An essay on matter : in five chapters.

  • Isaac Ledyard
Date:
MDCCLXXXIV [1784]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: An essay on matter : in five chapters. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the National Library of Medicine (U.S.), through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the National Library of Medicine (U.S.)

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    [ * ] of life (or motion) in one form, has it's origin in the death, or what we wilh to be called the Change, of another form. Emerging from one kind ofexiftence into another is Life beginning ; emerging from one kind of exiftence into another is Life ending : hence the propriety of the word Change in the place of the word Death, 'lhis Change is conftantly happening in all matter, and in all caufes and effects are the fame. Every thing is poffeffed of the fame living principle. That which caufes motion in one form, caufes it in every form of matter, though the fame principle does notcaufe the fame mo- tion or action in all; the difference lies in the difference of compounding. Matter in one form or compound is actuated by this principle, in a manner conformable to that particular compound or form. The perfection or imperfection of this motion, if wc have a right to fay that one kind of motion is more perfect than another, is owing to the perfection or im- perfection of it's compounding. But we fhould fpeak with diffidence on this head ; for how can we judge of the imper- fection of that motion which exifts in bodies whofe bulk ami motion are too fmall to make them evident to the naked eye, and of which we can only fay, that they are matter, and have motion ? Their fmallnefs fhould not be an argu- ment of their imperfection, any more than the largenefs of body and motion in another, fhould be an argument of their imperfection. Every thing which we fee partakes of infinites, and that which is infinite extends, on all fides, to fmall as well as to large—great and fmall are words adapted to finite; in infinite there is no great or fmall. CHAP.