34-8 DISCOURSE ON THE ST,UDY 



ordinary affairs of life, and studiously kept involved 

 in learned mystery, effectually prevented these oc- 

 casional impulses from overcoming the inertia of 

 ignorance, and impressing any regular and steady 

 progress on science. Its objects, indeed, were con- 

 fined in a region too sublime for vulgar comprehen- 

 sion. An earthquake, a comet, or a fiery meteor, 

 would now and then call the attention of the whole 

 world, and produce from all quarters a plentiful 

 supply of crude and fanciful conjectures on their 

 causes; but it was never supposed that sciences 

 could exist among common objects, have a place 

 among mechanical arts, or find worthy matter of 

 speculation in the mine or the laboratory. Yet it 

 cannot be supposed, that all the indications of nature 

 continually passed unremarked, or that much good 

 observation and shrewd reasoning on it failed to 

 perish unrecorded, before the invention of printing 

 enabled every one to make his ideas known to all 

 the world. The moment this took place, however, 

 the sparks of information from time to time struck 

 out, instead of glimmering for a moment, and dying 

 away in oblivion, began to accumulate into a genial 

 glow, and the flame was at length kindled which 

 was speedily to acquire the strength and rapid spread 

 of a conflagration. The universal excitement in the 

 minds of men throughout Europe, which the first 

 out-break of modern science produced, has been 

 already spoken of. But even the most sanguine 

 anticipators could scarcely have looked forward to 

 that steady, unintermitted progress which it has 

 since maintained, nor to that rapid succession of 

 great discoveries which has kept up the interest of 



