Page:The Natural History of Pliny.djvu/69

 Chap. 8.] ACCOITIfT OF THE WOELD. 35 CHAP. 8. (11.) — or THE MAGNITUDE OE THE STAES. This kind of reasoning carries the human mind to the heavens, and by contemplating the world as it were from thence, it discloses to us the magnitude of the three greatest bodies in nature For the sun could not be entirely con- cealed from the earth, by the intervention of the moon, if the earth were greater than the moon^. And the vast size of the third body, the sun, is manifest from that of the other two, so that it is not necessary to scrutinize its size, by argu- ing from its visible appearance, or from any conjectures of the mind ; it must be immense, because the shadows of rows of trees, extending for any number of miles, are disposed in right lines^, as if the sun were in the middle of space. Also, because, at the equinox, he is vertical to all the inhabitants of the southern districts at the same time"* ; also, because the shadows of all the people who live on this side of the tropic fall, at noon, towards the north, and, at sunrise, point to the west. But this could not be the case imless the sun were much greater than the earth ; nor, unless it much ex- ceeded Mount Ida in breadth, could he be seen when he rises, passing considerably beyond it to the right and to the left, especially, considering that it is separated by so great an intervaP. ^ Marcus conceives that our author must here mean, not the actual, but the apparent size of these bodies ; Ajasson, ii. 295 ; but I do not per- ceive that the text authorizes this interpretation. 2 I have given the simple translation of the original as it now stands in the MSS. ; whether these may have been corrupted, or the author reasoned incorrectly, I do not venture to decide. The commentators have, according to their usual custom, proposed various emendations and explanations, for which I may refer to the note of Hardouin in Lemaire, ii. 252, with the judicious remarks of Alexandre, and to those of Marcus in Ajasson, ii. 295-298, who appear to mo to take a correct view of the subject. 3 Alexandre remarks, "Hinc tamon potius distantia quam magnitude SoUs colligi potest." Lemaire, ii. 252. And the same remark applies to the two next positions of our author. ■* Alexandre remarks on the argument of our author, perhaps a httle too severely, " Absurde dictum ; nam aliis oritur, ahis occidit, dum aliis est a vertice ; quod vel pueri sentiunt." Lemaire, ii. 253. But we may suppose, that Phny, in tliis passage, only meant to say, that as the sun became vertical to each successive part of the equinoctial district, no shadows were formed in it. 3)2
 * The commentators have thought it ne<jessary to discuss the question,