"Now look down," said the stranger, "and tell me what thou seest." "I see," replied the Solitary, 66 a hawk darting amidst a flock of small birds, one of which he has caught, while the others escape." "And canst thou think," rejoined the stranger, "that the single bird, made a prey of by the hawk, lies under any particular doom of Providence, or that those which fly away are more the objects of divine favour than it ? Hawks, by nature, were made to feed upon living prey, and were endowed with strength and swiftness to enable them to overtake and master it. Thus life is sacrificed to the support of life. But to this destruction limits are set. The small birds are much more numerous and prolific than the birds of prey; and though they cannot resist his force, they have dexterity and nimbleness of flight sufficient in general to elude his pursuit. It is in this balance that the wisdom of Providence is seen; and what can be a greater proof of it than that both species, the destroyer and his prey, have subsisted together from their first creatior. Now look again, and tell me what thou seest.' "I see," said the Solitary, " a thick black cloud gathering in the sky. I hear the thunder rolling from side to side of the vault of heaven. I behold the red lightning darting from the bosom of darkness. Now it has fallen on a stately tree, and shattered it to pieces, striking to the ground an ox sheltered at its foot. Now it falls again in the midst of a flock of timorous sheep, and several of them are left on the plain; and see! the shepherd himself lies extended by their side. Now it strikes a lofty spire, and at the same time sets in a blaze an humble cottage beneath. It is an awful and terrible sight!" "It is so," returned the stranger; "but what dost thou conclude from it? Dost thou not know, that from the genial heat, which gives life to plants and animals, and ripens the fruits of the earth, proceeds this electrical fire, which, ascending to the clouds, and charging them beyond what they are able to contain, is launched again in burning bolts to the earth? Must it leave its direct course to strike the tree rather than the dome of worship, or to spend its fury on the herd rather than the herdsman? Millions of millions of living creatures have owed their birth to this active element; and shall we think it strange if a few meet their deaths from it? Thus the mountain torrent that rushes down to fertilize the plain, in its course may sweep away the works of human industry, and man himself with them; but could its benefits be purchased at another price ?" "All this," said the Solitary, "I tolerably comprehend; but may I presume to ask, whence have proceeded the moral evils of the painful scenes of yesterday? What good end is answered by making man the scourge of man, and preserving the guilty at the cost of the innocent ?" "That, too," replied the venerable stranger, "is a consequence of the same wise laws of Providence." If it were right to make man a creature of habit, and render those things easy to him with which he is most familiar, the sailor must, of course, be better able to shift for himself in a shipwreck than the passenger; while that self-love, which is essential to the preservation of life, must, in general, cause him to consult his own safety in preference to that of others. The same force of habit, in a way of life full of peril and hardship, must conduce to form a rough, bold, and unfeeling character. This, under the direction of principle, will make a brave man; without it, a robber and a murderer. In the latter case, human laws step in to remove the evil which they have not been able to prevent. Wickedness meets with the fate which, sooner or later, always awaits it; and innocence, though occasionally a sufferer, is proved in the end to be the surest path to happiness." But," resumed the Solitary, can it be said that the lot of innocence is always preferable to that of guilt in this world ?" "If it cannot," replied the other, "thinkest thou that the Almighty is unable to make retribution in a future world? Dismiss, then, from thy mind the care of single events, secure that the great whole is ordered for the best. Expect not a particular interposition of Heaven, because such an interposition would seem to thee seasonable. Thou, perhaps, wouldst stop the vast machine of the universe to save a fly from being crushed under its wheels. But innumerable flies and men are crushed every day, yet the grand motion goes on, and will go on, to fulfil the benevolent intentions of its Author." He ceased, and sleep on a sudden left the eyelids of the Solitary. He looked abroad from his cell, and beheld all nature smiling around him. The rising sun shone in a clear sky. Birds were sporting in the air, and fish glancing on the surface of the waters. Fleets were pursuing their steady course, gently wafted by the pleasant breeze. Light, fleecy clouds were sailing over the blue expanse of heaven. His soul sympathized with the scene, and peace and joy filled his bosom. EPILOGUE. AND now, so many Evenings past, Hope of the world, the rising race, WYMAN AND SONS, PRINTERS, GREAT QUEEN STREET, LONDON. GEORGE ROUTLEDGE & SONS' JUVENILE BOOKS. s. d. In small 4to, cloth gilt, price 8s. 6d., gilt edges 9s. 6d. Every Boy's Book. A New Edition. Edited by 8 6 EDMUND ROUTLEDGE. A Complete Cyclopædia of Sport and Recreation. With 100 Illustrations and 9 Coloured Plates. In 4to, cloth, and royal 8vo, gilt and gilt edges, price 7s. 6d. each, Homes and Haunts of the British Poets. By 7 6 Little Barefoot. A Domestic Tale. 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