Kindness to Animals

Kindness to Animals

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Title: Kindness to Animals Or, The Sin of Cruelty Exposed and
Rebuked
Author: Charlotte Elizabeth
Release Date: March 10, 2006 [EBook #17961]
Language: English
Character set encoding: ASCII
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TO ANIMALS ***

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[Illustration: FRONTISPIECE.]

KINDNESS TO ANIMALS;

OR, THE
Sin of Cruelty
EXPOSED AND REBUKED.
[Illustration]
REVISED BY THE COMMITTEE OF PUBLICATION OF THE
AMERICAN SUNDAY-SCHOOL UNION.
PHILADELPHIA: AMERICAN SUNDAY-SCHOOL UNION, 146
CHESTNUT STREET.

Entered according to act of Congress, in the year 1845, by HERMAN
COPE, Treasurer, in trust for the American Sunday-school Union, in
the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the Eastern District of
Pennsylvania.

KINDNESS TO ANIMALS.

KINDNESS TO ANIMALS.
[Illustration]
CHAPTER I.
ABOUT THE BEGINNING.
Many books have been written about animals, and very good books too,
giving a great deal of information. Most of them are called works of
Natural History; and they usually give some description of the birds
and beasts, fishes and insects, that are known to man. I am not going to
write such a book as that; but to say a little about different kinds of

creatures that we are all in the habit of seeing, and to tell you a few
things of some which have belonged to me, or have come under my
own observation; so that, at least, I can promise to write nothing but
what I know to be true. I have not learned their characters and habits
from books, but by watching them ever since I was a very young child;
and many a happy hour I have spent in that delightful employment.
One of the first things that it came into my little head to ask was, "How
were the animals made; and why were any of them made wild and cruel,
while some are tame and quiet?" I was told that the Bible gave an
answer to that question; and so it does. If we look in the first chapter of
Genesis, where there is an account of the creation of the world, we find
that on the fifth day God created the fishes to move in the water, and
the fowls to fly in the air; and on the sixth day, "God made the beast of
the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that
creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and God saw that it was good."
From this we learn, that there was no violence or cruelty in any of them,
as they first came from the hand of the holy and merciful God. And I
would have you take particular notice of what directly follows: "And
God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness; and let
them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the
air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping
thing that creepeth upon the earth." Now, the great God is invisible--a
Spirit--and not a body, as I think you all know; and when it is said that
God made man in his own image, it must mean that man was made to
be holy, and just, and good, and merciful; and he was made to be a
careful and loving ruler over the poor dumb creatures, as the Lord God
is a careful and loving ruler over all that he has created.
Then, in the next chapter, we have a beautiful picture before us: I do
not mean a print, or drawing, but a description in words, that, if we
think a little, will make us fancy we see a lovely sight, such as we
cannot now see anywhere. We are told that out of the ground the Lord
God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and then
that He "brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them: and
whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name
thereof."

Was it not a wonderful and a beautiful sight? There, in a very delicious
garden, full of all manner of rich fruit and bright flowers, with soft
warm air, and calm sunshine, was the first and only man in all the
world! He was righteous and good, without any malice, or cruelty, or
covetousness, or pride in his heart, looking with delight