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[[underline]] May [[/underline]] [[underline]] 1866 [[/underline]]
attempt to account for the apparent tendency of Nature to undertake more than she was able to accomplish  Mr. Bushnell said the numerous blossoms that fall to the ground without producing fruit, the innumeral eggs & young of animals that never reach maturity might be a Providential Symbolization of the short comings of the human race. wh. seemed to me rather an egotistical interpretation of the phenomena in question.  He proceeded in carrying out this system of symbolism to give an account of the wars of the pismires who fight their micro battles with all the ferocity & with much of the military diplomacy of those whom Mr. Bushnell considers their human prototype and were he thinks formed to thus to teach man the absurdity of the wars that only desolate & destroy.  To gather such lessons from Natures processes is well but that God created the whole race of pismires to teach
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May  [[underline]] 1866 [[/underline]]
such a truth to the two or three individuals who may have observed their habits can hardly be Mr. Bushnell.  Father said the numerous surplus blossoms produced was a wise provision of Nature to guard against accidents & how many honey bees did they supply with their sweets.  So the surplus in the animal creation might exist for the same reason & also to provide food for other animals.
Mary Felton came tonight.  We received a very surprising peice of news from Oxford yesterday viz. the addition of small boy to our little parson's family.
22nd  Went to play croquet at the Wilkes in the afternoon.  assisted Father in the morning in sorting pamphlets.  Went from the Wilkes to Mrs. Hooper's to tea.  Col & Mrs. Bliss were there also & in the course of the evening Mr. [[Smucker?]] came in.  Mr. Hooper was in the House until a late hour when he came in he
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