XXXIV EXPLANATION OF THE PLATES. 



but, by obferving that very night the conjundion of the 

 Moon and Jupiter, announced for the Latitude of Venice 

 at one hour after midnight, in the ephemeris of Jofeph 

 Scala, and which took place that very night, at Nova 

 Zembla, at fix of the clock of the morning, in the fign of 

 Taurus; which gave him^ at once, the longitude of his 

 hut in Nova Zembla, and the certainty tliat it muft be the 

 24th of January. 



A refra£lion of two degrees and a half is undoubtedly 

 very confiderable. We may, in my opinion, afcribe one 

 half of it to the apparent elevation of the Sun ih the very 

 refradlive Atmofphere of Nova Zembla, and the other 

 half, to the real elevation of the Obferver above the Ho- 

 rizon of the Pole. Barents, accordingly, obferved, from 

 Nova Zembla, the Sun in :he Equator, juft as a man fees 

 him earlier from the fuinmit of a îîiountain, than at it's 

 bafis. It is, bcfidcs, a principle which admits of no ex- 

 ception, of the harmonic laws of the Univerfe, that Na- 

 ture propofes to hcrfelf no one end, without conftraining 

 all the elements to concur, at once, to the produ6lion of it. 

 Of this we have adduced manifold proofs in the courfc of 

 this Work. Nature, accordingly, having determined to 

 indemnify the Poles for the abfence of the Sun, makes the 

 Moon pafs toward the Pole, which the Sun abandons ; 

 She cryftallizes, and reduces into brilliant fnows, the wa- 

 ters which cover it : rtie renders it's Atmofphere more re- 

 fra£livc, that the prefence of the Sun may be detained 

 longer in it, and reflored fooner to it : and hence, alfo, there 

 is reafon to conclude, that Ihe has drawn out the Poles of 

 the Earth themfelves, in order to beftow on them a longer 

 participatinji of the influence of the Orb of Day. 



Cortoiii 



