Archimedes Texts

247
no such thing in the world; but that the
generality of the Plenists, (especially till
of late yeares some of them grew more
wary) did not take a Vacuum in so strict
a Sense, may appear by the Experiments
formerly, and ev'n to this Day imploy'd
by the Deniers of a Vacuum, to prove it
impossible that there can be any made.
For when they alleadge (for Instance)
that when a man sucks Water through a
long Pipe, that heavy Liquor, contrary
to its Nature, ascends into the Sucker's
mouth, only, to fill up that room made
by the Dilatation of his Brest and
Lungs, which otherwise will in part be
empty. And when they tell us, that the
reason why if a long Pipe exactly
clos'd at one end be fill'd top-ful
of Water, and then inverted, no Liquor
will fall out of the open Orifice; Or, to
use a more familiar Example, when they
teach, that the cause why in a Gardiner's
watering Pot shap'd conically, or like a
Sugar-Loaf fill'd with Water, no Liquor
fals down through the numerous holes
at the bottome, whilst the Gardiner keeps
his Thumb upon the Orifice of the litle
hole at the top, and no longer, must be
that it in the case proposed the Water