Now nothing
would be necessary but to place these two objects with so much
exactness, that the westerly limb of the sun, at setting, might but
just clear the winter heliotrope to the west of it on the shortest day;
and that the whole disc of the sun, at the longest day, might exactly
at setting also clear the summer heliotrope to the north of it.
By this simple expedient it would soon appear that there is no such
thing, strictly speaking, as a solstice; for, from the shortest day, the
owner would, every clear evening, see the disc advancing, at its
setting, to the westward of the object; and, from the longest day,
observe the sun retiring backwards every evening at its setting,
towards the object westward, till, in a few nights, it would set quite
behind it, and so by degrees to the west of it: for when the sun
comes near the summer solstice, the whole disc of it would at first
set behind the object: after a time the northern limb would first
appear, and so every night gradually more, till at length the whole
diameter would set north of it for about three nights; but on the
middle night of the three, sensibly more remote than the former or
following.
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