An original theory or new hypothesis of the universe /

Of General Motion amongst the Stars, the Plurality of Systems, and Innumerability of Worlds.

SIR,

Since my last, you'll find by this, speaking in the Stile of Kercher, that I have been very far from home, round almost the visible Creation. I have indeed applied myself very closely to transcribe my Thoughts to you upon the old Subject the Milky Way, which my former Letter left imperfected. To return then to the Theory of the Stars, and that yet unreconciled Phænomenon; let us reason a little upon the visible Order of the Stars in general, and see what Conclusions can be drawn from what every Astronomer knows of them, and cannot be disputed.

First then, that the Stars are not infinitely dispersed and distributed in a promiscuous Manner throughout all the mundane Space, without Order or Design, is evident beyond a Doubt from this vast collective Body of Light, since no such Phænomenon could possibly be produced by Chance, or exhibited without a designed Disposition of its constituent Bodies.

If any regular Order of the Stars then can be demonstrated that will naturally prove this Phænomenon to be no other than a certain Effect arising from the Observer's Situation, I think you must of course grant such a Solution at least rational, if not the Truth; and this is what I propose by my new Theory.

To a Spectator placed in an indefinite Space, all very remote Objects appear to be equally distant from the Eye; and if we judge of the Via Lactea from Phænomena only, we must of course conclude it a vast Ring of Stars, scattered promiscuously round the celestial Regions in the Direction of a perfect Circle.

But when we consider the explanick Position of many other Stars, all of the same Nature, and not less numerous, together forming the great Sphere of Heaven, we generally find ourselves quite at a Loss how to reconcile the two apparent Classes; and I know none who have ever been successful enough to reduce them to any one general Order.

You'll say probably how shall we make this chaosic Disposition of the primary Luminaries agree with the secondary Laws, and the just Harmony observed in the third [AJ]Creation, &c.

The Work now you see is undertaken, and chiefly at your own Request, therefore I have a Right to expect you'll be very indulgent to the Author, and pass over all his Faults, and allow him free Argument in Pursuit of these important Truths, which will in the End open perhaps a much wider Field of Contemplation to us, than at first could be supposed to be intended by the Genesis of Moses.

That Description of the Beginning of Nature is not without its Beauty and Nobleness, suitable to the Dignity both of the Author and Subject. But should we even in this knowing Age of the World pretend to account for the Original of Things, as Moses to support his believed divine Legation, was obliged in some measure to do, we should soon be reduced to talk in the same Stile, and perhaps with less Probability, than then at least appeared in his elegant Account of the Origin of the Universe, especially if we do but consider, that what he wrote, was only to the Senses of a People who had not yet learnt to make use of their Reason any other way, but from the Appearance of Things, and upon a Subject too sublime for vulgar Capacities in any Age, and had only been attempted in the deepest Learning of Egypt, which, he though well acquainted with, the Generality of them were totally Strangers to.

In the first Place it must be granted, that the Stars being all of the same Nature, are either all moveable, or all fixed, that is all governed by one and the same Principle.

Now to suppose them all fixed, and dispersed in an endless Disorder thro' the infinite Expanse, which has long been the Opinion of many very able Astronomers amongst the Antients, and even now received by too many of the Moderns, implies an Inactivity in those vast and principal Bodies, so much the Reverse of what may be expected, and what we daily observe through all the rest of their Attendants, namely, their own respective Satellites, that we cannot possibly upon any rational Grounds, advance one single Argument to support so much as a Conjecture towards it, without betraying the greatest Simplicity, and next to an Affirmation reduce the whole Frame of Nature, and all corporeal Beings to a wild unmeaning Chance, arising from an unnatural Discord and Confusion.

For upon the Principles of Locality and Materiality, you having allowed me the Use of my Senses and Reason, as absolutely necessary towards conceiving any Idea of our present State, or of Futurity: Upon these Principles I say, unless our Faculties are useless, if there are no other Bodies or Beings in the Universe than what we see, and are now sensible of, we must now at the Height of this our present State, be as near Perfection as we can reasonably expect, and as such ourselves the supreme Beings of all Beings. To what End then do we form Ideas of a succeeding Life, where a more exalted State cannot be hoped for.

How absurd and impious this is I leave to your own Reason and Reflection: This is the fatal Rock upon which all weak Heads and narrow Minds are lost and split upon, consequently ought to be the most carefully avoided, not only as the Nurse of Atheism, but as the dreadful Father of Despair: "For, say they, these unhappy Wretches, to be always the same, is inconsistent with a Change; and to be less than what we are, any where hereafter, is full as difficult to conceive as to be more." Thus, unless we admit of superior Seats and much more glorious Habitations than these we are sensible of, we strike at the very Root of a fair flourishing Tree of Immortality, and must become Authors of our own Despair. I have often wonder'd how thinking Men could possibly fall into so gross an Error, as that of a Spirit's Annihilation; and I should be glad to ask one of those fruitless Students, whether, upon the Evidence of our present Being, it is not much more rational, to hope for a future, than to expect a Ne plus ultra upon no Evidence at all. The Affirmative is certainly much more natural to be conceiv'd than the Negative. But if Chance were the Case, and that Chance produced all these regular and wondrous Works, 'tis to be wished at least, that Chance might do the same again; and if not Chance, of course an eternal Direction: But Chance only can effect Disorder, Discord, and Confusion; ergo, the visible Harmony and Beauty of the Creation declare for a Direction; and this must of Consequence, from its perfect Nature, proceed from the Wisdom and Power of an eternal Being, God of Infinity, the Author of all Ideas: And if this primitive Power produced us his Creatures from nothing, nothing can be wanting to revive our Frames again; and if from something, that something must remain to establish us in a future Life. But to return, how absurd it is to suppose one Part of the Creation regular, and the other irregular, or a visible circulating Order of Things, to be mixed with Disorder, and circumscribing Part of an endless Confusion, is obvious to the weakest Understanding, and consequently we may reasonably expect, that the Via Lactea, which is a manifest Circle amongst the Stars, conspicuous to every Eye, will prove at last the Whole to be together a vast and glorious regular Production of Beings, out of the wondrous Will or Fecundity of the eternal and infinite one self-sufficient Cause; and that all its Irregularities are only such as naturally arise from our excentric View: To demonstrate bsolutely and incontestibly, we shall only want this one Postulata to be granted, viz. That all the Stars are, or may be in Motion: This, if one may be allowed to judge of the Whole by the Similitude and Government of its Parts, I am perswaded you will think a very reasonable Assumption; but that you may imbibe a good Opinion of this Assumption, and entirely come into this much better to be wished Hypothesis, I would have you consult these following Arguments.

First, it is allowed, as I have endeavoured to shew, by all modern Philosophers, that the Sun and Stars are all of the same or like Nature; consequently, that the Stars are all Suns, and that the Sun himself is a Star.

PLATE XVII.

Represents a kind of perspective View of the visible Creation, wherein A represents the System of our Sun, B, that supposed round Syrius, and C, the Region about Rigel. The rest is a promiscuous Disposition of all the Variety of other Systems within our finite Vision, as they are supposed to be posited behind one another, in the infinite Space, and round every visible Star. That round every Star then we may justly conjecture a similar System of Bodies, governed by the same Laws and Principles with this our solar one, though to us at the Earth for very good Reasons invisible[AK]. Secondly,

The Sun is also observed to have a Motion round his own Axis in about twenty-five Days. Now, since all the other [AL] Planets which move in Orbits round him, and are within our Observation, are found to have a like Rotation round their Axis, may we not as reasonably imagine, that that Power which was able to give the Sun a Motion round his Axis, could and would at the same time, with adequate Ease, give him also an orbitular one? and why not, since no progressive Mutability can either take from, or disturb the boundless Property of an Infinity; and besides, seeing to imagine him at rest, is to impose such an unnatural Stagnation upon the eternal Faculty, quite repugnant to that imparable Power which we suppose stands in need of neither Sleep nor Rest?

'Tis true, the Sun may be said to be the Governor of all those Bodies round him; but how? no otherwise than he himself may be governed by a superior Agent, or a still more active Force; and methinks it is not a little absurd to suppose he is not, since we have discovered by undoubted Observations, that the same gravitating Power is common to all; and that the Stars themselves are subject to no other Direction than that which moves the whole Machine of Nature.

Thirdly, From many Observations of the polar Points, and the Obliquity of the Earth's Equator to the Plane of her solar Orbit compared together, the Sun is very justly suspected to have changed his sidereal Situation; and this must either arise from a Change in the Position of the Earth's diurnal Axis, or from a Removal of the Sun himself, out of the primitive Plane of the Orbis Magnus. I believe you are so much of a Mathematician, as to know that if either of these Facts be allowed, the Consequence I want will follow. I shall not therefore here enter into any farther Dispute about it; but I think it will be necessary to submit some Observations to your Consideration, that may convince you that there is a Motion somewhere to be thus discovered, and whether in the Sun, or in the Stars, or in both, I leave to your own Determination, but to assist your Imagination, I refer you to

PLATE XVIII.

The Globe S is here supposed to represent the Sun, having changed its Situation by a local Motion from A to C, and B represents the Globe of the Earth in a permanent Position, with its principal Points and Circles, respecting the primitive Plane A, B, K. Now in Consequence of the Angle of Variation, A, B, C, it evidently appears that a new ecliptic Plane, will be produced, as C, B, and also a Variation in the greatest Declination of the Sun, North and South from the Line of the Equator D, L. Hence, as in this Figure, the Obliquity of the Poles P, N, and G, F, will naturally decrease, and is shewn in Quantity by the Line of Aberration H, I.

Here follows a Table of the Change observed in the Obliquity of the Ecliptic by Astronomers of different Ages.

A Table of the Obliquity of the Ecliptic.

Now sure, if we consider this continual Decrease of the Sun's Declination, which can proceed from no other Cause than that of his having moved out of the primitive Plane; we need make no great Difficulty thus far, to think our Conjectures not irrational.

The following is a Citation from Dr. Edmund Hally, Astronomer-Royal. See Philosophical Transactions, N^o. 355. p. 736.

"But while I was upon this Enquiry (of the Obliquity of the Ecliptic) I was surprized to find the Latitudes of three of the principal Stars in the Heavens, directly to contradict the supposed greater Obliquity of the Ecliptic, which seems confirmed by the Latitudes of most of the rest; they being set down in the old Catalogues, as if the Plane of the Earth's Orbit had changed its Situation amongst the fixed Stars, about 20′ since the Time of Hipparchus, particularly all the Stars in Gemini are put down, those to the Northward of the Ecliptic, with so much less Latitude than we find, and those to the Southward, with so much more southerly Latitude; and yet the three Stars Palilicium, Sirius, and Arcturus, do contradict this Rule: For by it, Palilicium, being in the Days of Hipparchus, in about 10 gr. of Taurus, ought to be about 15′ more southerly than at present, and Sirius being then in about 15 gr. of Gemini, ought to be 20′ more southerly than now; yet Ptolomy places the first 20′, and the other 22′ more northerly in Latitude than we now find them: Nor are these the Errors of Transcribers, but are proved to be right by the Declination of them set down by Ptolomy, as observed by Timocharis, Hipparchus, and himself; which shew, that these Latitudes are the same as those Authors intended. As to Arcturus, he is too near the Equinoctial Colour, to argue from him concerning the Change of the Obliquity of the Ecliptic; but Ptolomy gives him 33′ more North Latitude than he is now found to have; and that greater Latitude is likewise confirmed by the Declinations delivered by the abovesaid Observations: So then these three Stars are found to be above half a Degree more southerly at this Time than the Antients reckoned them. When, on the contrary, at the same time, the bright Shoulder of Orion, has, in Ptolomy almost a Degree more southerly Latitude than at present, what shall we say then? It is scarce to be believed, that the Antients could be deceived in so plain a Matter, three Observers confirming each other. Again, these Stars being the most conspicuous in Heaven, are in all Probability the nearest to the Earth; and if they have any particular Motion of their own, it is most likely to be perceived in them, which in so long a Time as eighteen hundred Years, may shew itself by the Alteration of their Places, though it be intirely imperceptible in the Space of one single Century of Years: Yet, as to Syrius, it may be observed, that Tycho Brahe makes him 2 Min. more northerly than we now find him; whereas he ought to be above as much more southerly from his Ecliptic (whose Obliquity he makes 2′½ greater than we esteem it at the present) differing in the Whole 4′½.

One Half of this Difference may perhaps be excused, if Refraction were not allowed in this Case by Tycho; yet 2 Min. in such a Star as Syrius, is somewhat too much for him to be mistaken in.

But a more evident Proof of this Change is drawn from the Observation of the Application of the Moon to Palilicium, An. Chris. 509. Mar. 11. when, in the Beginning of the Night, the Moon was seen to follow that Star very near, and seemed to have eclipsed it, ἐπέβαλλε γὰρ ὁ ἀστηρ τῳ πᾶρα την διχοτομίαν μέρει τῆς κυ'ρτυς περιφειας τõυ πεφωτισμένου μερους, i.ve. Stella apposita erat parti per quam bisecabatur limbus Lunæ illuminatus, as Bullialdus, to whom we are beholden for this ancient Observation, has translated it. Now, from the undoubted Principles of Astronomy, this could never be true at Athens, or near it, unless the Latitude of Palilicium were much less than we at this Time find it[AM]."

The [AN]Motion of Arcturus seems further confirmed, from the Observations of Tycho Hevelius and Flamstead; for Hevelius sets down the Distance of that Star from Lyra 4′ greater than Tycho had observed it seventy-two Years before him, and Flamstead twenty-two Years after measured the Distance betwixt the same two Stars, still 3′ greater than Hevelius found it; so that if Lyra had stood still all that while, there was an Appearance of Arcturus's having gone 7' out of his Place in the Space of an hundred Years. See Dr. Long's Astronomy, p. 274.

It is further to be observed, in Confirmation of the Motion of one of these Stars, that Flamstead found the Distance of Arcturus, from the Head of Hercules 3′ greater than it is set down by the Prince of Hesse; and that his Distance from the Lion's Tail was a little decreased with 5½′ less Latitude than Tycho had observed. Hence, to make these Observations agree, one or both of them must have moved together equal to 7′. This Change of Place, which is quite contrary to all known Causes proceeding from the Earth, must therefore be occasioned either by the Motion of the Sun, or by a particular Motion of their own; but if, amongst themselves, they must all move, and if all be in Motion, the Sun must also move.

If these Observations, delivered down to us by very able Astronomers, be either true or near it, as great Allowances have been made for the Ignorance of the Ages in which they were taken, and the Inaccuracy of the Instruments, we may naturally conclude, that these Stars must have a Motion; and if they move, as has been before observed, the Sun must also; hence he cannot now be in the original Plane of the Earth's annual Direction, or at least in the same identical Place he was at first possessed of: And if so, the Stars must also have the like Motion, though in different Directions, and all may thus be governed by the same impulsive Power.

To illustrate this primitive Motion of the Stars, and at the same time to show that the Variety which appears in the Quantity of Motion can be no Objection to it,

See PLATE XVIII. Fig. 2.

Where A represents the Eye of an Observer, and B, E, F, H, various Systems, moving in different Directions thro' the mundane Space; it is evident that the Sphere B, having moved from C, and that of E, not having appeared to move at all, there must be a sensible Change in the new Position of these two Systems to one another, and so of the rest; and tho' the apparent Motion of H, be much more than that of F, from the Point A, yet from C, they will appear less different, and from B, they will appear nearly equal. And farther, as the Direction from H, is in the Line I, H, and that of F, in the Line K, G, those two Systems will appear to approximate, and the Magnitude of the Star in the first will be increased, and in the latter diminished. Thus, many of the Stars in the oldest Catalogues, which were said to be of the second Magnitude, are now become of the first, and several of the first are now judged to be of the second, &c.

But as this apparent Motion of the Stars at the Earth, must, from its Nature, be very small, so as scarce to be discovered in some of them in less than an Age, with any Instrument by the nicest Observer, I judge it will be extremely proper in this Place to propose some Method, by which, in process of Time, the Truth of the Theory may be ascertained. The Way I think most likely to succeed is this.

PLATE XIX.

Is a Plan of the principal Stars that form the Pleiades, correctly taken by a Combination of Triangles, as in the Figure, from whence it will naturally follow, all the whole Form being comprehended in much less than one Degree. That the most minute local Motion in any one of those Stars in a very few Years, will be made sensible to an Eye at the Earth. For Instance, if any of the Stars that form the Letter A, or T, within the Term of ten or twenty Years, be found in the least to deviate from the Lines of their present Position and Direction, it will be evident beyond a Contradiction, that they have a Motion amongst themselves, and since at such a Distance they cannot possibly be affected by the Earth, it must be a Motion of their own; and thus if any one can be proved, to change its Situation, with regard to the rest, we can have no new Difficulty in concluding that they all may do the same.

Thus if any of the regular Triangles M B Z, Z P H, A Z M, Y A Γ, or Π Ο I, &c. in due Time be carefully noted, we may venture to say with great Safety, that the thousandth Part of a Degree will be plainly discovered.

PLATE XX.

Is a true Plan and Combination of the principal Stars that form the Persedes, in which other Observations may be made in a different Part of the Heavens, and perhaps with an Opportunity of being still more exact, the Areas of these Triangles, particularly that of Θ I K, and those of ρ and δ, being much less than the former, where the least Alteration possible must render them sensibly distorted. But here it must be considered, that the real Motion of the Stars, as well as their apparent, may be, and in all Likelihood, is extreamly slow, for the most minute, visible, local Motion, will answer all the Purposes we know in Nature, and the greatest seems to be that of the projectile, or centrifugal Force, which not only preserves them in their Orbits, but prevents them from rushing all together, by the common universal Law of Gravity, which otherwise, as a finite Distribution of either regular or irregular Bodies, they must at length do by Necessity.

I must now inform you, that the above Observations were compleated in the Autumn Season, 1747, and were taken by myself; the Letters A, T, in Plate XIX, and the W in the XXth, as you may see, having a very near Resemblance, or Similitude, to the Order these Stars are found to be in, together with the Greek Alphabet, I judged necessary, by way of Asterism and Nomenclatura, in case such should be wanted, as Data in future Discoveries.

I come now to the principal Point in Question, which is to find a regular Disposition of the Stars amongst themselves, which will naturally solve both their general and particular Phænomena, especially the Nebula and Milky Way.

I am now, &c.