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# Title: An Essay Concerning Humane Understanding (shelfmarks Leibn. Marg. 38; ZEN Leibn. Marg. 38)
# Folio 139, page id 778263916:0155
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Our Ideas of Substances.
real Consticutions and Differences depend, we are fain to malse ule of theit
secondary Qualities, 25 the characteriltical Notes and Martis, Whrereby t0
frame Ldeas of them in our Mlinds, and distinguis them one from another.
AII erhich secondary Oualities, as has been eun, are noching bur bare
Porers. For theColour and Paste ot Opium, are, a5 vellas its loporifickE or
anodrn Virtues, meer Pouers dependins on is primary dualities, Whercby
it is tirted to produce different Opcrations, on ditterent parts of our Bodies.
The Tdcas that make our complex ones of corporeal Substances, are ot these
three (OrES. First, The Ideas oF the primary Oualities oF thines, Wrhich
are discovered by our Senles, and are in them even when me perceive
them noc, suchare ehe Pulk, Figure, Number, Situation, and Morion
oF the Pares oF Bodies, Which arc realls in them, Whether we perceire
chem orno. Secondly, The sensible secondary Onalicies, Which depend.
ins on thele, are nothins but the Porvers, chole Substances havero produco
several Ideas in us by our senses; Wrhichi Ldeas are nor in thethinss them-
selves, otherrile thanas any ching is in its Cause. Thirdly. The aptnels
Wre consider in ans substance, to sire or receire such alterations ot primary
Oualities, as that the Subltance (o altered, Mould produce in us differene
Ideas trom rhat it did betore. chese are called actire and pastive Porers: aiI
Which POrerS, as Far as Wre have any Notice or Notion ofthem, terminare
ouly in sen lible simple Ideas; For wrhaterer alteration a Load. Cone has the
Pover to malce in the minute Particles of Tron, re Bould have noNorion
Ol any Porer it had at all to opcrate on tron, did not its sensible Motion
discover it; and I doubr noc bur there are a thouland Changes, that Bodies
We dails handle, have a Porver to cause in onc another, which enever su-
spect, Decause ther never appear in sentible eAects.
6. 10. Povers theretore, justl mate a great part of our complex Ideas of
Substances. Tle, thac will examine his complex Idea oF Cold, Will And leve.
ral oFits Ideas, that makie it up, to be onlr Povers, as the Pover ot beine
melted, buc of lcepins its weighe in the Pire, of beins distolved in 49.
Recia, are Ideas, as necellary to male up our complex Laca ot Crold, a5
its Colour and Weight; Whicl is duly considered, are allo noching but
difterent Porers. For to speal truly, Vellornessis not actuallr in Grold;
but is a Pover in Grold, to vroduce thac Ldea in us by our Fres, irhen pla-
ced in a due Lighe; and the Hlcat, which re cannor lcave ouc otour Idea
Ofthe sun, is no more realls in the sun, than the irhrite Colour it intro-
duces in Wax. Thescare both equally Povers in the sun, operatins by
theMorion, and Figure et its insensible Parts; P0 on a Man, as to malie
tim lrave the Idea oF Hear; and (o on Wax, as eo malse it capable t0
produce in 2 Nan the Idea OF Whicc.
S. TF. Flad We senses acure enough to discern the minure particles of
Bodies, and the real Constitution on erhich cheir sensible Qualities depend,
I doube not but cher rould produce quire ditterent Ideas in us; and that
erhich is nor etie rellor Colour ot Crold, vould then dilappear, and in-
Atead oF it ve sould sec an adrmirable P’exture oF parts. oF a certain Size
and Figure. This Microscores plainly diseover to uS; For What tO Oux
nated Liyes produces a certain Colour, is by chus ausmentins the acute.
nels otour senses, discovered to be quite a different ching; and the thus
alterins, as it ere, the proporrion ot the Bulk of theminure parts of a co-
loured Objeet to our ulual Sishue, produces dicterent ideas trom wtrat it
did besore. Thus Sand, or Dounded Clals, Whichis opaque; and wrhite
to the naked Fre, is Dellucid in a Microscope; and a Flair seen this Way,
looles its former Colour, and is in a great mersure pellucid, ith a mixture
ot some brislut spartilins Colours, tuch as appear trom the retraction oF
Diamonds.
Chap. XZTII.