HISTORY OF ASTRONOMY.

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conrfe of things. Nay , in thofe cafes in whichwe have been lefs fuccefsful, even the vaguehypotbefes of Des Cartes , and the yet more inde-termined notions of Ariftotle, have, with theirfollowers, contributed to give fome coherence tothe appearances of nature, and might diminiffi,though they could not deftroy, their Wonder.If they did not completely fill up the intervalbetwixt the two disjointed objeds, they bellowedupon them , however, fome fort of loofe connec-tion which they wanted before.

That the imagination feels a real difficulty inpalling along two events which follow one an-other in an uncommon order, may be confirmedby many obvious obfervations. If it attempts toattend beyond a certain time to a long feries ofthis kind, the continual efforts it is obliged tomake, in order to pafs from one objed to an-other , and thus follow the progrefs of the fuccef-iion, foon fatigue it, and if repeated too often,disorder and disjoint its whole frame. It is thusthat too severe an application to ffudy sometimesbrings on lunacy and frenzy, in thofe especiallywho are somewhat advanced in life, but whoseimaginations, from being too late in applying,have not got thofe habits which dispose them tofollow easily the reasonings in the abftrad sciences.Every flep of a demonftration, which to an oldpraditioner is quite natural and easy, requiresfrom them the moft intense application of thought.Spurred on, however, either by ambition, orby admiration for the fubjed, they ftill continue