Hallam Hawksworth

The Adventures of a Grain of Dust Hallam Hawksworth

As everybody knows, we must all eat to live, and how could either Columbus or anybody else-except Mr. Lichen-have done much discovering in a world where there was nothing to eat? When the continents first rose out of the sea[2] there wasn't anything to eat but rock. Rock, to be sure, makes very good eating if you have the stomach for it, as Mr. Lichen has. It contains sulphur, phosphorus, silica, potash, soda, iron, and other things that plants are fond of, but ordinary plants can't get these things out of the rock-let alone human beings and other animals; and that's why Mr. Lichen had the first seat at the table and always does.