76 The WisBOM of GOD PartL 



without Air at its .firft Birth, than it can do 

 afterward. 



Upon this Occafion, give me leave to dif- 

 courfe a little concerning the Air's infinuating 

 it felf into the Water. I fay therefore , That 

 the Air, at leaft that Part of it which is the 

 Aliment of Fire, and Fewel of the Vital Flame 

 in Animals, eafily penetrates the Body of Wa- 

 ter exposed to it, and diffufeth it felf through 

 every Part of it. Hence it is that we find Fifli 

 in fubterraneous Rivers, and foffil Fifli in the 

 Earth it felf; which can no more live without 

 Air there than in the open Waters : Hence 

 the Miners, when they come once at Water, 

 are out of all Dangers and Damps. You'll fay. 

 How gets the Air into the Water in Subter- 

 raneous Rivers, and into the Earth to the foffil 

 Fiihes ? I anfwer. The fame Way that tne Water 

 doth : Which I fuppofe to be by its upper 

 Superficies ; the Water defcending by Pores and 

 PaiTages that there it finds into Chinks and 

 Veins, and by Confluence of many of them 

 by Degrees fwelling into, a Stream, the Air ac- 

 companies and follows it by a conftant Succef- 

 fion. As for foffil Fiflies, fome make their 

 Way into the Earth up the Veins of Water, 

 opening into the Banks of Rivers, where they 

 lie till they grow fo great that they cannot re- 

 turn: In which Veins they find Air enough to 

 ferve their Turn, needing not much by reafon 

 that they lie ftill, and move but little. O- 

 thers in Times of Floods are left in the Mea- 

 dows, and with the Water fink into the Earth 



at 



