A History of Hindu Chemistry from the Earliest Times to the Middle of the Sixteenth Century A.D. v1.c10.t7.5

v1.c10.t7.5

“The first compound consists of two atoms: for one does not enter into composition; and there is no argument to prove, that more than two must, for incohation, be united. The next consists of three double atoms; for, if only two were conjoined, magnitude would hardly ensue since it must be produced either by size or a number of patircles: it cannot be their size and, therefore, it must be their number. Nor is there any reason for assuming the union of four double atoms, since three suffice to originate magnitude. The atom then is reckoned to be the sixth part of a mote visible in a sunbeam.