LECTURE III.

ON THE CREATION.

GENESIS I. 20-31.

Ver. 20. And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven.

21. And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and God saw that it was good.

22. And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply in the earth.

23. And the evening and the morning were the fifth day.

24. And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth, after his kind: and it

was so.

25. And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth, after his kind: and God saw that it was good.

26. And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

27. So God created man in his own image: in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

Ver. 28. And God blessed them: and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the forel of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.

29. And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing secd, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.

30. And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so.

31. And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.

WHEN the Almighty Creator of all things had finished the formation of the heavens and the earth, he next produced those animated creatures, which exist on the surface of the globe, in the waters of the ocean, and the regions of the air. Accordingly, the beasts of the field and the reptiles of the ground were created in great variety of species, adapted to the different climates of the world. That the seas, and lakes, and rivers might be also stored with inhabitants, fishes of every kind were formed to subsist in these aqueous reservoirs, which occupy so large a part of our terraqueous globe. As the atmosphere is peculiarly fitted for the respiration of animals, the genus of birds was modelled in such a manner, as to render them capable of traversing the acrial space by which the earth is every where surrounded.

These distinct classes of animated creatures that are found on the earth, in the waters, and the air, have been called by philosophers the three great kingdoms of nature; because they differ in their organization, according to the mode of subsistence for which they are designed. They are all endowed with the faculty of continuing their species, and furnished with instincts to provide for their

young, and rear them to maturity. By these means, every race of animals has been preserved from age to age, so that none of them have become extinct; but increased and multiplied, and replenished the earth.-But as all these creatures are irrational, and thereby incapable of making a proper use of the productions of the globe, it was expedient that some higher order of beings should be created for that purpose, as also for adoring and serving the great Creator, by whom all things consist.

Accordingly, man was formed with a superior nature, which contained in its composition a spiritual substance, denominated the soul. This intelligent principle within us, partakes, in some measure, of the image of God, and the qualities of celestial beings. Hereby we are rendered but a little lower than the angels, and superior in dignity to the beasts that perish. Our body indeed is composed of the same materials as those of which the other animals consist, and requires similar sustenance from the productions of the soil.

That we and every living thing might be provided with food convenient for us, a great profusion of herbs, fruits, and plants, are either nourished spontaneously from the bosom of the earth, or cultivated by human ingenuity, which afford a supply of the necessaries of life for man and for beast. Such is the economy of nature in the creation and preservation of her various works, such the wise adaptation of means to ends in the arrangement of the world and its innumerable inhabitants.

We shall, however, perceive more clearly the wonderful plan adopted by the Almighty for conducting the system of the world, by examining in detail the component parts of it, which are here described by the sacred historian.

Ver. 20. And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven.

21. And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth

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abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and God saw that it was good.

22. And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply in the earth.

It seems, from all the discoveries that mankind have been enabled to make of the system of nature, that every department of it is inhabited by living beings, adapted by their peculiar structure to the place and condition of their residence.

Not only do we find terrestrial animals, which are supported by the fruits of the earth, but also aquatic creatures, which subsist in vast multitudes among the waters of the ocean. As this element is much more dense as a medium of respiration, than the atmosphere in which we breathe, it would appear, a priori, very ill suited for the purposes of animal existence. But such is the wise provision which the Almighty hath made, for storing this part of his dominions, with both small and great beasts, that the external and internal conformation of their bodies enables them to exist in a fluid state.

Their organs of sensation are more obtuse than those of terrestrial animals, and consequently adapted to the density of the air which they inhale; and as their blood is cold, it corresponds with the nature of the element in which they live. They are furnished with vessels of digestion and secretion, in the same manner as other creatures that inhabit the land.

But there is a peculiar structure observable in the figure and members of the aquatic tribes, worthy of attention and admiration. Thus we find, that fishes of every kind are of an oblong shape, thickest at the middle, and tapering towards the head and tail. The final cause of this is evident, since a body so constructed is capable of making its way in the water with greater facility, than any other of a different formation. They are also covered with a glutinous substance, which preserves them from feeling the effects of cold, and with a scaly integument, which prevents the pressure of the water

from injuring their skin. They are furnished with fins, that are wisely adapted as instruments of motion; and it is wonderful what loco-motive power these members possess. The tail fin of a fish has such muscular strength, as is sufficient to propel the body against the most rapid current; the dorsal and pectoral fins enable it to direct its course upward or downward at pleasure; and the under fin preserves its balance in the water. They are supplied with gills, as organs of respiration, through which the water received into the mouth is ejected, and thus a degree of air is admitted, sufficient for sustaining the functions of life.-There is another remarkable organization peculiar to aquatic animals, and absolutely necessary for their mode of subsistence. As they proceed through a medium of unequal temperature, it is expedient that they should be capable of adjusting themselves to the gravity of the water most suitable to that of their bodies. For this purpose, an air-bladder is situated under the rest of their vessels, by distending which they can rise in the water, and support themselves at pleasure; and by contracting it, the air is compressed, and they sink to the bottom. That fish could not swim without this bladder is proved by observation, that when it is perforated, they can no longer ascend as usual, and that the crustaceous tribes which are not furnished with it, are thereby incapable of floating in the water. Thus, the whole species of aquatic animals are fitted by the structure of their bodies for inhabiting the element appointed for their residence: thus whatsoever pleased God, that he hath done in the sea and in all deep places.

Fishes have been classed by naturalists into several genera; but the most distinguishing properties of the finny race are, that most of them are covered with scales, and some few with shells. The former of these are called cartilaginous, and the latter testaceous. There are many facts connected with the natural history of fishes, which are astonishing instances of that instinctive principle with which their Creator has endowed them; but there is none more remarkable, than the mode of their production from the spawn which they deposit, and the incon