PHYSICAL AND LITERARY. sJ 



the acceleration df falling bodies, withiii 

 the leafl: perceivable diftance, is percei- 

 vable. 



The power of gravity has a fingular 

 property not commonly attended to, that 

 its force is not fpent by being exerted up- 

 on any iingle body. Its whole force is 

 exerted upon a multitude of bodies, all at 

 the fame time. Thus the earth tends at 

 once both to the fun and moon ; and the 

 whole force of its tendency is diredled to 

 each jufl as much as if the other were anni- 

 hilated. Thus the fun is impelled towards 

 the whole fyftem of planets and comets ; 

 and its total impulfe is direded upon e- 

 very one of them at the fame inftanc. 

 It cannot fail to appear fingular and fiir- 

 prifing, to find a force exerted in fo many 

 different and even oppofite dircdions at 

 one time, without being diininifhed by 

 divifion. Yet all this proceeds froni one 

 linglc property, that every particle of mat- 

 ter tends to every other particL'^ and confe- 

 quenily by increaflngthe quanrity of mat- 

 ter indefinitely, the fum of the tendencie's 

 of any one particle of matter may be 

 greater than any afl:gnable Quantity. Bilc 

 Vol. I. H nature 



