"In this forlorn and almost helpless condition," he says, "when the
robbers had left me, I sat for some time looking around me with
amazement and terror. Whichever way I turned, nothing appeared but
danger and difficulty. I found myself in the midst of a vast wilderness,
in the depth of the rainy season--naked and alone,--surrounded by
savages. I was five hundred miles from any European settlement. All
these circumstances crowded at once upon my recollection; and I confess
that my spirits began to fail me. I considered my fate as certain, and
that I had no alternative, but to lie down and perish. The influence of
religion, however aided and supported me. I reflected that no human
prudence or foresight could possibly have averted my present sufferings.
I was indeed a stranger in a strange land, yet I was still under the eye
of that Providence who has condescended to call himself the stranger's
friend. At this moment, painful as my reflections were, the
extraordinary beauty of a small Moss irresistibly caught my eye; and
though the whole plant was not larger than the top of one of my fingers,
I could not contemplate the delicate conformation of its roots, leaves,
and fruit, without admiration. Can that Being (thought I) who planted,
watered, and brought to perfection, in this obscure part of the world, a
thing which appears of so small importance, look with unconcern upon the
situation and sufferings of creatures formed after his own image? Surely
not.
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