CONTENTS.

CHAPTER I.

Introductory remarks; on Scepticism; the doctrine of a Plurality of Worlds; information of the ancient Hebrews in the arts and sciences, &c.

CHAPTER II.

Adoption of the Newtonian Hypothesis by the Royal Society of London and the honor of the nation identified with it; those who reject that system pronounced, by one of its supporters, to be the worst of heretics; extravagant praises of Newton by his followers; their poetical eulogium and creed commented on; the Copernican scheme not adopted by the most eminent philosophers who flourished in the seventeenth century.

CHAPTER III.

Enumeration of Astronomical Systems; Newtonian doctrine of Worlds forming themselves out of solar vapour and sediments of light; of Hell, according to the belief of some of Newton's followers, being placed in the Sun, and the destruction, or renovation, of Worlds by falling into it; of the Earth being formed out of the atmosphere of a Comet according to Whiston ; of an Earth and a Heaven with its Luminaries within our Earth, according to Dr. Halley; and of Planets, according to La Place, forming themselves out of dense Solar Atmospheres.

CHAPTER IV.

On the Newtonian Theory of Gravity; its application to account for the planetary motions, and to weigh the Sun and Planets; to explain the ebbing and flowing of the Tides; to remedy the decays of the Universe, by the occasional destruction of old Suns, and the formation of them into new ones in the Herschellian Laboratories of the universe!......

CHAPTER V.

On Comets; Newtonian doctrines concerning their inconceivable velocities, heat, periodical appearances and horrible consequences; one of them so deranged by gravity that even Astronomers do not know what is become of it; alarming and contradictory opinions of philosophers; the vulgar opinion uniform and rational.

Page.

1

30

50

70 L

100

On the supposed diurnal motion of the Earth, founded on the Newtonian experiments of the Spindle and soft Ball of Clay, Iron Hoop, Mop, Pendulum, and Measurements of a Degree on the Earth; opposite conclusions of philosophers... 120 CHAPTER VII.

The imaginary motion of the Earth in an orbit, contradicted by sight, reason and Scripture; the tenth chapter of Joshua, and the thirty-eighth of Isaiah, troublesome obstacles to philosophers; elaborate attempts of Bishop Wilkins, Kepler, and others, to explain away certain passages; Critical remarks on the Hebrew names of the Sun, Moon, and other Heavenly Orbs; Searches in heaven for confirmation of the oblate figure of the Earth; disagreement amongst the Newtonians concerning the apparent forms of the Planets......

CHAPTER VIII.

....

The Theories of the Atmosphere, and Void Spaces for Planetary Motion refuted by decisive facts; the actual state of the Ocean an irresistible proof against the theories of the Atmosphere, Gravity, and Earthly Motion.

CHAPTER IX.

Science of Optics known many hundred years anterior to the time of Galileo, though not employed to discover Earths in Heaven; Newtonian maxims overturned by the observations of Mr. Baldwin in his aerial voyage from Chester, by the dark nature of earthly bodies, and by the evidence exhibited in the Stars.

CHAPTER X.

Distances of the Heavenly Bodies; the methods proposed by Astronomers to ascertain them shown to be inapplicable and therefore useless; contradictory accounts of philosophers respecting the distances of Jupiter's Satellites from his body, and likewise respecting the diurnal revolutions of the Planets; the character given by Diodorus Siculus of the Greek Philosophers strictly applicable to modern ones; natural evidences of the Deity stated by St. Paul, and exemplified in the conduct of Socrates; Poetical conclusion.

To which are added, some remarks on the Tides at Liverpool, and a table of their heights at the Full and Change of the Moon for ten years.

132

157 L

173

188

211

CHAPTER I.

INTRODUCTORY REMARKS; ON SCEPTICISM; THE DOCTRINE OF A PLURALITY OF WORLDS; INFORMA

TION OF THE ANCIENT HEBREWS IN THE ARTS AND SCIENCES, &c.

THAT illustrious character, whom the Almighty God raised up to be a leader and instructor to the Hebrew nation, and, through them, to give laws to the world; when he had conducted them to the borders of their destined inheritance, he crowned the labours of his divine mission by that memorable charge which he delivered when committing to their custody the Sacred Books. Having impressively contrasted the infinite advantages of obedience with the fatal consequences of rebellion against the divine precepts, he emphatically reminded them of the many awful events of which they had been eye witnesses, as being so many unquestionable evidences of the superintending care, unbounded power and constant presence of that awful Being by whom those statutes were revealed. These statutes he therefore enjoined them perpetually to meditate upon-to teach to their children from generation to generation, and for ever to prize the inestimable gift as their own peculiar inheritance. But concerning such matters as God had reserved to himself and not revealed, which philosophers and divines wrangle so much about, he seemed to discountenance vain curiosity, or presumptuous interference, as being exclusively the divine prerogative. "The secret things," said he, "belong to

B

Jehovah our God, but those things which are revealed belong to us and to our children for ever, that we may do all the words of this law."

Now as the historical accounts of those marvellous displays of divine power, which the whole nation had witnessed, were accompanied by and interspersed in the body of the written laws; and the whole deposited with them in the most solemn and open manner by the very man who had for forty years acted in their presence, as the distinguished instrument of omnipotence; those records were of course received by the whole nation as incontrovertible memorials of eternal truth; and as such they have been perpetually embraced, preserved and handed down from generation to generation, as we see them at this day.

If the Hebrews had not certainly known the historical facts recorded in the Books in question to be undoubted divine truths, they never would have received them as such: much less would they have preserved and defended at the risk of the loss of their property and lives, for more than three thousand years, records, which so far from flattering false prejudices or encouraging evil propensities, are principally filled with admonitions against immoral indulgences or criminal acts; the penalties of disobedience; the catalogues of their offences and the consequent punishments of Divine Justice. Therefore, for these and an abundance of other reasons which might be produced, every intelligent man, who seriously considers, that all effects are necessarily produced by corresponding causes, and who in other respects cultivates ratiocination with a due regard to useful information, ought, I conceive, upon the most solid grounds of argument, to admit, that the revealed communications in question are strictly authentic and divine.

There are many persons, notwithstanding, who following the example of others, or for want of sufficient industry to examine the Volume with due attention : being also probably puffed up with imaginary science, or unwilling to view themselves by that light which exposes false positions; have in this age embarked in a war of opposition to those divine testimonies; and have even published books for the avowed purpose of crying down the credibility of their contents. They have represented them as not only opposed to philanthropy and sound morality; but likewise to what are termed the sciences, as well as to the useful and elegant arts of civilization. I suspect however, that if such opposers would express their real thoughts upon the matter, with the candour they profess, the true ground of their hostility would be found to exist in the opposition which that renowned Volume exhibits against the maxims and the practices of libertinism; the views of the seditious; and the inflated pride of the vain sophists.

But it would be foreign to the subject in hand to notice at considerable length the shallow and erroneous views of such writers. I shall quote only a passage or two from one of the most plausible of them, for the purpose of shewing how undeservedly a man may become extremely popular among the inconsiderate. This man set himself against both divine and human institutions: and an ill formed understanding, with an uncommonly arrogant disposition, seem to have peculiarly fitted him for the hardy undertaking. The following passages are not selected because they contain more falsehood than others of equal length in other parts of his books, but because they touch upon the subject which I am about to discuss, and also corroborate the observations I have just made.