j Century. I. j 
j Ferffettiue harh bccnc with lomc diligence inquired; And ; 
j fo hath the Nature of Sounds , infomeiorr, as farre asconccr- 
I ncth Mufieke.Bat the Nature ojSounds in general], hachbcenc 
iupcrficially obferued. Icisoncof thefubtilicil Pcecesof Na¬ 
ture. And befidcs, I pradtife, asldocaduifc : which is, after 
j long Inquiry of Things, Immerfein Maccer, to inccrpoleforne 
Subied, which is Immatcriatc,or lefTc Maceriace; Such as this 
of Sounds'* To the end,chat the Intelleft may be Rc&ified,an J be¬ 
come not Partial). 
It is firft to bee considered, what Great Matins there are in Nature, 
which pafle without Sound 3 or Noife. The Heauens turne about, in a 
moft rapide Motion, without Noife to vs perceiued $ Though in fome 
Dr tames they haue beene faid to make an excellent LMuflcke. S 0 the Mo - 
lions of the Comets , and Fiery Me terns (as Stella Cadens, &c.) yeeldno 
i Noife. And if it bee thought, that it is the GreatneflTe of diltance from 
vs, whereby the Sound cannot bee heard 3 W ee fee that Lightnings, and 
Corttfcations^ which are neere at hand, yeeld no Sound neither. And vet 
■ in allthefc, there is a Percuflion and Diuifion of the Aire. The winds 
[ in the typer Region (which moue the Clouds aboue (which wee call the 
i Racke) andare not perceiued below) pafle without Noife. The Lower 
mnds in a plaine, except they bee ftrong, make no Noife ^ Butamongft 
Trees,^he Noife of fiich Winds will bee perceiued. And the trends (ge- 1 
ncrally) when they make a Noife 3 doeeuer make it vnequallv, Rifing 
and railing, and lometimes (when they are vehement) Trembling at ! 
the Height of their Blaft. Raine, ox Haile falling, (though vehemently,) j 
yeeldeth no Noife y in palling thorow the Atre , till it fall vpon the j 
Ground, Water, Honfes, or the like, trotcr in a Ritter (though a lwift 1 
Streame) is not heardin the Channell, but runneth in Silence, if it bee j 
of any depth * But the very Streame vpon sbaHowes 3 of Grauell, or Peb- j 
ble, will bee heard. And tvsters 3 when they beat vpon the Shore, or are I 
(burned, (as in the falls of Bridges * ) Or are dafhed again# them- 1 
felues by winds 3 gine a Roaring Noife. Any ptece of Timber , or Hard Ed¬ 
die 3 being thru# forwards by another Body Contiguous, without knoc- 
kingi giueth no Noife. And fo Bodies in weighing, one vpon another, 
though the 'upper Body prefle the Lower Body downed, make no Noife. So j 
the Motion in the Minute Parts of any Solide Body, (which is the Princi¬ 
pal! Caufe of Violent Motion^ though vftobferued • ) paffeth without 
Sound 5 For that Sound 3 that is heard (omerimes, is produced orielv by 
the Breaking of the Aire ... And not by the Impulfionof the Parts. So it 
ismanifeR 3 That where the Ariteriour Body giueth way, as fait as the 
Poltefiour commeth on, it rnaketh no Noife • be the Motion rieuer fo great! 
orfwift, 
Aire open, and at Large^ maketh no except it beefharply per* 
cuffed 3 As in the Sound of a String, where Aire is pctcuffed by a hard, 
j , , _ . .. . '. and 
\9 
Experiments 
in Contort, 
touching 
Sounds-, and fit ft 
touching the 
KhUuy and En¬ 
tity oj Sounds. 
"5 
i 16 
