That would be wrong, answered the Marchioness; we are not contemptible for being surrounded by a thick atmosphere since the sun himself is in the same situation. Tell me, is not this air produced by certain vapours that you formerly told me issued from the sun; and may it not be to moderate the power of the first rays which perhaps would otherwise be excessive? I think it probable that the sun may be thus veiled, to accommodate it to our use. That is a happy idea, madam, said I; you have founded a pretty little system. We may add that this vapour possibly falls back in a sort of rain to refresh the sun, in the same manner as we sometimes throw water into a forge when the fire becomes too fierce. We cannot attribute too much to the power of nature; but all her operations are not made visible to us, therefore we cannot feel assured of having discovered her designs, or her manner of acting. We should not consider any new discovery a certain foundation for reasoning on, though we are very much inclined to do it: philosophers are like elephants, that in walking never put one foot to the ground till they feel the other firmly supported. That comparison, said she, is the more just because the merit either of elephants or philosophers does not consist in external charms; we shall however do well to imitate the superior judgment of both: inform me more of the new discoveries, and I promise not to be in a hurry again to form systems.
I have told you, I replied, all the news I have heard from the sky, and I believe no later intelligence has been received. I am sorry it is not so entertaining and wonderful as some observations I read the other day in an abridgment of the Annals of China, written in Latin. They there see a thousand stars at a time fall from the sky into the ocean with an amazing noise; or dissolve and disperse in rain. This has not merely been seen once in China; I have met with the same account given at two remote periods of time, besides that of a star which goes towards the east, and bursts with the noise of a gun. It is a pity such sights should be confined to China, while this part of the world is never favoured with them. It is not long since all our philosophers thought they had had sufficient experience to pronounce the heavens and all the celestial bodies incorruptible and incapable of change; and at the same time people at the other end of the world were seeing stars dissolve by thousands: there appearance must have differed very much from ours. But, said she, I never heard that the Chinese were great astronomers. No, answered I, but the Chinese are gainers by being at so great a distance from us, as the Greeks and Romans were by being separated by a long space of time; whatever is remote assumes the right of imposing on us.
Really I am more and more of opinion that Europe is in possession of a degree of genius which has never extended to any other part of the globe, at least not to any distant part. It is not perhaps able to diffuse itself over a great proportion of the earth at once, and some invincible fatality prescribes to it very narrow bounds. Let us then make use of it while it is in our possession: and let us rejoice that it is not confined to science and dry speculations, but equally extended to objects of taste, in which I doubt whether any people can equal us. Such, madam, are the things that should engage your attention and constitute your philosophy.
THE END.
AN ELEGANT POCKET COMPANION FOR THE LADIES.
New Series of the Monthly Visitor and New Family Magazine,
with fine Portraits and additional
Embellishments.