Galilei, Galileo - The systems of the world

Galilei, Galileo, The systems of the world, 1661

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nor eſſaies to move whither it is impoſſible to arrive. And if any
one ſhould yet object, that albeit the right line, and conſequent
ly the motion by it is producible in infinitum, that is to ſay, is in
terminate; yet nevertheleſs Nature, as one may ſay, arbitrarily
hath aſſigned them ſome terms, and given natural inſtincts to
its natural bodies to move unto the ſame; I will reply, that this

might perhaps be fabled to have come to paſs in the firſt Chaos,
where indiſtinct matters confuſedly and inordinately wandered;
to regulate which, Nature very appoſitely made uſe of right mo

tions, by which, like as the well-conſtituted, moving, diſdorder
themſelves, ſo were they which were before depravedly diſpoſed
by this motion ranged in order: but after their exquiſite diſtribu
tion and collocation, it is impoſſible that there ſhould remain na
tural inclinations in them of longer moving in a right motion,
from which now would enſue their removal from their proper and
natural place, that is to ſay, their diſordination; we may there
fore ſay that the right motion ſerves to conduct the matter to erect
the work; but once erected, that it is to reſt immoveable, or if

moveable, to move it ſelf onely circularly. Unleſs we will ſay
with Plato, that theſe mundane bodies, after they had been made
and finiſhed, were for a certain time moved by their Maker, in a
right motion, but that after their attainment to certain and de
terminate places, they were revolved one by one in Spheres, paſ
ſing from the right to the circular motion, wherein they have
been ever ſince kept and maintained. A ſublime conceipt, and

worthy indeed of Plato: upon which, I remember to have heard
our common friend the ^{*}Lyncean Academick diſcourſe in this man
ner, if I have not forgot it. Every body for any reaſon conſtitu
ted in a ſtate of reſt, but which is by nature moveable, being ſet

at liberty doth move; provided withal, that it have an inclina
tion to ſome particular place; for ſhould it ſtand indifferently af
fected to all, it would remain in its reſt, not having greater in
ducement to move one way than another. From the having of
this inclination neceſſarily proceeds, that it in its moving ſhall con

tinually increaſe its acceleration, and beginning with a moſt ſlow
motion, it ſhall not acquire any degree of velocity, before it
ſhall have paſſed thorow all the degrees of leſs velocity, or grea
ter tardity: for paſſing from the ſtate of quiet (which is the in

finite degree of tardity of motion) there is no reaſon by which
it ſhould enter into ſuch a determinate degree of velocity, before
it ſhall have entred into a leſs, and into yet a leſs, before it entred
into that: but rather it ſtands with reaſon, to paſs firſt by thoſe
degrees neareſt to that from which it departed, and from thoſe to
the more remote; but the degree from whence the moveable

began to move, is that of extreme tardity, namely of reſt.

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