Bodies potentially cold. Spirit, by Condensation of Vapours into Water within the Earth, whence Springs frequently arife; and other Examples of this Kind. 322. But befides thofe Things which are cold to the Touch, there are certain others potentially cold; which alfo condense: tho' they seem to operate only upon Animal Bodies, and scarce upon others. And of this Kind are many Things in Medicine; for fome Remedies condense the Flesh and tangible Parts, fuch as Aftringents and Thickners; and others condenfe the Spirits, as appears chiefly in Narcoticks ". Two Ways of 323. There are two Ways of condenfing the Spirits by foporiferous condenfing the Medicines; the one, by appeafing the Motion of the Spirits; and the other by difpelling, or putting them to Flight. Thus Violets, Rofes, Lettuces, and the like mild and gentle Things, by their friendly and moderately cooling Vapours, invite the Spirits to unite, and reftrain their brisk and restlefs Motion; but the ftronger Opiates, by a malignant and unfriendly Quality, put the Spirits to flight; and therefore, if these are applied externally, the Spirits prefently retire from the Part; and willingly enter into it no longer but if taken internally, their Fumes afcending to the Head, every way chafe away the Spirits, contained in the Ventricles of the Brain and when the Spirits thus retreat, and are unable to fly into any other Part, they confequently come together, and are thus condenfed; or, fometimes quite extinguifh'd, or fuffocated: tho' the fame Opiates taken in Moderation, have the Virtue, by a fecondary Accident, (or by that Condenfation, which fucceeds upon the coming together of the Spirits) of fupporting, and fortifying the Spirits, and checking their useless and incentive Motions; whence fuch Opiates become of good Service in the Cure of Difeafes, and the prolonging of Life. The Preparatives to Cold. The Ways without Cold, 324. The Preparations of Bodies, likewife, for the Admiffion or Reception of Cold, cannot be omitted. Thus it is thought that a little warming of Water, haftens its freezing by Cold, more than if the Water was not warmed at all. And the Inftances of this Kind are to be collected ". 325. But as Nature fupplies Cold fo fparingly, we fhould here imiof Condensing, tate the Apothecaries, (who when a Simple cannot be procured, fubftito be enquired tute one thing for another) and carefully fearch out the Substitutes or Succedaneums for Cold; that is, we fhould enquire how Condensations may be made in Bodies, without Cold, whofe proper Office it is to effect them. after. Are of four 326. And thefe Condensations feem to be of four Kinds; the first whereof depends upon bare Contrufion; which because of the Refiftance, or Recoiling of Bodies, has but little Force in caufing a permanent Denfity; tho' it may do fomewhat as an Auxiliary. The fecond is made by the Contration of the groffer Parts of a Body, after the Avolation, or Exit, of 3 See the History of Life and Death, Vol. III. p. 376. * See the Hiftory of Life and Death, paffim. See Mr. Boyle's History of Cold. the the finer; as happens in Indurations by the Fire, and the repeated quenching of Metals, &c. The third is made by the Approach, or coming together, of the more folid, or ponderous, homogeneous Parts of a Body, which before were feparated and mixed among the lefs folid; as in recovering the Quickfilver from Mercury-Sublimate, which in Powder poffeffes much more Space than fimple Mercury and fo again, in purging and feparating of Metals from their Drofs. The fourth is made by Confent, or applying fuch Things as condenfe by a fecret Virtue in Bodies; tho' thefe Confents have hitherto feldom appeared; which is no wonder, because till fome Progrefs is made in the Discovery of the Forms and Structures of Things, there can be but flender Hopes of Advantage arifing from the Enquiry into the Confents of Bodies". 327. But with regard to the Bodies of Animals, there are doubtless Condensation many Remedies, both internal and external, which condenfe, as it were by Confent in. by Confent; according to what was juft now obferved: but this Kind of Animals.. Operation is rare in inanimate Bodies. There goes a Report, as well in Writing as Difcourfe, of a Tree in one of the Tercera Islands, that perpetually diftils Water, fo as to be of fome Convenience to the Inhabitants and Paracelfus fays, there is a Plant called Rofa Solis, or Ros Solis, that remains full of Dew in the Noon-day Heat; when all other Herbs are dry. And if these Inftances are true, they might prove of noble Ufe, and very worthy of farther Examination. But for thofe Honey-Dews, which, like Manna, are found upon Oak-Leaves in the Month of May; we judge they are not made, or condenfed, by any Confent, or Peculiarity in the Oak-Leaf; but that they fall upon other Leaves alfo, and are only catched and detained upon the Leaves of the Oak, because these are clofer, and not fo fpongy as most other Leaves a. 328. As to Heat, Men have a large Supply, and a great Command The Ufes to be thereof; tho' fome of its moft neceffary Particulars ftill remain to be made of Heat: obferved, and enquired into, notwithstanding the Boafts of the Chemists. For tho' the Works of intenfe Heat are much fought after and admired; yet the Effects of a flow Heat, (which are chiefly those produced by Nature,) remain unexperienced and concealed. Hence we fee, by the The gentle violent Heats now commonly used, the Spirits of Bodies are greatly ex- Heats recomalted; as in mineral acid Spirits, and certain chemical Oils; but the tangible Parts are harden'd, and fometimes fixed; with the Lofs of the volatile ones. And thus the homogeneous Parts are feparated, and the heterogeneous grofsly incorporated and mix'd together; whilft the Structure, and more fubtile Texture of compound Bodies, is, by this means, confounded and deftroy'd: fo that the Effects of a milder Heat ought, by mended. 2 Becaufe fuch Confents, or particular Agreements, depend thereon. See below, §. 335 a See the Hiftory of Condenfation and Rarifaction, paffim. b. See Vol. III. p. 563. See alfo Dr. Sprat's Hiftory of the Royal Society. See the Sylva Sylvarum, Vol. III. p. 260. See the Sylta Sylvarum, p. 261. Art operates quicker than Nature. Heat to be tried. by all means, to be try'd and discover'd: whence much more fubtile Mixtures, and regular Textures, or Structures of Bodies, might be procured in Imitation of Nature, and the Works of the Sun; according to what we intimated above. For the Operations of Nature are perform'd by much flower Degrees, or much fmaller Steps and Portions at a time, and by more exquifite and various Pofitions, or Arrangements, than the Works of Fire, as it is now employ'd. And 'tis then that the human Power may seem truly enlarged, when, by Heats and artificial Ways, the Works of Nature may be exactly imitated, or exprefs'd in Appearance, perfected in Virtue, and varied in Number; to which we may alfo add, accelerated in Time f. Thus the Ruft of Iron is a long while in making; but expeditiously obtained in the artificial Crocus Martis. And the fame is to be understood of Verdigreafe and Cerufe. Crystal is produced by a long Procefs; but Glafs by a fhort one: Stones grow flow; but Bricks are presently made. The feveral 329. And all the Diversities of Heat, with their different Effects, are, Diversities of with Diligence and Induftry, to be fought out and collected from all Quarters; viz. (1.) thofe of the heavenly Bodies, by their direct Rays; and as they are reflected, refracted, and united by Burning-Glaffes : (2.) thofe of Lightning, Flame, and Coal-Fires: (3.) Fires of different Materials (4.) open Fires, clofe Fires, ftraiten'd and streaming Fires; or Fires modified by all the various Structures of Furnaces: (5.) Fire animated by the Blaft: (6.) Fire left to itfelf, and unexcited: (7.) Fire removed to a greater or lefs Distance: (8.) Fire acting thro' different Mediums (9.) moist Heats, as those of the Balneum Maria, and the Dunghill; external and internal animal Heats; comprefs'd Hay, &c: (10.) dry Heats; as of Ashes, Lime, Sand; and, in fhort, Heats of all Kinds, with their various Degrees ". Small, irregu- mended. 330. Above all, the Enquiry and Discovery of the Effects and Productions of Heat, continued and remitted gradually, regularly, and periodically, at due Distances, and with due Continuance, fhould be attempted for this ftated Inequality is a true Offspring of the Heavens, and the Mother of Generation. Nor is any thing extremely great and commanding to be expected from a vehement, hafty, and fubfultory Heat. This appears plainly in Vegetables; and again in the Wombs of Animals, where there is a great Inequality of Heat, from the Motion, the Sleep, the Food, and the Paffions of the Female in Geftation: and, laftly, the fame Inequality takes Place in the Matrices of the Earth, where Metals and Minerals are formed. • See Aph. 35. See the Sylva Sylvarum, Vol. III. p. 32. 331. This See the Experiments made, with the Duke of Orleans's Burning Lens, by M Homberg; Memoir. de l'Acad. Roy. An. 1702. See alfo the Philofophical Tranfactions, and German Epbemerides, to the fame Purpose. h See the Author's New Atlantis, Vol. I. p. 295. See alfo the Sylva Sylvarum, Vol. III. p. 92-96. fant Heat. 331. This renders the Unfkilfulness of fome modern Alchemifts the The Inadvermore remarkable; who expect to obtain their End by means of an Athanor, tence of the or the equable Heats of Lamps, &c. kept burning, in one conftant man- Alchemists, in ner. And fo much, at prefent, for the Works and Effects of Heat, "ing a conNor is it yet the Seafon to examine thefe Particulars thoroughly, before the Forms and Textures of Bodies fhall have been farther difcovered and brought to Light: for 'tis then that Inftruments are to be fought out, applied, and adapted; when the Examples, Views and Defigns are fixed and determined. Practice; viz. 332. The fourth Means of Practice, viz. Continuance, is the Provider The fourth and Difpenfer of Nature. We call that Continuance, when a Body is left Means of for a confiderable Time to itself, guarded and defended from all external Force; in which State the inteftine Motions difcover, and finish, or perfect their own Courfe; whilft the extraneous and adventitious Motions are excluded: for the Works of Time are much more fubtile, than the Works of Fire. Wine can no way be fo well clarified by the Fire, as by Time; nor are the Incinerations made by Fire fo exquifite as the Refolutions, Confumptions, and Decays of Time. The fudden and precipitate Incorporations and Mixtures made by Fire, are far inferior to thofe made by Time. And the different and various Textures, which Bodies endeavour at by Continuance, as in the Cafe of Putrefactions, are deftroy'd by Fire, or a violent Heat'. lence. 333. It may be here proper to obferve, that the Motions of Bodies The Motions of perfectly included, or clofe confined in Veffels, fuffer fomething of Vio- confined Bodies lence; as this Imprifonment hinders the fpontaneous Motions of the Juffer VioBody and therefore Continuance in an open Veffel, conduces more to Separation; but in a Veffel perfectly clofed, to Commixture, or Combination; and in a Veffel imperfectly clofed, without excluding the Air, to Putrefaction and in all thefe Cafes, Inftances of the Works and Effects of Continuance are to diligently collected from all Quarters. m 334. The fifth Means of operating, viz. by Government and Regulation The fifth of Motion, is extremely powerful. We call that the Government and Means of opeRegulation of Motion, when one Body, by meeting another, hin- rating; viz. by Regulating ders, repels, or directs its fpontaneous Motion. And this generally con- Motion. fifts in the Figure and Pofition, or Situation of the Veffels thus the Figure of an erect Cone forwards the Condenfation of Vapours, in Alembics but an inverted Cone promotes the purging of Sugar, or the Difcharge of the Treacle into the Receivers ". Sometimes alfo Cur See the Sylva Sylvarum, under the Article Gold. See the Sylva Sylvarum, under the Articles Heat, Prefervation, and Putrefation. 1 See the Silva Sylvarum, paffim. m See the Article Putrefaction, in the Sylva Sylvarum. vature, And hence the Figures, or Make of all the chemical, or other Veffels, may be eafily determined. See Boerbaave's Chemistry, under the Chapter of Vesfels. 1 The fixth Яtice, viz. Confent. vature, or Flexure, Straitnefs, and Dilatation, are required by Turns, and the like. And all Percolation depends upon this, that whilst the oppofing Body opens to one Part of the Liquor, it clofes upon or ftops another. Nor is the Bufinefs of Percolation, or other Regulation of Motion, always carried on by external Means; but also by internal, or by Means of one Body within another: as when Stones are put into Water to collect its Sediment, or earthy Parts; or when Syrups are clarified with the Whites of Eggs, whereto the groffer Fæculences adhere, and may be afterwards feparated P. And to this Regulation and Direction of Motion, Telefius, from a flight and fuperficial Confideration, attributes the Figures of Animals; as if they were moulded, and took the Impreffion of the veiny, wrinkled, and hollow'd Sides of the Matrix. For he ought to have confider'd, that tho' Eggs alfo are formed in the Uterus, after the fame manner as the Fatus; yet no Wrinkles or Inequalities appear on their Shells. But it is true, indeed, that the Regulation of Motion produces Figure in Moulding and Caft-Work. 335. The fixth Means of Practice confifts in operating by Consents, or Means of Pra- Avoidances, which frequently lie deep concealed: for those usually call'd occult, and Specific Properties, and Sympathies and Antipathies, are in great measure the Corruptions of Philofophy. Nor can we have any foiid Hopes of difcovering the Confents of Things, before the Discovery of Forms, and fimple Textures: for Confent is no more than the Sympathy or Correfpondence of Forms and Textures to each other. The more univerfal Con. fents of Things. Their Diffe rences. Sulphur and two Tribes of 336. But the greater, and more univerfal, Confents of Things, are not abfolutely obfcure. We will, therefore, begin with thefe. The first and principal Diverfity of Things, is this; that fome Bodies differ greatly in their Quantity, and Rarity of Matter; yet agree in Texture: whilft others agree in Quantity and Rarity of Matter; but differ in Texture. For it is well obferved, that the two chemical Principles, Sulphur and Mercury, run, as it were, thro' the Universe of Things. And, doubtlefs, there appears to be a certain Confent of Nature, or an Agreement of Bodies, in these two Principles, from a Confideration of the most universal Phænomena. Thus there is an Agreement betwixt Brimstone, Oil, unctuous Exhalations, Flame, and perhaps the Body of the Stars: and, again, between Quickfilver, Water, and aqueous Vapours, Air, and perhaps the pure interftellar Ether. But these two larger Sets, or Tribes, of Things, differ prodigioufly from each other, in Quantity of Matter and Denfity; tho' they greatly agree in Texture; as appears in numerous Inftances. But, on the other hand, the different Metals have a great Agreement in Quantity of Matter, and Density; • See the Articles Clarification and Percolation, in the Sylva Sylvarum. P See Vol. III. p. 49, &c. 1 See above, §. 326. See the Sylva Sylvarum, under the Article, Principles of Chemistry. |