fire, and of light ;-and, by dint of application, has discovered the influence these elements have over us, and how they promote our interest and advantage. Thus far our researches may be made without -presumption and no farther; for the nature of the air and other elements, he who made them, and he only, knows their structure and their essence. All then that remains for us, is to laud and magnify his holy name who created all these excellent things for our service-to make a proper use of his favours and to remain contented with that degree of knowledge which he, in his infinite goodness, has thought sufficient for us.

ON

ON MOUNTAINS.

THERE are many who are so

insensible as to regard the mountains as blemishes of nature; and as irregular excrescences dispersed up and down the surface of the earth by mere accident, without the least intention of any beneficial effects. How erroneous is this opinion-as not only the animal but the vegetable part of the creation would perish for want of necessary humidity without their assistance; for their summits are appointed by Providence to arrest, as it were, the vapours which float in the regions of air, making the vacant

spaces,

spaces, or hollows, between their points, as so many spacious reservoirs for the reception of those thick mists and impetuous rains which descend into them. Thus their bowels are conservatories for our use; and the openings through which the water trickles down their sides, are so placed, that they may fall upon the plains and render them fruitful, instead of returning through subterranean channels to the sea.

There are some lofty mountains, as the Cordilleras, or Andes, in South America, and many others, the tops of which are continually covered with snow. It never rains in those parts of the country which lie near the sea, except near the Equator; but that defect is sufficiently supplied by the dew that falls every night, and so refreshes the earth in the environs, that grass and plants grow in the greatest abundance. The air on the summits of

high mountains is more keen and bleak in the midst of summer than in our climate in the severest frost; it is, therefore, no wonder that the vapours should congeal and cover them with snow, while those who reside on the declivity, or at the foot of the mountains, enjoy a temperate air.

Among the mountains thus mentioned are to be reckoned the Alps, which lay between France, Italy, and Germany, the Apennines, in Italy, and the Pyrenees which divide France from Spain; the latter are about two hundred miles in length.Canigou, the highest part of the Pyrenees, measures nine thousand two hundred and twenty-two feet above the level of the sea.

At the foot of these mountains are ever to be found springs, which in many places, however, only run in the heat of summer;

VOL. I.

F

which

which proves that they proceed from the snow, which melting, insinuates itself to a considerable depth in the earth, notwithstanding that the passages through which it winds and turns are not to be discovered.

Having related some of the various advantages we derive from the mountains, I must also add, they are the receptacle or haunts of such animals as are of singular service to us, without the least care or concern on our part;-as the rein-deer, the wild goat, the bear, the fox, and several other animals, which either serve for use, food, or whose skins are converted into furs which serve for traffic, or to clothe the inhabitants of cold regions during the frosts of winter.

The mountains, in more sultry climates, are the favourite retreats of the buffalo, which in many countries are, when taken young,