Wilkins, John, A discovery of a new world : or a discourse tending to prove, that 'tis probable there may be another Habitable World in the Moon ; with a discourse concerning the Probability of a Passage thither; unto which is added, a discourse concerning a New Planet, tending to prove, that 'tis probable our earth is one of the Planets

Table of contents

< >
< >
page |< < (85) of 370 > >|
9785That the Moon may be a World. ſider how any Rugged Body would appear, be-
ing enlightned, you would eaſily conceive that
it muſt neceſſarily ſeem under ſome ſuch Gib-
bous unequal form, as the Moon is here repre-
ſented.
Now for the Infallibility of theſe ap-
pearances, I ſhall refer the Reader to that which
hath been ſaid in the Sixth Propoſition.
But Gæſar la Galla affirms, that all theſe
appearances may conſiſt with a plainSuperficies,
if we ſuppoſe the parts of the Body to be ſome
of them Diaphanous, and ſome Opacous;
and
if you Object, that the Light which is convey'd
to any Diaphanous part in a plain Superficies,
muſt be by a continued Line, whereas here there
appear many brighter parts among the Obſcure
at ſome diſtance from the reſt.
To this he
anſwers, it may ariſe from ſome Secret Con-
veyances and Channels within her Body, that
do conſiſt of a more Diaphanous matter, which
being covered over with an Opacous Superfi-
cies, the Light paſſing through them, may break
out a great way off;
whereas the other parts
betwixt, may ſtill remain Dark.
Juſt as the
River Aretbuſa in Sicily, which runs under
ground for a great way, and afterwards breaks
out again.
But becauſe this is one of the cheifeſt
Fancies, whereby he thinks he hath fully an-
ſwered the Argument of this Opininion;
I will
therefore ſet down his anſwer in his own words
leſt the Reader might ſuſpect more in them,
than I have expreſſed.
Non eſt impoſſible cæcos
11cap. II. ductus diaphani &
perſpicui corporis, ſed opacd
ſuperficie protendi, uſque in diapbanam aliquam ex
profundoin ſuperficiem emergentem partem, per quos
ductus lume inlongo poſt modum interſticio

Text layer

  • Dictionary

Text normalization

  • Original
  • Regularized
  • Normalized

Search


  • Exact
  • All forms
  • Fulltext index
  • Morphological index