ariety. These are borne by the winds to places far inland, to which
water in sufficient quantity could not come by any other means, and where
moisture is most required; and here the water is poured down, not in
cataracts and water-spouts, but in the form of drops of various sizes.
If the rain-clouds threw down, at once and suddenly, all the water
contained in them, not only would vegetation be destroyed by the force of
the fall, but we should be constantly liable to floods and other
inconveniences. Clouds also serve to screen the earth from the fierce
heat of the sun by day; and, by night, they serve to maintain the heat
which would otherwise escape by radiation, and produce great cold even in
summer. Clouds thus have great influence in regulating the extremes of
heat and cold, and in forming what is called the "climate" of a country.
Clouds also supply the hidden stores of fountains and the fresh water of
rivers; and, as a pious old divine well remarks, "So abundant is this
great blessing, which the most indulgent Creator hath afforded us by
means of this distribution of the waters I am speaking of, that there is
more than a scanty, bare provision, a mere sufficiency; even a plenty, a
surplusage of this useful creature of God, the fresh waters afforded to
the world; and they so well ordered, as not to drown the nations of the
earth, nor to stagnate, stink, and poison, or annoy them; but to be
gently carried through convenient channels back again to their grand
fountain the sea; and many of them through such large tracts of land and
to such prodigious distances, that it is a great wonder the fountains
should be high enough, or the seas low enough, ever to afford so long a
conveyance." {18}

If rain is not at all seasons pleasant and delightful, neither are
rain-clouds among the most beautiful which diversify the landscape of the
sky; for it has been well remarked, that "all the fine-weather clouds are
beautiful, and those connected with rain and wind mostly the reverse."
What, indeed, can be more striking than the aerial landscapes of fine
weather, in which, by an easy fancy, we can trace trees and towers,
magnificent ruins and glaciers, natural bridges and palaces, all dashed
with torrents of light or frowning in shadow, glowing like burnished
silver, glittering in a golden light, or melting into the most enchanting
hues? But with all this beauty the eye is seldom capable of judging
correctly of the proper size and