remarks upon the observations made upon a chronological index of sir isaac newton, translated into...

Remarks upon the Observations Made upon a Chronological Index of Sir Isaac Newton,Translated into French by the Observator, and Publish'd at ParisAuthor(s): Isaac NewtonSource: Philosophical Transactions (1683-1775), Vol. 33 (1724 - 1725), pp. 315-321Published by: The Royal SocietyStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/103790 .

Accessed: 23/05/2014 13:04

Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at .http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp

.JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range ofcontent in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new formsof scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected].

.

The Royal Society is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to PhilosophicalTransactions (1683-1775).

http://www.jstor.org

This content downloaded from 195.78.108.143 on Fri, 23 May 2014 13:04:08 PMAll use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions

http://www.jstor.org/action/showPublisher?publisherCode=rsl

http://www.jstor.org/stable/103790?origin=JSTOR-pdf

http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp


( 315 ) _ w

I. qVessris gpon the ObJertatiosls made ?Xpon a Chro- 7Z010giC4I Idex Qf Sir lEaas Newton, tran#ated into French by tlve Obler94tor, arld publiJb d at Paris.

f5bN Th§Joday November II, 1725. A frnall Trad \ J in print was deliversd to I, as a Prefent, from Mr. Rilliam CavelierX Jun. a Bookfeller at P4ris, a PerSon unknown to meX entituledX Abrege de Ckro?zo- Zogie de M le C5hevalier Newton fait per lui slezne, b traduit /"r le lklanz/J^cript Anglais And the Book- feller hatll pretniCed an AdvertifelnentX in which lle endeavoureth to deferld 11iluSelf for printing it witl- out my LeasreX faying, tllat he had writ three Let- ters to me for tny Leavev arud in the Third laad toldE tne, that he would take uly Silence for a Confent; and tllat he had alfo cllarged oae of his Friends ia Lo^dcn to fpeak to meX and procure tny exprefs Anfwer; and tllat having long expedred my Anfwers lze thought tllat 11e might take my Silence for a Sort of CorCetlt, and fo procOured a Pristilege, and printed it) and tlatn received my Anf\^7er from his Frietldg wllich was as follows.

Y Resnesnber t2at I wrote a CDronological Indcx for a partisfWlar Friend, on condition that it Jipowfd not

De cozn1xlznisvred. Ss I Kave not feen the Manficrip: mbscD y-o! have gnder mly Name, s knoze not whet1ner z.e be the Jncazfle. TWat whsch 1 wrote was nor at zz!X done wit19 Defign to puAliJ/u i;. I ioltenX zat to reddle

Yot. XXXIV. y y * s



( 3 t 6 ) wirb tht which hatZJ bee7 givel or Nngla fty Evnes nor to gtse Zgy Cojeng to tZpe pubSiJ/3Zv2g of i;

I am,

lbour very lissnbte SCrYAntZ I s 4 A C N E W T o N0

I QvJOUt, X4Y ̂ 7X I 725, St. Vet.

The Prisrilege was grante3May zr) ana- regifler'd« M47 25 Old Style, trjy Letter w-asdated May 27 and the Chronological Index, or AlJridgement as lae calls it, was printed before tllle Arrival of loy Letter, and kept ester Ence to be publinl'd at a colzvenient >iine. tthe Boo^feller knew tlsat I had not feen the Tranila- tion of tlle Abridgetnent) atld witllout feeing it could£ not in reafon gitre my ( onfent to tIze 11BPEefijOn^ He knew tllat t1lle TranSator was unknosvn to lne,, anel was agaitlA me b and therefore 11e knexv tlzat it was not fit that I [hould give iny ConfentX nor be ask'd- to do it. He knevv that the Iranfator llacE written u Confut.atiotl of the i'aper tranflated, and- tllat tllis Confutation under tIze tI itl-e of ObJervtiozzs, was to be printed at tlle End of it) and- he told lne no- tlzing of all thisX nor fo tnucll as the Natne of theb Obrervator, and yet asked <y Confent to tlle publilh ing i as if any lMan could be ro 50011a] a5 £o conrent. to the publithing of an unE-een TranI1ation of his Pa perxs, tulade by an unknown PerSorl, witll a Confua- tion annexed, and unanfwered at tlleir firlt Appearh ance in Publick.

After tlle llecital of my Letters he addsX that the Autlaor of the fRrcln0ation) arjd of the ObCerva tions upon ltX preterlds tO llasre an entlre Certainty tllat this Indox) or Abridgelnent of GllronologyX is tlle

fame



( 3l7 )

fame witll tTle Brriting own'd by me in ntJy [Jetter, and is perfuaded that tlle Manurcript, which lzath been cotntnunicated to llimX hath been copied froln tllat of tlzis FriendX tlaat ist from that of the particular 3Friend above-la3ention'd in tny Letter. And there fore the Manufcripts Wllicll hatll been commllnicated to llimX is that of Abbe Conti,- a noble YenetiaZl now

at ParitO Ple, being about feven Years ago in Eslg land, gave me noticeX that the Friend above-mentionsd defir'd to fpeak with me. And this Friend then de fir'd a Copy of wllat I had written about ClaronologyX I replied that it was itnperfed and confus'd) but in a few Days I could draw up an AbfRrad thereof3 iS it migllt be kept facret. And fome Time after I had done thisX and prefented itX tllis Friend defirsd-tIzat Signor Conti mlght have a Copy of it. He was tie only Perlon wllo had a Copy) and he knezv tllat it was a Secrerv and tllat it was at the D>fire of t1lss FriendX and bwr lny Leavev tilat he had a Copye and lse kept it fecret, wllile Ite Ilaid in Esgglngd i and yerS without either this Friend's Leasre or luine) he dil)¢rs'd Copies of it in l;rance, and got an Antiqlry tc) tranllate it into FrenchX and to cotlfute it ; and tllt =Antiquary hatll got a i'rinter to print tlle ffran ation and tlle Confutation; and th@ Printer laatIl ensSea. vour'd to get lny Leave to print the TranWattonX without fending tne a Copy tllereof to be perus'dX or telling me the Nalne of the < ranilatorX or letting ne know tlaat his Defign was to prlnt it with a Confuta tion una-nfwerd and unknown to tne.

The Tranilator 1lear tlle 3ind of his ObSet^sZations (Page 90) f-ai.h) I beliexre tl1at 1 113ve faid enougtl con cerning the EtoocZpa ot tlle AMtgona>rs, and LIRP Lei}gTl]. Of (;e7zerzztiozls to ma.e People caut jolls about t]io reae For thefe are the two Foundations of all this nexv

- , ^ Syfien



( 318 )

SyRem of Chronologyt VJhat he faith, concerning the EpocDoz of the Argon4"t;sX is follnded on the Sup- pofition that I placee tlle Equinox in tile t itne of the

tgonazGtic Expedition) tiSteen Degrees froln thw firR Star of Aries, Pag. 75, 79. 1 place it in the t/liddle of tle Confiellation) and tlae AIiddle is lzot fifteen I)ergees frotn the firA Star of Aries Xh3e (Jbferva tor grants t11at tsne Conliellations were forlb3cd bov Cbzroaz (PAp. 70, 7I5 79.) and that tlle So Slces and- Equinoses were then in vlle Middle of tlle tonStel- lations (Pag. 6y, 69 7S ) and that Ev-dowtgs,in lais EnotrosJ or Speszxlmm cited by IIpparchvsX followeci this Opitlion, Pag. 62, 63, 65, 69) {9. And * Hip pazrsb¢s tl;ames the StarsX througll XvhiCll tlle C:olures

paXed i-rl this old Spherev according to E8Sgvxzts and faitll expreily that Esdasus drew one of tilEfS t'olures throug-ll the Middle of Cgncer and the DzIidd-le of (,5v pricornX and the other through tlle Middle of C'kelae and the Back of Sries. And: tlle CoIsrusX paXing rllrouglo the Hack of AriesN, paSes tllrougll the Middle of Arie and is- bu-t cigllt Degr@es froln tile firlR Star of A>6ze* 1 follow Evdoxzwss and, by doing fo7 place tlle liquI nodial Colure abollt 7Xr. 36l from tlle firIt Slar of Jries. But the ObCervator reprefents, that I place it aEfteen D-egrees frotn the firk Star of Aties, and thence deduces tllat I {hould 11ave made the Argonv{tic Ex peditlan 532 Years earlier tlzan I do Let 11iln reEtify his MiRake, and the Xrgona2-tic Expedition svill Se where I place it.

As for tlle L eagtll of Genervtzon) tile ObEervator iCaiths that I reckon them ono with anotller at 18 or ao Wears a plece (Paz,. 5^ 55.) wllicll is another

* SeeHipparchus pblip'Xby PetaviusX Vol 3. Pago IL6, Ir7; X I9, IZO.

Mi a akeb



( 319 ) lVriRake I agree witll the Antients in reckoning threeGenerations, ataboutan hundredYears.. 8Llt the Reigns of Kings- I do not equal tO GenerationsX as the antient Greeks and Egyptiotns did i but I reckon them only at about s8 or 20 Wrears a piece one with another) wlaen ten or tweltte Kingsj or lnore7 are taken- in cont nual SucceElon. So tlae firI} 24 EQings of Brarlve (PharamondX &c.) reigned 458 YearsX wlIicll is one Witl] anOtlltr I9 ltears a plece. The next u4 Kingg of France (Lgdovicus BaZb>w &t.>) reigned 4st Years, W0liCh lS one wlth another 8}. lears a piecee The next Is Kings (Philippus ValgfMs, &-c.) rengned 3^ RearsX whlcll 1S one witll another zI Years ao pice. And a11 the 63 Ktngs of Frarace reigned I224 YearS which is E9 21> Ye-an a piece. And, if the long Re gn of Lemit XIV. be added, the 64 Kings of F>t4Zzce will reigtl but 20 Years a piece. And they, that exatmine the Matter) will find it fo in other Kingdatms: And I [horterl the Diratton of tlle an.ient Kingdoms ois Greece, irl the fame Proportion that I Ihorten tlIe Reigns of their K-ingg, and tbere- by place tlle Argona8tic E;xpedition about 44 Years, and tlle Taking of lioy about 76 Years af--ter the Death of Solo1ranX and find SeJoVitvs corltetnporary to-SeJ"ac.

So then the Obferarator hath mi{}alden my Meaning, in the two--main Arguments on which the NVIzole is founded, and hath undertaken to trannate and to con- fute a P:aper which lae did not underRand, and been zealous to prsu-t it without my Confent; tho' he thought it good for notlling, but to get him-felf a lit- tle Credit, by trannating it to be confutedX and con. futlng his own 'rranilavion.

rthe Obfervator- faith, tlzat X fuppoCe thsat the igrptians began, about 9GO Years before Chril}to forln- their ReligionX and deify Men for their inventing of;

Artsj



( 3: ) A^res) notwithflanding that it appears hy the ScrlpZ ttlresX that tlleir Idolatry and Arts were as old as the Days of Ma9ees and ,,,7zzcob,-Pag. 82, 83. But he-is agairl mRakeu. I deny not tllat the Kingdom of the lower Egypt called-Mitraim, Ilad a Religion of their awn, till tIaey were invaded and fubduAd by tlle SlleplaerdsX wllo were of anothe-r lleligion: but I fay, tharX wllen the Thebzzns expelled tlae Sllepherds, tlley fPc vSp the \Alorthip of their own Kings and Princes. I fay alfoX that Arts were brougllt into EMROPC prin- cipally by the Phxnicians and Cfuretesv in the fizle of C,admzws and Dnsvid, about 104I Years before (ShriIl; and do not deny tllat tlley were in PhKnicin, EgWt, and Idvzze^, before tlley catne iNto Erope.

The (3bServator faitll alSo) thatX 884 Years bef¢re ChrifEX I place tile 13eg nning of tlle canicular Cycle of tile Egyprians upon the vernal Equinox) altl-lougl that Cycle never begins in Spring, [)ag. 8df) 85). But he is again miRaken. I meddle not with tllat Cycle, but fpeak of the Egyptian lrear of 365 Days.

The ObServator reprefents, that 1- 11asre a great Work to coIne out: but I never to3d Sil<z fo. lSlle I litvted at CotZplAZit7gMv I us'd folnetitzses to refreffi tXly felf with [-iil2ory- and Cllronology for a NVhile, vvhen I x?as weary uritll other Studieso but lnever told hitnffl tllat I was preparing a \5Jork of tlais Kind for the vrcr.

Abbe Conti caI:ne into stglandw sn Spring 17I S) andX xviie he ilaid in E^lXlzzrld, he pretended to be xaly Friend but aSiIled Mr. Leab)titv in enbaging lne in new Difputes, and laath rlnce aded in the anle 1Mant zer in E2rz2aice. rrhe Part he auc{3 11ere lnay be un- derliood by tine CCllarader Xsren of izim in the AElfz ErzaZrum for tlle Year T72I, Pag. gc wlere tle h:ditor, excuElng l-linCelf froin rsp>aii;ng fom.e Lif-

putus



( 32-t ) p-utes wliicl had been publi{h'd in ttzofe SEa, fub joins: Smtgeaerit; itnq,2ue annata Abb?te-7t- queniv?n Itnlu1zt de t nti nabilesn Venet7Xzn (de quo ad7niratione atig7aa Abt pr20cripta eXe t Hermzanwlo f zzttotur Leibni tius) cu1Z1 ex Gallizz izl Ang;liam trzziecifer, zeledivrorir vices in J2e fiflW0cipere vol2<eX ntqge literns Newrowli dds keibriti2wm deferri cu-rafe, Leibnitinnas 2JEt .Swtona tN1nmunif4X4e. And how Mr. Ltibzlit£ by this Me- diation, endeasrour'd to engage lne, againit Iny WillX in new Difputes7 about occult Qualities7 unilrerfal Gra Vity, vlle Senforiuln of God, Space, fime, Vacuum, AtomsX tlle Perfedion of the World, Supramun-dane IntelligenceX and Mathetnatical Problemsy is men tion'd in tlle Preface to t'ne fecond Edition of thew C:otn- rlerciutn EpiJiolicum. And what he hath been doing in Itvly, may be underrtood by the Difplltes raifed there by one of his Friends, who denies many of mv Optical Experiments, though they-have been- all tried in }'tance wiwth Succefs. But I hope that- thefe ThingsX and the perpetual Motion, will he tlle laR Eforts of tllis Kind.

. . . . .

ISl. De Camphqra. AuEtore Xno. Caroio XeN^

mdn, ChrmF Prof. Reg. fBeroli. S. ;K S. r U M jam plures, quorum aliqui ipfas quoque In-

dias peragrarunt, de Catnphora tam copioSe

fcripferint, ut nihil corum, quz ad integram

hifiorialn Gamphort dilllcidandam pertinere sideri pote-rants intermiferint, fiquidem &- origineIn vocis explicarunt, &<- fynony0tna cunAa collegeruntX arbo- rem; unde petitur CalBphoras Sc loca, in quibus artaX rBs hujuEmodi proveniunt) indagarunt, modum quc

Cam^.z.>

( 32-t ) p-utes wliicl had been publi{h'd in ttzofe SEa, fub joins: Smtgeaerit; itnq,2ue annata Abb?te-7t- queniv?n Itnlu1zt de t nti nabilesn Venet7Xzn (de quo ad7niratione atig7aa Abt pr20cripta eXe t Hermzanwlo f zzttotur Leibni tius) cu1Z1 ex Gallizz izl Ang;liam trzziecifer, zeledivrorir vices in J2e fiflW0cipere vol2<eX ntqge literns Newrowli dds keibriti2wm deferri cu-rafe, Leibnitinnas 2JEt .Swtona tN1nmunif4X4e. And how Mr. Ltibzlit£ by this Me- diation, endeasrour'd to engage lne, againit Iny WillX in new Difputes7 about occult Qualities7 unilrerfal Gra Vity, vlle Senforiuln of God, Space, fime, Vacuum, AtomsX tlle Perfedion of the World, Supramun-dane IntelligenceX and Mathetnatical Problemsy is men tion'd in tlle Preface to t'ne fecond Edition of thew C:otn- rlerciutn EpiJiolicum. And what he hath been doing in Itvly, may be underrtood by the Difplltes raifed there by one of his Friends, who denies many of mv Optical Experiments, though they-have been- all tried in }'tance wiwth Succefs. But I hope that- thefe ThingsX and the perpetual Motion, will he tlle laR Eforts of tllis Kind.

. . . . .

ISl. De Camphqra. AuEtore Xno. Caroio XeN^

mdn, ChrmF Prof. Reg. fBeroli. S. ;K S. r U M jam plures, quorum aliqui ipfas quoque In-

dias peragrarunt, de Catnphora tam copioSe

fcripferint, ut nihil corum, quz ad integram

hifiorialn Gamphort dilllcidandam pertinere sideri pote-rants intermiferint, fiquidem &- origineIn vocis explicarunt, &<- fynony0tna cunAa collegeruntX arbo- rem; unde petitur CalBphoras Sc loca, in quibus artaX rBs hujuEmodi proveniunt) indagarunt, modum quc

Cam^.z.>



remarks upon the observations made upon a chronological index of sir isaac newton, translated into...

Documents