126 OF THE NATURE OF THE TIDES.

every day about three quarters of an hour laterthan upon the preceding one; and, by movingin this manner round the earth, completes herrevolution in about thirty days, and then beginsso rife again at the fame time as before.

To make the matter still plainer ; suppose, ata certain place, it is high water at three o’clockin the afternoon, upon the day of the new moon;the following day it will be high water at threequarters of an hour after three; the day afterthat at half an hour past four; and so on, till thenext new moon; when it will again be highwater exactly at three o’clock, the fame as be-fore. And by observing the tides continually,at the fame place, they will always be found tofollow the fame rule: the time of high water,upon the day of every new moon, being ex-actly at the fame hour; and three quarters ofan hour later every succeeding day.

Such a perfect harmony of motions, as is herepointed out, could not possibly arise from themere concurrence of fortuitous causes, or theuncertain operations of blind chance, as manysceptical philosophers affect to believe. On thecontrary, they are in such exact conformity withthe motion of the moon, that, independent ofall mathematical considerations, we should cer-tainly be induced to look to her as their cause.Neglecting, therefore, for the present, all suchexceptions as affect not the truth of the theory,