SECT. II. were moved, a Stone dropped from the Top of a Tower would not fall juft at the Foot of it. 4. A Ball fhot from a Cannon Eaftward at a Mark, could not come home to it, if the Mark with the whole Earth did at the fame Time move towards the Eaft or at leaft would hit the Mark fooner when shot towards the Weft, Alfo a Bird flying towards the Eaft would be retarded: but forwarded in flying the contrary Way. 5. Towers and Buildings could not stand upright, but would fall: and Men, by the quick Rotation, would become giddy. 6. Because (fay they) the Stars are obferved to change their Places, but not the Earth, 7. Because the Earth is in the Center of the World; but the Center of any Thing is not moved. 8. Because the holy Scriptures confirm the Stability of the Earth. TO all which the Copernicans answer thus, To the first, that the whole Earth, taken together, is not abfolutely heavy. For Gravity confifts in the Tendency of the homogeneous Parts to the whole; and tho' this kind of Gravity be found in the Sun and Moon, they are nevertheless not accounted weighty. TO the fecond they answer, that the circular Motion of the whole does in no wife hinder the relative Motion of the Parts, which are moved in in a direct Line towards the Center; as appears by the Parts of the Sun and Moon. TO the third they answer three ways, 1. That heavy Bodies are not carried directly towards the Center of the Earth, but in the shortest Lines poffible to it's Superficies; which are those parallel to the Tower; as Iron does not tend to the Center of the Loadftone, but to the Loadstone it felf. 2. The whole Atmosphere adheres to the Earth, and is moved along with it: therefore when Bodies are thus let fall, they partake of this circular Motion, Motion, and are carried downwards as it were in a Veffel. 3. Gaffendus, by repeated Experiments, found, that if a Body be projected from another Body in Motion, it will partake of the Motion of that other Body; as a Stone dropped from the Top of a Maft, while the Ship is in a very fwift Motion, is not left by the Ship but falls at the Foot of the Maft, Alfo a Ball fhot perpendicularly from the Foot of the Maft falls in the very fame Place. Therefore the Objection is of no Force. TO the fourth they anfwer as to the third. THE fifth Objection hath no Place, because the Motion of the Earth is even and uniform, without dafhing or ftriking against any other Body; and the Buildings being heavy Bodies, and homogeneous to the Earth, are moved as if they were in a Ship; which tho' it fails either fwiftly or flowly, yet if the Motion be even and steady without Waves and on fmooth Water, Bodies fet upright will not be overturned, nor a Glafs of Wine be fpilt. TO the fixth we anfwer, that we are not fenfible of any Change of Place in the Stars, only of their Situation in Refpect of our felves; which may appear and really be, whether we with the Earth, or the Stars themselves are moved; or even tho' both we and the Stars fhould be in Motion (b). IN (b) Most of thefe Objections are answered by the Laws of Mechanics, thus: Let W, E be the Line of Motion of a Ship from W to E, reprefenting the Motion of the Earth from West to Eaft. Let MT (in Fig. 9) be a Maft, from the Foot of which, M, fuppofe a Body to be thrown perpendicularly to the Top T, in the fame Time that the Ship moves from M to D. From the Conjunction of these two Forces (MT the Projection, and MD the Ship's Motion) it is manifeft, by the known Laws of Motion, that the Body will not be carried perpendicularly to the place T, but in the Diagonal Line F4 M B, PIN the feventh Objection both the Affertions are falfe; or at least doubtful, MB, fo as to accompany the Malt in it's Motion from MT to BD. Then fuppofe the Body to fall from the top of the Maft B to the foot D in the fame Time the Ship moves from D to G; and it is plain, that, by the mutual acting of B D, the centripetal Force, and B F=DG, the Ship's Motion, the Body will fall in the diagonal Line BG, and alfo accompany the Maft in it's Motion from D to G; fo that tho' it was really carried in the Lines MB, BG, yet it will feem to have moved, only upwards and downwards, parallel to the Line FG. 3. Alfo (in Fig. 10.) let M T be the fame Maft, and fuppofe a Projectile to be caft eaftward from the Stern S, to the top of the Maft T, in the Time the Ship moves alfo eastward from M to D; then will it's Motion upwards defcribe the Diagonal S B; where let it be obftructed fo as to feem to fall perpendicularly to D, in the Time the Ship moves from D to G; then, as before, it will defcribe the Diagonal BG, tho' it feemed to move upwards only in the Line TS, and downwards in FG.. So (in Fig. 11.) if a Body be projected weftward from the Head of the Ship H to the top of the Maft T, in the Time it moves eastward, HG. equal to the Distance MH, then will it's Motion upwards defcribe TO the perpendicular Line H B. And if in the fame time it feems to defcend from В to H that the Maft moves HG GMH, it's Motion downwards will defcribe the Diagonal B G. So that, in this Cafe, it afcends by a perpendicular Line, and falls by an inclining Line; tho' it feemed to afcend by the inclined Line F, and to fall by the perpendicular Line F G, Hence it is plain that Bodies may appear to have a Motion, directly contrary to their real and abfolute Motion: fo that it is pleafant to conceive, how falfly we may judge of the Motion of Bodies by their unequal Distance from us; not confidering that we may be infenfibly moved from them. < Hence alfo is deduced that ingenious Experiment of Galileo, mentioned in Derham's Aftro-Theology, as follows. Shut yourself up (Jays be) ' with your Friend in the great Cabin of a Ship, together 'with a Parcel of Gnats and Flies, and other little winged • Creatures. Procure alfo a great Tub of Water, and put Fishes therein. Hang also a Bottle of Water up to empty itfelf, drop by drop into another fuch Bottle placed underneath with a narrow Neck. Whilft the Ship lies ftill, diligently obferve how these little winged Creature fly with the like swiftness to every 6 TO the eighth is anfwered, 1. The holy Scriptures, in physical matters, always fpeak according to Appearances, and the Capacity of the Vulgar; as where the Moon is faid to be a great Light created to give Light in the Night (c): tho' the Moon you ry Part of the Cabin; how the Fishes fwim indifferently towards all Sides; and how ⚫ the defcending Drops all fall into the Bottle underneath. And if you throw any thing to your Friend you need use no more Force one way than another; provided the Diftances be equal. And if leap, you will reach as far one way as the other. Having obferved these Particulars whilft the Ship lies ftill, make the Ship to fail with what Velocity you pleafe; and fo long as the Motion is uniform, not fluctuating this Way and that Way, you fhall ⚫ not perceive there is any Alteration in the aforefaid Effects; neither can you from them conclude whether the Ship moveth or standeth ftill. But in leaping you shall reach · far on the Floor as you did before; nor by any Reason of the Ship's Motion fhall you make a longer Leap towards the Poop than the Prow; notwithstanding that whilft · you were up in the Air, the Floor under your Feet had run the contrary Way to your Leap. And if you caft any thing to your Companion, you need ufe no more Strength to make it reach him, if he should be towards the Prow and you towards . as the Poop, than if you flood in a contrary Pofition. The • Drops fhall all fall into the Bottle that is lower; and not one towards the Poop, al 'tho' the Ship fhall have run many Feet, whilft the Drop was in the Air. The Fishes in the Water fhall have no more Trouble in swimming towards the fore part of the Tub, than towards the hin der Part; but fhall make to the Bait with equal swiftness on any Side of the Tub. And lastly the Gnats and Flies fhall continue their Flight indifferently towards all Parts, and never be driven together towards the Side of the Ca'bin next the Prow; as if wearied with following the fwift Motion of the Ship. And if by burning a few • Grains of Incense you make 6 a little Smoak; you shall ⚫ perceive it to afcend on high, and hang like a cloud, moving indifferently this Way or that, without any inclination to one Side more than another.' All which Obfervations depend upon the aforesaid Laws of Mechanics; and fufficiently anfwer the most confiderable Objections, deduced from Philofophy, against the Motion of the Earth. (c) Gen. i. 16. be be not great in Refpect of the Earth and fixed Stars, nor hath any Light in itself; neither doth it give Light to the Earth every Night. Thus the Sun is faid to go forth from the End of the Hea vens, and to hafte to it again (d); whereas in Truth there is no fuch End to be found. So in the Book of a plane and of Job (e), the Earth is faid to be fquare Figure, underpropped and fupported with Pillars; which is not to be understood in a literal Senfe, as even the most ignorant may perceive (ƒ) More (d) Pfal. xix. 6. Ecclef. i. 15. (e) Fob ix. 6. xxviii. 24. Befides, Things are of ten spoke of as they appear, not as they really are. For as St Hierom fays (upon the thirteenth Chapter of St Matthew) It is the Cuftom of the Scriptures, for the Hiftorian to relate the Opinion Men had of many Matters, as at that Time thofe Matters were by all People taken to be. And in another Place. There are many Things in the Holy Scriptures, which are Spoken according to the Opinion of the Time in which they were done; and not according to Reality. And we fhould find very abfurd Conclufions would follow the taking of these Texts in a literal Senfe. For in Fofoua x. 12, 13. the Sun is ordered to fand fill upon mount Gibeon, and the Moon in the valley of Ajalon. But it would be very abfurd to take this in a ftrict literal Senfe, and imagine thofe two great Luminaries were confined to thofe two Places, otherwise than in Appearance to the victorious Ifrae lites. And if fo confiderable a Part of the Tranfaction be spoken according to it's Appearance, why may not the whole? Why might not this Station as well be an Arrest of the Earth's Motion, as that of the Heavens? If the whole Miracle was not (as fome not improbably think) effected by Means of fome preternatural Refractions, or extraordinary Meteors, &c. And fo for the Recefs of the Sun, or it's Shadow in Hezekiah's Cafe (2 Kings xx. 10. and Ifai. xxxviii. 8.) which in appearance feemed to be the Sun, is, by divers learned Men, thought to have been the Effect of fuch like extraordi nary Refractions or Meteors, as mentioned in the last Cafe: Or if it was a real Regress, why not of the Earth rather than the Sun and whole Heavens? See Derham's Aftro-Theol. Befides, Hiftoriographers feldom confine themselves to a Geometrical or Aftronomical nicety in their Defcriptions of Things. As, in 1 Kings vii. 23. it is written, that Solomon made a malten sea, ten cubits from one brim |