361

Aug. 7. 1679.

mr. Henshaw the vice Prest. tooke the chair

The minutes of the Last of Iuly were read, wherevpon there was a fur
ther Discourse about Persons short sighted, and of the ways of Vision
from the assertion of mr Hooke that A man vsed to see things always inuerted would
in time judge he saw them as they are. Dr. Croon queryd whence it should
come that the conception should Imagine that object erect which is repre
sented at the bottom of the Eye Inuerted. Dr. Grew supposed it might proceed
from the Derussating of the optick nerues. which might cause a 2d Inuersion
mr. Hooke supposd that could not be the cause since twas not generall in all creatures
and . . . he conceiued the inuersion of the opticque nerue was in none obseruable
He conceiued Rather that it proceeded from the comparison, made by the minds or
making comparison of the sensation by the eye wth. the sensation made by
the touch. Or rather that tis an Idea or the Rule of sight implanted in
the soule by nature.
mr. Henshaw mentiond the explanation giuen of it by Descartes who com
pares the sight to the feeling of an object by the medium of a staff
mr. Hill mentiond that A maid that was blind from her Infancy and neuer
saw any thing till mr Stepkins cured her, vpon the first recouering
of her sight shee lookd on the sun, and thought shee could haue reacht
it, whence it was Inferrd that the mind Iudged of Distances
partly by circumstances.
mr Henshaw obserued that the sun in norway did very often Rise
& set of an ouall figure . mr. Hooke affirmed that it was here soe
also for the most part which was caused by the Refraction or rather Inflectio
of the air as he had Elswhere shewn.
Sr. I Hoskins obserud that Looking at the sun or starrs through a small
hole made in paper made them appear Lesse then to the naked eye
Dr. Croon Gaue the Reason of the suns appearing bigger neer the horizon from
the Dilating of the pupull for according as the pupill was dilated the object
appeard biger of Lesse
mr. Hooke affirmed that if you look through a hole 100 times Lesse then
the pupill the object will appear the same that it does to the naked
eye. when it sees it Distinctly but in objects too strong for the eye it
helps the eye by debilitating the rayes which otherwise make a fals represen
tation.
mr. Henshaw was of opinion that the refraction of the air might
cause the sun to appear bigger. and that the vapours also might aug
ment it. Dr. Croon also was of the same opinion that the vapours
might augment it rather than the Refraction, because the air consist
of Parts very differing from the aether. In fauour of wt. mr Henshaw
conjecturd Sr. Iohn Hoskins affirmed that at noon Day the sun -
would appear much bigger when seen through a very thick fogg
which fogg he conjecture was nothing els but an infinite of exceeding small drops

Ref: CELL/RS/HF_363  © Centre for Editing Lives and Letters