i. e. bifecla, or dimidiata, the half moon, when the Nec lunam certos excedere luminis orbes; That light, by just degrees, the moon adorns; And that the stars in conftant order roll, Hang there, nor fall, and leave the liquid pole; To which I add this of Statius, Sylv. lib. iii. mankind. Achilles Tatius in Iagog. reports allo the like of the moon's being inhabited: so too does Macrobius in Somn. Scip. lib. i. cap. xi. in these words: " Lunam ætheream terram Phyfici vocaverunt, et habitatores ejus Lunares Populos nuncuparunt: quod ita effe pluribus argumentis, quæ nunc longum eft enumerare, docuerunt." See more to this purpose in Kepler's "Aftronomia optica," and particularly in a pofthumous treatife of his, intituled, "Somnium, five de luni. ari Aftrologiâ." Now, why fhould this opinion feem extravagant, if it be admitted, that the moon enjoys as favourable an aspect from the fun, as this earth of ours, though the days and nights there be answerable to our half months, in regard it is fcreened with hills and mountains, under which lie deep fhades and valleys, with hollow caves. and receffes, of equal benefit against the extremities of heat and cold and being watered befides with great lakes and rivers, and confequently fupplied by nature with all things neceffary for the fupport of life? How then can it reasonably be thought, that nature has conferred all thofe advantages and benefits for no use and end; and that the moon is made for no other purpose, and ferves only to reflect to us the light of the fun? See more in Ifaac Voffius in his learned treatise, "de Naturâ et Propriet. Lucis," cap. xix. After all, it is not agreed what kind of creatures these lunary inhabitants are: however, Kepler feems fomewhat pofitive as to this point also. "Concludendum videtur," fays he in his notes, "ad appendic. Selenograph. in Lunâ creaturas effe viventes, rationis, ad ordinata facienda, capaces." He affirms the fame thing of the other planets, nay even of the fun itself; concerning which, in the epilogue to his fifth book, he breaks out into this expreffion: "Vel fenfus ipfi exclamant, ignea hic habitare corpora, mentium fim. plicium capacia, verèque folem effe #upòs vorpü si non regem, at faltem regiam." Nor is this fo ftrange as what fome affert, who maintain the moon to be the paradife in which our first parents were created, and from whence, for their tranf greffion, they were expelled, and driven down to this earth of ours. This Hieronymus Vitalis, in "Lexic. Mathemat. in voce Paradifus," endeavours to evince, as well from reafon, as from the authorities of feveral of the fathers and schoolmen. He fays indeed, that this is new and unheard of, but not therefore to be accounted foolifh and abfurd: "Fateor," fays he, " id novum, fingulare, et hactenus inauditum, at non per hoc temerarium, atque intolerabile dixeris:" Then he urges in thefe exprefs words; " modo partâ tantâ rerum notitiâ, lunæ facie Telescopio penitiffimè obfervatâ, veterum dictis expenfis, locis fuper hanc terram investigatis, Paradifum in Lunæ fuperficie collocari, ratio ipfa compellit." The reader may be farther fatisfied as to this matter in that au And since we are upon the subject of this planet, I cannot but take notice of an opinion, which is at this day afferted and maintained by several, as well philofophers as astronomers: viz. That the moon is inhabited. This belief they ground on the appearance of mountains, valleys, woods, lakes, feas, and rivers, which, by the help of the telefcope, they difcover in the orb of that planet. The ancients, as Cicero witneffes, embraced this opinion long ago: "Habitari," fays he, "ait Xenophanes in Lunâ, eamque effe terram multarum urbium et montium. Academ. Quæft. lib. iv. The interpreter of Aratus : εἶναι δὲ ἐπ' αὐτῆς δικασι ἄλλὰ πολαμὲς τὸ καὶ ὅσα ἐπὶ γῆς. And Plutarch De Pla citis Philofoph. lib. ii. cap. 50. reports, That the Pythagoreans affirm the moon to be another earth, inhabited in all its parts, even as this carth of ours and peopled with living creatures fifteen times larger than thofe with us: thefe inhabitants the ancients called Antichthones, because they believed them to dwell in an earth quite oppofite to this of ours. And that author, in his treatife, "De facie in orbe Lune," fays, That there are caverns in the moon, called "Penetralia Hecates;" and that the upper parts of that pla-thor; but it is time for us to return to Lucretius. net, which always regard the heavens, are the Elyfian fields: That it is likewife inhabited by Genii, who not always make their abode there, but fometimes defcend to earth, to punish or awe Ver. 761. In these fix verses, he affigns another reafon, and fays, that if the moon do fhine with unborrowed light, then we muft imagine that another body, which is opacous and totally dark, always moves with the moon, and obstructs and turns away her beams. This is faid to be the opinion of Anaximander; who, nevertheless, believed nothing like it: for, though he did perhaps fay, that the moon lov ix qs had her own light. Plut. de Placit. Philofoph. lib. ii. cap. 26 & 28. (içãoxev rì oiλńvnv | Leudocidn, Tì àñò 18 paligida. Lacrtius), yet he never so much as dreamed of any other body that moved about with her, and hindered and obftru&ted her light. Ver. 762. See the note above ver. 757. Ver. 767. In these twenty-nine verfes, he propofes their opinion, who held the one half of the moon's orb to be light, the other half dark. Now, fays he, if you imagine this opinion to be true, imagine likewife fuch an orb to be turned round on its axle or centre, and it will prefent the different phases we behold in the moon. This was the opinion of Berofus, a famous aftronomer in the days of Antiochus Soter, as alfo of the Babylonians, who defended this doârine against a fect of the Chaldean aftronomers who, as Diodorus Siculus, lib. ii. witneffes, agreed with the Greeks, that the moon fhines with light that is not her own: but the Babylonians held one half of the moon's globe to be luminous, the other dark. And that both the Chaldeans and Babylonians too were very skilful in aftrology, we have the teftimonies of Diodor. lib i. de Divin. Pliny lib. vii cap. 56. and many others: Nay, Manilius, lib. i. ver. 38. teaches, That aftrology was given by the gods to the kings of the Chaldeans: for it was God, fays he, Qui fua difpofuit per tempora, cognita ut effent At whose command the ftars in order met, Kings next to Heav'n, who o'er the eaft did fway, The day to us, and, paffing, burns the Moors. Creech. | hypothesis of Berosus against the vulgar aftrology. What it was, fays he, Plutarch teaches, "de Pla. citis Philofophorum," lib. ii. where he afferts, that an eclipfe of the moon is caufsed xà cùv a ģμās imię po¤ùv Tõjatugāle μépes, i. e. by her turning towards us that part of her orb which is not fiery. Then he fubjoins, that the Chaldeans in this place, is the name of a particular fect, not of the whole people, as might be proved out of He rodotus. To which I add this of Laërtius, wa δι Βαβυλώνιοις, ἡ ̓Ασσύριος Χαλδαίοι, Γυμνόσο είσαι rapà Ivoos And with this agrees Cicero, lib. ii. de Divinat. OF THE ORIGINAL AND PROGRESS OF ASTRONOMY AMONG THE ANCIENTS. ASTRONOMY had its name ἀπὸ τὸ νόμῳ τῶν ἀτέρων, because it teaches the laws and rules of the motions of the stars: but the words aftronomy and aftrology, were anciently promifcuously used one for the other: for what Plato calls aftronomy, Aristotle, and others, call aftrology. Thus Sal mafius in Plin. Exercitat. tom. i. p. 6. fays, That among the Greeks, Thales is faid first äsgedoyāsu, to aftrologize, though he never treated of the judiciary art. In like manner, Pherecydes was called an aftrologer, though he was only an aftronomer: and the nautical aftrology of Phocus the Samian, which fome afcribe to Thales, treats only of the aftronomical science. Manilius, on the contrary, calls his poem Aftronomicon, though all of it, except the first book, treat of judiciary aftrology. But, in after ages, this synonymy was discontinued: for* when the apoteleimatic part, which, from the site and afpect of the fixed stars and planets, teaches to divine their influences, as to the production of future events, came to get footing in Greece, where, anciently, only the meteorologic part eft, which teaches the motion of the stars, was knowD, they diftinguifhed them, and gave to the first the name of aftrology, and called the laft aftronomy; which is properly understood, and defcribed to be, The Science, which contemplates the motion, diftance, colour, light, order, place, magnitude, and the like adjunts of the fixed ftars, and of the planets, without any refpect to the judiciary part. And as this fcience itfelf, fo the profeffors of it too, were, in like manner, doubly diftinguished. Plato, in Epinomide, ufes the words 'Argovaprits, and Asgovou, in different fenfes. He understands, by the first of them, thofe who apply themselves to discover the rifing and fetting of the flars, in order to prognofticate concerning the feasons of the year, and the temperature of the air. By the laft of them, he means thofe who particularly con fine their ftudies to the theory of the planets. The original of astronomy, says Gaffendus, pro ceeded from admiration; "Originem ipfi ipfa fecit admiratio. Introduct. Aftronom." For our forefathers, aftonished at the fplendour, variety and multitude of those glorious bodies, and obferv ing their conftant and regular motions, applied themselves to the ftudy of this fcience, and tranfferred their admiration into obfervations, which, ། GREE NC EX cats ? on the all of in process of time, they marked down in tables or parapegmas, for the instruction of pofterity: and for this reafon, Ricciolus, in his preface to the firit tome of the New Almageft, affirms aftronomy to be almost coeval with the stars themselves: And that, together with other arts divinely infused, it was reduced into experiment and practice by Adam himself, who, according to Suidas, was the parent and author of all arts and doctrines; r, fays he, ráva isgńpala nai didáɣμála Befides, that Adam particularly inftructed Seth in this aftral fcience, and that too by writing, is the opinion of all the Jewish and Arabian doctors, and among them, particularly Gelaldinus Arabs, cited by Kircher in Obelife. Pamphil. p. 5. if he be the author of the book, which goes under the title of " Liber Creationis;" of which fome are in doubt, even though it be commented upon as fuch, by Rabbi Abraham, and Rabbi Jofeph Ben Uziel. But, however that be, Jofephus, in the eleventh book of the Jewish Antiquities, writes, that Seth having been inftructed in aftronomy by Adam, and know ing that the world was twice to be deftroyed, 17 once by water, and once by fire, reduced this art to an epitome, and for the information and benefit of pofterity, engraved it on two pillrrs, one of 1 brick, the other of ftone; the first to preserve it from the fire, the second from the deluge; which laft pillar he affirms to have been remaining in his days at a place called Syrias or Seirath, which 1. Voffius, lib. i. de Etate Mundi, fuppofcs to be the land that borders on Mount Ephraim, not far from Jericho. Seth, the fon of Adam, having thus engraved on two pillars, the theory of this celeftial science, which he had received from his father; and aftronomy being thus brought into the world, the fucceeding patriarchs, who, by reason of their longevity, had the opportunity of observing many af tral revolutions, cultivated and improved it: Nay, fome of the Jewish doctors, particularly Rabbi Ifaac Aberbenel in Differtat. de Longævitate prim Patr. goes fo far as to affirm, that the lives of the patriarchs were, by the Divine Providence, miraculously prolonged for no other end, than that they might apply themselves to the tudy of this celeftial fcience; in which the moft celebrated for his knowledge is Enoch, whose books on that fubject are faid to be extant to this day in the territories of the queen of Sheba, as Voffius de Scientiis Mathemat. affirms; at least they are several times cited by Tertullian and Origin. It is not certainly known to what degree of improvement this fcience was brought before the flood; but from the teftimony of Origin, citing the above-mentioned books of Enoch, it appears, that the stars were then reduced into afterifms, under peculiar and diftin&t denominations, concerning which that patriarch, who was the feventh from Adam, writ many fecret and myftexious things. Besides, it is evident from fcripture itfelf, that the year was then, as it is now, computed by twelve revolutions of the moon, to one of the fun's through the zodiac; for it is faid ex prefsly in Genefis, that Noah entered into the ark the feventeenth day of the second month, and went out of it the twenty-feventh day of the fecond month of the year following: In the fame book likewife exprefs mention is made of the seventh and tenth months: From whence we may with good reafon infer, that the patriarchs had then the knowledge of the courfes of the fun and moon, with their periods, and, in all probability, of the other planets also. After the flood, when mankind came to be scattered over the face of the whole earth, aftronomy began to be ftudied by feveral nations, who, no doubt, had their first knowledge of it from Noah and his posterity; and hence arofe the conteft for the honour of its invention. But fince it cannot be denied, that mankind dispersed themfelves out of Afia into Afric, Europe, and other parts of the world, the Afiatics may justly claim to themselves the glory of it; and among them chiefly the Babylonians, Chaldeans, and Bactrians; of whom the most renowned for their skill in this fcience are Evahdnes, Belus, Zoroaster, and Otanes; as alfo Cidenas, Naburianus, Sudinus, and Seleucus the Chaldean. From the Affyrians and Chaldeans it came to the Egyptians, being brought thither by Abraham the patriarch, as Eufebius, lib. ix. Præparat. Evangel. proves from the authority of Jofephus, Eupolemus, Artapanus, and others, as they are cited by Alexander Polyhiftor But Eupolemus seems to infer that Abraham, before his descent into Egypt, taught it to the Phoenicians. Others however fay, that Mercury first taught the Egyptians Aftronomy, and indeed all other arts and fciences. This is pofitively afferted, not only by Samblichus, but by Plato in Phaedrus, where he calls him wang yeaμμárov. and by Cicero, lib. iii. Divinat. Vide etiam Lactantium, lib. i. cap. 6. There are others who attribute the honour of it to the Egyptians before the Chaldeans, who, fay they, were even themselves first inftructed in it by the Egyptians. To make good which affertion they produce the teftimonies of Diodorus Siculus, Biblioth. lib. i. and of Hyginus Fabul. 271. the first of whom fays, that Babylon was a colony of the Egyptians, founded by Belus of Libya, who inftituted there a college of priefts, to the end they might contemplate the ftars in the fame manner as thofe of Egypt. The laft, that one Evahdnes is faid to have come from beyond the feas into Chaldæa, and there to have taught aftronomy. But if this fcience were known to the Egyptians, before it was to the Babylonians and Chaldeans, how comes it to pafs, that the Egyptian obfervations are so much later than those of the Babylonians? For we scarce find any of the Egyp tian to precede the death of Alexander the Great; than which even those of the Greeks are earlier; but the Babylonian observations were manifeftly made almoft two thousand years before that time. And Cicero, lib. i. de Divinat. afcribes it firft to the Affyrians: The Affyrians, ut ab ultimis auctoritatem repetam," fays he, by reason of the plainnefs and large extent of their country, which afforded them on all fides a clear and open view of heaven, obferved the courfe and motion of the ftars. And having framed a due calculation of their revolutions, they from thence made predictions of future events. And amongst the Affyrians, the Chaldeans (non ex artis, fed ex gentis vocabulo nominati)" arrived to fuch a perfection of fkill, that they could foretel what fhould happen to any one, and under what fate they were born; which art the Egyptians learned of them many ages ago. Thus Cicero. There are others nevertheless who deny this honour both to the Chaldeans and Egyptians, affigning the invention of astronomy to the Ethiopians; of this opinion is Lucian, wagì 'Asgo20-❘ izs But this affertion feems of little weight, it being contrary to the general ftream of tradition, even long before Lucian's time. The Africans too pretend to the invention of aftronomy; and among them particularly the Mauritanians, who are faid to have been inftructed in that science by their king Atlas, the fon of Libya. Ariftotle afcribes the invention of it, wholly to the Babylonians and the Egyptians: 'Ay, καὶ Βαβυλώνοι, παρ ̓ ὧν πολλὰς πίσεις ἔχομεν περί ἑκάτε τῶν ἄτρων And how the Egyptians came to be fkilful in that fcience, Ptolomy, who was himfelf of Egypt, gives us this reafon. 71 μáàãøv øursiMAYTA TOÏS Didúμcis, xai cô rỡ Equỡ And why? δίοπες διανοήτικοι τὲ καὶ συνεῖοὶ καὶ ὅλως ἱκανοὶ περὶ τὰ μαθήματα. Of the Babylonians he fays, ὅτι τῇ παρθένω καὶ τῷ τῷ Ερμᾶ συνοικῶνται, διὸ καὶ παρ' αὑμῖς τὸ μαθηματικὸν καὶ παρατρητικὸν τῶν ἀτέρων συνέπε και. Callifthus, Melo, Philippus, Hipparchus, Aratt, &c. left to pofterity their aftrological prognoftics, in their tables, which are called Parapegmas; d which fee Geminus and Theon in Arati Phænom, Thus though it be certain, that the Greeks der. ed their knowledge in aftronomy from the Chal deans and Egyptians, yet fo great was their prefumption, as confidently to affirm, that the inven tion of it was due to them, particularly to the Rhodians, from whom they pretend that the E gyptians received it, as Diodorus Siculus reports in the ftory of the Heliadæ. And, laftly, others of them afcribe its original to their poet Or. pheus; but thofe opinions favour too much of the fable, and therefore we may rather subscribe to their belief, who hold, that Thales the Milefian first brought aftronomy into Greece, having do rived his knowledge in that fcience from the E gyptians. After Thales, it was improved by Anaximan der, Anaximenes, Anaxagoras, Democritus, Em pedocles, Euctemon, Meton, Eudoxus, and others of the Athenian School, till the time that Alexander the Great founded the city of Alexandria in Egypt. After which the Ptolemies, his fuc ceffors, having erected there an academy for all manner of ftudies, the Grecian aftronomy made its retreat thither; and flourished under thofe princes in equal glory with the Egyptian. And from thence we hear of the famous names of Antolychus, Calipus, Timochares, Aristyllus, Eratofthenes, Conon, Hipparchus, Sofigenes, Theor the elder, Ptolomy, Paulus the Alexandrian, Theor the younger, furnamed likewife the Alexandrian, and his daughter, the excellent, but unfortunate, Hypatia. It was long before aftronomy was introduced into Italy, or had any profeffors among the R mans; for though Dion Prufieus in Orat 49affirm, that the Pythagoreans inftructed the la lians in that science, and that in all probability the doctrine of Philolaus, Timæus, Archytas, and others, the fame of whofe learning had invited even Plato himself to make a voyage into Italy, could not have been concealed from the curious and ingenious Romans; yet that martial people, who were more addicted to arms than arts, en tertained but late and flowly too, thefe fpeculative ftudies: Nor to pafs by the rude sketches of Numa Pompilius, does the Roman history men. tion any perfons as confiderably knowing in aftronomy, before Cauis Sulpicius Gallus, who was le gate to Æmilius Paulus, in the war against Peries, king of Macedon, and who first among them published a treatife of eclipfes. After him, we read that Lucius Taruntius, Nigidius Figulus, Varro, and Cicero, applied themfelves to the ftudy of aftronomy; but to none of the Romans is that science fo much indebted, as to their great dictator C. Julius Cæfar, who, as Lucan wit Thus from the feveral nations before-mentioned, aftronomy feems to have been anciently divided into three different and chief fects, that is to fay, the Affyrian, under which is comprehended the Babylonian and the Chaldaic, the Egyptian, and the Mauritanian or Atlantic; of which laft nevertheless the Romans made no account; for among them were enumerated only thefe three fects, the Chaldaic, Egyptian, and Grecian. Now Eudoxus is faid to have been the firft, who from the Egyptians brought aftronomy to his countrymen the Greeks; and Berofus to have brought into Greece the fcience of Genethlialogy from his countrymen the Chaldeans. Vitruvius, lib. ix. cap. 7 . "Eorum autem inventiones, quas fcriptis reli. querunt, qua folertià, quibufque acuminibus, et quam magni fuerint, qui ab ipfà Chaldæorum natione profluxerunt, oftendunt: Primufque Berofus in infulà, et civitate Ceà confedit, ibique aperuit difciplinam." And Pliny fays, that the Athenians publicly erected a ftatue with a golden tongue to Berofus, for his divine predictions. After him Antipater and Achina polus were reputed famous Genethlialogifts. Of natural caufes and effects, Thales, Anaxagoras, Pythagoras, Xenophantus,neffes, and Democritus are esteemed the most eminent obiervers. After them, following their inventions, and obferving befides the rite and fetting of the fears, and the feafons of the year, Eudamon, -Media inter prælia femper Stellarum, cælique plagis, fuperisque vacabat. And who affited by the Egyptian Sofigenes, 50 Aduced the Roman year to the courfe of the fun, which we yet retain; and writ a treatise of the ftars in the Greek tongue. From him the mathematical arts, and particularly aftronomy, began to flourish among the Romans; and after his exaruple, Auguftus Cæfar, who was his nephew and fucceffor, encouraged the study of it. Let this fuffice as a brief indication of the first rife and authors of aftronomy, and of the promoters of it among the ancients. It would perhaps be too tedious to continue the progrefs of it down to thefe times, and to fhow when, how, and by 17 whom it has been improved, and brought to that degree of perfection to which it is now arrived. Ver. 774. Here we see that though Lucretius, after Epicurus, believed the first opinion to be the most probable, yet he does not condemn the latter. And thus too Epicurus in Laërtius, lib. x. fays, that though one reafon may feem better than any of the other, for the folution of any problem whatever, yet we ought not therefore immediately to condemn all the rest that may be given, if they have any appearance of truth, even though but one of them can be true. # Ver. 776. In thefe twenty-feven verfes he propofes the opinion of Epicurus, who held that the moon is created and dies daily, in a certain form and figure. In like manner, as he held the fun to be daily extinguished in the weft, and created again in the east. And that this may be, fays he,, feveral other things demonftrate: For thus, at certain and inviolable times, the feafons of the year follow one another; the spring precedes the fummer, the fummer the autumn, the autumn the winter, the winter the fpring, &c. Ovid. Metam. xv. ver. 196. defcribes in like manner the conftant fucceffion of the four feafons of the Laft winter fweeps along with tardy pace, Ver. 782. For Venus, the goddess of genera tion accompanies the vernal season; as Lucretius himself elegantly fings at the beginning of the first book; which Dryden has no less elegantly rendered in thefe verfes. Delight of human kind, and gods above: For ev'ry kind by thy prolific might, And heav'n itself with more ferene and purer light is blefs'd. For when the rifing spring adorns the mead, flood: All nature is thy gift; earth, air, and sea, barren mountains, o'er the flow'ry plain, year, and compares them to the four ages of The leafy foreft, and the liquid main, y pigs. } and will only give Dryden's tranflation of it to il-Through all the living regions thou doft move, Fluftrate this paffage of Lucretius: Perceiv'ft thou not the process of the year; Spring first, like infancy, fhoots out her head, And lavishly perfumes the fields around; And scatter'ft, where thou go'ft, the kindly feeds of love. See book i. ver. I. Moreover, our tranflator has repeated this and the two following verfes from book i. ver. 19. though his author have not. Ver. 784. The weft wind of which, book 1. ver. 21. Lucretius here calls it zephyrus: which is likewife a wind that blows from the equinoctial weft, contrary to the wind called Jubsolanus, which blows from the equinoctial eaft. It was fo called from Congógor, that brings life; becaufe, when it blows, all things bud and fhoot forth. This wind was feigned to be the forerunner of Venus, because it blows chiefly in the fpring, with which feafon Venus is faid to be molt delighted. Ver. 785. "Lactantius de falfà Religione, lib. i." calls her Faula; for which Voffius there reads Flaura; fhe was, as Verrius in the fame author fays, Scortum Herculis, the Harlot of Hercules; but according to others, he was a Roman dame, who, by her lewd pra&ices having heaped up a |