§ 16
Until comparatively recent times, until, in fact, the full dawn of
modern science, the tides ranked amongst the greatest of nature's
mysteries. And, indeed, what agency could be invoked to explain this
mysteriously regular flux and reflux of the waters of the ocean? It is
not surprising that that steady, rhythmical rise and fall suggested to
some imaginative minds the breathing of a mighty animal. And even when
man first became aware of the fact that this regular movement was
somehow associated with the moon, was he much nearer an explanation?
What bond could exist between the movements of that distant world and
the diurnal variation of the waters of the earth? It is reported that an
ancient astronomer, despairing of ever resolving the mystery, drowned
himself in the sea.