PARADOXES AND PARADOXISTS. 2JI 



discoveries. The first demand should be, Mr. Moses, 

 before I allow you to lead me over the Red Sea, I 

 must have you show that you are learned in all the 

 wisdom of the Egyptians upon your own subject. The 

 plea that it is unlikely that this or that unknown 

 person should succeed where Newton, &c., have failed, 

 or should show Newton, &c., to be wrong, is utterly 

 null and void. It was worthily versified by Sylvanus 

 Morgan (the great herald, who, in his Sphere of 

 Gentry, gave coat-armour to "Gentleman Jesus," as 

 he said), who sang of Copernicus as follows (1652) : 



If Tellus winged be, 



The earth a motion round ; 

 Then much deceived are they 



Who nere before it found. 

 Solomon was the wisest, 



His wit nere this attained ; 

 Cease, then, Copernicus, 



Thy hypotheses vain. 



Newton, &c., were once unknown; but they made 

 themselves known by what they knew and then 

 brought forward what they could do ; which I see is as 

 good verse as that of Herald Sylvanus. The demand 

 for previous knowledge disposes of twenty-nine cases 

 out of thirty, and the thirtieth is worth listening to.' 



The advantage of this rule is that it is so easily 

 applied. It should be useful to the paradoxists them- 

 selves, though that, perhaps, is too much to hope for. 

 But in any case its reasonableness and simplicity 

 should commend it to those who are addressed by the 

 paradoxists to that too wide general public, which 



