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2For an object under the eye will appear very different from the same object placed above it; in an inclosed space, very different from the same in an open space. In all these matters it requires great judgment to adopt the proper means, since the eye does not always form to itself the true image of an object, and the mind is often deceived by the false impression. Thus in painted scenery, though the surface is a perfect plane, the columns seem to advance forward, the projections of the mutuli are represented, and figures seem to stand out. The oars of ships, also, though the parts immersed in the water are really straight, have the appearance of being broken; those parts only appearing straight which are above the level of the water. This arises from the part immersed in the water reflecting its image in an undulating state up to the surface of the water, through a transparent medium, which, being there agitated, gives the oar a broken appearance.
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