| Show THE WORK OF WORMS we arc are for forcibly bibly reminded of the old school book verso verse A good god reigie over all when we ive leam learn how even so insignificant and to some repulsive a it a worm has lins a mission to fulfill iri tho the great plan of creation arid md so it is chag chas darwin great grea naturalist from whose investigation and studied studies insipid challow pates pretend to do duct arguments for the denial denied or even of the existence of an all wise and all merciful architect of the universe has lately published a new work it is entitled the tile formation of vegetable mold through the action of worms and observations of their habits while the mind of a kepler newton laplace and herschel soars up among the immensities of celestial worlds air carwins Dar wins eye penetrates into tho tile dark depths of the ground we walk on and pierces its supposed secrets and unravels its ministration the main ideas of the work mentioned are that everything in the universe exists for some special purpose that the despised worm has ever rendered a great ser service vice to mankind so great indeed that the author doubts whether there is any animal which has played so important a part in the history of the world he traces in the worms worm s actions and mode of living many clear proofs of intelligence it lias has no eyes and ears but has a complicated digestive system I it t d drags rags leaves into its hole to protect itself from the cold earth the so called vegetable mold the author claims is the work of animal animals the worm swallows earth and at atones tones these passing through its body b become acome a rich mold deposited on the surface the estimate is that there are 35 to worms in an acre of land that the mold they cast up in a year would measure one afif fifth iliohan of an inch h antho on the surface the author notes one instance in which fourteen fourte en and a half tons of rich mould was spread pr ead over an acre efland of land in one y year thus the whole surface of tho the earth is being perpetually changed by the industry of worms while a rich natural manure is being constantly formed but darwin goes further ho he saya says that the holes made by worms aid drainage allow air to penetrate the ground and thus play an important part in the disintegration of rocks one of the curious facts discovered by him is that the old roman pave ments and perhaps tho the old roman towns of Sil chister bister and Uri conium in england have been preserved through the incessant labor of worms the worms throw up the mold from beneath which causes the stones tones to gradually sink into the ground these tle arc are lessons Jor others than the mere more student of natural science or the agriculturist they appeal with irresistible force to every intellect the man who is able to elevate his mental vision above merely scientific things above crude matter nd inanimate substance will propound to himself the momentous question if the lowliest form of nature ii is so full of life instinct with or impelled by intelligence what must it be what is it in its higher and more complex manifestations thus the humble despised worm silences the mockery of the scoffing skeptic and he be cannot gainsay that god moves in a mysterious way hr ilie wonders to perform 11 MX mm N have often been reported p ortch by adventurous explorers in countries where no other white man had ventured to disprove the assertion of the discovery but still there seems to bo be a tenacious vitality either in the imagination of travelers or antho in tho credulity of the public the following ia is the latest as we find it in tho tile N Y sun rumors of a tailed race of men living in the interior of borneo have often been heard though probably no one seriously believed d them carl bock a recent traveller in iii borneo was however assured by some of his native companions ions that such a race really did exist in the interior somewhere about the upper course of the barita mr bock tells us that tempted by a large reward one of hii his native guides undertook to visit the territory of the chief of this co so called tailed race and the result waa was that the chief feeling insulted made inside active preparations for fot war another messenger however succeeded in pacifying him it seems that the suite in attendance on the sultan of is known as his tail tall peo el pi c e and out of this it can easily be seen how all the rest would arise arise |
