Miscellaneous Discourses, Chapter 5 · Section 2 – Section 3
SECT. 2.
The Second poſſible Cauſe of the Worlds Deſtruction in a Natural Way, the Extinction of the Sun.
2. The poſſibility of the Suns extinction. Of which Accident I ſhall give an Account in Dr. More's words, in the laſt Chapter of his Treatiſe of the Immortality of the Soul. This (ſaith he) though it may ſeem a Panick fear at firſt ſight; yet if the matter be throughly examined, there will appear no contemptible Reaſons that may induce men to ſuſpect, that it may at laſt fall out, there having been at certain times ſuch near offers in Nature towards this ſad Accident already. Pliny ſpeaks of it as a thing not unfrequent, that there ſhould be Prodigioſi & longiores Solis defectus, qualis occiſo Dictatore Caeſare & Antoniano bello, totius anni pallore continuo, Hiſt. Nat. lib. 2. cap. 30. The like happened in Juſtinian's time, as Cedrenus writes; when for a whole year together the the Sun was of a very dim and duskiſh Hue, as if he had been in a perpetual Eclipſe: And in the time of Irene the Empreſs, it was ſo dark for ſeventeen days together, that the Ships loſt their way in the Sea, and were ready to run one againſt another, as Theophanes reports. But the late accurate Diſcovery of the Spots of the Sun by Scheiner, and the appearing and diſappearing of Fixt Stars and Comets, and the excurſions of theſe laſt, do argue it more than poſſible, that after ſome vaſt Periods of Time the Sun may be ſo inextricably inveloped by the macule, that he may quite loſe his light; and then you may eaſily gueſs what would become of the Inhabitants of the Earth. For without his vivifick heat, neither could the Earth put forth any Vegetables for their ſuſtenance; neither if it could, would they be able to bear the extremity of the Cold, which muſt needs be more rigorous, and that perpetually, than it is now under the Poles in Winter time▪ But this Accident, though it would indeed extinguiſh all life, yet being quite contrary to a Diſſolution by Fire, of which the Apoſtle ſpeaks, I ſhall paſs it over without further conſideration, and proceed to a Third.
SECT. 3.
The Third poſſible Cauſe of the Worlds Deſtruction, The Eruption of the Central Fire.
3. The Poſſibility of the Eruption of the Central Fire, if any ſuch there be, incloſed in the Earth. It is the Hypotheſis of Monſieur des Cartes, that the Earth was originally a Star, or great Globe of Fire, like the Sun, or one of the fixt Stars, ſituate in the Center of a Vortex continually whirling round with it. That by degrees it was covered over or incruſtated with maculae, ariſing on its Surface, like the ſcumm on a boiling Pot, which ſtill increaſing and growing thicker and thicker, the Star loſing its light and activity, and conſequently the motion of the Celeſtial Vortex about it growing more weak, languid, and unable to reſiſt the vigorous incroachments of the neighbouring Vortex of the Sun; it was at laſt drawn in, and wholly abſorpt by it, and forced to comply with its motion, and make one in the Quire of the Suns Satellites. This whole Hypotheſis I do utterly diſallow and reject. Neither did the Author himſelf (if we may believe him) think it true, that the Earth was thus generated. For he ſaith, Quinimo ad res natural es meliùs explicandas, earum cauſas altiùs hic repetam quàm ipſas unquam extitiſſe exiſtimem. Non enim dubium eſt, quin mundus ab initio fuerit creatus cu… omni ſua perfectione, ità ut in eo & Sol, & Terra, & Luna, & Stellae extiterint...... Hoc fides Chriſtiana nos docet; hócque etiam ratio naturalis planè perſuadet. Attendend… enim ad immenſam Dei potentiam, non poſſ… mus exiſtimare illum unquam quidquam feciſſe, quod non omnibus ſuis numeris fuerit abſolutum. That is, Moreover, for the better explicating of Natural Things, I ſhall bring them from higher or more remote Cauſes than I think they ever had. For there is no doubt, but the World was originally created in its full perfection, ſo that in it were conteined both Sun and Moon and Earth and Stars, &c. For this the Chriſtian Faith teacheth us, and this alſo Natural Reaſon doth plainly perſuade; for attending to the immenſe power of God, we cannot think that he ever made any thing that was not complete in all points. But tho he did not believe that the Earth was generated or formed according to his Hypotheſis, yet ſurely he was of opinion, that it is at preſent ſuch a Body as he repreſented it after its perfect Formation, viz. with a Fire in the middle, and ſo many ſeveral Cruſts or Coats incloſing it: elſe would he have given us a mere Figment or Romance inſtead of a Body of Philoſophy.
But tho I do reject the Hypotheſis; yet the being of a Central Fire in the Earth is not, ſo far as I underſtand, any way repugnant to Reaſon or Scripture. For firſt of all, the Scripture repreſents Hell as a Lake of Fire, Mark 9.43, 44, &c. Revel. 20.10, 14, 15. and likewiſe as a low place beneath the Earth. So Pſalm 86.13. and Deut. 32.22. it is called the nethermoſt hell. Prov. 15.24. The way of life is above to the wiſe, that he may depart from hell beneath. 2. Many of the Ancients underſtand that Article of the Creed, He deſcended into Hell, of our Saviours Deſcent into that local Hell beneath the Earth, where he triumphed over the Devil and all the Powers of Darkneſs. And particularly Irenaeus interprets that Saying of our Saviour, that the ſon of man ſhould be three days in the heart of the earth, of his being three days in the middle of the Earth, which could not be meant (ſaith he) of the Sepulchre, becauſe that was hewen out of a Rock in its Superficies, 3. It is a received Opinion among the Divines of the Church of Rome, that Hell is about the Center of the Earth: inſomuch as ſome of them have been ſolicitous to demonſtrate that there is room enough to receive all the Damned, by giving us the Dimenſions thereof.
Neither is it repugnant to the Hiſtory … the Creation in Geneſis. For tho indeed Moſes doth mention only Water and Earth, a… the component parts of this Body; yet doth he not aſſert that the Earth is a ſimple, uniform, homogeneous Body; as neither do we, when we ſay, upon the face of the earth, or the like. For the Earth, we ſee, is a Maſs made up of a multitude of different Species of Bodies, Mettals, Minerals, Stones and other Foſſils, Sand, Clay, Marle, Chalk, &c. which do all agree in that they are conſiſtent and ſolid more or leſs, and are in that reſpect contradiſtinguiſhed to Water; and together compound one Maſs, which we call Earth▪ Whether the interior parts of the Earth be made up of ſo great a variety of differen… Bodies is to us altogether unknown. For tho it be obſerved by Colliers, that the Beds of Coals lie one way, and do always dip towards the Eaſt, let them go never ſo deep; ſo that, would it quit coſt, and were it no… for the Water, they ſay, they might purſue the Bed of Coals to the very Center of the Earth, the Coals never failing or coming to an end that way; yet that is but a raſh and ungrounded Conjecture. For what is the depth of the profoundeſt Mines, were they a Mile deep, to the Semidiameter of the Earth? not as one to four thouſand. Comparing this Obſervation of Dipping with my Notes about other Mines, I find that the Veins or Beds of all generally run Eaſt and Weſt, and dip towards the Eaſt. Of which what Account or Reaſon can we give, but the motion of the Earth from Weſt to Eaſt? I know ſome ſay, that the Veins, for Example, of Tin and Silver dip to the North, tho they confeſs they run Eaſt and Weſt, which is, I confeſs, a thing I cannot underſtand, the Veins of thoſe Metals being narrow things. Sr▪ Tho. Willoughby in his forementioned Letter writes thus, —I have talked with ſome of my Colliers about the lying of the Coal, and find, that generally the Baſſet end (as they call it) lyes Weſt, and runs deeper toward the Eaſt, allowing about twenty yards in length to gain one in depth; but ſometimes they decline a little from this Poſture; for mine lie almoſt South-Weſt and North-Eaſt. They always ſink to the Eaſt more or leſs. There may therefore, for for ought we know, be Fire about the Center of the Earth as well as any other Body, if it can find a Pabulum or Fewel there to maintain it. And why may it not? ſince the Fires in thoſe ſubterraneous Caverns of Aetna, Veſuvius, Stromboli, Hecla and other burning Mountains or Vulcano's, have found wherewith to feed them for thouſands of years, And as there are at ſome, tho uncertain periods of time, violent Eruptions of Fire from the Craters of thoſe Mountains, and mighty Streams of melted Materials poured forth from thence: ſo why may not this Central Fire in the Earth, (if any ſuch there be) receiving accidentally extraordinary Supplies of convenient Fewel either from ſome inflammable Matter within, or from without, rend the thick exterior Cortex which impriſons it, or finding ſome Vents and Iſſues break forth and overflow the whole Superficies of the Earth, and burn up all things. This is not impoſſible, and we have ſeen ſome Phaenomena in nature which bid fair towards a Probability of it. For what ſhould be the reaſon of new Stars appearing and diſappearing again; as that noted one in Caſſiopeia, which at firſt ſhone with as great a luſtre as Venus, and then by degrees diminiſhing, after ſome two years vaniſh'd quite away? but that by great Supplies of combuſtible matter the internal Fire ſuddenly increaſing in quantity and force, either found or made its way through the Cracks or Vents of the maculae which incloſed it; and in an inſtant as it were overflowed the whole Surface of the Star, whence proceeded that illuſtrious Light; which afterwards again gradually decayed, its Supply failing. Whereas other newly appearing Stars, which either have a conſtant Supply of Matter, or where the Fire hath quite diſſolved the Maculae, and made them comply with its motion, have endured for a long time, as that which now ſhines in the Neck of Cygnus, which appears and diſappears at certain Intervals.
But becauſe it is not demonſtrable that there is any ſuch Central Fire in the Earth, I propoſe the eruption thereof rather as a poſſible than probable means of a Conflagration: and proceed to the laſt means whereby it may naturally be effected, and that is: