ok up to the sky;
Question your heart; it
Will answer the Why!
Bright is the glitter
Of beauty unfurled--
Boundless the love that
Has fashioned the world!

BIRDS.

The wisdom of God is seen in every part of creation, and especially
in the different kinds of birds. The beauty displayed in their
graceful forms and varied colors strikes every beholder, while the
adaptation of their organs for the purposes of flight, their peculiar
habits and modes of living, are a constant source of admiration to the
student of nature.

Almost everything about the shape of a bird fits it for moving rapidly
in the air, and all parts of its body are arranged so as to give it
lightness along with strength. The soft and delicate plumage of birds
protects them from cold or moisture; their wings, though so delicate,
are furnished with muscles of such power as to strike the air with
great force, whilst their tails act like the rudder of a ship, so that
they can direct their course at pleasure with the utmost ease.

The internal structure of a bird also is such as to help it to sustain
itself in, and to fly quickly through, the air. Its lungs are pierced
with large holes, which allow air to pass into cavities in the breast,
and even into the interior of the bones. It is thus not only rendered
buoyant, but is enabled to breathe even while in rapid motion. Two
sparrows, it is said, require as much air to maintain their breathing
properly as a guinea pig.

In many other ways the skill and goodness of God are seen in the "fowl
of the air." Their necks and beaks are long, and very movable, so that
they may readily pick up food and other objects from the ground. The
muscles of their toes are so arranged that the simple weight of the
body closes them, and they are able, in consequence, to sit on a perch
a long time without fatigue. Even in a violent wind a bird easily
retains its hold of the branch or twig on which it is sitting. Their
bills are of almost all forms: in some kinds they are straight; in
others curved, sometimes upwards and sometimes downwards; in others
they are flat; in some they are in the form of a cone, wedge-shaped,
or hooked. The bill enables a bird to take hold of its food, to strip
or divide it. It is useful also in carrying materials for its nest, or
food to its young; and in the birds of prey, such as the owl, the
hawk, the falcon, eagle, etc., the beak is a formidable weapon of
att