A Voyage to the Moon

Vice–Roy of New France; and o

be a Magician; and the greatest favour you can expect from them, is to be reckoned only an Impostor: The truth is, that Motion which you attribute to the Earth 10 is a pretty nice Paradox; and for my part I’ll frankly tell you, That that which hinders me from being of your Opinion, is, That though you parted yesterday from Paris, yet you might have arrived today in this Country without the Earth’s turning: For the Sun

the Kernels in the middle of their Fruits; and in the same manner as the Onion, under the cover of so many Coats that encompass it, preserves that precious Bud from which Millions of others are to have their being. For an Apple is in itself a little Universe; the Seed, hotter than the other parts thereof, is its Sun, which diffuses about it self that natural Heat which preserves its Globe: And in the Onion, the Germ is the little Sun of that little World, which vivifies and nourishes the vegetative Salt of that little mass. Having laid down this, then, for a ground, I say, That the Earth standing in need of the Light,

picycles, 12 which you cannot explain but very confusedly, and which are out of doors in my Systeme. Let’s reflect only on the natural Causes of that Motion. To make good your Hypothesis, you are forced to have recourse to Spirits or Intelligences, that move and govern your Spheres. But for my part, without disturbing the repose of the supreme Being, who, without doubt, hath made Nature entirely perfect, and whose Wisdom ought so to have compleated her, that being perfect

ssendus 14 on that subject: And hear what one of our Fathers, who maintained your Opinion one day, answered me. ‘Really,’ said he, ‘I fancy that the Earth does move, not for the Reasons alledged by Copernicus; but because Hell-fire being shut

, should have been so universally received. “Sir,” said I to him, “most part of Men, who judge of all things by the Senses, have suffered themselves to be perswaded by their Eyes; and

ly been made for them; as if it were likely that the Sun, a vast Body Four hundred and thirty four t

them, that’s to say, Worlds, which because of their smallness, and that their borrowed light cannot reach us, are not discernable by Men in this World: For in good earnest, how c

keep us from running our Heads against the Walls? No, no, if that visible Deity shine upon Man,

e; seeing it is probable that the People of that World which moves about that fixed Star you take for a Sun, discover

d himself would be Finite, supposing the World not to be infinite; seeing he cannot be where nothing is, and that he could not encrease the greatness of the World without adding somewhat to his own Being, by beginning to exist where

ceive not an Infinite in general, you comprehend it at least in particulars; seeing it is not difficult to fancy to our selves, beyond the Earth, Air, and Fire which we see, other Air, and other Earth, and other Fire. Now Infinitude is nothing else but a boundless Series of all these. But if you ask me, How thes

arates from the Marcasite 18 and Dross, and is refined to the highest Standard; nay, and as our Stomack discharges it self by vomit, of the Crudities that oppress it; even so these Suns daily evacuate, and reject the Remains of matter that might incommode their Fire: But when they have wholly consumed that matter which entertains 19 them; you are not to doubt, but they spread themselves abroad on all sides to seek for fresh Fewel, and fasten up

ve since started up in our Globe, when the Sun purged out its Excrements to a convenient distance, and of a sufficient Gravity to be attracted by the Center of our World; either in small Particles, perhaps, or, it may be also, altogether in one lump. That is not so unreasonable but that St. Austin 20 would have applauded to it, if that Country had been discovered in his Age. See

iscourse, obliged the Vice–Ro