1788.

PART THE SECOND.
Containing as near a Body can guess,

Eight Leaves of Inftruction; however not lefs.

Golden Number 3.--Epact 2?.

T

Of ECLIPSES.

HE Word Eclipfe in English is derived from the Latin Word Eclipfis, which again comes from the Greek Word Exλeis, which again moft likely was derived from fome Hebrew Root or other, fignifying what the Latins call Defectus Lucis, or in plain English a defect of Light: For you must underftand (Gentle Reader) that the Linguifts in all Ages have been mightily addicted, when they wanted a Word, to borrow it out of the Language of the Ancients; and then, after having been in full poffeffion of it for a Century or two, to fwear by the Blood of their Bodies it was their own: Though in taking the original Senfe along with it they are not fo culpable; for Inftance, the Word Dunce was taken from DUNS SCOTUS, a Man particularly eminent for his great Learning, deep Penetration, and Subtilty in Argument, infomuch that he generally went by the Name of the Subtle Do&or. This Man dyingas moft Biographers are of Opinion it was that which ftop'd his Tongue This Man dying, I fay, thofe of his Succeffors who approached the neareft to him in profound Learning and deep Penetration went by the Name of DUNS. In Process of Time it was used by way of Irony (a Figure in Rhetoric) for a Perfon whose Intellects were defective, or according to the more modern Way of speaking, had but a very indifferent Knowledge Box; fuch a one went by the Name of Duns, Anglice DUNCE, till at laft the original Signification was quite forgotten, and the Word DUNCE at this Day means neither more nor less than a downright Blockhead.

As to the Alteration of the Spelling, nothing ever was more common, as will appear to any who will be at the Trouble of reading all our Authors from the Days of ancient Chaucer to the polite Age in which we now live. We have a notable Inftance of this in the Authour of the Draper's Letters, who derives his Genealogy from King Pepin; fome of the Branches of that royal Family in the next Age bore the Name of Pippin ; and fo in a Course of rolling Ages and circling Years, the royal: and original Name changed from PEPIN to DRAPER in Manner following:

The first Alteration was from Pepin to Pippin; the next was from Pippin to Pippikin; again from Pippikin to Nippikin; then from Nippikin to Napkin; laftly, from Napkin to Diaper; and from Diaper to Draper.

Another Caufe of Alteration in the Spelling I take to be this; that is borrowing Words from other Languages (which

bye

bye-the-bye were never defigned to be paid again) at one and the fame Time to fuit it to the Idiom of the Language it was lent to, and to fecure it for their own when they had it, it has ever been thought advifeable to lop off a Letter or two at the End of a Word, while Multiplication, Divifion, Confecration, Communion, Salvation, Damnation, cum multis aliis, ending in i, o, n, are Anglicis'd by the Addition of a Letter ; whereas take away the Letter n, and the Latins would fwear these Words and Hundreds more were all their own, in spite of an Englishman's Teeth.

On the other Hand, while thefe are anglicis'd by Augmensation, many others are made pure English by Contraction'; thus, for Inftance, Sepulchrum fignifies a Sepulchre ; Monu mentum, a Monument; Juftus, Juft; Unitas, Unity; Perfona, a Perfon; Coralium, a Coral; Tempeftus, a Tempeft; with many a Score of other Words that I could quote, and which are by this Means fecured to the English Language, which else would flee away to their original Source, and not leave a fufficient Quantity (Gentle Reader) for our two learned Heads to communicate their Sentiments by.

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But although, as I have already obferved, that they are not always ftrict to the original Senfe, an Inftance of which I gave in the Word DUNCE, and which I shali further prove in the Word Aftrologer, which is derived from the Latin Word Afrologus, which came from the Greek Word Argony, which formerly fignified a Man fapient in Futurity, by his wonderful Knowledge derived from Planetary Afpects: This fame Word I fay is at this Time in the Language of plain Senfe, which (by the Way) is the beft Language a Man can speak, if he has but a Head to hit upon it, no more than to call a Man a ftupid Fool, or an idle, ignorant, loggerheaded Jack-Afs.

However, the Word Eclipfe, Eclipfis, alias Exλ, has apparently all along kept to its original Meaning, viz. an Obfcuration, either partial or total, of fomewhat, which otherwife would have fhone in its native Luftre. Thus the Moon interpofing betwixt the Sun and the Earth, hides, or in other Words, eclipfes all or Part of that great Luminary: The Earth, on the other Hand, intervening between the Sun and the Moon, by how much fhe takes off the Sun's Rays, by fo much alfo is that beautiful Object hid from our View. The Cale is the fame with Nelly and Roger, when Nelly hides Part of the Charms of a beautiful Face, by eclipfing it with a Patch, Roger, by Way of Revenge, forms another Eclipse by Means of a Pair of Buck-fkin Breeches.

Having in the preceding grammatical, logical, ecliptical Difcourfe fhewn my profound Learning, and given to the Reader the moft deep Information, to the great Satisfaction (I doubt not) of us both, I proceed to illustrate the grand Phenomena of Eclipfes yet further, and make my numerous modeft and ingenious Cuftomers (I mean the Ladies) truly and exactly to comprehend the fame; I would chufe to follow the Steps of my late learned and ingenious Friend Mr. B. Martin, Publisher of the Gentlemen and Ladies Philofophy, who, by his familiar Precepts, added to his beautiful Quotations from that much admired Author, and great Enemy to Bombaft the renowned Sir Richard Blackmore, had rendered Natural Philofophy, for all the World like a gilded Clofeftool, doubly Valuable, both for its Beauty and its Ufe. But my Latin Poets being along with the English ones, and the English ones at the Pawnbrokers; at the fame Time having neither Lunariums, Cometariums, nor Planetariums to elucidate the Matter, I have fix'd upon another Method, which I eall a Walk ing Orrery, and which, I hope, will anfwer the End full as well as any or all of them put together: So, in imitation of the ingenious Gentleman above-mentioned, I begin my Philofophy thus i

Black is the Sky, and Sable is the Ground,
And Clouds and Darkness hover all around.

Come, my dear Euprofyne, this dark Night and this filent Hour
invite us to the Study of Philofophy - Come, follow me to the
Back-Yard without Difmay; for in Order to hinder your de
licate Foot from running o'er the Coal-Heap, to the great De-
triment of your beautiful Leg, I have laid my laft Coal upon
the Fire Half an Hour ago.-I will now explain to that curious
Enquirer, your fagacious Soul, the true Caufe of the Eclipfes
of both or either of the Luminaries.-You fee here, Madam,
in the Middle of the Yard I fix a Broomftaff into the Ground
in a perpendicular Pofture-Then turning to my dear Lady, I
fay thus; Go, thou dear Partner of all my Midnight Lucubra-
tions and Tranfactions, fetch me that End of a Farthing Can-
dle ready lighted; he brings it. Now you fee, Madam, with
a Bit of Shoemaker's Wax I faften the Candie-End upon the
Top of the Broomftaff

'Tis done! thus I've accomplish'd my Defigns;

There fticks the Broomftaff, there the Candle fhines.

Now full of this grand Defign, and the wonderful and demoni arative Effects it is to produce, I stand awhile amazed at my own Contrivance, and, in the fullness of my Heart, cannot help inwardly foliloquizing thus;

Ghoft

Ghost of my departed Father, what a damnable long Way thy Son is off from being a Fool?

But the Confideration of the Smallnefs of my Candle-End awakes me from my Reverie, and I proceed as follows:This Candle, Madam, you must conceive to be that glorious Luminary the Sun,

Who fhining here in his refplendent Robe,

Packs off the Night to th' other Side the Globe.

Now while I am walking round this beautiful Sun of mine, do you frisk it with your wonted Gaiety round me, in fuch Sort that you may make thirty Revolutions while I am making one. Now, Madam, by Analogy, my Head, being thick and heavy, very naturally reprefents that ponderous Mafs of Matter the Earth; while, by the fame logical Reafoning, yours being a pretty little light one, and fubject to much Variation, will exactly figure out the Moon.-Now we run our Celestial Round. Stop!-Now you are between me and the Sun, and your light Head fhadows Part of my heavy one; take it a little nearer the Candle.-Now you fee, Madam, your Head quite over-fhadows mine.-Now this you may fuppofe is to you an Eclipfe of the Earth, while to an Inhabitant on my Head, a Loufe for Inftance, it will appear an Eclipfe of the Sun.Please, Madam, to form another Half Circle -I do.-Hold up your Head ;-Now you fee mine only fhades your Chin.Hold it rather down-Now it shades your Forehead.-Draw a little nearer me-Now you fee that my great, thick, clumfy Skull quite over-fhadows your pretty little light one.-Now this figures out to you an Eclipfe of the Sun, and to me an Eclipfe of the Moon; and, in both Cafes, the one is partial, the other total.

I understand it very clearly, fays Euprofyne.-But pray, while I reprefent the Moon, what inclines me to creep nearer you at one Time than another -It is, replied I, Attraction and Gravitation. And pray how many Eclipfes have we this Year?-Only two, Madam; both of the Sun; but both invifible to us. The firft begins on the Fourth of June, at about half paft Seven in the Mornings the other on the Twentyfeventh of November, about fix in the Evening.

I was wifhed by feveral Sons of Urania to prolong this Lecture, but I pofitively refused it; right wifely alledging, that four Pages upon two Eclipfes (and both of them invisible) were abfolutely fufficient.

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