122

(4)

mr. Oliuer Hill thought that it was ^/going/ very much about, to begin wth
Experiments and End wth. Theory, and affirmed that he had vpon wt
had passed the last Day made seuerall animaduersions whereby
he had from a theory of wch. he was master of the nature of the
air and /of/ mercury and from principles of his own Inuention plaine
ly shewd the reason of all the Experiments that had been shewn /exhibited/
and Discoursd that Day, and not why things happend soe and not
otherwise and that by had his said theory he could not only Explain
those there exhibited/produced/ but all others whatsoeuer of that kind
as particularly those about pep the animalls in pepper water
and the Experiments of the water poises and that if the Society
thought fit he would the next Day there produce/bring in & read/ his said Animad
Versions and theorys. which the President /desired/ gaue him leaue to
doe although he was acquainted that the ^/method &/ Busnesse of this Society was
very much Differing from those he had propounded, and It being
their aim rather to be Directed by the operations of nature Duly obserud
then by Theorys not /built vpon/built vpon a sufficient.. . . ^/& vnquestionable foundation/ of such obseruations
and experiments

mr. Hooke then shewd the Experiments appointed for this Day and that
was a further Improuement of the /single/ microscopes by wch. wth. a
those little creatures were Exhibited much more magnifyd
and very much plainer though to some persons they seemd
not soe plaine. the reason of wch. was to be ascribed to some
otherwise imperceptible Defects of the Eyes -

The same also shewd his second Experiment of a waterpoise whereby
the Specifique difference of the Specifick grauity of Liquors was
manifested by the sinking of the neck of a poise into the fluid like ex
amined instead of not at all making vse of Scales as in the former
experiments. And the nicenessand curiosity of this Instrument was shewn
to proceed from the very great Difference between the bulk of the poise vnder
the fluid And the smalnesse of the sensible part of the neck wch. was
sinking, wch might be made as 1000 or 10000 or 100000. to one and
consequently that the Differ/e/nce or alteration of the specifique grauity

Ref: CELL/RS/HF_124  © Centre for Editing Lives and Letters