Page:History of the Royal Society.djvu/408

 Land discover'd, which has not given us divers new sorts of Animals, and Fruits of different Features and Shapes, and Virtues from our own, or has not supplied us with some new artificial Engine, and Contrivance.

And that our Discoveries may still be inlarg'd to farther Countries, it is a good Proof, that so many spacious Shores and Mountains, and Promontories, appear to our Southern and Northern Sailors; of which we have yet no Account, but only such as could be taken by a remote Prospect at Sea. From whence, and from the Figure of the Earth, it may be concluded, that almost as much space of Ground remains still in the Dark, as was fully known in the times of the Assyrian or Persian Monarchy. So that without assuming the vain prophetick Spirit, which I lately condemn'd, we may foretel, that the Difcovery of another new World is still behind.

To accomplish this, there is only wanting the Invention of Longitude, which cannot now be far off, seeing it is generally allow'd to be feasible, seeing so many Rewards are ready to be heap'd on the Inventors; and (I will also add) seeing the Royal Society has taken it into its peculiar care. This, if it shall be once accomplish'd, will make well-nigh as much alteration in the World, as the Invention of the Needle did before: And then our Posterity may outgo us, as much as we can travel farther than the Antients; whose Demy Gods and Heroes did esteem it one of their chief Exploits, to make a Journey as far as the Pillars of Hercules. Whoever shall think this to be a desperate Business, they can only use the same Arguments, wherewith Columbus was at first made ridiculous, if he had been discourag'd by the Raillery of Rh