PROLEGOMENA. CIX. 



equal times, raoving in elliptical orbits, and that 

 others, going off in parabolas, are lost in space ; 

 when we have shown the laws of satellites, 

 drawn out most accurately the loops of the moon, 

 and explained the arithmetical process by which 

 future phenomena are foretold ; — when we have 

 done all this, what have we done by human 

 reason towards explaining the causes, of which 

 these mighty effects are, by the labours of the 

 calculator, reduced under an apparent general 

 rule of action, and made subservient to the 

 measurement of time ? The theory of attractions 

 and repulsions, the boast and pride of the great 

 astronomer, is not only supposititious, but even, 

 if proved, it would amount to no more than the 

 discovery of another interventional effect, of 

 which the cause would still remain unknown and 

 undiscoverable by human sagacity ; and we 

 should use a more simple diction by referring all 

 the celestial motions at once to God, the uni- 

 versal parent of causes. These are indeed 

 marvellous subjects in mechanical philosophy ; 

 but wonderful as they are, they fall far short of 

 the astonishing researches of Herschell into the 

 higher branches of astronomy. When he had 

 penetrated into the remoter regions of space, and 

 discovered innumerable systems unknown before, 

 he set about calculations of the distances of 

 certain small stars, and particularly of those that. 



