204 Mr, BowporN on Light and the Wafte of Matter : 
rays : of which, by reafon of its great diftance from the. fum 
it would not otherwife have had a futficient quantity. : : 
If Saturn were a luminous body per fe, and the arch, Bees 
of fuitable matter, and properly confiructedy for the purpoic) 
entirely environed it, the whole quantity of light emitted from 
it, would -be refle&ted back ; and -no wafte of its matter arife 
from that emiffion. -The fame kindof hollow fphere or orb, 
furrounding, for inftance, the folar fyftem, would anfwer the 
fame purpofe. Its fun, being in the centre of the orb, would 
have all its light reverberated back to it: except the compara- 
tively fmall quantity intercepted by the planets : a great part 
of which quantity would, by dire&, and indirect refleétions, be 
returned to the fun ; and a quantity equal to the remainder, by. 
means of volcanoes, and other internal fires in the. planets, 
might be thrown off from.them, and conveyed to the fun: 
whereby the equilibrium of the whole might be preferved. 
Such an orb fora fingle fyftem appears fimple and plain ; - 
and fuch an one for the whole choir of fyftems, though. fem- 
ingly more complicated, might yet appear equally fuitable for 
the purpofe, when its ftructure, and the Jaws and. principles 
which governed it, and alfo the fituation of the feveral fyftems 
relative to it, and to each other, fhould become known. 
Its ftupendous extenfion would be no objection to the fup- 
pofition of its reality : for if the convenience and. pleafure of | 
tbe inhabitants of Saturn were a fufficient reafon for furnifhing 
that aoe with its-mafly ring, the prefervation of fuch a choir 
: ify and fufficiently fupport the fuppofition of fuch an 
arb : efpecially when it is confidered, that befides anfwering 
the grand purpofe of preferving thole fy{tems,. it might, per- 
