Miftellanea Cnriofa. 243 



An Account of the Meafure of the 

 thicknefs of Gold upon Gilt Wire ; 

 together with Demonfiration of 

 the exceeding Minutenefs of the 

 Atoms or conftituent Particles of 

 Gold ; as it was; read bef ore the 

 Royal Society, by E. Halley. 



WHAT , are the eonftituenr Parts of Mat- 

 ter, and how there come? to be fo great 

 a 4iVerfity in the weight of Bodies, to all ap- 

 pearance equally folid and denfe,, Inch as are 

 Gold and Glafs, (whofe fpecifick Gravities are 

 nearly as 7 to 1) Teems a. very hard QuerKon to 

 thofe that (hall rightly confider it : For from un- 

 doubted Experiment, Gravity is in all Bodies 

 proportionable to the Quantity of Matter in 

 each j und there is no iuch thing as a Propen- 

 fion of feme more, others lefs, towards i\fb 

 Earth's Center ; finee the Impediment of the 

 Air being removed, all Bodies defcend, be they 

 never (b loofe or compact in Texture, with e- 

 qual Velocity. It follows therefore, That there 

 is 7 times as much Matter in Gold, as in a piece 

 of Glafs of the fame Magnitude ; and confe- 

 quently, that at leaft fix parts of /even in the 

 Bulk of Glafs, muft be Pore or Vacuity : This 

 Kbrne Favourers of the Atomical Phiiofophy have 

 endeavoured to folve^ by fuppofing the primary 



R ^ " or 



