l8o4« h '^^ Bai'Ofi Mimchaufcn. \%^ 



RenfofiJngs anil Experhnents upon the' Redundancies to he found 

 in Nuture. 



It hath, moft fooHHily, been adopted as a mnxiiTi, or, ;it 

 leaii, the maxim hath been moll foollflily interptcted, * that 

 Nature hath dene nothing in vain. ' For, from thence, it hath 

 been inferred, iliat there canm t exift fuch a thin^ as redundan- 

 cy or fnperiiuity in her works ; a conclufion. which would, at 

 once, fet afidc the wliole of my fuhft-quent reafonin^^ and ex- 

 periments. Now I do, on the contrary, mod peremptorily pro- 

 nounce, that fuch interpretation, inflead of doing honour to, 

 would molt efientially difparage her fyfiem of economy. It were, 

 indeed, to judge very meanly of Nature's liberality, or her refour- 

 ces, were we to fuppofe, that, in the diftribution of her boun- 

 ties, {lie had niggardly confined herfelf to the mere conferring 

 of the abfolutely needful^ as if unwilling or unable to fpare any- 

 farther furnilhing : I liave, therefore, been ever fturdily deter- 

 mined to conclude, a priori, that her favours were bellowd in 

 a much mure plentiful profufion : and extenfive obfervation of 

 the flate of the fa6l, harh ever more and more confirmed the 

 juilncfs of my original conception. 



To inftance, at prefent, in our bodily fenfes, do we, in the 

 didribution of the fenfuive power, perceive any'marks of nig- 

 gardly dinting ? The precious fenfe o^ fight ^ not only hath its 

 organs fecured from external inju'.;^. by a fortification of projec- 

 ing bOne, behind which they lye fni^gly entrenched, but is e- 

 qaaily communicated to two feparate organs, that, in cafe of 

 failure of the one, the other may dep forward as its infurer. 

 Hearing, 2Ln6 fmelling, are they not equally furniflied with double 

 apparatus of organs ? And the dill more important fenfe of 

 touch (fo eflential to our more intimate acquaintance with ex- 

 ternal objecfs, as alfo to our more fubdantial enjoyment of 

 them) is not only equally diflufed, in its more intenfe degree, 

 over no lefs than ten fingers, by way of multiplied infurance, 

 but alfo over the whole furface of the body. Like to vegetable 

 juices, however, the intenfity of whofe peculiar qualities are 

 increafed by the condenfation of infpiiration, but weakned by 

 expanfion into occupation of larger fpace through dilution — So, 

 do we univerfally find, that the fenfitive power is weakened, by 

 diffufion over a multiplicity of organs of the fame, or of ditfer- 

 ent fenfes j but rendered more vivid and acute when concen- 

 trated into a few. Hence, the blind are found to pcflefs a more 

 nicely difcriminating fenfe of touchinp;, than thofe who both fee 

 •<ind feel ; whence follows the indubitable propriety of putting 

 put our eyes, when we wilh to excel in profedions requiring 

 fhe poflefTion of a touch peculiarly delicate. The power of vifiQp 



