around us, lends its aid

To freshen the heart's feeling—draughts of health
Come with each breeze."

To furnish man with necessary moisture there is an ocean of water beneath. Nature's revolving seasons pay tribute to man's necessities. The elements-earth, air, fire, and water are subservient to his comforts. Forest trees afford him fuel, shelter, and shade-and the open field is, at once, his floor, his workyard, his playground, his garden, and his bed!

The quantity of wholesome air required, in twentyfour hours, has been mentioned: moreover, every adult breathes from twelve to eighteen times a minute. Thus, each minute brings with it the aforesaid number of blessings, which are essential to existence; for, without a fresh supply of oxygen, we cease to live. Numerous, also, are the operations of man's mental faculties, which react upon his body's 6,000 compartments. Hence, addressing his omnipotent Preserver, each one of us may gratefully say—

"Great God! our best of powers are little rills,

That flow from the outpourings, Lord, in Thee!
Check their sustaining flood, and what are we?
How weak our strength! how impotent our wills!
But, when thy stream of blessings infloweth free,
Then are we strong to uplift the eternal hills!

According to a philosopher, "man stands as a living individuality, composed of matter and spirit,-of outward, and inward being; of necessity, and freedom: to himself a mystery-to the world of spirits, an object of God's Almighty forethought, wisdom, and love,—a competent witness veiled round by his corporeal nature, he

sees God, as it were, at a distance. Man, in short, is the hero of faith--he is weak, and yet strong-poor, and yet possessing, at least, all necessary things." Considering God's provident care of His creatures, from the angel to the worm,—from man to the almost invisible atom, -let us, with thankfulness, and praise, acknowledge

that

"The humblest bud, that blossoms to the morn,
The meanest insect, in its bosom, borne,

Live, by the fiat of that Mighty voice,

Which rules the spheres, and makes the skies rejoice."

“O most mighty, great, and powerful, the Lord of Hosts, is thy name! Great in counsel, and incomprehensible in thought, whose eyes are open upon all the ways of the children of men, to render to every one according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his devices." (Jer. xxxii.)

Wherefore, "O ye sons of men, bless the Lord, praise and exalt Him above all for ever," especially, for his wonderful condescension to mankind. It was this Divine benignity, that induced the Psalmist to expostulate, with the Most High: "What is man that, Thou art mindful of him? or the Son of man that, Thou visitest him? Thou hast made him a little less than the angels: Thou hast crowned him, with glory, and honour; and hast set him over the works of thy hands. Thou hast subjected all things under his feet; all sheep and oxen. Moreover, the beasts, also, of the field, and the fishes of O Lord, our God, how admirable is thy

the sea.
name in all the earth!" (Ps. viii.)

CHAPTER XX.

THE TESTIMONY OF THE HUMAN SOUL'S THREE FACULTIES

WILL, MEMORY, AND INTELLIGENCE.

"AND (God) said: Let us make man to our image, and likeness; and let him have dominion over the fishes of the sea, and the fowls of the air, and the beasts, &c., and God created man to his own image." (Gen. i.)

Hence,

Man's upright form, and heavenward sight bespeak his divine origin, and noble destiny. As God is a spirit, man's likeness to his Creator must be in that thinking spiritual part of his being, called the soul. speaking of the Lord's marvellous operations, the psalmist says: "Wonderful are Thy works, (as) my soul knoweth right well." (Ps. cxxxviii.) "The thoughts of man shall give praise to Thee." (Id. lxxv.)

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When, by his word, God had accomplished all,

Man to create, he did a council call;

Employ'd his hand, to give the clay, he took,

A graceful figure, and majestic look ;

With his own breath convey'd into man's breast,
Life, and a soul fit to command the rest,

Worthy alone to celebrate His name,

For such a gift, and tell from whence it came ;

Birds sing God's praises in a wilder note,

But not with lasting numbers, and with thought-
Man's great prerogative."

It is remarked by an eminent writer, that nothing can

be compared to the soul, in value-not even the whole world. In fact,

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