Preface to 'A View of Sir Isaac Newton's Philosophy'
To the Noble and Right Honourable
SIR ROBERT WALPOLE.
SIR,
I Take the liberty to send you this view of Sir ISAAC NEWTON'S philosophy, which, if it were performed suitable to the dignity of the subject, might not be a present unworthy the acceptance of the greatest person. For his philosophy affords us the only true account of the operations of nature, which for so many ages had imployed the curiosity of mankind; though no one before him was furnished with the strength of mind necessary to go any depth in this difficult search. However, I am encouraged to hope, that this attempt, imperfect as it is, to give our countrymen in general some conception of the labours of a person, who shall always be the boast of this nation, may be received with indulgence by one, under whose influence these kingdoms enjoy so much happiness. Indeed my admiration at the surprizing inventions of this great man, carries me to conceive of him as a person, who not only must raise the glory of the country, which gave him birth; but that he has even done honour to human nature, by having extended the greatest and most noble of our faculties, reason, to subjects, which, till he attempted them, appeared to be wholly beyond the reach of our limited capacities. And what can give us a more pleasing prospect of our own condition, than to see so exalted a proof of the strength of that faculty, whereupon the conduct of our lives, and our happiness depends; our passions and all our motives to action being in such manner guided by our opinions, that where these are just, our whole behaviour will be praise-worthy? But why do I presume to detain you, SIR, with such reflections as these, who must have the fullest experience within your own mind, of the effects of right reason? For to what other source can be ascibed that amiable frankness and unreserved condescension among your friends, or that masculine perspicuity and strength of argument, whereby you draw the admiration of the publick, while you are engaged in the most important of all causes the liberty of mankind?
I humbly crave leave to make the only acknowledgement within my power, for the benefits, which I receive in common with the rest of my countrymen from these high talents, by subscribing my self
SIR,
Your most faithful
and
Most humble Servant,
HENRY PEMBERTON
PREFACE
I Drew up the following papers many years ago at the desire of some friends who, upon my taking care of the late edition of Sir ISAAC NEWTON's Principia, perswaded me to make them publick. I laid hold of that opportunity, when my thoughts were afresh employed on this subject, to revise what I had formerly written. And I now send it abroad not without some hopes of answering these two ends. My first intention was to convey to such, as are not used to mathematical reasoning, some idea of the philosophy of a person, who has acquired an universal reputation, and rendered our nation famous for these speculations in the learned world. To which purpose I have avoided using terms of art as much as possible, and taken care to define such as I was obliged to use. Though this caution was the less necessary at present, since many of them are become familiar words to our language, from the great number of books wrote in it upon philosophical subjects, and the courses of experiments, that have of late years been given by several ingenious men. The other view I had, was to encourage such young gentlemen as have a turn for the mathematical sciences, to pursue those studies the more chearfully, in order to understand in our author himself the demonstrations of the things I here declare. And to facilitate their progress therein, I intend to proceed still farther in the explanation of Sir ISAAC NEWTON's philosophy. For as I have received very much pleasure from pursuing his writings, I hope it is no illaudible ambition to endeavour the rendering them more easily understood, that greater numbers may enjoy the same satisfaction.
It will perhaps be expected, that I should say something particular of a person, to whom I must always acknowledge my self to be much obliged. What I have to declare on this head will be but short; for it was in the very last years of Sir ISAAC's life, that I had the honour of his acquaintance. This happened on the following occasion. Mr. Polenus, a Professor in the University of Padua, from a new experiment of his, thought the common opinion about the force of moving bodies was overturned, and the truth of Mr. Libnitz's notion in that matter fully proved. The contrary of what Polenus had asserted I demonstrated in a paper, which Dr. MEAD, who takes all opportunities of obliging his friends, was pleased to shew Sir ISAAC NEWTON. This was so well approved of by him, that he did me the honour to become a fellow-writer with me, by annexing to what I had written, a demonstration of his own drawn from another consideration. When I printed my discourse in the philosophical transactions, I put what Sir ISAAC had written in a scholium by it self, that I might not seem to usurp what did not belong to me. But I concealed his name, not being then sufficiently acquainted with him to ask whether he was willing I might make use of it or not. In a little time after he engaged me to take care of the new edition he was about making of his Principia. This obliged me to be very frequently with him, and as he lived at some distance from me, a great number of letters passed between us on this account. When I had the honour of his conversation, I endeavoured to learn his thoughts upon mathematical subjects, and something historical concerning his inventions, that I had not been before acquainted with. I found, he had read fewer of the modern mathematicians, than one could have expected; but his own prodigious invention readily supplied him with what he might have an occasion for in the pursuit of any subject he undertook. I have often heard him censure the handling geometrical subjects by algebraic calculations; and his book of Algebra he called by the name of Universal Arithmetic, in opposition to the injudicious title of Geometry, which Des Cartes had given to the treatise, wherein he shews, how the geometer may assist his invention by such kind of computations. He frequently praised Slusius, Barrow and Huygens for not being influenced by the false taste, which then began to prevail. He used to commend the laudable attempt of Hugo de Omerique to restore the ancient analysis, and very much esteemed Apollonius's book De sectione rationis for giving us a clearer notion of that analysis than we had before. Dr. Barrow may be esteemed as having shewn a compass of invention equal, if not superior to any of the moderns, our author only excepted; but Sir ISAAC NEWTON has several times particularly recommended to me Huygens's stile and manner. He thought him the most elegant of any mathematical writer of modern times, and the most just imitator of the antients. Of their taste, and form of demonstration, Sir ISAAC always professed himself a great admirer: I have heard him even censure himself for not following them yet more closely than he did; and speak with regret of his mistake at the beginning of his mathematical studies, in applying himself to the work of Des Cartes and other algebraic writers, before he had consdiered the elements of Euclide with that attention, which so excellent a writer deserves. As to the history of his inventions, what relates to his discoveries of the methods of series and fluxions, and of his theory of light and colours, the world has been sufficiently informed of already. The first thoughts, which gave rise to his Principia, he had, when he retired from Cambridge in 1666 on account of the plague. As he sat alone in a garden, he fell into a speculation on the power of gravity: that as this power is not found sensibly diminished at the remotest distance from the center of the earth, to which we can rise, neither at the tops of the loftiest buildings, nor even on the summits of the highest mountains; it appeared to him reasonable to conclude, that this power must extend much farther then was usually thought; why not as high as the moon, said he to himself? And if so, her motion must be influenced by it; perhaps she is retained in her orbit thereby. However, though the power of gravity is not sensibly weakened in the little change of distance, at which we can place our selves from the center of the earth; yet it is very possible, that so high as the moon this power may differ much in strength from what it is here. To make an estimate, what might be the degree of this diminution, he considered with himself, that if the moon be retained in her orbit by the force of gravity, no doubt the primary planets are carried round the sun by the like power. And by comparing the periods of the several planets with their distances from the sun, he found, that if any power like gravity held them in their courses, its strength must decrease in the duplicate proportion of the increase of distance. This he concluded by supposing them to move in perfect circles concentric to the Sun, from which the orbits of the greatest part of them do not much differ. Supposing therefore the power of gravity, when extended to the moon, to decrease in the same manner, he computed whether that force would be sufficient to keep the moon in her orbit. In this computation, being absent from books, he took the common estimate in use among geographers and our seamen, before Norwood had measured the earth, that 60 English miles were contained in one degree of latitude on the surface of the earth. But as this is a very faulty supposition, each degree containing about 69 1/2 of our miles, his computation did not answer expectation; whence he concluded, that some other cause must at least join with the action of the power of gravity on the moon. On this account he laid aside for that time any farther thoughts upon the matter. But some years after, a letter which he received from Dr. Hook, put him on inquiring what was the real figure, in which a body let fall from any high place descends, taking the motion of the earth round its axis into consideration. Such a body, having the same motion, which by the revolution of the earth the place has whence it falls, is to be considered as projected forward and at the same time drawn down to the centre of the earth. This gave occasion to his resuming his former thoughts concerning the moon; and Picart in France having lately measured the earth, by using his measures the moon appeared to be kept in her orbit purely by the force of gravity; and consequently, that this power decreases as you recede from the center of the earth in the manner our author had formerly conjectured. Upon this principle he found the line described by a falling body to be an ellipsis, the center of the earth being one focus. And the primary planets moving in such orbits round the sun, he had the satisfaction to see, that this inquiry, which he had undertaken merely out of curiosity, could be applied to the greatest purposes. Hereupon he composed near a dozen propositions relating to the motion of the primary planets about the sun. Several years after this, some discourse he had with Dr. Halley, who at Cambridge made him a visit, engaged Sir ISAAC NEWTON to resume again the consideration of the subject; and gave occasion to his writing the treatise which he published under the title of mathematical principles of natural philosophy. This treatise, full of such a variety of profound inventions, was composed by him from scarce any other materials than the few propositions before mentioned, in the space of one year and a half.
Though his memory was much decayed, I found he perfectly understood his own writings, contrary to what I had frequently heard in discourse from many persons. This opinion of theirs might arise perhaps from his not being always ready at speaking on these subjects, when it might be expected he should. But as to this, it may be observed, that great genius's are frequently liable to be absent, not only in relation to common life, but with regard to some of the parts of science they are the best informed of. Inventors seem to treasure up in their minds, what they have found out, after another manner than those do the same things, who have not this inventive faculty. The former, when they have occasion to produce their knowledge, are in some measure obliged immediately to investigate part of what they want. For this they are not equally fit at all times: so it has often happened, that such as retain things chiefly by means of a very strong memory, have appeared off hand more expert than the discoverers themselves.
As to the moral endowments of his mind, they were as much to be admired as his other talents. But this a field I leave others to expatiate in. I only touch upon what I experienced my self during the few years I was happy in his friendship. But this I immediately discovered in him, which at once both surprized and charmed me: Neither his extreme age, nor his universal reputation had rendred him stiff in opinion, or in any degree elated. Of this I had occasion to have almost daily experience. The remarks I continually sent him by letters on his Principia were received with the utmost goodness. These were so far from being in any ways displeasing to him, that on the contrary it occasioned him to speak many kind things of me to my friends, and to honour me with a publick testimony of his good opinion. He also approved of the following treatise, a great part of which we read together. As many alterations were made in the late edition of his principia, so there would have been many more if there had been sufficient time. But whatever of this kind may be thought wanting, I shall endeavour to supply in my comment on that book. I had reason to believe he expected such a thing from me, and I intended to have published it in his life time, after I had printed the following discourse, and a mathematical discourse Sir ISAAC NEWTON had written a long while ago, containing the first principles of fluxions, for I had prevailed on him to let that piece go abroad. I had examined all the calculations, and prepared part of the figures; but as the latter part of the treatise had never been finished, he was about letting me have other papers, in order to supply what was wanting. But his death put a stop to that design. As to my comment on the Principia, I intend there to demonstrate whatever Sir ISAAC NEWTON has set down without express proof, and to explain all such expressions in his book, as I shall judge necessary. This comment I shall forthwith put to the press, joined to an english translation of his Principia, which I have had some time by me. A more particular account of my whole design has already been published in the new memoirs of literature for the month of march 1727.
I have presented my readers with a copy of verses on Sir ISAAC NEWTON, which I have just received from a young Gentleman, whom I am proud to reckon among the number of my dearest friends. If I had any apprehension that this piece of poetry stood in need of an apology, I should be desirous the reader might know, that the author is but sixteen years old, and was obliged to finish his composition in a very short space of time. But I shall only take the liberty to observe, that the boldness of the digressions will be best judged of those who are acquainted with PINDAR.
