A second defence of the New theory of the earth from the exceptions of Mr. John Keill. By William Whiston, M.A. vicar of Lowestoft, Suffolk; and chaplain to the Right Reverend Father in God, John Lord Bishop of Norwich
Whiston, William, 1667-1752.
1700
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A second defence of the New theory of the earth from the exceptions of Mr. John Keill. By William Whiston, M.A. vicar of Lowestoft, Suffolk; and chaplain to the Right Reverend Father in God, John Lord Bishop of Norwich
Whiston, William, 1667-1752.
[2], 22 p.
printed for Benj. Tooke at the Middle-Temple-Gate in Fleetstreet,
London :
1700.
A response to John Keill's "Examination of Dr. Burnet's theory of the earth", in which Keill, an astronomer, attacked Whiston as well as Burnet.
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eng
Keill, John, 1671-1721. -- Examination of Dr. Burnet's theory of the earth -- Controversial literature -- Early works to 1800.
New theory of the earth -- Apologetic works -- Early works to 1800.
Astronomy -- Religious aspects -- Early works to 1800.
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A
SECOND
DEFENCE
OF
THE
New
Theory
of
the
Earth
FROM
THE
EXCEPTIONS
OF
Mr.
IOHN
KEILL
.
By
WILLIAM
WHISTON
,
M.
A.
Vicar
of
Lowestoft
,
Suffolk
;
and
Chaplain
to
the
Right
Reverend
Father
in
God
,
IOHN
,
Lord
Bishop
of
Norwich
.
LONDON
:
Printed
for
Benj.
Tooke
at
the
Middle-Temple-Gate
in
Fleetstreet
.
1700.
A
SECOND
DEFENCE
OF
THE
New
Theory
of
the
Earth
,
&c.
SINCE
I
have
resolv'd
to
be
as
short
as
possible
in
this
Rejoinder
,
and
have
ever
determin'd
with
my self
to
avoid
all
Heat
and
Passion
;
all
Recriminations
and
personal
Reflections
;
which
I
look
upon
as
Things
unworthy
of
the
Professors
of
the
Peaceable
and
Charitable
Religion
of
our
Saviour
;
as
Immoralities
in
Philosophers
,
and
Crimes
in
Christians
:
I
shall
therefore
wave
all
things
in
Mr.
Keill's
Defence
which
might
occasion
any
Reflections
of
that
nature
,
and
endeavour
only
to
debate
the
Matters
in
dispute
between
us
with
all
the
Calmness
and
Fairness
possible
.
And
as
wherever
I
am
convinc'd
by
his
Reasons
,
I
shall
freely
own
it
;
so
it
is
but
Equal
that
I
expect
the
same
of
him
upon
the
same
Occasions
.
Only
He
must
give
me
leave
to
say
,
That
the
Reason
of
my
Surprize
at
His
appearing
in
Publick
against
me
,
was
not
any
Special
Obligations
I
thought
him
under
to
me
;
but
his
having
declar'd
his
Satisfaction
with
the
principal
Assertion
,
nay
the
main
Foundation
of
my
Theory
,
viz.
That
a
Comet
pass'd
by
the
Earth
at
the
Deluge
.
After
which
Concession
I
could
not
,
I
thought
,
expect
an
Opposition
in
Print
to
my
Book
from
him
.
I
will
repeat
Mr.
Keill's
Words
at
large
,
in
the
beginning
of
his
former
Remarks
,
and
Appeal
to
the
Candid
Reader
,
whether
I
had
not
some
reason
to
be
surpriz'd
.
I
cannot
but
acknowledge
,
says
Mr.
Keill
,
that
the
Author
of
the
New
Theory
of
the
Earth
,
has
made
greater
Discoveries
,
and
proceeded
on
more
Philosophical
Principles
,
than
all
the
Theorists
before
him
have
done
.
In
his
Theory
there
are
some
very
strange
Co-incidents
,
which
make
it
indeed
probable
,
That
a
Comet
at
the
time
of
the
Deluge
pass'd
by
the
Earth
.
It
is
surprizing
to
observe
the
exact
Correspondence
between
the
Lunar
and
Solar
Year
,
upon
the
Supposition
of
a
Circular
Orbit
,
in
which
the
Earth
mov'd
before
the
Deluge
.
It
cannot
but
raise
admiration
in
us
,
when
we
consider
,
that
the
Earth
at
the
Time
of
the
Deluge
was
in
its
Perihelion
,
which
would
be
the
necessary
Effect
of
a
Comet
that
passed
by
at
that
time
,
in
drawing
it
from
a
Circular
to
an
Elliptical
Orbit
.
This
,
together
with
the
Consideration
that
the
Moon
was
exactly
in
such
a
place
of
its
Orbit
at
that
time
,
as
equally
attracted
with
the
Earth
,
when
the
Comet
pass'd
by
,
seems
to
be
a
very
convincing
Argument
that
a
Comet
really
came
very
near
,
and
pass'd
by
the
Earth
,
on
the
day
the
Deluge
began
.
But
to
leave
this
Preface
,
and
to
come
to
the
Matters
themselves
in
dispute
between
us
.
In
the
First
place
therefore
,
because
Moses
at
the
beginning
of
the
Six
days
Creation
,
says
,
That
Darkness
was
upon
the
face
of
the
Deep
;
whereas
the
Atmosphere
of
a
Comet
,
which
I
suppose
to
be
the
Chaos
here
meant
,
is
a
transparent
Fluid
while
it
is
such
:
Mr.
Keill
argued
,
that
this
transparent
Atmosphere
could
not
be
the
dark
Abyss
of
Moses
.
Now
what
I
answer'd
was
,
That
Moses
did
not
concern
himself
with
the
ancient
State
of
the
Chaos
,
but
only
with
its
State
at
the
Commencing
of
his
Creation
:
at
which
time
it
would
be
a
dark
Abyss
in
the
properest
sense
,
and
highest
degree
imaginable
.
Now
all
that
Mr.
Keill
adds
about
this
matter
(
whether
as
to
the
light
and
shining
of
the
Central
Solid
,
and
his
Calculations
thereto
relating
:
As
to
the
Change
from
a
Pellucid
to
an
Opake
Fluid
:
or
as
to
the
Restraint
of
the
word
Abyss
to
the
Dense
Fluid
alone
)
might
have
been
omitted
,
if
he
had
first
rightly
understood
and
consider'd
the
Propositions
in
the
New
Theory
,
where
these
Matters
were
explain'd
already
.
For
certainly
,
though
the
Central
Solid
were
as
luminous
as
the
Sun
it self
;
yet
to
a
Spectator
,
plac'd
in
so
thick
a
Mist
,
there
could
no
more
of
its
Light
from
within
,
than
of
the
Sun
's
from
without
,
appear
:
Though
truly
the
Calculations
here
suppose
(
1.
)
the
Earth
,
when
a
Comet
to
have
mov'd
as
near
the
Sun
as
the
last
;
whereas
perhaps
no
other
ever
did
so
besides
.
(
2.
)
The
Heat
of
its
own
Nucleus
the
main
Cause
of
its
Tail
;
which
is
utterly
false
,
and
never
imagin'd
by
me
.
And
(
3.
)
The
Spectator
at
only
Ten
Miles
distance
from
the
Nucleus
,
when
he
must
have
been
as
many
Hundreds
at
least
:
and
so
are
wholly
groundless
,
and
my
Theory
not
at
all
concern'd
in
them
.
Besides
;
though
All
the
Upper
parts
of
the
Atmosphere
of
a
Comet
,
through
which
we
see
the
Fix'd
Stars
,
is
Transparent
;
yet
the
Lowest
part
next
the
Nucleus
,
or
Dense
Body
,
seems
Opake
and
Dark
;
like
a
very
thick
Mist
;
so
as
to
hide
the
Nucleus
it self
from
our
sight
,
and
cause
Darkness
upon
the
Face
of
the
Deep
.
For
the
Changes
which
some
observe
in
the
Nucleus
of
Comets
,
are
to
be
suppos'd
not
in
the
Solid
Body
,
but
in
the
Cloudy
Bottom
of
the
Atmosphere
,
which
next
encompasses
the
Nucleus
.
And
this
Darkness
upon
the
Face
of
the
Deep
might
continue
till
the
Comet
was
grown
Cold
,
and
all
the
Denser
part
of
the
Atmosphere
was
Subsided
:
and
be
greatest
while
those
Denser
parts
were
in
a
State
of
Coagulation
and
Subsiding
.
'T
is
also
evident
in
my
Book
that
I
ascribe
the
Changes
of
the
Chaos
to
the
Operations
of
the
Spirit
of
God
introducing
such
Laws
of
Bodies
by
which
the
Earth
would
first
be
form'd
,
and
its
Phaenomena
ever
after
be
govern'd
.
And
't
is
sure
no
hard
interpretation
to
include
all
that
Fluid
Region
beneath
the
Earth's
Future
Surface
under
the
term
Abyss
;
though
after
the
Separation
of
the
Earthy
Parts
,
and
their
Consolidation
,
the
Dense
Fluid
may
most
properly
go
by
that
Name
:
And
upon
the
Face
of
the
Abyss
there
was
at
first
Darkness
,
and
that
succeeded
by
Light
,
according
to
the
exact
Description
of
Moses
;
and
according
to
the
Solution
of
the
First
Day
's
work
in
the
New
Theory
.
My
next
Answer
was
to
Mr.
Keill's
Objection
against
the
sudden
Formation
of
the
Earth
in
a
few
years
time
by
the
Laws
of
Mechanism
.
For
since
,
says
he
,
the
Confusions
of
the
Comet
's
Atmosphere
seem
to
arise
from
the
Violence
of
the
Heat
in
its
Perihelion
;
as
that
Heat
gradually
decreas'd
,
(
which
would
not
be
under
many
Hundreds
,
or
perhaps
Thousands
of
Years
)
the
Confusions
would
cease
also
;
and
the
Subsidence
and
Mechanical
Formation
be
compleated
proportionably
in
the
same
time
,
and
not
sooner
;
contrary
to
my
Theory
.
My
Answer
to
this
was
,
it
seems
,
by
me
so
obscurely
express'd
,
that
Mr.
Keill
could
not
apprehend
my
meaning
:
Which
therefore
I
shall
endeavour
to
explain
more
distinctly
thus
.
I
deny
that
all
the
Confusions
of
a
Comet
's
Atmosphere
are
owing
to
the
Heat
at
the
Perihelion
;
and
I
also
affirm
,
That
since
Astronomers
find
by
Observation
,
that
upon
a
Comet
's
return
to
the
Solar
Regions
,
the
Atmosphere
does
still
return
,
and
is
not
at
all
settled
and
formed
like
a
Planet
,
I
must
have
contradicted
that
Observation
if
I
had
ascrib'd
the
Formation
of
our
Earth
to
such
a
gradual
and
tedious
Operation
.
In
short
:
My
Chaos
was
a
Comet
's
Atmosphere
.
Such
an
Atmosphere
does
not
Subside
in
the
Period
about
the
Sun
;
and
consequently
Mr.
Keill
,
who
makes
that
an
Objection
against
me
,
is
mistaken
,
and
the
Formation
of
the
Earth
is
to
be
ascribed
to
other
Causes
,
and
perfected
by
other
Measures
than
he
here
imagines
;
and
so
for
ought
that
appears
,
by
those
assign'd
in
my
Theory
.
I
had
said
,
that
All
the
same
Laws
,
Properties
,
and
Operations
of
Bodies
,
which
we
find
establish'd
here
on
Earth
,
do
not
so
Universally
obtain
in
the
Atmosphere
of
Comets
.
Which
Assertion
Mr.
Keill
is
surpriz'd
at
,
and
endeavours
to
Expose
.
Now
in
this
Case
I
would
desire
Mr.
Keill
to
shew
how
,
according
to
the
Laws
of
Bodies
with
us
,
that
so
Thin
Atmosphere
of
a
Comet
can
sustain
,
at
the
distance
of
so
many
Thousand
Miles
from
its
Center
,
such
Clouds
or
Opake
Masses
as
it
frequently
does
.
Nay
,
if
we
come
to
the
Planets
,
which
appear
to
be
Bodies
so
like
to
our
Earth
,
as
to
require
the
same
general
Measures
and
Laws
in
them
;
we
may
find
such
a
Ring
about
Saturn
,
as
't
will
be
hard
to
account
for
by
the
Mechanical
Laws
upon
our
Earth
.
Sure
there
is
no
reason
to
imagine
that
,
because
God
has
been
pleas'd
to
fix
several
arbitrary
Laws
,
and
Powers
of
Bodies
resulting
from
them
,
in
our
little
System
;
that
therefore
he
has
confin'd
himself
to
ordain
no
others
in
different
ones
.
To
give
an
instance
:
The
Particles
of
our
Elastical
Fluid
,
or
Air
,
may
be
preserv'd
from
coming
close
together
,
as
Mr.
Keill
,
I
suppose
,
will
not
deny
,
by
a
Special
Law
directly
opposite
to
that
of
Gravity
;
or
by
a
particular
vis
centrifuga
belonging
alone
to
such
Particles
of
Matter
as
the
Air
is
composed
of
.
Now
I
believe
Mr.
Keill
will
hardly
affirm
this
to
be
an
Universal
Law
,
obtaining
all
over
the
Universe
,
but
confin'd
to
some
parts
of
it
at
pleasure
.
And
many
such
Laws
there
may
be
in
the
Opinion
of
that
Great
Man
,
whose
very
Name
is
enough
to
defend
one
(
as
Mr.
Keill
justly
speaks
:
)
upon
which
the
particular
Phaenomena
among
us
do
generally
depend
.
Now
though
I
believe
such
Laws
as
these
various
in
various
Systems
,
yet
I
never
imagin'd
that
the
Mechanical
Powers
demonstrable
from
the
Necessary
Laws
of
Motion
are
at
all
so
;
whatsoever
,
for
the
diversion
of
his
Readers
,
Mr.
Keill
is
pleas'd
to
suppose
.
However
,
By
this
Answer
I
not
only
,
it
seems
,
have
prevented
all
possible
Objections
against
my
Theory
:
[
a
thing
,
to
be
sure
,
I
cannot
but
be
very
fond
of
:
]
But
I
have
Granted
Mr.
Keill
all
he
design'd
to
prove
,
viz.
That
the
Earth
was
not
form'd
according
to
the
known
Laws
of
Mechanism
,
but
by
the
Efficacy
of
the
Divine
Spirit
,
which
moved
on
the
Face
of
the
Waters
.
Now
I
must
here
deny
the
Opposition
,
and
affirm
,
That
in
my
Opinion
the
Earth
was
form'd
according
to
the
known
Laws
of
Mechanism
,
some
of
them
introduc'd
then
by
the
Efficacy
of
the
Divine
Spirit
,
which
mov'd
on
the
Face
of
the
Waters
;
and
ever
since
continu'd
among
us
.
For
Almighty
God
to
introduce
New
and
Regular
Laws
at
the
beginning
of
a
New
World
,
which
are
to
be
ever
afterward
observ'd
in
it
,
I
take
to
be
a
Miraculous
Interposition
very
worthy
of
God
,
and
very
accountable
to
our
Reason
.
But
to
suppose
him
by
a
Multitude
of
Miracles
acting
so
disproportionably
and
disorderly
,
as
the
common
Scheme
of
the
Creation
obliges
one
to
do
,
is
to
introduce
Miracles
sufficiently
strange
and
unaccountable
to
me
:
and
such
as
I
can't
be
persuaded
of
by
such
Reasonings
as
I
have
yet
met
with
upon
this
Occasion
.
Though
to
Mr.
Keill
,
who
finds
so
little
difficulty
in
this
matter
;
and
without
Authority
,
can
admit
the
Creation
,
and
,
I
suppose
,
the
Annihilation
of
the
Waters
of
the
Deluge
;
I
little
expect
to
shew
that
any
Miracle
can
be
strange
and
unaccountable
.
As
to
the
Internal
Heat
in
the
Earth
,
which
is
allow'd
by
Mr.
Keill
;
and
by
reason
of
some
Earthquakes
,
of
a
very
large
Compass
deriv'd
from
it
,
can't
but
Reach
downwards
to
a
mighty
Depth
;
It
must
be
accounted
for
,
whether
it
be
a
Cause
of
Fountains
or
not
.
And
if
Mr.
Keill
think
it
more
easily
ascrib'd
to
the
Mixture
of
Sulphureous
,
Nitrous
,
and
Mineral
Principles
,
than
to
a
Hot
Central
Solid
;
He
must
give
me
leave
to
retain
my
former
Opinion
,
for
these
two
Reasons
:
Viz.
Because
the
Earth
,
at
the
Depth
necessary
for
the
Mixture
,
is
too
close
and
fast
,
and
has
no
Caverns
or
Hollows
requisite
thereto
:
And
Because
such
a
Mixture
it self
supposes
that
Heat
and
Motion
of
Parts
as
Causes
,
which
ought
only
to
be
the
Effects
thereof
:
Besides
;
I
am
still
inclinable
to
ascribe
the
Origin
of
Springs
in
great
part
to
the
Vapors
ascending
,
and
elevated
by
the
Subterranean
Heat
,
for
this
particular
,
and
to
me
substantial
Reason
,
among
others
,
That
the
Springs
break
forth
extraordinarily
,
and
run
the
fastest
in
a
Frost
,
as
they
ought
to
do
in
this
Hypothesis
:
when
the
Vapors
in
the
Air
seem
most
at
rest
and
quiet
;
as
is
commonly
observ'd
,
and
particularly
in
the
great
Frost
,
by
the
Excellent
Mr.
Ray.
To
some
other
of
whose
Reasonings
also
I
refer
him
upon
this
Occasion
.
As
to
my
Receding
,
without
Reason
,
from
the
Letter
of
Moses
in
the
Fourth
Day
's
work
;
Mr.
Keill
has
so
little
still
to
say
against
those
large
Accounts
I
have
given
of
that
Matter
,
that
I
shall
venture
the
Reasons
I
have
already
alledg'd
with
the
Impartial
and
Considering
,
without
any
addition
.
Only
his
Argument
against
the
Nature
of
the
Hexaemeron
,
viz.
that
of
an
Historical
Iournal
,
such
as
a
Spectator
on
the
Earth
would
have
made
:
Because
there
was
,
in
his
Opinion
,
no
such
Spectator
in
being
to
make
it
;
Is
,
I
think
,
neither
Conclusive
,
nor
True.
For
though
there
were
no
real
Spectator
at
first
,
yet
the
Nature
of
the
History
might
,
for
good
Reasons
,
be
such
as
I
assign
notwithstanding
.
But
,
to
tell
him
my
Mind
freely
,
I
believe
that
the
Messias
was
there
actually
present
:
That
He
made
the
Journal
:
that
He
deliver'd
it
afterwards
to
Moses
on
Mount
Sinai
:
and
,
That
from
thence
it
appears
in
the
Front
of
his
Pentateuch
at
this
day
.
In
the
next
place
Mr.
Keill
endeavours
to
Vindicate
his
Assertion
,
That
the
Heat
of
the
Sun
for
half
the
Second
Day
,
or
Year
of
the
Creation
,
could
not
elevate
Vapors
enow
to
fill
the
Seas
of
the
Primitive
Earth
.
I
had
told
him
that
I
did
not
suppose
the
Waters
in
the
Small
Seas
and
Lakes
of
the
Primitive
Earth
much
above
the
Thousandth
part
of
those
in
the
present
Seas
and
Ocean
;
and
so
there
was
no
need
of
the
raising
of
so
many
Vapors
that
day
as
he
imagin'd
.
Now
to
confute
this
,
he
says
,
that
so
little
Water
would
necessarily
render
that
Earth
dry
,
barren
,
and
unfruitful
.
For
since
the
quantity
of
Vapor
rais'd
is
proportionable
to
the
Surface
of
those
Waters
from
whence
't
is
rais'd
;
and
since
the
Thousandth
part
of
the
present
Water
must
have
only
the
Thousandth
part
of
the
present
Surface
(
which
he
must
say
,
or
say
nothing
:
)
It
will
follow
that
the
Rains
and
Dews
before
the
Flood
were
but
the
Thousandth
part
of
those
at
present
in
a
year's
time
:
And
since
by
the
Absence
of
the
Ocean
the
dry
Land
then
was
near
double
to
that
now
,
and
to
be
supply'd
with
only
the
Thousandth
part
of
its
Water
,
every
Region
would
have
in
particular
little
more
than
the
Two
thousandth
part
as
much
Moisture
as
it
has
at
present
.
Now
this
looks
like
a
very
formidable
Calculation
,
and
sufficient
to
destroy
a
main
Foundation
of
the
New
Theory
.
But
for
Answer
:
How
comes
it
about
that
Mr.
Keill
,
who
knows
it
so
well
,
should
forget
the
different
Proportions
between
Solids
and
Superficies
?
between
the
quantity
of
Water
for
Use
,
and
the
quantity
of
its
Surface
for
Evaporation
?
'T
is
certain
,
that
though
the
Channels
of
the
Primitive
Seas
and
Lakes
were
Similar
to
those
at
present
,
yet
a
little
more
than
a
Thousandth
part
of
the
present
Waters
would
have
near
an
Eightieth
part
of
the
present
Surface
:
Besides
,
'T
is
evident
,
that
as
our
Ocean
affords
vast
Quantities
for
Vapor
,
so
the
much
greatest
part
of
those
Vapors
return
upon
it self
again
,
and
are
of
no
Use
to
the
dry
Land
,
especially
in
the
Middle
parts
;
from
whence
the
Clouds
seldom
or
never
march
so
far
as
is
necessary
for
that
purpose
:
Nay
,
I
will
venture
to
say
,
that
near
the
Thousandth
part
of
the
Waters
of
our
present
Ocean
might
be
so
dispos'd
of
in
the
Plains
and
smaller
Valleys
of
our
present
Earth
,
as
to
afford
not
much
less
Surface
,
and
so
not
much
less
Vapor
than
it
does
at
present
;
if
once
all
those
Middle
parts
were
away
,
whence
little
or
nothing
does
accrue
to
the
dry
Land
,
which
alone
stands
in
need
of
it
.
Which
things
being
suppos'd
,
as
they
are
,
I
think
,
undeniably
true
;
I
answer
thus
;
(
1.
)
I
never
assign
the
Sun
as
the
Sole
Cause
of
the
Ascent
of
the
Vapors
at
the
Time
referr'd
to
.
My
Words
are
,
The
Heat
of
the
Sun
,
with
the
continual
Assistance
of
the
Central
Heat
.
From
which
Assistance
Mr.
Keill
may
imagin
,
that
I
believe
vast
Quantities
of
Vapors
would
be
rais'd
,
at
a
time
when
it
was
really
greater
,
and
had
a
much
freer
passage
;
since
I
still
derive
so
much
of
the
Vapors
of
our
present
Rivers
from
it
,
even
after
its
inclosure
within
the
Crust
of
Earth
consolidated
together
.
(
2.
)
I
fear
not
to
assert
that
a
small
part
of
the
Water
now
rais'd
in
a
year
,
when
it
fell
regularly
and
constantly
in
equal
Dews
,
and
went
not
off
in
violent
Rains
and
Torrents
,
not
insufficient
for
the
Antediluvian
Earth
.
(
3.
)
At
a
time
when
the
Ground
was
every
Night
very
wet
with
a
mighty
Dew
,
the
Surface
of
the
dry
Land
did
afford
much
more
Vapor
than
the
present
Surface
;
which
is
only
sometimes
wet
with
some
uncertain
Showers
,
and
that
in
some
particular
places
only
.
(
4.
)
The
Channels
or
Receptacles
of
the
Waters
would
scarcely
then
be
Similar
to
the
Channel
of
the
Ocean
now
,
but
more
level
and
shallow
;
which
would
still
make
the
Surface
larger
in
proportion
to
the
Solid
Content
;
and
so
afford
much
more
Vapor
for
the
supply
of
the
Earth
proportionably
.
(
5.
)
If
all
my
own
Computations
fail
,
I
will
for
once
beg
one
of
Mr.
Keill
;
which
will
certainly
help
us
over
this
difficulty
,
[
though
it
increase
upon
us
by
his
next
,
which
takes
away
Nine
Tenths
of
our
former
quantity
by
the
Interposition
of
the
Atmosphere
:
]
And
that
is
from
his
Assertion
,
which
we
shall
come
to
by
and
by
;
That
the
Heat
of
the
Sun
,
at
the
time
assign'd
,
was
several
Hundreds
of
times
as
great
as
at
present
.
Now
though
I
shall
shew
anon
that
this
Computation
is
much
too
great
;
yet
let
us
allow
but
a
small
part
of
that
,
and
it
will
set
us
over
this
difficulty
.
For
if
the
Heat
were
but
Twenty
times
as
great
,
it
would
in
the
same
Space
elevate
Twenty
times
as
many
Vapors
:
which
I
hope
will
satisfy
even
Mr.
Keill's
own
Expectations
;
and
being
from
his
own
Assertion
,
will
be
allow'd
as
satisfactory
in
the
present
Case
.
But
after
all
;
Sure
Mr.
Keill
has
forgotten
that
Solution
in
my
Theory
,
whence
all
this
Objection
is
rais'd
:
Otherwise
He
would
have
seen
,
that
the
vast
Quantity
of
Vapors
in
the
Air
,
on
the
Second
Day
of
the
Creation
,
came
thither
in
Ways
very
different
from
that
of
the
Raising
of
them
now
by
the
Heat
of
the
Sun
upon
the
Surface
of
our
present
Ocean
,
at
a
time
when
neither
its
Surface
nor
itself
was
in
being
.
Which
therefore
has
little
to
do
with
all
the
Computations
us'd
by
Mr.
Keill
upon
this
Occasion
.
Neither
has
the
next
Objection
any
more
weight
in
it
:
That
the
Waters
in
the
Seas
are
call'd
by
Moses
,
Waters
under
the
Firmament
:
and
so
are
of
a
different
Nature
and
Original
from
those
in
the
Air
,
which
are
Waters
above
the
Firmament
:
Whereas
I
derive
the
one
from
the
other
,
and
suppose
the
Seas
to
have
once
been
Vapor
,
and
so
part
of
the
other
Waters
.
For
certainly
if
Vapors
in
the
Air
,
or
Waters
above
the
Firmament
,
fall
down
,
become
Water
,
and
run
into
the
Seas
,
they
must
be
allow'd
to
change
their
Name
,
and
become
Waters
below
the
Firmament
.
I
am
sure
this
Change
is
no
new
thing
,
but
has
been
continual
from
the
Creation
till
our
Times
.
Every
day
Vapors
become
Rain
,
and
run
into
the
Seas
;
and
the
Seas
are
every
day
resolving
into
small
Parts
,
and
become
Vapors
:
and
so
the
Inferior
and
the
Superior
Waters
still
communicate
with
,
and
supply
each
other
,
and
accordingly
change
their
Denomination
perpetually
.
And
truly
this
,
and
the
next
Shadow
of
a
Difficulty
about
the
Appearance
of
the
Dry
Land
,
might
have
been
so
easily
avoided
by
a
little
more
careful
perusal
of
a
Solution
or
two
in
my
Theory
,
that
Mr.
Keill
need
not
have
desir'd
a
farther
Answer
.
We
are
now
come
to
the
great
Point
of
the
Inconveniences
which
would
arise
from
the
long
Days
and
Nights
in
my
first
Hypothesis
;
and
how
entirely
they
all
vanish
upon
that
Additional
one
of
the
Elliptick
Orbit
till
the
Fall.
Now
though
Mr.
Keill
does
not
disown
that
his
former
Objections
are
of
no
force
against
me
now
;
yet
because
this
Additional
Hypothesis
did
not
appear
before
in
my
Theory
,
He
thinks
it
not
worth
while
to
confute
it
:
which
is
truly
a
short
and
easy
way
of
Answering
.
Now
for
my
part
,
I
am
far
from
thinking
worse
of
any
Discovery
upon
the
account
of
the
Time
in
which
it
was
made
:
And
if
I
can
shew
good
Reason
for
this
,
as
I
think
I
can
,
I
shall
not
be
much
concern'd
at
Mr.
Keill's
passing
it
over
untouch'd
.
For
the
only
thing
he
says
,
viz.
That
't
will
hardly
be
allow'd
that
but
one
half
of
the
Primitive
Earth
was
Habitable
before
the
Fall
,
seems
to
me
too
inconsiderable
to
be
made
an
Objection
.
I
should
think
it
no
great
matter
if
all
the
Earth
,
excepting
the
Regions
about
Paradise
,
were
uninhabitable
at
a
time
when
they
were
not
to
be
inhabited
.
For
to
what
great
Purpose
is
it
that
all
proper
provision
be
made
for
the
Entertainment
of
a
Company
of
Guests
at
a
Table
,
when
't
is
certainly
known
that
not
one
Guest
will
be
there
?
Providence
does
ever
wonderfully
provide
for
the
Accommodation
of
his
Creatures
wherever
it
places
them
:
But
that
a
suitable
Provision
is
made
for
them
where
they
will
never
be
plac'd
,
I
see
no
reason
to
imagin
.
If
I
ever
attempt
another
Edition
of
my
Book
,
this
Hypothesis
,
with
several
other
Discoveries
since
made
,
will
be
inserted
;
and
will
,
I
believe
,
with
fair
and
considering
Persons
,
be
thought
far
from
spoiling
the
Beauty
of
the
Theory
;
whatsoever
Mr.
Keill
,
who
is
no
friend
to
Theories
in
general
,
may
think
to
the
contrary
.
But
to
proceed
.
Mr.
Keill
still
asserts
,
that
the
Heat
in
my
Hypothesis
before
the
Fall
,
when
the
Sun
was
half
a
year
at
least
above
the
Horizon
at
once
,
was
several
Hundred
times
greater
than
that
with
us
at
present
.
Now
in
answer
to
this
,
I
alledg'd
,
That
if
we
compute
the
Quantity
of
Heat
from
that
of
the
Sun's
Rays
,
it
will
be
equal
in
both
Cases
,
and
so
his
Assertion
must
be
a
plain
Error
.
But
it
seems
he
meant
quite
otherwise
than
I
imagin
;
viz.
That
the
Degree
of
Heat
,
produc'd
by
so
long
continuance
of
the
Sun's
presence
,
would
at
last
be
several
Hundred
times
as
great
as
with
us
at
present
.
I
answer
,
That
in
this
sense
the
Assertion
is
not
much
truer
than
in
the
other
.
The
Heat
produc'd
by
the
Fire
,
or
the
Sun
,
for
some
time
continually
increases
;
and
perhaps
pretty
nearly
in
proportion
to
the
time
.
But
this
only
for
a
while
,
till
a
suitable
or
competent
Degree
of
Heat
be
produc'd
;
but
no
longer
.
Let
us
try
this
by
Calculation
.
A
piece
of
Wax
will
melt
in
a
Second
of
Time
,
suppose
,
at
the
distance
of
an
Inch
from
the
Fire
;
because
the
Degree
of
Heat
there
is
sufficient
to
dissolve
its
Texture
immediately
.
Let
us
remove
it
to
the
Distance
of
a
Hundred
Inches
,
where
the
Heat
is
Ten
Thousand
times
weaker
;
for
Ten
Thousand
Seconds
,
or
near
Three
Hours
Space
,
the
Quantity
of
Heat
is
therefore
(
as
the
Rectangle
,
contain'd
betwixt
the
Sine
of
the
Angle
of
Incidence
(
the
same
in
both
Cases
here
)
and
the
time
of
continuance
)
exactly
equal
to
the
former
Heat
;
and
must
therefore
have
the
same
effect
:
Which
yet
,
I
presume
,
Mr.
Keill
does
not
believe
it
will.
Thus
let
us
compare
the
Heat
of
the
Sun
at
the
Equator
,
and
near
the
Poles
;
where
the
Sines
of
the
Sun's
Angle
of
Incidence
are
as
10
to
1
,
[
for
the
Day-time
,
or
12
Hours
at
the
Equator
;
and
for
the
12
Hours
at
the
Conclusion
of
the
Half-year-day
near
the
Poles
]
Which
will
,
according
to
Mr.
Keill
,
be
as
10
+
12
to
1
+
4320
;
or
as
120
to
4320
;
and
so
the
Heat
near
the
Pole
36
times
as
great
as
that
at
the
Equator
:
Which
,
I
presume
,
Experience
does
not
attest
.
But
after
all
,
This
Objection
,
if
it
were
true
,
only
refers
to
the
Circular
Orbit
before
the
Fall
:
But
as
my
Theory
stands
at
present
,
with
the
Hypothesis
of
an
Elliptick
Orbit
,
't
is
no
way
concern'd
in
it
.
But
now
we
are
come
to
a
Point
of
much
greater
Consequence
,
Whether
the
Dense
Fluid
,
on
the
Approach
of
the
Comet
at
the
Deluge
,
would
have
force
enough
to
burst
the
Earth
,
or
that
upper
Crust
which
is
situate
upon
the
Surface
of
the
Dense
Fluid
.
For
Mr.
Keill
,
with
no
mean
Appearance
of
Demonstration
,
urges
,
That
since
the
first
Impetus
of
the
Dense
Fluid
is
infinitely
less
than
any
succeeding
Impetus
acquir'd
by
Motion
;
and
since
here
is
no
room
for
Actual
Motion
,
here
cannot
be
Impetus
sufficient
to
break
the
Crust
,
which
otherwise
Mr.
Keill
owns
it
would
easily
do
.
In
answer
to
this
I
say
,
That
since
Mr.
Keill
does
not
disown
the
first
Original
of
the
Earth's
Fissures
,
and
the
breaking
of
the
Crust
by
the
Diurnal
Rotation
;
he
ought
much
less
to
scruple
it
here
.
A
Plank
or
Board
,
when
once
't
is
cut
into
several
pieces
,
let
the
pieces
be
laid
as
true
and
close
as
possible
,
will
be
separated
without
any
difficulty
upon
all
Occasions
.
And
just
thus
it
is
here
.
The
Strata
having
been
formerly
separated
,
and
by
the
continuance
of
the
Diurnal
Motion
not
permitted
to
join
or
close
afterward
upon
any
Impetus
of
the
Fluid
below
,
they
will
open
again
;
as
I
have
asserted
in
the
New
Theory
.
But
because
Mr.
Keill
imagines
that
the
Upper
Crust
of
Earth
would
hinder
the
force
of
the
Fluid
below
from
breaking
open
its
Fissures
;
let
us
compute
the
force
of
the
Comet
's
attraction
upon
it self
,
and
see
whether
even
that
alone
,
without
the
assistance
of
the
Dense
Fluid
,
would
not
be
sufficient
to
break
it
in
the
manner
I
have
assign'd
.
Mr.
Keill
may
remember
,
that
I
suppose
the
Comet
at
the
Deluge
about
half
as
big
as
the
Earth
;
and
the
nearest
distance
of
its
Center
to
that
of
the
Earth
about
30000
Miles
.
Let
us
see
what
force
this
will
afford
towards
breaking
the
Earth
.
At
the
nearest
distance
the
Gravity
of
the
Parts
of
our
Earth
nearest
the
Comet
,
towards
the
Comet
's
Center
,
would
be
near
1
/
100
of
their
Gravity
towards
the
Center
of
the
Earth
;
and
the
difference
between
the
Gravity
of
those
Parts
towards
the
Comet
,
and
of
the
Middle
Parts
or
Center
of
our
Earth
towards
the
same
,
would
be
the
difference
of
the
Squares
of
their
several
Distances
,
or
about
a
quarter
of
the
former
Force
1
/
400
So
that
the
Parts
nearest
to
the
Comet
,
and
farthest
off
it
,
[
the
Regions
about
b
and
a
in
my
7
Fig.
]
if
the
Crust
be
suppos'd
400
Miles
thick
,
will
have
a
Force
upon
them
equal
to
the
Weight
of
an
entire
Mile
of
Earth
:
and
this
sure
will
be
more
than
sufficient
to
break
and
separate
those
Strata
which
are
already
broken
and
separated
;
and
which
therefore
,
at
the
first
Impulse
,
would
yield
to
that
powerful
Attraction
which
the
Neighbourhood
of
so
mighty
a
Body
would
occasion
in
the
Case
before
us
.
As
to
the
sudden
Condensation
of
the
Vapors
from
the
Comet
,
upon
their
first
Fall
,
whether
by
the
Air
or
Earth
,
were
it
never
so
evident
and
universal
,
't
is
of
very
small
consequence
to
me
;
since
,
as
Mr.
Keill
does
not
deny
,
their
own
Heat
would
ratify
vast
Quantities
of
them
again
,
and
occasion
their
Elevation
into
the
Air
immediately
:
which
is
all
I
desire
of
him
.
But
still
he
urges
,
That
then
the
first
Violent
Fall
would
it self
do
the
Business
of
the
Deluge
,
without
any
occasion
for
the
great
and
long
Rains
:
And
so
the
Forty
days
Rain
,
which
occasion'd
the
Flood
in
Moses
,
can't
be
accounted
for
,
and
is
almost
wholly
superseded
by
us
.
In
answer
to
which
I
say
,
That
though
the
primary
violent
Fall
of
the
Vapors
were
in
less
than
a
Day
's
time
,
as
I
have
shewn
in
my
Theory
;
yet
because
as
many
would
immediately
arise
again
as
the
Air
could
hold
,
here
is
a
Fund
abundantly
sufficient
for
the
most
violent
Forty
days
Rain
imaginable
.
And
though
the
Vapors
did
Originally
fall
in
so
short
a
time
,
and
with
such
Violence
,
on
that
Hemisphere
of
the
Earth
exposed
to
them
,
as
there
to
do
the
Business
of
the
Deluge
immediately
:
Yet
because
the
Regions
near
the
Ark
were
not
in
that
Hemisphere
,
their
Deluge
must
arise
from
the
Forty
days
Rain
succeeding
,
and
from
the
flowing
in
of
the
Waters
from
those
other
Parts
of
the
Earth
on
which
they
first
fell
:
according
as
this
Matter
is
already
stated
in
the
New
Theory
;
and
,
I
think
,
need
not
be
alter'd
from
any
thing
here
suggested
.
We
are
now
got
to
the
principal
Thing
considerable
in
Mr.
Keill's
Objections
;
and
that
is
his
Demonstrations
,
that
the
Pressure
of
the
incumbent
Fluid
could
not
raise
the
Subterranean
Waters
to
the
Surface
of
the
Earth
.
And
I
must
own
,
that
I
see
the
force
of
his
Demonstrations
now
,
which
I
did
not
before
.
And
I
heartily
thank
Mr.
Keill
for
correcting
so
considerable
a
mistake
in
the
New
Theory
;
and
a
mistake
that
before
was
the
only
Obstacle
to
as
remarkable
a
Confirmation
of
the
main
Parts
of
it
,
as
perhaps
any
other
whatsoever
;
which
in
due
time
shall
appear
.
All
that
Moses
says
relating
to
this
matter
,
is
,
That
the
Fountains
of
the
Great
Deep
were
broken
up
at
the
beginning
,
and
shut
up
at
the
Conclusion
of
the
Deluge
,
without
the
least
Affirmation
that
any
Waters
issued
out
of
them
;
as
has
hitherto
been
universally
suppos'd
,
and
as
I
accordingly
believed
also
.
Though
,
in
truth
,
I
am
now
so
far
from
that
Opinion
,
that
I
believe
the
use
of
that
disruption
of
the
Fissures
was
only
to
drain
off
,
and
not
at
all
to
send
out
the
Waters
of
the
Deluge
,
as
will
more
distinctly
be
shewn
upon
a
proper
Occasion
hereafter
.
But
if
Mr.
Keill's
Reasoning
under
this
last
Head
appear
so
strong
,
what
follows
,
touching
the
Removing
of
the
Waters
of
the
Deluge
,
seems
to
me
of
a
very
different
Character
.
For
(
1.
)
Let
the
Cracks
and
Fissures
be
full
during
the
Deluge
;
nay
,
let
the
Waters
be
draining
away
by
them
continually
into
the
Bowels
of
the
Earth
:
Yet
till
this
Drain
took
away
more
than
the
Rains
and
the
Running
in
of
the
Waters
brought
,
the
Flood
would
continually
increase
notwithstanding
.
(
2.
)
I
say
still
,
Certainly
the
Pores
and
Interstices
of
30
or
40
,
I
might
say
of
60
or
80
Miles
of
dry
Earth
,
or
Earth
that
can
still
admit
vast
Quantities
of
Water
,
are
capable
of
receiving
3
,
4
,
or
more
Miles
of
Water
into
them
.
(
3.
)
Mr.
Keill's
Assertion
,
That
the
inward
Strata
of
the
Earth
are
almost
wholly
compos'd
of
a
tough
Clay
,
common
Stone
,
Whinstone
,
Coal
,
Metalline
Ores
,
and
the
like
,
uncapable
of
containing
any
Water
considerable
,
is
not
generally
true
.
I
appeal
to
the
following
Table
of
the
several
Strata
of
a
Well
at
Amsterdam
,
mention'd
by
Varenius
,
which
is
the
best
and
deepest
that
I
know
where
readily
to
meet
with
.
And
let
the
Reader
judge
whether
all
the
Strata
are
such
as
will
exclude
Water
or
not
,
or
such
as
Mr.
Keill
supposes
the
whole
Body
of
the
Earth
below
compos'd
of
.
Feet
.
Garden-Mould
7
Turf
9
Soft
Clay
9
Sand
8
Earth
4
Clay
10
Earth
4
Sand
in
which
the
Piles
for
the
Amsterdam
Buildings
are
fix'd
10
Clay
2
White
Gravel
4
Dry
Earth
5
Mud
1
Sand
14
Sandy
Clay
3
Sand
mix'd
with
Clay
5
Sand
mix'd
with
Sea-shells
4
A
Clayey
Bottom
102
Gravel
31
In
all
232
(
4.
)
I
look
upon
his
last
Argument
,
viz.
That
these
Fissures
would
not
drain
off
the
Waters
in
half
a
year
,
nor
indeed
under
several
Hundred
years
;
as
so
far
from
affecting
me
,
that
I
heartily
thank
Mr.
Keill
for
so
considerable
a
Confirmation
of
my
Conjecture
to
this
purpose
at
the
End
of
my
former
Vindication
.
For
though
I
think
his
Computation
of
the
Time
much
too
long
,
because
the
Fissures
were
then
very
much
more
open
than
now
;
and
because
the
vast
weight
of
the
Waters
,
at
first
especially
,
would
hasten
the
Velocity
of
their
Descent
:
yet
in
general
I
am
fully
of
his
mind
;
that
the
Waters
of
the
Deluge
could
not
be
Mechanically
drain'd
off
so
soon
as
the
common
Opinion
is
;
as
he
may
see
in
the
place
referr'd
to
,
which
't
is
a
little
strange
he
should
not
discover
before
,
and
so
perceive
that
he
was
,
by
the
last
Computation
,
but
confirming
one
of
the
Points
I
had
observ'd
since
the
publishing
of
the
New
Theory
.
In
short
;
The
Remarks
and
Objections
Mr.
Keill
and
Others
have
made
against
some
Branches
of
the
New
Theory
,
have
occasion'd
me
to
correct
some
Parts
,
to
confirm
others
,
and
to
improve
the
whole
.
But
so
little
do
I
esteem
the
principal
Foundations
of
that
Book
destroy'd
by
all
that
has
been
hitherto
said
,
(
Though
Mr.
Keill
is
pleas'd
to
presume
,
that
by
those
few
Objections
he
before
made
against
a
few
particulars
in
it
;
And
this
after
he
had
granted
me
the
principal
Point
of
all
,
it
was
in
general
already
confuted
:
)
That
I
may
venture
to
say
,
I
am
prepar'd
,
upon
a
Second
Edition
,
more
fully
to
confirm
and
establish
the
main
Conclusions
in
it
than
ever
;
as
I
hope
will
appear
in
due
time
.
I
shall
add
no
more
:
But
because
the
two
concluding
Questions
I
put
to
Mr.
Keill
before
,
are
wholly
past
over
in
silence
,
I
shall
Reprint
them
here
again
;
and
if
he
make
another
Rejoinder
,
again
desire
his
free
and
ingenuous
Answer
:
and
so
take
my
Leave
.
(
1.
)
Since
Mr.
Keill
grants
that
a
Comet
pass'd
by
at
the
Deluge
,
and
yet
contends
that
the
Flood
is
not
to
be
solv'd
therefrom
,
but
is
to
be
believ'd
wholly
miraculous
;
To
what
purpose
did
the
Comet
so
providentially
pass
by
just
at
that
time
,
if
it
had
no
relation
to
the
Deluge
?
Does
Mr.
Keill
imagine
,
That
the
same
miraculous
power
which
caus'd
the
Deluge
,
could
not
also
,
without
the
attraction
of
a
Comet
,
make
the
Earth's
Orbit
Elliptical
?
A
strange
,
unheard-of
,
and
most
surprizing
Phaenomenon
happens
in
the
World
!
A
Blazing
Star
,
which
we
but
seldom
discover
at
a
vast
distance
in
the
Heavens
,
descends
hard
by
the
body
of
our
Earth
:
which
without
the
greatest
exactness
in
the
Chain
of
Providence
does
not
happen
in
thousands
,
nay
millions
of
years
:
and
as
soon
as
ever
't
is
pass'd
by
,
a
wonderful
,
and
incredible
Deluge
of
Waters
overflows
the
whole
Earth
,
and
drowns
all
its
Inhabitants
without
any
other
visible
or
imaginable
occasion
in
the
World
:
and
yet
,
as
it
seems
,
the
Comet
only
accidentally
pass'd
by
,
and
had
no
hand
at
all
in
the
Deluge
!
—
Credat
Iudaeus
Apella
.
(
2.
)
How
could
those
effects
I
have
mention'd
be
avoided
upon
the
passing
by
of
the
Comet
?
We
are
not
now
in
a
Cartesian
Vortex
,
where
Fancy
and
Contrivance
can
introduce
or
hinder
any
effect
at
pleasure
:
But
we
are
in
Mechanical
and
Experimental
Philosophy
,
which
is
an
inflexible
thing
,
and
not
at
all
subject
to
our
inclinations
.
When
the
Comet
therefore
was
just
pass'd
by
us
,
I
desire
to
know
how
the
Earth
could
possibly
avoid
passing
through
its
Atmosphere
and
Tail
:
If
it
could
not
,
Pray
what
could
prevent
the
acquiring
that
Column
of
Vapours
I
,
by
computation
,
find
would
fall
on
its
Surface
?
And
if
such
a
Column
of
Vapours
was
left
on
the
Earth
,
what
could
hinder
their
becoming
Water
,
and
drowning
the
Earth
?
I
shall
not
,
though
I
easily
might
,
carry
on
the
Chain
of
Queries
any
longer
.
But
if
Mr.
Keill
can
fairly
Answer
me
these
few
leading
Questions
,
I
shall
then
believe
him
alike
able
to
Answer
the
rest
:
and
so
I
shall
not
pursue
this
particular
any
farther
,
but
leave
it
and
this
whole
matter
to
his
and
the
Reader
's
leisure
and
consideration
.
Lowestoft
,
Suffolk
,
Octob.
4.
—
99.
FINIS
.
Notes, typically marginal, from the original text
Notes for div A65673-e140
Vind.
p.
4
,
5.
Vid
Newt
.
p.
301.
Vid.
Verb.
Newt
.
N.T.
pag.
225.
marg
.
p.
134.
Pag.
4
,
5.
3.
Disc.
2
d
Edit
.
p.
109.
N.
T.
p.
242.
P.
181
,
182.
Coroll
.
8.
post
Hyp.
10.
New
Theor.
Fig.
7.
Gen.
7.11
.
&
8.
1.
Varen
.
Greg.
p.
46.
Vind.
p.
46
,
47,48
.