Page:Mathematical collections and translations, in two tomes - Salusbury (1661).djvu/220

 grave bodies falling from the top of a Tower, and from projections made perpendicularly upwards, or according to any inclination sidewayes towards the East, West, North, South, &c. have somewhat abated in me the antiquated incredulity I had conceived against that opinion: but other greater doubts run in my mind at this very instant, which I know not in the least how to free my self of, and haply you your self will not be able to resolve them; nay, its possible you may not have heard them, for they are very modern. And these are the objections of two Authours, that ex professo write against Copernicus. Some of which are read in a little Tract of natural conclusions; The rest are by a great both Philosopher and Mathematician, inserted in a Treatise which he hath written in favour of Aristotle, and his opinion touching the inalterability of the Heavens, where he proveth, that not onely the Comets, but also the new stars, namely, that anno 1572. in Cassiopeia, and that anno 1604. in Sagittarius were not above the Spheres of the Planets, but absolutely beneath the concave of the Moon in the Elementary Sphere, and this he demonstrateth against Tycho, Kepler, and many other Astronomical Observators, and beateth them at their own weapon; to wit, the Doctrine of Parallaxes. If you like thereof, I will give you the reasons of both these Authours, for I have read them more than once, with attention; and you may examine their strength, and give your opinion thereon.

In regard that our principal end is to bring upon the stage, and to consider what ever hath been said for, or against the two Systemes, Ptolomaick, and Copernican, it is not good to omit any thing that hath been written on this subject.

I will begin therefore with the objections which I finde in the Treatise of Conclusions, and afterwards proceed to the rest. In the first place then, he bestoweth much paines in calculating exactly how many miles an hour a point of the terrestrial Globe situate under the Equinoctial, goeth, and how many miles are past by other points situate in other parallels: and not being content with finding out such motions in horary times, he findeth them also in a minute of an hour; and not contenting himself with a minute, he findes them also in a second minute; yea more, he goeth on to shew plainly, how many miles a Cannon bullet would go in the same time, being placed in the concave of the Lunar Orb, supposing it also as big as Copernicus himself representeth it, to take away all subterfuges from his adversary. And having made this most ingenious and exquisite supputation, he sheweth, that a grave body falling from thence above would consume more than six dayes in attaining to the centre of the Earth, to which all grave bodies naturally move. Now if by the absolute Divine