NOVUM ORGANUM 437 



which they are summoned and raised to their apogees, these 

 must all operate at very great distances. Again, some con- 

 flagrations and the kindling of flames take place at very con- 

 siderable distances with particular substances, as they report of 

 the naphtha of Babylon. Heat, too, insinuates itself at wide 

 distances, as does also cold, so that the masses of ice which are 

 broken off and float upon the Northern Ocean, and are borne 

 through the Atlantic to the coast of Canada, become percepti- 

 ble by the inhabitants, and strike them with cold from a dis- 

 tance. Perfumes also (though here there appears to be always 

 some corporeal emission) act at remarkable distances, as is ex- 

 perienced by persons sailing by the coast of Florida, or parts of 

 Spain, where there are whole woods of lemons, oranges, and 

 other odoriferous plants, or rosemary and marjoram bushes, 

 and the like. Lastly, the rays of light and the impressions of 

 sound act at extensive distances. 



Yet all these powers, whether acting at a small or great dis- 

 tance, certainly act within definite distances, which are well 

 ascertained by nature, so that there is a limit depending either 

 on the mass or quantity of the bodies, the vigor or faintness of 

 the powers, or the favorable or impeding nature of the medium, 

 all of which should be taken into account and observed. We 

 must also note the boundaries of violent motions, such as mis- 

 siles, projectiles, wheels, and the like, since they are also mani- 

 festly confined to certain limits. 



Some motions and virtues are to be found of a directly con- 

 trary nature to these, which act in contact but not at a distance ; 

 namely, such as operate at a distance and not in contact, and 

 again act with less force at a less distance, and the reverse. 

 Sight, for instance, is not easily effective in contact, but requires 

 a medium and distance; although I remember having heard 

 from a person deserving of credit, that in being cured of a cata- 

 ract (which was done by putting a small silver needle within the 

 first coat of the eye, to remove the thin pellicle of the cataract, 

 and force it into a corner of the eye), he had distinctly seen the 

 needle moving across the pupil. Still, though this may be true, 

 it is clear that large bodies cannot be seen well or distinctly, 

 unless at the vertex of a cone, where the rays from the object 

 meet at some distance from the eye. In old persons the eye sees 

 better if the object be moved a little farther, and not nearer. 

 Again, it is certain that in projectiles the impact is not so violent 

 at too short a distance as a little afterwards. Such are the 

 observations to be made on the measure of motions as regards 

 distance. 



There is another measure of motion in space which must not 

 be passed over, not relating to progressive but spherical motion 

 that is, the expansion of bodies into a greater, or their con- 



