Symmes's Theory of Concentric Spheres
Symmes's Theory of Concentric SpheresPreface.CHAPTER I.CHAPTER II.CHAPTER III.CHAPTER IV.CHAPTER V.CHAPTER VI.CHAPTER VII.CHAPTER VIII.CHAPTER IX.CHAPTER X.FOOTNOTESNotesCopyright
Symmes's Theory of Concentric Spheres
Aa. Vv.
Preface.
The author of the following pages does not write because he
is a learned man; he is conscious of the reverse; and that his
merits give him no claim to that appellation; neither does he make
this attempt because he is well acquainted with either the new, or
the old theories of the earth; but, from having observed that the
Theory of Concentric Spheres has been before the world for six or
seven years, without attracting the attention of the scientific,
except in a very few instances;—few besides the author himself
having come forward to advocate its correctness. The newspaper
scribblers, who have noticed the theory at all, have almost
uniformly appeared to consider it as a fit subject on which to
indulge their wit, the sallies of which, clothed in all the humour
and satire their fancies could suggest, have in some degree had a
tendency to throw around it an air of levity very unfavourable to
serious investigation. But to deal in sarcasm is not always
reasoning; and the truth is not to be ascertained by indulging in
ridicule.Considerations of this nature, first induced the author to
devote a short time to the task of investigating a subject, to
which he had paid but little attention, and to give the several
papers, published by Captain Symmes, a cursory examination; in the
course of which, he noted such of Symmes's principles and proofs as
attracted his attention, as they occurred; and has since presumed
to arrange them in such order as his own fancy suggested; supposing
that, as they had struck forcibly on his mind, they might perhaps
attract the attention of some other person, whose habits of
thinking may be similar to his own. He has in a few instances
inserted, in addition to those which he has seen advanced by
Captain Symmes, such reasons and proofs in support of the theory as
occurred to him at the time. However, he has no claim to
originality; as he has made a liberal use of the publications of
Captain Symmes, as well as the remarks made on them by others,
which came in his way.The reader will not look for a complete analysis of the
theory in this short treatise; it is not intended as such by the
author, his object being merely to attract the attention of the
learned, who are in the habit of indulging in more abstruse
researches into the operation and effect of natural causes; and
should it be found to merit the attention of such, it is hoped
their enquiries may be so directed as to accelerate the march of
scientific improvement, enlarge the field of philosophic
speculation, and open to the world new objects of ambition and
enterprise.Should he therefore be fortunate enough to make any
observations, or indulge in any reflections, in the course of the
following chapters, that may merit the attention of the reader, he
hopes they may in some degree atone for the many defects which will
doubtless be discovered; with a sincere wish, that gentlemen of
literature and science, who have made deeper researches than he
pretends to, will have the goodness to correct them.The author does not write for Fame: as anonymous compilers
(and it is the author's wish to be considered in no other light)
can never expect their true names to be inscribed on her records:
neither do pecuniary considerations influence him, as he expects to
reap no profit from the publication.Should it attract public curiosity to such a degree, as to
induce the sale of more copies than will be sufficient to meet the
expense of printing, it is the author's desire, and he does hereby
direct, and fully authorize the publishers, to pay over the nett
profits to Captain Symmes, for the purpose of enabling him further
to prosecute his studies; and to aid him in the accomplishment of
his designs.Whether Captain Symmes has hit upon an important truth in the
economy of nature, as respects the organization of matter, it is
not for the author to determine; to the more scientific we must
look for a solution of the problem; to them it is submitted. The
following pages are presented with no other intention, than as a
hint to elicit the attention of others, who are qualified to
investigate, and improve the subject. Should they, on examination,
consider the matter worthy of their investigation, it will
doubtless receive the attention which its importance so greatly
demands. If it be erroneous, it is hoped they will detect, and
expose its fallacy to the world; giving at the same time rational
and satisfactory explanations of the many facts, and appearances
which Captain Symmes adduces as proofs of his
positions.August, A. D. 1824.ApologyTOCAPTAIN SYMMES.Sir—To you I would apologize for the liberties I have taken with
your Theory, and your publications in relation to it, which have
made their appearance in the newspapers of the day. When I
commenced this compilation, in support of your doctrine of
Concentric Spheres, I had no view to its publication. I had
collected all the papers on the subject, upon which I could lay my
hands, with the intention of investigating the Theory for my own
satisfaction: but the scattered and irregular order in which I
found them, and in which they must necessarily appear in detached
Newspaper essays, published at different and distant times, induced
me to attempt a methodical arrangement, for the purpose of
facilitating my own enquiries. When I had completed this, the same
reasons, added to the consideration, that you have not only
invited, but solicited the investigation of your theory, declaring
it "as free as air," to every person, to make such use of it as he
may think proper, influenced me to conclude on publishing the
result of my investigations. Having come to this determination, I
have added a Preface, an Introductory chapter, and a few things in
conclusion, to make it look more like a Book.As I have not seen all your publications in the newspapers,
if I have not fully understood, or if I have misrepresented your
theory in any particular, I assure you it has been done
unintentionally—it has arisen entirely from my want of adequate
information; and I hope you will, in the spirit of candour and good
nature, pardon and correct any errors into which I may have fallen.
Had an opportunity offered, and could I have done it with
propriety, I should certainly have submitted the manuscript to your
revision, previous to its publication. However, as this sketch is
only intended to elicit further investigation, and can only live
until a formal and systematic treatise shall appear from your pen,
I hope you will permit it to pass as the Pioneer to a more complete
demonstration of your Theory of Concentric Spheres.I am Sir,One of the believers in that Theory,—THE AUTHOR.1824.
CHAPTER I.
Containing an introductory glance at some of the
different Theories and Opinions which have been advanced respecting
the formation of the Earth, and the reception which those Theories
met with from the world when first promulgated.It often happens, that those who have been early taught to
believe a certain set of principles and doctrines as true, whether
in philosophy, religion, or politics, adhere to them with the
utmost pertinacity during the remainder of their lives. Any new
theory, or principle, is resisted with peculiar energy; and,
however inconsistent or untrue their favorite systems may be, they
are disposed to make principles and facts bend to them; and would
sooner call in question the general and immutable laws of nature,
than the correctness of their own opinions. Perhaps this
pertinacious adherence to prevalent and received opinions has
retarded the progress of philosophic improvement more than the want
of bold, original, and enquiring genius.In former times those who cultivated science, or rather those
who were called learned, generally based their philosophy on the
doctrines of Aristotle; which, as they had been taught to reverence
them from their infancy, had become almost interwoven with their
constitutions. Hence, though time has unfolded to us their errors,
during several centuries, suspicion never hinted their fallibility.
The doctrine of the revolutions of the earth, and other planets; of
gravitation, magnetism, and other properties now known to belong to
matter; have each in their turn met with a strong opposition from
the most learned men living at the time of their discovery. But,
notwithstanding this opposition, in all ages, a few bold, enquiring
minds have had the firmness to dissent from the established
doctrines of the schoolmen, and to lay the foundation of new
systems, the correctness of which subsequent improvements in
science have more or less demonstrated to the world.Although nearly six thousand years have elapsed since man has
been placed upon the earth, he yet knows but little of its
formation. Notwithstanding all our enterprise, all our boasted
acquirements, and discoveries, its true form yet remains uncertain;
and although admitted that it is not quite eight thousand miles in
diameter, we still have never explored its extent. A space of
nearly forty degrees of latitude remains as little known to us, as
if it were a part of the surface of Saturn, or an orb revolving
round a star of the eighth magnitude. We know nothing of the
inhabitants of those regions, or what kind of animate beings exist
in them.It was a prevailing opinion among the ancients, the
correctness of which they for ages never called in question, that
the temperate zones of our globe were alone habitable.—The torrid
zone they imagined was composed of nothing but sandy deserts,
scorched up by the vertical and insupportable beams of a burning
sun. The frigid zones, they believed were begirt with eternal
snows, and "thick ribbed ice," which rendered them inaccessible to
man, and incapable of supporting animal or vegetable life. Hence
none ventured to approach them.Subsequent discoveries have, however, taught us the errors of
the ancients. We now know that the torrid zone teems with organic
life; and possesses, in many parts, a population more dense than
the temperate, and is equally well adapted to its support: nay, we
even find the temperature of that region to be such that it
contains mountains capped with perpetual snows, which the beams of
a July sun do not dissolve. It has also been ascertained that the
frigid zones are partially inhabited: but it seems that a certain
timid dread, perhaps in part attributable to the prejudices imbibed
from our ancestors, has prevented our exploring the extent of those
regions. However, as far as civilized man has yet ventured to
penetrate towards the poles, we find that plants grow, flowers
bloom, and human beings make a permanent residence; nay, even the
untutored savages who reside there tell us that other human beings
reside yet further to the north; and animals are known to migrate
in that direction. Reasoning then from analogy, and from what we
know, we have no ground to conclude that such a vast extent of
surface has been created by an all-wise Providence for no other
purpose, than to be eternally clothed with mountains of ice. Such a
conclusion comports not with the general economywe do knowto exist throughout his
works.We are constrained to acknowledge, notwithstanding our
improvements in science, that, comparatively, we know but little of
the economy of nature. Within a few years past, almost an entire
revolution has taken place in the world respecting the philosophy
of light and heat—a change which affects the theory both of their
nature, and of their causes:—They are now believed to be two
distinct things, and that the sun communicates neither, but merely
gives activity, in some manner not yet known, to the principles, or
matter, of light and heat with which our elements abound. If this
be the case, as I believe is now admitted by the learned world, we
cannot undertake to say, that the intensity or the absence of
either, is necessarily dependant alone on the altitude of the sun,
under any particular latitude; or on our nearness to, or remoteness
from, the centre of the system:—For aught we know, both may be
connected with arrangements that require but few of the sun's rays
to make them answer the purposes of organic life. For aught we can
tell, the planet Georgium Sidus, which rolls eighteen hundred
millions of miles distant from the orb of day, may, nevertheless,
be favoured with as brilliant light, and as genial warmth as our
little globe; and for aught we know the interior of this planet, in
the concavity of the spheres, under the equator, may enjoy the same
light and heat that fructify and bless the equatorial climes on the
convex surface.During a period of several thousand years the ancients were
of opinion that the earth was a perfect plane, at rest, and
supported below by an unknown something; that it was bounded on all
sides by an impassable barrier, and covered with the blue canopy of
heaven, in which the sun, moon, and stars performed their diurnal
revolutions for the sole use and service of a few frail mortals.
They believed that the sun, every morning rose out of the Eastern
sea; and in the evening plunged into the Western ocean; that the
stars were lighted up in the evening by some kind deity, and
extinguished before the appearance of the sun. For ages none
doubted the correctness of such a theory. At length, however, from
an attentive examination of the regular appearances and revolutions
of the heavenly bodies, some of the Babylonians adopted the opinion
that the earth was spherical; revolving at regular periods round
the sun, as the centre of the universe. In this they were followed
by Pythagoras and others. But those efforts of genius, for the most
part, met no other reward than the execrations of the exasperated
multitude. Such innovations were deemed an impious crime against
the gods, and could only be atoned for by the sacrifice of their
lives. In those times the people of every nation, like the
untutored Indian of our North Western wilderness at this day,
considered their own country to be situated in the centre of the
world, and they, the most favoured people. Even in later times,
when the system of the Babylonians, and that of Pythagoras, were
revived by Copernicus; and, when new discoveries respecting the
form and revolutions of the earth, and other parts of the universe,
were made by Galileo, not more than two hundred years since, we
find an ignorant and bigoted world alarmed at such opinions. We
find Galileo, that incomparable philosopher, cited before the court
of Inquisition, accused of heresy, and thrown into prison. The
charge of heresy against him was supported by alleging that he
maintained the two following positions, viz.1. "That the sun is the centre of the world, and immoveable
by a local motion;" and2. "That the earth is not the centre of the world, nor
immoveable, but that it moves with a diurnal motion."These positions he was not permitted to maintain or defend,
but was ordered to renounce them; and was prohibited from
vindicating them either in conversation or writing. However strange
and impious these doctrines appeared at that time, subsequent ages
have confirmed their correctness.When Columbus advanced the theory of a western continent, he
was ridiculed, persecuted, and contemned, by nearly all the
literati of Europe. It was an idea which had never before entered
their minds. But, notwithstanding all their opposition and
ridicule, the correctness of his "visionary theory," as they were
pleased to call it, was demonstrated by the actual discovery of
this vast continent, which is now sustaining millions of the very
happiest of the human race.Many of the important discoveries of the immortal Newton, at
the time they were first promulgated to the world, were denounced
as the splendid visions of a madman; but, subsequent ages have done
him justice.Much as we may feel ourselves elated on account of the new
lights which have since been shed upon us, by the further progress
and developement of science; yet, when I reflect on the unkind
treatment which Captain Symmes and his new theory have received in
our own day, I cannot help fearing that we are still, in some
degree, under the influence of the same feelings and prejudices
which brought the earlier philosophers to the torture, and the
prison. This theory differs much less from the one now commonly
received, than the doctrines of those philosophers differed from
the prejudices of the multitude, in an age when every one believed
the earth to be as flat as a table; and, consequently, it is but a
small innovation in comparison to what the theory of Pythagoras and
Copernicus must have appeared to be in their day; yet Captain
Symmes has been constantly, and almost every where, represented as
a visionary and dangerous innovator, and his alleged discovery
ridiculed as the silly dream of a deranged
imagination.But let us not turn our backs and give a deaf ear to him, or
to the discoveries of any other man, merely because they are new,
and in contravention of our previously received impressions. True
it is, novelty is frequently dangerous and hurtful: but on the
other hand, it is often necessary and useful. Without it we should
still remain destitute of many of the greatest advantages we enjoy.
Without the advancement of new principles, and speculative ideas,
neither ourselves, nor any other people, could ever have emerged
from a state of savage barbarity. Without it, what purpose could
our reason serve, which, under proper regulations, and by a gradual
progress, is capable of contributing so largely to the general good
of society?Were it my opinion that Symmes's Theory is one of the wildest
and most ridiculous that ever entered into the brain of man, I
would not refuse to hear him; nor by malevolent or satirical
disapprobation, attempt to discourage him, before I had examined
and reflected upon it. By the examination of many speculative
subjects, abounding with falsehood, we are frequently enabled to
treasure up some truths. Some of the first and most important
discoveries in chemistry, owe their origin to the midnight vigils
of the alchymists, who vainly sought for the philosopher's stone:
and many valuable combinations in the science of mechanics have
been discovered by those who wasted years in as vain a pursuit,
after a perpetual motion.I believe there are but few theories, which do not contain
much that is profitable. The man who has the ingenuity to advance
new ones, will be likely, in the course of reasoning necessary to
support them, to say something that is useful to be known. In his
very reveries and wanderings, he will often point out land-marks,
which may be useful to the futuretraveller. Whether then is it better
to crouch under the tyranny of prejudice, or employ our thoughts
and reasoning powers in the search of truth, though at the risk of
deceiving ourselves, as our predecessors have done? Had it not been
for a prudent boldness in advancing and defending new doctrines,
the human mind must have remained to this day, the sport of all the
chimeras of the ancients.