The enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1804-1815, 1809-05-23
Newton or his cotcmporarics would have
passed It over unnoticed. J. w.
.IIanchester .fcadro,y,
2lst May, 1909.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE ENQUIRER.
gentleman equally eminent for bis scienti-
6c requirements, and his polemcal skih contests
the legitimacy Of the Inference which have
drawn from several articles in the French Ency.
clopedia.
A thousand and one reasons induce me to think
that my conclusion is logical, candid, and perfect
ly consonant to every rule of Interpretation. A
ware, however, that the interest excited by such
discussions is fugitive and short. lived and unwil-
ling to encroach upon the claims ofthat mass Of
interesting and original matter which it is your
protested object to concentrate in YOUR columns,
shall content myself, at present, with proposing
to the ingenious gentleman few questions.
l. Was not the transceHdant curve, called the
cycloid, discovered in consequence of attending
to the motion of the wheel, and the phenomena of
its motion
2. Was not one of the results that flowed from
the discovery, this principle (most important in
mechanical philosophy y ga body moving in a
eycloyd describes unequal arcs in equal times ,"
). Could that result, possibly be obtained, in a
theory founded entirely and essentially upon the
phenomena which the motion Of the wheel pre-
sents, without considering the arcs described at
the same time by two points of the wheel in diff
ferent situations, or successfully by the same
point in situations relatively different Now
what is this, it not precisely the question of the
upper and lower point, or of the lower point fol-
lowed through all the stages of complete revo-
luton! Res, non ceyba it is the essence and
not the form that we pursue.
e 81 quid novisti rectius istis,
L. f" Candidus impeti 81 non, his usere mecum"
Science, consists in general truths intended
10 be applied to all particular caseso of the same
description. The formulas of arithmetic, and
algebra, the propositions of elementary and
transcendant geometry, are all Of this nature To
!senerdfise Is the great end of mathematicians
No wonder, then, if, though clearly implied in
the articles TO which have alluded, the q,Iest-
on ot the upper point is not infinitely detailed
Our house-builders, when they want to erect
perpendicular to base, make use Of the num-
bers 8, 4 and S; our surveyors. in measuring the
horizontal angles sustended by three objects,
suppose the Capitol, the Pententary, and the
Arnoury, find the sum of thoss angles equal to
iooo or two right angles. Shall we consider
both as modern discoveries and assert that nei-
&her fythagoras nor Euclid knew any thing of
the matter; because, forsooth, the 18th of the
trst book, does not precisely say that the squares
OF $ and 4 arc together equal to the square of S.
and the 32nd of the same book, demonstrates on
~ M general way that the three angles of
every triangle equal to the two right angles .
But, Mr.. Enquirer, will say no more. The
SUBJECT is too seducing. must be upon my
guard. Ihave so many things to say and those ]
aeem so rational, SO solid, interesting Tru-
~, you must thank me for not introducing in this
place my two handsome" explanations of the
consideration Of pas & minus of debit and c,,edit
the other requiring no higher aid than that of the
laws OF comPoH'd motion. Yun ought also to
rejoice at my saving you The trouble to folio W me
to the celestial regions for,
Juvat ire per alta
astra, juvat ferris ct mani sede relistis,
nube vehi."
There would show you systems Of sys-
tens /; our sun the centre Of concentric wheels /;
the planets so many points in those wheels, and
some OF them the cen,ers themselves If other
wheels in the circumference Ct which their Sc
con'aries are also points--The progressive mo-
non would clearly appear-our sun feyoives
round larger sun-at least, its centre is not sta
tonary-Hence each planet considered success
siveiy as the upper aud the lower ,oin; must vary
ITS velocity but of this, and other such lofty
conceptions more Ecieatter---l have some little
matters to arrange on earth before take uiy
contemplated ETHEREAL excursion
Yours, &c.
ouIs, ouID. UBI.
G3trGcf tram [oufcreLe on fbe C,rio;J