35^ A N T ! ?' V T METAPHYSICS. Book V. 



tempt, I think he has thereby confirmed the truth of his general 

 dodlrine of the Caufe of Motion. 



Nor am I deftitute of modern authorities, any more than antient. 

 The firlt I fhall quote is that of Leibnitz, who certainly was a man 

 of great genius, and, if he had underftood the antient languages 

 and fhidied the antient philofophy, would have be^n, in my opi- 

 nion, a very great philofopher. His Monads, as I have fhown from 

 a paflage of his works that I have quoted *, are nothing elfe but 

 ASJive Principles, or Principles of Motion, in all Bodies, by which 

 he accQunts for the Motions in the Univerfe. * 



'.^ bltinvv ii ,v/'.oloiirlq ni 



My next authority is a greater ftill ; it is that of Dr Clarke, who 

 was not only a good metaphyfician, but a great fcholar, and aifo 

 learned in the philofophy of Sir Ifaac Newton. He has declared his 

 opinion in the cleareft and moft explicit terms, * That all the great 



* Motions in the world are caufed by fome Immaterial Poiuer^ not 



* having originally imprefled a certain quantity of Motion upon 

 ' Matter, but perpetually and a&ually exerting itfelf every moment, 

 ' in every part of the world.' And, again, he fays, * That the very 



* Original Laws of Motion themfelves cannot continue to take place, 

 ' but by fomething fuperior to Matter, continually exerting on it a 

 ' certain force or power, according to fuch certain and determinate 

 ' laws t-' 



I have heard it objed:ed to this authority of Dt Clarke, that he J8 

 only fpeaking of the Motion of Gravitation, not of Projection : But 

 I think it is impoflible that the Dodor could have expreflcd himfelf 

 fo inaccurately, as to have faid, that the great Motions of the world, 



by 



♦ Vol. I. page 233. 



+ I have quoted the paflage at large, Vol. I page 23 j. 



