Voltaire (1694-1778)
Letters Concerning the English Nation.

London: Printed [by William Bowyer] for C. Davis & A. Lyon, 1733.

First edition, octavo, translated by John Lockman, A-S8, printed on heavy paper, a clean copy bound in modern half leather, 7 3/4 x 4 3/4 in.

In this far-reaching series of essays, Voltaire recounts the famous anecdote of Sir Isaac Newton's moment of inspiration. "[A]s he was walking one day in his garden, he saw some fruits fall from a tree, [and] fell into a profound meditation on that gravity. [...] Why may not this power which causes heavy bodies to descend, [...] why may not this power extend as high as the moon?"

Sabin 100751; Maslen & Lancaster, Bowyer Ledgers, 1958; ESTC T137614; Babson 242; Walls 424.