The Blazing World and Other Writings (Penguin Classics) (23 page)

After all this, the Empress desired the worm-men to give her a true relation how frost was made upon the earth? To which they answered, that it was made much after the manner and description of the fish- and bird-men, concerning the congelation of water into ice and snow, by a commixture of saline and acid particles; which relation added a great light to the ape-men, who were the chemists, concerning their chemical principles, salt, sulphur and mercury. But, said the Empress, if it be so, it will require an infinite multitude of saline particles to produce such a great quantity of ice, frost and snow: besides, said she, when snow, ice and frost, turn again into their former principle, I would fain know what becomes of those saline particles? But neither the worm-men, nor the fish- and bird-men, could give her an answer to it.

Then the Empress enquired of them the reason, why springs were not as salt as the sea is? also, why springs did ebb and flow? To which some answered, that the ebbing and flowing of some springs was caused by hollow caverns within the earth, where the sea-water crowding through, did thrust forward, and draw
backward the spring-water, according to its own way of ebbing and flowing; but others said, that it proceeded from a small proportion of saline and acid particles, which the spring-water imbibed from the earth; and although it was not so much as to be perceived by the sense of taste, yet was it enough to cause an ebbing and flowing motion. And as for the spring-water being fresh, they gave, according to their observation, this following reason: there is, said they, a certain heat within the bowels of the earth, proceeding from its swift circular motion upon its own axe, which heat distills the rarest parts of the earth into a fresh and insipid water, which water being through the pores of the earth, conveyed into a place where it may break forth without resistance or obstruction, causes springs and fountains; and these distilled waters within the earth do nourish and refresh the grosser and dryer parts thereof. This relation confirmed the Empress in the opinion concerning the motion of the earth, and the fixedness of the sun, as the bird-men had informed her; and then she asked the worm-men, whether minerals and vegetables were generated by the same heat that is within the bowels of the Earth? To which they could give her no positive answer; only, this they affirmed, that heat and cold were not the primary producing causes of either vegetables or minerals, or other sorts of creatures, but only effects; and to prove this our assertion, said they, we have observed, that by change of some sorts of corporeal motions, that which is now hot, will become cold; and what is now cold, will grow hot; but the hottest place of all, we find to be the centre of the earth: neither do we observe, that the torrid zone does contain so much gold and silver as the temperate; nor is there great store of iron and lead wheresoever there is gold; for these metals are most found in colder climates towards either of the Poles. This observation, the Empress commanded them to confer with her chemists, the ape-men, to let them know that gold was not produced by a violent, but a temperate degree of heat. She asked further, whether gold could not be made by art? They answered, that they could not certainly tell her Majesty, but if it was possible to be done, they thought tin, lead, brass, iron, and
silver, to be the fittest metals for such an artificial transmutation. Then she asked them, whether art could produce iron, tin, lead, or silver? They answered, not, in their opinion. Then I perceive, replied the Empress, that your judgments are very irregular, since you believe that gold, which is so fixed a metal, that nothing has been found as yet which could occasion a dissolution of its interior figure, may be made by art, and not tin, lead, iron, copper, or silver, which yet are so far weaker, and meaner metals than gold is. But the worm-men excused themselves, that they were ignorant in that art, and that such questions belonged more properly to the ape-men, which were her Majesty’s chemists.

Then the Empress asked them, whether by their sensitive perceptions they could observe the interior corporeal, figurative motions both of vegetables and minerals? They answered, that their senses could perceive them after they were produced, but not before; nevertheless, said they, although the interior, figurative motions of natural creatures are not subject to the exterior, animal, sensitive perceptions, yet by their rational perception they may judge of them, and of their productions if they be regular: whereupon the Empress commanded the bear-men to lend them some of their best microscopes; at which the bear-men smilingly answered her Majesty, that their glasses would do them but little service in the bowels of the earth, because there was no light; for, said they, our glasses do only represent exterior objects, according to the various reflections and positions of light; and wheresoever light is wanting, the glasses will do no good. To which the worm-men replied, that although they could not say much of refractions, reflections, inflections, and the like; yet were they not blind, even in the bowels of the earth; for they could see the several sorts of minerals, as also minute animals, that lived there, which minute animal creatures were not blind neither, but had some kind of sensitive perception that was as serviceable to them, as sight, taste, smell, touch, hearing, etc. was to other animal creatures: by which it is evident, that nature has been as bountiful to those creatures that live underground, or in the bowels of the earth, as to those that
live upon the surface of the earth, or in the air, or in water. But howsoever, proceeded the worm-men, although there is light in the bowels of the earth, yet your microscopes will do but little good there, by reason those creatures that live under ground have not such an optic sense as those that live on the surface of the earth: wherefore, unless you had such glasses as are proper for their perception, your microscopes will not be anyways advantageous to them. The Empress seemed well pleased with this answer of the worm-men; and asked them further, whether minerals and all the other creatures within the earth, were colourless? At which question they could not forbear laughing; and when the Empress asked the reason why they laughed; we most humbly beg your Majesty’s pardon, replied they; for we could not choose but laugh, when we heard of a colourless body. Why, said the Empress, colour is only an accident, which is an immaterial thing, and has no being of itself, but in another body. Those, replied they, that informed your Majesty thus, surely their rational motions were very irregular; for how is it possible, that a natural nothing can have a being in nature? If it be no substance, it cannot have a being, and if no being, it is nothing; wherefore the distinction between subsisting of itself, and subsisting in another body, is a there nicety, and nonsense; for there is nothing in nature that can subsist of, or by itself, (I mean singly) by reason all parts of nature are composed in one body, and though they may be infinitely divided, commixed and changed in their particulars, yet in general, parts cannot be separated from parts as long as nature lasts; nay, we might as probably affirm, that infinite nature would be as soon destroyed, as that one atom could perish; and therefore your Majesty may firmly believe, that there is no body without colour, nor no colour without body; for colour, figure, place, magnitude, and body, are all but one thing, without any separation or abstraction from each other.

The Empress was so wonderfully taken with this discourse of the worm-men, that she not only pardoned the rudeness they committed in laughing at first at her question, but yielded a full assent to their opinion, which she thought the most rational that
ever she had heard yet; and then proceeding in her questions, enquired further, whether they had observed any seminal principles within the earth free from all dimensions and qualities, which produced vegetables, minerals, and the like? To which they answered, that concerning the seeds of minerals, their sensitive perceptions had never observed any; but vegetables had certain seeds out of which they were produced. Then she asked, whether those seeds of vegetables lost their species; that is, were annihilated in the production of their off-spring? To which they answered, that by an annihilation, nothing could be produced, and that the seeds of vegetables were so far from being annihilated in their productions, that they did rather numerously increase and multiply; for the division of one seed, said they, does produce numbers of seeds out of itself. But replied the Empress, a particular part cannot increase of itself. ’Tis true, answered they: but they increase not barely of themselves, but by joining and commixing with other parts, which do assist them in their productions, and by way of imitation form or figure their own parts into such or such particulars. Then, I pray inform me, said the Empress, what disguise those seeds put on, and how they do conceal themselves in their transmutations? They answered, that seeds did no ways disguise or conceal, but rather divulge themselves in the multiplication of their off-spring; only they did hide and conceal themselves from their sensitive perceptions so, that their figurative and productive motions were not perceptible by animal creatures. Again, the Empress asked them, whether there were any non-beings within the earth? To which they answered, that they never heard of any such thing; and that, if her Majesty would know the truth thereof, she must ask those creatures that are called immaterial spirits, which had a great affinity with non-beings, and perhaps could give her a satisfactory answer to this question. Then she desired to be informed, what opinion they had of the beginning of forms? They told her Majesty, that they did not understand what she meant by this expression, for, said they, there is no beginning in nature, no not of particulars, by reason nature is eternal and infinite, and her particulars are subject to infinite
changes and transmutations by virtue of their own corporeal, figurative self-motions; so that there’s nothing new in nature, nor properly a beginning of any thing. The Empress seemed well satisfied with all those answers, and inquired further, whether there was no art used by those creatures that live within the earth? Yes, answered they: for the several parts of the earth do join and assist each other in composition or framing of such or such particulars; and many times, there are factions and divisions, which cause productions of mixed species; as for example, weeds, instead of sweet flowers and useful fruits; but gardeners and husbandmen use often to decide their quarrels, and cause them to agree; which though it shows a kindness to the differing parties, yet ‘tis a great prejudice to the worms, and other animal creatures that live underground; for it most commonly causes their dissolution and ruin, at best they are driven out of their habitations. What, said the Empress, are not worms produced out of the earth? Their production in general, answered they, is like the production of all other natural creatures, proceeding from the corporeal figurative motions of nature; but as for their particular productions, they are according to the nature of their species; some are produced out of flowers, some out of roots, some out of fruits, some out of ordinary earth. Then they are very ungrateful children, replied the Empress, that they feed on their own parents which gave them life. Their life, answered they, is their own, and not their parents; for no part or creature of nature can either give or take away life, but parts do only assist and join with parts, either in the dissolution or production of other parts and creatures.

After this, and several other conferences, which the Empress held with the worm-men, she dismissed them; and having taken much satisfaction in several of their answers, encouraged them in their studies and observations. Then she made a convocation of her chemists, the ape-men, and commanded them to give her an account of the several transmutations which their art was able to produce. They begun first with a long and tedious discourse concerning the primitive ingredients of natural bodies, and how, by their art, they had found out the principles out of
which they consist. But they did not all agree in their opinions; for some said, that the principles of all natural bodies were the four elements, fire, air, water, earth, out of which they were composed: others rejected this elementary commixture, and said, there were many bodies out of which none of the four elements could be extracted by any degree of fire whatsoever; and that, on the other side, there were divers bodies, whose resolution by fire reduced them into more than four different ingredients; and these affirmed, that the only principles of natural bodies were salt, sulphur, and mercury: others again declared, that none of the forementioned could be called the true principles of natural bodies, but that by their industry and pains which they had taken in the art of chemistry, they had discovered, that all natural bodies were produced but from one principle, which was water; for all vegetables, minerals and animals, said they, are nothing else, but simple water distinguished into various figures by the virtue of their seeds. But after a great many debates and contentions about this subject, the Empress being so much tired that she was not able to hear them any longer, imposed a general silence upon them, and then declared herself in this following discourse:

I am too sensible of the pains you have taken in the art of chemistry, to discover the principles of natural bodies, and wish they had been more profitably bestowed upon some other, than such experiments; for both by my own contemplation, and the observations which I have made by my rational and sensitive perception upon nature, and her works, I find, that nature is but one infinite self-moving body, which by the virtue of its self-motion, is divided into infinite parts, which parts being restless, undergo perpetual changes and transmutations by their infinite compositions and divisions. Now, if this be so, as surely, according to regular sense and reason, it appears no otherwise; it is in vain to look for primary ingredients, or constitutive principles of natural bodies, since there is no more but one universal principle of nature, to wit, self-moving matter, which is the only cause of all natural effects. Next, I desire you to consider, that fire is but a particular creature, or effect of nature, and occasions
not only different effects in several bodies, but on some bodies has no power at all; witness gold, which never could be brought yet to change its interior figure by the art of fire; and if this be so, why should you be so simple as to believe that fire can show you the principles of nature? and that either the four elements, or water only, or salt, sulphur, and mercury, all which are no more but particular effects and creatures of nature, should be the primitive ingredients or principles of all natural bodies? Wherefore, I will not have you to take more pains, and waste your time in such fruitless attempts, but be wiser hereafter, and busy yourselves with such experiments as may be beneficial to the public.