[ *7 ] 
black to reprefent the nucleus, and the Hoping 
■Tides (haded, if the fphere be of a light colour.. 
According to the view of things given in the 
foregoing queries, there would ,feem to be fome- 
thing very extraordinary in the dark and un- 
ignited ftate of the great internal globe of the 
fun. Does not this feem to indicate, that the 
luminous matter, which encompalfes it, derives 
not its fplendor from any intenfity of heat? For, 
if this were the cafe, would not the parts un- 
derneath, which would be perpetually in contact 
with that glowing matter, be heated to fuch a 
degree, as to become luminous and bright? At 
the fame time it mull be confeifed, that although 
the internal globe was in reality much ignited, 
yet when any part of it, forming the nucleus of a 
fjpot, is expofed to our view, and is feen in com- 
petition with a fubftance of fuch amazing fplendor, 
it is no wonder, that an inferior degree of light 
fhould, in thefe circumftances, be unperceivable. 
In order to obtain fome knowledge of this 
point, I think an experiment might be tried, if 
we had an opportunity of a very large fpot, by 
making a contrivance in the eye-piece of a telef- 
cope, whereby an obferver could look at the nu- 
cleus alone with the naked eye, without being 
in danger of light coming from any other part e,f 
the fun. In this cafe, if the obferver found no 
greater fplendor, than what might be expected 
from a planet very near the fun, and illumined by 
as much of his furface as correfponds to the fpots 
umbra, we might reafonably conclude, that the 
folar matter, at the depth of the nucleus, is in 
E 2 reality 
