of the Universe. 1 03 



suit of the angular motion of the planets with that of the gaseous 

 hiedium. If the sun and its circumambient medium was ori- 

 ginally put, or continue to be kept in motion by some unknown 

 contrivance or internal movement in the body of the sun (as 

 Sir Richard conjectures), the plane of tlie orbits described by the 

 medium ought to coincide witli the plane of the sun's equator. 

 But that this was not originally the case, appears evident; a 

 convincing proof that this meciianical medium was not originally 

 put, or coiitinues to be kept in motion, l)y any fanciful arrange- 

 ment within itself, such as a perpetual motion of unknown contri- 

 vance, creating or transferring motion to the respective phmets, 

 satellites, and comets, in the solar system. In fact, this theory 

 of the planetary motions is more incomprehensible than that of 

 gravity. 



5. The elliptic motion of the earth in its orbit (on Sir Richard's 

 Theory) can only be accounted for by a variation in the density 

 of the gaseous medium. The earth's diurnal rotation on its axis 

 being uniformly the same can produce no variable effect on tha 

 orbicular njotion.- in fact, this rising and falling of the planets 

 in the gaseous medium, or variation in the radii of their orbits, 

 is inexplicable by this theory. 



6. The hypolhbsis (vide art. 7) is applicable to the sun and 

 its circumambient gaseous medium; otherwise the theory of Sir 

 Richard cannot obtain whence the motions of ihe planets in su- 

 perior orbits are quicker than those which are situated nearer 

 the sun. But that this is not the case is evident, their respective 

 motions in feet, in one second of time, being as follows : 



Mercury 153825; Venus 116188; Earth 9S817; Mars 

 80054 ; Jupiter 43329 ; Saturn 3 1997 ; Georgian 22562. 



From the above statement, their velocities decreaie instead of 

 increase. Here is also a strange breach in the analogy; for ac- 

 cording with the above velocities, the motion of the gaseous me- 

 dium, bv which the planets are impelled in their orbits, ought in 

 the vicinity of the sun to move with a velocity far exceeding that 

 of Mercury; whereas the motion of rotation on the sun's surface 

 is but (i6 17 feet per second, being but one twenty-fourth part only 

 of that of .Mercury. In pursuing this investigation T discovered 

 that the velocities of the planets in their orbits multiplied by the 

 square roots of their respective 7r2ea?i distances is always a con- 

 stant quantity . Whence the rotation of the gaseous medium at 

 the surface of the sun in one second of time ought to be 1 .417.62S 

 feet, instead of 6617, l)eing only about a two hundred and nine- 

 teenth part of what it onj^ht to be bv this theory : from which 

 it is evident that the motions of the planets arc not effected by 

 solar transferred motions, or by a revolving or diverging agency, 

 resulting from nn internal niovcmcnc in the body ot the sun. 



For 



