"
"A beautiful harmony of Nature," remarked Fritz drily.
"Then plants," continued Jack, "are still more prolific than animals.
Some trees can produce as many of their kind as they have branches, or
even leaves. An elm tree, twelve years old, yields sometimes five
hundred thousand pods; and, by the way, Willis, to encourage you in
carrying on the war against the mosquitoes, a single stalk of tobacco
produces four thousand seeds."
"The leaves, however, are of more use to me than the seeds," replied
Willis.
"This admirable proportion between the productiveness of the two
kingdoms demonstrates the far-seeing wisdom of Providence. If the
power of multiplication in vegetables had been less considerable, the
fields, gardens, and prairies would have been deserts, with only a
plant here and there to hide the nakedness of the land. Had God
permitted animals to multiply in excess of plants, the entire
vegetation would soon have been devoured, and then the animals
themselves would of necessity have ceased to exist."
"How is it, then," inquired Willis, "with this continual
multiplication always going on, the inhabitants of land and sea do not
get over-crowded?"
"Why, as regards man, for example, if thirteen or fourteen human
beings are born within a given period, death removes ten or eleven
others; but though this leaves a regular increase, still the
population of the globe always continues about the same.
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