Ihitlier from Italy ^ it was of two forts, the one wasftrong, 
and the other light and very brittle. 
I broke the brittle Marble as gently as I could, tliat the 
configuration of the fmall particles might not be much 
altered, and having viewed feveral of them with my 
Glafs, I faw abundance of wonderful particles, whichmay 
juftly be ftil'd Sands with their regular fides and angles, 
and many of them of the fame figure as the ftiining Sand. 
But not being fatisfied with this hypotheGs, v z, that 
the above-mentioned particles were originally nothing 
elfe but Sand particles^with their angles and fmooth fides, 
and that at the time of their coalition or falling upon one 
another, they were all foft and flexible, and. thereby were 
fo rivetted and joyncd together, as to become one folid 
body, which we call Marble, and confequently the faid 
particles did for the moft part change their figure, und 
aflumed another form, proportionable to the loliditj of 
their coalition, and that yet fome of them had preferved 
thofe fmooth fides and angles, which they had at the 
time of their corijunftion, the which angles and fide ^ re- 
prefentthe points that arc found in Diamonds, and that 
in one particle of Sand you may difcover three, and in 
another feven neat and regular points. 
From thefe Obfervations, I imagined thatalmofl all the 
Sand of the whole Earth have preferved the figure that 
tvas given to it at the Creation,and tbatthe particles there- 
cof before they happened to collide or fall upon others, 
were composed of fuch hard bodies, thnt tVicy could not 
be joynd to others, and fo ha e rem ined what they 
were originally 5 favingthat by th ir frequent collifions 
with other bodies their firft figure may be fomething im- 
paired, and the nearer the} lye to the (urfaceof the Earth, 
the more lubjedl they are to fuch alterations. 
When I oppos'd fuch a Diamond-like Sand with its point 
to the fight, I could fee the faid point, but the fides from 
whence the points arife, are the more obvious 5 and fuch 
