with the others. It renders the motions of the planets 

 utterly inexplicable, which are otherwise plain and 

 simple. 



Sor is the motion of the earth, whatever is -vulgarly 

 supposed, contrary to any part of the scripture. No 

 other ideas are to be affixed to the words of scripture, 

 than such 'as occur to one who looks at the thing 

 spoken of. By the sun's rising, therefore, when men- 

 tioned in scripture, we are to understand no more than 

 the sun's appearing again in the horizon, after he had 

 been hid below it: and by his setting, his ceasing to 

 appear. And when the sun and moon are said to stand 

 still, it means only that they did not change their situa- 

 tion in respect of the earth : that the sun still appearec 

 just over Gih j on t and the moon over the valley 

 djalon. If' it be said, " But David speaks of the Sun 

 running its course? we may answer over and above, the 

 v/ord here used does not mean the orb or body of the 

 stm, but always his rays or beams. 



2. It is probable sand was once the exterior cover 01 

 the whole earth. All our northern mountains are 

 more or less, covered with it at this day. And the 

 higher the mountain, the courser the sand. The rivers 

 rising in the mountains, still daily bring it down ii 

 large quantises. And that it has been so in all ages 

 since the iirst nuns fell on the earth, seems highly pro 

 bable> in that the mouths of rivers, and entrances o 

 harbours, are usually barred with it. And if you pierce 

 deep into the low ground near rivers, you find thi 

 mouii tain-sand in great quantities: it was the more ii 

 to be the general cover of the earth, because of it 

 great hardness, and consequently durafeleness, Mouu 

 taiti sand, above all other, not being made (as mud 

 sand is) by attrition, steadily keeps its original figur 

 and magnitude. 



All sands are either natural or factitious. Natu?a 

 sands are those which have been in the same or nearl) 

 the same state from the creation, diffused through ai 

 the parts of the earth. Sand, viewed in a microscope 



