{"collection":"scripture-revelation","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/gutenberg_37508/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/gutenberg_37508","id":"gutenberg_37508","license":"Public Domain (US)","rights_basis":"gutenberg_metadata_copyright_false","source":"gutenberg","source_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/37508","summary":null,"tags":["Category: Children & Young Adult Reading","Category: Religion/Spirituality","Children's stories","Sunday school literature"],"text":"</pre>\n\n\n\nProduced by Larry B. Harrison, and the Archives and Special\nCollections, University Libraries, Ball State University\nand the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at\nhttp://www.pgdp.net\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n[Illustration: Cover]\n\n  1102\n\n  THE\n  COCHINEAL.\n\n  New York:\n\n  General Protestant Episcopal Sunday School Union;\n  Depository, Press Buildings, No. 46 Lumber-Street,\n  in rear of Trinity Church.\n\n  _Printed at the Protestant Episcopal Press,\n  No. 46 Lumber-Street._\n\n\n\n\nTHE COCHINEAL.\n\n\nAs I was one day studying in the same room with my little son, a child\nof ten years old, he turned towards me, and pointed to a little insect\nwhich was crawling on a sheet of paper.\n\n\"Look, papa,\" said he, \"look at that insect; how small it is! See how\nit moves its feet--how wonderful that GOD should have made this little\ncreature!\"\n\n_Father._ It is a little cochineal.[A]--Wait; I will bring my\nmicroscope, and we shall see many more wonderful things.\n\n_Child._ Make haste, or it will fly away.\n\nI put the insect between two glasses, and thus prevented it from\nescaping, without restraining it from moving its limbs. To the naked\neye, it did not look at all remarkable: its back was of a brown\ncolour, spotted with black and white, and the under part of its body\nwas gray. But no sooner had I placed it in the focus of the\nmicroscope, than I was filled with wonder and admiration. The back,\nwhich before appeared unworthy of notice, now displayed the most\nperfect and beautiful appearance. The colour, which appeared brown to\nthe naked eye, now presented a variety of feathers or scales of the\nsame size and shape, polished, brilliant, distinct, and arranged in\nfar more exact order than the tiles on the best built roof. The ground\nwas formed of beautiful white scales, surrounded by a border of\npolished black and blue scales of the same description. A black line\ndivided the back into two equal parts.\n\n\"How marvellously wise and powerful is the LORD!\" exclaimed I. \"Who\nwould believe that so many beauties, and such a variety of exquisite\nworkmanship, had been bestowed on this little, despicable insect? Oh,\nhow great is our GOD!\"\n\nThe child was impatient to judge for himself. He approached the\nmicroscope, and gazed in silence for some moments. At length, raising\nhis head, and fixing his eyes upon me with an expression of wonder and\nastonishment--\"Oh! papa,\" exclaimed he, \"is not this beautiful? How\nbeautiful!\" repeated he, raising his hands. \"How powerful GOD must be\nto give this little insect, which attracts so little attention, such a\nbeautiful coat! Did you see its scales, its neck, its head, and its\nglittering horns? It looks like glass on polished gold. How beautiful!\nhow beautiful!\"\n\n_Father._ My dear boy, since our heavenly Father is so great, so\npowerful, and so wise; since he takes such care of this little insect\nwhich crawls upon the ground; think how great must be his care of his\nown children, whom he loved so much as to give his well-beloved SON to\ndie for them, that they might be saved, from eternal death!\n\n_Child._ Yes; our Saviour himself says that his children 'are of more\nvalue than many sparrows;' so they must be of more value than this\nlittle insect: and since it has received, and does all the while\nreceive from GOD, its food and its rich and beautiful clothing, surely\nthe same GOD will feed and clothe us also! My dear papa, are we not\nvery happy in having seen this insect, since it has shown us the power\nand goodness of the LORD?\n\n_Papa._ Yes, my dear; let us thank GOD for thus enlarging our views of\nhis goodness and infinite wisdom. How good GOD is, thus to fill our\nhearts with confidence, to assure us of his guardian care, and to\nteach us that he sees, protects, and preserves us!\n\nI now turned the microscope, that we might examine the cochineal on\nthe other side; it was equally beautiful and perfect. The side legs,\nwhich were so disposed as to balance the body, and make its motions\neasy, were partly covered with scales, like those on the back; but\nthey were much smaller and more flexible. There were no scales near\nthe joints, and the legs were fastened to the body with such exactness\nthat it was impossible to perceive the smallest defect, even by means\nof the strongest lens. Its light and delicate limbs moved with the\ngreatest ease, and with most astonishing regularity.\n\n\"How wonderful is even one of its legs!\" said I; \"could the most skilful\nartist or human mechanic imitate it, even in the clumsiest manner? Could\nthe most learned man give motion and life to this little creature?\"\n\n_Child._ And yet some people say that all this is done by chance; is\nthis possible, papa?\n\n_Father._ My dear, there is no such thing as _chance_. GOD made the\nworld, and all that it contains. He alone is the Creator and Preserver\nof all. Those that say that this insect was made by chance, show that\nthey have never examined it; and thus they cannot have seen the\npowerful hand of GOD.\n\n_Child._ And what do those mean who say that _nature_ created animals\nand plants?\n\n_Father._ Those who speak so are generally irreligious and ignorant\npersons, who, instead of glorifying and blessing GOD as their Creator\nand Preserver, never mention his name in their works or conversation;\nand thus, instead of saying, 'GOD made this or that,' they say 'Nature\nmade' such things.\n\n_Child._ GOD then made every thing?\n\n_Father._ Yes, every thing, except what is bad.\n\n_Child._ This must be true: GOD created us, and preserves us every\nmoment. Yet few think of him, or speak of him. How does this happen,\npapa?\n\n_Father._ My dear child, our hearts are naturally turned away from GOD.\nSin is the cause of this sad state: it separates our hearts from our\nFather and Creator. We do not wish to own that he preserves and takes\ncare of us--supplies our wants, and gives us all things we enjoy.\n\n_Child._ Oh, papa! how few love GOD, and trust in him as they ought!\n\n_Father._ The true children of GOD alone really love him, desire to\nplease him, and sincerely trust in his goodness. Yes, my child, till\nwe are true Christians, till we are renewed and changed by the SPIRIT\nOF GOD, we are like this little insect. We receive life, motion, food,\nand clothing from him, but we seldom think of him; and we do not even\nthank him for all his gifts.\n\n_Child._ I think, papa, that those who forget GOD are not even so good\nas this little insect; for it at least does nothing wrong, while they\nare wicked, obstinate, proud, and ungrateful.\n\n_Father._ You are right, my dear child. The sinner is not so good as\nthis insect. How thankful should we then be that our Saviour has\nredeemed us from sin, and has made us children of GOD, by uniting us\nfor ever to himself?\n\n_Child._ Yes, we know that GOD is our Father, and that he loves us. I\nam sure he takes care of me, since he has given his SON to save me.\nWhat a good Father! what a kind Saviour!\n\n_Father._ Continue to love this good Saviour, my dear child; and\nalways remember the words of St. Paul:--\"He who spared not his own\nSon, but gave him up to the death for us all, shall he not with him\nalso freely give us all things?\" Remember the cochineal, which is so\nwonderfully formed by the LORD, and seek, above all things, the\nblessing of the all-wise, powerful, and good GOD, who never forgets\nyou, and who is, through JESUS CHRIST, your heavenly Father.\n\n[Illustration]\n\n\n\n\nTHE GREAT AND GOOD GOD.\n\n\n        How wonderful this rolling ball\n          Of earth, that bears me now!\n        And, O! thou mighty GOD of all,\n          How wonderful art Thou!\n\n        (And what is this vast world to thee,\n          With all its sea and land?\n        Just what a pebble is _to me_,\n          Or e'en a grain of sand.)\n\n        And may a simple child address\n          So great and high a King?\n        And will he notice, will he bless\n          So mean a little thing?\n\n        And may I hope his love to win,\n          Before his face to stand,\n        Who holds this spacious world within\n          The hollow of his hand?\n\n        O yes! for though he is so high,\n          He makes e'en worms his care;\n        He will not scorn an infant's cry,\n          A sinful infant's pray'r.\n\n\n\n\nFootnote:\n\n\n[Footnote A: Perhaps the young reader would know it better by its more\ncommon name of _lady bird_.]\n\n\n\n\n\n<pre id=\"pg-footer\">","title":"The Cochineal","tradition":"scripture-revelation","translated_text":null,"word_count":1445}