There are but few Artificial things that are worth observing
with a Microscope, and therefore I shall speak but briefly
concerning them. For the Productions of art are such rude mis-shapen
things, that when view’d with a Microscope, is little else
observable, but their deformity. The most curious Carvings appearing no
better then those rude Russian Images we find mention’d in
Purchas, where three notches at the end of a Stick, stood for a
face. And the most smooth and burnish’d surfaces appear most rough and
unpolisht: So that my first Reason why I shall add but a few observations
of them, is, their mis-shapen form; and the next, is their uselessness.
For why should we trouble our selves in the examination of that form or
shape (which is all we are able to reach with a Microscope) which
we know was design’d for no higher a use, then what we were able to view
with our naked eye? Why should we endeavour to discover mysteries in that
which has no such thing in it? And like Rabbins find out
Caballisms, and ænigmâs in the Figure, and placing of
Letters, where no such thing lies hid: whereas in natural forms
there are some so small, and so curious, and their design’d business so
far remov’d beyond the reach of our sight, that the more we magnify the
object, the more excellencies and mysteries do appear; And the more we
discover the imperfections of our senses; and the Omnipotency and
Infinite perfections of the great Creatour. I shall therefore onely add
one or two Observations more artificial things, and then come to
the Treaty concerning such matters as are the Productions of a more
curious Workman. One of these, shall be that of a piece of water’d Silk,
Schem. 3.
Fig. 2.
represented in the second Figure of the third Scheme,
as it appear’d through the
least magnifying Glass. AB signifying the long way of the Stuff,
and CD the broad way. This Stuff, if the right side of it be
looked upon, appears to the naked eye, all over so waved, undulated, or
grain’d, with a curious, though irregular variety of brighter and darker
parts, that it adds no small gracefulness to the Gloss of it. It is so
known a propriety, that it needs but little explication, but it is
observable, which perhaps everyone has not considered, that those parts
which appear the darker part of the wave, in one position to the light,
in another appears the lighter, and the contrary; and by this means the
undulations become transient, and in a continual change, according as the
position of the parts in respect of the incident beams of light is
varied. The reason of which odd phænomena, to one that has but
diligently examin’d it even with his naked eye, will be obvious enough.
But he that observes it with a Microscope, may more easily
perceive what this Proteus is, and how it comes to change its
shape. He may very easily perceive, that it proceeds onely from the
variety of the Reflections of light, which is caus’d by the
various shape of the Particles, or little protuberant parts of the
thread that compose the surface; and that those parts of the waves that
appear the brighter, throw towards the eye a
multitude of small reflections of light, whereas the darker scarce afford
any. The reason of which reflection, the Microscope plainly
discovers, as appears by the Figure. In which you may perceive, that the
brighter parts of the surface consist of an abundance of large and strong
reflections, denoted by a, a, a, a, a,
&c. for the surfaces of those threads that run the long way,
are by the Mechanical process of watering, creas’d or
angled in another kind of posture then they were by the weaving:
for by the weaving they are onely bent round the warping threads;
but by the watering, they are bent with an angle, or elbow, that
is in stead of lying, or being bent round the threads, as in the
third Figure, a, a, a, a, a, are about
b, b, b (b, b, b representing
the ends, as ’twere, of the cross threads, they are bent about) they are
creas’d on the top of those threads, with an angle, as in the
fourth Figure, and that with all imaginable variety; so that, whereas
before they reflected the light onely from one point of the round
surface, as about c, c, c, they now when water’d,
reflect the beams from more then half the whole surface, as de,
de, de, and in other postures they return no reflections at
all from those surfaces. Hence in one posture they compose the brighter
parts of the waves, in another the darker. And these reflections are also
varied, according as the particular parts are variously bent. The reason
of which creasing we shall next examine; and here we must fetch our
information from the Mechanism or manner of proceeding in this operation;
which, as I have been inform’d, is no other then this.
They double all the Stuff that is to be water’d, that is, they crease it just through the middle of it, the whole length of the piece, leaving the right side of the Stuff inward, and placing the two edges, or silvages just upon one another, and, as near as they can, place the wale so in the doubling of it, that the wale of the one side may lie very near parallel, or even with the wale of the other; for the nearer that posture they lie, the greater will the watering appear; and the more obliquely, or across to each other they lie, the smaller are the waves. Their way for folding it for a great wale is thus: they take a Pin, and begin at one side of the piece in any wale, and so moving it towards the other side, thereby direct their hands to the opposite ends of the wale, and then, as near as they can, place the two opposite ends of the same wale together, and so double, or fold the whole piece, repeating this enquiry with a Pin at every yard or two’s distance through the whole length; then they sprinkle it with water, and fold it the long-ways, placing between every fold a piece of Pastboard, by which means all the wrong side of the water’d Stuff becomes flat, and with little wales, and the wales on the other side become the more protuberant; whence the creasings or angular bendings of the wales become the more perspicuous. Having folded it in this manner, they place it with an interjacent Pastboard into an hot Press, where it is kept very violently prest, till it be dry and stiff; by which means, the wales of either contiguous sides leave their own impressions upon each other, as is very manifest by the second Figure, where ’tis obvious enough, that the wale of the piece ABCD runs parallel between the pricked lines ef, ef, ef, and as manifest to discern the impressions upon these wales, left by those that were prest upon them, which lying not exactly parallel with them, but a little athwart them, as is denoted by the lines of, oooo, gh, gh, gh, between which the other wales did lie parallel; they are so variously, and irregularly creas’d that being put into that shape when wet, and kept so till they be drie, they so let each others threads, that the Moldings remain almost as long as the Stuff lasts.
Hence it may appear to any one that attentively considers the Figure, why the parts of the wale a, a, a, a, a, a, should appear bright; and why the parts b, b, b, b, b, b, b, should appear shadowed, or dark; why some, as d, d, d, d, d, d, should appear partly light, and partly dark: the varieties of which reflections and shadows are the only cause of the appearance of watering in Silks, or any other kind of Stuffs.
From the variety of reflection, may also be deduc’d the cause why a
small breez or gale of wind ruffling the surface of a smooth water, makes
it appear black; as also, on the other side, why the smoothing or
burnishing the surface of whitened Silver makes it look black; and
multitudes of other phænomena might hereby be solv’d, which are too many
to be here insisted on.