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men, at that dead season of the year, are usually within doors 

 at the close of the day ; while that for the latter might be fixed 

 for any given spot in the garden or outlet : whence the owner 

 might contemplate, in a fine summer's evening, the utmost extent 

 that the sun makes to the northward at the season of the longest 

 days. Now nothing would be necessary but to place these two 

 objects with so much exactness, that the westerly limb of the sun, 

 at setting, might but just clear the winter heliotrope to the west of 

 it on the shortest day ; and that the whole disc of the sun, at the 

 longest day, might exactly at setting also clear the summer helio- 

 trope to the north of it. 1 



By this simple expedient it would soon appear that there is 

 no such thing, strictly speaking, as a solstice ; for, from the 

 shortest day, the owner would, every clear evening, see the disc 

 advancing, at it's setting, to the westward of the object ; and, from 

 the longest day, observe the sun retiring backwards every evening 

 at it's setting, towards the object westward, till, in a few nights, 

 it would set quite behind it, and so by degrees to the west of it : 

 for when the sun comes near the summer solstice, the whole 

 disc of it would at first set behind the object ; after a time the 

 northern limb would first appear, and so every night gradually 

 more, till at length the whole diameter would set northward of 

 it for about three nights ; but on the middle night of the three, 

 sensibly more remote than the former or following. When 

 beginning it's recess from the summer tropic, it would continue 

 more and more to be hidden every night, till at length it would 

 descend quite behind the object again ; and so nightly more and 

 more to the westward. 



1 [No one, it is likely, has ever made heliotropes on White's plan. A surveying 

 or prismatic compass, a theodolite, glass screens (such as windows) suitably 

 marked, or two vertical rods temporarily fixed in the ground, would do as well as an 

 ugly timber frame. White does not explain why his winter heliotrope is to all but 

 hide the sun at setting, while his summer heliotrope is to hide none of it. The 

 arrangement which is best in one case would also be best in the other.] 



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