Castelli, Benedetto, Of the mensuration of running waters, 1661

Table of figures

< >
< >
page |< < of 137 > >|
1ing therefore my above-ſaid conceit about the riſing of the wa­
ter in the glaſs tried before, it came into my minde, that the
forementioned rain having been very gentle, it might well be,
that if there ſhould have faln a Rain fifty, an hundred, or a thou­
ſand times greater than this, and much more intenſe (which
would inſue as oft as thoſe falling drops were four, ſive or ten
times bigger than thoſe of the above-mentioned rain, keeping
the ſame number) in ſuch a caſe its manifeſt, that in the ſpace
of an hour the Water would riſe in our Glaſs, two, three, and
perhaps more Yards or Braces; and conſequently, if ſuch a
Raine ſhould fall upon a Lake, that the ſaid Lake would
riſe, according to the ſame rate: And likewiſe, if ſuch a
Rain were univerſall, over the whole Terreſtriall Globe, it
would neceſſarily, in the ſpace of an hour, make a ri­
ſing of two, or three braces round about the ſaid Globe,
And becauſe we have from Sacred Records, that in the
time of the Deluge, it rained fourty dayes and fourty nights;
namely, for the ſpace of 960 houres; its clear, that if the ſaid
Rain had been ten times bigger than ours at Perugia, the riſing
of the Waters above the Terreſtrial Globe would reach and paſs
a mile higher than the tops of the Hills and Mountains that are
upon the ſuperficies of the Earth; and they alſo would concur
to increaſe the riſe.
And therefore I conclude, that the riſe of
the Waters of the Deluge have a rational congruity with natural
Diſcourſes, of which I know very well that the eternal truths of
the Divine leaves have no need; but however I think ſo clear an
agreement is worthy of our conſideration, which gives us occa­
ſion to adore and admire the greatneſſe of God in his mighty
Works, in that we are ſometimes able, in ſome ſort, to meaſure
them by the ſhort Standard of our Reaſon.
Many Leſſons alſo may be deduced from the ſame Doctrine,
which I paſſe by, for that every man of himſelf may eaſily know
them, having once ſtabliſhed this Maxime; That it is not poſſi­
ble to pronounce any thing, of a certainty, touching the quantity
of Running Waters, by conſidering only the ſingle vulgar mea­
ſure of the Water wichout the velocity; and ſo on the contrary,
he that computes only the velocity, without the meaſure, ſhall
commit very great errours; for treating of the meaſure of Run­
ning Waters, it is neceſſary, the water being a body, in handling
its quantity, to conſider in it all the three dimenſions of breadth,
depth, and length: the two firſt dimenſions are obſerved by all
in the common manner, and ordinary way of meaſuring Running
Waters; but the third dimenſion of length is omitted; and hap­
ly ſuch an overſight is committed, by reaſon the length of Run­

Text layer

  • Dictionary
  • Places

Text normalization

  • Original

Search


  • Exact
  • All forms
  • Fulltext index
  • Morphological index