Dissertation on the principles of natural mixtures.

Samuel Cottereau du Clos

Physician to King Louis XIV
Founding member of the Royal Academy of Sciences
1598-1685


The truth of the things we try to know often only appears to us in the shadows, which follow or precede them, depending on the day we take to see them. The first conceptions of our mind may preoccupy him; those that follow are usually disturbed by prejudices, and the observations of the senses are not always very exact. Of the things that can be known to us, some are sensible & are known by the senses, aided by the Understanding; the others are abstracted from the senses, and the Understanding alone can know them. The knowledge acquired by the senses, aided by the understanding, has not so much certainty as that which is acquired by the understanding alone; for what knows by itself is more certain of what it knows than what knows by others. The sense, perceiving of what the sensible thing, knows well that it is; but he does not know why it is, and does not make its Causes. The understanding coming to the aid of sense can know why it is, and only knows what it is in relation to sense, if it is of the sensitive kind, which makes this knowledge less certain.

What the senses tell us about the so-called natural Mixeds is obvious. They teach us the existence of these Mixed, and some modifications of their Being; but we don't know all the causes. It is up to the Understanding to seek them, which being informed of the generations and corruptions of several things, judges that these alterations, which cannot be made without movement, necessarily suppose in their beings, the concurrence of some Principles, some passive & only mobile, others active & capable of moving. The assumption of these Principles is good & true; but their determination is not easy to the understanding, which can consider them differently; because the alterative Motor is in the alterable Mobile, or only external, or internal & constitutive forming part of the subject, composed of one & the other. The search for these Principles has for a long time exercised the most skilful Physicists. I have also tried in various ways to educate myself about it. While working on the chemical resolution of the Planets, I have vainly occupied myself with reducing these Mixts into a few simple matters, which could be reputed to be primary, and pass for Principles. The Fire of the furnaces separated from all the Plants, Water, Oil, Salt & Earth. The portion of Water, which I found tasteless, seemed less composed to me, & although it seemed to me like a mixture of Salt, having no flavor, I was not certain that it was without a few imperceptible particles of Earth, or other matter.

The Waters which had flavor presumably derived it from the Salt, recognized which could be partly separated from it; but I had no certainty that it was totally so. The oily liquors & the other matters likely to inflame, yielded Salt, Water & Earth; and Salt, condensable in the dry, and soluble in the wet, was not without Earth which made it concrete, nor without Water which made it resolve. The acrimony of the Salt was no longer noticeable after the separation of these parts, & could not reasonably be attributed to this assemblage of Water & Earth. If there was any other Principle of this acrimony, it had disappeared as well as that of formal and specific properties, of which there remained nothing manifest, either in the Earth, nor in Water, which alone remained apparent in these Extreme Analyses. I have not been better instructed in the Principles of the Mixed by the chemical resolution of Animals, and that of Minerals has not been so easy to me. Having therefore been unable to find by these means what I was looking for, I endeavored to consider the gross and total of the Globe where we live, to observe what contributes to the generations which are usually made there. The matter of the natural Mixed seems to me to be taken from the places where they are produced, and in all these places there is Earth, Water & Air, which are the materially constitutive parts of the Globe that we inhabit. The dense Earth makes the solidity of the mass of this Globe; liquid water soaks & binds together discontinuous earth particles,

One observes in the corporeal mass of the particular natural Mixed, mixed, matters similar to those which constitute the mass of the Terrestrial Globe, and by the consideration of these general matters it seems to me easy to come to the knowledge of the particular ones which are participated in the Mixed. The elementary body, which is the Matter of this Globe, like all the particular Mixtes that are in it, has considerable differences, some of which belong to it as a body, others as an Element, and others as an elementary body. Those which belong to it as body are extension and divisibility, from which result quantity, which is common to all bodies as such. Those which suit him as an Element are qualities required for the elementary condition, & who share this great Body to each have a particular & proper subject. These qualities are the humidity which is suitable for the watery element & the dryness which is particular to the terrestrial element & the coldness which is specific to the aerial element. The affections attributed to it as elementary bodies are density and rarity, each of which also has a portion of the elementary body as its own subject, and the two together have another portion of this body as their common subject. Scarcity is peculiar to Air, and it is through it that it is capable of extension and compression. The density suits the Earth, which is neither extensible nor compressible, but whose particles are capable of conjunction & disjunction.

Each of these Elements has its particular purposes, according to its elemental condition. Water has three, the first as humid, the second as liquid, and the third as vaporous. Water as moist receives the igneous spirit of the Sun, which is the Author of the movements which take place in the particular Mixed, as well as in the whole Terrestrial Globe. As a liquid Water flows between earth particles to bind them together; & as vaporous it circulates from bottom to top to communicate itself to the Air & to go to the Earth. Air's main endings are two, one suits it as rare, & the other as cold. As rare, extensible & compressible, it occupies the spaces which are not filled with the two other Elements, to keep the whole in a sort of union; & as cold it serves to temper the movements of the igneous spirit, by which heat is produced on the Earth & in the Mixed, & to put the rarefied Water back into its flowing liquidity to return it to the Earth from where it had risen. The Earth likewise has two ends, one as dry, and the other as dense. As dry it tempers the humidity of Water, and as dense it gives solidity to what needs it in the Terrestrial Globe and in the particular Mixed, according to various degrees to retain more firmly the igneous spirit, which is communicated to them by means of Water, in which it first insinuated itself, as in the matter most fitted to receive it. Thus these three parts of the elementary body are variously considerable. Water as a moist, liquid & vaporous Element, that aqueous, humidity makes it capable of receiving the igneous spirit of the Sun, & of communicating it to the two other Elements; which by its liquid flowing through the Earth, conjoins & binds together the particles to contain them in mass; & which being rarefied & reduced to vapour, rises from the depths of the Earth towards its surface & into the Air. What does not come out of the Earth, being retained by Clay or by Rock, condenses, liquids, & seeks by flowing outlets to make springs. What rises from it into the Air regains its liquid density there through the cold & falls back as rain. Thus by a continual circulation, this Element moistens the Earth and the Air, to serve for the production of Minerals, for the vegetation of Plants, and for the preservation of the life of Animals. Water is not compressible in its fluid continuity, it is not so extensively rarefiable, and it becomes rarefied only by division into parts separated from each other, which is improperly called rarefaction.

Air must be considered as a cold Element, rare & subtle, continuous & divisible, capable of extension & compression, serving by its coldness to temper the heat conceived in the two other Elements, airy, by the movement of the igneous spirit, being by its same coldness capable of uniting the particles of rarefied Water, to put them back into their fluid continuity, & having by its subtlety the disposition to insinuate itself into the intervals of Earth and Water to fill them. This rare Element is compressible, to give rise to other pushed & agitated bodies, so that they can move, which they could not do if all space were filled with non-compressible bodies, such as those of Earth & Water.

The elementary Earth is considerable, like a multitude of dry and solid corpuscles, which by their mixture with Water and Air, which are fluid, give various consistency to the Mixed ones which are composed of it. The solidity of this elementary body means that its continuity, divided into several particles, not re-establishing themselves and without the aid of a penetrating fluid, often remains in this state of division. Any body having divisible extension can be resolved into separate particles, & lose much of the continuity of its mass, which it regains by the reunion of its homogeneous particles, if by joining one another, they can penetrate, to merge together. The penetrating fluidity of Water & Air facilitates in these two bodies the reunion of their separate particles to recover continuity when they are homogeneous. But the solid dryness of the terrestrial particles, separated from each other, preventing their penetration, and not allowing them to reunite without the mixture of some moisture which penetrates them, are not a homogeneous continuum.

Also, we do not see a simply terrestrial continuum that is of great extent. These dense and solid corpuscles would be difficult to move if they were large, and the shape of each of these bodies, reduced to the last smallness that their condition can suffer, seems to have to be the simplest. Roundness could suit them in this state, if it were not repugnant to the disposition required in these particles to bind together and give firmness to the Mixed. The oblong figure and the fibrous form are the most suitable for these bonds, as can be observed in the nets of spiders, which get caught and bind to everything they touch, because they are composed of very fine fibers. Fibrous materials are easily reduced to a compact mass. Paper, cardboard, felt, the sheet are fibrous. Plants & Animals have no solidity except by the joining of the fibers of their parts. That of Minerals can be the same, & I have sometimes observed in Gold, dissolved & precipitated in a certain way, fibers quite similar to those of coarse paper & linen. Wrought iron is obviously fibrous, and it is by the rigid flexibility of its fibers that it stands out. The most subtle dust which collects in our rooms, under and above the furniture, is usually fibrous, and that which flies through the air in the houses, and which we see there only when the rays of the Sun enter there and illuminate them strongly, appears to us like very fine fibres, of which the shortest seem to be round. Plants & Animals have no solidity except by the joining of the fibers of their parts. That of Minerals can be the same, & I have sometimes observed in Gold, dissolved & precipitated in a certain way, fibers quite similar to those of coarse paper & linen. Wrought iron is obviously fibrous, and it is by the rigid flexibility of its fibers that it stands out. The most subtle dust which collects in our rooms, under and above the furniture, is usually fibrous, and that which flies through the air in the houses, and which we see there only when the rays of the Sun enter there and illuminate them strongly, appears to us like very fine fibres, of which the shortest seem to be round. Plants & Animals have no solidity except by the joining of the fibers of their parts. That of Minerals can be the same, & I have sometimes observed in Gold, dissolved & precipitated in a certain way, fibers quite similar to those of coarse paper & linen. Wrought iron is obviously fibrous, and it is by the rigid flexibility of its fibers that it stands out. The most subtle dust which collects in our rooms, under and above the furniture, is usually fibrous, and that which flies through the air in the houses, and which we see there only when the rays of the Sun enter there and illuminate them strongly, appears to us like very fine fibres, of which the shortest seem to be round. That of Minerals can be the same, & I have sometimes observed in Gold, dissolved & precipitated in a certain way, fibers quite similar to those of coarse paper & linen. Wrought iron is obviously fibrous, and it is by the rigid flexibility of its fibers that it stands out. The most subtle dust which collects in our rooms, under and above the furniture, is usually fibrous, and that which flies through the air in the houses, and which we see there only when the rays of the Sun enter there and illuminate them strongly, appears to us like very fine fibres, of which the shortest seem to be round. That of Minerals can be the same, & I have sometimes observed in Gold, dissolved & precipitated in a certain way, fibers quite similar to those of coarse paper & linen. Wrought iron is obviously fibrous, and it is by the rigid flexibility of its fibers that it stands out. The most subtle dust which collects in our rooms, under and above the furniture, is usually fibrous, and that which flies through the air in the houses, and which we see there only when the rays of the Sun enter there and illuminate them strongly, appears to us like very fine fibres, of which the shortest seem to be round. fibers quite similar to those of coarse paper and linen. Wrought iron is obviously fibrous, and it is by the rigid flexibility of its fibers that it stands out. The most subtle dust which collects in our rooms, under and above the furniture, is usually fibrous, and that which flies through the air in the houses, and which we see there only when the rays of the Sun enter there and illuminate them strongly, appears to us like very fine fibres, of which the shortest seem to be round. fibers quite similar to those of coarse paper and linen. Wrought iron is obviously fibrous, and it is by the rigid flexibility of its fibers that it stands out. The most subtle dust which collects in our rooms, under and above the furniture, is usually fibrous, and that which flies through the air in the houses, and which we see there only when the rays of the Sun enter there and illuminate them strongly, appears to us like very fine fibres, of which the shortest seem to be round.

These three corporeal Elements, which materially constitute the Terrestrial Globe, and which also seem to be the material parts of all the particular natural Mixtes, in which there is Earth and Water, which probably have some mixture of Air, are not alterable in their substances nor in their essential qualities, and do not change from one to the other. The Mixtes which are made of it are alterable only in their composition, and in a few formalities which are accidental to the matter.

These mobile and merely passive bodies have no other movement in the terrestrial globe than that which comes to them from the various degrees of gravity, or from inclination towards the center of this globe, in order to take places around it which suit them and contain themselves together. The circulations of Water, the agitations of the Air, and the tremors of the Earth have external Causes; & if the whole mass of the Globe rolls in the manner of the Planetary Stars, it is probably like them by the impression of the light of the Sun. The various particular Mixed which are found in this Terrestrial Globe, participating in its matter, can like it receive from the Solar fire the movements which are made there. The very active celestial fire is in continual movement in the luminous Stars, and these Stars moved by their own luminous fire turn incessantly on their motionless centers, receiving no impulse from any stronger external Cause which makes them change places, like the Planetary Stars, of which, having no active and driving light of themselves, have no movement except that which they receive from the luminous Star in whose sphere of activity they meet. The Solar fire which appears to our eyes by & light, & which makes itself felt by the heat which its movement excites in the bodies, contributes so effectively to the generations of several natural Mixed, that one can well recognize it for Causes of the natural movements which are in the corporeal matter, mobile & passive of all the others. as are the Planetary Stars, of which, not having this active and driving light of themselves, have no movement except that which they receive from the luminous Star in whose sphere of activity they meet. The Solar fire which appears to our eyes by & light, & which makes itself felt by the heat which its movement excites in the bodies, contributes so effectively to the generations of several natural Mixed, that one can well recognize it for Causes of the natural movements which are in the corporeal matter, mobile & passive of all the others. as are the Planetary Stars, of which, not having this active and driving light of themselves, have no movement except that which they receive from the luminous Star in whose sphere of activity they meet. The Solar fire which appears to our eyes by & light, & which makes itself felt by the heat which its movement excites in the bodies, contributes so effectively to the generations of several natural Mixed, that one can well recognize it for Causes of the natural movements which are in the corporeal matter, mobile & passive of all the others.

Light is the first of the things we see, and we only see the others through it. During the day that of the Sun spreads over one of the Hemispheres of the Terrestrial Globe, and at night appears that of the Stars which succeed the Sun on the Horizon which it has left. Of these its Stars, some shine by their own light, and others send back to us that which they receive from the Sun. The luminous and brilliant Stars are very numerous, and our eyes, aided by the largest Spectacles, have not yet seen them all in the most serene nights. If these luminous Stars, which are called Fixed Stars, and which are much further from us than the Sun which illuminates us by day, are so many similar Suns, there must be plenty of light in the whole Universe,

In the local extent of the rays of the Sun, there is a considerable species of quantity which does not render them divisible into parts, which subsist separated from one another, as does corporeal quantity, which is always accompanied by divisibility. We observe that the extended rays of the light of the Sun can be intercepted by the opacity of some opposite body which terminates their extension, & reduces it to a lesser space, without division of continuity, what extended further no longer subsists there. We also observe that the light of the Sun penetrates diaphanous bodies, whose continuous and solid compaction leaves no passage to the Air, which is the most subtle of all bodies, as we see in the Pneumatic Glass Machine. This light, if considered a quality, does not subsist separated from the luminous substance, & only penetrates diaphanous bodies with its own subject, & it is this luminous subject, which passing through these bodies carries its light beyond, which no body can do. I call penetration this passage of the luminous subject through a solid body, whose perspicuity comes only from the continuity of its mass. Bodies which have anfractual pores, caused by the discontinuation of several particles, are opaque, because the various surfaces of these discontinuous particles cause the rays of the luminous substance which touches them to break in so many ways, that the splendor of these rays is weakened, and does not appear either in this body or beyond, although the substance of these rays can finally pass beyond. & only penetrates diaphanous bodies with its own subject, & it is this luminous subject, which passing through these bodies carries its light beyond, which no body can do. I call penetration this passage of the luminous subject through a solid body, whose perspicuity comes only from the continuity of its mass. Bodies which have anfractual pores, caused by the discontinuation of several particles, are opaque, because the various surfaces of these discontinuous particles cause the rays of the luminous substance which touches them to break in so many ways, that the splendor of these rays is weakened, and does not appear either in this body or beyond, although the substance of these rays can finally pass beyond. & only penetrates diaphanous bodies with its own subject, & it is this luminous subject, which passing through these bodies carries its light beyond, which no body can do. I call penetration this passage of the luminous subject through a solid body, whose perspicuity comes only from the continuity of its mass. Bodies which have anfractual pores, caused by the discontinuation of several particles, are opaque, because the various surfaces of these discontinuous particles cause the rays of the luminous substance which touches them to break in so many ways, that the splendor of these rays is weakened, and does not appear either in this body or beyond, although the substance of these rays can finally pass beyond. which passing through these bodies carries its light beyond, which no body can do. I call penetration this passage of the luminous subject through a solid body, whose perspicuity comes only from the continuity of its mass. Bodies which have anfractual pores, caused by the discontinuation of several particles, are opaque, because the various surfaces of these discontinuous particles cause the rays of the luminous substance which touches them to break in so many ways, that the splendor of these rays is weakened, and does not appear either in this body or beyond, although the substance of these rays can finally pass beyond. which passing through these bodies carries its light beyond, which no body can do. I call penetration this passage of the luminous subject through a solid body, whose perspicuity comes only from the continuity of its mass. Bodies which have anfractual pores, caused by the discontinuation of several particles, are opaque, because the various surfaces of these discontinuous particles cause the rays of the luminous substance which touches them to break in so many ways, that the splendor of these rays is weakened, and does not appear either in this body or beyond, although the substance of these rays can finally pass beyond. whose insight comes only from the continuity of its mass. Bodies which have anfractual pores, caused by the discontinuation of several particles, are opaque, because the various surfaces of these discontinuous particles cause the rays of the luminous substance which touches them to break in so many ways, that the splendor of these rays is weakened, and does not appear either in this body or beyond, although the substance of these rays can finally pass beyond. whose insight comes only from the continuity of its mass. Bodies which have anfractual pores, caused by the discontinuation of several particles, are opaque, because the various surfaces of these discontinuous particles cause the rays of the luminous substance which touches them to break in so many ways, that the splendor of these rays is weakened, and does not appear either in this body or beyond, although the substance of these rays can finally pass beyond.

These two properties of the solar rays, which have extension without being divisible, and which penetrate continuous bodies, make it clear that these rays are not absolutely corporeal. This is what gives me the opportunity to attribute to this luminous substance the denomination of Spirit, the term being able to be used to signify a subject which has extension without being body, and which also differs from purely incorporeal substance. And because this very active spirit excites heat by its movement in the bodies into which it insinuates itself, I have given it the nickname of igneous.

This igneous spirit, which I think is the cause of movement in the elementary body, in itself purely passive and mobile, does not seem to me to be the first and main mover in bodies, whose movements are ordered according to the determination of their particular ends, as are the movements that we observe in the natural Mixed who are endowed with life. The vital spirit is in Animals the immediate organ of the Principle which animates them. The condition of this spirit, mediator between the Soul which excites & directs vivifying movements, & the mobile body vivified & moved by the virtue that this spirit receives from the Soul, makes it both Motor & Mobile. He may have mobility, because it has the extension which disposes it to be moved by the main exciting and directing cause of these movements ordered for particular ends, and depending on whether it is excited it can move while moved. The cause which excites & which directs the movements of the igneous spirit in the corporeal matter of the natural Mixed, must be considered as subordinate to a first cause determining the ends; for exciter these movements are made in the Mixed for particular ends, and the intention of these ends can only be to an intelligent cause which knows the reasons. This intelligent cause, determinative of ends, being independent of the subjects it determines, does not form part of their constitution, and must be considered as an external, absolute, and primary cause. The exciter & director principle of the movements which are in the Mixed for the ends of their destination, had to be conjoined with the driving Spirit in the passive & mobile body of these Mixed, to constitute them in the state which suits them. And it is to this internal Director of movement that I attribute what Aristotle said of Nature: That it is by nature that all things are, which having in them a Principle of movement achieve some end. This should not be understood as a simple virtue or motor power, inherent in the body of its mobile self, which, as a body, cannot be both mobile and motor of itself by the principle of its corporeal being, which only gives it passive dispositions. The movable body, capable of being moved to some end,

Nature, according to the doctrine of the Schools, is the Principle of the natural movements which it excites and which it directs to their ends. And this principle being intimately conjoined with corporeal matter, constitutes the Mixed which receives from it the denomination of natural Mixed, distinguished from the artificial Mixed, whose motor is external, and is not a constituent part of the product. It is this internal principle that is established as the object of Physics, because the Physicist works rather to seek the internal cause of natural motion than motion in general; for all the movements which take place in corporeal matter are not natural, and those which Art produces are of another consideration, having only external causes; how natural effects differ from artificial ones, although Nature and Art agree in that both act with reason in what they are. Art does nothing recklessly and without reason; and Nature, whose works surpass those of Art, also does not act without reason, since she leads natural things with order to their ends. But as the reasons of Art are in the understanding of the Artist, who proposes the design of his work, determines the facts and orders the means; thus the reasons for the works of Nature are in a higher Understanding which determines the ends, and from which Nature follows the orders. It is from the Creator of substances, first and principal cause, that the internal principle, ministerial director of the movements which are in the natural Mixed, has received the conditions of its being for the ends which it pleased its Author to determine them. The effects of this internal and second cause must be related to the first cause which determines the ends of the products, and prescribes to the second causes the ways of acting for these ends, and of leading the subjects there according to its orders. And because the natural second causes do not act freely & of their own motion, but necessarily, according to the manners which are prescribed to them by the first & principal cause, one can with reason suppose that God, who is the first of the causes, contributes immediately to the natural actions of the second causes which he has created, which he preserves & which he causes to act. The effects of this internal and second cause must be related to the first cause which determines the ends of the products, and prescribes to the second causes the ways of acting for these ends, and of leading the subjects there according to its orders. And because the natural second causes do not act freely & of their own motion, but necessarily, according to the manners which are prescribed to them by the first & principal cause, one can with reason suppose that God, who is the first of the causes, contributes immediately to the natural actions of the second causes which he has created, which he preserves & which he causes to act. The effects of this internal and second cause must be related to the first cause which determines the ends of the products, and prescribes to the second causes the ways of acting for these ends, and of leading the subjects there according to its orders. And because the natural second causes do not act freely & of their own motion, but necessarily, according to the manners which are prescribed to them by the first & principal cause, one can with reason suppose that God, who is the first of the causes, contributes immediately to the natural actions of the second causes which he has created, which he preserves & which he causes to act. & prescribes to secondary causes the ways to act for these ends, & to lead the subjects there according to his orders. And because the natural second causes do not act freely & of their own motion, but necessarily, according to the manners which are prescribed to them by the first & principal cause, one can with reason suppose that God, who is the first of the causes, contributes immediately to the natural actions of the second causes which he has created, which he preserves & which he causes to act. & prescribes to secondary causes the ways to act for these ends, & to lead the subjects there according to his orders. And because the natural second causes do not act freely & of their own motion, but necessarily, according to the manners which are prescribed to them by the first & principal cause, one can with reason suppose that God, who is the first of the causes, contributes immediately to the natural actions of the second causes which he has created, which he preserves & which he causes to act.

It is therefore by an internal ministerial motor that the mobile body is moved in the natural Mixed, and that its movements are directed according to the intention and the orders of the first cause for particular ends. The means of union of this internal Principle, which is called Nature, with the elementary body in the natural Mixed, is not well known in the School; but I think I have some right to suppose, not judging it possible that two externals contradictorily opposed, as are the corporeal substance and the incorporeal, unite together without the mediation of a third which comes from one and the other, as does the igneous spirit, which being extended without being divisible partakes of the qualities of the other two principles; for it has a relation to corporeal matter by extension, and incorporeal nature by indivisibility. This mediating spirit manifests itself sufficiently in the natural Mixed by effects which can only be attributed to it alone. Nature joined to the elementary body by means of this igneous spirit constitutes the particular Mixeds, which are called natural, because it manifests itself in these Mixeds by their dispositions suitably ordered for the purposes of their specifications, being the Principle of their information.

It is not my intention to make here a particular Dissertation on Nature. I consider it only in relation to the natural Mixed, of which I suppose that corporeal matter is the informable subject; that Nature is the informative cause, and that the igneous spirit is the means of information. These three constitutive Principles of the natural Mixeds subsist in themselves outside the particular Mixeds. The elementary body is found in the Terrestrial Globe in triple consistency, dense, rare & medium. The dense & dry portion is called Earth; we give the name of Air to that which is rare & cold, & Water is this humid portion, sometimes dense, sometimes rare, which circulates & mixes with the Earth & with the Air. Beyond this body mass of the Globe composed of these three Elements, the celestial fire of the Sun is manifested by its light & its moving & heating activity. The Terrestrial Globe meeting in the expanse of this igneous spirit is penetrated & agitated by it in its parts & in its whole. And the incorporeal nature, having no extension which requires a particular & separate place, accompanies the igneous spirit & is always with it, using it as its own vehicle & immediate organ. It is by this igneous spirit that Nature gives and preserves life to all that participates in it, and the life that this same spirit takes from the Nature which accompanies it, foments those of the particular Mixed. The Animals which live in the various elementary regions, of Earth, Water & Air, cannot be kept alive apart from the vivifying flows of the vivified igneous spirit, by which the vivifying Nature insinuated into these Mixed is fortified there. The Plants which only vegetate by their attachment to the Earth, receive from it from the spirit which it contains, the maintenance of a life which is lost when they are torn from it; & the Metals pulled out of their terrestrial matrices which are the mines, no longer retain this life which made them grow & perfect themselves there. the maintenance of a life that is lost when they are torn from it; & the Metals pulled out of their terrestrial matrices which are the mines, no longer retain this life which made them grow & perfect themselves there. the maintenance of a life that is lost when they are torn from it; & the Metals pulled out of their terrestrial matrices which are the mines, no longer retain this life which made them grow & perfect themselves there.

These three physical Principles are easily recognized in the particular Mixed which they constitute. They appear in these subjects in their form and in their movements. They are very remarkable in the mechanical construction of Animals, each of these Principles having a separate apartment for functions which concern them more particularly. In the conformation of flies, ants, spiders, & several other insects, we see three different parts attached together in a row. The head, the chest & the belly, like so many separate dwellings for different uses, & specific to each of these constitutive Principles. In the other animals the head always remains distinct in trunk, which contains the chest and the belly, and these two are divided by a diaphragm which separates them. The head is recognized as the main seat of the guiding Principle of natural movements, and it is there that the sensations are found, which are the principal effects of the faculties of this Principle. The chest, always situated between the head and the belly, is the entrenchment of the igneous spirit, where it is enclosed and concentrated to be preserved in the heart, from where it spreads its vital influence through the arteries in the membranes. And the belly is the kitchen where the food is prepared for the nourishment of the body. where it is enclosed & concentrated to be preserved in the heart, from where it spreads its vital influence through the arteries in the membranes. And the belly is the kitchen where the food is prepared for the nourishment of the body. where it is enclosed & concentrated to be preserved in the heart, from where it spreads its vital influence through the arteries in the membranes. And the belly is the kitchen where the food is prepared for the nourishment of the body.

It is not only in physical subjects that there are two extreme Principles opposed to each other, and joined by a third party which makes them agree together. The Mixed Logics, which are the Proposition & the Syllogism, have three Principles analogous to those of the Mixed Naturals. The proposition, which is the first Logical Mixt, is by a compound of three terms, as of three constitutive Principles. The ternary one of these terms is the subject to which the attribute, which is the other extreme term, is joined by the verbal copula, which mediates between the attribute and the subject. The Syllogism, which is the second Mixed Logic, and more compound than the first, has three constant propositions each of three terms, & the attribute of the major is joined in the conclusion with the subject of the minor by the middle term which is found in the major & in the minor of these propositions. And it is thus that these Logical Mixtures relate to the Physical Mixtures, in which the formal Principle unites with the material by a common means. The Physical Principle is the first known to us, because it is the most sensitive, is the elementary body, which has various parts to serve the material diversity of the Mixed. Of these parts two are extreme, and the third is middle. The extremes are Dense & Dry Earth, & Scarce & Cold Air. The average is Water, of itself moist, & occasionally dense & sometimes rare. The adjective & formal Principle of the Mixed Physics is known to us only by the specifications of these Mixed. This formal Principle being diametrically opposed to the material, whose corporeality consists in divisible extension, is not extended by itself, and receives extension only by union with a subject who has extension. Having no extension, it cannot have diverse parts. The diversities of the specifications which he gives to the Mixed come from the impressions of his various ideas. The conjunctive Principle, which serves to unite the adjective to the subjective, participating in these two opposite extremes, has extension like the elementary body, and is indivisible like informing Nature. whose corporeity consists in divisible extension, is not extended by itself, and receives extension only by union with a subject who has it. Having no extension, it cannot have diverse parts. The diversities of the specifications which he gives to the Mixed come from the impressions of his various ideas. The conjunctive Principle, which serves to unite the adjective to the subjective, participating in these two opposite extremes, has extension like the elementary body, and is indivisible like informing Nature. whose corporeity consists in divisible extension, is not extended by itself, and receives extension only by union with a subject who has it. Having no extension, it cannot have diverse parts. The diversities of the specifications which he gives to the Mixed come from the impressions of his various ideas. The conjunctive Principle, which serves to unite the adjective to the subjective, participating in these two opposite extremes, has extension like the elementary body, and is indivisible like informing Nature.

The principiant, subjective, adjective, and conjunctive Ternary having been recognized in the natural Mixed by the Hermetic Philosophers, was employed by them in the making, both of their universal Medicine, and of their great metallic Arcanum. The primitive salt, which they took as the substance of this famous Medicine, had in itself the purest portion of the elementary body as its subject, and Nature as its assistant, which these Philosophers designated by the name of Soul. The igneous Spirit, which gave this body the form of salt, served as its mediator to receive from Nature its complete perfection. The Material Principles of the Great Metallic Arcanum of these Philosophers were related to those of this famous Medicine. This Arcanum, to be used for the perfective transmutations of metals, had to be endowed with three properties, which are Fusibility, Ingres & Tincture. These Philosophers finding fusibility in Salt, ingredient in Mercury, and tinting in metallic Sulphur, they used these materials, and gave the title and the denomination of principle to Salt, Mercury and Sulphur, not absolutely and simply, not recognizing these principled materials as simple and raw substances, but only as materially and soon constitutive parts of this Arcanum. And to make some relation to the first & general Principles of all the natural Mixed, they took Salt for the body, Mercury for the spirit, & Sulfur for the soul, or the specifying Nature, judging that the disciples of their Cabalistic School, accustomed to parables & allegories,

The vulgar Chemists, to whom this great Arcanum was as little known as the true Principles of the Mixed, disappointed by the ambiguity of the name of Principle, took Salt, Mercury & Sulfur for general Principles. And those who have followed this opinion have tried in vain to readjust these three so-called Principles with the four Elements of the School, finding themselves very much prevented from placing them in the same class. Salt, Mercury, and Sulfur cannot pass as primary and simple substances, like the Elements, if in their resolution they are recognized as compounds, if their originating being is only analogous; & if it is principled, like that of the other Mixtes, among which nevertheless they can be in some particular consideration, as first compounds,

The Principles intended to constitute the natural Mixtes would be incomplete in themselves, and useless for this purpose, if they remained separated from each other. It is of the perfection of things that those which must be united together do not remain alone. Everything is for the end, and it is a fault not to reach it. The elementary body would be without movement if it were not agitated by the igneous spirit, and this agitation would be vague and confused without the division of Nature and by whose guidance the movements were regulated in each of the Mixed for the particular and proper end. The relation of the formal principle to the material, and that of the means of their union with one and the other would be vain, if these Principles did not unite together,

And this assembly of Principles for the constitution of the natural Mixed, the movements of the igneous spirit in the elementary body seem to me very considerable. It is in them & through them that Nature manifests itself in the Mixed. This active & moving spirit acts & moves of itself, according to the extent of its power; but not acting equally in various Mixtures composed of the same elementary matters, it is necessary that this diversity of modified movements proceed from another Principle, in which are the typical ideas of the rules and the modifications of these movements which one calls natural, because it is Nature which is the director. It acts through the organ of the mediating spirit in the corporeal matter of the Mixed, to which without it it could not be united. The igneous spirit is indeed the immediate cause of the movements which take place in the Mixtes; but he is not the author of the specifications of the Mixtes, and of the modifications of their movements. This celestial fire accompanied by the general nature, & joined to the elementary body, fortifying its similar insinuated in the seminable matters of the Mixed, excites the vigor of their specific nature, & disposes these subjects to the generation of their similar by the production of new individuals. This same fire, which gives vigor to the seeds, also foments the life of the Mixed, who participate in it and who only receive it from Nature by means of this spirit. If its movement directed by the vivifying nature is only weakened in the vivified subjects, the life may not be extinguished, though some functions cease in the animal. But if this movement is not strong enough to preserve life, nor in a condition to be directed by vivifying nature, this too weak movement, and deprived of the direction of Nature, causes death, and produces corruption in what remains of humor in the body of the Mixed deprived of life. This spirit extended by the Universe, filling the spaces & penetrating the bodies, is everywhere outside & inside the Mixed. It is through it that the general Nature acts in the Mixeds that it specifies by the impression of the characters of its typical ideas (I say typical, because the originals are in the understanding of the first cause) & it is also through this spirit that the particular natures of the Mixeds have the extension to act on other Mixeds without bodily touching, & even in very notable distances from one body to another, by the only mediation of the spirit that they participate, & by the extent of which the particular natures of these Mixed ones can have a certain sphere of activity outside the bodies that they inform. The igneous spirit, insinuated into the elemental body, makes itself most manifest where it is least engaged. He has less involvement in animals than in plants, and less in plants than in minerals. But it is usually found to be more active and stronger where it is most concentrated, in energy if it is freed from the embarrassment of earthly matters which retain it. This spirit unites with the elementary body through the portion of this body which has the greatest disposition to receive it. The Air by its coldness resists the warming movement of the igneous spirit. The density of the terrestrial particles is suitable only to retain it. Water alone by its humidity is capable of receiving this spirit, which insinuates itself without resistance into this humid Element, which being of average condition between Air & Earth, communicates to one & to the other of these Elements the igneous spirit that it has received.

The union of the igneous spirit with the watery Element is not very evident before their mixture with the Earth to take some concretion, but it can be recognized by the observation of certain effects which can only be attributed to this spirit, as are those which are noticed in the icing of Water in extreme cold. When the Water freezes in Winter by the coldness of the Air in the narrow vessels, the surface of this Water being frozen first, & preventing that which is below from taking air by also freezing, the vessels burst & split from bottom to top; but if with a stylus or small punch we make a hole in the icy surface before the underside freezes, the vessel does not burst when all the rest of the water freezes, provided that the hole made in the surface is maintained always open up to the portion of the Water which is still liquid, as long as the whole is frozen. However, something comes out through this opening which pushes part of the water & raises it high enough to form a pipe by freezing, which finally clogs & forms a kind of cylinder. The force of what causes these vessels to burst, for lack of opening, being so great that it even bursts cannons of hard metal, such as copper or iron, filled with water, exactly blocked and exposed to very cold air, I have tried to recognize the cause. To find it I suppose it is not the only rarefaction of Water, Seven or eight ounces of water locked up in a tightly plugged gun barrel could not, expanding with cold, making so much effort; for being much more rarefied by the heat of the Sun in Summer, than by the extreme coldness of the Air in Winter, they would not burst this cannon, which would not burst even in the fire, which, however, should happen, if the rarefaction of water could make it burst, this rarefaction being greater by heat, which has the property of rarefying Water, than by coldness, which is condensing, and which tightens the most strong metals. I have observed that Water does not swell by freezing, when the surface, which first freezes by the touch of the Air, was pierced: from which I infer that there comes out through this opening some subtle and invisible matter,

I also suppose that it is not the Air retained and compressed in this ice which causes the vessels which contain the frozen water to burst. Because the much more pressed Air in a Wind Arquebus does not make it burst. I suppose again that this subtle matter which leaves by the hole which one makes in the frozen surface, the first must be that which makes burst the vessels which contain Water when it does not find this exit; and that it is by the contrariety of the extreme coldness of the Air to this subtle matter, which, pressed by this contrary cold, tries to flee it and to separate itself from it. This contrariety seems manifest in the effect which follows this effort, for by this effort the icy surface of the Water does not burst, although it is less hard than the vessel which splits. Which can only be attributed to the cold, which is greater on the surface of icy water which the Air touches immediately, and which freezes first, because of this touching of the Air. The manner in which the rupture of vessels by the freezing of Water takes place confirms this contrariety, and makes it known that the movement of this subtle matter, to which the extreme coldness of the Air is so contrary, is from bottom to top, and the rupture of cylindrical vessels, when they are upright, is done perpendicularly and not transversely, being usually greater in the lower part where it begins. What seems to proceed from this subtle matter, tending from below upward & meeting the greater cold above,

This subtle matter to which the Air is so contrary in the excess of its coldness, must be endowed with opposite qualities, and it can only be the igneous spirit which is the celestial fire, whose substance, different from that of the corporeal Elements, being spiritual and very active, insinuates itself into the humid Water, to communicate with it and through it to the two other Elements, and serve for the generations and preservations of all the natural Mixed, as the vehicle and the immediate organ of Nature. Minerals, plants & animals generate & feed in the wet; but it is not by the wet, which is only a passive subject; it is by the igneous spirit accompanied by the specifying nature & conjoined with the bodily humidity.

This fiery spirit in wine, beer, cider & other similar liquors which have a lot of inflammable spirit, concentrates in the middle of these liquors, when they come to freeze strongly, & it leaves these icy liquors totally tasteless. It does not burst the vessels which contain these frozen liquors, as it does those which contain only water, because this igneous spirit is retained in the saline and sulphurous portion of these liquors, which is withdrawn with it in the middle of these ices. Simple Water not having enough sulphurous Salt to retain the igneous spirit, when it freezes, this spirit insinuated into the Water, being forced to flee the extreme cold of the Air which makes it freeze, causes the ice which encloses it to swell, & this swelling of the ice bursts the vessels that contain it. In metals, the igneous spirit conjoined with these solid and fixed matters is also concentrated there by extreme cold, and noticeably constricts its volume. The frozen fruits lose their flavor, because the cold has driven out the igneous spirit which was not well stopped there. The parts of our body which partake less of this spirit, & which consequently have less heat, such as the nose, the ears & the feet, being frozen, mortify immediately, & if they are presented to the fire they rather mortify, because this external heat opening the pores of these parts & causing them to thaw, helps to dissipate the rest of the igneous spirit,

It is through the defect of the movement of this igneous spirit, weakened by the cold in the Swallows which one finds in Winter at the bottom of the marshes towards the North, that these birds seem to be deprived of life. For being carried in stoves, the heat of which excites in them the movement of the igneous spirit, they regain vigor and fly away. Lions, Marmots, Hedgehogs & many other animals, in which the movements of this spirit are slower during the Winter, pass this cold season asleep without changing their place, until the return of the heat which the Sun excites in them.

These reflections on the igneous spirit, and on its insinuation into the elementary body, are all the more important, since it is through this mediating spirit between the corporeal Element and incorporeal nature that the generations of the natural Mixed are created, which differ from the artificial Productions, although they agree in that their effects make accidental forms. The productions of Art only have external and superficial forms as effects, and the efficient cause of these added forms is not a constitutive part of the subject. The Marble and the Sculptor do not unite intimately together to constitute a statue, & the production of the figure of Alexander on this Marble is not a generation; for the generations always suppose the intimate union of the active cause with the passive subject, from which union results the Mixt which receives the form produced from this matter. The form of Marble was indeed produced by way of generation in the Mixed, which is the subject of this form. It was the effect of a natural Agent intrinsically joined to elementary Matter, and this form perishes only by the destruction of the Mixed, which consists in the disunion of the Principles which constitute them, or by the change of the action of the informative Principle in the informable subject. But the figure of Alexander produced on this Marble constitutes nothing new, & by changing the external modification of the surfaces of this Marble,

In generation I recognize no production of substance; the generated product is only a way of being which proceeds from an internal Agent constitutive of the Mixed. Substances subsist in themselves & are permanent. They can only begin to be by way of creation, and their destruction is not naturally possible. It is only the form of the substantial Mixed, as Mixed, which is engendered by the action of an internal Principle united to the matter of the Mixed to constitute it as such, and to inform it in this way through the intervention of a third party which holds from one and the other. At the beginning of the World, substances were created by God to serve as constitutive Principles, and the generation of the natural Mixed, constituted by the union of these Principles,

This is what the Author of the Sacred Book of the Birth of the World was able to explain well by making a distinction between the immediate works of God, and those which were done by some mediation. The creation of substances was the work of God alone; it was only he who could birth out of nothingness something subsisting in itself. The only divine power made exist the Sky, the Earth, the Waters, the Expanse of the Air, the Light & the Stars. All these substances were created by the will of God and by the virtue of his word. But for the generation of Plants, Animals, and other Mixed which we call natural, it was committed by God to those of these created substances which He had destined for this use. Moses says that God ordered the Earth to produce herbs & trees with their seeds capable of multiplying & perpetuating their species. He also commanded him to produce various species of land animals. And the Waters, both lower and upper, were ordered to produce fish and birds. Now, since this productive power of Plants and Animals cannot be attributed to the corporeal matter of Earth and Water, which were only subjective and purely passive matters, the Earth, moistened with the mixture of Water, remaining vain and without virtue, it was necessary that an active spirit, carried on the Waters, insinuate itself with them into the Earth and the Air, to make these elementary bodies serve the generations of the Mixed, who are surnamed natural, because of this spirit which excites and directs generative movements, to which physicists have given the name of Nature. The light, without which the other created substances would remain in a dark confusion, served as an organ for this spirit, to distinguish & discern the specifications of the Mixed, & to move them according to the determination of their particular ends. In the order of the creation of the substances which were to serve for the generation of the natural Mixed, the triple elementary body of the Earth, Water & Air, knew the first as subjective & passive matter of itself. God then made a very subtle & very active luminous substance, to illustrate, penetrate & move this corporeal matter. And to regulate the movements of this motor Principle in the elementary body, according to various ends, God created a third substance, entirely incorporeal, which he filled with the ideas of all the specific forms of the natural Mixeds, and which he endowed with the power to impress their characteristics in the corporeal matter of these Mixeds. What some of the oldest & most celebrated Doctors of the Christian Church have said of the Spirit of God, which was carried on the Waters in the creation of the Universe, may well be understood of this Third Principle. And the authority of these great men strengthens my supposition. & that he endowed with the power to impress its characteristics in the corporeal matter of these Mixed. What some of the oldest & most celebrated Doctors of the Christian Church have said of the Spirit of God, which was carried on the Waters in the creation of the Universe, may well be understood of this Third Principle. And the authority of these great men strengthens my supposition. & that he endowed with the power to impress its characteristics in the corporeal matter of these Mixed. What some of the oldest & most celebrated Doctors of the Christian Church have said of the Spirit of God, which was carried on the Waters in the creation of the Universe, may well be understood of this Third Principle. And the authority of these great men strengthens my supposition.

Saint Chrysostom, in the third Homily on the first Chapter of Genesis, explaining this passage, where it is spoken of the Spirit of God who was carried on the Waters, says that it seems to him that this means that the Waters were accompanied by a vital & effective virtue to produce what God commanded them. These Waters not being a simple Element destined to remain useless & without virtue. This vital virtue that Saint Chrysostom attributes to Water to produce & vivify fish & birds, was not to be a simple quality added to the first & essential condition of this purely passive Element of self. It is not said that he was changed; but that it was accompanied by a vital virtue, which must have been an active substance different from the matter of Water, & designated by the name of spirit, because of its productive & vivifying activity, & which for its excellence is called Spirit of God. Saint Augustine did not make difficulty in writing that this Spirit of God carried on the Waters in the creation of the World, was an invisible creature to which he gives the name of Nature. It is in the Book that he had begun on Genesis, to explain it to the letter, where he says: That by this Spirit of God who was carried on the Waters, one can hear a substance created, moving & vivifying, diffused in all bodies & in all the visible world, which Almighty God endowed with a certain virtue, which made it capable of being used by his orders in the production of things which are by way of generation, cui creaturae vitali Deus omnipotent tribuit vim quandam fibi serviendi, ad operandum in iis, quae gignuntur. These are the very words of this Holy Doctor, who then gives the reason why this invisible creature is called Spirit of God, saying that it is because it excels above all corporeal & visible creatures, & is the workmanship of God, to whom all creatures belong. He adds, as if by repeating what he had said of the condition of this Spirit, that if we hear of the only visible creature what is said, That in the beginning God made Heaven and Earth, we can hear by what is said of this Spirit, who at the beginning of the fabric of the World was borne on the matter of visible things, that this invisible Spirit was also a created substance. Qui spiritus etiam ipse creatura effect, id est, non Deus, sed to Deo facta & instituta Natura. This Holy Doctor, in his retractions, clearly warns that he left this Book imperfect, that is to say that he did not complete it; but he does not retract from what is written there. What the Sacred Scriptures teach of the Principles, which I suppose in this Dissertation, makes me hope that my conjectures fortified with their authority, according to the exposition of these very learned Theologians whom I have just cited, will not pass for vain and ill-founded. that is, he did not complete it; but he does not retract from what is written there. What the Sacred Scriptures teach of the Principles, which I suppose in this Dissertation, makes me hope that my conjectures fortified with their authority, according to the exposition of these very learned Theologians whom I have just cited, will not pass for vain and ill-founded. that is, he did not complete it; but he does not retract from what is written there. What the Sacred Scriptures teach of the Principles, which I suppose in this Dissertation, makes me hope that my conjectures fortified with their authority, according to the exposition of these very learned Theologians whom I have just cited, will not pass for vain and ill-founded.

It is by the assumption of these three Principles that I find it easy to disentangle the reasons for several effects which I observe in the Mixed. And it is even by the knowledge of these constitutive Principles of the natural Mixtes, that it seems to me easy to rise to that of the Creator of these relative substances, & first Author of all their productions. These primitive substances have a relationship to the Mixtes that they constitute, & are for them: they also have a relationship between them, & this relationship is diverse, one being a material subject, like the elementary body; the other of efficient & formal cause, like Nature; & a third serving as a mediator between Nature & the corporeal Element, like the igneous spirit. Thus these three simple and general substances are for each other, and all together for the Mixtes which are composed of them. Now, what is for other than for itself does not have the being of itself; for what has the power to be of itself, being able also to take from itself the conditions of its being, gives itself the best, and it is better to be only for itself. Relative principiating substances, therefore, not being of themselves, must have their relative being from an absolute Principle, which is in itself, of itself, by itself, and for itself alone. This production of the relative principiating substances could not have been by emanation, for the product would have been of the same condition as the producer, and the absolute, making itself relative, would have fallen from the perfection of its being. It is therefore by creation that these relative incipient substances were made, having nothing before from which they could be drawn. Thus from the knowledge of these created Principles we come to that of the Creator, the first and absolute Principle of all beings who subsist in themselves through him.

The Author of the Universe, being very good, very wise, and all-powerful, has done nothing that was not very good. He willed, he knew how & was able to create & make out of nothing the substances which constitute the World, & give them the suitable dispositions for the ends of their destination. And so that the work was perfect, in order to have a worthy relation to the perfection and wisdom of its Author, the nurturing substances must have had their different properties, and each its particular function, to contribute to the constitution of the particular Mixed, which by their diversities and their vicissitudes are the ornament, the beauty and the accomplished perfection of the Universe. This competition could not be done without movement, which always supposes the moving subject and the moving cause; & because the movements which are for determined ends must be suitably ordered, the immediate organic motor had to be directed by a similarly constitutive cause, which knew the ends, & which made the movements regulate, dispose & employ the means to reach them, without any other help, that the Universe had in itself. everything acquired to its perfection, like the finished work of a very wise Author who left nothing defective which had to be immediately assumed by himself. The moving subject is the body, the Motor is the Spirit, & & the director is like the Soul. These three suffice for the constitution of the natural Mixed, without the need for an external cause, than of that which alone could produce these constitutive Principles, and determine their ends before their production; this determination does not depend on the determined subjects, who have not been able themselves to determine the ends of a being that they did not yet have. This first efficient cause, determining the ends of all beings, is like the simple and absolute unity, from which proceeds the novenary number of all the natural Mixts, whose root is the ternary of the principiating and constitutive substances, from which, related to the unity which produced it, results the quaternary which includes the denary of all beings. who could not themselves determine the ends of a being they did not yet have. This first efficient cause, determining the ends of all beings, is like the simple and absolute unity, from which proceeds the novenary number of all the natural Mixts, whose root is the ternary of the principiating and constitutive substances, from which, related to the unity which produced it, results the quaternary which includes the denary of all beings. who could not themselves determine the ends of a being they did not yet have. This first efficient cause, determining the ends of all beings, is like the simple and absolute unity, from which proceeds the novenary number of all the natural Mixts, whose root is the ternary of the principiating and constitutive substances, from which, related to the unity which produced it, results the quaternary which includes the denary of all beings.

If what I have said of Nature in this Dissertation seems to some seems less admissible, I will not insist on trying to persuade them of my conjectures. It is enough for me that those who do not approve of them cannot reasonably draw conclusions contrary to my intention. I do not claim to demonstrate with certainty, but I suppose as probable, that there is in the Mixed, which one calls natural, a directing Principle of the movements which are there for the ends of their specifications, which internal & constitutive Principle does not determine the ends for which it acts; but it may be that he knows them in some way, since he acts properly in their acquisition. If this Guiding Principle acts on its own,

To explain myself more clearly on what I intended to say, supposing in the natural Mixed an internal Principle endowed with some knowledge of their ends, to direct there the movements which it excites in these Mixed, I add the following reasons, and say: In what

1. That the regulated movements, which one observes in the natural Mixed ones, are made for some purpose

2. That the causes which act for some end, act & move, or their own motive, & by the resolution that they have taken of themselves; or by order of another.

3. That the causes which act from their own motive, for whatever end they propose, must be endowed with intelligence, to know the reasons for this end, and the suitable means for its attainment.

4. That the causes which act for some end, by the will and the ordinance of a superior cause, do not need to be intelligent, to determine themselves what is already intelligent by another, and which is not of his choice. It suffices that those who act for the production of a subject of which they are constitutive parts, such as Nature, be endowed with suitable active virtue, that they be touched by the desire for the end which is proposed to them, and that they have some notion of it. Ignoti nulla cupido.

5. That the knowledge which can be attributed to Nature is of two kinds. One infuses, which is called instinct; the other acquired in the Mixed ones animated by some sensation. These two ways of knowing suffice for the acquisition of the end, intelligence not being required for the determination of the end and the means of acquiring it, which determination passes the power of Nature, and belongs only to the first cause which is God.

I therefore do not take Nature for intellectual substance, although it is without corporeity, and endowed with some knowledge, in the manner which I have just explained. The ideas that I suppose to be in it, with the virtue of impressing their characters in the Mixed in order to specify them, are only typical there, and it is in God that they are intellectual. Thus the idea of ​​a Medal is first in the understanding of the Engraver: the type of this intellectual idea passes into the punch. or in the hollow, and the metal receives its character.

I also do not take Nature for the Soul of the World. And I do not think it necessary that the multitude of things, which are found in the Universe, be reduced to unity, by some animation which makes of them a single & great vivified individual, which contains all that is endowed with a particular life, in order to have by this unity a relation to the unity of the first cause. The omnipotence of the Creator cannot be terminated by any multitude: And the Universe can be considered as a Whole composed of an indefinite number of parts, the assembly of which depends on the subordination & the agreement that they have between them, without needing a general Soul, to unite them, & make them serve a single & same life. The Providence of the first cause leads all things to their ends, both particular and general, by the virtue which they immediately received from her. And this conduct of the immediate Providence of God is nobler and better than that of a general Soul, which would depend in some way on the matter of the parts which it would animate, as particular Souls depend on it in the subjects which they animate, in which the errors of the soul, occasioned by corporeal matter, are of less importance, than in the whole animated Universe, where the disorder would be greater. I therefore do not consider Nature as the Soul of the World, not judging that the Universe is a large animal, constituted by the assembly of the same principles, which constitute the particular natural Mixed. If Nature is diffused throughout the mass of the World, it does not follow that it is in the same way as in the animated Mixed. We indeed find some portions of the whole elementary body in the particular natural Mixeds, but we do not observe that the rest of this corporeal matter, which is the greater part of it, has information similar to that which some lesser parts of this great mass have in the animated Mixeds. And Nature, which manifests itself in the particular Mixed, by their arrangements suitably ordered for their ends, does not appear to us to act in the same way in all the matter of the World, which we do not see being organized for animal functions. This divine Spirit, which at the beginning of the fabric of the World was carried on the Waters, to give them fruitfulness, as well as on the Earth,

I have, until now, explained myself sufficiently about what I think of Nature, and I submit what I have said about it to the judgment of those who are more enlightened than me, who know enough about my weakness. Homo sum & huinani nihil to me alienum puto.

If what I also said of the igneous spirit seems less probable to those who take celestial light for a simple bodily quality, I must say something more about it, to strengthen my hypothesis. Only the blind mind can doubt the existence of Light, and it is useless to prove to those who see it that it is a real thing. But it is not so obvious whether it is accident or substance, body or not. If Light is considered a quality, it must have a subject of its own. We observe that the light of the Sun spreads & is received in the diaphanous body of the Air; but it is not inherent in Air, as a quality that informs it. The luminous rays, which pass through a room, and of which a part of the Air, contained in the room, is illuminated at the place of this passage, are not agitated, nor pushed aside, by the movement of this portion of Air that the wind drives out and makes change place, without it preserving this direct illumination, which does not flee it. Thus Air not being the subject of this light, it must subsist in some other, which is proper to it, and which subsists in itself.

This luminous substance has essential properties, some of which are suitable for the corporeal substance, and the others cannot be suitable for it. Those which are appropriate to the body are the extension, which is common to all the bodies, the intention & the remission; which can be called rarefaction & condensation, properly speaking, & which are particularly suited to Air. Those which cannot suit any of the bodies are instantaneous effusion, penetration, indivisibility, and active movement. One cannot doubt the extension of the Light, since we see it starting from the luminous subject & extending very far. Her reflections & her penetrations make you judge that she is pushed, & it is by this impulse that the rays of the Sun prevent the smoke of the fire from coming out through the end of the pipes of the chimneys, & it is driven back into the rooms in the same way as the wind does. This impulse of the rays of the Sun also causes the subtle dust to move, with which the Air is filled, and whose movement is made visible in dark places, where its rays enter through some openings. And it may be that this impulse of the rays of the Sun, which revolves incessantly on its motionless center, is the cause of the circular movement of the Planets around the luminous Star, from which these rays leave spherically, and spread over these dark Globes; whose weightless masses, variously placed in a space where there is nothing that resists their movement,

The rays of the Sun condensed, very luminous & very strong in the Globe of this Star, become rarer the more they extend far, and become weakened by this rarefaction. But if being thus distant from the Star which pushes them, they can be recondensed, they take again a lot of force, as we see it when they are concentrated by the concave mirrors, which make several of them reflect together in the same point; or by convex transparent glasses, which make them concentrate by refraction. If the force of these rays concentrated by the mirrors is such in this distance from its origin, that it melts the less fusible materials, and that it sets fire to those which are inflammable, they must be much more active in the Globe of the Sun, where they are more condensed, from where they leave to spread, & where they are all fire. These solar rays should not be considered as simple straight lines, which are contiguous close to the Sun, and which go away from each other while moving away from this Star. They are always continuous, and suffer no separation or deviation. Their rarefaction is only extensive, like that of Air, from which, however, it differs in that it cannot be forced, because of the incorporeality of its substance, which also causes that its luminous rays, in their condensation, penetrating each other, do not suffer from violence, which constrains them, & obliges them, like compressed Air, to make an effort to expand & recover in their first state. & where they are all fire. These solar rays should not be considered as simple straight lines, which are contiguous close to the Sun, and which go away from each other while moving away from this Star. They are always continuous, and suffer no separation or deviation. Their rarefaction is only extensive, like that of Air, from which, however, it differs in that it cannot be forced, because of the incorporeality of its substance, which also causes that its luminous rays, in their condensation, penetrating each other, do not suffer from violence, which constrains them, & obliges them, like compressed Air, to make an effort to expand & recover in their first state. & where they are all fire. These solar rays should not be considered as simple straight lines, which are contiguous close to the Sun, and which go away from each other while moving away from this Star. They are always continuous, and suffer no separation or deviation. Their rarefaction is only extensive, like that of Air, from which, however, it differs in that it cannot be forced, because of the incorporeality of its substance, which also causes that its luminous rays, in their condensation, penetrating each other, do not suffer from violence, which constrains them, & obliges them, like compressed Air, to make an effort to expand & recover in their first state. These solar rays should not be considered as simple straight lines, which are contiguous close to the Sun, and which go away from each other while moving away from this Star. They are always continuous, and suffer no separation or deviation. Their rarefaction is only extensive, like that of Air, from which, however, it differs in that it cannot be forced, because of the incorporeality of its substance, which also causes that its luminous rays, in their condensation, penetrating each other, do not suffer from violence, which constrains them, & obliges them, like compressed Air, to make an effort to expand & recover in their first state. These solar rays should not be considered as simple straight lines, which are contiguous close to the Sun, and which go away from each other while moving away from this Star. They are always continuous, and suffer no separation or deviation. Their rarefaction is only extensive, like that of Air, from which, however, it differs in that it cannot be forced, because of the incorporeality of its substance, which also causes that its luminous rays, in their condensation, penetrating each other, do not suffer from violence, which constrains them, & obliges them, like compressed Air, to make an effort to expand & recover in their first state. & which go away from each other while moving away from this Star. They are always continuous, and suffer no separation or deviation. Their rarefaction is only extensive, like that of Air, from which, however, it differs in that it cannot be forced, because of the incorporeality of its substance, which also causes that its luminous rays, in their condensation, penetrating each other, do not suffer from violence, which constrains them, & obliges them, like compressed Air, to make an effort to expand & recover in their first state. & which go away from each other while moving away from this Star. They are always continuous, and suffer no separation or deviation. Their rarefaction is only extensive, like that of Air, from which, however, it differs in that it cannot be forced, because of the incorporeality of its substance, which also causes that its luminous rays, in their condensation, penetrating each other, do not suffer from violence, which constrains them, & obliges them, like compressed Air, to make an effort to expand & recover in their first state.

The extended luminous substance, being capable of rarefaction properly so called, and of condensation, therefore has in this relation to corporeal Light; but not being capable of division into parts, which can subsist separate from one another, this indivisibility marks in the Light of incorporeality, as well. what does its penetration do in diaphanous continuous bodies, and its immobility in the diaphanous ones it penetrates, and with which it does not change place, not following the movement of their agitation; because, as I have already said, it is not inherent in it, and these bodies can be deprived of it without any alteration.

This sudden outpouring of Light, which crosses immense spaces in an instant, is yet another proof of its embodiment, for the fastest movement of the most subtle bodies, and of those which are pushed with more impetuosity, always takes place successively and in some time. What could not until now be well observed from the movement of the light of the stars. It is therefore with great reason that I take Light for an intermediate substance between the corporeal and the incorporeal, and that I give it the name of spirit. The effectiveness of that of the Sun, observed in the natural Mixed, can make it pass for one of their constitutive Principles. This heat which it produces in the Terrestrial Globe is manifestly the cause of fertility. It is through it that excited Nature makes productions on the Earth, and gives life to all that is capable of receiving it. The great activity of this solar Light, comparable to that of fire, gave me cause to add the nickname of igneous to the name of spirit which I judged appropriate to this medium substance. Reflection What I have said of the elementary body, which I assume to be the material & subjective Principle of the Natural Mixts, needs no further explanation. Corporeal things are sensible, and the notion of the body is easy and common; without much study one learns that it is an extended, divisible, mobile substance body, and which does not move by itself. These conditions make it passive, and this quality is essential to it. It is through the passivity of the body,

All natural Mixed have corporeality, and it is through them that they are perceptible to our senses. But we also observe in these Mixed things actions which cannot reasonably be attributed to the body, things which being of itself purely passive cannot act of itself. It is therefore necessary that what acts in corporeal things, having activity opposed to the passivity which is essential to the body, must not be body. The active and motor power, the effects of which appear in living animals, is no longer there when they are dead, although in this state of death they still have the corporeity which they had during their life. This power not remaining with the body of the dead animal, makes known that it did not come from him, & it can only be justly attributed to the same active Principle by which the body of the animal was vivified. This active & vivifying Principle is therefore incorporeal; and since activity, which is proper to it, is opposed to passivity, which is the essential and inseparable property of the body, the other qualities which follow passivity are similarly opposed to it, and cannot suit it. The incorporeal is therefore neither extended, nor divisible, nor mobile, since it is not passive of itself, like the corporeal. I say of itself, for as on occasion passive corporeal things can act by means of active incorporeal things, so incorporeal things can leave by their union with corporeal ones. This active & vivifying Principle is therefore incorporeal; and since activity, which is proper to it, is opposed to passivity, which is the essential and inseparable property of the body, the other qualities which follow passivity are similarly opposed to it, and cannot suit it. The incorporeal is therefore neither extended, nor divisible, nor mobile, since it is not passive of itself, like the corporeal. I say of itself, for as on occasion passive corporeal things can act by means of active incorporeal things, so incorporeal things can leave by their union with corporeal ones. This active & vivifying Principle is therefore incorporeal; and since activity, which is proper to it, is opposed to passivity, which is the essential and inseparable property of the body, the other qualities which follow passivity are similarly opposed to it, and cannot suit it. The incorporeal is therefore neither extended, nor divisible, nor mobile, since it is not passive of itself, like the corporeal. I say of itself, for as on occasion passive corporeal things can act by means of active incorporeal things, so incorporeal things can leave by their union with corporeal ones. are equally opposed to it, and cannot suit it. The incorporeal is therefore neither extended, nor divisible, nor mobile, since it is not passive of itself, like the corporeal. I say of itself, for as on occasion passive corporeal things can act by means of active incorporeal things, so incorporeal things can leave by their union with corporeal ones. are equally opposed to it, and cannot suit it. The incorporeal is therefore neither extended, nor divisible, nor mobile, since it is not passive of itself, like the corporeal. I say of itself, for as on occasion passive corporeal things can act by means of active incorporeal things, so incorporeal things can leave by their union with corporeal ones.

If from the consideration of the passive and sensible corporeal one can pass to the knowledge of the active and only intelligible incorporeal, the same corporeal subject can lead our understanding to recognize a first cause, absolutely incorporeal, very active in itself, existing by itself, on which depends everything that is not of itself. The corporeal substances being purely passive of itself, cannot act of itself, and not being able to act of itself, it could not give itself the being that it has. It has received it from an incorporeal cause, which cause is absolute and abstract from all corporeality, and by which was made not only that which is purely corporeal, such as the elementary body of the Mixed; but also what participates in certain bodily qualities, such as the igneous Spirit,

Having thus passed from the consideration of corporeal and sensible things to incorporeal and only intelligible things, I have conceived the idea of ​​a general system of things which subsist in themselves, and which have the name of substance, the first difference of which is taken from corporeity and incorporeality. The corporeal substance is that which is purely passive of itself, and the incorporeal is opposed to it by the activity which is proper to it. The incorporeal, self-active substance is found in two genera; in one of these genres it has a relationship to the body; in the other it has none, and is absolutely and purely incorporeal. The relation of the incorporeal substance of the first kind to the body is of two kinds, one by participation, the other by conjunction alone. The incorporeal substance, which participates in corporeality, by certain qualities which are common to it with the body, such as extension in Light, and some mobility, is that which I call igneous Spirit, and the incorporeal substance, which having none of the corporeal qualities, is related to the body by the sole union which it contracts with it in the natural Mixts, is that to which the name Nature is appropriate. This substance, purely incorporeal of itself, has some participation of intellectuality, which accompanies pure and simple incorporeality; but this intellectuality is weakened in Nature by the corporeity of the Mixed which it informs. It is in God that incorporeity is absolute, intellectuality pure, and substantial perfection accomplished. which partakes of corporeity, by certain qualities which are common to it with the body, such as extension in Light, and some mobility, is that which I call igneous Spirit, and incorporeal substance, which having none of the corporeal qualities, is related to the body by the sole union which it contracts with it in the natural Mixts, is that to which the name Nature is appropriate. This substance, purely incorporeal of itself, has some participation of intellectuality, which accompanies pure and simple incorporeality; but this intellectuality is weakened in Nature by the corporeity of the Mixed which it informs. It is in God that incorporeity is absolute, intellectuality pure, and substantial perfection accomplished. which partakes of corporeity, by certain qualities which are common to it with the body, such as extension in Light, and some mobility, is that which I call igneous Spirit, and incorporeal substance, which having none of the corporeal qualities, is related to the body by the sole union which it contracts with it in the natural Mixts, is that to which the name Nature is appropriate. This substance, purely incorporeal of itself, has some participation of intellectuality, which accompanies pure and simple incorporeality; but this intellectuality is weakened in Nature by the corporeity of the Mixed which it informs. It is in God that incorporeity is absolute, intellectuality pure, and substantial perfection accomplished. by certain qualities which are common to it with the body, such as extension in the Light, and some mobility, is that which I call igneous Spirit, and the incorporeal substance, which having none of the corporeal qualities, is related to the body by the sole union which it contracts with it in the natural Mixts, is that to which the name Nature is appropriate. This substance, purely incorporeal of itself, has some participation of intellectuality, which accompanies pure and simple incorporeality; but this intellectuality is weakened in Nature by the corporeity of the Mixed which it informs. It is in God that incorporeity is absolute, intellectuality pure, and substantial perfection accomplished. by certain qualities which are common to it with the body, such as extension in the Light, and some mobility, is that which I call igneous Spirit, and the incorporeal substance, which having none of the corporeal qualities, is related to the body by the sole union which it contracts with it in the natural Mixts, is that to which the name Nature is appropriate. This substance, purely incorporeal of itself, has some participation of intellectuality, which accompanies pure and simple incorporeality; but this intellectuality is weakened in Nature by the corporeity of the Mixed which it informs. It is in God that incorporeity is absolute, intellectuality pure, and substantial perfection accomplished. is that which I call igneous Spirit, and the incorporeal substance, which having none of the corporeal qualities, is related to the body by the sole union which it contracts with it in the natural Mixts, is that to which the name Nature is appropriate. This substance, purely incorporeal of itself, has some participation of intellectuality, which accompanies pure and simple incorporeality; but this intellectuality is weakened in Nature by the corporeity of the Mixed which it informs. It is in God that incorporeity is absolute, intellectuality pure, and substantial perfection accomplished. is that which I call igneous Spirit, and the incorporeal substance, which having none of the corporeal qualities, is related to the body by the sole union which it contracts with it in the natural Mixts, is that to which the name Nature is appropriate. This substance, purely incorporeal of itself, has some participation of intellectuality, which accompanies pure and simple incorporeality; but this intellectuality is weakened in Nature by the corporeity of the Mixed which it informs. It is in God that incorporeity is absolute, intellectuality pure, and substantial perfection accomplished. is she to whom the name Nature suits. This substance, purely incorporeal of itself, has some participation of intellectuality, which accompanies pure and simple incorporeality; but this intellectuality is weakened in Nature by the corporeity of the Mixed which it informs. It is in God that incorporeity is absolute, intellectuality pure, and substantial perfection accomplished. is she to whom the name Nature suits. This substance, purely incorporeal of itself, has some participation of intellectuality, which accompanies pure and simple incorporeality; but this intellectuality is weakened in Nature by the corporeity of the Mixed which it informs. It is in God that incorporeity is absolute, intellectuality pure, and substantial perfection accomplished.