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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d7b82bc --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,4 @@ +*.txt text eol=lf +*.htm text eol=lf +*.html text eol=lf +*.md text eol=lf diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..55a6adf --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #50565 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/50565) diff --git a/old/50565-0.txt b/old/50565-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 054ca6e..0000000 --- a/old/50565-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,12109 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of The History of Chemistry, Volume 1 (of 2), by -Thomas Thomson - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: The History of Chemistry, Volume 1 (of 2) - -Author: Thomas Thomson - -Release Date: November 27, 2015 [EBook #50565] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HISTORY OF CHEMISTRY, VOL 1 *** - - - - -Produced by MWS, Wayne Hammond and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was -produced from images generously made available by The -Internet Archive) - - - - - - - -[Illustration: - - _Raeburn. pinx^t._ _Dean, sculp^t._ - -JOSEPH BLACK, M.D. F.R.S.E. - -_London. Published by Henry Colburn & Richard Bentley. 1830._] - - - - - THE - - HISTORY - - OF - - CHEMISTRY. - - BY - THOMAS THOMSON, M.D. F.R.S.E. - PROFESSOR OF CHEMISTRY IN THE UNIVERSITY OF GLASGOW. - - - IN TWO VOLUMES. - - VOL. I. - - - LONDON: - HENRY COLBURN, AND RICHARD BENTLEY, - NEW BURLINGTON STREET. - - 1830. - - - - - C. WHITING, BEAUFORT HOUSE, STRAND. - - - - -PREFACE. - - -It may be proper, perhaps, to state here, in a very few words, the -objects which the author had in view in drawing up the following -History of Chemistry. Alchymy, or the art of making gold, with which -the science originated, furnishes too curious a portion of the -aberrations of the human intellect to be passed over in silence. -The writings of the alchymists are so voluminous and so mystical, -that it would have afforded materials for a very long work. But -I was prevented from extending this part of the subject to any -greater length than I have done, by considering the small quantity of -information which could have been gleaned from the reveries of these -fanatics or impostors; I thought it sufficient to give a general view -of the nature of their pursuits: but in order to put it in the power of -those who feel inclined to prosecute such investigations, I have given -a catalogue of the most eminent of the alchymists and a list of their -works, so far as I am acquainted with them. This catalogue might have -been greatly extended. Indeed it would have been possible to have added -several hundred names. But I think the works which I have quoted are -more than almost any reasonable man would think it worth his while to -peruse; and I can state, from experience, that the information gained -by such a perusal will very seldom repay the trouble. - - * * * * * - -The account of the chemical arts, with which the ancients were -acquainted, is necessarily imperfect; because all arts and trades were -held in so much contempt by them that they did not think it worth their -while to make themselves acquainted with the processes. My chief -guide has been Pliny, but many of his descriptions are unintelligible, -obviously from his ignorance of the arts which he attempts to describe. -Thus circumstanced, I thought it better to be short than to waste a -great deal of paper, as some have done, on hypothesis and conjecture. - - * * * * * - -The account of the Chemistry of the Arabians is almost entirely limited -to the works of Geber, which I consider to be the first book on -Chemistry that ever was published, and to constitute, in every point -of view, an exceedingly curious performance. I was much struck with -the vast number of facts with which he was acquainted, and which have -generally been supposed to have been discovered long after his time. -I have, therefore, been at some pains in endeavouring to convey a -notion of Geber’s opinions to the readers of this history; but am not -sure that I have succeeded. I have generally given his own words, as -literally as possible, and, wherever it would answer the purpose, have -employed the English translation of 1678. - -Paracelsus gave origin to so great a revolution in medicine and the -sciences connected with it, that it would have been unpardonable not -to have attempted to lay his opinions and views before the reader; -but, after perusing several of his most important treatises, I found -it almost impossible to form accurate notions on the subject. I -have, therefore, endeavoured to make use of his own words as much -as possible, that the want of consistency and the mysticism of his -opinions may fall upon his own head. Should the reader find any -difficulty in understanding the philosophy of Paracelsus, he will be -in no worse a situation than every one has been who has attempted to -delineate the principles of this prince of quacks and impostors. Van -Helmont’s merits were of a much higher kind, and I have endeavoured to -do him justice; though his weaknesses are so visible that it requires -much candour and patience to discriminate accurately between his -excellencies and his foibles. - - * * * * * - -The history of Iatro-chemistry forms a branch of our subject scarcely -less extraordinary than Alchymy itself. It might have been extended -to a much greater length than I have done. The reason why I did not -enter into longer details was, that I thought the subject more -intimately connected with the history of medicine than of chemistry: -it undoubtedly contributed to the improvement of chemistry; not, -however, by the opinions or the physiology of the iatro-chemists, but -by inducing their contemporaries and successors to apply themselves to -the discovery of chemical medicines. - - * * * * * - -The History of Chemistry, after a theory of combustion had been -introduced by Beccher and Stahl, becomes much more important. It now -shook off the trammels of alchymy, and ventured to claim its station -among the physical sciences. I have found it necessary to treat of its -progress during the eighteenth century rather succinctly, but I hope -so as to be easily intelligible. This made it necessary to omit the -names of many meritorious individuals, who supplied a share of the -contributions which the science was continually receiving from all -quarters. I have confined myself to those who made the most prominent -figure as chemical discoverers. I had no other choice but to follow -this plan, unless I had doubled the size of this little work, which -would have rendered it less agreeable and less valuable to the general -reader. - - * * * * * - -With respect to the History of Chemistry during that portion of the -nineteenth century which is already past, it was beset with several -difficulties. Many of the individuals, of whose labours I had occasion -to speak, are still actively engaged in the prosecution of their -useful works. Others have but just left the arena, and their friends -and relations still remain to appreciate their merits. In treating of -this branch of the science (by far the most important of all) I have -followed the same plan as in the history of the preceding century. I -have found it necessary to omit many names that would undoubtedly have -found a place in a larger work, but which the limited extent to which I -was obliged to confine myself, necessarily compelled me to pass over. I -have been anxious not to injure the character of any one, while I have -rigidly adhered to truth, so far as I was acquainted with it. Should I -have been so unfortunate as to hurt the feelings of any individual by -any remarks of mine in the following pages, it will give me great pain; -and the only alleviation will be the consciousness of the total absence -on my part of any malignant intention. To gratify the wishes of every -individual may, perhaps, be impossible; but I can say, with truth, -that my uniform object has been to do justice to the merits of all, so -far as my own limited knowledge put it in my power to do. - - - - -CONTENTS - -OF - -THE FIRST VOLUME. - - - Page - - Introduction 1 - - - CHAPTER I. - - Of Alchymy 3 - - - CHAPTER II. - - Of the chemical knowledge possessed by the Ancients 49 - - - CHAPTER III. - - Chemistry of the Arabians 110 - - - CHAPTER IV. - - Of the progress of Chemistry under Paracelsus and his disciples 140 - - - CHAPTER V. - - Of Van Helmont and the Iatro-Chemists 179 - - - CHAPTER VI. - - Of Agricola and metallurgy 219 - - - CHAPTER VII. - - Of Glauber, Lemery, and some other chemists of the end of the - seventeenth century 226 - - - CHAPTER VIII. - - Of the attempts to establish a theory in chemistry 246 - - - CHAPTER IX. - - Of the foundation and progress of scientific chemistry in Great - Britain 303 - - - - - -HISTORY OF CHEMISTRY. - - - - -INTRODUCTION. - - -Chemistry, unlike the other sciences, sprang originally from delusion -and superstition, and was at its commencement exactly on a level -with magic and astrology. Even after it began to be useful to man, -by furnishing him with better and more powerful medicines than the -ancient physicians were acquainted with, it was long before it could -shake off the trammels of alchymy, which hung upon it like a nightmare, -cramping and blunting all its energies, and exposing it to the scorn -and contempt of the enlightened part of mankind. It was not till about -the middle of the eighteenth century that it was able to free itself -from these delusions, and to venture abroad in all the native dignity -of a useful science. It was then that its utility and its importance -began to attract the attention of the world; that it drew within its -vortex some of the greatest and most active men in every country; and -that it advanced towards perfection with an accelerated pace. The field -which it now presents to our view is vast and imposing. Its paramount -utility is universally acknowledged. It has become a necessary part of -education. It has contributed as much to the progress of society, and -has done as much to augment the comforts and conveniences of life, and -to increase the power and the resources of mankind, as all the other -sciences put together. - -It is natural to feel a desire to be acquainted with the origin and the -progress of such a science; and to know something of the history and -character of those numerous votaries to whom it is indebted for its -progress and improvement. The object of this little work is to gratify -these laudable wishes, by taking a rapid view of the progress of -Chemistry, from its first rude and disgraceful beginnings till it has -reached its present state of importance and dignity. I shall divide the -subject into fifteen chapters. In the first I shall treat of Alchymy, -which may be considered as the inauspicious commencement of the -science, and which, in fact, consists of little else than an account of -dupes and impostors; every where so full of fiction and obscurity, that -it is a hopeless and almost impossible task to reach the truth. In the -second chapter I shall endeavour to point out the few small chemical -rills, which were known to the ancients. These I shall follow in their -progress, in the succeeding chapters, till at last, augmented by an -infinite number of streams flowing at once from a thousand different -quarters, they have swelled to the mighty river, which now flows on -majestically, wafting wealth and information to the civilized world. - - - - -CHAPTER I. - -OF ALCHYMY. - - -The word _chemistry_ (χημεια, _chemeia_) first occurs in Suidas, -a Greek writer, who is supposed to have lived in the eleventh -century, and to have written his lexicon during the reign of Alexius -Comnenus.[1] Under the word χημεια in his dictionary we find the -following passage: - -“CHEMISTRY, the preparation of silver and gold. The books -on it were sought out by Dioclesian and burnt, on account of the new -attempts made by the Egyptians against him. He treated them with -cruelty and harshness, as he sought out the books written by the -ancients on the chemistry (Περι χημειας) of gold and silver, and burnt -them. His object was to prevent the Egyptians from becoming rich by the -knowledge of this art, lest, emboldened by abundance of wealth, they -might be induced afterwards to resist the Romans.”[2] - -[1] The word χημεια is said to occur in several Greek manuscripts of -a much earlier date. But of this, as I have never had an opportunity -of seeing them, I cannot pretend to judge. So much fiction has been -introduced into the history of Alchymy, and so many ancient names have -been treacherously dragged into the service, that we may be allowed -to hesitate when no evidence is presented sufficient to satisfy a -reasonable man. - -[2] Χημεια, ἡ του αργυρου και χρυσου κατασκευη· ἡς τα βιβλια -διερευνησαμενος ὁ Διοκλητιανος εκαυσε, δια τα νεωτερισθεντα αιγυπτιοις -Διοκλητιανω· τουτοις ανημερως και φονικως εχρησατο ὁτεδη και τα -περι χημειας χρυσου και αργυρου τοις παλαιοις γεγραμμενα βιβλια -διερευνησαμενος εκαυσε, προς το μηκετι πλουτον αιγυπτιοις εκ της -τοιαυτης προσγινεσθαι τεχνης, μηδε χρηματων αυτοις θαρῥονιτας περιουσια -του λοιπου ῥωμαιοις ανταιρειν. - -Under the word Δερας, _deras_ (_a skin_), in the lexicon, occurs the -following passage: “Δερας, the golden fleece, which Jason and the -Argonauts (after a voyage through the Black Sea to Colchis) took, -together with Medea, daughter of Ætes, the king. But this was not -what the poets represent, but a treatise written on skins (δερμασι), -teaching how gold might be prepared by chemistry. Probably, therefore, -it was called by those who lived at that time, _golden_, on account of -its great importance.”[3] - -[3] Δερας, το χρυσομαλλον δερας, ὁπερ ὁ Ιασων δια της ποντικης -θαλασσης συν τοις αργοναυταις εις την κολχιδα παραγενομενοι ελαβον, -και την Μηδειαν την Αιητου του βασιλεως θυγατερα. Τουτο δε ουκ ὡς -ποιητικως φερεται· αλλα βιβλιον ην εν δερμασι γεγραμενον περισχον ὁπως -δειγινεσθαι δια χημειας χρυσον· εικοτως ουν ὁι τοτε χρουσουν ωνομαζον -αυτο δερας δια την ενεργειαν την εξ αυτου. - -From these two passages there can be no doubt that the word _chemistry_ -was known to the Greeks in the eleventh century; and that it signified, -at that time, the art of making gold and silver. It appears, further, -that in Suidas’s opinion, this art was known to the Egyptians in the -time of Dioclesian; that Dioclesian was convinced of its reality; -and that, to put an end to it, he collected and burnt all the -chemical writings to be found in Egypt. Nay, Suidas affirms that a -book, describing the art of making gold, existed at the time of the -Argonauts: and that the object of Jason and his followers was to get -possession of that invaluable treatise, which the poets disguised under -the term _golden fleece_. - -The first meaning, then, of chemistry, was the _art of making gold_. -And this art, in the opinion of Suidas, was understood at least as -early as one thousand two hundred and twenty-five years before -the Christian era: for that is the period at which the Argonautic -expedition is commonly fixed by chronologists. - -Though the lexicon of Suidas be the first printed book in which the -word Chemistry occurs, yet it is said to be found in much earlier -tracts, which still continue in manuscript. Thus Scaliger informs us -that he perused a Greek manuscript of Zosimus, the Panapolite, written -in the fifth century, and deposited in the King of France’s library. -Olaus Borrichius mentions this manuscript; but in such terms that it -is difficult to know whether he had himself read it; though he seems -to insinuate as much.[4] The title of this manuscript is said to be -“A faithful Description of the sacred and divine Art of making Gold -and Silver, by Zosimus, the Panapolite.”[5] In this treatise, Zosimus -distinguishes the art by the name χημια, _chemia_. From a passage -in this manuscript, quoted by Scaliger, and given also by Olaus -Borrichius, it appears that Zosimus carries the antiquity of the art of -making gold and silver, much higher than Suidas has ventured to do. The -following is a literal translation of this curious passage: - -[4] De Ortu et Progressu Chemiæ, p. 12. - -[5] Σωσιμου του παναπολιτου γνησια γραφη, περι της ἱερας, και θειας -τεχνης του χρυσου και αργυριου ποιησιος. Παναπολις was a city in Egypt. - -“The sacred Scriptures inform us that there exists a tribe of genii, -who make use of women. Hermes mentions this circumstance in his -Physics; and almost every writing (λογος), whether sacred (φανερος) or -apocryphal, states the same thing. The ancient and divine Scriptures -inform us, that the angels, captivated by women, taught them all the -operations of nature. Offence being taken at this, they remained out of -heaven, because they had taught mankind all manner of evil, and things -which could not be advantageous to their souls. The Scriptures inform -us that the giants sprang from these embraces. Chema is the first of -their traditions respecting these arts. The book itself they called -Chema; hence the art is called _Chemia_.” - -Zosimus is not the only Greek writer on Chemistry. Olaus Borrichius has -given us a list of thirty-eight treatises, which he says exist in the -libraries of Rome, Venice, and Paris: and Dr. Shaw has increased this -list to eighty-nine.[6] But among these we find the names of Hermes, -Isis, Horus, Democritus, Cleopatra, Porphyry, Plato, &c.--names which -undoubtedly have been affixed to the writings of comparatively modern -and obscure authors. The style of these authors, as Borrichius informs -us, is barbarous. They are chiefly the production of ecclesiastics, -who lived between the fifth and twelfth centuries. In these tracts, -the art of which they treat is sometimes called _chemistry_ (χημεια); -sometimes the _chemical art_ (χημευτικα); sometimes the _holy art_; and -the _philosopher’s stone_. - -[6] Shaw’s Translation of Boerhaave’s Chemistry, i. 20. - -It is evident from this, that between the fifth century and the taking -of Constantinople in the fifteenth century, the Greeks believed in the -possibility of making gold and silver artificially; and that the art -which professed to teach these processes was called by them Chemistry. - -These opinions passed from the Greeks to the Arabians, when, under the -califs of the family of Abassides, they began to turn their attention -to science, about the beginning of the ninth century; and when the -enlightened zeal of the Fatimites in Africa, and the Ommiades in Spain, -encouraged the cultivation of the sciences. From Spain they gradually -made their way into the different Christian kingdoms of Europe. From -the eleventh to the sixteenth century, the art of making gold and -silver was cultivated in Germany, Italy, France, and England, with -considerable assiduity. The cultivators of it were called _Alchymists_; -a name obviously derived from the Greek word _chemia_, but somewhat -altered by the Arabians. Many alchymistical tracts were written during -that period. A considerable number of them were collected by Lazarus -Zetzner, and published at Strasburg in 1602, under the title of -“Theatrum Chemicum, præcipuos selectorum auctorum tractatus de Chemiæ -et Lapidis Philosophici Antiquitate, veritate, jure, præstantia, et -operationibus continens in gratiam veræ Chemiæ et Medicinæ Chemicæ -Studiosorum (ut qui uberrimam unde optimorum remediorum messem facere -poterunt) congestum et in quatuor partes seu volumina digestum.” This -book contains one hundred and five different alchymistical tracts. - -In the year 1610 another collection of alchymistical tracts was -published at Basil, in three volumes, under the title of “Artis -Auriferæ quam Chemiam vocant volumina tria.” It contains forty-seven -different tracts. - -In the year 1702 Mangetus published at Geneva two very large folio -volumes, under the name of “Bibliotheca Chemica Curiosa, seu rerum -ad Alchymiam pertinentium thesaurus instructissimus, quo non tantum -Artis Auriferæ ac scriptorum in ea nobiliorum Historia traditur; -lapidis veritas Argumentis et Experimentis innumeris, immo et Juris -Consultorum Judiciis evincitur; Termini obscuriores explicantur; -Cautiones contra Impostores et Difficultates in Tinctura Universali -conficienda occurrentes declarantur: verum etiam Tractatus omnes -Virorum Celebriorum, qui in Magno sudarunt Elixyre, quique ab ipso -Hermete, ut dicitur, Trismegisto, ad nostra usque tempora de Chrysopoea -scripserunt, cum præcipuis suis Commentariis, concinno ordine dispositi -exhibentur.” This Bibliotheca contains one hundred and twenty-two -alchymistical treatises, many of them of considerable length. - -Two additional volumes of the Theatrum Chemicum were afterwards -published; but these I have never had an opportunity of seeing. - -From these collections, which exhibit a pretty complete view of the -writings of the alchymists, a tolerably accurate notion may be formed -of their opinions. But before attempting to lay open the theories and -notions by which the alchymists were guided, it will be proper to state -the opinions which were gradually adopted respecting the origin of -Alchymy, and the contrivances by which these opinions were supported. - -Zosimus, the Panapolite, in a passage quoted above informs us, that -the art of making gold and silver was not a human invention; but was -communicated to mankind by angels or demons. These angels, he says, -fell in love with women, and were induced by their charms to abandon -heaven altogether, and take up their abode upon earth. Among other -pieces of information which these spiritual beings communicated to -their paramours, was the sublime art of Chemistry, or the fabrication -of gold and silver. - -It is quite unnecessary to refute this extravagant opinion, obviously -founded on a misunderstanding of a passage in the sixth chapter of -Genesis. “And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face -of the earth, and daughters were born unto them, that the sons of God -saw the daughters of men, that they were fair; and they took them wives -of all which they chose.--There were giants in the earth in those days; -and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters -of men, and they bare _children_ to them; the same became mighty men, -which were of old, men of renown.” - -There is no mention whatever of angels, or of any information on -science communicated by them to mankind. - -Nor is it necessary to say much about the opinion advanced by some, -and rather countenanced by Olaus Borrichius, that the art of making -gold was the invention of Tubal-cain, whom they represent as the same -as Vulcan. All the information which we have respecting Tubal-cain, -is simply that he was an instructor of every artificer in brass and -iron.[7] No allusion whatever is made to gold. And that in these early -ages of the world there was no occasion for making gold artificially, -we have the same authority for believing. For in the second chapter -of Genesis, where the garden of Eden is described, it is said, “And -a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was -parted, and came into four heads: the name of the first is Pison, -that is it which encompasseth the whole land of Havilah, where there -is gold. And the gold of that land is good: there is bdellium and -onyx-stone.” - -[7] Genesis iv. 22. - -But the most generally-received opinion is, that alchymy originated in -Egypt; and the honour of the invention has been unanimously conferred -upon Hermes Trismegistus. He is by some supposed to be the same person -with Chanaan, the son of Ham, whose son Mizraim first occupied and -peopled Egypt. Plutarch informs us, that Egypt was sometimes called -_Chemia_.[8] This name is supposed to be derived from Chanaan (ןענכ); -thence it was believed that Chanaan was the true inventor of alchymy, -to which he affixed his own name. Whether the Hermes (Ἑρμης) of -the Greeks was the same person with Chanaan or his son Mizraim, it -is impossible at this distance of time to decide; but to Hermes is -assigned the invention of alchymy, or the art of making gold, by almost -the unanimous consent of the adepts. - -[8] De Iside and Osiride, c. 5. - -Albertus Magnus informs us, that “Alexander the Great discovered the -sepulchre of Hermes, in one of his journeys, full of all treasures, -not metallic, but golden, written on a table of _zatadi_, which others -call emerald.” This passage occurs in a tract of Albertus _de secretis -chemicis_, which is considered as supposititious. Nothing is said of -the source whence the information contained in this passage was drawn: -but, from the quotations produced by Kriegsmann, it would appear that -the existence of this emerald table was alluded to by Avicenna and -other Arabian writers. According to them, a woman called Sarah took it -from the hands of the dead body of Hermes, some ages after the flood, -in a cave near Hebron. The inscription on it was in the Phœnician -language. The following is a literal translation of this famous -inscription, from the Latin version of Kriegsmann:[9] - -[9] There are two Latin translations of these tables (unless we are -rather to consider them as originals, for no Phœnician nor Greek -original exists). I shall insert them both here. - - -I.--VERBA SECRETORUM HERMETIS TRISMEGISTI. - - 1. Verum sine mendacio certum et verissimum. - - 2. Quod est inferius, est sicut quod est superius, et quod est - superius est sicut quod est inferius ad perpetranda miracula rei - unius. - - 3. Et sicut omnes res fuerant ab uno meditatione unius: sic - omnes res natæ fuerunt ab hac una re adaptatione. - - 4. Pater ejus est Sol, mater ejus Luna, portavit illud ventus - in ventre suo, nutrix ejus terra est. - - 5. Pater omnis thelesmi totius mundi est hic. - - 6. Vis ejus integra est, si versa fuerit in terram. - - 7. Separabis terram ab igne, subtile a spisso suaviter cum - magno ingenio. - - 8. Ascendit a terra in cœlum, iterumque descendit in terram, - et recipit vim superiorum et inferiorum, sic habebis gloriam - totius mundi. Ideo fugiat a te omnis obscuritas. - - 9. Hic est totius fortitudinis fortitudo fortis; quia vincit - omnem rem subtilem, omnemque solidam penetrabit. - - 10. Sic mundus creatus est. - - 11. Hinc adaptationes erunt mirabiles, quarum modus est - hic. - - 12. Itaque vocatus sum Hermes Trismegistus, habens tres - partes philosophiæ totius mundi. - - 13. Completum est quod dixi de operatione solis. - - -II.--DESCRIPTIO ARCANORUM HERMETIS TRISMEGISTI. - - 1. Vere non ficte, certo verissime aio. - - 2. Inferiora hæc cum superioribus illis, istaque cum iis vicissim - vires sociant, ut producant rem unam omnium mirificissimam. - - 3. Ac quemadmodum cuncta educta ex uno fuere verbo Dei - unius: sic omnes quoque res perpetuo ex hac una re generantur - dispositione Naturæ. - - 4. Patrem ea habet Solem, matrem Lunam: ab aëre in utero - quasi gestatur, nutritur a terra. - - 5. Causa omnis perfectionis rerum ea est per univerum hoc. - - 6. Ad summam ipsa perfectionem virium pervenit si redierit - in humum. - - 7. In partes tribuite humum ignem passam, attenuans densitatem - ejus re omnium suavissima. - - 8. Summa ascende ingenii sagacitate a terra in cœlum, indeque - rursum in terram descende, ac vires superiorum inferiorumque - coge in unum: sic potiere gloria totius mundi atque ita abjectæ - sortis homo amplius non habere. - - 9. Isthæc jam res ipsa fortitudine fortior existet; corpora - quippe tam tenuia quam solida penetrando subige. - - 10. Atque sic quidem quæcunque mundus continet creata fuere. - - 11. Hinc admiranda evadunt opera, quæ ad eundum modum - instituantur. - - 12. Mihi vero ideo nomen Hermetis Trismegisti impositum - fuit, quod trium mundi sapientiæ partium doctor deprehensus - sum. - - 13. Hæc sunt quæ de chemicæ artis prestantissimo opere - consignanda esse duxi. - - - 1. I speak not fictitious things, but what is true and - most certain. - - 2. What is below is like that which is above, and - what is above is similar to that which is below, to accomplish - the miracles of one thing. - - 3. And as all things were produced by the meditation - of one Being, so all things were produced from - this one thing by adaptation. - - 4. Its father is _Sol_, its mother _Luna_; the wind - carried it in its belly, the earth is its nurse. - - 5. It is the cause of all perfection throughout the - whole world. - - 6. Its power is perfect, if it be changed into earth. - - 7. Separate the earth from the fire, the subtile - from the gross, acting prudently and with judgment. - - 8. Ascend with the greatest sagacity from the earth - to heaven, and then again descend to the earth, and - unite together the powers of things superior and things - inferior. Thus you will possess the glory of the whole - world; and all obscurity will fly far away from you. - - 9. This thing has more fortitude than fortitude itself; - because it will overcome every subtile thing, and - penetrate every solid thing. - - 10. By it this world was formed. - - 11. Hence proceed wonderful things, which in this - wise were established. - - 12. For this reason I am called Hermes Trismegistus, - because I possess three parts of the philosophy of - the whole world. - - 13. What I had to say about the operation of _Sol_ - is completed. - -Such is a literal translation of the celebrated inscription of Hermes -Trismegistus upon the emerald tablet. It is sufficiently obscure to -put it in the power of commentators to affix almost any explanation to -it that they choose. The two individuals who have devoted most time -to illustrate this tablet, are Kriegsmann and Gerard Dorneus, whose -commentaries may be seen in the first volume of Mangetus’s Bibliotheca -Chemica. They both agree that it refers to the _universal medicine_, -which began to acquire celebrity about the time of Paracelsus, or a -little earlier. - -This exposition, which appears as probable as any other, betrays -the time when this celebrated inscription seems to have been really -written. Had it been taken out of the hands of the dead body of Hermes -by Sarah (obviously intended for the wife of Abraham) as is affirmed -by Avicenna, it is not possible that Herodotus, and all the writers of -antiquity, both Pagan and Christian, should have entirely overlooked -it; or how could Avicenna have learned what was unknown to all those -who lived nearest the time when the discovery was supposed to have been -made? Had it been discovered in Egypt by Alexander the Great, would -it have been unknown to Aristotle, and to all the numerous tribe of -writers whom the Alexandrian school produced, not one of whom, however, -make the least allusion to it? In short, it bears all the marks of -a forgery of the fifteenth century. And even the tract ascribed to -Albertus Magnus, in which the tablet of Hermes is mentioned, and the -discovery related, is probably also a forgery; and doubtless a forgery -of the same individual who fabricated the tablet itself, in order to -throw a greater air of probability upon a story which he wished to palm -upon the world as true. His object was in some measure accomplished; -for the authenticity of the tablet was supported with much zeal by -Kriegsmann, and afterwards by Olaus Borrichius. - -There is another tract of Hermes Trismegistus, entitled “Tractatus -Aureus de Lapidis Physici Secreto;” on which no less elaborate -commentaries have been written. It professes to teach the process of -making the _philosopher’s stone_; and, from the allusions in it, to the -use of this stone, as a universal medicine, was probably a forgery of -the same date as the emerald tablet. It would be in vain to attempt to -extract any thing intelligible out of this Tractatus Aureus: it may be -worth while to give a single specimen, that the reader may be able to -form some idea of the nature of the style. - -“Take of moisture an ounce and a half; of meridional redness, that is -the soul of the sun, a fourth part, that is half an ounce; of yellow -seyr, likewise half an ounce; and of auripigmentum, a half ounce, -making in all three ounces. Know that the vine of wise men is extracted -in threes, and its wine at last is completed in thirty.”[10] - -[10] “Accipe de humore unciam unam et mediam, et de rubore meridionali, -id est anima solis, quartam partem, id est, unciam mediam, et de Seyre -citrino, similiter unciam mediam, et de auripigmenti dimidium, quæ -sunt octo, id est unciæ tres. Scitote quod vitis sapientum in tribus -extrahitur, ejusque vinum in fine triginta peragitur.” - -Had the opinion, that gold and silver could be artificially formed -originated with Hermes Trismegistus, or had it prevailed among -the ancient Egyptians, it would certainly have been alluded to by -Herodotus, who spent so many years in Egypt, and was instructed by -the priests in all the science of the Egyptians. Had _chemistry_ been -the name of a science, real or fictitious, which existed as early as -the expedition of the Argonauts, and had so many treatises on it, as -Suidas alleges existed in Egypt before the reign of Dioclesian, it -could hardly have escaped the notice of Pliny, who was so curious -and so indefatigable in his researches, and who has collected in his -natural history a kind of digest of all the knowledge of the ancients -in every department of practical science. The fact that the term -chemistry (χημεια) never occurs in any Greek or Roman writer prior to -Suidas, who wrote so late as the eleventh century, seems to overturn -all idea of the existence of that pretended science among the ancients, -notwithstanding the elaborate attempts of Olaus Borrichius to prove the -contrary. - -I am disposed to believe, that chemistry or alchymy, understanding -by the term the _art of making gold and silver_, originated among -the Arabians, when they began to turn their attention to medicine, -after the establishment of the caliphs; or if it had previously been -cultivated by Greeks (as the writings of Zosimus, the Panapolite, -if genuine, would lead us to suppose), that it was taken up by the -Arabians, and reduced by them into regular form and order. If the works -of Geber be genuine, they leave little doubt on this point. Geber is -supposed to have been a physician, and to have written in the seventh -century. He admits, as a first principle, that metals are compounds of -mercury and sulphur. He talks of the philosopher’s stone; professes -to give the mode of preparing it; and teaches the way of converting -the different metals, known in his time, into medicines, on whose -efficacy he bestows the most ample panegyrics. Thus the principles -which lie at the bottom of alchymy were implicitly adopted by him. -Yet I can nowhere find in him any attempt to make gold artificially. -His chemistry was entirely devoted to the improvement of medicine. -The subsequent pretensions of the alchymists to convert the baser -metals into gold are no where avowed by him. I am disposed from this -to suspect, that the theory of gold-making was started after Geber’s -time, or at least that it was after the seventh century, before any -alchymist ventured to affirm that he himself was in possession of the -secret, and could fabricate gold artificially at pleasure. For there is -a wide distance between the opinion that gold may be made artificially -and the affirmation that we are in possession of a method by which this -transmutation of the baser metals into gold can be accomplished. The -first may be adopted and defended with much plausibility and perfect -honesty; but the second would require a degree of skill far exceeding -that of the most scientific votary of chemistry at present existing. - -The opinion of the alchymists was, that all the metals are compounds; -that the baser metals contain the same constituents as gold, -contaminated, indeed, with various impurities, but capable, when their -impurities are removed or remedied, of assuming all the properties and -characters of gold. The substance possessing this wonderful power they -distinguish by the name of _lapis philosophorum_, or, philosopher’s -stone, and they usually describe it as a red powder, having a peculiar -smell. Few of the alchymists who have left writings behind them boast -of being possessed of the philosopher’s stone. Paracelsus, indeed, -affirms, that he was acquainted with the method of making it, and -gives several processes, which, however, are not intelligible. But -many affirm that they had seen the philosopher’s stone; that they had -portions of it in their possession; and that they had seen several of -the inferior metals, especially lead and quicksilver, converted by -means of it into gold. Many stories of this kind are upon record, and -so well authenticated, that we need not be surprised at their having -been generally credited. It will be sufficient if we state one or two -of those which depend upon the most unexceptionable evidence. The -following relation is given by Mangetus, on the authority of M. Gros, a -clergyman of Geneva, of the most unexceptionable character, and at the -same time a skilful physician and expert chemist: - -“About the year 1650 an unknown Italian came to Geneva, and took -lodgings at the sign of the _Green Cross_. After remaining there a -day or two, he requested De Luc, the landlord, to procure him a man -acquainted with Italian, to accompany him through the town and point -out those things which deserved to be examined. De Luc was acquainted -with M. Gros, at that time about twenty years of age, and a student -in Geneva, and knowing his proficiency in the Italian language, -requested him to accompany the stranger. To this proposition he -willingly acceded, and attended the Italian every where for the space -of a fortnight. The stranger now began to complain of want of money, -which alarmed M. Gros not a little--for at that time he was very -poor--and he became apprehensive, from the tenour of the stranger’s -conversation, that he intended to ask the loan of money from him. But -instead of this, the Italian asked him if he was acquainted with any -goldsmith, whose bellows and other utensils they might be permitted -to use, and who would not refuse to supply them with the different -articles requisite for a particular process which he wanted to perform. -M. Gros named a M. Bureau, to whom the Italian immediately repaired. -He readily furnished crucibles, pure tin, quicksilver, and the other -things required by the Italian. The goldsmith left his workshop, that -the Italian might be under the less restraint, leaving M. Gros, with -one of his own workmen, as an attendant. The Italian put a quantity -of tin into one crucible, and a quantity of quicksilver into another. -The tin was melted in the fire and the mercury heated. It was then -poured into the melted tin, and at the same time a red powder enclosed -in wax was projected into the amalgam. An agitation took place, -and a great deal of smoke was exhaled from the crucible; but this -speedily subsided, and the whole being poured out, formed six heavy -ingots, having the colour of gold. The goldsmith was called in by the -Italian, and requested to make a rigid examination of the smallest of -these ingots. The goldsmith, not content with the touchstone and the -application of aqua fortis, exposed the metal on the cupel with lead, -and fused it with antimony, but it sustained no loss. He found it -possessed of the ductility and specific gravity of gold; and full of -admiration, he exclaimed that he had never worked before upon gold so -perfectly pure. The Italian made him a present of the smallest ingot -as a recompence, and then, accompanied by M. Gros, he repaired to the -Mint, where he received from M. Bacuet, the mintmaster, a quantity of -Spanish gold coin, equal in weight to the ingots which he had brought. -To M. Gros he made a present of twenty pieces, on account of the -attention that he had paid to him; and, after paying his bill at the -inn, he added fifteen pieces more, to serve to entertain M. Gros and -M. Bureau for some days, and in the mean time he ordered a supper, -that he might, on his return, have the pleasure of supping with these -two gentlemen. He went out, but never returned, leaving behind him the -greatest regret and admiration. It is needless to add, that M. Gros and -M. Bureau continued to enjoy themselves at the inn till the fifteen -pieces, which the stranger had left, were exhausted.”[11] - -[11] Preface to Mangetus’s Bibliotheca Chemica Curiosa. - -Mangetus gives also the following relation, which he states upon the -authority of an English bishop, who communicated it to him in the year -1685, and at the same time gave him about half an ounce of the gold -which the alchymist had made: - -A stranger, meanly dressed, went to Mr. Boyle, and after conversing -for some time about chemical processes, requested him to furnish him -with antimony, and some other common metallic substances, which then -fortunately happened to be in Mr. Boyle’s laboratory. These were -put into a crucible, which was then placed in a melting-furnace. As -soon as these metals were fused, the stranger showed a powder to the -attendants, which he projected into the crucible, and instantly went -out, directing the servants to allow the crucible to remain in the -furnace till the fire went out of its own accord, and promising at the -same time to return in a few hours. But, as he never fulfilled this -promise, Boyle ordered the cover to be taken off the crucible, and -found that it contained a yellow-coloured metal, possessing all the -properties of pure gold, and only a little lighter than the weight of -the materials originally put into the crucible.[12] - -[12] Ibid. - -The following strange story is related by Helvetius, physician to the -Prince of Orange, in his Vitulus Aureus: Helvetius was a disbeliever of -the philosopher’s stone, and the universal medicine, and even turned -Sir Kenelm Digby’s sympathetic powder into ridicule. On the 27th of -December, 1666, a stranger called upon him, and after conversing for -some time about a universal medicine, showed a yellow powder, which -he affirmed to be the philosopher’s stone, and at the same time five -large plates of gold, which had been made by means of it. Helvetius -earnestly entreated that he would give him a little of this powder, -or at least that he would make a trial of its power; but the stranger -refused, promising however to return in six weeks. He returned -accordingly, and after much entreaty he gave to Helvetius a piece of -the stone, not larger than the size of a rape-seed. When Helvetius -expressed his doubt whether so small a portion would be sufficient to -convert four grains of lead into gold, the adept broke off one half of -it, and assured him that what remained was more than sufficient for the -purpose. Helvetius, during the first conference, had concealed a little -of the stone below his nail. This he threw into melted lead, but it was -almost all driven off in smoke, leaving only a vitreous earth. When he -mentioned this circumstance, the stranger informed him that the powder -must be enclosed in wax, before it be thrown into the melted lead, lest -it should be injured by the smoke of the lead. The stranger promised -to return next day, and show him the method of making the projection; -but having failed to make his appearance, Helvetius, in the presence -of his wife and son, put six drachms of lead into a crucible, and as -soon as it was melted he threw into it the fragment of philosopher’s -stone in his possession, previously covered over with wax. The crucible -was now covered with its lid, and left for a quarter of an hour in the -fire, at the end of which time he found the whole lead converted into -gold. The colour was at first a deep green; being poured into a conical -vessel, it assumed a blood-red colour; but when cold, it acquired the -true tint of gold. Being examined by a goldsmith, he considered it as -pure gold. He requested Porelius, who had the charge of the Dutch mint, -to try its value. Two drachms of it being subjected to quartation, and -solution in aqua fortis, were found to have increased in weight by two -scruples. This increase was doubtless owing to the silver, which still -remained enveloped in the gold, after the action of the aqua fortis. -To endeavour to separate the silver more completely, the gold was again -fused with seven times its weight of antimony, and treated in the usual -manner; but no alteration took place in the weight.[13] - -[13] Bergmann, Opusc. iv. 121. - -It would be easy to relate many other similar narratives; but the -three which I have given are the best authenticated of any that I am -acquainted with. The reader will observe, that they are all stated on -the authority, not of the persons who were the actors, but of others -to whom they related them; and some of these, as the English bishop, -perhaps not very familiar with chemical processes, and therefore liable -to leave out or misstate some essential particulars. The evidence, -therefore, though the best that can be got, is not sufficient to -authenticate these wonderful stories. A little latent vanity might -easily induce the narrators to suppress or alter some particulars, -which, if known, would have stripped the statements of every thing -marvellous which they contain, and let us into the secret of the -origin of the gold, which these alchymists boasted that they had -fabricated. Whoever will read the statements of Paracelsus, respecting -his knowledge of the philosopher’s stone, which he applied not to the -formation of gold but to medicine, or whoever will examine his formulas -for making the stone, will easily satisfy himself that Paracelsus -possessed no real knowledge on the subject.[14] - -[14] I allude to his _Manuale sive de Lapide Philosophico Medicinali_. -Opera Paracelsi, ii. 133. Folio edition. Geneva, 1658. - -But to convey as precise ideas on this subject as possible, it may -be worth while to state a few of the methods by which the alchymists -persuaded themselves that they could convert the baser metals into gold. - -In the year 1694 an old gentleman called upon Mr. Wilson, at that time -a chemist in London, and informed him that at last, after forty years’ -search, he had met with an ample recompence for all his trouble and -expenses. This he confirmed with some oaths and imprecations; but, -considering his great weakness and age, he looked upon himself as -incapable to undergo the fatigues of the process. “I have here,” says -he, “a piece of sol (_gold_) that I made from silver, about four years -ago, and I cannot trust any man but you with so rare a secret. We will -share equally the charges and profit, which will render us wealthy -enough to command the world.” The nature of the process being stated, -Mr. Wilson thought it not unreasonable, especially as he aimed at no -peculiar advantage for himself. He accordingly put it to the trial in -the following manner: - -1. Twelve ounces of Japan copper were beat into thin plates, and laid -_stratum super stratum_ with three ounces of flowers of sulphur, in a -crucible. It was exposed in a melting-furnace to a gentle heat, till -the sulphureous flames expired. When cold, the æs ustum (_sulphuret -of copper_) was pounded, and stratified again; and this process was -repeated five times. Mr. Wilson does not inform us whether the powder -was mixed with flowers of sulphur every time that it was heated; but -this must have been the case, otherwise the sulphuret would have been -again converted into metallic copper, which would have melted into a -mass. By this first process, then, bisulphuret of copper was formed, -composed of equal weights of sulphur and copper. - -2. Six pounds of iron wire were put into a large glass body, and twelve -pounds of muriatic acid poured upon it. Six days elapsed (during which -it stood in a gentle heat) before the acid was saturated with the iron. -The solution was then decanted off, and filtered, and six pounds of new -muriatic acid poured on the undissolved iron. This acid, after standing -a sufficient time, was decanted off, and filtered. Both liquids were -put into a large retort, and distilled by a sand-heat. Towards the -end, when the drops from the retort became yellow, the receiver was -changed, and the fire increased to the highest degree, in which the -retort was kept between four and six hours. When all was cold, the -receiver was taken off, and a quantity of flowers was found in the neck -of the retort, variously coloured, like the rainbow. The yellow liquor -in the receiver weighed ten ounces and a half; the flowers (_chloride -of iron_), two ounces and three drams. The liquid and flowers were put -into a clean bottle. - -3. Half a pound of sal enixum (_sulphate of potash_) and a pound and a -half of nitric acid were put into a retort. When the salt had dissolved -in the acid, ten ounces of mercury (previously distilled through -quicklime and salt of tartar) were added. The whole being distilled to -dryness, a fine yellow mass (_pernitrate of mercury_) remained in the -bottom of the retort. The liquor was returned, with half a pound of -fresh nitric acid, and the distillation repeated. The distillation was -repeated a third time, urging this last cohobation with the highest -degree of fire. When all was cold, a various-coloured mass was found in -the bottom of the retort: this mass was doubtless a mixture of sulphate -of potash, and pernitrate of mercury, with some oxide of mercury. - -4. Four ounces of fine silver were dissolved in a pound of aqua fortis; -to the solution was added, of the bisulphuret of copper four ounces; -of the mixture of sulphate of potash, pernitrate of mercury, and oxide -of mercury one ounce and a half, and of the solution of perchloride -of iron two ounces and a half. When these had stood in a retort -twenty-four hours, the liquor was decanted off, and four ounces of -nitric acid were poured upon the little matter that was not dissolved. -Next morning a total dissolution was obtained. The whole of this -dissolution was put into a retort and distilled almost to dryness. The -liquid was poured back, and the distillation repeated three times; the -last time the retort being urged by a very strong fire till no fumes -appeared, and not a drop fell. - -5. The matter left in the bottom of the retort was now put into a -crucible, all the corrosive fumes were gently evaporated, and the -residue melted down with a fluxing powder. - -This process was expected to yield five ounces of pure gold; but -on examination the silver was the same (except the loss of half a -pennyweight) as when dissolved in the aqua fortis: there were indeed -some grains among the scoria, which appeared like gold, and would not -dissolve in aqua fortis. No doubt they consisted of peroxide of iron, -or, perhaps, persulphuret of iron.[15] - -[15] Wilson’s Chemistry, p. 375. - -Mr. Wilson’s alchymistical friend, not satisfied with this first -failure, insisted upon a repetition of the process, with some -alteration in the method and the addition of a certain quantity -of gold. The whole was accordingly gone through again; but it is -unnecessary to say that no gold was obtained, or at least, the two -drams of gold employed had increased in weight by only two scruples and -thirteen grains; this addition was doubtless owing to a little silver -from which it had not been freed.[16] - -[16] Ibid., p. 379. - -I shall now give a process for making the philosopher’s stone, which -was considered by Mangetus as of great value, and on that account was -given by him in the preface to his Bibliotheca Chemica. - -1. Prepare a quantity of spirit of wine, so free from water that it is -wholly combustible, and so volatile that when a drop of it is let fall -it evaporates before it reaches the ground;--this constitutes the first -menstruum. - -2. Take pure mercury, revived in the usual manner from cinnabar, put -it into a glass vessel with common salt and distilled vinegar; agitate -violently, and when the vinegar acquires a black colour pour it off and -add new vinegar; agitate again, and continue these repeated agitations -and additions till the vinegar ceases to acquire a black colour from -the mercury: the mercury is now quite pure and very brilliant. - -3. Take of this mercury four parts; of sublimed mercury[17] (_mercurii -meteoresati_), prepared with your own hands, eight parts; triturate -them together in a wooden mortar with a wooden pestle, till all the -grains of running mercury disappear. This process is tedious and rather -difficult. - -[17] Probably corrosive sublimate. - -4. The mixture thus prepared is to be put into an aludel, or a -sand-bath, and exposed to a subliming heat, which is to be gradually -raised till the whole sublimes. Collect the sublimed matter, put it -again into the aludel, and sublime a second time; this process must be -repeated five times. Thus a very sweet and crystallized sublimate is -obtained: it constitutes the salt of wise men (_sal sapientum_), and -possesses wonderful properties.[18] - -[18] Probably calomel. - -5. Grind it in a wooden mortar, and reduce it to powder; put it into -a glass retort, and pour upon it the spirit of wine (No. 1) till it -stands about three finger-breadths above the powder; seal the retort -hermetically, and expose it to a very gentle heat for seventy-four -hours, shaking it several times a-day; then distil with a gentle heat -and the spirit of wine will pass over, together with spirit of mercury. -Keep this liquid in a well-stopped bottle, lest it should evaporate. -More spirit of wine is to be poured upon the residual salt, and after -digestion it must be distilled off as before; and this process must -be repeated till the whole salt is dissolved, and distilled over with -the spirit of wine. You have now performed a great work. The mercury -is now rendered in some measure volatile, and it will gradually become -fit to receive the tincture of gold and silver. Now return thanks to -God, who has hitherto crowned your wonderful work with success; nor -is this great work involved in Cimmerian darkness, but clearer than -the sun; though preceding writers have imposed upon us with parables, -hieroglyphics, fables, and enigmas. - -6. Take this mercurial spirit, which contains our magical steel in its -belly, put it into a glass retort, to which a receiver must be well and -carefully luted: draw off the spirit by a very gentle heat, there will -remain in the bottom of the retort the quintessence or soul of mercury; -this is to be sublimed by applying a stronger heat to the retort that -it may become volatile, as all the philosophers express themselves-- - - Si fixum solvas faciesque volare solutum, - Et volucrum figas faciet te vivere tutum. - -This is our luna, our fountain, in which the king and queen may bathe. -Preserve this precious quintessence of mercury, which is very volatile, -in a well-shut vessel for further use. - -8. Let us now proceed to the operation of common gold, which we shall -communicate clearly and distinctly, without digression or obscurity; -that from vulgar gold we may obtain our philosophical gold, just -as from common mercury we obtained, by the preceding processes, -philosophical mercury. - -In the name of God, then, take common gold, purified in the usual -way by antimony, convert it into small grains, which must be washed -with salt and vinegar, till it be quite pure. Take one part of this -gold, and pour on it three parts of the quintessence of mercury; as -philosophers reckon from seven to ten, so we also reckon our number as -philosophical, and we begin with three and one; let them be married -together like husband and wife, to produce children of their own kind, -and you will see the common gold sink and plainly dissolve. Now the -marriage is consummated; now two things are converted into one: thus -the philosophical sulphur is at hand, as the philosophers say, _the -sulphur being dissolved the stone is at hand_. Take then, in the name -of God, our philosophical vessel, in which the king and queen embrace -each other as in a bedchamber, and leave it till the water is converted -into earth, then peace is concluded between the water and fire, then -the elements have no longer any thing contrary to each other; because, -when the elements are converted into earth they no longer oppose each -other; for in earth all elements are at rest. For the philosophers say, -“When you shall have seen the water coagulate itself, think that your -knowledge is true, and that your operations are truly philosophical.” -The gold is now no longer common, but ours is philosophical, on -account of our processes: at first exceedingly fixed; then exceedingly -volatile, and finally exceedingly fixed; and the whole science depends -upon the change of the elements. The gold at first was a metal, now it -is a sulphur, capable of converting all metals into its own sulphur. -Now our tincture is wholly converted into sulphur, which possesses the -energy of curing all diseases: this is our universal medicine against -all the most deplorable diseases of the human body; therefore, return -infinite thanks to Almighty God for all the good things which he has -bestowed upon us. - -9. In this great work of ours, two modes of fermenting and projecting -are wanting, without which the uninitiated will not easily follow our -process. The mode of fermenting is as follows: Take of our sulphur -above described one part, and project it upon three parts of very -pure gold fused in a furnace; in a moment you will see the gold, by -the force of the sulphur, converted into a red sulphur of an inferior -quality to the first sulphur; take one part of this, and project it -upon three parts of fused gold, the whole will be again converted -into a sulphur, or a friable mass; mixing one part of this with three -parts of gold, you will have a malleable and extensible metal. If -you find it so, well; if not add other sulphur and it will again pass -into sulphur. Now the sulphur will be sufficiently fermented, or our -medicine will be brought into a metallic nature. - -10. The mode of projecting is this: Take of the fermented sulphur one -part, and project it upon ten parts of mercury, heated in a crucible, -and you will have a perfect metal; if its colour is not sufficiently -deep, fuse it again, and add more fermented sulphur, and thus it will -acquire colour. If it becomes frangible, add a sufficient quantity of -mercury and it will be perfect. - -Thus, friend, you have a description of the universal medicine, not -only for curing diseases and prolonging life, but also for transmuting -all metals into gold. Give therefore thanks to Almighty God, who, -taking pity on human calamities, has at last revealed this inestimable -treasure, and made it known for the common benefit of all.[19] - -[19] Mangeti Bibliothecæ Chemicæ Præfatio. - -Such is the formula (slightly abridged) of Carolus Musitanus, by which -the philosopher’s stone, according to him, may be formed. Compared with -the formulas of most of the alchymists, it is sufficiently plain. What -the _sublimed mercury_ is does not appear; from the process described -we should be apt to consider it as _corrosive sublimate_; on that -supposition, the sal sapientum formed in No. 5, would be calomel: the -only objection to this supposition is the process described in No. 5; -for calomel is not soluble in alcohol. The philosopher’s stone prepared -by this elaborate process could hardly have been any thing else than -an _amalgam of gold_; it could not have contained chloride of gold, -because such a preparation, instead of acting medicinally, would have -proved a most virulent poison. There is no doubt that amalgam of gold, -if projected into melted lead or tin, and afterwards cupellated, would -leave a portion of gold--all the gold of course that existed previously -in the amalgam. It might therefore have been employed by impostors to -persuade the ignorant that it was really the philosopher’s stone; but -the alchymists who prepared the amalgam could not be ignorant that it -contained gold. - -There is another process given in the same preface of a very different -nature, but too long to be transcribed here, and the nature of the -process is not sufficiently intelligible to render an account of it of -much consequence.[20] - -[20] Whoever wishes to enter more particularly into the processes for -making the philosopher’s stone contrived by the alchymists, will find a -good deal of information on the subject in Stahl’s Fundamenta Chemiæ, -vol. i. p. 219, in his chapter _De lapide philosophorum_: and Junker’s -Conspectus Chemiæ, vol. i. p. 604, in his tabula 28, _De transmutatione -metallorum universali_: and tabula 29, _De transmutatione metallorum -particulari_. - -The preceding observations will give the reader some notion of the -nature of the pursuits which occupied the alchymists: their sole -object was the preparation of a substance to which they gave the name -of the philosopher’s stone, which possessed the double property of -converting the baser metals into gold, and of curing all diseases, and -of preserving human life to an indefinite extent. The experiments of -Wilson, and the formula of Musitanus, which have been just inserted, -will give the reader some notion of the way in which they attempted -to manufacture this most precious substance. Being quite ignorant of -the properties of bodies, and of their action on each other, their -processes were guided by no scientific analogies, and one part of the -labour not unfrequently counteracted another; it would be a waste of -time, therefore, to attempt to analyze their numerous processes, even -though such an attempt could be attended with success. But in most -cases, from the unintelligible terms in which their books are written, -it is impossible to divine the nature of the processes by which they -endeavoured to manufacture the philosopher’s stone, or the nature of -the substances which they obtained.[21] - -[21] Kircher, in his Mundus Subterraneus, has an article on the -philosopher’s stone, in which he examines the processes of the -alchymists, points out their absurdity, and proves by irrefragable -arguments that no such substance had ever been obtained. Those who are -curious about alchymistical processes may consult that work. - -In consequence of the universality of the opinion that gold could be -made by art, there was a set of impostors who went about pretending -that they were in possession of the philosopher’s stone, and offering -to communicate the secret of making it for a suitable reward. Nothing -is more astonishing than that persons should be found credulous enough -to be the dupes of such impostors. The very circumstance of their -claiming a reward was a sufficient proof that they were ignorant of -the secret which they pretended to reveal; for what motive could a -man have for asking a reward who was in possession of a method of -creating gold at pleasure? To such a person money could be no object, -as he could procure it in any quantity. Yet, strange as it may appear, -they met with abundance of dupes credulous enough to believe their -asseverations, and to supply them with money to enable them to perform -the wished-for processes. The object of these impostors was either to -pocket the money thus furnished, or they made use of it to purchase -various substances from which they extracted oils, acids, or similar -products, which they were enabled to sell at a profit. To keep the -dupes, who thus supplied them with the means of carrying on these -processes, in good spirits, it was necessary to show them occasionally -small quantities of the baser metals converted into gold; this they -performed in various ways. M. Geoffroy, senior, who had an opportunity -of witnessing many of their performances, has given us an account of a -number of their tricks. It may be worth while to state a few by way of -specimen. - -Sometimes they made use of crucibles with a false bottom; at the real -bottom they put a quantity of oxide of gold or silver, this was covered -with a portion of powdered crucible, glued together by a little gummed -water or a little wax; the materials being put into this crucible, and -heat applied, the false bottom disappears, the oxide of gold or silver -is reduced, and at the end of the process is found at the bottom of the -crucible, and considered as the product of the operation. - -Sometimes they make a hole in a piece of charcoal and fill it with -oxide of gold or silver, and stop up the mouth with a little wax; or -they soak charcoal in solutions of these metals; or they stir the -mixtures in the crucible with hollow rods containing oxide of gold or -silver within, and the bottom shut with wax: by these means the gold -or silver wanted is introduced during the process, and considered as a -product of the operation. - -Sometimes they have a solution of silver in nitric acid, or of gold -in aqua regia, or an amalgam of gold or silver, which being adroitly -introduced, furnishes the requisite quantity of metal. A common -exhibition was to dip nails into a liquid, and take them out half -converted into gold. The nails consisted of one-half gold, neatly -soldered to the iron, and covered with something to conceal the colour, -which the liquid removed. Sometimes they had metals one-half gold the -other half silver, soldered together, and the gold side whitened with -mercury; the gold half was dipped into the transmuting liquid and then -the metal heated; the mercury was dissipated, and the gold half of the -metal appeared.[22] - -[22] Mem. Paris, 1722, p. 61. - -As the alchymists were assiduous workmen--as they mixed all the metals, -salts, &c. with which they were acquainted, in various ways with each -other, and subjected such mixtures to the action of heat in close -vessels, their labours were occasionally repaid by the discovery of new -substances, possessed of much greater activity than any with which they -were previously acquainted. In this way they were led to the discovery -of sulphuric, nitric, and muriatic acids. These, when known, were made -to act upon the metals; solutions of the metals were obtained, and -this gradually led to the knowledge of various metalline salts and -preparations, which were introduced with considerable advantage into -medicine. Thus the alchymists, by their absurd pursuits, gradually -formed a collection of facts, which led ultimately to the establishment -of scientific chemistry. On this account it will be proper to notice, -in this place, such of them as appeared in Europe during the darker -ages, and acquired the highest reputation either on account of their -skill as physicians, or their celebrity as chemists.[23] - -[23] The original author, whom all who have given any account of the -alchymists have followed, is Olaus Borrichius, in his Conspectus -Scriptorum Chemicorum Celebriorum. He does not inform us from what -sources his information was derived. - -1. The first alchymist who deserves notice is Albertus Magnus, or -Albert Groot, a German, who was born, it is supposed, in the year -1193, at Bollstaedt, and died in the year 1282.[24] When very young -he is said to have been so remarkable for his dulness, that he became -the jest of his acquaintances. He studied the sciences at Padua, and -afterwards taught at Cologne, and finally in Paris. He travelled -through all Germany as Provincial of the order of Dominican Monks, -visited Rome, and was made bishop of Ratisbon: but his passion for -science induced him to give up his bishopric, and return to a cloister -at Cologne, where he continued till his death. - -[24] Sprengel’s History of Medicine, iv. 368. - -Albertus was acquainted with all the sciences cultivated in his time. -He was at once a theologian, a physician, and a man of the world: he -was an astronomer and an alchymist, and even dipped into magic and -necromancy. His works are very voluminous. They were collected by Petr. -Jammy, and published at Leyden in twenty-one folio volumes, in 1651. -His principal alchymistical tracts are the following: - - 1. De Rebus Metallicis et Mineralibus. - - 2. De Alchymia. - - 3. Secretorum Tractatus. - - 4. Breve Compendium de Ortu Metallorum. - - 5. Concordantia Philosophorum de Lapide. - - 6. Compositum de Compositis. - - 7. Liber octo Capitum de Philosophorum Lapide. - -Most of these tracts have been inserted in the Theatrum Chemicum. They -are in general plain and intelligible. In his treatise De Alchymia, for -example, he gives a distinct account of all the chemical substances -known in his time, and of the manner of obtaining them. He mentions -also the apparatus then employed by chemists, and the various processes -which they had occasion to perform. I may notice the most remarkable -facts and opinions which I have observed in turning over these -treatises. - -He was of opinion that all metals are composed of sulphur and mercury; -and endeavoured to account for the diversity of metals partly by -the difference in the purity, and partly by the difference in the -proportions of the sulphur and mercury of which they are composed. He -thought that water existed also as a constituent of all metals. - -He was acquainted with the water-bath, employed alembics for -distillation, and aludels for sublimation; and he was in the habit of -employing various lutes, the composition of which he describes. - -He mentions alum and caustic alkali, and seems to have known the -alkaline basis of cream of tartar. He knew the method of purifying the -precious metals by means of lead and of gold, by cementation; and -likewise the method of trying the purity of gold, and of distinguishing -pure from impure gold. - -He mentions red lead, metallic arsenic, and liver of sulphur. He was -acquainted with green vitriol and iron pyrites. He knew that arsenic -renders copper white, and that sulphur attacks all the metals except -gold. - -It is said by some that he was acquainted with gunpowder; but nothing -indicating any such knowledge occurs in any of his writings that I have -had an opportunity of perusing.[25] - -[25] It is curious that Olaus Borrichius omits Albertus Magnus in the -list of alchymistical writers that he has given. - -2. Albertus is said to have had for a pupil, while he taught in Paris, -the celebrated Thomas Aquinas, a Dominican, who studied at Bologna, -Rome, and Naples, and distinguished himself still more in divinity and -scholastic philosophy than in alchymy. He wrote, - - 1. Thesaurum Alchymiæ Secretissimum. - - 2. Secreta Alchymiæ Magnalia. - - 3. De Esse et Essentia Mineralium; and perhaps some other - works, which I have not seen. - -These works, so far as I have perused them, are exceedingly obscure, -and in various places unintelligible. Some of the terms still employed -by modern chemists occur, for the first time, in the writings of Thomas -Aquinas. Thus the term _amalgam_, still employed to denote a compound -of mercury with another metal, occurs in them, and I have not observed -it in any earlier author. - -3. Soon after Albertus Magnus, flourished Roger Bacon, by far the most -illustrious, the best informed, and the most philosophical of all the -alchymists. He was born in 1214, in the county of Somerset. After -studying in Oxford, and afterwards in Paris, he became a cordelier -friar; and, devoting himself to philosophical investigations, his -discoveries, notwithstanding the pains which he took to conceal them, -made such a noise, that he was accused of magic, and his brethren in -consequence threw him into prison. He died, it is said, in the year -1284, though Sprengel fixes the year of his death to be 1285. - -His writings display a degree of knowledge and extent of thought -scarcely credible, if we consider the time when he wrote, the darkest -period of the dark ages. In his small treatise De Mirabili Potestate -Artis et Naturæ, he begins by pointing out the absurdity of believing -in magic, necromancy, charms, or any of those similar opinions which -were at that time universally prevalent. He points out the various -ways in which mankind are deceived by jugglers, ventriloquists, &c.; -mentions the advantages which physicians may derive from acting on -the imaginations of their patients by means of charms, amulets, and -infallible remedies: he affirms that many of those things which are -considered as supernatural, are merely so because mankind in general -are unacquainted with natural philosophy. To illustrate this he -mentions a great number of natural phenomena, which had been reckoned -miraculous; and concludes with several secrets of his own, which he -affirms to be still more extraordinary imitations of some of the most -singular processes of nature. These he delivers in the enigmatical -style of the times; induced, as he tells us, partly by the conduct of -other philosophers, partly by the propriety of the thing, and partly by -the danger of speaking too plainly. - -From an attentive perusal of his works, many of which have been -printed, it will be seen that Bacon was a great linguist, being -familiar with Latin, Greek, Hebrew, and Arabic; and that he had perused -the most important books at that time existing in all these languages. -He was also a grammarian; he was well versed in the theory and practice -of perspective; he understood the use of convex and concave glasses, -and the art of making them. The camera obscura, burning-glasses, and -the powers of the telescope, were known to him. He was well versed -in geography and astronomy. He knew the great error in the Julian -calendar, assigned the cause, and proposed the remedy. He understood -chronology well; he was a skilful physician, and an able mathematician, -logician, metaphysician, and theologist; but it is as a chemist that -he claims our attention here. The following is a list of his chemical -writings, as given by Gmelin, the whole of which I have never had an -opportunity of seeing: - - 1. Speculum Alchymiæ.[26] - - 2. Epistola de Secretis Operibus Artis et Naturæ et - de Nullitate Magiæ. - - 3. De Mirabili Potestate Artis et Naturæ. - - 4. Medulla Alchymiæ. - - 5. De Arte Chemiæ. - - 6. Breviorium Alchymiæ. - - 7. Documenta Alchymiæ. - - 8. De Alchymistarum Artibus. - - 9. De Secretis. - - 10. De Rebus Metallicis. - - 11. De Sculpturis Lapidum. - - 12. De Philosophorum Lapide. - - 13. Opus Majus, _or_ Alchymia Major. - - 14. Breviarium de Dono Dei. - - 15. Verbum abbreviatum de Leone Viridi. - - 16. Secretum Secretorum. - - 17. Tractatus Trium Verborum. - - 18. Speculum Secretorum. - -[26] This tract and the next, which is of considerable length, will be -found in Mangetus’s Bibliotheca Chemica Curiosa, i. 613. - -A number of these were collected together, and published at Frankfort -in 1603, under the title of “Rogeri Baconis Angli de Arte Chemiæ -Scripta,” in a small duodecimo volume. The Opus Majus was published in -London in 1733, by Dr. Jebb, in a folio volume. Several of his tracts -still continue in manuscript in the Harleian and Bodleian libraries at -Oxford. He considered the metals as compound of mercury and sulphur. -Gmelin affirms that he was aware of the peculiar nature of manganese, -and that he was acquainted with bismuth; but after perusing the whole -of the Speculum Alchymiæ, the third chapter of which he quotes as -containing the facts on which he founds his opinion, I cannot find any -certain allusion either to manganese or bismuth. The term _magnesia_ -indeed occurs, but nothing is said respecting its nature: and long -after the time of Paracelsus, bismuth (_bisematum_) was considered as -an impure kind of _lead_. That he was acquainted with the composition -and properties of _gunpowder_ admits of no doubt. In the sixth chapter -of his epistle De Secretis Operibus Artis et Naturæ et de Nullitate -Magiæ, the following passage occurs: - -“For sounds like thunder, and coruscations like lightning, may be made -in the air, and they may be rendered even more horrible than those of -nature herself. A small quantity of matter, properly manufactured, not -larger than the human thumb, may be made to produce a horrible noise -and coruscation. And this may be done many ways, by which a city or an -army may be destroyed, as was the case when Gideon and his men broke -their pitchers and exhibited their lamps, fire issuing out of them with -inestimable noise, destroyed an infinite number of the army of the -Midianites.” And in the eleventh chapter of the same epistle occurs -the following passage: “Mix together saltpetre, luru vopo vir con -utriet, and sulphur, and you will make thunder and lightning, if you -know the method of mixing them.” Here all the ingredients of gunpowder -are mentioned except charcoal, which is doubtless concealed under the -barbarous terms _luru vopo vir con utriet_. - -But though Bacon was acquainted with gunpowder, we have no evidence -that he was the inventor. How far the celebrated Greek fire, -concerning which so much has been written, was connected with -gunpowder, it is impossible to say; but there is good evidence to prove -that gunpowder was known and used in China before the commencement of -the Christian era; and Lord Bacon is of opinion that the thunder and -lightning and magic stated by the Macedonians to have been exhibited -in Oxydrakes, when it was besieged by Alexander the Great, was nothing -else than gunpowder. Now as there is pretty good evidence that the use -of gunpowder had been introduced into Spain by the Moors, at least as -early as the year 1343, and as Roger Bacon was acquainted with Arabic, -it is by no means unlikely that he might have become acquainted with -the mode of making the composition, and with its most remarkable -properties, by perusing some Arabian writer, with whom we are at -present unacquainted. Barbour, in his life of Bruce, informs us that -guns were first employed by the English at the battle of Werewater, -which was fought in 1327, about forty years after the death of Bacon. - - Two novelties that day they saw, - That forouth in Scotland had been nene; - Timbers for helmes was the ane - That they thought then of great beautie, - And also wonder for to see. - The other _crakys_ were of war - That they before heard never air. - -In another part of the same book we have the phrase _gynnys for -crakys_, showing that the term crakys was used to denote a gun or -musket of some form or other. It is curious that the English would -seem to have been the first European nation that employed gunpowder -in war; they used it in the battle of Crecy, fought in 1346, when it -was unknown to the French, and it is supposed to have contributed -materially to the brilliant victory which was obtained. - -4. Raymond Lully is said to have been a scholar and a friend of -Roger Bacon. He was a most voluminous writer, and acquired as high a -reputation as any of the alchymists. According to Mutius he was born -in Majorca in the year 1235. His father was seneschal to King James -the First of Arragon. In his younger days he went into the army; but -afterwards held a situation in the court of his sovereign. Devoting -himself to science he soon acquired a competent knowledge of Latin and -Arabic. After studying in Paris he got the degree of doctor conferred -upon him. He entered into the order of Minorites, and induced King -James to establish a cloister of that order in Minorca. He afterwards -travelled through Italy, Germany, England, Portugal, Cyprus, Armenia -and Palestine. He is said by Mutius to have died in the year 1315, and -to have been buried in Majorca. The following epitaph is given by Olaus -Borrichius as engraven on his tomb: - - Raymundus Lulli, cujus pia dogmata nulli - Sunt odiosa viro, jacet hic in marmore miro - Hic M. et CC. Cum P. cœpit sine sensibus esse. - -M C C C in these lines denote 1300, and P which is the 15th letter of -the alphabet denotes 15, so that if this epitaph be genuine it follows -that his death took place in the year 1315. - -It seems scarcely necessary to notice the story that Raymond Lully -made a present to Edward, King of England, of six millions of pieces -of gold, to enable him to make war on the Saracens, which sum that -monarch employed, contrary to the intentions of the donor, in his -French wars. This story cannot apply to Edward III., because in 1315, -at the time of Raymond’s death, that monarch was only three years of -age. It can scarcely apply to Edward II., who ascended the throne in -1305: but who had no opportunity of making war, either on the Saracens -or French, being totally occupied in opposing the intrigues of his -queen and rebellious subjects, to whom he ultimately fell a sacrifice. -Edward the First made war both upon the Saracens and the French, and -lived during the time of Raymond: but his wars with the Saracens were -finished before he ascended the throne, and during the whole of his -reign he was too much occupied with his projected conquest of Scotland, -to pay much serious attention to any French war whatever. The story, -therefore, cannot apply to any of the three Edwards, and cannot be -true. Raymond Lully is said to have been stoned to death in Africa for -preaching Christianity in the year 1315. Others will have it that he -was alive in England in the year 1332, at which time his age would have -been 97. - -The following table exhibits a list of his numerous writings, most of -which are to be found in the Theatrum Chemicum, the Artis Auriferæ, or -the Biblotheca Chemica. - - 1. Praxis Universalis Magni Operis. - - 2. Clavicula. - - 3. Theoria et Practica. - - 4. Compendium Animæ Transmutationis Artis Metallorum. - - 5. Ultimum Testamentum. Of this work, which - professes to give the whole doctrine of alchymy, there - is an English translation. - - 6. Elucidatio Testamenti. - - 7. Potestas Divitiorum cum Expositione Testamenti - Hermetis. - - 8. Compendium Artis Magicæ, quoad Compositionem - Lapidis. - - 9. De Lapide et Oleo Philosophorum. - - 10. Modus accipiendi Aurum Potabile. - - 11. Compendium Alchymiæ et Naturalis Philosophiæ. - - 12. Lapidarium. - - 13. Lux Mercuriorum. - - 14. Experimenta. - - 15. Ars Compendiosa vel Vademecum. - - 16. De Accurtatione Lapidis. - -Several other tracts besides these are named by Gmelin; but I have -never seen any of them. I have attempted several times to read over -the works of Raymond Lully, particularly his Last Will and Testament, -which is considered the most important of them all. But they are all so -obscure, and filled with such unintelligible jargon, that I have found -it impossible to understand them. In this respect they form a wonderful -contrast with the works of Albertus Magnus and Roger Bacon, which are -comparatively plain and intelligible. For an account, therefore, of -the chemical substances with which he was acquainted, I am obliged to -depend on Gmelin; though I put no great confidence in his accuracy. - -Like his predecessors, he was of opinion that all the metals are -compounds of sulphur and mercury. But he seems first to have introduced -those hieroglyphical figures or symbols, which appear in such profusion -in the English translation of his Last Will and Testament, and which -he doubtless intended to illustrate his positions. Though what other -purpose they could serve, than to induce the reader to consider his -statements as allegorical, it is not easy to conjecture. Perhaps they -may have been designed to impose upon his contemporaries by an air of -something very profound and inexplicable. For that he possessed a good -deal of charlatanry is pretty evident, from the slightest glance at his -performances. - -He was acquainted with cream of tartar, which he distilled: the -residue he burnt, and observed that the alkali extracted deliquesced -when exposed to the air. He was acquainted with nitric acid, which he -obtained by distilling a mixture of saltpetre and green vitriol. He -mentions its power of dissolving, not merely mercury, but likewise -other metals. He could form aqua regia by adding sal ammoniac or -common salt to nitric acid, and he was aware of the property which it -had of dissolving gold. - -Spirit of wine was well known to him, and distinguished by him by -the names of aqua vitæ ardens and argentum vivum vegetabile. He knew -the method of rendering it stronger by an admixture of dry carbonate -of potash, and of preparing vegetable tinctures by means of it. -He mentions alum from Rocca, marcasite, white and red mercurial -precipitate. He knew the volatile alkali and its coagulations by -means of alcohol. He was acquainted with cupellated silver, and first -obtained rosemary oil by distilling the plant with water. He employed a -mixture of flour and white of egg spread upon a linen cloth to cement -cracked glass vessels, and used other lutes for similar purposes.[27] - -[27] Gmelin’s Geschitte der Chemie, i. 74. - -5. Arnoldus de Villa Nova is said to have been born at Villeneuve, a -village of Provence, about the year 1240. Olaus Borrichius assures us, -that in his time his posterity lived in the neighbourhood of Avignon; -that he was acquainted with them, and that they were by no means -destitute of chemical knowledge. He is said to have been educated at -Barcelona, under John Casamila, a celebrated professor of medicine. -This place he was obliged to leave, in consequence of foretelling the -death of Peter of Arragon. He went to Paris, and likewise travelled -through Italy. He afterwards taught publicly in the University of -Montpelier. His reputation as a physician became so great, that his -attendance was solicited in dangerous cases by several kings, and -even by the pope himself. He was skilled in all the sciences of his -time, and was besides a proficient in Greek, Hebrew, and Arabic. When -at Paris he studied astrology, and calculating the age of the world, -he found that it was to terminate in the year 1335. The theologians -of Paris exclaimed against this and several other of his opinions, -and condemned our astrologer as a heretic. This obliged him to leave -France; but the pope protected him. He died in the year 1313, on his -way to visit Pope Clement V. who lay sick at Avignon. The following -table exhibits a pretty full list of his works: - - 1. Antidotorium - - 2. De Vinis. - - 3. De Aquis Laxativis. - - 4. Rosarius Philosophorum. - - 5. Lumen Novum. - - 6. De Sigillis. - - 7. Flos Florum. - - 8. Epistolæ super Alchymia ad Regem Neapolitanum. - - 9. Liber Perfectionis Magisterii. - - 10. Succosa Carmina. - - 11. Questiones de Arte Transmutationis Metallorum. - - 12. Testamentum. - - 13. Lumen Luminum. - - 14. Practica. - - 15. Speculum Alchymiæ. - - 16. Carmen. - - 17. Questiones ad Bonifacium. - - 18. Semita Semitæ. - - 19. De Lapide Philosophorum. - - 20. De Sanguine Humano. - - 21. De Spiritu Vini, Vino Antimonii et Gemmorum Viribus. - -Perhaps the most curious of all these works is the _Rosarium_, which -is intended as a complete compend of all the alchymy of his time. -The first part of it on the theory of the art is plain enough; but -the second part on the practice, which is subdivided into thirty-two -chapters, and which professes to teach the art of making the -philosopher’s stone, is in many places quite unintelligible to me. - -He considered, like his predecessors, mercury as a constituent of -metals, and he professed a knowledge of the philosopher’s stone, -which he could increase at pleasure. Gold and gold-water was, in his -opinion, one of the most precious of medicines. He employed mercury in -medicine. He seems to designate bismuth under the name _marcasite_. He -was in the habit of preparing oil of turpentine, oil of rosemary, and -spirit of rosemary, which afterwards became famous under the name of -Hungary-water. These distillations were made in a glazed earthen vessel -with a glass top and helm. - -His works were published at Venice in a single folio volume, in the -year 1505. There were seven subsequent editions, the last of which -appeared at Strasburg in 1613. - -6. John Isaac Hollandus and his countryman of the same name, were -either two brothers or a father and son; it is uncertain which. For -very few circumstances respecting these two laborious and meritorious -men have been handed down to posterity. They were born in the -village of Stolk in Holland, it is supposed in the 13th century. -They certainly were after Arnoldus de Villa Nova, because they refer -to him in their writings. They wrote many treatises on chemistry, -remarkable, considering the time when they wrote, for clearness and -precision, describing their processes with accuracy, and even giving -figures of the instruments which they employed. This makes their books -intelligible, and they deserve attention because they show that various -processes, generally supposed of a more modern date were known to them. -Their treatises are written partly in Latin and partly in German. The -following list contains the names of most of them: - - 1. Opera Vegetabilia ad ejus alia Opera Intelligenda - Necessaria. - - 2. Opera Mineralia seu de Lapide Philosophico - Libri duo. - - 3. Tractat vom stein der Weisen. - - 4. Fragmenta Quædam Chemica. - - 5. De Triplice Ordine Elixiris et Lapidis Theorea. - - 6. Tractatus de Salibus et Oleis Metallorum. - - 7. Fragmentum de Opere Philosophorum. - - 8. Rariores Chemiæ Operationes. - - 9. Opus Saturni. - - 10. De Spiritu Urinæ. - - 11. Hand der Philosopher. - -Olaus Borrichius complains that their _opera mineralia_ abound with -processes; but that they are ambiguous, and such that nothing certain -can be deduced from them even after much labour. Hence they draw on -the unwary tyro from labour to labour. I am disposed myself to draw a -different conclusion, from what I have read of that elaborate work. -It is true that the processes which profess to make the philosopher’s -stone, are fallacious, and do not lead to the manufacture of gold, -as the author intended, and expected: but it is a great deal when -alchymistical processes are delivered in such intelligible language -that you know the substances employed. This enables us easily to see -the results in almost every case, and to know the new compounds which -were formed during a vain search for the philosopher’s stone. Had the -other alchymists written as plainly, the absurdity of their researches -would have been sooner discovered, and thus a useless or pernicious -investigation would have sooner terminated. - -7. Basil Valentine is said to have been born about the year 1394, and -is, perhaps, the most celebrated of all the alchymists, if we except -Paracelsus. He was a Benedictine monk, at Erford, in Saxony. If we -believe Olaus Borrichius, his writings were enclosed in the wall of -a church at Erford, and were discovered long after his death, in -consequence of the wall having been driven down by a thunderbolt. But -this story is not well authenticated, and is utterly improbable. Much -of his time seems to have been taken up in the preparation of chemical -medicines. It was he that first introduced antimony into medicine; -and it is said, though on no good authority, that he first tried the -effects of antimonial medicines upon the monks of his convent, upon -whom it acted with such violence that he was induced to distinguish the -mineral from which these medicines had been extracted, by the name of -_antimoine_ (hostile to monks). What shows the improbability of this -story is, that the works of Basil Valentine, and in particular his -Currus triumphalis Antimonii, were written in the German language. Now -the German name for antimony is not _antimoine_, but _speissglass_. The -Currus triumphalis Antimonii was translated into Latin by Kerkringius, -who published it, with an excellent commentary, at Amsterdam, in 1671. - -Basil Valentine writes with almost as much virulence against the -physicians of his time, as Paracelsus himself did afterwards. As no -particulars of his life have been handed down to posterity, I shall -satisfy myself with giving a catalogue of his writings, and then -pointing out the most striking chemical substances with which he was -acquainted. - -The books which have appeared under the name of Basil Valentine, are -very numerous; but how many of them were really written by him, and how -many are supposititious, is extremely doubtful. The following are the -principal: - - 1. Philosophia Occulta. - - 2. Tractat von naturlichen und ubernaturlichen - Dingen; auch von der ersten tinctur, Wurzel und - Geiste der Metallen. - - 3. Von dern grossen stein der Uhralten. - - 4. Vier tractatlein vom stein der Weisen. - - 5. Kurzer anhang und klare repetition oder Wiederholunge - vom grosen stein der Uhralten. - - 6. De prima Materia Lapidis Philosophici. - - 7. Azoth Philosophorum seu Aureliæ occultæ de - Materia Lapidis Philosophorum. - - 8. Apocalypsis Chemica. - - 9. Claves 12 Philosophiæ. - - 10. Practica. - - 11. Opus præclarum ad utrumque, quod pro Testamento - dedit Filio suo adoptivo. - - 12. Letztes Testament. - - 13. De Microcosmo. - - 14. Von der grosen Heimlichkeit der Welt und ihrer - Arzney. - - 15. Von der Wissenschaft der sieben Planeten. - - 16. Offenbahrung der verborgenen Handgriffe. - - 17. Conclusiones or Schlussreden. - - 18. Dialogus Fratris Alberti cum Spiritu. - - 19. De Sulphure et fermento Philosophorum. - - 20. Haliographia. - - 21. Triumph wagen Antimonii. - - 22. Einiger Weg zur Wahrheit. - - 23. Licht der Natur. - -The only one of these works that I have read with care, is -Kerkringius’s translation and commentary on the Currus triumphalis -Antimonii. It is an excellent book, written with clearness and -precision, and contains every thing respecting antimony that was known -before the commencement of the 19th century. How much of this is owing -to Kerkringius I cannot say, as I have never had an opportunity of -seeing a copy of the original German work of Basil Valentine. - -Basil Valentine, like Isaac Hollandus, was of opinion that the metals -are compounds of salt, sulphur, and mercury. The philosopher’s stone -was composed of the same ingredients. He affirmed, that there exists -a great similarity between the mode of purifying gold and curing the -diseases of men, and that antimony answers best for both. He was -acquainted with arsenic, knew many of its properties, and mentions the -red compound which it forms with sulphur. Zinc seems to have been known -to him, and he mentions bismuth, both under its own name, and under -that of _marcasite_. He was aware that manganese was employed to render -glass colourless. He mentions nitrate of mercury, alludes to corrosive -sublimate, and seems to have known the red oxide of mercury. It would -be needless to specify the preparations of antimony with which he was -acquainted; scarcely one was unknown to him which, even at present, -exists in the European Pharmacopœias. Many of the preparations of lead -were also familiar to him. He was aware that lead gives a sweet taste -to vinegar. He knew sugar of lead, litharge, yellow oxide of lead, -white carbonate of lead; and mentions that this last preparation was -often adulterated in his time. He knew the method of making green -vitriol, and the double chloride of iron and ammonia. He was aware -that iron could be precipitated from its solution by potash, and that -iron has the property of throwing down copper. He was aware that tin -sometimes contains iron, and ascribed the brittleness of Hungarian -iron to copper. He knew that oxides of copper gave a green colour to -glass; that Hungarian silver contained gold; that gold is precipitated -from aqua regia by mercury, in the state of an amalgam. He mentions -fulminating gold. But the important facts contained in his works are -so numerous, while we are so uncertain about the genuineness of the -writings themselves, that it will scarcely be worth while to proceed -further with the catalogue. - -Thus I have brought the history of alchymy to the time of Paracelsus, -when it was doomed to undergo a new and important change. It will be -better, therefore, not to pursue the history of alchymy further, but -to take up the history of true chemistry; and in the first place to -endeavour to determine what chemical facts were known to the Ancients, -and how far the science had proceeded to develop itself before the time -of Paracelsus. - - - - -CHAPTER II. - -OF THE CHEMICAL KNOWLEDGE POSSESSED BY THE ANCIENTS. - - -Notwithstanding the assertions of Olaus Borrichius, and various other -writers who followed him on the same side, nothing is more certain -than that the ancients have left no chemical writings behind them, -and that no evidence whatever exists to prove that the science of -chemistry was known to them. Scientific chemistry, on the contrary, -took its origin from the collection and comparison of the chemical -facts, made known by the practice and improvement of those branches -of manufactures which can only be conducted by chemical processes. -Thus the smelting of ores, and the reduction of the metals which -they contain, is a chemical process; because it requires, for its -success, the separation of certain bodies which exist in the ore -chemically combined with the metals; and it cannot be done, except -by the application or mixture of a new substance, having an affinity -for these substances, and capable, in consequence, of separating them -from the metal, and thus reducing the metal to a state of purity. The -manufacture of glass, of soap, of leather, are all chemical, because -they consist of processes, by means of which bodies, having an affinity -for each other, are made to unite in chemical combination. Now I shall -in this chapter point out the principal chemical manufactures that -were known to the ancients, that we may see how much they contributed -towards laying the foundation of the science. The chief sources of our -information on this subject are the writings of the Greeks and Romans. -Unfortunately the arts and manufactures stood in a very different -degree of estimation among the ancients from what they do among the -moderns. Their artists and manufacturers were chiefly slaves. The -citizens of Greece and Rome devoted themselves to politics or war. Such -of them as turned their attention to learning confined themselves to -_oratory_, which was the most fashionable and the most important study, -or to history, or poetry. The only scientific pursuits which ever -engaged their attention, were politics, ethics, and mathematics. For, -unless Archimedes is to be considered as an exception, scarcely any -of the numerous branches of physics and mechanical philosophy, which -constitute so great a portion of modern science, even attracted the -attention of the ancients. - -In consequence of the contemptible light in which all mechanical -employments were viewed by the ancients, we look in vain in any of -their writings for accurate details respecting the processes which -they followed. The only exception to this general neglect and contempt -for all the arts and trades, is Pliny the Elder, whose object, in -his natural history, was to collect into one focus, every thing that -was known at the period when he lived. His work displays prodigious -reading, and a vast fund of erudition. It is to him that we are chiefly -indebted for the knowledge of the chemical arts which were practised -by the ancients. But the low estimation in which these arts were held, -appears evident from the wonderful want of information which Pliny so -frequently displays, and the erroneous statements which he has recorded -respecting these processes. Still a great deal may be drawn from the -information which has been collected and transmitted to us by this -indefatigable natural historian. - -I.--The ancients were acquainted with SEVEN METALS; -namely, gold, silver, mercury, copper, iron, tin, and lead. They knew -and employed various preparations of zinc, and antimony, and arsenic; -though we have no evidence that these bodies were known to them in the -metallic state. - -1. Gold is spoken of in the second chapter of Genesis as existing and -familiarly known before the flood. - -“The name of the first is Pison; that is it which encompasseth the -whole land of Havilah, where there is gold. And the gold of that -land is good: there is bdellium and the onyx-stone.” The Hebrew word -for gold, בהז (_zahav_) signifies to be clear, to shine; alluding, -doubtless, to the brilliancy of that metal. The term _gold_ occurs -frequently in the writings of Moses, and the metal must have been in -common use among the Egyptians, when that legislator led the children -of Israel out of Egypt.[28] Gold is found in the earth almost always in -a native state. There can be no doubt that it was much more abundant -on the surface of the earth, and in the beds of rivers in the early -periods of society, than it is at present: indeed this is obvious, -from the account which Pliny gives of the numerous places in Asia and -Greece, and other European countries, where gold was found in his time. - -[28] Exodus xi. 2--xxv. 11, 12, 13, 17, 18, 24, 25, 26--xxviii. -8--xxxii. 2, &c. - -Gold, therefore, could hardly fail to attract the attention of the -very first inhabitants of the globe; its beauty, its malleability, its -indestructibility, would give it value: accident would soon discover -the possibility of melting it by heat, and thus of reducing the grains -or small pieces of it found on the surface of the earth into one large -mass. It would be speedily made into ornaments and utensils of various -kinds, and thus gradually would come into common use. This we find -to have occurred in America, when it was discovered by Columbus. -The inhabitants of the tropical parts of that vast continent were -familiarly acquainted with gold; and in Mexico and Peru it existed in -great abundance; indeed the natives of these countries seem to have -been acquainted with no other metal, or at least no other metal was -brought into such general use, except silver, which in Peru was, it is -true, still more common than gold. - -Gold, then, was probably the first metal with which man became -acquainted; and that knowledge must have preceded the commencement of -history, since it is mentioned as a common and familiar substance in -the Book of Genesis, the oldest book in existence, of the authenticity -of which we possess sufficient evidence. The period of leading the -children of Israel out of Egypt by Moses, is generally fixed to -have been one thousand six hundred and forty-eight years before the -commencement of the Christian era. So early, then, we are certain, -that not only gold, but the other six malleable metals known to the -ancients, were familiar to the inhabitants of Egypt. The Greeks ascribe -the discovery of gold to the earliest of their heroes. According to -Pliny, it was discovered on Mount Pangæus by Cadmus, the Phœnician: -but Cadmus’s voyage into Greece was nearly coeval with the exit of -the Israelites out of Egypt, at which time we learn from Moses that -gold was in common use in Egypt. All that can be meant, then, is, that -Cadmus first discovered gold in Greece; not that he made mankind first -acquainted with it. Others say that Thoas and Eaclis, or Sol, the son -of Oceanus, first found gold in Panchaia. Thoas was a contemporary -of the heroes of the Trojan war, or at least was posterior to the -Argonautic expedition, and consequently long posterior to Moses and the -departure of the children of Israel from Egypt. - -2. Silver also was not only familiarly known to the Egyptians in -the time of Moses, but, as we learn from Genesis, was coined into -money before Joseph was set over the land of Egypt by Pharaoh, which -happened one thousand eight hundred and seventy-two years before the -commencement of the Christian era, and consequently two hundred and -twenty-four years before the departure of the children of Israel out of -Egypt. - -“And Joseph gathered up all the money that was found in the land of -Egypt, and in the land of Canaan, for the corn which they bought; and -Joseph brought the money into Pharaoh’s house.”[29] The Hebrew word ףםכ -(_keseph_), translated _money_, signifies silver, and was so called -from its pale colour. Silver occurs in many other passages of the -writings of Moses.[30] The Greeks inform us, that Erichthonius the -Athenian, or Ceacus, were the discoverers of silver; but both of these -individuals were long posterior to the time of Joseph. - -[29] Genesis xlvii. 14. - -[30] For example, Exodus xi. 2--xxvi. 19, 21--xxvii. 10, 11, 17, &c. - -Silver, like gold, occurs very frequently in the metallic state. This, -no doubt, was a still more frequent occurrence in the early ages of the -world; it would therefore attract the attention of mankind as early as -gold, and for the same reason. It is very ductile, very beautiful, and -much more easily fused than gold: it would be therefore more easily -reduced into masses, and formed into different utensils and ornaments -than even gold itself. The ores of it which occur in the earth are -heavy, and would therefore draw the attention of even rude men to them: -they have, most of them at least, the appearance of being metallic, and -the most common of them may be reduced to the state of metallic silver, -simply by keeping them a sufficient time in fusion. Accordingly we find -that the Peruvians, before they were overrun by the Spaniards, had made -themselves acquainted with the mode of digging out and smelting the -ores of silver which occur in their country, and that many of their -most common utensils were made of that metal. - -Silver and gold approached each other nearer in value among the -ancients than at present: an ounce of fine gold was worth from ten -to twelve ounces of fine silver, the variation depending upon the -accidental relation of the supply of both metals. But after the -discovery of America, the quantity of silver found in that continent, -especially in Mexico, was so great, compared with that of the gold -found, that silver became considerably cheaper; so that an ounce of -fine gold came to be equivalent to about fourteen ounces and a half -of fine silver. Of course these relative values have fluctuated a -little according to the abundance of the supply of silver. Though the -revolution in the Spanish American colonies has considerably diminished -the supply of silver from the mines, that deficiency seems to have been -supplied by other ways, and thus the relative proportion between the -value of gold and silver has continued nearly unaltered. - -3. That copper must have been known in the earliest ages of society, -is sufficiently evident. It occurs frequently native, and could not -fail to attract the attention of mankind, from its colour, weight, and -malleability. It would not be difficult to fuse it even in the rudest -ages: and when melted into masses, as it is malleable and ductile, it -would not require much skill to convert it into useful and ornamental -utensils. The Hebrew word תשחנ (_nechooshat_) translated _brass_, -obviously means _copper_. We have the authority of the Book of Genesis -to satisfy us that copper was known before the flood, and probably as -early as either silver or gold. - -“And Zillah, she also bore Tubal-cain, an instructor of every artificer -in brass (_copper_) and iron.”[31] - -[31] Genesis iv. 22. - -The word _copper_ occurs in many other passages of the writings of -Moses.[32] That the Hebrew word translated _brass_ must have meant -copper is obvious, from the following passage: “Out of whose hills -thou mayest dig brass.”[33] Brass does not exist in the earth, nor any -ore of it, it is always made artificially; it must therefore have been -copper, or an ore of copper, that was alluded to by Moses. - -[32] For example, Exodus xxvii. 2, 3, 4, 6, 10, 11, 17, 18, 19--xxx. -18, &c. Numbers xxi. 9. - -[33] Deut. viii. 9. - -Copper must have been discovered and brought into common use long -before iron or steel; for Homer represents his heroes of the Trojan war -as armed with swords, &c. of copper. Copper itself is too soft to be -made into cutting instruments; but the addition of a little tin gives -it the requisite hardness. Now we learn from the analyses of Klaproth, -that the copper swords of the ancients were actually hardened by the -addition of tin.[34] - -[34] Beitrage, vi. 81. - -Copper was the metal in common use in the early part of the Roman -commonwealth. Romulus coined copper money alone. Numa established a -college of workers in copper (_ærariorum fabrum_).[35] - -[35] Plinii Hist. Nat. xxxiv. 1. - -The Latin word _æs_ sometimes signifies copper, and sometimes brass. -It is plain from what Pliny says on the subject, that he did not know -the difference between copper and brass; he says, that an ore of _æs_ -occurs in Cyprus, called _chalcitis_, where _æs_ was first discovered. -Here _æs_ obviously means copper. In another place he says, that _æs_ -is obtained from a mineral called _cadmia_. Now from the account of -cadmia by Pliny and Dioscorides, there cannot be a doubt that it is -the ore to which the moderns have given the name of _calamine_, by -means of which brass is made. It is sometimes a silicate and sometimes -a carbonate of zinc; for both of these ores are confounded together -under the name of cadmia, and both are employed in the manufacture of -brass. - -Solinus says, that _æs_ was first made at Chalcis, a town in Eubœa. -Hence the Greek name, χαλκος (_chalkos_), by which copper was -distinguished. - -The proper name for brass, by which is meant an alloy of copper and -zinc, was _aurichalcum_, or golden, or yellow copper. Pliny says, -that long before his time, the ore of aurichalcum was exhausted, so -that no more of that beautiful alloy was made. Are we to conclude -from this, that there once existed an ore consisting of calamine and -ore of copper, mixed or united together? After the exhaustion of the -aurichalcum mine, the _salustianum_ became the most famous; but it soon -gave place to the _livianum_, a copper-mine in Gaul, named after Livia, -the wife of Augustus. Both these mines were exhausted in the time of -Pliny. The _æs marianum_, or copper of Cordova, was the most celebrated -in his time. This last _æs_, he says, absorbs most cadmia, and acquires -the greatest resemblance to aurichalcum. We see from this, that in -Pliny’s time brass was made artificially, and by a process similar to -that still followed by the moderns. - -The most celebrated alloy of copper among the ancients, was the _æs -corinthium_, or Corinthian copper, formed accidentally, as Pliny -informs us, during the burning of Corinth by Mummius in the year 608, -after the building of Rome, or one hundred and forty-five years before -the commencement of the Christian era. There were four kinds of it, -of which Pliny gives the following description; not, however, very -intelligible: - - 1. White. It resembled silver much in its lustre, - and contained an excess of that metal. - - 2. Red. In this kind there is an excess of gold. - - 3. In the third kind, gold, silver, and copper are - mixed in equal proportions. - - 4. The fourth kind is called _hepatizon_, from its - having a liver colour. It is this colour which gives it - its value.[36] - -[36] Plinii Hist. Nat. xxxiv. 2. - -Copper was put by the ancients to almost all the uses to which it is -put by the moderns. One of the great sources of consumption was bronze -statues, which were first introduced into Rome after the conquest of -Asia Minor. Before that time, the statues of the Romans were made of -wood or stoneware. Pliny gives various formulas for making bronze for -statues. Of these it may be worth while to put down the most material. - -1. To new copper add a third part of old copper. To every hundred -pounds of this mixture, twelve pounds and a half of tin[37] are added, -and the whole melted together. - -[37] Pliny’s phrase is _plumbum argentorium_. But that the addition was -tin, and consequently that plumbum argentorium meant tin, we have the -evidence of Klaproth, who analyzed several of these bronze statues, and -found them composed of copper, lead, and tin. - -2. Another kind of bronze for statues was formed, by melting together - - 100lbs. copper, - 10lbs. lead, - 5lbs. tin. - -3. Their copper-pots for boiling consisted of 100lbs. of copper, melted -with three or four pounds of tin. - -The four celebrated statues of horses which, during the reign of -Theodosius II. were transported from Chio to Constantinople; and, when -Constantinople was taken and plundered by the Crusaders and Venetians -in 1204, were sent by Martin Zeno and set up by the doge, Peter Ziani, -in the portal of St. Mark; were in 1798, transported by the French -to Paris; and finally, after the overthrow of Buonaparte, and the -restoration of the Bourbons in 1815, returned to Venice and placed -upon their ancient pedestals. The metal of which these horses had been -made was examined by Klaproth, and found by him composed of - - Copper, 993 - Tin, 7 - ---- - 1000[38] - -[38] Beitrage, vi. 89. - -Klaproth also analyzed an ancient bronze statue in one of the German -cabinets, and found it composed of - - Copper, 916 - Tin, 75 - Lead, 9 - ---- - 1000[39] - -[39] Beitrage, vi. 118. The statue in question was known by the name of -“The Statue of Püstrichs,” at Sondershausen. - -Several other old brass and bronze pieces of metal, very ancient, but -found in Germany, were also analyzed by Klaproth. The result of his -analyses was as follows: - -The metal of which the altar of Krodo was made consisted of - - Copper, 69 - Zinc, 18 - Lead, 13 - ---- - 100[40] - -[40] Ibid., p. 127. - -The emperor’s chair, which had in the eleventh century been transported -from Harzburg to Goslar, where it still remains, was found to be -composed of - - Copper, 92·5 - Tin, 5 - Lead, 2·5 - ---- - 100[41] - -[41] Ibid., p. 132. - -Another piece of metal, which enclosed the high altar in a church in -Germany, was composed of - - Copper, 75 - Tin, 12·5 - Lead, 12·5 - ---- - 100[42] - -[42] Ibid., p. 134. - -These analyses, though none of them corresponds exactly with the -proportions given by Pliny, confirms sufficiently his general -statement, that the bronze of the ancients employed for statues was -copper, alloyed with lead and tin. - -Some of the bronze statues cast by the ancients were of enormous -dimensions, and show decisively the great progress which had been made -by them in the art of working and casting metals. The addition of the -lead and tin would not only add greatly to the hardness of the alloy, -but would at the same time render it more easily fusible. The bronze -statue of Apollo, placed in the capitol at the time of Pliny, was -forty-five feet high, and cost 500 talents, equivalent to about £50,000 -of our money. It was brought from Apollonia, in Pontus, by Lucullus. -The famous statue of the sun at Rhodes was the work of Chares, a -disciple of Lysippus; it was ninety feet high, was twelve years in -making, and cost 300 talents (about £30,000). It was made out of the -engines of war left by Demetrius when he raised the siege of Rhodes. -After standing fifty-six years, it was overthrown by an earthquake. -It lay on the ground 900 years, and was sold by Mauvia, king of the -Saracens, to a merchant, who loaded 900 camels with the fragments of it. - -Copper was introduced into medicine at rather an early period of -society, and various medicinal preparations of it are described by -Dioscorides and Pliny. It remains for us to notice the most remarkable -of these. Pliny mentions an institution, to which he gives the name -of _Seplasia_; the object of which was, to prepare medicines for the -use of medical men. It seems, therefore, to have been similar to our -apothecaries’ shops of the present day. Pliny reprobates the conduct of -the persons who had the charge of these Seplasiæ in his time. They were -in the habit of adulterating medicines to such a degree, that nothing -good or genuine could be procured from them.[43] - -[43] Plinii Hist. Nat. xxxiv. 11. - -Both the oxides of copper were known to the ancients, though they were -not very accurately distinguished from each other: they were known by -the names _flos æris_ and _scoria æris_, or _squama æris_. They were -obtained by heating bars of copper red-hot and letting them cool, -exposed to the air. What fell off during the cooling was the _flos_, -what was driven off by blows of a hammer was the _squama_ or _scoria -æris_. It is obvious, that all these substances were nearly of the same -nature, and that they were in reality mixtures of the black and red -oxides of copper. - -_Stomoma_ seems also to have been an oxide of copper, which was -gradually formed upon the surface of the metal, when it was kept in a -state of fusion. - -These oxides of copper were used as external applications in cases of -polypi of the nose, diseases of the anus, ear, mouth, &c., seemingly as -escharotics. - -_Ærugo_, verdigris, was a subacetate of copper, doubtless often mixed -with subacetate of zinc, as not only copper but brass also was used for -preparing it. The mode of preparing this substance was similar to the -process still followed. Whether verdigris was employed as a paint by -the ancients does not appear; for Pliny takes no notice of any such use -of it. - -_Chalcantum_, called also _atramentum sutorium_, was probably a mixture -of sulphate of copper and sulphate of iron. Pliny’s account of the -mode of procuring it is too imperfect to enable us to form precise -ideas concerning it; but it was crystallized on strings, which were -extended for the purpose in the solution: its colour was blue, and it -was transparent like glass. This description might apply to sulphate of -copper; but as the substance was used for blackening leather, and on -that account was called _atramentum sutorium_, it is obvious that it -must have contained also _sulphate of iron_. - -_Chalcitis_ was the name for an ore of copper. The account given of it -by Pliny agrees best with copper pyrites, which is now known to be a -_sulphur salt_, composed of one atom of sulphide of copper (the acid) -united to one atom of sulphide of iron (the base). Pliny informs us, -that it is a mixture of _copper_, _misy_, and _sory_: its colour is -that of honey. By age, he says, it changes into sory. I think it most -probable that native sory, of which Pliny speaks, was sulphuret of -copper, and artificial sory sulphate of copper. The native sory is said -to constitute black veins in chalcitis. Pliny’s description of misy -(μισυ) best agrees with copper pyrites. Dioscorides describes it as -hard, as having the colour of gold, and as shining like a star.[44] All -this agrees pretty well with copper pyrites. - -[44] Lib. v. c. 117. - -_Scoleca_ (so called because it assumed the shape of a worm) was formed -by triturating alumen, carbonate of soda, and white vinegar, till the -matter became green. It was probably a mixture of sulphate of soda, -acetate of soda, acetate of alumina, and acetate of copper, probably -with more or less oxide of copper, &c., depending upon the proportions -of the respective constituents employed. - -Such are the preparations of copper, employed by the ancients. They -were only used as external applications, partly as escharotics, and -partly to induce ulcers to put on a healthy appearance. It does not -appear that copper was ever used by the ancients as an internal remedy. - -4. Though _zinc_ in the metallic state was unknown to the ancients, -yet as they knew some of its ores, and employed preparations of it -in medicine, and were in the habit of alloying copper with it, and -converting it into brass, it will be proper to state here what was -known to them concerning it. - -Pliny nowhere makes us acquainted with the process by which copper was -converted into brass, nor does he seem to have been acquainted with it; -but from several facts incidentally mentioned by him, it is obvious -that their process was similar to that which is followed at present -by modern brass-makers. The copper in grains is mixed with a certain -quantity of calamine (cadmia) and charcoal, and exposed for some time -to a moderate heat in a covered crucible. The calamine is reduced to -the metallic state, and imbibed by the copper grains. When the copper -is thus converted into brass, the temperature is raised sufficiently -high to melt the whole: it is then poured out and cast into a slab or -ingot. - -The cadmia employed by the ancients in medicine was not calamine, -but oxide of zinc, which sublimed during the fusion of brass in an -open vessel. It was distinguished by a variety of names, according to -the state in which it was obtained: the lighter portion was called -_capnitis_. _Botryitis_ was the name of the portion in the interior of -the chimney: the name was derived from some resemblance which it was -supposed to have to a bunch of grapes. It had two colours, ash and red. -The red variety was reckoned best. This red colour it might derive from -some copper mixed with it, but more probably from iron; for a small -quantity of oxide of iron is sufficient to give oxide of zinc a rather -beautiful red colour. The portion collected on the sides of the furnace -was called _placitis_: it constituted a crust, and was distinguished by -different names, according to its colour; _onychitis_ when it was blue -externally, but spotted internally: _ostracitis_, when it was black -and dirty-looking. This last variety was considered as an excellent -application to wounds. The best cadmia in Pliny’s time was furnished -by the furnaces of the Isle of Cyprus: it was used as an external -application in ulcers, inflammations, eruptions, &c., so that its -use in medicine was pretty much the same as at present. Sulphate and -acetate of zinc were unknown to the ancients. No attempt seems to have -been made by them to introduce any preparations of zinc as internal -medicines. - -_Pompholyx_ was the name given to oxide of zinc, sublimed by the -combustion of the zinc which exists in brass. _Spodos_ seems to have -been a mixture of oxides of zinc and copper. There were different -varieties of it distinguished by various names.[45] - -[45] See Plinii Hist. Nat. xxxiv. 13. - -5. Iron exists very rarely in the earth in a metallic state, but most -commonly in the state of an oxide; and the processes necessary to -extract metallic iron from these ores are much more complicated, and -require much greater skill, than the reduction of gold, silver, or -copper from their respective ores. This would lead us to expect that -iron would have been much longer in being discovered than the three -metals whose names have been just given. But we learn from the Book of -Genesis that iron, like copper and gold, was known before the flood, -Tubal-cain being represented as an artificer in copper and iron.[46] -The Hebrew word for iron, לזרב (_barzel_), is said to be derived from -רב (_bar_), bright, לזנ (_nazal_), to melt; and would lead one to the -suspicion, that it referred to _cast_ iron rather than _malleable_ -iron. It is possible that in these early times native iron may have -existed as well as native gold, silver, and copper; and in this way -Tubal-cain may have become acquainted with the existence and properties -of this metal. In the time of Moses, who was learned in all the wisdom -of the Egyptians, iron must have been in common use in Egypt: for -he mentions furnaces for working iron;[47] ores from which it was -extracted;[48] and tells us that swords,[49] knives,[50] axes,[51] -and tools for cutting stones,[52] were then made of that metal. Now -iron in its pure metallic state is too soft to be applied to these -uses: it is obvious, therefore, that in Moses’s time, not only iron -but steel also must have been in common use in Egypt. From this we see -how much further advanced the Egyptians were than the Greeks in the -knowledge of the manufacture of this most important metal: for during -the Trojan war, which was several centuries after the time of Moses, -Homer represents his heroes as armed with swords of copper, hardened -by tin, and as never using any weapons of iron whatever. Nay, in -such estimation was it held, that Achilles, when he celebrated games -in honour of Patrocles, proposes a ball of iron as one of his most -valuable prizes.[53] - -[46] Genesis iv. 22. - -[47] Deut. iv. 20. - -[48] Deut. viii. 9. - -[49] Numbers xxxv. 16. - -[50] Levit. i. 17. - -[51] Deut. xviii. 5. - -[52] Deut. xxvii. 5. - -[53] Iliad, lib. xxiii. l. 826. - - “Then hurl’d the hero, thundering on the ground, - A mass of iron (an enormous round), - Whose weight and size the circling Greeks admire, - Rude from the furnace and but shaped by fire. - This mighty quoit Ætion wont to rear, - And from his whirling arm dismiss’d in air; - The giant by Achilles slain, he stow’d - Among his spoils this memorable load. - For this he bids those nervous artists vie - That teach the disk to sound along the sky. - Let him whose might can hurl this bowl, arise; - Who farthest hurls it, takes it as his prize: - If he be one enrich’d with large domain - Of downs for flocks and arable for grain, - Small stock of iron needs that man provide, - His hinds and swains whole years shall be supplied - From hence: nor ask the neighbouring city’s aid - For ploughshares, wheels, and all the rural trade.” - -The mass of iron was large enough to supply a shepherd or a ploughman -with iron for five years. This circumstance is a sufficient proof of -the high estimation in which iron was held during the time of Homer. -Were a modern poet to represent his hero as holding out a large lump -of iron as a prize, and were he to represent this prize as eagerly -contended for by kings and princes, it would appear to us perfectly -ridiculous. - -Hesiod informs us, that the knowledge of iron was brought over from -Phrygia to Greece by the Dactyli, who settled in Crete during the reign -of Minos I., about 1431 years before the commencement of the Christian -era, and consequently about sixty years before the departure of the -children of Israel from Egypt: and it does not appear, that in Homer’s -time, which was about five hundred years later, the art of smelting -iron had been so much improved, as to enable men to apply it to the -common purposes of life, as had long before been done by the Egyptians. -The general opinion of the ancients was, that the method of smelting -iron ore had been brought to perfection by the Chalybes, a small -nation situated near the Black Sea,[54] and that the name _chalybs_, -occasionally used for steel, was derived from that people. - -[54] Xenophon’s Anabasis, v. 5. - -Pliny informs us, that the ores of iron are scattered very profusely -almost every where: that they exist in Elba; that there was a mountain -in Cantabria composed entirely of iron ore; and that the earth in -Cappadocia, when watered from a certain river, is converted into -iron.[55] He gives no account of the mode of smelting iron ores; nor -does he appear to have been acquainted with the processes; for he says -that iron is reduced from its ore precisely in the same way as copper -is. Now we know, that the processes for smelting copper and iron are -quite different, and founded upon different principles. He says, -that in his time many different kinds of iron existed, and they were -_stricturæ_, in Latin _a stringenda acie_. - -[55] Plinii Hist. Nat. xxxiv. 14. - -That steel was well known and in common use when Pliny wrote is obvious -from many considerations; but he seems to have had no notion of what -constituted the difference between iron and steel, or of the method -employed to convert iron into steel. In his opinion it depended upon -the nature of the water, and consisted in heating iron red-hot, and -plunging it, while in that state, into certain waters. The waters at -Bilbilis and Turiasso, in Spain, and at Comum, in Italy, possessed this -extraordinary virtue. The best steel in Pliny’s time came from China; -the next best, in point of quality, was manufactured in Parthia. - -It would appear, that at Noricum steel was manufactured directly from -the ore of iron. This process was perfectly practicable, and it is said -still to be practised in certain cases. - -The ancients were acquainted with the method of rendering iron, or -rather steel, magnetic; as appears from a passage in the fourteenth -chapter of the thirty-fourth book of Pliny. Magnetic iron was -distinguished by the name of _ferrum vivum_. - -When iron is dabbed over with alumen and vinegar it becomes like -copper, according to Pliny. Cerussa, gypsum, and liquid pitch, keep it -from rusting. Pliny was of opinion that a method of preventing iron -from rusting had been once known, but had been lost before his time. -The iron chains of an old bridge over the Euphrates had not rusted in -Pliny’s time; but a few new links, which had been added to supply the -place of some that had decayed, were become rusty. - -It would appear from Pliny, that the ancients made use of something -very like _tractors_; for he says that pain in the side is relieved by -holding near it the point of a dagger that has wounded a man. Water in -which red-hot iron had been plunged was recommended as a cure for the -dysentery; and the actual cautery with red-hot iron, Pliny informs us, -prevents hydrophobia, when a person has been bitten by a mad dog. - -Rust of iron and scales of iron were used by the ancients as astringent -medicines. - -6. Tin, also, must have been in common use in the time of Moses; for it -is mentioned without any observation as one of the common metals.[56] -And from the way in which it is spoken of by Isaiah and Ezekiel, it is -obvious that it was considered as of far inferior value to silver and -gold. Now tin, though the ores of it where it does occur are usually -abundant, is rather a scarce metal: that is to say, there are but few -spots on the face of the earth where it is known to exist. Cornwall, -Spain, in the mountains of Gallicia, and the mountains which separate -Saxony and Bohemia, are the only countries in Europe where tin occurs -abundantly. The last of these localities has not been known for five -centuries. It was from Spain and from Britain that the ancients were -supplied with tin; for no mines of tin exist, or have ever been known -to exist, in Africa or Asia, except in the East Indies. The Phœnicians -were the first nation which carried on a great trade by sea. There -is evidence that at a very early period they traded with Spain and -with Britain, and that from these countries they drew their supplies -of tin. It was doubtless the Phœnicians that supplied the Egyptians -with this metal. They had imbibed strongly a spirit of monopoly; and -to secure the whole trade of tin they carefully concealed the source -from which they drew that metal. Hence, doubtless, the reason why the -Grecian geographers, who derived their information from the Phœnicians, -represented the Insulæ Cassiterides, or tin islands, as a set of -islands lying off the north coast of Spain. We know that in fact the -Scilly islands, in these early ages, yielded tin, though doubtless the -great supply was drawn from the neighbouring province of Cornwall. -It was probably from these islands that the Greek name for _tin_ was -derived (κασσιτερος). Even Pliny informs us, that in his time tin was -obtained from the Cassiterides, and from Lusitania and Gallicia. It -occurs, he says, in grains in alluvial soil, from which it is obtained -by washing. It is in black grains, the metallic nature of which is only -recognisable by the great weight. This is a pretty accurate description -of _stream tin_, which we know formerly constituted the only ore of -that metal wrought in Cornwall. He says that the ore occurs also along -with grains of gold; that it is separated from the soil by washing -along with the grains of gold, and afterwards smelted separately. - -[56] Numbers xxxi. 22. - -Pliny gives no particulars about the mode of reducing the ore of tin to -the metallic state; nor is it at all likely that he was acquainted with -the process. - -The Latin term for tin was _plumbum album_. _Stannum_ is also used by -Pliny; but it is impossible to understand the account which he gives -of it. There is, he says, an ore consisting of lead, united to silver. -When this ore is smelted, the first metal that flows out is _stannum_. -What flows next is _silver_. What remains in the furnace is _galena_. -This being smelted, yields _lead_. - -Were we to admit the existence of an ore composed of lead and silver, -it is obvious that no such products could be obtained by simply -smelting it. - -Cassiteros, or tin, is mentioned by Homer; and, from the way in which -the metal is said by him to have been used, it is obvious that in his -time it bore a much higher price, and, consequently, was more valued -than at present. In his description of the breastplate of Agamemnon, he -says that it contained ten bands of steel, twelve of gold, and twenty -of tin (κασσιτεροιο).[57] And in the twenty-third book of the Iliad -(line 561), Achilles describes a copper breastplate surrounded with -shining tin (φαεινου κασσιτεροιο). Pliny informs us, that in his time -tin was adulterated by adding to it about one-third of white copper. A -pound of tin, when Pliny lived, cost ten denarii. Now, if we reckon a -denarius at 7¾_d._, with Dr. Arbuthnot, this would make a Roman pound -of tin to cost 6_s._ 5½_d._ But, as the Roman pound was only equal to -three-fourths of our avoirdupois pound, it is plain that in the time -of Pliny an avoirdupois pound of tin was worth 8_s._ 7¼_d._, which is -almost seven times the price of tin in the present day. - -[57] Iliad xi. 25. - -Tin, in the time of Pliny, was used for covering the inside of copper -vessels, as it is at this day. And, no doubt, the process still -followed is of the same nature as the process used by the ancients for -tinning copper. Pliny remarks, with surprise, that copper thus tinned -does not increase in weight. Now Bayen ascertained that a copper pan, -nine inches in diameter, and three inches three lines in depth, when -tinned, only acquired an additional weight of twenty-one grains. These -measures and weights are French. When we convert them into English, we -have a copper pan 9·59 inches in diameter, and 3·46 inches deep, which, -when tinned, increased in weight 17·23 troy grains. Now the surface -of the copper pan, thus tinned, was 176·468 square inches. Hence it -follows, that a square inch of copper, when tinned, increases in weight -only 0·097 grains. This increase is so small, that we may excuse Pliny, -who probably had never seen the increase of weight determined, except -by means of a rude Roman statera, for concluding that there was no -increase of weight whatever. - -Tin was employed by the ancients for mirrors: but mirrors of silver -were gradually substituted; and these in Pliny’s time had become so -common, that they were even employed by female servants or slaves. - -That Pliny’s knowledge of the properties of tin was very limited, and -far from accurate, is obvious from his assertion that _tin_ is less -fusible than silver.[58] It is true that the ancients had no measure -to determine the different degrees of heat; but as tin melts at a heat -under redness, while silver requires a bright red heat to bring it into -fusion, a single comparative trial would have shown him which was most -fusible. This trial, it is obvious, had never been made by him. - -[58] Lib. xxxiv. c. 17. - -The ancients seem to have been ignorant of the method of tinning iron. -At least, no reference to _tin plate_ is made by Pliny, or by any other -ancient author, that I have had an opportunity of consulting. - -It would appear from Pliny, that both copper and brass were tinned by -the Gauls at an early period. Tinned brass was called _æra coctilia_, -and was so beautiful that it almost passed for silver. _Plating_ (or -covering the metal with plates of silver), was gradually substituted -for tinning; and finally _gilding_ took the place of plating. The -trappings of horses, chariots, &c., were thus ornamented. Pliny nowhere -gives a description of the process of plating; but there can be little -doubt that it was similar to that at present practised. Gilding was -accomplished by laying an amalgam of gold on the copper or brass, as at -present. - -7. Lead appears also to have been in common use among the Egyptians, -at the time of Moses.[59] It was distinguished among the Romans by -the name of _plumbum nigrum_. In Pliny’s time the lead-mines existed -chiefly in Spain and Britain. In Britain lead was so abundant, that it -was prohibited to extract above a certain quantity in a year. The mines -lay on the surface of the earth. Derbyshire was the county in which -lead ores were chiefly wrought by the Romans. The rich mines in the -north of England seem to have been unknown to them. - -[59] Numbers xxxi. 22. - -Pliny was of opinion that if a lead-mine, after being exhausted, be -shut up for some time, the ore will be again renewed. - -In the time of Pliny leaden pipes were commonly used for conveying -water. The vulgar notion that the ancients did not know that water will -always rise in pipes as high as the source from which it proceeds, and -that it was this ignorance which led to the formation of aqueducts, -is quite unfounded. Nobody can read Pliny without seeing that this -important fact was well known in his time. - -Sheet lead was also used in the time of Pliny, and applied to the same -purposes as at present. But lead was much higher priced among the -ancients than it is at present. Pliny informs us that its price was to -that of tin as 7 to 10. Hence it must have sold at the rate of 6_s._ -0¼_d._ per pound. The present price of lead does not much exceed three -halfpence the pound. It is therefore only 1-48th part of the price -which it bore in the time of Pliny. This difference must be chiefly -owing to the improvements made by the moderns in working the mines and -smelting the ores of lead. - -Tin, in Pliny’s time, was used as a solder for lead. For this purpose -it is well adapted, as it is so much easier smelted than lead. But when -he says that lead is used also as a solder for tin, his meaning is not -so clear. Probably he means an alloy of lead and tin, which, fusing at -a lower point than tin, may be used to solder that metal. The addition -of some bismuth reduces the fusing point materially; but that metal was -unknown to the ancients. - -_Argentarium_ is an alloy of equal parts of lead and tin. _Tertiarium_, -of two parts lead and one part tin. It was used as a solder. - -Some preparations of lead were used by the ancients in medicine, as we -know from the description of them given us by Dioscorides and Pliny. -These preparations consisted chiefly of protoxide of lead and lead -reduced to powder, and partially oxidized by triturating it with water -in a mortar. They were applied to ulcers, and employed externally as -astringents. - -_Molybdena_ was also employed in medicine. Pliny says it was the same -as galena. From his description it is obvious that it was _litharge_; -for it was in scales, and was more valued the nearer its colour -approached to that of gold. It was employed, as it still is, for making -plasters. Pliny gives us the process for making the plaster employed by -the Roman surgeons. It was made by heating together - - 3 lbs. molybdena or litharge, - 1 lb. wax, - 3 heminæ, or 1½ pint, of olive oil. - -This process is very nearly the same as the one at present followed by -apothecaries for making adhesive plaster. - -_Psimmythium_, or _cerussa_, was the same as our _white lead_. It was -made by exposing lead in sheets to the fumes of vinegar. It would seem -probable from Pliny’s account, though it is confused and inaccurate, -that the ancients were in the habit of dissolving cerussa in vinegar, -and thus making an impure acetate of lead. - -Cerussa was used in medicine. It constituted also a common white paint. -At one time, Pliny says, it was found native; but in his time all that -was used was prepared artificially. - -_Cerussa usta_ seems to have been nearly the same as our _red lead_. It -was formed accidentally from cerussa during the burning of the Pyræus. -The colour was purple. It was imitated at Rome by burning _silis_ -_marmarosus_, which was probably a variety of some of our ochres. - -8. Besides the metals above enumerated, the ancients were also -acquainted with quicksilver. Nothing is known about the first discovery -of this metal; though it obviously precedes the commencement of -history. I am not aware that the term occurs in the writings of Moses. -We have therefore no evidence that it was known to the Egyptians at -that early period; nor do I find any allusion to it in the works of -Herodotus. But this is not surprising, as that author confines himself -chiefly to subjects connected with history. Dioscorides and Pliny both -mention it as common in their time. Dioscorides gives a method of -obtaining it by sublimation from cinnabar. It is remarkable, because -it constitutes the first example of a process which ultimately led to -distillation.[60] - -[60] Dioscorides, lib. v. c. 110. - -Cinnabar is also described by Theophrastus. The term _minium_ was -applied to it also, till in consequence of the adulteration of cinnabar -with _red lead_, the term minium came at last to be restricted to -that preparation of lead. Theophrastus describes an artificial -cinnabar, which came from the country above Ephesus. It was a shining -red-coloured sand, which was collected and reduced to a fine powder -by pounding it in vessels of stone. We do not know what it was. The -native cinnabar was found in Spain, and was used chiefly as a paint. -Dioscorides employs _minium_ as the name for what we at present call -cinnabar, or bisulphuret of mercury. His cinnabar was a red paint from -Africa, produced in such small quantity that painters could scarcely -procure enough of it to answer their purposes. - -Mercury is described by Pliny as existing native in the mines of Spain, -and Dioscorides gives the process for extracting it from cinnabar. It -was employed in gilding precisely as it is by the moderns. Pliny was -aware of its great specific gravity, and of the readiness with which -it dissolves gold. The amalgam was squeezed through leather, which -separated most of the quicksilver. When the solid amalgam remaining was -heated, the mercury was driven off and pure gold remained. - -It is obvious from what Dioscorides says, that the properties of -mercury were very imperfectly known to him. He says that it may be -kept in vessels of glass, or of lead, or of tin, or of silver.[61] Now -it is well known that it dissolves lead, tin, and silver with so much -rapidity, that vessels of these metals, were mercury put into them, -would be speedily destroyed. Pliny’s account of quicksilver is rather -obscure. It seems doubtful whether he was aware that native _argentum -vivum_ and the _hydrargyrum_ extracted from cinnabar were the same. - -[61] Lib. v. c. 110. - -Cinnabar was occasionally used as an external medicine; but Pliny -disapproves of it, assuring his readers that quicksilver and all its -preparations are virulent poisons. No other mercurial preparations -except cinnabar and the amalgam of mercury seem to have been known to -the ancients.[62] - -[62] The ancients were in the habit of extracting mercury from -cinnabar, by a kind of imperfect distillation. The native mercury they -called _argentum vivum_, that from cinnabar _hydrargyrus_. See Plinii -Hist. Nat. xxxiii. 8. - -9. The ancients were unacquainted with the metal to which we at present -give the name of _antimony_; but several of the ores of that metal, and -of the products of these ores were not altogether unknown to them. From -the account of stimmi and stibium, by Dioscorides[63] and Pliny,[64] -there can be little doubt that these names were applied to the mineral -now called _sulphuret of antimony_ or crude antimony. It is found most -commonly, Pliny says, among the ores of silver, and consists of two -kinds, the male and the female; the latter of which is most valued. - -[63] Lib. v. c. 99. - -[64] Lib. xxxiii. c. 6. - -This pigment was known at a very early period, and employed by the -Asiatic ladies in painting their eyelashes, or rather the insides of -their eyelashes, black. Thus it is said of Jezebel, that when Jehu came -to Jezreel she painted her face. The original is, _she put her eyes in -sulphuret of antimony_.[65] A similar expression occurs in Ezekiel, -“For whom thou didst wash thyself, paintedst thy eyes”--literally, -put thy eyes in sulphuret of antimony.[66] This custom of painting -the eyes black with antimony was transferred from Asia to Greece, and -while the Moors occupied Spain it was employed by the Spanish ladies -also. It is curious that the term _alcohol_, at present confined to -_spirit of wine_, was originally applied to the powder of sulphuret of -antimony.[67] The ancients were in the habit of roasting sulphuret of -antimony, and thus converting it into an impure oxide. This preparation -was also called stimmi and stibium. It was employed in medicine as -an external application, and was conceived to act chiefly as an -astringent; Dioscorides describes the method of preparing it. We see, -from Pliny’s account of stibium, that he did not distinguish between -sulphuret of antimony and oxide of antimony.[68] - -[65] 2 Kings ix. 30. - -[66] Chap. 23. v. 40, the Vulgate has it εστιβιζω τους οφθαλμους σουo. - -[67] Hartmanni Praxis Chemiatrica, p. 598. - -[68] Plinii Hist. Nat. xxxiii. 6. - -9. Some of the compounds of arsenic were also known to the ancients; -though they were neither acquainted with this substance in the metallic -state, nor with its oxide; the nature of which is so violent that had -it been known to them it could not have been omitted by Dioscorides and -Pliny. - -The word σανδαραχη (_sandarache_) occurs in Aristotle, and the -term αρῥενιχον (_arrhenichon_) in Theophrastus.[69] Dioscorides -uses likewise the same name with Aristotle. It was applied to a -scarlet-coloured mineral, which occurs native, and is now known by the -name of _realgar_. It is a compound of arsenic and sulphur. It was -employed in medicine both externally and internally, and is recommended -by Dioscorides, as an excellent remedy for an inveterate cough. - -[69] Περι των λιθων, c. 71. - -_Auripigmentum_ and _arsenicum_ were names given to the native yellow -sulphuret of arsenic. It was used in the same way, and considered by -Dioscorides and Pliny as of the same nature with realgar. But there -is no reason for supposing that the ancients were acquainted with the -compositions of either of these bodies; far less that they had any -suspicion of the existence of the metal to which we at present give the -name of arsenic. - -Such is a sketch of the facts known to the ancients respecting metals. -They knew the six malleable metals which are still in common use, and -applied them to most of the purposes to which the moderns apply them. -Scarcely any information has been left us of the methods employed by -them to reduce these metals from their ores. But unless the ores were -of a much simpler nature than the modern ores of these metals, of which -we have no evidence, the smelting processes with which the ancients -were familiar, could scarcely have been contrived without a knowledge -of the substances united with the different metals in their ores, and -of the means by which these foreign bodies could be separated, and the -metals isolated from all impurities. This doubtless implied a certain -quantity of chemical knowledge, which having been handed down to the -moderns, served as a foundation upon which the modern science of -chemistry was gradually reared: at the same time it will be admitted -that this foundation was very slender, and would of itself have led to -little. Most of the oxides, sulphurets, &c., and almost all the salts -into which these metallic bodies enter, were unknown to the ancients. - -Besides the working in metals there were some other branches of -industry practised by the ancients, so intimately connected with -chemical science, that it would be improper to pass them over in -silence. The most important of these are the following: - - -II.--COLOURS USED BY PAINTERS. - -It is well known that the ancient Grecian artists carried the art of -painting to the highest degree of perfection, and that their paintings -were admired and sought after by the most eminent and accomplished -men of antiquity; and Pliny gives us a catalogue of a great number of -first-rate pictures, and a historical account of a vast many celebrated -painters of antiquity. In his own time, he says, the art of painting -had lost its importance, statues and tablets having came in place of -pictures. - -Two kinds of colours were employed by the ancients; namely, the florid -and the austere. The florid colours, as enumerated by Pliny, were -_minium_, _armenium_, _cinnaberis_, _chrysocolla_, _purpurissum_, and -_indicum purpurissum_. - -The word _minium_ as used by Pliny means _red lead_; though Dioscorides -employs it for bisulphuret of mercury or cinnabar. - -_Armenium_ was obviously an ochre, probably of a yellow or orange -colour. - -_Cinnaberis_ was bisulphuret of mercury, which is known to have a -scarlet colour. Dioscorides employs it to denote a vegetable red -colour, probably similar to the resin at present called _dragon’s -blood_. - -_Chrysocolla_ was a green-coloured paint, and from Pliny’s description -of it, could have been nothing else than carbonate of copper or -malachite. - -_Purpurissum_ was a _lake_, as is obvious from the account of its -formation given by Pliny. The colouring matter is not specified, but -from the term used there can be little doubt that it was the liquor -from the shellfish that yielded the celebrated purple dye of the -Tyrians. - -_Indicum purpurissum_ was probably _indigo_. This might be implied from -the account of it given by Pliny. - -The austere colours used by the ancient painters were of two kinds, -native and artificial. The native were _sinopis_, _rubrica_, -_parætonium_, _melinum_, _eretria_, _auripigmentum_. The artificial -were, _ochra_, _cerussa usta_, _sandaracha_, _sandyx_, _syricum_, -_atramentum_. - -_Sinopis_ is the red substance now known by the name of reddle, and -used for marking. On that account it is sometimes called _red chalk_. -It was found in Pontus, in the Balearian islands, and in Egypt. The -price was three denarii, or 1_s._ 11¼_d._ the pound weight. The most -famous variety of _sinopis_ was from the isle of Lemnos; it was sold -sealed and stamped: hence it was called _sphragis_. It was employed to -adulterate minium. In medicine it was used to appease inflammation, and -as an antidote to poison. - -_Ochre_ is merely sinopis heated in a covered vessel. The higher the -temperature to which it has been exposed the better it is. - -_Leucophorum_ is a compound of - - 6 lbs. sinopis of Pontus, - 10 lbs. siris, - 2 lbs. melinum, - -triturated together for thirty days. It was used to make gold adhere to -wood. - -_Rubrica_ from the name, was probably a red ochre. - -_Parætonium_ was a white colour, so called from a place in Egypt, -where it was found. It was obtained also in the island of Crete, and -in Cyrene. It was said to be a combination of the froth of the sea -consolidated with mud. It consisted probably of carbonate of lime. Six -pounds of it cost only one denarius. - -_Melinum_ was also a white-coloured powder found in Melos and Samos in -veins. It was most probably a carbonate of lime. - -_Eretria_ was named from the place where it was found. Pliny gives -its medical properties, but does not inform us of its colour. It is -impossible to say what it was. - -_Auripigmentum_ was yellow sulphuret of arsenic. It was probably but -little used as a pigment by the ancient painters. - -_Cerussa usta_ was red lead. - -_Sandaracha_ was red sulphuret of arsenic. The pound of sandaracha cost -5 as.: it was imitated by red lead. Both it and _ochra_ were found in -the island Topazos in the Red Sea. - -_Sandyx_ was made by torrefying equal parts of true sandaracha and -sinopis. It cost half the price of sandaracha. Virgil mistook this -pigment for a plant, as is obvious from the following line: - - Sponte sua sandix, pascentes vestiet agnos.[70] - -[70] Bucol. iv. 1. 45. - -_Siricum_ is made by mixing sinopis and sandyx. - -_Atramentum_ was obviously from Pliny’s account of it _lamp-black_. -He mentions ivory-black as an invention of Apelles: it was called -_elephantinum_. There was a native atramentum, which had the colour of -sulphur, and got a black colour artificially. It is not unlikely that -it contained sulphate of iron, and that it got its black colour from -the admixture of some astringent substance. - -The ink of the ancients was lamp-black mixed with water, containing -gum or glue dissolved in it. _Atramentum indicum_ was the same as our -_China ink_. - -The _purpurissum_ was a high-priced pigment. It was made by putting -_creta argentaria_ (a species of white clay) into the caldrons -containing the ingredients for dying purple. The creta imbibed the -purple colour and became _purpurissum_. The first portion of _creta_ -put in constituted the finest and highest-priced pigment. The portions -put in afterwards became successively worse, and were, of consequence -lower priced. We see, from this description, that it was a lake similar -to our modern cochineal lakes.[71] - -[71] Plinii Hist. Nat. xxxv. 6. - -That the purpurissum indicum was indigo is obvious from the statement -of Pliny, that when thrown upon hot coals it gives out a beautiful -purple flame. This constitutes the character of indigo. Its price in -Pliny’s time was ten denarii, or six shillings and five-pence halfpenny -the Roman pound; which is equivalent to 8_s._ 7⅓_d._ the avoirdupois. - -Though few or none of the ancient pictures have been preserved, yet -several specimens of the colours used by them still remain in Rome and -in the ruins of Herculaneum. Among others the fresco paintings, in -the baths of Titus, still remain; and as these were made for a Roman -emperor, we might expect to find the most beautiful and costly colours -employed in them. These paints, and some others, were examined by Sir -Humphrey Davy, in 1813, while he was in Rome. From his researches we -derive some pretty accurate information respecting the colours employed -by the painters of Greece and Rome. - -1. _Red paints._ Three different kinds of red were found in a chamber -opened in 1811, in the baths of Titus, namely, a bright orange red, -a dull red, and a brown red. The bright orange red was _minium_, or -_red lead_; the other two were merely two varieties of iron ochres. -Another still brighter red was observed on the walls; it proved, on -examination, to be _vermilion_ or _cinnabar_. - -2. _Yellow paints._ All the _yellows_ examined by Davy proved to be -_iron ochres_, sometimes mixed with a little _red lead_. Orpiment -was undoubtedly employed, as is obvious from what Pliny says on the -subject: but Davy found no traces of it among the yellow colours which -he examined. A very deep yellow, approaching orange, which covered a -piece of stucco in the ruins near the monument of Caius Cestius, proved -to be protoxide of lead, or massicot, mixed with some red lead. The -yellows in the Aldobrandini pictures were all ochres, and so were those -in the pictures on the walls of the houses at Pompeii. - -3. _Blue paints._ Different shades of blues are used in the different -apartments of the baths of Titus, which are darker or lighter, as they -contain more or less carbonate of lime with which the blue pigment -had been mixed by the painter. This blue pigment turned out, on -examination, to be a frit composed of alkali and silica, fused together -with a certain quantity of oxide of copper. This was the colour -called χυανος (_kyanos_) by the Greeks, and _cæruleum_ by the Romans. -Vitruvius gives the method of preparing it by heating strongly together -sand, carbonate of soda, and filings of copper. Davy found that -fifteen parts by weight of anhydrous carbonate of soda, twenty parts -of powdered opaque flints, and three parts of copper filings, strongly -heated together for two hours, gave a substance exactly similar to -the blue pigment of the ancients, and which, when powdered, produced -a fine deep blue colour. This cæruleum has the advantage of remaining -unaltered even when the painting is exposed to the actions of the air -and sun. - -There is reason to suspect, from what Vitruvius and Pliny say, that -glass rendered blue by means of cobalt constituted the basis of some -of the blue pigments of the ancients; but all those examined by Davy -consisted of glass tinged blue by copper, without any trace of cobalt -whatever. - -4. _Green paints._ All the green paints examined by Davy proved to be -carbonates of copper, more or less mixed with carbonate of lime. I have -already mentioned that verdigris was known to the ancients. It was no -doubt employed by them as a pigment, though it is not probable that the -acetic acid would be able to withstand the action of the atmosphere for -a couple of thousand years. - -5. _Purple paints._ Davy ascertained that the colouring matter of -the ancient purple was combustible. It did not give out the smell of -ammonia, at least perceptibly. There is little doubt that it was the -_purpurissum_ of the ancients, or a clay coloured by means of the -purple of the buccinum employed by the Syrians in the celebrated purple -dye. - -6. _Black and brown paints._ The black paints were lamp-black: the -browns were some of them ochres and some of them oxides of manganese. - -7. _White paints._ All the ancient white paints examined by Davy were -carbonates of lime.[72] We know from Pliny that white lead was employed -by the ancients as a pigment; but it might probably become altered in -its nature by long-continued exposure to the weather. - -[72] Phil. Trans. 1814, p. 97. - - -III.--GLASS. - -It is admitted by some that the word which in our English Bible is -translated crystal, means glass, in the following passage of Job: “The -gold and the crystal cannot equal it.”[73] Now although the exact time -when Job was written is not known, it is admitted on all hands to be -one of the oldest of the books contained in the Old Testament. There -are strong reasons for believing that it existed before the time of -Moses; and some go so far as to affirm that there are several allusions -to it in the writings of Moses. If therefore glass were known when -the Book of Job was written, it is obvious that the discovery of it -preceded the commencement of history. But even though the word used -in Job should not refer to glass, there can be no doubt that it was -known at a very early period; for glass beads are frequently found -on the Egyptian mummies, and they are known to have been embalmed at -a very remote period. The first Greek author who uses the word glass -(ὑαλος, _hyalos_) is Aristophanes. In his comedy of The Clouds, act ii. -scene 1, in the ridiculous dialogue between Socrates and Strepsiades, -the latter announces a method which had occurred to him to pay his -debts. “You know,” says he, “the beautiful transparent stone used for -kindling fire.” “Do you mean glass (τον ὕαλον, _ton hyalon_)?” replied -Socrates. “I do,” was the answer. He then describes how he would -destroy the writings by means of it, and thus defraud his creditors. -Now this comedy was acted about four hundred and twenty-three years -before the beginning of the Christian era. The story related by Pliny, -respecting the discovery of this beautiful and important substance, is -well known. Some Phœnician merchants, in a ship loaded with carbonate -of soda from Egypt, stopped, and went ashore on the banks of the river -Belus: having nothing to support their kettles while they were dressing -their food, they employed lumps of carbonate of soda for that purpose. -The fire was strong enough to fuse some of this soda, and to unite it -with the fine sand of the river Belus: the consequence of this was -the formation of glass.[74] Whether this story be entitled to credit -or not, it is clear that the discovery must have originated in some -such accident. Pliny’s account of the manufacture of glass, like his -account of every other manufacture, is very imperfect: but we see from -it that in his time they were in the habit of making coloured glasses; -that colourless glasses were most highly prized, and that glass was -rendered colourless then as it is at present, by the addition of a -certain quantity of oxide of manganese. Colourless glass was very -high priced in Pliny’s time. He relates, that for two moderate-sized -colourless drinking-glasses the Emperor Nero paid 6000 sistertii, which -is equivalent to 25_l._ of our money. - -[73] Job xxviii. 17. - -[74] Plinii Hist. Nat. xxxvi. 26. - -Pliny relates the story of the man who brought a vessel of malleable -glass to the Emperor Tiberius, and who, after dimpling it by dashing -it against the floor, restored it to its original shape and beauty by -means of a hammer; Tiberius, as a reward for this important discovery, -ordered the artist to be executed, in order, as he alleged, to prevent -gold and silver from becoming useless. But though Pliny relates this -story, it is evident that he does not give credit to it; nor does it -deserve credit. We can assign no reason why malleable substances may -not be transparent; but all of them hitherto known are opaque. Chloride -of silver, chloride of lead and iron constitute no exception, for -they are not malleable, though by peculiar contrivances they may be -extended; and their transparency is very imperfect. - -Many specimens of the coloured glasses made by the ancients still -remain, particularly the beads employed as ornaments to the Egyptian -mummies. Of these ancient glasses several have been examined chemically -by Klaproth, Hatchett, and some other individuals, in order to -ascertain the substances employed to give colour to the glass. The -following are the facts that have been ascertained: - -1. _Red glass._ This glass was opaque, and of a lively copper-red -colour. It was probably the kind of red glass to which Pliny gave the -name of hæmatinon. Klaproth analyzed it, and obtained from 100 grains -of it the following constituents: - - Silica 71 - Oxide of lead 10 - Oxide of copper 7·5 - Oxide of iron 1 - Alumina 2·5 - Lime 1·5 - ----- - 93·5[75] - -[75] Beitrage, vi. 140. - -No doubt the deficiency was owing to the presence of an alkali. From -this analysis we see that the colouring matter of this glass was _red -oxide of copper_. - -2. _Green glass._ The colour was light verdigris-green, and the glass, -like the preceding, was opaque. The constituents from 100 grains were, - - Silica 65 - Black oxide of copper 10 - Oxide of lead 7·5 - Oxide of iron 3·5 - Lime 6·5 - Alumina 5·5 - ----- - 98·0[76] - -[76] Ibid., p. 142. - -Thus it appears that both the red and green glass are composed of the -same ingredients, though in different proportions. Both owe their -colour to copper. The red glass is coloured by the red oxide of that -metal; the green by the black oxide, which forms green-coloured -compounds, with various acids, particularly with carbonic acid and with -silica. - -3. _Blue glass._ The variety analyzed by Klaproth had a sapphire-blue -colour, and was only translucent on the edges. The constituents from -100 grains of it were, - - Silica 81·5 - Oxide of iron 9·5 - Alumina 1·5 - Oxide of copper 0·5 - Lime 0·25 - ----- - 93·25[77] - -[77] Beitrage, p. 144. - -From this analysis it appears that the colouring matter of this glass -was oxide of iron: it was therefore analogous to the lapis lazuli, or -ultramarine, in its nature. - -Davy, as has been formerly noticed, found another blue glass, or frit, -coloured by means of copper; and he showed that the blue paint of the -ancients was often made from this glass, simply by grinding it to -powder. - -Klaproth could find no cobalt in the blue glass which he examined; but -Davy found the transparent blue glass vessels, which are along with -the vases, in the tombs of Magna Græcia, tinged with cobalt; and he -found cobalt in all the transparent ancient blue glasses with which -Mr. Millingen supplied him. The mere fusion of these glasses with -alkali, and subsequent digestion of the product with muriatic acid, was -sufficient to produce a sympathetic ink from them.[78] The transparent -blue beads which occasionally adorn the Egyptian mummies have also been -examined, and found coloured by cobalt. The opaque glass beads are all -tinged by means of oxide of copper. It is probable from this that all -the transparent blue glasses of the ancients were coloured by cobalt; -yet we find no allusion to cobalt in any of the ancient authors. -Theophrastus says that copper (χαλκος, _chalcos_) was used to give -glass a fine colour. Is it not likely that the impure oxide of cobalt, -in the state in which they used it, was confounded by them with χαλκος -(_chalcos_)? - -[78] Phil. Trans. 1815, p. 108. - - -IV.--VASA MURRHINA. - -The Romans obtained from the east, and particularly from Egypt, a set -of vessels which they distinguished by the name of _vasa murrhina_, -and which were held by them in very high estimation. They were never -larger than to be capable of containing from about thirty-six to forty -cubic inches. One of the largest size cost, in the time of Pliny, about -7000_l._ Nero actually gave for one 3000_l._ They began to be known in -Rome about the latter days of the republic. The first six ever seen in -Rome were sent by Pompey from the treasures of Mithridates. They were -deposited in the temple of Jupiter in the capitol. Augustus, after -the battle of Actium, brought one of these vessels from Egypt, and -dedicated it also to the gods. In Nero’s time they began to be used by -private persons; and were so much coveted that Petronius, the favourite -of that tyrant, being ordered for execution, and conceiving that his -death was owing to a wish of Nero to get possession of a vessel of this -kind which he had, broke the vessel in pieces in order to prevent Nero -from gaining his object. - -There appear to have been two kinds of these vasa murrhina; those that -came from Asia, and those that were made in Egypt. The latter were much -more common, and much lower priced than the former, as appears from -various passages in Martial and Propertius. - -Many attempts have been made, and much learning displayed by the -moderns to determine the nature of these celebrated vessels; but in -general these attempts were made by individuals too little acquainted -with chemistry and with natural history in general to qualify them -for researches of so difficult a nature. Some will have it that they -consisted of a kind of gum; others that they were made of glass; -others, of a particular kind of shell. Cardan and Scaliger assure -us that they were _porcelain_ vessels; and this opinion was adopted -likewise by Whitaker, who supported it with his usual violence and -arrogance. Many conceive them to have been made of some precious stone, -some that they were of _obsidian_; Count de Veltheim thinks that -they were made of the Chinese _agalmatolite_, or _figure stone_; and -Dr. Hager conceives that they were made from the Chinese stone _yu_. -Bruckmann was of opinion that these vessels were made of sardonyx, and -the Abbé Winckelmann joins him in the same conclusion. - -Pliny informs us that these vasa murrhina were formed from a species -of stone dug out of the earth in Parthia, and especially in Carimania, -and also in other places but little known.[79] They must have been very -abundant at Rome in the time of Nero; for Pliny informs us that a man -of consular rank, famous for his collection of vasa murrhina, having -died, Nero forcibly deprived his children of these vessels, and they -were so numerous that they filled the whole inside of a theatre, which -Nero hoped to have seen filled with Romans when he came to it to sing -in public. - -[79] Plinii Hist. Nat. xxxvii. 2. - -It is clear that the value of these vessels depended on their size. -Small vessels bore but a small price, while that of large vessels was -very high; this shows us that it must have been difficult to procure a -block of the stone out of which they were cut, of a size sufficiently -great to make a large vessel. - -These vessels were so soft that an impression might be made upon them -with the teeth; for Pliny relates the story of a man of consular rank, -who drank out of one, and was so enamoured with it that he bit pieces -out of the lip of the cup: “Potavit ex eo ante hos annos consularis, ob -amorem abraso ejus margine.” And what is singular, the value of the -cup, so far from being injured by this abrasure, was augmented: “ut -tamen injuria ilia pretium augeret; neque est hodie murrhini alterius -præstantior indicatura.”[80] It is clear from this that the matter of -these vessels was neither rock crystal, agate, nor any precious stone -whatever, all of which are too hard to admit of an impression from the -teeth of a man. - -[80] Plinii Hist. Nat. xxxvii. 2. - -The lustre was vitreous to such a degree that the name _vitrum -murrhinum_ was given to the artificial fabric, in Egypt. - -The splendour was not very great, for Pliny observes, “Splendor his -sine viribus nitorque verius quam splendor.” - -The colours, from their depth and richness, were what gave these -vessels their value and excited admiration. The principal colours were -purple and white, disposed in undulating bands, and usually separated -by a third band, in which the two colours being mixed, assumed the tint -of flame: “Sed in pretio varietas colorum, subinde circumagentibus se -maculis in purpuram candoremque, et tertium ex utroque ignescentem, -velut per transitum coloris, purpura rubescente, aut lacte candescente.” - -Perfect transparency was considered as a defect, they were merely -translucent; this we learn not merely from Pliny, but from the -following epigram of Martial: - - Nos bibimus vitro, tu murra, Pontice: quare? - Prodat perspicuus ne duo vina calix. - -Some specimens, and they were the most valued, exhibited a play of -colour like the rainbow: Pliny says they were very commonly spotted -with “sales, verrucæque non eminentes, sed ut in corpore etiam -plerumque sessiles.” This, no doubt, refers to foreign bodies, such as -grains of pyrites, antimony, galena, &c., which were often scattered -through the substances of which the vessels were made. - -Such are all the facts respecting the vasa murrhina to be found in the -writings of the ancients; they all apply to fluor spar, and to nothing -else; but to it they apply so accurately as to leave little doubt that -they were in reality vessels of fluor spar, similar to those at present -made in Derbyshire.[81] - -[81] This opinion was first formed by Baron Born, and stated in -his Catalogue of Minerals in M. E. Raab’s collection, i. 356. But -the evidences in favour of it have been brought forward with great -clearness and force by M. Roziere. See Jour. de Min. xxxvi. 193. - -The artificial vasa murrhina made at Thebes, in Egypt, were doubtless -of glass, coloured to imitate fluor spar as much as possible, and -having the semi-transparency which distinguishes that mineral. The -imitations being imperfect, these factitious vessels were not much -prized nor sought after by the Romans, they were rather distributed -among the Arabians and Ethiopians, who were supplied with glass from -Egypt. - -Rock crystal is compared by Pliny with the stone from which the vasa -murrhina were made; the former, in his opinion, had been coagulated -by cold, the latter by heat. Though the ancients, as we have seen, -were acquainted with the method of colouring glass, yet they prized -colourless glass highest on account of its resemblance to rock crystal; -cups of it, in Pliny’s time, had supplanted those of silver and gold; -Nero gave for a crystal cup 150,000 sistertii, or 625_l._ - - -V.--DYEING AND CALICO-PRINTING. - -Very little has been handed down by the ancients respecting the -processes of dyeing. It is evident, from Pliny, that they were -acquainted with madder, and that preparations of iron were used in -the black dyes. The most celebrated dye of all, the _purple_, was -discovered by the Tyrians about fifteen centuries before the Christian -era. This colour was given by various kinds of shellfish which inhabit -the Mediterranean. Pliny divides them into two genera; the first, -comprehending the smaller species, he called _buccinum_, from their -resemblance to a hunting-horn; the second, included those called -_purpura_: Fabius Columna thinks that these were distinguished also by -the name of _murex_. - -These shellfish yielded liquor of different shades of colour; they -were often mixed in various proportions to produce particular shades -of colour. One, or at most two drops of this liquor were obtained from -each fish, by extracting and opening a little reservoir placed in the -throat. To avoid this trouble, the smaller species were generally -bruised whole, in a mortar; this was also frequently done with the -large, though the other liquids of the fish must have in some degree -injured the colour. The liquor, when extracted, was mixed with a -considerable quantity of salt to keep it from putrifying; it was then -diluted with five or six times as much water, and kept moderately hot -in leaden or tin vessels, for eight or ten days, during which the -liquor was often skimmed to separate all the impurities. After this, -the wool to be dyed, being first well washed, was immersed and kept -therein for five hours; then taken out, cooled, and again immersed, and -continued in the liquor till all the colour was exhausted.[82] - -[82] Plinii Hist. Nat. ix. 38. - -To produce particular shades of colour, carbonate of soda, urine, -and a marine plant called _fucus_, were occasionally added: one of -these colours was a very dark reddish violet--“Nigrantis rosæ colore -sublucens.”[83] But the most esteemed, and that in which the Tyrians -particularly excelled, resembled coagulated blood--“laus ei summa -in colore sanguinis concreti, nigricans aspectu, idemque suspectu -refulgens.”[84] - -[83] Ibid., ix. 36. - -[84] Plinii Hist. Nat. ix. c. 38. - -Pliny says that the Tyrians first dyed their wool in the liquor of the -purpura, and afterwards in that of the buccinum; and it is obvious from -Moses that this purple was known to the Egyptians in his time.[85] -Wool which had received this double Tyrian dye (_dia bapha_) was so -very costly that, in the reign of Augustus, it sold for about 36_l._ -the pound. But lest this should not be sufficient to exclude all from -the use of it but those invested with the very highest dignities -of the state, laws were made inflicting severe penalties, and even -death, upon all who should presume to wear it under the dignity -of an emperor. The art of dyeing this colour came at length to be -practised by a few individuals only, appointed by the emperors, and -having been interrupted about the beginning of the twelfth century all -knowledge of it died away, and during several ages this celebrated -dye was considered and lamented as an irrecoverable loss.[86] How it -was afterwards recovered and made known by Mr. Cole, of Bristol, M. -Jussieu, M. Reaumur, and M. Duhamel, would lead us too far from our -present object, were we to relate it: those who are interested in the -subject will find an historical detail in Bancroft’s work on Permanent -Colours, just referred to. - -[85] Exodus xxv. 4. - -[86] See Bancroft on Permanent Colours, i. 79. - -There is reason to suspect that the Hebrew word translated _fine linen_ -in the Old Testament, and so celebrated as a production of Egypt, was -in reality _cotton_, and not linen. From a curious passage in Pliny, -there is reason to believe that the Egyptians in his time, and probably -long before, were acquainted with the method of calico-printing, such -as is still practised in India and the east. The following is a -literal translation of the passage in question: - -“There exists in Egypt a wonderful method of dyeing. The white cloth -is stained in various places, not with dye stuffs, but with substances -which have the property of absorbing (_fixing_) colours, these -applications are not visible upon the cloth; but when they are dipped -into a hot caldron of the dye they are drawn out an instant after dyed. -The remarkable circumstance is, that though there be only one dye in -the vat, yet different colours appear upon the cloth; nor can the -colour be afterwards removed.”[87] - -[87] Plinii Hist. Nat. xxxv. 11. - -It is evident enough that these substances applied were different -mordants which served to fix the dye upon the cloth; the nature of -these mordants cannot be discovered, as nothing specific seems to have -been known to Pliny. The modern mordants are solutions of alumina; of -the oxide of tin, oxide of iron, oxide of lead, &c.: and doubtless -these, or something equivalent to these, were the substances employed -by the ancients. The purple dye required no mordant, it fixed itself to -the cloth in consequence of the chemical affinity which existed between -them. Whether indigo was used by the ancients as a dye does not appear, -but there can be no doubt, at least, that its use was known to the -Indians at a very remote period. - -From these facts, few as they are, there can be little doubt that -dyeing, and even calico-printing, had made considerable progress -among the ancients; and this could not have taken place without a -considerable knowledge of colouring matters, and of the mordants by -which these colouring matters were fixed. These facts, however, were -probably but imperfectly understood, and could not be the means of -furnishing the ancients with any accurate chemical knowledge. - - -VI.--SOAP. - -Soap, which constitutes so important and indispensable an article in -the domestic economy of the moderns, was quite unknown to the ancient -inhabitants of Asia, and even of Greece. No allusion to it occurs in -the Old Testament. In Homer, we find Nausicaa, the daughter of the King -of the Phæacians, using nothing but water to wash her nuptial garments: - - They seek the cisterns where Phæacian dames - Wash their fair garments in the limped streams; - Where gathering into depth from falling rills, - The lucid wave a spacious bason fills. - The mules unharness’d range beside the main, - Or crop the verdant herbage of the plain. - Then emulous the royal robes they lave, - And plunge the vestures in the cleansing wave. - _Odyssey_, vi. 1. 99. - -We find, in some of the comic poets, that the Greeks were in the habit -of adding wood-ashes to water to make it a better detergent. Wood-ashes -contain a certain portion of carbonate of potash, which of course would -answer as a detergent; though, from its caustic qualities, it would be -injurious to the hands of the washerwomen. There is no evidence that -carbonate of soda, the _nitrum_ of the ancients, was ever used as a -detergent; this is the more surprising, because we know from Pliny that -it was employed in dyeing, and one cannot see how a solution of it -could be employed by the dyers in their processes without discovering -that it acted powerfully as a detergent. - -The word _soap_ (_sapo_) occurs first in Pliny. He informs us that it -was an invention of the Gauls, who employed it to render their hair -shining; that it was a compound of wood-ashes and tallow, that there -were two kinds of it, _hard_ and _soft_ (_spissus et liquidus_); and -that the best kind was made of the ashes of the beech and the fat of -goats. Among the Germans it was more employed by the men than the -women.[88] It is curious that no allusion whatever is made by Pliny to -the use of soap as a detergent; shall we conclude from this that the -most important of all the uses of soap was unknown to the ancients? - -[88] Plinii Hist. Nat. xxviii. 12. The passage of Pliny is as follows: -“Prodest et sapo; Gallorum hoc inventum rutilandis capillis ex sevo et -cinere. Optimus fagino et caprino, duobus modis, spissus et liquidus: -uterque apud Germanos majore in usu viris quam feminis.” - -It was employed by the ancients as a pomatum; and, during the early -part of the government of the emperors, it was imported into Rome from -Germany, as a pomatum for the young Roman beaus. Beckmann is of opinion -that the Latin word _sapo_ is derived from the old German word _sepe_, -a word still employed by the common people of Scotland.[89] - -[89] Hist. of Inventions, iii. 239. - -It is well known that the state of soap depends upon the alkali -employed in making it. _Soda_ constitutes a _hard_ soap, and _potash_ a -_soft_ soap. The ancients being ignorant of the difference between the -two alkalies, and using wood-ashes in the preparation of it, doubtless -formed soft soap. The addition of some common salt, during the boiling -of the soap, would convert the soft into hard soap. As Pliny informs us -that the ancients were acquainted both with hard and soft soap, it is -clear that they must have followed some such process. - - -VII.--STARCH. - -The manufacture of starch was known to the ancients. Pliny informs us -that it was made from wheat and from _siligo_, which was probably a -variety or sub-species of wheat. The invention of starch is ascribed -by Pliny to the inhabitants of the island of Chio, where in his time -the best starch was still made. Pliny’s description of the method -employed by the ancients of making starch is tolerably exact. Next to -the China starch that of Crete was most celebrated; and next to it was -the Egyptian. The qualities of starch were judged of by the weight; the -lightest being always reckoned the best. - - -VIII.--BEER. - -That the ancients were acquainted with wine is universally known. This -knowledge must have been nearly coeval with the origin of society; -for we are informed in Genesis that Noah, after the flood, planted a -vineyard, and made wine, and got intoxicated by drinking the liquid -which he had manufactured.[90] Beer also is a very old manufacture. -It was in common use among the Egyptians in the time of Herodotus, -who informs us that they made use of a kind of wine made from barley, -because no vines grew in their country.[91] Tacitus informs us, that -in his time it was the drink of the Germans.[92] Pliny informs us that -it was made by the Gauls, and by other nations. He gives it the name -of _cerevisia_ or _cervisia_; the name obviously alluding to the grain -from which it was made. - -[90] Genesis ix. 20. - -[91] “Oinô d’ ek kritheôn pepoiêmenô diachreontai; ou gar sphi eisi en -tê chôrê ampeloi.” Euterpe chap. 77. - -[92] De Moribus Germanorum, c. 23. “Potui humor ex hordeo aut frumento -in quandam similitudinem vini corruptus.” - -But though the ancients seem acquainted with both wine and beer, -there is no evidence of their having ever subjected these liquids -to distillation, and of having collected the products. This would -have furnished them with ardent spirits or alcohol, of which there -is every reason to believe they were entirely ignorant. Indeed, the -method employed by Dioscorides to obtain mercury from cinnabar, is a -sufficient proof that the true process of distillation was unknown to -them. He mixed cinnabar with iron filings, put the mixture into a pot, -to the top of which a cover of stoneware was luted. Heat was applied -to the pot, and when the process was at an end, the mercury was found -adhering to the inside of the cover. Had they been aware of the method -of distilling the quicksilver ore into a receiver, this imperfect mode -of collecting only a small portion of the quicksilver, separated from -the cinnabar, would never have been practised. Besides, there is not -the smallest allusion to ardent spirits, either in the writings of the -poets, historians, naturalists, or medical men of ancient Greece; a -circumstance not to be accounted for had ardent spirits been known, -and applied even to one-tenth of the uses to which they are put by the -moderns. - - -IX.--STONEWARE. - -The manufacture of stoneware vessels was known at a very early period -of society. Frequent allusions to the potter’s wheel occur in the Old -Testament, showing that the manufacture must have been familiar to -the Jewish nation. The porcelain of the Chinese boasts of a very high -antiquity indeed. We cannot doubt that the processes of the ancients -were similar to those of the moderns, though I am not aware of any -tolerably accurate account of them in any ancient author whatever. - -Moulds of plaster of Paris were used by the ancients to take casts -precisely as at present.[93] - -[93] Plinii Hist. Nat. xxxv. 12. - -The sand of Puzzoli was used by the Romans, as it is by the moderns, to -form a mortar capable of hardening under water. - -Pliny gives us some idea of the Roman bricks, which are known to have -been of an excellent quality. There were three sizes of bricks used by -the Romans. - -1. Lydian, which were 1½ foot long and 1 foot broad. - -2. Tetradoron, which was a square of 16 inches each side. - -3. Pentadoron, which was a square, each side of which was 20 inches -long. - -Doron signifies the palm of the hand: of course it was equivalent to 4 -inches. - - -X.--PRECIOUS STONES AND MINERALS. - -Pliny has given a pretty detailed description of the precious stones -of the ancients; but it is not very easy to determine the specific -minerals to which he alludes. - -1. The description of the diamond is tolerably precise. It was found in -Ethiopia, India, Arabia, and Macedonia. But the Macedonian diamond, as -well as the adamas cyprius and siderites, were obviously not diamonds, -but soft stones. - -2. The _emerald_ of the ancients (_smaragdus_) must have varied in its -nature. It was a green, transparent, hard stone; and, as colour was -the criterion by which the ancients distinguished minerals and divided -them into species, it is obvious that very different minerals must -have been confounded together, under the name of emerald. Sapphire, -beryl, doubtless fluor spar when green, and probably even serpentine, -nephrite, and some ores of copper, seem to have occasionally got the -same name. There is no reason to believe that the _emerald_ of the -moderns was known before the discovery of America. At least it has been -only found in modern times in America. Some of the emeralds described -by Pliny as losing their colour by exposure to the sun, must have been -fluor spars. There is a remarkably deep and beautiful green fluor spar, -met with some years ago in the county of Durham, in one of the Weredale -mines that possesses this property. The emeralds of the ancients were -of such a size (13½ feet, large enough to be cut into a pillar), that -we can consider them in no other light than as a species of rock. - -3. Topaz of the ancients had a green colour, which is never the case -with the modern topaz. It was found in the island Topazios, in the -Red Sea.[94] It is generally supposed to have been the _chrysolite_ -of the moderns. But Pliny mentions a statue of it six feet long. Now -chrysolite never occurs in such large masses. Bruce mentions a green -substance in an emerald island in the Red Sea, not harder than glass. -Might not this be the emerald of the ancients? - -[94] The word topazo is said by Pliny to signify, in the language of -the Troglodytes, _to seek_. - -4. _Calais_, from the locality and colour was probably the Persian -turquoise, as it is generally supposed to be. - -5. Whether the _prasius_ and _chrysoprasius_ of Pliny were the modern -stones to which these names are given, we have no means of determining. -It is generally supposed that they are, and we have no evidence to the -contrary. - -6. The _chrysolite_ of Pliny is supposed to be our _topaz_: but we have -no other evidence of this than the opinion of M. Du Tems. - -7. _Asteria_ of Pliny is supposed by Saussure to be our sapphire. The -lustre described by Pliny agrees with this opinion. The stone is said -to have been very hard and colourless. - -8. _Opalus_ seems to have been our _opal_. It is called, Pliny says, -_pæderos_ by many, on account of its beauty. The Indians called it -_sangenon_. - -9. _Obsidian_ was the same as the mineral to which we give that name. -It was so called because a Roman named Obsidianus first brought it from -Egypt. I have a piece of obsidian, which the late Mr. Salt brought from -the locality specified by Pliny, and which possesses all the characters -of that mineral in its purest state. - -10. _Sarda_ was the name of _carnelian_, so called because it was first -found near Sardis. The _sardonyx_ was also another name for _carnelian_. - -11. Onyx was a name sometimes given to a rock, _gypsum_; sometimes it -was a light-coloured _chalcedony_. The Latin name for chalcedony was -_carchedonius_, so called because Carthage was the place where this -mineral was exposed to sale. The Greek name for Carthage was Καρχηδων -(_carchedon_). - -12. _Carbunculus_ was the garnet; and _anthrax_ was a name for another -variety of the same mineral. - -13. The _oriental amethyst_ of Pliny was probably a sapphire. The -fourth species of amethyst described by Pliny, seems to have been our -amethyst. Pliny derives the name from α (_a_) and μυθη (_mythe_), -_wine_, because it has not quite the colour of wine. But the common -derivation is from α and μυθυω, _to intoxicate_, because it was used as -an amulet to prevent intoxication. - -14. The _sapphire_ is described by Pliny as always opaque, and as unfit -for engraving on. We do not know what it was. - -15. The _hyacinth_ of Pliny is equally unknown. From its name it was -obviously of a blue colour. Our hyacinth has a reddish-brown colour, -and a great deal of hardness and lustre. - -16. The _cyanus_ of Pliny may have been our _cyanite_. - -17. _Astrios_ agrees very well, as far as the description of Pliny -goes, with the variety of felspar called _adularia_. - -18. _Belioculus_ seems to have been our _catseye_. - -19. _Lychnites_ was a violet-coloured stone, which became electric by -heat. Unless it was a _blue tourmalin_, I do not know what it could be. - -20. The _jasper_ of the ancients was probably the same as ours. - -21. _Molochites_ may have been our _malachite_. The name comes from the -Greek word μολοχη, _mallow_, or _marshmallow_. - -22. Pliny considers _amber_ as the juice of a tree concreted into a -solid form. The largest piece of it that he had ever seen weighed 13 -lbs. Roman weight, which is nearly equivalent to 9¾ lbs. avoirdupois. -_Indian amber_, of which he speaks, was probably _copal_, or some -transparent resin. It may be dyed, he says, by means of _anchusa_ and -the _fat of kids_. - -23. _Lapis specularis_ was foliated sulphate of lime, or selenite. - -24. _Pyrites_ had the same meaning among the ancients that it has among -the moderns; at least as far as iron pyrites or bisulphuret of iron is -concerned. Pliny describes two kind of pyrites; namely, the _white_ -(_arsenical pyrites_), and the _yellow_ (iron pyrites). It was used for -striking fire with steel, in order to kindle tinder. Hence the name -_pyrites_ or _firestone_. - -25. _Gagates_, from the account given of it by Pliny, was obviously -pit-coal or jet. - -26. _Marble_ had the same meaning among the ancients that it has among -the moderns. It was sawed by the ancients into slabs, and the action of -the saw was facilitated by a sand brought for the purpose from Ethiopia -and the isle of Naxos. It is obvious that this sand was powdered -corundum, or emery. - -27. _Creta_ was a name applied by the ancients not only to chalk, but -to _white clay_. - -28. _Melinum_ was an _oxide of iron_. Pliny gives a list of one hundred -and fifty-one species of stones in the order of the alphabet. Very few -of the minerals contained in this list can be made out. He gives also -a list of fifty-two species of stones, whose names are derived from a -fancied resemblance which the stones are supposed to bear to certain -parts of animals. Of these, also, very few can be made out. - - -XI.--MISCELLANEOUS OBSERVATIONS. - -The ancients seem to have been ignorant of the nature and properties -of air, and of all gaseous bodies. Pliny’s account of air consists -of a single sentence: “Aër densatur nubibus; furit procellis.” “Air -is condensed in clouds, it rages in storms.” Nor is his description -of water much more complete, since it consists only of the following -phrases: “Aquæ subeunt in imbres, rigescunt in grandines, tumescunt -in fluctus, præcipitantur in torrentes.”[95] “Water falls in showers, -congeals in hail, swells in waves, and rushes down in torrents.” In -the thirty-eighth chapter of the second book, indeed, he professes -to treat of _air_; but the chapter contains merely an enumeration of -meteorological phenomena, without once touching upon the nature and -properties of air. - -[95] Plinii Hist. Nat. ii. 63. - -Pliny, with all the philosophers of antiquity, admitted the existence -of the four elements, fire, air, water, and earth; but though he -enumerates these in the fifth chapter of his first book, he never -attempts to explain their nature or properties. Earth, among the -ancients, had two meanings, namely, the planet on which we live, and -the soil upon which vegetables grow. These two meanings still exist in -common language. The meaning afterwards given to the _term_, earth, -by the chemists, did not exist in the days of Pliny, or, at least, -was unknown to him; a sufficient proof that chemistry, in his time, -had made no progress as a science; for some notions respecting the -properties and constituents of those supposed four elements must have -constituted the very foundation of scientific chemistry. - -The ancients were acquainted with none of the acids which at present -constitute so numerous a tribe, except _vinegar_, or _acetic acid_; -and even this acid was not known to them in a state of purity. They -knew none of the saline bases, except lime, soda, and potash, and these -very imperfectly. Of course the whole tribe of salts was unknown to -them, except a very few, which they found ready formed in the earth, -or which they succeeded in forming by the action of vinegar on lead -and copper. Hence all that extensive and most important branch of -chemistry, consisting of the combinations of the acids and bases, on -which scientific chemistry mainly depends, must have been unknown to -them. - -Sulphur occurring native in large quantities, and being remarkable for -its easy combustibility, and its disagreeable smell when burning, was -known in the very earliest ages. Pliny describes four kinds of sulphur, -differing from each other, probably, merely in their purity. These were - -1. Sulphur vivum, or apyron. It was dug out of the earth solid, and was -doubtless pure, or nearly so. It alone was used in medicine. - -2. Gleba--used only by fullers. - -3. Egula--used also by fullers. - -Pliny says, it renders woollen stuffs white and soft. It is obvious -from this, that the ancients knew the method of bleaching flannel by -the fumes of sulphur, as practised by the moderns. - -4. The fourth kind was used only for sulphuring matches. - -Sulphur, in Pliny’s time, was found native in the Æolian islands, and -in Campania. It is curious that he never mentions Sicily, whence the -great supply is drawn for modern manufacture. - -In medicine, it seems to have been only used externally by the -ancients. It was considered as excellent for removing eruptions. It was -used also for fumigating. - -The word _alumen_, which we translate _alum_, occurs often in Pliny; -and is the same substance which the Greeks distinguished by the -name of στυπτηρια (_stypteria_). It is described pretty minutely by -Dioscorides, and also by Pliny. It was obviously a natural production, -dug out of the earth, and consequently quite different from our alum, -with which the ancients were unacquainted. Dioscorides says that it -was found abundantly in Egypt; that it was of various kinds, but that -the slaty variety was the best. He mentions also many other localities. -He says that, for medical purposes, the most valued of all the -varieties of alumen were the _slaty_, the _round_, and the _liquid_. -The slaty alumen is very white, has an exceedingly astringent taste, a -strong smell, is free from stony concretions, and gradually cracks and -emits long capillary crystals from these rifts; on which account it is -sometimes called _trichites_. This description obviously applies to a -kind of slate-clay, which probably contained pyrites mixed with it of -the decomposing kind. The capillary crystals were probably similar to -those crystals at present called _hair-salt_ by mineralogists, which -exude pretty abundantly from the shale of the coal-beds, when it has -been long exposed to the air. _Hair-salt_ differs very much in its -nature. Klaproth ascertained by analysis, that the _hair-salt_ from the -quicksilver-mines in Idria is sulphate of magnesia, mixed with a small -quantity of sulphate of iron.[96] The _hair-salt_ from the abandoned -coal-pits in the neighbourhood of Glasgow is a double salt, composed of -sulphate of alumina, and sulphate of iron, in definite proportions; the -composition being - -[96] Beitrage, iii. 104. - - 1 atom protosulphate of iron, - 1½ atom sulphate of alumina, - 15 atoms water. - -I suspect strongly that the capillary crystals from the schistose -alumen of Dioscorides were nearly of the same nature. - -From Pliny’s account of the uses to which alumen was applied, it is -quite obvious that it must have varied very much in its nature. _Alumen -nigrum_ was used to strike a black colour, and must therefore have -contained iron. It was doubtless an impure native sulphate of iron, -similar to many native productions of the same nature still met with -in various parts of the world, but not employed; their use having been -superseded by various artificial salts, more definite in their nature, -and consequently more certain in their application, and at the same -time cheaper and more abundant than the native. - -The alumen employed as a mordant by the dyers, must have been a -sulphate of alumina more or less pure; at least it must have been free -from all sulphate of iron, which would have affected the colour of the -cloth, and prevented the dyer from accomplishing his object.[97] - -[97] “Quoniam inficiendis claro colore lanis candidum liquidumque -utilissimum est, contraque fuscis et obscuris nigrum.”--_Plinii_, xxxv. -15. - -What the _alumen rotundum_ was, is not easily conjectured. Dioscorides -says, that it was sometimes made artificially; but that the artificial -alumen rotundum was not much valued. The best, he says, was full of -air-bubbles, nearly white, and of a very astringent taste. It had a -slaty appearance, and was found in Egypt or the Island of Melos. - -The _liquid alumen_ was limpid, milky, of an equal colour, free from -hard concretions, and having a fiery shade of colour.[98] In its -nature, it was similar to the alumen candidum; it must therefore have -consisted chiefly, at least, of sulphate of alumina. - -[98] See Dioscorides, lib. v. c. 123. Plinii Hist. Nat. xxxv. 18. - -Bitumen and naphtha were known to the ancients, and used by them -to give light instead of oil; they were employed also as external -applications in cases of disease, and were considered as having -the same virtues as sulphur. It is said, that the word translated -_salt_ in the New Testament--“Ye are the salt of the earth: but if -the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? It is -henceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden -under foot of men”[99]--it is said, that the word salt in this passage -refers to asphalt, or bitumen, which was used by the Jews in their -sacrifices, and called _salt_ by them. But I have not been able to find -satisfactory evidence of the truth of this opinion. It is obvious from -the context, that the word translated _salt_ could not have had that -meaning among the Jews; because salt never can be supposed to lose its -savour. Bitumen, while liquid, has a strong taste and smell, which it -loses gradually by exposure to the air, as it approaches more and more -to a solid form. - -[99] Matthew v. 13.--“Ὑμεις εστε το ἁλας της γης· εαν δε το ἁλας -μωρανθη, εν τινι ἁλισθησεται· εις ουδεν ισχωει ετι ει μη βληθηναι εξω, -και καταπατεισθαι ὑπο των ανθρωπων.” - -Asphalt was one of the great constituents of the Greek fire. A great -bed of it still existing in Albania, supplied the Greeks with this -substance. Concerning the nature of the Greek fire, it is clear that -many exaggerated and even fabulous statements have been published. -The obvious intention of the Greeks being, probably, to make their -invention as much dreaded as possible by their enemies. Nitre was -undoubtedly one of the most important of its constituents; though -no allusion whatever is ever made. We do not know when _nitrate of -potash_, the nitre of the moderns, became known in Europe. It was -discovered in the east; and was undoubtedly known in China and India -before the commencement of the Christian era. The property of nitre, -as a supporter of combustion, could not have remained long unknown -after the discovery of the salt. The first person who threw a piece of -it upon a red-hot coal would observe it. Accordingly we find that its -use in fireworks was known very early in China and India; though its -prodigious expansive power, by which it propels bullets with so great -and destructive velocity, is a European invention, posterior to the -time of Roger Bacon. - -The word _nitre_ (רתנ) had been applied by the ancients to _carbonate -of soda_, a production of Egypt, where it is still formed from -sea-water, by some unknown process of nature in the marshes near -Alexandria. This is evident, not merely from the account given of it -by Dioscorides and Pliny; for the following passage, from the Old -Testament, shows that it had the same meaning among the Jews: “As he -that taketh away a garment in cold weather, is as vinegar upon nitre: -so is he that singeth songs to a heavy heart.”[100] Vinegar poured upon -saltpetre produces no sensible effect whatever, but when poured upon -carbonate of soda, it occasions an _effervescence_. When saltpetre -came to be imported to Europe, it was natural to give it the same -name as that applied to carbonate of soda, to which both in taste and -appearance it bore some faint resemblance. Saltpetre possessing much -more striking properties than carbonate of soda much more attention -was drawn to it, and it gradually fixed upon itself the term _nitre_, -at first applied to a different salt. When this change of nomenclature -took place does not appear; but it was completed before the time of -Roger Bacon, who always applies the term _nitrum_ to our nitrate of -potash and never to carbonate of soda. - -[100] Proverbs xxv. 20. - -In the preceding history of the chemical facts known to the ancients, -I have taken no notice of a well-known story related of Cleopatra. -This magnificent and profligate queen boasted to Antony that she would -herself consume a million of sistertii at a supper. Antony smiled at -the proposal, and doubted the possibility of her performing it. Next -evening a magnificent entertainment was provided, at which Antony, as -usual, was present, and expressed his opinion that the cost of the -feast, magnificent as it was, fell far short of the sum specified by -the queen. She requested him to defer computing till the dessert -was finished. A vessel filled with vinegar was placed before her, in -which she threw two pearls, the finest in the world, and which were -valued at ten millions of sistertii; these pearls were dissolved by -the vinegar,[101] and the liquid was immediately drunk by the queen. -Thus she made good her boast, and destroyed the two finest pearls in -the world.[102] This story, supposing it true, shows that Cleopatra -was aware that vinegar has the property of dissolving pearls. But not -that she knew the nature of these beautiful productions of nature. We -now know that pearls consist essentially of carbonate of lime, and that -the beauty is owing to the thin concentric laminæ, of which they are -composed. - -[101] “Cujus asperitas visque in tabem margeritas resolvit.” - -[102] Plinii Hist. Nat. ix. 35. - -Nor have I taken any notice of lime with which the ancients were well -acquainted, and which they applied to most of the uses to which the -moderns put it. Thus it constituted the base of the Roman mortar, which -is known to have been excellent. They employed it also as a manure -for the fields, as the moderns do. It was known to have a corrosive -nature when taken internally; but was much employed by the ancients -externally, and in various ways as an application to ulcers. Whether -they knew its solubility in water does not appear; though, from the -circumstance of its being used for making mortar, this fact could -hardly escape them. These facts, though of great importance, could -scarcely be applied to the rearing of a chemical structure, as the -ancients could have no notion of the action of acids upon lime, or of -the numerous salts which it is capable of forming. Phenomena which -must have remained unknown till the discovery of the acids enabled -experimenters to try their effects upon limestone and quicklime. Not -even a conjecture appears in any ancient writer that I have looked -into, about the difference between quicklime and limestone. This -difference is so great that it must have been remarked by them, yet -nobody seems ever to have thought of attempting to account for it. Even -the method of burning or calcining lime is not described by Pliny; -though there can be no doubt that the ancients were acquainted with it. - -Nor have I taken any notice of leather or the method of tanning it. -There are so many allusions to leather and its uses by the ancient -poets and historians, that the acquaintance of the ancients with it is -put out of doubt. But so far as I know, there is no description of the -process of tanning in any ancient author whatever. - - - - -CHAPTER III. - -CHEMISTRY OF THE ARABIANS. - - -Hitherto I have spoken of Alchymy, or of the chemical manufactures -of the ancients. The people to whom scientific chemistry owes its -origin are the Arabians. Not that they prosecuted scientific chemistry -themselves; but they were the first persons who attempted to form -chemical medicines. This they did by mixing various bodies with each -other, and applying heat to the mixture in various ways. This led to -the discovery of some of the mineral acids. These they applied to -the metals, &c., and ascertained the effects produced upon that most -important class of bodies. Thus the Arabians began those researches -which led gradually to the formation of scientific chemistry. We must -therefore endeavour to ascertain the chemical facts for which we are -indebted to the Arabians. - -When Mahomet first delivered his dogmas to his countrymen they were not -altogether barbarous. Possessed of a copious and expressive language, -and inhabiting a burning climate, their imaginations were lively and -their passions violent. Poetry and fiction were cultivated by them -with ardour, and with considerable success. But science and inductive -philosophy, had made little or no progress among them. The fatalism -introduced by Mahomet, and the blind enthusiasm which he inculcated, -rendered them furious bigots and determined enemies to every kind of -intellectual improvement. The rapidity with which they overran Asia, -Africa, and even a portion of Europe, is universally known. At that -period the western world, was sunk into extreme barbarism, and the -Greeks, with whom the remains of civilization still lingered, were -sadly degenerated from those sages who graced the classic ages. Bent -to the earth under the most grinding but turbulent despotism that -ever disgraced mankind, and having their understandings sealed up by -the most subtle and absurd, and uncompromising superstition, all the -energy of mind, all the powers of invention, all the industry and -talent, which distinguished their ancestors, had completely forsaken -them. Their writers aimed at nothing new or great, and were satisfied -with repeating the scientific facts determined by their ancestors. The -lamp of science fluttered in its socket, and was on the eve of being -extinguished. - -Nothing good or great could be expected from such a state of society. -It was, therefore, wisely determined by Providence that the Mussulman -conquerors, should overrun the earth, sweep out those miserable -governors, and free the wretched inhabitants from the trammels of -despotism and superstition. As a despotism not less severe, and a -superstition still more gloomy and uncompromising, was substituted in -their place, it may seem at first sight, that the conquests of the -Mahometans brought things into a worse state than they found them. But -the listless inactivity, the almost deathlike torpor which had frozen -the minds of mankind, were effectually roused. The Mussulmans displayed -a degree of energy and activity which have few parallels in the history -of the world: and after the conquests of the Mahometans were completed, -and the Califs quietly seated upon the greatest and most powerful -throne that the world had ever seen; after Almanzor, about the middle -of the eighth century, had founded the city of Bagdad, and settled a -permanent and flourishing peace, the arts and sciences, which usually -accompany such a state of society, began to make their appearance. - -That calif founded an academy at Bagdad, which acquired much celebrity, -and gradually raised itself above all the other academies in his -dominions. A medical college was established there with powers to -examine all those persons who intended to devote themselves to the -medical profession. So many professors and pupils flocked to this -celebrated college, from all parts of the world, that at one time their -number amounted to no fewer than six thousand. Public hospitals and -laboratories were established to facilitate a knowledge of diseases, -and to make the students acquainted with the method of preparing -medicines. It was this last establishment which originated with the -califs that gave a first beginning to the science of chemistry. - -In the thirteenth century the calif Mostanser re-established the -academy and the medical college at Bagdad: for both had fallen -into decay, and had been replaced by an infinite number of Jewish -seminaries. Mostanser gave large salaries to the professors, collected -a magnificent library, and established a new school of pharmacy. He was -himself often present at the public lectures. - -The successor of Mostanser was the calif Haroun-Al-Raschid, the -perpetual hero of the Arabian tales. He not only carried his love for -the sciences further than his predecessors, but displayed a liberality -and a tolerance for religious opinions, which was not quite consistent -with Mahometan bigotry and superstition. He drew round him the -Syrian Christians, who translated the Greek classics, rewarded them -liberally, and appointed them instructors of his Mahometan subjects, -especially in medicine and pharmacy. He protected the Christian school -of Dschondisabour, founded by the Nestorian Christians, before the -time of Mahomet, and still continuing in a flourishing state: always -surrounded by literary men, he frequently condescended to take a part -in their discussions, and not unfrequently, as might have been expected -from his rank, came off victorious. - -The most enlightened of all the califs was Almamon, who has rendered -his name immortal by his exertions in favour of the sciences. It -was during his reign that the Arabian schools came to be thoroughly -acquainted with Greek science; he procured the translation of a great -number of important works. This conduct inflamed the religious zeal -of the faithful, who devoted him to destruction, and to the divine -wrath, for favouring philosophy, and in that way diminishing the -authority of the Koran. Almamon purchased the ancient classics, from -all quarters, and recommended the care of doing so in a particular -manner to his ambassadors at the court of the Greek emperors. To Leo, -the philosopher, he made the most advantageous offers, to induce -him to come to Bagdad; but that philosopher would not listen to his -invitation. It was under the auspices of this enlightened prince, that -the celebrated attempt was made to determine the size of the earth by -measuring a degree of the meridian. The result of this attempt it does -not belong to this work to relate. - -Almotassem and Motawakkel, who succeeded Almamon, followed his example, -favoured the sciences, and extended their protection to men of science -who were Christians. Motawakkel re-established the celebrated academy -and library of Alexandria. But he acted with more severity than his -predecessors with regard to the Christians, who may perhaps have abused -the tolerance which they enjoyed. - -The other vicars of the prophet, in the different Mahometan states, -followed the fine example set them by Almamon. Already in the eighth -century the sovereigns of Mogreb and the western provinces of -Africa showed themselves the zealous friends of the sciences. One of -them called Abdallah-Ebn-Ibadschab rendered commerce and industry -flourishing at Tunis. He himself cultivated poetry and drew numerous -artists and men of science into his state. At Fez and in Morocco the -sciences flourished, especially during the reign of the Edrisites, -the last of whom, Jahiah, a prince possessed of genius, sweetness, -and goodness, changed his court into an academy, and paid attention -to those only who had distinguished themselves by their scientific -knowledge. - -But Spain was the most fortunate of all the Mahometan states, and had -arrived at such a degree of prosperity both in commerce, manufactures, -population, and wealth, as is hardly to be credited. The three -Abdalrahmans and Alhakem carried, from the eighth to the tenth century, -the country subject to the Calif of Cordova to the highest degree of -splendour. They protected the sciences, and governed with so much -mildness, that Spain was probably never so happy under the dominion -of any Christian prince. Alhakem established at Cordova an academy, -which for several ages was the most celebrated in the whole world. All -the Christians of Western Europe repaired to this academy in search of -information. It contained, in the tenth century, a library of 280,000 -volumes. The catalogue of this library filled no less than forty-four -volumes. Seville, Toledo, and Murcia, had likewise their schools of -science and their libraries, which retained their celebrity as long as -the dominion of the Moors lasted. In the twelfth century there were -seventy public libraries in that part of Spain which belonged to the -Mahometans. Cordova had produced one hundred and fifty authors, Almeria -fifty-two, and Murcia sixty-two. - -The Mahometan states of the east continued also to favour the sciences. -An emir of Irak, Adad-El-Daula by name, distinguished himself towards -the end of the tenth century by the protection which he afforded -to men of science. To him almost all the philosophers of the age -dedicated their works. Another emir of Irak, Saif-Ed-Daula, established -schools at Kufa and at Bussora, which soon acquired great celebrity. -Abou-Mansor-Baharam, established a public library at Firuzabad in -Curdistan, which at its very commencement contained 7000 volumes. In -the thirteenth century there existed a celebrated school of medicine in -Damascus. The calif Malek-Adel endowed it richly, and was often present -at the lectures with a book under his arm. - -Had the progress of the sciences among the Arabians been proportional -to the number of those who cultivated them, we might hail the Saracens -as the saviours of literature during the dark and benighted ages of -Christianity; but we must acknowledge with regret, that notwithstanding -the enlightened views of the califs, notwithstanding the multiplicity -of academies and libraries, and the prodigious number of writers, the -sciences received but little improvement from the Arabians. There are -very few Arabian writers in whose works we find either philosophical -ideas, successful researches, new facts, or great and new and important -truths. How, indeed, could such things be expected from a people -naturally hostile to mental exertion; professing a religion which -stigmatizes all exercise of the judgment as a crime, and weighed down -by the heavy yoke of despotism? It was the religion of the Arabians, -and the despotism of their princes, that opposed the greatest obstacles -to the progress of the sciences, even during the most flourishing -period of their civilization.[103] Fortunately chemistry was the -branch of science least obnoxious to the religious prejudices of the -Mahometans. It was in it, therefore, that the greatest improvements -were made: of these improvements it will be requisite now to endeavour -to give the reader some idea. Astrology and alchymy, they both derived -from the Greeks: neither of them were inconsistent with the taste of -the nation--neither of them were anathematized by the Mahometan creed, -though Islamism prohibited magic and all the arts of divination. -Alchymy may have suggested the chemical processes--but the Arabians -applied them to the preparation of medicines, and thus opened a new and -most copious source of investigation. - -[103] For a fuller account of the progress of science among the -Arabians than would be consistent with this work, the reader is -referred to Mortucla’s Hist. des Mathématiques, i. 351; Sprengel’s -Hist. de la Médecine, ii. 246. - -The chemical writings of the Arabians which I have had an opportunity -of seeing and perusing in a Latin dress, being ignorant of the original -language in which they were written, are those of Geber and Avicenna. - -Geber, whose real name was Abou-Moussah-Dschafar-Al-Soli, was a Sabean -of Harran, in Mesopotamia, and lived during the eighth century. Very -little is known respecting the history of this writer, who must be -considered as the patriarch of chemistry. Golius, professor of the -oriental languages in the University of Leyden, made a present of -Geber’s work in manuscript to the public library. He translated -it into Latin, and published it in the same city in folio, and -afterwards in quarto, under the title of “Lapis Philosophorum.”[104] -It was translated into English by Richard Russel in 1678, under the -title of, “The Works of Geber, the most famous Arabian Prince and -Philosopher.”[105] The works of Geber, so far as they appeared in -Latin or English, consist of four tracts. The first is entitled, “Of -the Investigation or Search of Perfection.” The second is entitled, “Of -the Sum of Perfection, or of the perfect Magistery.” The third, “Of the -Invention of Verity or Perfection.” And the last, “Of Furnaces, &c.; -with a Recapitulation of the Author’s Experiments.” - -[104] Boerhaave’s Chemistry (Shaw’s translation), i. 26. _Note._ - -[105] Golius was not, however, the first translator of Geber. A -translation of the longest and most important of his tracts into Latin -appeared in Strasburg, in 1529. There was another translation published -in Italy, from a manuscript in the Vatican. There probably might be -other translations. I have compared four different copies of Geber’s -works, and found some differences, though not very material. I have -followed Russel’s English translation most commonly, as upon the whole -the most accurate that I have seen. - -The object of Geber’s work is to teach the method of making the -philosopher’s stone, which he distinguishes usually by the name of -_medicine of the third class_. The whole is in general written with so -much plainness, that we can understand the nature of the substances -which he employed, the processes which he followed, and the greater -number of the products which he obtained. It is, therefore, a book -of some importance, because it is the oldest chemical treatise in -existence,[106] and because it makes us acquainted with the processes -followed by the Arabians, and the progress which they had made in -chemical investigations. I shall therefore lay before the reader the -most important facts contained in Geber’s work. - -[106] Of course I exclude the writings of the Greek ecclesiastics -mentioned in a previous part of this work, which still continue in -manuscript; because, I am ignorant of what they contain. - -1. He considered all the metals as compounds of mercury and sulphur: -this opinion did not originate with him. It is evident from what he -says, that the same notion had been adopted by his predecessors--men -whom he speaks of under the title of the _ancients_. - -2. The metals with which he was acquainted were _gold_, _silver_, -_copper_, _iron_, _tin_, and _lead_. These are usually distinguished -by him under the names of _Sol_, _Luna_, _Venus_, _Mars_, _Jupiter_, -and _Saturn_. Whether these names of the planets were applied to the -metals by Geber, or only by his translators, I cannot say; but they -were always employed by the alchymists, who never designated the metals -by any other appellations. - -3. Gold and silver he considered as perfect metals; but the other four -were imperfect metals. The difference between them depends, in his -opinion, partly upon the proportions of mercury and sulphur in each, -and partly upon the purity or impurity of the mercury and sulphur which -enters into the composition of each. - -Gold, according to him, is created of the most subtile substance of -mercury and of most clear fixture, and of a small substance of sulphur, -clean and of pure redness, fixed, clear, and changed from its own -nature, tinging that; and because there happens a diversity in the -colours of that sulphur, the yellowness of gold must needs have a like -diversity.[107] His evidence that gold consisted chiefly of mercury, is -the great ease with which mercury dissolves gold. For mercury, in his -opinion, dissolves nothing that is not of its own nature. The lustre -and splendour of gold is another proof of the great proportion of -mercury which it contains. That it is a fixed substance, void of all -burning sulphur, he thinks evident by every operation in the fire, for -it is neither diminished nor inflamed. His other reasons are not so -intelligible.[108] - -[107] Sum of Perfection, book ii. part i. chap. 5. - -[108] Ibid. - -Silver, like gold, is composed of much mercury and a little sulphur; -but in the gold the sulphur is red; whereas the sulphur that goes to -the formation of silver is white. The sulphur in silver is also clean, -fixed, and clear. Silver has a purity short of that of gold, and a -more gross inspissation. The proof of this is, that its parts are not -so condensed, nor is it so fixed as gold; for it may be diminished by -fire, which is not the case with gold.[109] - -[109] Ibid., chap. 6. - -Iron is composed of earthy mercury and earthy sulphur, highly fixed, -the latter in by far the greatest quantity. Sulphur, by the work of -fixation, more easily destroys the easiness of liquefaction than -mercury. Hence the reason why iron is not fusible, as is the case with -the other metals.[110] - -[110] Sum of Perfection, book ii. part i. chap. 7. - -Sulphur not fixed melts sooner than mercury; but fixed sulphur opposes -fusion. What contains more fixed sulphur, more slowly admits of fusion -than what partakes of burning sulphur, which more easily and sooner -flows.[111] - -[111] Ibid. - -Copper is composed of sulphur unclean, gross and fixed as to its -greater part; but as to its lesser part not fixed, red, and livid, -in relation to the whole not overcoming nor overcome and of gross -mercury.[112] - -[112] Ibid., chap. 8. - -When copper is exposed to ignition, you may discern a sulphureous flame -to arise from it, which is a sign of sulphur not fixed; and the loss -of the quantity of it by exhalation through the frequent combustion -of it, shows that it has fixed sulphur. This last being in abundance, -occasions the slowness of its fusion and the hardness of its substance. -That copper contains red and unclean sulphur, united to unclean -mercury, is, he thinks, evident, from its sensible qualities.[113] - -[113] Ibid. - -Tin consists of sulphur of small fixation, white with a whiteness not -pure, not overcoming but overcome, mixed with mercury partly fixed and -partly not fixed, white and impure.[114] That this is the constitution -of tin he thinks evident; for when calcined, it emits a sulphureous -stench, which is a sign of sulphur not fixed: it yields no flame, not -because the sulphur is fixed, but because it contains a great portion -of mercury. In tin there is a twofold sulphur and also a twofold -mercury. One sulphur is less fixed, because in calcining it gives out -a stench as sulphur. The fixed sulphur continues in the tin after it -is calcined. He thinks that the twofold mercury in tin is evident, from -this, that before calcination it makes a crashing noise when bent, but -after it has been thrice calcined, that crashing noise can no longer -be perceived.[115] Geber says, that if lead be washed with mercury, -and after its washing melted in a fire not exceeding the fire of its -fusion, a portion of the mercury will remain combined with the lead, -and will give it the crashing noise and all the qualities of tin. On -the other hand, you may convert tin into lead. By manifold repetition -of its calcination, and the administration of fire convenient for its -reduction, it is turned into lead.[116] - -[114] Ibid., chap. 9. - -[115] Sum of Perfection, book ii. part i. chap. 9. - -[116] Ibid. - -Lead, in Geber’s opinion, differs from tin only in having a more -unclean substance commixed of the two more gross substances, sulphur -and mercury. The sulphur in it is burning and more adhesive to the -substance of its own mercury, and it has more of the substance of fixed -sulphur in its composition than tin has.[117] - -[117] Ibid., chap. 10. - -Such are the opinions which Geber entertained respecting the -composition of the metals. I have been induced to state them as nearly -in his own words as possible, and to give the reasons which he has -assigned for them, even when his facts were not quite correct, because -I thought that this was the most likely way of conveying to the reader -an accurate notion of the sentiments of this father of the alchymists, -upon the very foundation of the whole doctrine of the transmutation -of metals. He was of opinion that all the imperfect metals might be -transformed into gold and silver, by altering the proportions of the -mercury and sulphur of which they are composed, and by changing the -nature of the mercury and sulphur so as to make them the same with the -mercury and sulphur which constitute gold and silver. The substance -capable of producing these important changes he calls sometimes the -_philosopher’s stone_, but generally the _medicine_. He gives the -method of preparing this important _magistery_, as he calls it. But it -is not worth while to state his process, because he leaves out several -particulars, in order to prevent the foolish from reaping any benefit -from his writings, while at the same time those readers who possess the -proper degree of sagacity will be able, by studying the different parts -of his writings, to divine the nature of the steps which he omits, and -thus profit by his researches and explanations. But it will be worth -while to notice the most important of his processes, because this will -enable us to judge of the state of chemistry in his time. - -4. In his book on furnaces, he gives a description of a furnace proper -for calcining metals, and from the fourteenth chapter of the fourth -part of the first book of his Sum of Perfection, it is obvious that the -method of calcining or oxidizing iron, copper, tin, and lead, and also -mercury and arsenic were familiarly known to him. - -He gives a description of a furnace for distilling, and a pretty minute -account of the glass or stoneware, or metallic aludel and alembic, -by means of which the process was conducted. He was in the habit of -distilling by surrounding his aludel with hot ashes, to prevent it -from being broken. He was acquainted also with the water-bath. These -processes were familiar to him. The description of the distillation of -many bodies occurs in his work; but there is not the least evidence -that he was acquainted with ardent spirits. The term _spirit_ occurs -frequently in his writings, but it was applied to volatile bodies in -general, and in particular to sulphur and white arsenic, which he -considered as substances very similar in their properties. Mercury also -he considered as a spirit. - -The method of distilling _per descensum_, as is practised in the -smelting of zinc, was also known to him. He describes an apparatus for -the purpose, and gives several examples of such distillations in his -writings. - -He gives also a description of a furnace for melting metals, and -mentions the vessels in which such processes were conducted. He was -acquainted with crucibles; and even describes the mode of making -cupels, nearly similar to those used at present. The process of -cupellating gold and silver, and purifying them by means of lead, is -given by him pretty minutely and accurately: he calls it _cineritium_, -or at least that is the term used by his Latin translator. - -He was in the habit of dissolving salts in water and acetic acid, and -even the metals in different menstrua. Of these menstrua he nowhere -gives any account; but from our knowledge of the properties of the -different metals, and from some processes which he notices, it is easy -to perceive what his solvents must have been; namely, the mineral acids -which were known to him, and to which there is no allusion whatever -in any preceding writer that I have had an opportunity of consulting. -Whether Geber was the discoverer of these acids cannot be known, as -he nowhere claims the discovery: indeed his object was to slur over -these acids, as much as possible, that their existence, or at least -their remarkable properties, might not be suspected by the uninitiated. -It was this affectation of secrecy and mystery that has deprived the -earliest chemists of that credit and reputation to which they would -have been justly entitled, had their discoveries been made known to the -public in a plain and intelligible manner. - -The mode of purifying liquids by filtration, and of separating -precipitates from liquids by the same means, was known to Geber. He -called the process _distillation through a filter_. - -Thus the greater number of chemical processes, such as they were -practised almost to the end of the eighteenth century, were known to -Geber. If we compare his works with those of Dioscorides and Pliny, we -shall perceive the great progress which chemistry or rather pharmacy -had made. It is more than probable that these improvements were made -by the Arabian physicians, or at least by the physicians who filled -the chairs in the medical schools, which were under the protection of -the califs: for as no notice is taken of these processes by any of the -Greek or Roman writers that have come down to us, and as we find them -minutely described by the earliest chemical writers among the Arabians, -we have no other alternative than to admit that they originated in the -east. - -I shall now state the different chemical substances or preparations -which were known to Geber, or which he describes the method of -preparing in his works. - -1. Common salt. This substance occurring in such abundance in the -earth, and being indispensable as a seasoner of food, was known from -the earliest ages. But Geber describes the method which he adopted to -free it from impurities. It was exposed to a red heat, then dissolved -in water, filtered, crystallized by evaporation, and the crystals being -exposed to a red heat, were put into a close vessel, and kept for -use.[118] Whether the identity of sal-gem (_native salt_) and common -salt was known to Geber is nowhere said. Probably not, as he gives -separate directions for purifying each. - -[118] Investigation and Search of Perfection, chap. 3. - -2. Geber gives an account of the two fixed alkalies, _potash_ and -_soda_, and gives processes for obtaining them. Potash was obtained by -burning cream of tartar in a crucible, dissolving the residue in water, -filtering the solution, and evaporating to dryness.[119] This would -yield a pure carbonate of potash. - -[119] Invention of Verity, chap. 4. - -Carbonate of soda he calls _sagimen vitri_, and salt of soda. He -mentions plants which yield it when burnt, points out the method of -purifying it, and even describes the method of rendering it caustic by -means of quicklime.[120] - -[120] Search of Perfection, chap. 3. - -3. Saltpetre, or nitrate of potash, was known to him; and Geber is the -first writer in whom we find an account of this salt. Nothing is said -respecting its origin; but there can be little doubt that it came from -India, where it was collected, and known long before Europeans were -acquainted with it. The knowledge of this salt was probably one great -cause of the superiority of the Arabians over Europeans in chemical -knowledge; for it enabled them to procure _nitric acid_, by means of -which they dissolved all the metals known in their time, and thus -acquired a knowledge of various important saline compounds, which were -of considerable importance. - -There is a process for preparing saltpetre artificially, in several of -the Latin copies of Geber, though it does not appear in our English -translation. The method was to dissolve sagimen vitri, or carbonate of -soda, in aqua fortis, to filter and crystallize by evaporation.[121] -If this process be genuine, it is obvious that Geber must have been -acquainted with nitrate of soda; but I have some doubts about the -genuineness of the passage, because the term _aqua fortis_ occurs in -it. Now this term occurs nowhere else in Geber’s work: even when he -gives the process for procuring nitric acid, he calls it simply water; -but observes, that it is a water possessed of much virtue, and that it -constitutes a precious instrument in the hands of the man who possesses -sagacity to use it aright. - -[121] De Investigatione Perfect. chap. 4. - -4. Sal ammoniac was known to Geber, and seems to have been quite common -in his time. There is no evidence that it was known to the Greeks or -Romans, as neither Dioscorides nor Pliny make any allusion to it. -The word in old books is sometimes _sal armoniac_, sometimes _sal -ammoniac_. It is supposed to have been brought originally from the -neighbourhood of the temple of Jupiter Ammon: but had this been the -case, and had it occurred native, it could scarcely have been unknown -to the Romans, under whose dominions that part of Africa fell. In -the writings of the alchymists, sal ammoniac is mentioned under the -following whimsical names: - - Anima sensibilis, - Aqua duorum fratrum ex sorore, - Aquila, - Lapis aquilinis, - Cancer, - Lapis angeli conjungentis, - Sal lapidum, - Sal alocoph. - -Geber not only knew sal ammoniac, but he was aware of its volatility; -and gives various processes for subliming it, and uses it frequently -to promote the sublimation of other bodies, as of oxides of iron -and copper. He gives also a method of procuring it from urine, a -liquid which, when allowed to run into putrefaction, is known to -yield it in abundance. Sal ammoniac was much used by Geber, in his -various processes to bring the inferior metals to a state of greater -perfection. By adding it or common salt to aqua fortis, he was enabled -to dissolve gold, which certainly could not be accomplished in the -time of Dioscorides or Pliny. The description, indeed, of Geber’s -process for dissolving gold is left on purpose in a defective state; -but an attentive reader will find no great difficulty in supplying the -defects, and thus understanding the whole of the process. - -5. Alum, precisely the same as the alum of the moderns, was familiarly -known to Geber, and employed by him in his processes. The manufacture -of this salt, therefore, had been discovered between the time when -Pliny composed his Natural History and the eighth century, when Geber -wrote; unless we admit that the mode of making it had been known to -the Tyrian dyers, but that they had kept the secret so well, that no -suspicion of its existence was entertained by the Greeks and Romans. -That they employed _alumina_ as a mordant in some of their dyes, is -evident; but there is no proof whatever that _alum_, in the modern -sense of the word, was known to them. - -Geber mentions three alums which he was in the habit of using; namely, -icy alum, or Rocca alum; Jamenous alum, or alum of Jameni, and feather -alum. _Rocca_, or _Edessa_, in Syria, is admitted to have been the -place where the first manufactory of alum was established; but at what -time, or by whom, is quite unknown: we know only that it must have -been posterior to the commencement of the Christian era, and prior to -the eighth century, when Geber wrote. Jameni must have been another -locality where, at the time of Geber, a manufactory of alum existed. -_Feather alum_ was undoubtedly one of the native impure varieties of -_alum_, known to the Greeks and Romans. Geber was in the habit of -distilling alum by a strong heat, and of preserving the water which -came over as a valuable menstruum. If alum be exposed to a red heat -in glass vessels, it will give out a portion of sulphuric acid: hence -water distilled from alum by Geber was probably a weak solution of -sulphuric acid, which would undoubtedly act powerfully as a solvent of -iron, and of the alkaline carbonates. It was probably in this way that -he used it. - -6. Sulphate of iron or copperas, as it is called (_cuperosa_), in the -state of a crystalline salt, was well known to Geber, and appears in -his time to have been manufactured. - -7. Baurach, or borax, is mentioned by him, but without any description -by which we can know whether or not it was our borax: the probability -is that it was. Both glass and borax were used by him when the oxides -of metals were reduced by him to the metallic state. - -8. Vinegar was purified by him by distilling it over, and it was used -as a solvent in many of his processes. - -9. Nitric acid was known to him by the name of _dissolving water_. He -prepared it by putting into an alembic one pound of sulphate of iron of -Cyprus, half a pound of saltpetre, and a quarter of a pound of alum of -Jameni: this mixture was distilled till every thing liquid was driven -over. He mentions the red fumes which make their appearance in the -alembic during the process.[122] This process, though not an economical -one, would certainly yield nitric acid; and it is remarkable, because -it is here that we find the first hint of the knowledge of chemists of -this most important acid, without which many chemical processes of the -utmost importance could not be performed at all. - -[122] Invention of Verity, chap. 23. - -10. This acid, thus prepared, he made use of to dissolve silver: the -solution was concentrated till the nitrate of silver was obtained by -him in a crystallized state. This process is thus described by him: -“Dissolve silver calcined in solutive water (_nitric acid_), as before; -which being done, coct it in a phial with a long neck, the orifice of -which must be left unstopped, for one day only, until a third part of -the water be consumed. This being effected, set it with its vessel in -a cold place, and then it is converted into small fusible stones, like -crystal.”[123] - -[123] Ibid., chap. 21. - -11. He was in the habit also of dissolving sal ammoniac in this nitric -acid, and employing the solution, which was the aqua regia of the old -chemists, to dissolve gold.[124] He assures us that this aqua regia -would dissolve likewise sulphur and silver. The latter assertion is -erroneous. But sulphur is easily converted into sulphuric acid by the -action of aqua regia, and of course it disappears or dissolves. - -[124] Ibid., chap. 23. - -12. Corrosive sublimate is likewise described by Geber in a very -intelligible manner. His method of preparing it was as follows: “Take -of mercury one pound, of dried sulphate of iron two pounds, of alum -calcined one pound, of common salt half a pound, and of saltpetre a -quarter of a pound: incorporate altogether by trituration and sublime; -gather the white, dense, and ponderous portions which shall be found -about the sides of the vessel. If in the first sublimation you find it -turbid or unclean (which may happen by reason of your own negligence), -sublime a second time with the same fuses.”[125] Still more minute -directions are given in other parts of the work: we have even some -imperfect account of the properties of corrosive sublimate. - -[125] Invention of Verity, chap. 8. - -13. Corrosive sublimate is not the only preparation of mercury -mentioned by Geber. He informs us that when mercury is combined -with sulphur it assumes a red colour, and becomes cinnabar.[126] He -describes the affinities of mercury for the different metals. It -adheres easily to three metals; namely, lead, tin, and gold; to silver -with more difficulty. To copper with still more difficulty than to -silver; but to iron it unites in nowise unless by artifice.[127] This -is a tolerably accurate account of the matter. He says, that mercury is -the heaviest body in nature except gold, which is the only metal that -will sink in it.[128] Now this was true, applied to all the substances -known when Geber lived. - -[126] Sum of Perfection, book i. part iii. chap. 4. - -[127] Ibid., chap. 6. - -[128] Ibid. - -He gives an account of the method of forming the peroxide of mercury -by heat; that variety of it formerly distinguished by the name of _red -precipitati per se_. “Mercury,” he says, “is also coagulated by long -and constant retention in fire, in a glass vessel with a very long -neck and round belly; the orifice of the neck being kept open, that -the humidity may vanish thereby.”[129] He gives another process for -preparing this oxide, possible, perhaps, though certainly requiring -very cautious regulation of the fire. “Take,” says he, “of mercury -one pound, of vitriol (sulphate of iron) rubified two pounds, and of -saltpetre one pound. Mortify the mercury with these, and then sublime -it from rock alum and saltpetre in equal weights.”[130] - -[129] Sum of Perfection, book i. part iv. chap. 16. - -[130] Invention of Verity, chap. 10. - -14. Geber was acquainted with several of the compounds of metals with -sulphur. He remarks that sulphur when fused with metals increases their -weight.[131] Copper combined with sulphur becomes yellow, and mercury -red.[132] He knew the method of dissolving sulphur in caustic potash, -and again precipitating it by the addition of an acid. His process is -as follows: “Grind clear and gummose sulphur to a most subtile powder, -which boil in a lixivium made of ashes of _heartsease_ and quicklime, -gathering from off the surface its oleaginous combustibility, until it -be discerned to be clear. This being done, stir the whole with a stick, -and then warily take off that which passeth out with the lixivium, -leaving the more gross parts in the bottom. Permit that extract to -cool a little, and upon it pour a fourth part of its own quantity of -distilled vinegar, and then will the whole suddenly be congealed as -milk. Remove as much of the clear lixivium as you can; but dry the -residue with a gentle fire and keep it.”[133] - -[131] Sum of Perfection, book i. part iii. chap. 4. - -[132] Ibid. - -[133] Invention of Verity, chap. 6. - -15. It would appear from various passages in Geber’s works that he was -acquainted with arsenic in the metallic state. He frequently mentions -its combustibility, and considers it as the _compeer_ of sulphur. -And in his book on _Furnaces_, chapter 25 (or 28 in some copies), he -expressly mentions _metallic arsenic_ (_arsenicum metallinum_), in a -preparation not very intelligible, but which he considered of great -importance. The white oxide of arsenic or arsenious acid, was obviously -well known to him. He gives more than one process for obtaining it by -sublimation.[134] He observes in his Sum of Perfection, book i. part -iv. chap. 2, which treats of sublimation, “Arsenic, which before its -sublimation was evil and prone to adustion, after its sublimation, -suffers not itself to be inflamed; but only resides without -inflammation.” - -[134] Invention of Verity, chap. 7. - -Geber states the fact, that when arsenic is heated with copper that -metal becomes white.[135] He gives also a process by which the white -arseniate of iron is obviously made. “Grind one pound of iron filings -with half a pound of sublimed arsenic (arsenious acid). Imbibe the -mixture with the water of saltpetre, and salt-alkali, repeating this -imbibation thrice. Then make it flow with a violent fire, and you will -have your iron white. Repeat this labour till it flow sufficiently with -peculiar dealbation.”[136] - -[135] Sum of Perfection, book ii. part. ii. chap. 11. - -[136] Invention of Verity, chap. 14. - -16. He mentions oxide of copper under the name of _æs ustum_, the red -oxide of iron under the name of _crocus_ of iron. He mentions also -litharge and red lead.[137] But as all these substances were known to -the Greeks and Romans, it is needless to enter into any particular -details. - -[137] Ibid., chap. 4 and 12. - -17. I am not sure what substance Geber understood by the word -_marchasite_. It was a substance which must have been abundant, and in -common use, for he refers to it frequently, and uses it in many of his -processes; but he nowhere informs us what it is. I suspect it may have -been sulphuret of antimony, which was certainly in common use in Asia -long before the time of Geber. But he also makes mention of antimony -by name, or at least the Latin translator has made use of the word -_antimonium_. When speaking of the reduction of metals after heating -them with sulphur, he says, “The reduction of tin is converted into -clear antimony; but of lead, into a dark-coloured antimony, as we have -found by proper experience.”[138] It is not easy to conjecture what -meaning the word antimony is intended to convey in this passage. In -another passage he says, “Antimony is calcined, dissolved, clarified, -congealed, and ground to powder, so it is prepared.”[139] - -[138] Sum of Perfection, book ii. part iii. chap. 10. - -[139] Invention of Verity, chap. 4. - -18. Geber’s description of the metals is tolerably accurate, -considering the time when he wrote. As an example I shall subjoin his -account of gold. “Gold is a metallic body, yellow, ponderous, mute, -fulged, equally digested in the bowels of the earth, and very long -washed with mineral water; under the hammer extensible, fusible, and -sustaining the trial of the cupel and cementation.”[140] He gives an -example of copper being changed into gold. “In copper-mines,” he says, -“we see a certain water which flows out, and carries with it thin -scales of copper, which (by a continual and long-continued course) it -washes and cleanses. But after such water ceases to flow, we find these -thin scales with the dry sand, in three years time to be digested with -the heat of the sun; and among these scales the purest gold is found: -therefore we judge those scales were cleansed by the benefit of the -water, but were equally digested by heat of the sun, in the dryness of -the sand, and so brought to equality.”[141] Here we have an example of -plausible reasoning from defective premises. The gold grains doubtless -existed in the sand before, while the scales of copper in the course of -three years would be oxidized and converted into powder, and disappear, -or at least lose all their metallic lustre. - -[140] Sum of Perfection, book i. part iii. chap. 8. - -[141] Ibid., book i. part iii. chap. 8. - -Such are the most remarkable chemical facts which I have observed in -the works of Geber. They are so numerous and important, as to entitle -him with some justice to the appellation of the father and founder of -chemistry. Besides the metals, sulphur and salt, with which the Greeks -and Romans were acquainted, he knew the method of preparing sulphuric -acid, nitric acid, and aqua regia. He knew the method of dissolving -the metals by means of these acids, and actually prepared nitrate of -silver and corrosive sublimate. He was acquainted with potash and -soda, both in the state of carbonates and caustic. He was aware that -these alkalies dissolve sulphur, and he employed the process to obtain -sulphur in a state of purity. - -But notwithstanding the experimental merit of Geber, his spirit of -philosophy did not much exceed that of his countrymen. He satisfied -himself with accounting for phenomena by occult causes, as was the -universal custom of the Arabians; a practice quite inconsistent with -real scientific progress. That this was the case will appear from the -following passage, in which Geber attempts to give an explanation -of the properties of the _great elixir_ or _philosopher’s stone_: -“Therefore, let him attend to the properties and ways of action of -the composition of the greater elixir. For we endeavour to make one -substance, yet compounded and composed of many, so permanently fixed, -that being put upon the fire, the fire cannot injure; and that it may -be mixed with metals in flux and flow with them, and enter with that -which in them is of an ingressible substance, and be fermented with -that which in them is of a permixable substance; and be consolidated -with that which in them is of a consolidable substance; and be -fixed with that which in them is of a fixable substance; and not be -burnt by those things which burn not gold and silver; and take away -consolidation and weights with due ignition.”[142] - -[142] Investigation of Perfections, chap. 11. - -The next Arabian whose name I shall introduce into this history, is -Al-Hassain-Abou-Ali-Ben-Abdallah-Ebn-Sina, surnamed Scheik Reyes, or -prince of physicians, vulgarly known by the name of _Avicenna_. Next to -Aristotle and Galen, his reputation was the highest, and his authority -the greatest of all medical practitioners; and he reigned paramount, or -at least shared the medical sceptre till he was hurled from his throne -by the rude hands of Paracelsus. - -Avicenna was born in the year 978, at Bokhara, to which place his -father had retired during the emirate of the calif Nuhh, one of the -sons of the celebrated Almansor. Ali, his father, had dwelt in Balkh, -in the Chorazan. After the birth of Avicenna he went to Asschena in -Bucharia, where he continued to live till his son had reached his -fifteenth year. No labour nor expense was spared on the education of -Avicenna, whose abilities were so extraordinary that he is said to -have been able to repeat the whole Koran by heart at the age of ten -years. Ali gave him for a master Abou-Abdallah-Annatholi, who taught -him grammar, dialectics, the geometry of Euclid, and the astronomy of -Ptolemy. But Avicenna quitted his tuition because he could not give him -the solution of a problem in logic. He attached himself to a merchant, -who taught him arithmetic, and made him acquainted with the Indian -numerals from which our own are derived. He then undertook a journey -to Bagdad, where he studied philosophy under the great Peripatician, -Abou-Nasr-Alfarabi, a disciple of Mesue the elder. At the same time -he applied himself to medicine, under the tuition of the Nestorian, -Abou-Sahel-Masichi. He informs us himself that he applied with an -extraordinary ardour to the study of the sciences. He was in the habit -of drinking great quantities of liquids during the night, to prevent -him from sleeping; and he often obtained in a dream a solution of those -problems at which he had laboured in vain while he was awake. When the -difficulties to be surmounted appeared to him too great, he prayed to -God to communicate to him a share of his wisdom; and these prayers, he -assures us, were never offered in vain. The metaphysics of Aristotle -was the only book which he could not comprehend, and after reading them -over forty times, he threw them aside with great anger at himself. - -Already, at the age of sixteen, he was a physician of eminence; and at -eighteen he performed a brilliant cure on the calif Nuhh, which gave -him such celebrity that Mohammed, Calif of Chorazan, invited him to his -palace; but Avicenna rather chose to reside at Dschordschan, where he -cured the nephew of the calif Kabus of a grievous distemper. - -Afterwards he went to Ray, where he was appointed physician to Prince -Magd-Oddaula. Here he composed a dictionary of the sciences. Sometime -after this he was raised to the dignity of vizier at Hamdan; but he -was speedily deprived of his office and thrown into prison for having -favoured a sedition. While incarcerated he wrote many works on medicine -and philosophy. By-and-by he was set at liberty, and restored to his -dignity; but after the death of his protector, Schems-Oddaula, being -afraid of a new attempt to deprive him of his liberty, he took refuge -in the house of an apothecary, where he remained long concealed and -completely occupied with his literary labours. Being at last discovered -he was thrown into the castle of Berdawa, where he was confined for -four months. At the end of that time a fortunate accident enabled -him to make his escape, in the disguise of a monk. He repaired to -Ispahan, where he lived much respected at the court of the calif -Ola-Oddaula. He did not live to a great age, because he had worn out -his constitution by too free an indulgence of women and wine. Having -been attacked by a violent colic, he caused eight injections, prepared -from long pepper, to be thrown up in one day. This excessive use of so -irritating a remedy, occasioned an excoriation of the intestines, which -was followed by an attack of epilepsy. A journey to Hamdan, in company -with the calif, and the use of mithridate, into which his servant by -mistake had put too much opium, contributed still further to put an end -to his life. He had scarcely arrived at the town when he died in the -fifty-eighth year of his age, in the year 1036. - -Avicenna was the author of the immense work entitled “Canon,” which -was translated into Latin, and for five centuries constituted the -great standard, the infallible guide, the confession of faith of the -medical world. All medical knowledge was contained in it; and nothing -except what was contained in it was considered by medical men as of any -importance. When we take a view of the Canon, and compare it with the -writings of the Greeks, and even of the Arabians, that preceded it, we -shall find some difficulty in accounting for the unbounded authority -which he acquired over the medical world, and for the length of time -during which that authority continued. - -But it must be remembered, that Avicenna’s reign occupies the darkest -and most dreary period of the history of the human mind. The human -race seems to have been asleep, and the mental faculties in a state -of complete torpor. Mankind, accustomed in their religious opinions -to obey blindly the infallible decisions of the church, and to think -precisely as the church enjoined them to think, would naturally -look for some means to save them the trouble of thinking on medical -subjects; and this means they found fortunately in the canons of -Avicenna. These canons, in their opinion, were equally infallible with -the decisions of the holy father, and required to be as implicitly -obeyed. The whole science of medicine was reduced to a simple perusal -of Avicenna’s Canon, and an implicit adherence to his rules and -directions. - -When we compare this celebrated work with the medical writings of the -Greeks, and even of the Arabians, the predecessors of Avicenna, we -shall be surprised that it contains little or nothing which can be -considered as original; the whole is borrowed from the writings of -Galen, or Ætius, or Rhazes: scarcely ever does he venture to trust his -own wings, but rests entirely on the sagacity of his Greek and Arabian -predecessors. Galen is his great guide; or, if he ever forsake him, it -is to place himself under the direction of Aristotle. - -The Canon contains a collection of most of the valuable information -contained in the writings of the ancient Greek physicians, arranged, -it must be allowed, with great clearness. The Hhawi of Razes is almost -as complete; but it wants the _lucidus ordo_ which distinguishes the -Canon of Avicenna. I conceive that the high reputation which Avicenna -acquired, was owing to the care which he bestowed upon his arrangement. -He was undoubtedly a man of abilities, but not of inventive genius. -There is little original matter in the Canon. But the physicians in the -west, while Avicenna occupied the medical sceptre, had no opportunity -of judging of the originality of their oracle, because they were -unacquainted with the Greek language, and could not therefore consult -the writings of Galen or Ætius, except through the corrupt medium of an -Arabian version. - -But it is not the medical reputation of Avicenna that induced me to -mention his name here. Like all the Arabian physicians, he was also a -chemist; and his chemical tracts having been translated into Latin, and -published in Western Europe, we are enabled to judge of their merit, -and to estimate the effect which they may have had upon the progress -of chemistry. The first Latin translation of the chemical writings of -Avicenna was published at Basil in 1572; they consist of two separate -books; the first, under the name of “Porta Elementorum,” consists of a -dialogue between a master and his pupil, respecting the mysteries of -Alchymy. He gives an account of the four elements, fire, air, water, -earth, and gives them their usual qualities of dry, moist, hot, and -cold. He then treats of air, which, he says, is the food of fire, of -water, of honey, of the mutual conversion of the elements into each -other; of milk and cheese, of the mixture of fire and water, and that -all things are composed of the four elements. There is nothing in -this tract which has any pretension to novelty; he merely retails the -opinions of the Greek philosophers. - -The other treatise is much larger, and professes to teach the whole -art of alchymy; it is divided into ten parts, entitled “Dictiones.” -The first diction treats of the philosopher’s stone in general; the -second diction treats of the method of converting light things into -heavy, hard things into soft; of the mutation of the elements; and of -some other particulars of a nature not very intelligible. The third -diction treats of the formation of the elixir; and the same subject is -continued in the fourth. - -The fifth diction is one of the most important in the whole treatise; -it is in general intelligible, which is more than can be said of those -that precede it. This diction is divided into twenty-eight chapters: -the first chapter treats of copper, which, he says, is of three kinds; -permenian copper, natural copper, and Navarre copper. But of these -three varieties he gives no account whatever; though he enlarges a good -deal on the qualities of copper--not its properties, but its supposed -medicinal action. It is hot and dry, he says, but in the calx of it -there is humidity. His account of the composition of copper is the same -with that of Geber. - -The second chapter treats of lead, the third of tin, and in the -remaining chapters he treats successively of brass, iron, gold, silver, -marcasite, sulphuret of antimony, which is distinguished by the name of -alcohol; of soda, which he says is the juice of a plant called _sosa_. -And he gives an unintelligible process by which it is extracted from -that plant, without mentioning a syllable about the combustion to which -it is obvious that it must have been subjected. - -In the twelfth chapter he treats of saltpetre, which, he says, is -brought from Sicily, from India, from Egypt, and from Herminia. He -describes several varieties of it, but mentions nothing about its -characteristic property of deflagrating upon burning coals. He then -treats successively of common salt, of sal-gem, of vitriol, of sulphur, -of orpiment, and of sal ammoniac, which, he says, comes from Egypt, -from India, and from Forperia. In the nineteenth and subsequent -chapters he treats of aurum vivum, of hair, of urine, of eggs, of -blood, of glass, of white linen, of horse-dung, and of vinegar. - -The sixth diction, in thirty-three chapters, treats of the calcination -of the metals, of sublimation, and of some other processes. I think it -unnecessary to be more particular, because I cannot perceive any thing -in it that had not been previously treated of by Geber. - -The seventh diction treats of the preparation of blood and eggs, and -the method of dividing them into their four elements. It treats also -of the elixir of silver, and the elixir of gold; but it contains no -chemical fact of any importance. - -The eighth diction treats of the preparation of the ferment of silver, -and of gold. The ninth diction treats of the whole magistery, and of -the nuptials of the sun and moon; that is, of gold and silver. The -tenth diction treats of weights. - -The chemical writings of Avicenna are of little value, and apply -chemistry rather to the supposed medical qualities of the different -substances treated of, than to the advancement of the science. All -the chemical knowledge which he possesses is obviously drawn from -Geber. Geber, then, may be looked upon as the only chemist among the -Arabians to whom we are indebted for any real improvements and new -facts. It is true that the Arabian physicians improved considerably the -materia medica of the Greeks, and introduced many valuable medicines -into common use which were unknown before their time. It is enough -to mention corrosive sublimate, manna, opium, asafœtida. It would -be difficult to make out many of the vegetable substances used by -the Arabian chemists; because the plants which they designated by -particular names, can very seldom be identified. Botany at that time -had made so little progress, that no method was known of describing -plants so as to enable other persons to determine what they were. - - - - -CHAPTER IV - -OF THE PROGRESS OF CHEMISTRY UNDER PARACELSUS AND HIS DISCIPLES. - - -Hitherto we have witnessed only the first rude beginnings, or, as -it were, the early dawn of the chemical day. It is from the time of -Paracelsus that the true commencement of chemical investigations is to -be dated. Not that Paracelsus or his followers understood the nature -of the science, or undertook any regular or successful investigation. -But Paracelsus shook the medical throne of Galen and Avicenna to its -very foundation; he roused the latent energies of the human mind, which -had for so long a period lain torpid; he freed medical men from those -trammels, and put an end to that despotism which had existed for five -centuries. He pointed out the importance of chemical medicines, and -of chemical investigations, to the physician. This led many laborious -men to turn their attention to the subject. Those metals which were -considered as likely to afford useful medicines, mercury for example, -and antimony, were exposed to the action of an infinite number of -reagents, and a prodigious collection of new products obtained and -introduced into medicine. Some of these were better, and some worse, -than the preparations formerly employed; but all of them led to an -increase of the stock of chemical knowledge, which now began to -accumulate with considerable rapidity. It will be proper, therefore, -to give a somewhat particular account of the life and opinions -of Paracelsus, so far as they can be made out from his writings, -because, though he was not himself a scientific chemist, he may be -truly considered as the man through whose means the stock of chemical -knowledge was accumulated, which was afterwards, by the ingenuity of -Beccher, and Stahl, moulded into a scientific form. - -Philippus Aureolus Theophrastus Paracelsus Bombast ab Hohenheim (as -he denominates himself) was born at Einsideln, two German miles from -Zurich. His father was called William Bombast von Hohenheim. He was -a very near relation of George Bombast von Hohenheim, who became -afterwards grand master of the order of Johannites. William Bombast -von Hohenheim practised medicine at Einsideln.[143] After receiving -the first rudiments of his education in his native city, he became -a wandering scholastic, as was then the custom with poor scholars. -He wandered from province to province, predicting the future by the -position of the stars, and the lines on the hand, and exhibiting -all the chemical processes which he had learned from founders and -alchymists. For his initiation in alchymy, astrology, and medicine, -he was indebted to his father, who was much devoted to these three -sciences. Paracelsus mentions also the names of several ecclesiastics -from whom he received chemical information; among others, Tritheimius, -abbot of Spanheim; Bishop Scheit, of Stettbach; Bishop Erhart, of -Laventall; Bishop Nicolas, of Hippon; and Bishop Matthew Schacht. -He seems also to have served some years as an army surgeon, for he -mentions many cures which he performed in the Low Countries, in the -States of the Church, in the kingdom of Naples, and during the wars -against the Venetians, the Danes, and the Dutch. - -[143] See Testamentum Paracelsi, passim. - -There is some uncertainty whether he received a regular college -education, as was then the practice with all medical men. He -acknowledges himself that his medical antagonists reproached him with -never having frequented their schools; and he is perpetually affirming, -that a physician should receive all his knowledge from God, and not -from man. But if we can trust his own assertions, there can be no doubt -that he took a regular medical degree, which implies a regular college -education. He tells us, in his preface to his Chirurgia Magna, that he -visited the universities of Germany, France, and Italy. He assures his -readers, that he was the ornament of the schools where he studied. He -even speaks of the oath which he was obliged to take when he received -his medical degree; but where he studied, or where and when he received -his medical degree, are questions which neither Paracelsus nor his -disciples, nor his biographers, have enabled us to solve. If he ever -attended a university, he must have neglected his studies, otherwise he -could not have been ignorant, as he confessedly was, of the very first -elements of the most common kinds of knowledge. But if he neglected the -universities, he laboured long and assiduously with the rich Sigismond -Fuggerus, of Schwartz, in order to learn the true secret of forming the -philosopher’s stone. - -He gives us some details of the numerous journeys that he made, as -was customary with the alchymists of the time, into the mountains of -Bohemia, the East, and Sweden, to inspect the mines, to get himself -initiated into the mysteries of the eastern adepts, to inspect the -wonders of nature, and to view the celebrated diamond mountain, the -position of which, however, he unfortunately forgets to specify. - -In the preface to his Chirurgia Magna, he informs us that he traversed -Spain, Portugal, England, Prussia, Poland, and Transylvania; where he -not only profited by the information of the medical men with whom he -became acquainted, but that he drew much precious information from -old women, gipsies, conjurors, and chemists.[144] He spent several -years in Hungary; and informs us that at Weissenburg, in Croatia, and -in Stockholm, he was taught by several old women to prepare drinks -capable of curing ulcers. He is said also to have made a voyage into -Egypt, and even into Tartary; and he accompanied the son of the Kan -of the Tartars to Constantinople, in order to learn the secret of the -philosopher’s stone from Trismogin, who inhabited that capital. This -prodigious activity, this constant motion from place to place, left -him but little leisure for reading: accordingly he informs us himself, -that during the space of ten years he never opened a book, and that his -whole library consisted only of six sheets. The inventory of his books, -drawn up after his death, confirms this recital; for they consisted -only of the Bible, the Concordance to the Bible, the New Testament, and -the Commentaries of St. Jerome on the Evangelists. - -[144] “Hispania, Portugallia, Anglia, Borussia, Lithuania, Polonia, -Pannonia, Valachia, Transylvania, Croatia, Illyrico, immo omnibus -totius Europæ nationibus peragratis, undeque non solum apud medicos, -sed et chirurgos, tonsores, aniculas, magos, chymistas, nobiles ac -ignobiles, optima, selectiora ac secretiora, quæ uspiam extarent -remedia, inquisivi acriter.”--_Præfatio Chirurgiæ Magnæ._ Opera -Paracelsi, tom. iii. - -We know not at what period he returned back to Germany; but at the -age of thirty-three the great number of fortunate cures which he had -performed rendered him an object of admiration to the people, and -of jealousy to the rival physicians of the time. He assures us that -he cured eighteen princes whose diseases had been aggravated by the -practitioners devoted to the system of Galen. Among others he cured -Philip, Margrave of Baden, of a dysentery, who promised him a great -reward, but did not keep his promise, and even treated him in a way -unworthy of that prince. This cure, however, and others of a similar -nature, added greatly to his celebrity; and in order to raise his -reputation to the highest possible pitch, he announced publicly that he -was able to cure all the diseases hitherto reckoned incurable; and that -he had discovered an elixir, by means of which the life of man might be -prolonged at pleasure to any extent whatever. He began the practice, -which has since been so successfully followed in this country, of -dispensing medicines gratuitously to the poor, in order to induce the -rich to apply to him for assistance when they were overtaken with -diseases. - -In the year 1526 Paracelsus was appointed professor of physic and -surgery in the University of Basil. This appointment was given him, -it is said, by the recommendation of Œcolampadius. He introduced the -custom of lecturing in the common language of the country, as is at -present the universal practice: but during the time of Paracelsus, and -long after indeed, all lectures were delivered in Latin. The new method -which he followed in explaining the theory and practice of the art; -the numerous fortunate cures which he stated in confirmation of his -method of treatment; the emphasis with which he spoke of his secrets -for prolonging life, and for curing every kind of disease without -distinction, but still more his lecturing in a language which was -understood by the whole population, drew to Bâle an immense crowd of -idle, enthusiastic, and credulous hearers. - -The lectures which he delivered on Practical Medicine still remain, -written in a confused mixture of German and barbarous Latin, and -containing little or nothing except a farrago of empirical remedies, -advanced with the greatest confidence. They have a much greater -resemblance to a collection of quack advertisements than to the sober -lectures of a professor in a university. In the month of November, -1526, he wrote to Christopher Clauser, a physician in Zurich, that -as Hippocrates was the first physician among the Greeks, Avicenna -among the Arabians, Galen among the Pergamenians, and Marsilius among -the Italians, so he was beyond dispute the greatest physician among -the Germans. Every country produces an illustrious physician, whose -medicines are adapted to the climate in which he lived, but not suited -to other countries. The remedies of Hippocrates were good to the -Greeks, but not suitable to the Germans; thus it was necessary that -an inspired physician should spring up in every country, and that he -was the person destined to teach the Germans the art of curing all -diseases.[145] - -[145] See the dedication to his treatise _De Gradibus et -Compositionibus Receptorum et Naturalium_. Opera Paracelsi, vol. ii. -p. 144. I always refer to the folio edition of Paracelsus’s works, in -three volumes, published at Geneva in 1658, by M. de Tournes, which is -the edition in my possession. - -Paracelsus began his professorial career by burning publicly, in his -class-room, and in the presence of his pupils, the works of Galen -and Avicenna, assuring his hearers that the strings of his shoes -possessed more knowledge than those two celebrated physicians. All the -universities united had not, he assured them, as much knowledge as was -contained in his own beard, and the hairs upon his neck were better -informed than all the writers that ever existed put together. To give -the reader an idea of the arrogant absurdity of his pretensions, I -shall translate a few sentences of the preface to his tract, entitled -“Paragranum,” where he indulges in his usual strain of rodomontade: -“Me, me you shall follow, you Avicenna, you Galen, you Rhazes, you -Montagnana, you Mesue. I shall not follow you, but you shall follow me. -You, I say, you inhabitants of Paris, you inhabitants of Montpelier, -you Suevi, you Misnians, you inhabitants of Cologne, you inhabitants of -Vienna; all you whom the Rhine and the Danube nourish, you who inhabit -the islands of the sea; you also Italy, you Dalmatia, you Athens, you -Greek, you Arabian, you Israelite--I shall not follow you, but you -shall follow me. Nor shall any one lurk in the darkest and most remote -corner whom the dogs shall not piss upon. I shall be the monarch, the -monarchy shall be mine. If I administer, and I bind up your loins, is -he with whom you are at present delighted a Cacophrastus? This ordure -must be eaten by you.” - -“What will your opinion be when you see your Cacophrastus constituted -the chief of the monarchy? What will you think when you see the sect -of Theophrastus leading on a solemn triumph, if I make you pass under -the yoke of my philosophy? your Pliny will you call Cacopliny, and your -Aristotle, Cacoaristotle? If I plunge them together with your Porphyry, -Albertus, &c., and the whole of their compatriots into my _necessary_.” -But the terms become now so coarse and indelicate, that I cannot bring -myself to proceed further with the translation. Enough has been given -to show the extreme arrogance and folly of Paracelsus. - -So far, however, was this impudence and grossness from injuring the -interest of Paracelsus, that we are assured by Ramus and Urstisius -that it contributed still further to increase it. The coarseness -of his language was well suited to the vulgarity of the age; and -his arrogance and boasting were considered, as usual, as a proof of -superior merit. The cure which he performed on Frobenius, drew the -attention of Erasmus himself, who consulted him about the diseases -with which he was afflicted; and the letters that passed between them -are still preserved. The epistle of Paracelsus is short, enigmatical, -and unintelligible; that of Erasmus is distinguished by that clearness -and elegance which characterize his writings.[146] But Frobenius died -in the month of October, 1527, and the antagonists of Paracelsus -attributed his death (and probably with justice) to the violent -remedies which had been administered to a man whose constitution had -been destroyed by the gout. - -[146] Opera Paracelsi, i. 485. - -His death contributed not a little to tarnish the glory of Paracelsus: -but he suffered the greatest injury from the habits of intoxication -in which he indulged, and from the vulgarity of the way in which he -spent his time. He hardly ever went into his class-room to deliver -a lecture till he was half intoxicated, and scarcely ever dictated -to his secretaries till he had lost the use of his reason by a too -liberal indulgence in wine. If he was summoned to visit a patient, he -scarcely ever went but in a state of intoxication. Not unfrequently he -passed the whole night in the alehouse, in the company of peasants, -and when morning came, was quite incapable of performing the duties -of his station. On one occasion, after a debauch, which lasted the -whole night, he was called next morning to visit a patient; on -entering the room, he inquired if the sick person had taken any thing: -“Nothing,” was the answer, “except the body of our Lord.” “Since you -have already,” says he, “provided yourself with another physician, my -presence here is unnecessary,” and he left the apartment instantly. -When Albertus Basa, physician to the king of Poland, visited Paracelsus -in the city of Basel, he carried him to see a patient whose strength -was completely exhausted, and which, in his opinion, it was impossible -to restore; but Paracelsus, wishing to make a parade of his skill, -administered to him three drops of his laudanum, and invited him to -dine with him next day.[147] The invitation was accepted, and the sick -man dined next day with his physician. - -[147] There were two laudanums of Paracelsus; one was _red oxide of -mercury_, the other consisted of the following substances: Chloride -of antimony, 1 ounce; hepatic aloes, 1 ounce; rose-water, ½ ounce; -saffron, 3 ounces; ambergris, 2 drams. All these well mixed. - -Towards the end of the year 1527 a disgraceful dispute into which he -entered brought his career, as a professor, to a sudden termination. -The canon Cornelius, of Lichtenfels, who had been long a martyr to -the gout, employed him as his physician, and promised him one hundred -florins if he could cure him. Paracelsus made him take three pills of -laudanum, and having thus freed him from pain, demanded the sum agreed -upon; but Lichtenfels refused to pay him the whole of it. Paracelsus -summoned him before the court, and the magistrate of Basle decided -that the canon was bound to pay only the regular price of the medicine -administered. Irritated at this decision, our intoxicated professor -uttered a most violent invective against the magistrate, who threatened -to punish him for his outrageous conduct. His friends advised him to -save himself by flight. He took their advice, and thus abdicated his -professorship. But, by this time, his celebrity as a teacher had been -so completely destroyed by his foolish and immoral conduct, that he -had lost all his hearers. In consequence of this state of things, his -flight from Basle produced no sensation whatever in that university. - -Paracelsus betook himself, in the first place, to Alsace, and sent -for his faithful follower, the bookseller, Operinus, together with -the whole of his chemical apparatus. In 1528 we find him at Colmar, -where he recommenced his ambulating life of a theosophist, which he -had led during his youth. His book upon syphilis, known at that time -by the name of Morbus Gallicus, was dedicated at Colmar, to the chief -magistrate of Colmar, Hieronymus Bonerus.[148] In 1531 he was at -Saint-Gallen; in 1535, at Pfeffersbade, and in 1536, at Augsburg, where -he dedicated his Chirurgia Magna to Malhausen. At the request of John -de Leippa, Marshal of Bohemia, he undertook a journey into Moravia; -as that nobleman, having been informed that Paracelsus understood -the method of curing the gout radically, was anxious to put himself -under his care. Paracelsus lived for a long time at Kroman, and its -environs. John de Leippa, instead of receiving any benefit from the -medicines administered to him, became daily worse, and at last died. -This was the fate also of the lady of Zerotin, in whom the remedies of -Paracelsus produced no fewer than twenty-four epileptic fits in one -day. Paracelsus, instead of waiting the disgrace with which the death -of this lady would have overwhelmed him, announced his intention of -going to Vienna, that he might see how they would treat him in that -capital. - -[148] Opera Paracelsi, iii, 101. - -It is said, that from Vienna he went into Hungary; but in 1538, we find -him in Villach, where he dedicated his Chronica et Origo Carinthiæ -to the states of Carinthia.[149] His book, De Natura Rerum, had -been dedicated to Winkelstein, and the dedication is dated also at -Villach, in the year 1537.[150] In 1540 he was at Mindelheim, and in -1541, at Strasburg, where he died, in St. Stephen’s hospital, in the -forty-eighth year of his age. - -[149] Opera Paracelsi, i. 243. - -[150] Ibid., ii. 84. - -To form an accurate idea of this most extraordinary man, we must attend -to his habits, and to the situation in which he was placed. He had -acquired such a habit of moving about, that he assures us himself he -found it impossible for him to continue for any length of time in one -place. He was always surrounded by a number of followers, whom neither -his habits of intoxication, nor the foolish and immoral conduct in -which he was accustomed to indulge, could induce to forsake him. The -most celebrated of these was Operinus, a printer at Basle, on whom -Paracelsus lavishes the most excessive praises, in his book De Morbo -Gallico. But Operinus loaded his master with obloquy, being provoked -at him because he had not made him acquainted with the secret of the -philosopher’s stone, as he had promised to do. We must therefore be -cautious in believing the stories that he relates to the discredit of -his master. We know the names of two others of his followers; Francis, -who assures us that Paracelsus was devoted to the transmutation of -metals; and George Vetter, who considered him as a magician; as was the -opinion also of Operinus. Paracelsus himself, speaks of Dr. Cornelius, -whom he calls his secretary, and in honour of whom he wrote several -of his libels. Other libels are dedicated to Doctors Peter, Andrew, -and Ursinus, to the licentiate Pancrace, and to Mr. Raphael. On this -occasion he complains bitterly of the infidelity of his servants, who, -he says, had succeeded in stealing from him several of his secrets; -and had by this means been enabled to establish their reputation. He -accuses equally the barbers and bathers that followed him, and is no -less severe upon the physicians of every country through which he -travelled. - -When we attempt to form an accurate conception of the medical and -philosophical opinions of this singular man, we find ourselves beset -with almost insurmountable difficulties. His statements are so much -at variance with each other, in his different pieces, and so much -confusion reigns with respect to the order of publication, that we know -not what to fix on as his last and maturest opinions. His style is -execrable; filled with new words of his own coining, and of mysticisms -either introduced to excite the admiration of the ignorant, or from -the fanaticism and credulity of the writer, who was undoubtedly, to a -considerable extent, the dupe of his own impostures. That he was in -possession of the philosopher’s stone, or of a medicine capable of -prolonging life to an indefinite length, as he all along asserted, he -could not himself believe; but he had boasted so long and so loudly of -his wonderful cures, and of the efficacy of his medicines, that there -can be no doubt that he ultimately placed implicit faith in them. The -blunders of the transcribers whom he employed to copy his works, may -perhaps account for some of the contradictions which they contain. -But how can we look for a regular system of opinions from a man who -generally dictated his works when in a state of intoxication, and thus -laboured under an almost constant deprivation of reason. - -His obscurity was partly the effect of design, and no doubt was -intended to exalt the notions entertained of his profundity. He uses -common words in new significations, without giving any indication -of the change which he introduced. Thus _anatomy_, in the writings -of Paracelsus, signifies not the dissection of dead animals to -determine their structure, but it means the nature, force, and -magical designation of a thing. And as, according to the Platonic and -Cabalistic theory, every earthly body is formed after the model of a -heavenly body, Paracelsus calls _anatomy_ the knowledge of that model, -of that ideal, or of that paradigm after which all things are created. -He terms the fundamental force of a thing _a star_, and defines alchymy -the art of drawing out the stars of metals. The star is the source of -all knowledge. When we eat, we introduce into our bodies _the star_, -which is then modified, and favours nutrition. - -It is probable that many of his obscure and unintelligible expressions -are the fruit of ignorance. Thus he uses the term _pagoyus_, instead -of _paganus_. He gives the name of _pagoyæ_ to the four _entities_, -or causes of diseases, founded on the influence of the stars, to the -elementary qualities; to the occult qualities, and to the influence -of spirits; because these had been already admitted by the _Pagans_. -But the fifth _entity_, or cause of disease, which has God immediately -for its author, is _non pagoya_. The _undimia_ of Paracelsus is our -_œdema_; only he applies the name to every kind of dropsy. The Latin -word _tonitru_, we find is declined by Paracelsus. Thus he says, _lapis -tonitrui_. The well-known line of Ovid, - - Tollere nodosam nescit medicina podagram, - -He travestied into - - Nescit tartaream Roades curare podagram.[151] - -[151] Opera Paracelsi, i. 328. - -_Roades_, he says, means medicines for horses; and if any person wishes -a more elegant verse, he may make it for himself.[152] He employs, -also, a great number of words to which no meaning whatever can be -attached; and to which, in all probability, he himself had affixed none. - -[152] “Qui elegantiorem optat, ille eum condat.”--_Ibid._ - -As is the case with all fanatics, he treated with contempt every -kind of knowledge acquired by labour and application; and boasted -that his wisdom was communicated to him directly by God Almighty. -The theosophist who is worthy of partaking of the divine light, has -no occasion for adopting a positive religion, nor of subjecting -himself to any kind of religious ceremony. The divine light within, -which assimilates him to the Deity, more than compensates for all -these vulgar usages, and raises the illuminated votary far above the -beggarly elements of external worship. Accordingly, Paracelsus has been -accused of treating the public worship of the Deity with contempt. Not -satisfied with the plain sense of the book, he attempted to explain -in a mystical manner the words and syllables of the Bible. He accused -Luther of not going far enough. “Luther,” says he, “is not worthy of -untying the strings of my shoes: should I undertake a reformation, -I would begin by sending the pope and the reformers themselves to -school.” God, says Paracelsus, is the first and most excellent of -writers. The Holy Scripture conducts us to all truth, and teaches us -all things. But medicine, philosophy, and astronomy, are among the -number of things. Therefore, when we want to know what magical medicine -is, we must consult the Apocalypse. The Bible, with its paraphrases, -is the key to the theory of diseases. It puts it in our power to -understand St. John, who, like Daniel, Ezekiel, Moses, &c., was a -magician, a cabalist, a diviner. The first duty of a physician is to -study the Cabala, without which he must every moment commit a thousand -blunders. “Learn,” says he, “the cabalistic art, which includes under -it all the others.” “Man invents nothing, the devil invents nothing; -it is God alone who unveils to us the light of nature.” “God honoured -at first with his illumination the blind pagans, Apollo, Æsculapius, -Machaon, Podalirius, and Hippocrates, and imparted to them the genius -of medicine; their successors were the sophists.” One would suppose, -from this passage, that Paracelsus had read and studied Hippocrates, -and that he held him in high estimation. But the commentaries which -he has left on some of the aphorisms, show evidently that he did not -even understand the Greek physician. “The compassion of God,” says he, -“is the only foundation of medical science, and not a knowledge of the -great masters, or of the writings which they have left in Greek and -Latin.” “God often acts in dreams by the light of nature, and points -out to man the manner of curing diseases.” “This knowledge renders -all those objects visible which would otherwise escape the sight; -and when faith is joined with it, nothing is then impossible to the -theosophist, who may transport the ocean to the top of Mount Ætna, and -Olympus into the Red Sea.” Paracelsus predicts that by the year 1590 -Christian theosophy would be generally spread over the world, and that -the Galenical schools would be almost or entirely overthrown. - -We find in Paracelsus some traces of the opinions of the Gnostics and -Arians, who considered Christ as the first emanation of the Deity. He -calls the first man _parens hominis_; and makes all spirits emanate -from him. He is the _limbus minor_, or the last creature, into whom -enters the great _limbus_, or the seed of all the creatures, the -infinite being. All the sciences, and all the arts of man, are derived -from this great _limbus_; and he who can sink himself in the little -_limbus_, that is to say, in Adam, and who can communicate by faith -with Jesus Christ, may invoke all _spirits_. Those who owe their -science to this _limbus_, are the best informed; those who derive it -from the stars, occupy the last rank; and those who owe it to the light -of nature, are intermediate between the preceding. Jesus Christ, in his -capacity of _limbus minor_ and first man, being always an emanation of -the Divinity; and, consequently, a subordinate personage. These ideas -explain to us why Paracelsus passed for an Arian, and was supposed not -to believe in the Divinity of Jesus Christ. He was of opinion that the -faithful performed miracles, and operated magical cures by their simple -confidence in God the Father, and not by their faith in Christ; but he -adds, however, that we ought to pray to Jesus, in order to obtain his -intercession. - -From the preceding attempt to explain the opinions of Paracelsus, it -will be evident to the reader that he was both a fanatic and impostor, -and that his theory (if such a name can be given to the reveries of -a drunkard), consisted in uniting medicine with the doctrines of the -Cabala. A few more observations will be necessary to develop his dogmas -still further. - -Every body, in his opinion, and man in particular, is double, -consisting of a material and spiritual substance.[153] The -spiritual, which may be called the _sideric_, results from the -celestial influences; and we may trace after it a figure capable of -producing all kinds of magical effects. When we can act upon the -body itself, we act at the same time upon the spiritual form by -characters and conjurations.[154] Yet, in another passage, he blames -all magical ceremonies, and ascribes them to want of faith. The -celestial intelligences impress upon material bodies certain signs, -which manifest their influence. The perfection of art consists in -understanding the meaning of these signs, and in determining from them -the nature, qualities, and essence of a body. Adam, the first man, had -a perfect knowledge of the Cabala; he could interpret the signatures -of all things. It was this which enabled him to assign to the animals -names which suited them best. A man who renounces all sensuality, and -is blindly obedient to the will of God, is capable of taking a share -in the actions which celestial intelligences perform; and consequently -is possessed of the philosopher’s stone. Never does he want any thing; -all creatures in earth and in heaven are obedient to him; he can cure -all diseases, and prolong his life as long as he pleases; because he -possesses the tincture which Adam and the patriarch’s before the flood -employed to prolong the term of their existence.[155] Beelzebub, the -chief of the demons, is also subject to the power of magic: and who can -blame the theosophist for believing in the devil? He ought, however, -to take care to prevent this malignant spirit from commanding him. -Paracelsus was often wont to say, “If God does not aid me, the devil -will help me.” - -[153] Archidoxorum, lib. i. Opera Paracelsi, ii. 4. - -[154] De longa Vita. Opera Paracelsi, ii. 46. - -[155] Archidoxorum, lib. viii. Opera Paracelsi, ii. 29. In this book -he gives the method of preparing the elixir of life. It seems to have -been nothing else than a solution of _common salt_ in water; for the -quintessence of gold, with which this solution was to be mixed, was -doubtless an imaginary substance. - -Pantheism was one of the principal dogmas of the Cabala; and Paracelsus -adopts it in all its grossness. He affirms perpetually that every thing -is animated in the universe; that every thing which exists, eats, -drinks, and voids excrements: even minerals and liquids take food and -void the digested remains of their nourishment.[156] This opinion -leads necessarily to the admission of a great number of spiritual -substances, intermediate between material and immaterial in every part -of the sublunary world, in water, air, earth, and fire; who, as well -as man, eat, drink, converse, beget children; but which approach pure -spirits in this, that they are more transparent, and infinitely more -agile than all other animal bodies. Man possesses a soul, of which -these pure spirits are destitute. Hence it happens that these spiritual -substances are at once body and spirit without a soul. When they die -(for like the human race they are subject to death), no soul remains. -Like us they are exposed to diseases. Their names vary according to the -places that they occupy. When they inhabit the air, they are called -_sylphs_; when the water, _nymphs_; when the earth, _pigmies_; when the -fire, _salamanders_.[157] The inhabitants of the waters are also called -_undinæ_, and those of the fire _vulcani_. The sylphs approach nearest -to our nature, as they live in the air like us. The sylphs, nymphs, -and pigmies, sometimes obtain permission from God to make themselves -visible, to converse with men, to indulge in carnal pleasures, and -to produce children. But the salamanders have no relation to man. -These spiritual beings are acquainted with the future, and capable of -revealing it to man. They appear under the form of _ignes fatui_. We -have also the history of the fairies and the giants; and are told how -these spiritual beings are the guardians of concealed treasures; and -how these sylphs, nymphs, pigmies, and salamanders, may be charmed, and -their treasures taken from them. - -[156] Modus Pharmacandi. Opera Paracelsi, i. 811. - -[157] Liber de Nymphis, Sylphis, Pygmæis, et Salamandris, et de ceteris -Spiritibus. Opera Paracelsi, ii. 388. If the reader can understand this -singular book, his sagacity will be greater than mine. - -This division of man into body and spirit, and of the things of nature -into visible and invisible, has in all ages of the world, been adopted -by fanatics, because it enabled them to explain the history of ghosts, -and a thousand similar prejudices. Hence the distinction between soul -and spirit, which is so very ancient; and hence the three following -harmonies to which the successors of Paracelsus paid a particular -attention: - - _Soul_, _Spirit_, _Body_, - _Mercury_, _Sulphur_, _Salt_, - _Water_, _Air_, _Earth_. - -The will and the imagination of man acts principally by means of the -spirit. Hence the reason of the efficacy of sorcery and magic. The -_nævi materni_ are the impressions of these _vice-men_, and Paracelsus -calls them _cocomica signa_. The _sideric_ body of man draws to him, -by imagination, all that surrounds him, and particularly the stars, -on which it acts like a magnet. In this manner, women with child, and -during the regular period of monthly evacuation, having a diseased -imagination, are not only capable of poisoning a mirror by their -breath, but of injuring the infants in their wombs, and even also of -poisoning the moon. But it seems needless to continue this disagreeable -detail of the absurd and ridiculous opinions which Paracelsus has -consigned to us in his different tracts. - -The Physiology of Paracelsus (if such a name can be applied to his -reveries) is nothing else than an application of the laws of the -Cabala to the explanation of the functions of the body. There exists, -he assures us, an intimate connexion between the sun and the heart, -the moon and the brain, Jupiter and the liver, Saturn and the spleen, -Mercury and the lungs, Mars and the bile, Venus and the kidneys. In -another part of his works, he informs us that the sun acts on the -umbilicus and the middle parts of the abdomen, the moon on the spine, -Mercury on the bowels, Venus on the organs of generation, Mars on the -face, Jupiter on the head, and Saturn on the extremities. The pulse is -nothing else than the measure of the temperature of the body, according -to the space of the six places which are in relation to the planets. -Two pulses under the sole of the feet belong to Saturn and Jupiter, -two at the elbow to Mars and Venus, two in the temples to the moon and -mercury. The pulse of the sun is found under the heart. The _macrocosm_ -has also seven pulses, which are the revolutions of the seven planets, -and the irregularity or intermittence of these pulses, is represented -by the eclipses. The moon and Saturn are charged in the macrocosm with -thickening the water, which causes it to congeal. In like manner the -moon of the microcosm, that is to say the brain, coagulates the blood. -Hence _melancholy persons_, whom Paracelsus calls _lunatics_, have a -thick blood. We ought not to say of a man that he has such and such -a complexion; but that it is Mars, Venus, &c., so that a physician -ought to know the planets of the microcosm, the arctic and antarctic -pole, the meridian, the zodiac, the east and the west, before trying -to explain the functions or cure the diseases.[158] This knowledge is -acquired by a continual comparison of the macrocosm with the microcosm. -What must have been the state of medicine at the time when Paracelsus -wrote, when the propagator of such opinions could be reckoned one of -the greatest of its reformers? - -[158] Paragrani Alterius, tract. ii. Opera Paracelsi, i. 235. The -reader who has the curiosity to consult this tract, will find abundance -of similar stuff, which I did not think worth translating. - -The system of Galen had for its principal basis the doctrine of -the four elements, _fire_, _air_, _water_, and _earth_. Paracelsus -neglected these elements, and multiplied the substances of the -disease itself. He admits, strictly speaking, three or four elements; -namely, the _star_, the _root_, the _element_, the _sperm_, which -he distinguishes by the name of the _true seed_. All these elements -were originally confounded together in the _chaos_ or _yliados_. The -_star_ is the active force which gives form to matter. The _stars_ -are reasonable beings addicted to sodomy and adultery, like other -creatures. Each of them draws at pleasure out of the _chaos_, the -plant and the metal to which it has an affinity, and gives a _sideric_ -form to their _root_. There are two kinds of _seed_; the _sperm_ -is the vehicle of the true seed. It is engendered by speculation, -by imagination, by the power of the _star_. The occult, invisible, -_sideric_ body produces the _true seed_, and the Adamic man secretes -only the visible envelope of it. Putrefaction cannot give birth to -a new body: the seed must pre-exist, and it is developed during -putrefaction by the power of the stars. The generation of animals is -produced by the concourse of the infinite number of seeds which detach -themselves from all parts of the body. Thus the seed of the nose -reproduces a nose, that of the eye the eye, and so on. - -With respect to the elements themselves, Paracelsus admits occasionally -their influence on the functions of the body, and the theory of -diseases; but he deduces the faculties which they possess from the -_stars_. It was he that first shook the doctrine of the four elements, -originally contrived by Empedocles. Alchymy had introduced another set -of elements, and the alchymists maintained that salt, sulphur, and -mercury, were the true elements of things. Paracelsus endeavoured to -reconcile these chemical elements with his cabalistic ideas, and to -show more clearly their utility in the theory of medicine. He invented -a _sideric salt_, which can only be perceived by the exquisite senses -of a theosophist, elevated by the abnegation of all gross sensuality -to a level with pure and spiritual demons. This _salt_ is the cause of -the consistence of bodies, and it is it which gives them the faculty of -being reproduced from their ashes. - -Paracelsus imagined also a _sideric sulphur_, which being vivified -by the influence of the stars, gives bodies the property of growing, -and of being combustible. He admits also a _sideric mercury_, the -foundation of fluidity and volatilization. The concourse of these three -substances forms the body. In different parts of his works, Paracelsus -says, that the _elements_ are composed of these three principles. -In plants he calls the salt _balsam_, the sulphur _resin_ and the -mercury _gotaronium_. In other passages he opposes the assertion of -the Galenists, that _fire_ is _dry_ and _hot_, _air cold_ and _moist_, -_earth dry_ and _cold_, _water moist_ and _cold_. Each of these -elements, he says, is capable of admitting all qualities, so that in -reality there exists a _dry water_, a _cold fire_, &c. - -I must not omit another remarkable physiological doctrine of -Paracelsus, namely, that there exists in the stomach a demon called -_Archæus_, who presides over the chemical operations which take place -in it, separating the poisonous from the nutritive part of food, and -furnishing the alimentary substances with the tincture, in consequence -of which they become capable of being assimilated. This _ruler of the -stomach_, who changes bread into blood, is the type of the physician, -who ought to keep up a good understanding with him, and lend him his -assistance. To produce a change in the humours ought never to be the -object of the true physician, he should endeavour to concentrate all -his operations on the stomach and the ruler who reigns in it. This -Archæus to whom the name of _Nature_ may also be given, produces all -the changes by his own power. It is he alone who cures diseases. He has -a _head_ and _hands_, and is nothing else than the _spirit of life_, -the _sideric body_ of man, and no other spirit besides exists in the -body. Each part of the body has also a peculiar stomach in which the -secretions are elaborated. - -There are, he informs us, five different causes of diseases. The first -is the _ens astrorum_. The constellations do not immediately induce -diseases, but they alter and infect the air. This is what, properly -speaking constitutes the _entity of the stars_. Some constellations -_sulphurize_ the atmosphere, others communicate to it _arsenical_, -_saline_, or _mercurial_ qualities. The arsenical astral entities -injure the blood, the mercurial the head, the saline the bones and -the vessels. Orpiment occasions tumours and dropsies, and the _bitter -stars_ induce fever. - -The second morbific cause is the _ens veneni_, which proceeds from -alimentary substances: when the archeus is languid putrefaction -ensues, either _localiter_ or _emuncturaliter_. This last takes place -when those evacuations, which ought to be expelled by the nose, the -intestines, or the bladder, are retained in the body. Dissolved mercury -escapes through the pores of the skin, white sulphur by the nose, -arsenic by the ears, sulphur diluted with water by the eyes, salt in -solution by the urine, and sulphur deliquesced by the intestines. - -The third morbific cause of disease is the _ens naturale_; but -Paracelsus subjects to the ens astrorum the principles which the -schools are in the habit of arranging among the number of natural -causes. The _ens spirituale_ forms the fourth species and the _ens -deale_ or _Christian entity_ the fifth. This last class comprehends all -the immediate effects of divine predestination. - -It would lead us too far if I were to point out the strange methods -which he takes to discover the cause of diseases. But his doctrine -concerning _tartar_ is too important, and does our fanatic too much -credit to be omitted. It is without doubt the most useful of all the -innovations which he introduced. _Tartar_ according to him, is the -principle of all the maladies proceeding from the thickening of the -humours, the rigidity of the solids, or the accumulation of earthy -matter. Paracelsus thought the term _stone_ not suitable to indicate -that matter, because it applies only to one species of it. Frequently -the principle proceeds from mucilage, and mucilage is tartar. He calls -this principle _tartar_ (_tartarus_) because it burns like hellfire, -and occasions the most dreadful diseases. As _tartar_ (_bitartrate of -potash_) is deposited at the bottom of the wine-cask, in the same way -_tartar_ in the living body is deposited on the surface of the teeth. -It is deposited on the internal parts of the body when the archæus acts -with too great impetuosity and in an irregular manner, and when it -separates the nutritive principle with too much impetuosity. Then the -saline spirit unites itself to it and coagulates the earthy principle, -which is always present, but often in the state of _materia prima_ -without being coagulated. - -In this manner tartar, in the state of _materia prima_, may be -transmitted from father to son. But it is not hereditary and -transmittable when it has already assumed the form of gout, of renal -calculus, or of obstruction. The saline spirit which gives it its form, -and causes its coagulation, is seldom pure and free from mixture; -usually it contains alum, vitriol, or common salt; and this mixture -contributes also to modify the tartarous diseases. The tartar may be -likewise distinguished according as it comes from the blood itself, -or from foreign matters accumulated in the humours. The great number -of calculi which have been found in every part of the body, and the -obstructions, confirm the generality of this morbific cause, to which -are due most of the diseases of the liver. When the tartarous matter -is increased by certain articles of food, renal calculi are engendered, -a calculous paroxysm is induced, and violent pain is occasioned. It -acts as an emetic, and may even give occasion to death, when the saline -spirit becomes corrosive; and when the tartar coagulated by it becomes -too irritating. - -Tartar, then, is always an excrementitious substance, which in many -cases results from the too great activity of the digestive forces. It -may make its appearance in all parts of the body, from the irregularity -and the activity, too energetic or too indolent, of the archeus; -and then it occasions particular accidents relative to each of the -functions. Paracelsus enumerates a great number of diseases of the -organs, which may be explained by that one cause; and affirms, that the -profession of medicine would be infinitely more useful, if medical men -would endeavour to discover the tartar before they tried to explain the -affections. - -Paracelsus points out, also, the means by which we can distinguish -the presence of tartar in urine. For this it is necessary, not merely -to inspect the urine, but to subject it to a chemical analysis. He -declaims violently against the ordinary ouroscopy. He divides urine -into internal and external; the internal comes from the blood, and the -external announces the nature of the food and drink which has been -employed. To the sediment of urine he gives the new name of _alcola_, -and admits three species of it, namely, _hypostasis_, _divulsio_, and -_sedimen_. The first is connected with the stomach, the second with the -liver, and the third with the kidneys; and tartar predominates in all -the three. - -The Cabala constantly directs Paracelsus in his therapeutics and -materia medica. As all terrestrial things have their image in the -region of the stars, and as diseases depend also on the influence of -the stars, we have nothing more to do, in order to obtain a certain -cure for these diseases, than to discover, by means of the Cabala, -the harmony of the constellations. _Gold_ is a specific against all -diseases of the _heart_, because, in the mystic scale, it is in -harmony with that viscus. The _liquor of the moon_ and crystal cure -the diseases of the _brain_. The liquor _alkahest_ and _cheiri_ are -efficacious against those of the _liver_. When we employ vegetable -substances, we must consider their harmony with the constellations, -and their magical harmony with the parts of the body and the diseases, -each star drawing, by a sort of magical virtue, the plant for which it -has an affinity, and imparting to it its activity. So that plants are -a kind of sublunary stars. To discover the virtues of plants, we must -study their anatomy and cheiromancy; for the leaves are their hands, -and the lines observable on them enable us to appreciate the virtues -which they possess. Thus the anatomy of the _chelidonium_ shows us that -it is a remedy for jaundice. These are the celebrated _signatures_ by -means of which we deduce the virtues of vegetables, and the medicines -of analogy which they present in relation to their form. Medicines, -like women, are known by the forms which they affect. He who calls -in question this principle, accuses the Divinity of falsehood, the -infinite wisdom of whom has contrived these external characters to -bring the study of them more upon a level with the weakness of the -human understanding. On the corolla of the euphrasia there is a black -dot; from this we may conclude that it furnishes an excellent remedy -against all diseases of the eye. The lizard has the colour of malignant -ulcers, and of the carbuncle; this points out the efficacy which that -animal possesses as a remedy. - -These signatures were exceedingly convenient for the fanatics, since -they saved them the trouble of studying the medical virtues of plants, -but enabled them to decide the subject _à priori_. Paracelsus acted -very considerately, when he ascribed these virtues principally to the -stars, and affirmed that the observation of favourable constellations -is an indispensable condition in the employment of these medicines. -“The remedies are subjected to the will of the stars, and directed by -them; you ought therefore to wait till heaven is favourable, before -ordering a medicine.” - -Paracelsus considered all the effects of plants as specifics, and the -use of them as secrets. The same notions explain the eulogy which he -bestowed on the _elixir of long life_, and upon all the means which -he employed to prolong the term of existence. He believed that these -methods, which contained the _materia prima_, served to repair the -constant waste of that matter in the human body. He was acquainted, -he says, with four of these arcana, to which he applied the mystic -terms, _mercury of life_, _philosopher’s stone_, &c. The _polygonum -persicaria_ was an infallible specific against all the effects of -magic. The method of using it is, to apply it to the suffering part, -and then to bury it in the earth. It draws out the malignant spirits -like a magnet, and it is buried to prevent these malignant spirits from -making their escape. - -The reformation of Paracelsus had the great advantage of representing -_chemistry_ as an indispensable art in the preparation of medicines. -The disgusting decoctions and useless syrups gave place to _tinctures_, -_essences_, and _extracts_. Paracelsus says, expressly, that the true -use of chemistry is to prepare medicines, and not to make gold. He -takes that opportunity of declaiming against cooks and innkeepers, who -drown medicines in soup, and thus destroy all their properties. He -blames medical men for prescribing simples, or mixtures of simples, and -affirms that the object should always be to extract the quintessence -of each substance; and he describes at length the method of extracting -this quintessence. But he was very little scrupulous about the -substances from which this quintessence was to be extracted. The -heart of a hare, the bones of a hare, the bone of the heart of a stag, -mother-of-pearl, coral, and various other bodies may, he says, be used -indiscriminately to furnish a quintessence capable of curing some of -the most grievous diseases. - -Paracelsus combats with peculiar energy the method of cure employed -by the disciples of Galen, directed solely against the predominating -humours, and the elementary qualities. He blames them for attempting -to correct the action of their medicines, by the addition of useless -ingredients. Fire and chemistry, he affirmed, are the sole correctives. -It was Paracelsus that first introduced _tin_ as a remedy for worms, -though his mode of employing it was not good. - -I have been thus particular in pointing out the philosophical and -medical opinions of Paracelsus, because they were productive of such -important consequences, by setting medical men free from the slavish -deference which they had been accustomed to pay to the dogmas of Galen -and Avicenna. But it was the high rank to which he raised chemistry, -by making a knowledge of it indispensable to all medical men; and by -insisting that the great importance of chemistry did not consist in the -formation of gold, but in the preparation of medicines, that rendered -the era of Paracelsus so important in the history of chemistry; for -after his time the art of chemistry was cultivated by medical men in -general--it became a necessary part of their education, and began to -be taught in colleges and medical schools. The object of chemistry -came to be, not to discover the philosopher’s stone, but to prepare -medicines; and a great number of new medicines, both from the mineral -and vegetable kingdom--some of more, some of less, consequence, soon -issued from the laboratories of the chemical physicians. - -There can be little doubt that many chemical preparations were either -first introduced into medicine by Paracelsus, or at least were first -openly prescribed by him: though from the nature of his writings, and -the secrecy in which he endeavoured to keep his most valuable remedies, -it is not easy to point out what these remedies were. Mercury is said -to have been employed in medicine by Basil Valentine; but it was -Paracelsus who first used it openly as a cure for the venereal disease, -and who drew general attention to it by his encomiums on its medical -virtues, and by the eclat of the cures which he performed by means of -it, after all the Galenical prescriptions of the schools had been tried -in vain. - -He ascertained that alum contains, united to an acid, not a metallic -oxide, but an earth. He mentions metallic arsenic; but there is some -reason for believing that this metal was known to Geber and the -Arabian physicians. Zinc is mentioned by him, and likewise bismuth, -as substances not truly metallic, but approaching to metals in their -properties: for malleability and ductility were considered by him as -essential to the metals.[159] I cannot be sure of any other chemical -fact which appears in Paracelsus, and which was not known before his -time. The use of sal ammoniac in subliming several metallic calces, -was familiar to him, but it had long ago been explained by Geber. It -is clear also that Geber was acquainted with aqua regia, and that he -employed it to dissolve gold. Paracelsus’s reputation as a chemist, -therefore, depends not upon any discoveries which he actually made, -but upon the great importance which he attached to the knowledge of -it, and to his making an acquaintance with chemistry an indispensable -requisite of a medical education. - -[159] Philosophiæ, tract. iv. De Mineralibus. Opera Paracelsi, ii. -282. “Quando ergo hoc modo metalla fiunt et producuntur, dum scilicet -verus metallicus fluxus et ductilitas aufertur et in septem metalla -distribuitur; residentia quædam manet in Ares, instar fœtûm trium -primorum. Ex hac nescitur zinetum, quod et metallum est et non est. -Sic et bisemutum et huic similia alia partim fluida, partim ductilia -sunt--Zinetum maxima ex parte spuria soboles est ex cupro et bisemutum -de stanno. Ex hisce duobus omnium plurimæ fæces et remanentiæ in Ares -fiunt.” - -Paracelsus, as the founder of a new system of medicine, the object -of which was to draw chemistry out of that state of obscurity and -degradation into which it had been plunged, and to give it the charge -of the preparation of medicine, and presiding over the whole healing -art, deserved a particular notice; and I have even endeavoured, at -some length, to lay his system of opinions, absurd as it is, before -the reader. But the same attention is not due to the herd of followers -who adopted his absurdities, and even carried them, if possible, -still further than their master: at the same time there are one or -two particulars connected with the Paracelsian sect which it would be -improper to omit. - -The most celebrated of his followers was Leonhard -Thurneysser-zum-Thurn, who was born in 1530, at Basle, where his father -was a goldsmith. His life, like that of his master, was checkered with -very extraordinary vicissitudes. In 1560 he was sent to Scotland to -examine the lead-mines in that country. In 1558 he commenced miner and -sulphur extractor at Tarenz on the Inn, and was so successful, that he -acquired a great reputation. He had turned his attention to medicine -on the Paracelsian plan, and in 1568 made himself distinguished by -several important cures which he performed. In 1570 he published his -Quinta Essentia, with wooden cuts, in Munster; from thence he went to -Frankfort on the Oder, and published his Piso, a work which treats of -_waters_, _rivers_, and _springs_. John George, Elector of Brandenburg, -was at that time in Frankfort, and was informed that the treatise -of Thurneysser pointed out the existence of a great deal of riches -in the March of Brandenburg, till that time unknown. His courtiers, -who were anxious to establish mines in their possessions, united in -recommending the author. He was consulted about a disease under which -the wife of the elector was labouring, and having performed a cure, he -was immediately named physician to this prince. - -He turned this situation to the best account. He sold Spanish white, -and other cosmetics, to the ladies of the court; and instead of the -disgusting decoctions of the Galenists, he administered the remedies of -Paracelsus under the pompous titles of _tincture of gold_, _magistery -of the sun_, _potable gold_, &c. By these methods he succeeded in -amassing a prodigious fortune, but was not fortunate enough to be able -to keep it. Gaspard Hoffmann, professor at Frankfort, a well-informed -and enlightened man, published a treatise, the object of which was -to expose the extravagant pretensions and ridiculous ignorance of -Thurneysser. This book drew the attention of the courtiers, and opened -the eyes of the elector. Thurneysser lost much of his reputation; and -the methods by which he attempted to bolster himself up, served only -to sink him still lower in the estimation of men of sense. Among other -things, he gave out that he was the possessor of a devil, which he -carried about with him in a bottle. This pretended devil was nothing -else than a scorpion, preserved in a phial of oil. The trick was -discovered, and the usual consequences followed. He lost a process with -his wife, from whom he was separated; this deprived him of the greatest -part of his fortune. In 1584 he fled to Italy, where he occupied -himself with the transmutation of metals, and he died at Cologne in -1595. - -Thurneysser extols Paracelsus as the only true physician that ever -existed. His Quintessence is written in verse. In the first book -_The Secret_ is the speaker. He is represented with a padlock in his -mouth, a key in his hand, and seated on a coffer in a chamber, the -windows of which are shut. This personage teaches that all things -are composed of salt, sulphur, and mercury, or of earth, air, and -water; and consequently that _fire_ is excluded from the number of the -elements. We must search for the secret in the _Bible_, and then in -the _stars_ and the _spirits_. In the second book, _Alchymy_ is the -speaker. She points out the mode of performing the processes; and says -that to endeavour to fix volatile substances, is the same thing as to -endeavour to trace white letters on a wall with a piece of charcoal. -She prohibits all long processes, because God created the world in six -days. - -His method of judging of the diseases from the urine of the patient -deserves to be mentioned. He distilled the urine, and fixed to the -receiver a tube furnished with a scale, the degrees of which consisted -of all the parts of the body. The phenomena which he observed during -the distillation of the urine, enabled him to draw inferences -respecting the state of all these different organs. - -I pass over Bodenstein, Taxites, and Dorn, who distinguished themselves -as partisans of Paracelsus. Dorn derived the whole of chemistry from -the first chapter of Genesis, the words of which he explained in an -alchymistical sense. These words in particular, “And God made the -firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament -from the waters which were above the firmament,” appeared to him to -be an account of the _great work_. Severinus, physician to the King -of Denmark, and canon of Roskild, was also a celebrated partisan of -Paracelsus; but his writings do not show either that knowledge or -stretch of thought which would enable us to account for the reputation -which he acquired and enjoyed. - -There were very few partisans of Paracelsus out of Germany. The most -celebrated of his followers among the French, was Joseph du Chesne, -better known by the name of Quercitanus, who was physician to Henry -IV. He was a native of Gascony, and drew many enemies upon himself by -his arrogant and overbearing conduct. He pretended to be acquainted -with the method of making gold. He was a thorough-going Paracelsian. -He affirmed that diseases, like plants, spring from seeds. The word -alchymy, according to him, is composed of the two Greek words ἁλς -(salt) and χημεια, because the _great secret_ is concealed in salt. All -bodies are composed of three principles, as God is of three substances. -These principles are contained in saltpetre, the salts of sulphur solid -and volatile, and the volatile mercurial salt. He who possesses _sal -generalis_ may easily produce philosophical gold, and draw potable -gold from the three kingdoms of nature. To prove the possibility of -this transmutation, he cites an experiment very often repeated after -him, and which some theologians have even employed as analogous to the -resurrection of the dead; namely, the faculty which plants have of -being produced from their ashes. His materia medica is founded on the -_signatures_ of plants, which he carries so far as to assert that male -plants are more suitable to men, and female plants to women. Sulphuric -acid, he says, has a magnetic virtue, in consequence of which it is -capable of curing the epilepsy. He recommends the _magisterium cranii -humani_ as an excellent medicine, and boasts much of the virtues of -antimony. - -Du Chesne was opposed by Riolanus, who attacked chemical remedies with -much bitterness. The medical faculty of Paris took up the cause of the -Galenists with much zeal, and prohibited their fellows and licentiates -from using any chemical medicines whatever. He had to sustain a -dispute with Aubert relative to the origin and the transmutation of -metals. Fenot came to the assistance of Aubert, and affirmed that gold -possesses no medical properties whatever, that _crabs’ eyes_ are of -no use when administered in intermittents, and that the laudanum of -Paracelsus (being an opiate) is in reality hurtful instead of being -beneficial. - -The decree of the medical faculty of Paris which placed antimony among -the poisons, and which occasioned that of the Parliament of Paris, was -composed by Simon Pietre, the elder, a man of great erudition and the -most unimpeachable probity. Had it been literally obeyed it would have -occasioned very violent proceedings; because chemical remedies, as they -act more promptly and with greater energy, were getting daily into -more general use. In 1603 the celebrated Theodore Turquet de Mayenne -was prosecuted, because, in spite of the prohibition, he had sold -antimonial preparations. The decree of the faculty against him exhibits -a remarkable proof of the bigotry and intolerance of the times.[160] -However Turquet does not seem to have been molested notwithstanding -this decree. He ceased indeed to be professor of chemistry, but -continued to practise medicine as formerly; and two members of the -faculty, Seguin and Akakia, even wrote an apology for him. At last he -went to England, whither he had been invited, to accept an honourable -appointment. - -[160] It was as follows: “Collegium medicorum in Academia Parisiensi -legitime congregatum, audita renunciatione sensorum, quibus demandata -erat provincia examinandi apologiam sub nomine Mayerni Turqueti editam, -ipsam unanimi consensu damnat, tanquam famosum libellum, mendacibus -conviciis et impudentibus calumniis refertum, quæ nonnisi ab homine -imperito, impudenti, temulento et furioso profiteri potuerunt. Ipsum -Turquetum indignum judicat, qui usquam medicinam faciat, propter -temeritatem, impudentiam et veræ medicinæ ignorantiam. Omnes vero -medicos, qui ubique gentium et locorum medicinam exercent, hortatur -ut ipsum Turquetum similiaque hominum et opinionum portenta, a se -suisque finibus arceant et in Hippocratis ac Galeni doctrina constantes -permaneant: et prohibuit ne quis ex hoc medicorum Parisiensium ordine -cum Turqueto eique similibus medica consilia ineat. Qui secus fecerit, -scholæ ornamentis et academiæ privilegiis privabitur, et de regentium -numero expungetur.--Datum Lutetiæ in scholis superioribus, die 5 -Decembris, anno salutis, 1603.” - -The mystical doctrines of Paracelsus are supposed to have given -origin to the sect of Rosecrucians, concerning which so much has been -written and so little certain is known. It is not at all unlikely -that the greatest part, if not the whole that has been stated about -the antiquity, and extent, and importance of this sect, is mere -fiction, and that the origin of the whole was nothing else than a -ludicrous performance of Valentine Andreæ, an ecclesiastic of Calwe, -in the country of Wirtemburg, a man of much learning, genius, and -philanthropy. From his life, written by himself, and preserved in -the library of Wolfenbuttel, we learn that in the year 1603 he drew -up the celebrated Noce Chimique of Christian Rosenkreuz, in order to -counteract the alchymistical and the theosophistical dogmas so common -at that period. He was unable to restrain his risible faculties when -he saw this _ludibrium juvenilis ingenii_ adopted as a true history, -while he meant it merely as a satire. It is believed that the Fama -Fraternitatis is a production of this ecclesiastic, and that he -published it in order to correct the chemists and enthusiasts of the -time. He himself was called Andreæ, Knight of the Rose-cross (_rosæ -crucis_) because he had engraven on his seal a cross with four roses. - -It is true that Andreæ instituted, in 1620, a _fraternitas christiana_, -but with quite other views than those which are supposed to have -actuated the Rosecrucians. His object was to correct the religious -opinions of the times, and to separate Christian theology from -scholastic controversies, with which it had been unhappily intermixed. -He himself, in different parts of his writings, distinguishes carefully -between the Rosecrucians and his own society, and amuses himself with -the credulity of the German theosophists, who adopted so readily his -fiction for a series of truths. It would appear, therefore, that this -secret order of Rosecrucians, notwithstanding the brilliant origin -assigned to it, really owes its birth to the pleasantry of a clergyman -of Wirtemburg, who endeavoured by that means to set bounds to the -chimeras of theosophy, but who unfortunately only increased still more -the adherents of this absurd science. - -A crowd of enthusiasts found it too advantageous to propagate the -principles of the _rosa crux_ not to endeavour to unite them into -a sect. Valentine Weigel, a fanatical preacher at Tschoppau, near -Chemnitz, left at his death a prodigious number of followers, who -were already Rosecrucians, without bearing the name. Egidius Gutmann, -of Suabia, was equally a Rosecrucian, without bearing the name; he -condemned all pagan medicines, and affirmed that he possessed the -universal remedy which ennobles man, cures all diseases, and gives man -the power of fabricating gold. “To fly in the air, to transmute metals, -and to know all the sciences,” says he, “nothing more is requisite than -faith.” - -Oswald Crollius, of Hesse, must also take his station in this -honourable fraternity of enthusiasts. He was physician to the Prince -of Anhalt, and afterwards a counsellor of the Emperor Rodolphus II. -The introduction to his Basilica Chymica, contains a short but exact -epitome of the opinions of Paracelsus. It is not worth while to give -the reader a notion of his own opinions, which are quite as absurd -and unintelligible as those of Paracelsus and his followers. As a -preparer of chemical medicines he deserves more credit; _antimonium -diaphoreticum_ was a favourite preparation of his, and so was sulphate -of potash, which was known at the time by the name of _specificum -purgans Paracelsi_: he knew chloride of silver well, and first gave it -the name of _luna cornea_, or _horn silver_: fulminating gold was known -to him, and called by him _aurum volatile_. - -This is the place to mention Andrew Libavius, of Halle, in Saxony, -where he was a physician, and a professor in the gymnasium of -Coburg, who was one of the most successful opponents of the school -of Paracelsus, and whose writings do him much credit. As a chemist, -he deserves perhaps to occupy a higher rank than any of his -contemporaries: he was, it is true, a believer in the possibility of -transmuting metals, and boasted of the wonderful powers of _aurum -potabile_; but he always distinguishes between rational alchymy and -the _mental_ alchymy of Paracelsus. He separated, with great care, -_chemistry_ from the reveries of the theosophists, and stands at -the head of those who opposed most successfully the progress of -superstition and fanaticism, which was making such an overwhelming -progress in his time. His writings are very numerous and various, and -were collected and published at Frankfort, in 1615, in three folio -volumes, under the title of “Opera omnia Medico-chymica.” Libavius -himself died in 1616. It would occupy more space than we have room -for, to attempt an abstract of his very multifarious works. A few -observations will be sufficient: he wrote no fewer than five different -tracts to expose the quackery of George Amwald, who had boasted that -he was in possession of a panacea, by means of which he was enabled -to perform the most wonderful cures, and which he was in the habit of -selling to his patients at an enormous price; Libavius showed that -this boasted panacea was nothing else than _cinnabar_, which neither -possessed the virtues ascribed to it by Amwald, nor deserved to be -purchased at so high a price. He entered also into a controversy -with Crollius, and exposed his fanatical and absurd opinions. He -engaged likewise in a dispute with Henning Scheunemann, a physician in -Bamberg, who was a Rosecrucian, and, like the rest of his brethren, -profoundly ignorant not merely of all science, but even of philology. -The expressions of Scheunemann are so obscure, that we learn more of -his opinions from Libavius than from his own writings. He divides the -internal nature of man into seven different degrees, from the seven -changes it undergoes: these are, combustion, sublimation, dissolution, -putrefaction, distillation, coagulation, and tincture. He gives us -likewise an account of ten modifications which the three elements -undergo; but as they are quite unintelligible, it is not worth while to -state them. Libavius had the patience to analyze and expose all these -gallimatias. - -Libavius’s system of chemistry, entitled “Alchymia è dispersis passim -optimorum auctorum, veterum et recentiorum exemplis potissimum, tum -etiam preceptis quibusdam operose collecta, adhibitisque ratione -et experientia quanta potuit esse methodo accurate explicata et in -integrum corpus redacta. Accesserunt tractati nonnulli physici chymici -item methodistici.” Frankfort, 1595, folio, 1597, 4to.--is really an -excellent book, considering the period in which it was written, and -deserves the attention of every person who is interested in the history -of chemistry. I shall notice some of the most remarkable chemical facts -which occur in Libavius, and which I have not observed in any preceding -writer; who the actual discoverer of these facts really was, it is -impossible to say, in consequence of the secrecy which at that time was -affected, and the obscure terms in which chemical facts are in general -stated. - -He was aware that the fumes of sulphur have the property of blackening -white lead. He was in the habit of purifying cinnabar by means of -arsenic and oxide of lead. He knew the method of giving glass a red -colour by means of gold or its oxide, and was aware of the method -of making artificial gems, such as ruby, topaz, hyacinth, garnet, -balass, by tinging glass by means of metallic oxides. He points out -fluor spar as an excellent flux for various metals and their oxides. -He knew that when metals were fused along with alkaline bodies, a -certain portion of them was converted into slags, and this portion -he endeavoured to recover by the addition of iron filings. He was -aware of the mode of acidifying sulphur by means of nitric acid. He -knew that camphor is soluble in nitric acid, and forms with it a kind -of oil. Of the perchloride of tin he was undoubtedly the discoverer, -as it has continued ever since his time to pass by his name; namely, -_fuming liquor of Libavius_. He was aware, that alcohol or spirits -could be obtained by distilling the fermented juice of a great variety -of sweet fruits. He procured sulphuric acid by the distillation of alum -and sulphate of iron, as Geber had done long before his time; but he -determined the nature of the acid with more care than had been done, -and showed, that it was the same as that obtained by the combustion of -sulphur along with saltpetre. To him, therefore, in some measure, are -we indebted for the process of preparing sulphuric acid which is at -present practised by manufacturers. - -Libavius found a successor in Angelus Sala, of Vicenza, physician to -the Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, worthy of his enlightened views and -indefatigable exertions to oppose the torrent of fanaticism which -threatened to overwhelm all Europe. Sala was still more addicted to -chemical remedies than Libavius himself; but he had abjured a multitude -of prejudices which had distinguished the school of Paracelsus. He -discarded _aurum potabile_, and considered fulminating gold as the -only remedy of that metal that deserved to be prescribed by medical -men. He treated the notion of the existence of a universal remedy with -contempt. He described sulphuret of gold and glass of antimony with a -good deal of precision. He recommended sulphuric acid as an excellent -remedy, and showed that it might be formed indifferently from sulphur, -or by distilling blue vitriol or green vitriol. He affirmed, that the -essential salts obtained from plants had not the same virtues as the -plants from which they are obtained. He showed that sal ammoniac is -a compound of muriatic acid and ammonia. To him, therefore, we are -indebted for the first accurate mention of ammonia. It could not but -have been noticed before by chemists, as it is procured with so much -ease by the distillation of animal substances; but Sala is the first -person who seems to have examined it with attention, and to have -recognised its peculiar properties, and the readiness with which it -saturates the different acids. He showed that iron has the property -of precipitating copper from acid solutions: he pointed out also -various precipitations of metals by other metals. He seems to have -been acquainted with calomel, and to have been aware of at least some -of its medical properties. He says, that fulminating gold loses its -fulminating property when mixed with its own weight of sulphur, and -the sulphur is burnt off it. Many other curious chemical facts occur -in his writings, which it would be too tedious to particularize here. -His works were collected and published in a quarto volume at Frankfort, -in 1647, under the title of “Opera Medico-chymica, quæ extant omnia.” -There was another edition in the same place in 1682, and an edition was -published at Rome in 1650. - - - - -CHAPTER V. - -OF VAN HELMONT AND THE IATRO-CHEMISTS. - - -Paracelsus first raised the dignity of chemistry, by pointing out the -necessity of it for medical men, and by showing the superiority of -chemical medicines over the disgusting decoctions of the Galenists. -Libavius and Angelus Sala had carefully separated chemistry from the -fanatical opinions of the followers of Paracelsus and the Rosecrucians. -But matters were not doomed to remain in this state. Chemistry -underwent a new revolution at this period, which shook the Spagirical -system to its foundation; substituted other principles, and gave to -medicine an aspect entirely new. This revolution was in a great measure -due to the labours of Van Helmont. - -John Baptist Van Helmont was a gentleman of Brabant, and Lord of -Merode, of Royenboch, of Oorschot, and of Pellines. He was born in -Brussels in 1577, and studied scholastic philosophy in Louvain till -the age of seventeen. After having finished his _humanity_ (as it was -termed), he ought, according to the usage of the place, to have taken -his degree of master of arts; but, having reflected on the futility of -these ceremonies, he resolved never to solicit any academical honour. -He next associated himself to the Jesuits, who then delivered courses -of philosophy at Louvain, to the great displeasure of the professors -of that city. One of the most celebrated of the Jesuits, Martin del -Rio, even taught him magic. But Van Helmont was disappointed in his -expectations: instead of that true wisdom which he hoped to acquire, -he met with nothing but scholastic dialectics, with all its usual -subtilties. He was no better satisfied with the doctrines of the -Stoics, who taught him his own weakness and misery. - -At last the works of Thomas à Kempis, and John Taulerus fell into -his hands. These sacred books of mysticism attracted his attention: -he thought that he perceived that wisdom is the gift of the Supreme -Being; that it must be obtained by prayer; and that we must renounce -our own will, if we wish to participate in the influence of the divine -grace. From this moment he imitated Jesus Christ, in his humility. He -abandoned all his property to his sister, renouncing the privileges -of his birth, and laying aside the rank which he had hitherto -occupied in society. It was not long before he reaped the fruit of -these abnegations. A genius appeared to him in all the important -circumstances of his life. In the year 1633 his own soul appeared to -him under the figure of a resplendent crystal. - -The desire which he had of imitating in every respect the conduct of -Christ, suggested to him the idea of practising medicine as a work of -charity and benevolence. He began, as was then the custom of the time, -by studying the art of healing in the writings of the ancients. He -read the works of Hippocrates and Galen with avidity; and made himself -so well acquainted with their opinions, that he astonished all the -medical men by the profundity of his knowledge. But as his taste for -mysticism was insatiable, he soon became disgusted with the writings -of the Greeks; an accident led him to abandon them for ever. Happening -to take up the glove of a young girl afflicted with the _itch_, he -caught that disagreeable disease. The Galenists whom he consulted, -attributed it to the combustion of the bile, and the saline state of -the phlegm. They prescribed a course of purgatives which weakened him -considerably, without effecting a cure. This circumstance disgusted him -with the system of the humorists, and led him to form the resolution of -reforming medicine, as Paracelsus had done. The works of this reformer, -which he read with attention, awakened in him a spirit of reformation, -but did not satisfy him; because his knowledge, being much greater -than that of Paracelsus, he could not avoid despising the disgusting -egotism, and the ridiculous ignorance of that fanatic. Though he had -already refused a canonicate, he took the degree of doctor of medicine, -in 1599, and afterwards travelled through the greatest part of France -and Italy; and he assures us, that during his travels, he performed -a great number of cures. On his return, he married a rich Brabantine -lady, by whom he had several children; among others a son, afterwards -celebrated under the name of Francis Mercurius, who edited his father’s -works, and who went a good deal further than his father had done, in -all the branches of theosophy. Van Helmont passed the rest of his -life on his estate at Vilvorde, almost constantly occupied with the -processes of his laboratory. He died in the year 1644, on the 13th of -December, at six o’clock in the evening, after having nearly reached -the age of sixty-seven years. - -The system of Van Helmont has for its basis the opinions of the -spiritualists. He arranged even the influence of evil genii, the -efforts of sorcerers, and the power of magicians among the causes which -produce diseases. The archeus of Paracelsus constituted one of the -capital points of his theory; but he ascribed to it a more substantial -nature than Paracelsus had done. This archeus is independent of -the elements; it has no form; for form constitutes the object of -generation, or of production. These ideas are obviously borrowed -from the ancients. The _form_ of Aristotle is not the μορφη, but the -ενεργεια (_the power of acting_) which matter does not possess. - -The archeus draws all the corpuscles of matter to the aid of -_fermentation_. There are, properly speaking, only two causes of -things; the cause _ex qua_, and the cause _per quam_. The first of -these causes is _water_. Van Helmont considered water as the true -principle of every thing which exists; and he brought forward very -specious arguments in favour of his opinion, drawn both from the -animal and vegetable kingdom. The reader will find his arguments on -the subject, in his treatise entitled “Complexionum atque Mistionum -elementalium Figmentum.”[161] The only one of his experiments that, -in the present state of our knowledge, possesses much plausibility, -is the following: He took a large earthen vessel, and put into it 200 -lbs. of earth, previously dried in an oven. This earth he moistened -with rain-water, and planted in it a willow which weighed five pounds. -After an interval of five years, he pulled up his willow and found -that its weight amounted to 169 pounds, and about three ounces. During -these five years, the earth in the pot was duly watered with rain -or distilled water. To prevent the earth in which the willow grew -from being mixed with new earth blown upon it by the winds, the pot -was covered with tin plate, pierced with a great number of holes to -admit the air freely. The leaves which fell every autumn during the -vegetation of the willow in the pot, were not reckoned in the 169 lbs. -3 oz. The earth in the pot being again dried in the oven, was found to -have lost about two ounces of its original weight. Thus 164 lbs. of -wood, bark, roots, &c., were produced from water alone.[162] This, -and several other experiments which it is needless to state, satisfied -him that all vegetable substances are produced from water alone. He -takes it for granted that fish live (ultimately at least) on water -alone; but they contain almost all the peculiar animal substances that -exist in the animal kingdom. Hence he concludes that animal substances -are derived also from pure water.[163] His reasoning with respect -to sulphur, glass, stone, metals, &c., all of which he thinks may -ultimately be resolved into water, is not so satisfactory. - -[161] J. B. Van Helmont, Opera Omnia, p. 100. The edition which I quote -from was printed at Frankfort, in 1682, at the expense of John Justus -Erythropilus, in a very thick quarto volume. - -[162] Van Helmont, Opera Omnia, p. 104. - -[163] Ibid., p. 105. - -Water produces elementary earth, or pure quartz; but this elementary -earth does not enter into the composition of organic bodies. Van -Helmont excludes _fire_ from the number of elements, because it is not -a substance, nor even the essential form of a substance. The matter of -fire is compound, and differs entirely from the matter of light. Water -gives origin also to the three chemical principles, salt, sulphur, and -mercury, which cannot be considered as elements or active principles. I -do not see clearly how he gets rid of _air_; for he says, that though -water may be elevated in the form of vapour, yet that these vapours are -no more air than the dust of marble is water. - -According to Van Helmont, a particular disposition of matter, or a -particular mixture of that matter is not necessary for the formation of -a body. The archeus, by its sole power, draws all bodies from water, -when the _ferment_ exists. This _ferment_, in its quality of a mean -which determines the action of the archeus, is not a formal being; it -can neither be called a _substance_, nor an _accident_. It pre-exists -in the seed which is developed by it, and which contains in itself -a second ferment of the seed, the product of the first. The ferment -exhales an odour, which attracts the generating spirit of the archeus. -This spirit consists in an _aura vitalis_, and it creates the bodies -of nature in its own image, after its own _idea_. It is the true -foundation of life, and of all the functions of organized bodies; it -disappears only at the instant of death to produce a new creation of -the body, which enters then, for the second time, into fermentation. -The seed, then, is not indispensable to enable an animal to propagate -its species; it is merely necessary that the archeus should act upon -a suitable ferment. Animals produced in this manner are as perfect as -those which spring from eggs. - -When water, as an element, ferments, it develops a vapour, to which Van -Helmont gave the name of _gas_, and which he endeavours to distinguish -from _air_. This gas contains the chemical principles of the body from -which it escapes in an aerial form by the impulse of the archeus. It -is a substance intermediate between spirit and matter, the principle -of action of life, and of generation of all bodies; for its production -is the first result of the action of the vital spirit on the torpid -ferment, and it may be compared to the _chaos_ of the ancients. - -The term _gas_, now in common use among chemists, and applied by them -to all elastic fluids which differ in their properties from common air, -was first employed by Van Helmont: and it is evident, from different -parts of his writings, that he was aware that different species of gas -exist. His _gas sylvestre_ was evidently our _carbonic acid gas_, for -he says, that it is evolved during the fermentation of wine and beer; -that it is formed when charcoal is burnt in air; and that it exists -in the Grotto del Cane. He was aware that this gas extinguishes a -lighted candle. But he says that the gases from dung, and those formed -in the large intestines, when passed through a candle, catch fire, -and exhibit a variety of colours, like the rainbow.[164] To these -combustible gases he gave the names of _gas pingue_, _gas siccum_, _gas -fuliginosum_, or _endimicum_. - -[164] De Flatibus, sect. 49. Opera Van Helmont, p. 405. - -Sal ammoniac, he says, may be distilled alone, without danger, and so -may aqua fortis (_aqua chrysulca_), but if they be mixed together so -much gas sylvestre is produced, that the vessels employed, however -strong, will burst asunder, unless an opening be left for the escape -of this gas.[165] In the same way cream of tartar cannot be distilled -in close vessels without breaking them in pieces, an opening must be -left for the escape of the _gas sylvestre_, which is generated in -such abundance.[166] He says, also, that when carbonate of lime is -dissolved in distilled vinegar, or silver in nitric acid, abundance -of gas sylvestre is extricated. From these, and many other passages -which might be quoted, it is evident that Van Helmont was aware of the -evolution of gas during the solution of carbonates and metals in acids, -and during the distillation of various animal and vegetable substances, -that he had anticipated the experiments made so many years after by -Dr. Hales, and for which that philosopher got so much credit. But it -would be going too far to say, as some have done, that Van Helmont -knew accurately the differences which characterize the different gases -which he produced, or indeed that he distinguished accurately between -them. For it is evident, from the passages quoted and from many others -which occur in his treatise, De Flatibus, that carbonic acid, protoxide -of azote, and deutoxide of azote, and probably also muriatic acid gas -were all considered by him as constituting one and the same gas. How, -indeed, could he distinguish between different gases when he was not -acquainted with the method of collecting them, or of determining their -properties? These observations of Van Helmont, then, though they do him -much credit, and show how far his chemical knowledge was superior to -that of the age in which he lived, take nothing from the merit or the -credit of those illustrious chemists who, in the latter half of the -eighteenth century, devoted themselves to the investigation of this -part of chemistry, at that time attended with much difficulty, but -intimately connected with the subsequent progress which the science has -made. - -[165] Ibid., p. 408. - -[166] Ibid., p. 409. - -Van Helmont was aware, also, that the bulk of air is diminished when -bodies are burnt in it. He considered respiration to be necessary in -this way: the air was drawn into the blood by the pulmonary arteries -and veins, and occasioned a fermentation in it requisite for the -continuance of life. - -Gas, according to Van Helmont, has an affinity with the principle of -the movement of the stars, to which he gave the name of _blas_. It had, -he supposed, much influence on all sublunary bodies. He admitted in -the ferment which gives birth to plants, a substance which, after the -example of Paracelsus, he called _pessas_, and to the metallic ferment -he gave the name of _bur_.[167] - -[167] In his Magnum Oportet, sect. 39, p. 151, he gives an account -of the origin of metals in the earth, and in that section there is a -description of _bur_, which those who are anxious to understand the -ideas of the author on this subject may consult. - -The archeus of Van Helmont, like that of Paracelsus, has its seat in -the stomach. It is the same thing as the sentient soul. This notion -of the nature and seat of the archeus was founded on the following -experiment: He swallowed a quantity of _aconitum_ (_henbane_). In two -hours he experienced the most disagreeable sensation in his stomach. -His feeling and understanding seemed to be concentrated in that -organ, for he had no longer the free use of his mental faculties. -This feeling induced him to place the seat of understanding in the -stomach, of volition in the heart, and of memory in the brain. The -faculty of desire, to which the ancients had assigned the liver as its -organ, he placed in the spleen. What confirmed him still more in the -idea that the stomach is the seat of the soul, is the fact, that life -sometimes continues after the destruction of the brain, but never, he -alleges, after that of the stomach. The sentient soul acts constantly -by means of the _vital spirits_, which are of a resplendent nature, -and the nerves serve merely to moisten these spirits which constitute -the mediums of sensation. By virtue of the archeus man is much nearer -to the realm of spirits and the father of all the genii, than to the -world. He thinks that Paracelsus’s constant comparison of the human -body with the world is absurd. Yet Van Helmont, at least in his -youth, was a believer in magnetism, which he employed as a method of -explaining the effect of sympathy. - -The archeus exercises the greatest influence on digestion, and he -has chiefly the stomach and spleen under his superintendence. These -two organs form a duumvirate in the body; for the stomach cannot -act alone and without the concurrence of the spleen. Digestion is -produced by means of an acid liquor, which dissolves the food, under -the superintendence of the archeus. Van Helmont assures us that he -had himself tasted this acid liquor in the stomach of birds. Heat, -strictly speaking, does not favour digestion; for we see no increase of -the digestive powers during the most ardent fever. Nor are the powers -of digestion wanting in fishes, although they want the animal heat -which is requisite for mammiferous animals. Certain birds even digest -fragments of glass, which, certainly, simple heat would not enable them -to do. The pylorus is, in some measure, the director of digestion. It -acts by a peculiar and immaterial power, in virtue of a _blas_, and not -as a muscle. It opens and shuts the stomach according to the orders of -the archeus. It is in it, therefore, that the causes of derangement of -digestion must be sought for. - -The duumvirate just spoken of is the cause of natural sleep, which does -not belong to the soul, as far as it resides in the stomach. Sleep is -a natural action, and one of the first vital actions. Hence the reason -why the embryo sleeps without ceasing. At any rate it is not true that -sleep is owing to vapours which mount to the brain. During sleep the -soul is naturally occupied, and it is then that the deity approaches -most intimately to man. Accordingly, Van Helmont informs us, that he -received in dreams the revelation of several secrets, which he could -not have learnt otherwise. - -The duumvirate operates the _first_ digestion, of which, Van Helmont -enumerates six different species. When the acid, which is prepared for -digestion, passes into the duodenum it is neutralized by the bile of -the gall-bladder. This constitutes the second digestion. To the bile of -the gall-bladder, Van Helmont gave the name of _fel_, and he carefully -distinguished it from the biliary principle in the mass of the blood. -This last he called _bile_. The _fel_ is not an excrementitious matter, -but a humour necessary to life, a true vital balsam. Van Helmont -endeavoured to show by various experiments that it is not _bitter_. - -The _third_ digestion takes place in the vessels of the mesentery, -into which the gall-bladder sends the prepared fluid. The _fourth_ -digestion is operated in the heart, where the red blood becomes more -yellow and more volatile by the addition of the vital spirits. This -is owing to the passage of the vital spirit from the posterior to the -anterior ventricle, through the pores of the septum. At the same time -the pulse is produced, which of itself develops heat; but does not -regulate it in any manner, as the ancients pretended that it did. The -_fifth_ digestion consists in the conversion of the arterial blood -into vital spirit. It takes place principally in the brain, but is -produced also throughout all the body. The _sixth_ digestion consists -in the elaboration of the nutritive principle in each member, where the -archeus prepares its own nourishment by means of the vital spirits. -Thus, there are six digestions: the number seven has been chosen by -nature for a state of repose. - -From the preceding sketch of the physiology of Van Helmont, it is -evident that he paid little or no regard to the structure of the parts -in explaining the functions. In his pathology we find the same passion -for spiritualism. He admitted, indeed, the importance of anatomy, but -he regretted that the pathological part of that science had been so -little cultivated. As the archeus is the foundation of life and of all -the functions, it is plain that the diseases can neither be derived -from the four cardinal humours, nor from the disposition or the action -of opposite things; the proximate cause of diseases must be sought for -in the sufferings, the anger, the fear, and the other affections of the -archeus, and their remote cause may be considered as the ideal seed -of the archeus. Disease, in his opinion, is not a negative state or a -mere absence of health, it is a substantial and active thing as well -as a state of health. Most of the diseases which attack certain parts -or members of the body result from an error in the archeus, who sends -his ferment from the stomach in which he resides into the other parts -of the body. Van Helmont explained in this way not only the epilepsy -and madness, but likewise the _gout_, which does not proceed from a -flux, and has not its seat in the limb in which the pain resides, but -is always owing to an error in the vital spirit. It is true that the -character of the gout acts upon the semen in which the vital spirit -principally manifests its action, and that in this way diseases are -propagated in the act of generation; but if, during life instead of -altering the semen it is carried to the liquid of the articulations, -this is a proof of the prudence of nature, which lavishes all her -cares on the preservation of the species, and loves better to alter -the humours of the articulations than the semen itself. The gout -acidifies the liquors of the articulations, which is then coagulated -by the acids. The duumvirate is the cause of apoplexy, vertigo, and -particularly of a species of asthma, which Van Helmont calls _caducus -pulmonalis_. Pleurisy is produced in a similar way. The archeus, in a -movement of rage, sends acrid acids to the lungs, which occasion an -inflammation. Dropsy is also owing to the anger of the archeus, who -prevents the secretions of the kidneys from going on in the usual way. - -Of all the diseases, fever appeared to him most conformable to his -notions of the unlimited power of the archeus. The causes of fever are -all much more proper to offend the archeus, than to alter the structure -of parts and the mixture of humours. The cold fit is owing to a state -of fear and consternation, into which the archeus is thrown, and the -hot stage results from his disordered movements. All fevers have their -peculiar seat in the duumvirate. - -Van Helmont was in general much more successful in refuting the -scholastic opinions by which the practice of medicine was regulated in -his time, than in establishing his own. We are struck with the force -of his arguments against the Galenical doctrine of fever, and against -the influence of the cardinal humours on the different kinds of fever. -He refuted no less vehemently the idea of the putridity of the blood, -while that liquid circulates in the vessels. Perhaps he carried the -opposite doctrine too far; but his opinions have had a good effect upon -subsequent medical theory, and medical men learned from them to make -less use of the term putridity. The phrase _mixture of humours_, not -more intelligible, however, came to be substituted for it. - -Van Helmont’s theory of urinary calculi deserves peculiar attention, -because it exhibits the germ of a more rational explanation of these -concretions than had been previously attempted by physiologists. Van -Helmont was aware that Paracelsus, who ascribed these concretions to -tartar, had formed an idea of their nature, which a careful chemical -analysis would immediately refute. He satisfied himself that urinary -calculi differ completely from common stones, and that they do not -exist in the food or drink which the calculous person had taken. -Tartar, he says, precipitates from wine, not as an earth, but as -a crystallized salt. In like manner, the natural salt of urine -precipitates from that liquid, and gives origin to calculi. We may -imitate this natural process by mixing spirit of urine with rectified -alcohol. Immediately an _offa alba_ is precipitated. - -It is needless to observe that Van Helmont was mistaken, in supposing -that this _offa_ was the matter of calculus. Spirit of urine was a -strong solution of carbonate of ammonia. The alcohol precipitated -this salt; so that his _offa_ was merely _carbonate of ammonia_. Nor -is there the shadow of evidence that alcohol, as Van Helmont thought -it did, ever makes its way into the mass of humours; yet his notion -of the origin of calculi is not less accurate, though of course he -was ignorant of the chemical nature of the various substances which -constitute these calculi. From this reasoning Van Helmont was induced -to reject the term _tartar_, employed by Paracelsus. To avoid all false -interpretations he substitutes the word _duelech_, to denote the state -in which the spirit of urine precipitates and gives origin to these -calculous concretions. - -As all diseases proceeded in his opinion from the archeus, the object -of his treatment was to calm the archeus, to stimulate it, and to -regulate its movements. To accomplish these objects he relied upon -dietetics, and upon acting on the imaginations of his patients. He -considered _certain words_ as very efficacious in curing the diseases -of the archeus. He admitted the existence of the universal medicine, -to which he gave the names of _liquor alkahest_, _ens primum salium_, -_primus metallus_. Mercurials, antimonials, opium, and wine, are -particularly agreeable to the archeus, when in a state of delirium from -fever. - -Among the mercurial preparations, he praises what he calls _mercurius -diaphoreticus_ as the best. He gives no account of the mode of -preparing it; but from some circumstances I think it must have been -_calomel_. He considers it as a sovereign remedy in fevers, dropsies, -diseases of the liver, and ulcers of the lungs. He employed the red -oxide of mercury as an external application to ulcers. The principal -antimonial preparations which he employed were the hydrosulphuret, or -_golden sulphur_, and the deutoxide, or _antimonium diaphoreticum_. -This last medicine was used in scruple doses--a proof of its great -inertness compared with the protoxide of antimony. - -Opium he considered as a fortifying and calming medicine. It contains -an acrid salt and a bitter oil, which give it the virtue of putting a -stop to the errors of the archeus, when it was sending its acid ferment -into other acid parts of the body. Van Helmont assures us that he -wrought many important cures by the employment of wine. - -Such is a very short statement of the opinions of a man, who, -notwithstanding his attachment to the fanatical opinions which -distinguished the time in which he lived, had the merit of overturning -a vast number of errors, both theoretical and practical; and of -laying down many principles, which, for want of erudition, have been -frequently assigned to modern writers. Van Helmont has been frequently -placed on the same level with Paracelsus, and treated like him with -contempt. But his claims upon the medical world are much higher, and -his merits infinitely greater. His notions, it is true, were fanatical; -but his erudition was great, his understanding excellent, and his -industry indefatigable. His writings did not become known till rather a -late period; for, with the exception of a single tract, they were not -published till 1648, by his son, after his death. - -The decided preference given to chemical medicines by Van Helmont, and -the uses to which he applies chemical theory, had a natural tendency -to raise chemistry to a higher rank in the eyes of medical men than -it had yet reached. But the man to whom the credit of founding the -iatro-chemical sect is due, is Francis de le Boé Sylvius, who was -born in the year 1614. While a practitioner of medicine at Amsterdam, -he studied with profound attention the system of Van Helmont, and -the rival and much more popular theory of Descartes: upon these he -founded his own theory, which, in reality, contains little entitled to -the name of original, notwithstanding the tone in which he speaks of -it, and his repeated declarations that he had borrowed from no one. -He was appointed professor of the theory and practice of medicine in -the University of Leyden, where he taught with such eclat, and drew -after him so great a number of pupils, that Boerhaave alone surpassed -him in this respect. It was he that first introduced the practice of -giving clinical lectures in the hospitals, on the cases treated in the -presence of the pupils. This admirable innovation has been productive -of much benefit to medicine. He greatly promoted anatomical studies, -and inspected, himself, a vast number of dead bodies. This is the more -remarkable, because his own system, like that of Van Helmont, from whom -it was borrowed, was quite independent of the structure of the parts. - -Every thing was explained by him according to the principles of -chemistry, as they were then understood. The celebrity of the -university in which he taught, and the vast number of his pupils, -contributed to spread this theory into every part of the world, and to -give it an eclat which is really surprising, when we consider it with -attention. But he possessed the talents just suited for securing the -reception of his opinions by his pupils as infallible oracles, and of -being the idol of the university. Yet it is melancholy to be obliged to -add, that few persons ever more abused the favours of nature, or the -advantages of situation and elocution. - -To form a clear idea of the principles of this founder of -iatro-chemistry, we have only to call to mind the ferments of Van -Helmont, which constitute the foundation-stone of the whole system. -We cannot, says he, conceive a single change in the mixture of the -humours, which is not the consequence of fermentation; and yet he -assigns to this fermentation conditions which are scarcely to be -found united in the living body. Digestion, in his opinion, is a -true fermentation produced by the application of a ferment. Like Van -Helmont, he admits a _triumvirate_; but places it in the humours; the -effervescence or fermentation of which enabled him to explain most of -the functions of the body. Digestion is the result of the mixture of -the saliva with the pancreatic juice and the bile, and the fermentation -of these humours. The saliva, as well as the pancreatic juice, contains -an acidulous salt easily recognised by the taste. Here Sylvius derives -advantage from the experiments of Regnier de Graaf on the pancreatic -juice, which he had constantly found acid. - -Sylvius, who affirmed that the bile contained an alkali, united with -an oil and a volatile spirit, supposes an effervescence from the union -of the alkali of the bile with the acid of the pancreatic juice, and -this _fermentation_ he considered as the cause of digestion. By this -fermentation the _chyle_ is produced, which is nothing else than the -_volatile spirit_ of the food accompanied by an _oil_ and an alkali, -neutralized by a weak acid. The blood is more than completed (_plus -quam perficitur_) in the spleen. It acquires its highest perfection by -the addition of a certain quantity of vital spirits. The _bile_ is not -drawn from the blood in the liver, but pre-exists in the circulating -fluid. It mixes with that fluid anew to be carried to the heart -together with the _lymph_, equally mixed with the blood, and there it -gives origin to a vital fermentation. In this way the blood becomes -the centre of reunion of all the humours of the secretions, which mix -together or separate, without the solids taking the smallest share in -the operations. Indeed, so completely are the solids banished from -the system of Sylvius that he attends to nothing whatever except the -humours. - -The formation and motion of the blood is explained by the fermentation -of the oily volatile salt of the bile, and the dulcified acid of the -lymph, which develops the vital heat, by which the blood is attenuated -and becomes capable of circulating. This vital fire, quite different -from ordinary fire is kept up in its turn by the uniform mixture of the -blood. It attenuates the humours, not because it is _heat_ but because -it is composed of _pyramids_. This last notion is obviously borrowed -from Descartes, just as the fermentation in the heart, as the cause of -the motion of the blood, reminds us of the opinions of Van Helmont. - -Sylvius explains the preparation of the vital spirits in the encephalos -by distillation, and he finds a great resemblance between their -properties and those of spirit of wine. The nerves conduct these -spirits to the different parts, and they spread themselves in the -substance of the organs to render them sensible. When they insinuate -themselves into the glands the addition of the acid of the blood -produces a liquid analogous to naphtha, which constitutes the _lymph_. -Lymph, then, is a compound of the vital spirit and the acid of the -blood. _Milk_ is formed in the mammæ by the afflux of a very mild acid, -which gives a white colour to the red humour of the blood. - -The theory of the natural functions was no less chemical. Even the -diseases themselves were explained upon chemical principles. Sylvius -first introduced the word _acridity_ to denote a predominance of the -chemical elements of the humours, and he looked upon these _acridities_ -as the proximate cause of all diseases. But as every thing acrid may be -referred to one or other of two classes, acids and alkalies, there are -only two great classes of diseases; namely, those proceeding from an -_acid acridity_, and those proceeding from an _alkaline_. - -Sylvius was not altogether ignorant of the constituent parts of the -animal humours; but it is obvious, from the account of his opinions -just given, that this knowledge was very incomplete; indeed the whole -of his chemical science resolves itself into a comparison of the -humours of the living body with chemical liquids. Perhaps his notions -respecting such of the _gases_, as he had occasion to observe, were -somewhat clearer than those of Van Helmont. He called them _halitus_, -and takes some notice of their different chemical properties, and -states the influence which he supposes them to exert in certain -diseases. - -In the human body he saw nothing but a magna of humours continually in -fermentation, distillation, effervescence, or precipitation; and the -physician was degraded by him to the rank of a distiller or a brewer. - -Bile acquires different acridities, when bad food, altered air, -or other similar causes act apon the body. It becomes _acid_ or -_alkaline_. In the former case it thickens and occasions obstructions; -in the latter it excites febrile heat; and the viscid vapours elevated -from it are the cause of the cold fit with which fever commences. All -acute and continued fevers have their origin in this acridity of the -bile. The vicious mixture of the bile with the blood, or its specific -acridity, produces _jaundice_, which is far from being always owing to -obstructions in the liver. The vicious effervescence of the bile with -the pancreatic juice produces almost all other diseases. But all these -assertions of Sylvius are unsupported by evidence. - -The acid acridity of the pancreatic juice, and the obstruction of the -pancreatic ducts, which are produced by it, are considered by him as -the cause of intermittent fevers. When the acid of the pancreatic -juice acquires still more acridity, hypochondriasis and hysteria are -the consequences of it. If, during the morbid effervescence of the -pancreatic juice with the bile an acid and viscid humour arise, the -vital spirits of the heart are overwhelmed during a certain time. -This occasions syncope, palpitation of the heart, and other nervous -affections. - -When the acid acridity of the pancreatic juice or of the lymph (for -both are similar) is deposited on the nerves, the consequence is spasms -or convulsions; epilepsy in particular depends upon the acrid vapours -produced by the morbid effervescence of the pancreatic juice with acrid -bile. Gout has the same origin as intermittent fevers, for we must look -for it in the obstruction of the pancreas and the lymphatic glands, -accompanied with an acid acridity of the lymph. Rheumatism is owing to -the acrid acid, deprived of the oil which dulcifies it. The smallpox is -occasioned by an acid acridity in the lymph, which gives origin to the -pustules. Indeed all suppuration in general is owing to a coagulating -acid in the lymph. Syphilis results from a caustic acid in the lymph. -The itch is produced by an acid acridity of the lymph. Dropsies are -produced by the same acid acridity of the lymph. Urinary calculi are -the consequences of a coagulating acid existing in the lymph and the -pancreatic juice. Corrosive acids, and the loss of volatile spirits, -occasion leucorrhœa. - -From the preceding statement it would appear that almost all diseases -proceed from acids. However, Sylvius informs us that malignant fevers -are owing to a superabundance of volatile salts and to a too great -tenuity of the blood. The vital spirits themselves give occasion to -diseases. They are sometimes too aqueous, sometimes they effervesce too -violently, and sometimes not at all. Hence all the nervous diseases, -which Sylvius never considers as existing by themselves; but as always -derived from the acid, acrid, or alkaline vapours which trouble the -vital spirits. - -The method of cure which Sylvius deduced from these absurd and -contemptible hypotheses, was worthy of the hypotheses themselves; -and certainly constitute the most detestable mode of treatment that -ever has disgraced medical science. To diseases produced by the -effervescence of the bile he opposed purgatives; because in his -opinion emetics produced injurious effects. The reason was, that the -emetics which he employed were too violent, consisting of antimonial -preparations, particularly _powder of Algerotti_, or an impure -protoxide of antimony. For though _emetic tartar_ had been discovered -in 1630, it does not seem to have come into use till a much later -period. We do not find any notice of it in the _praxis chymiatrica_ of -Hartmann published in 1647, at Geneva. - -He endeavoured to moderate the acridity of the bile by opiates and -other narcotics. It will scarcely be believed, though it was a natural -consequence of his opinions, when we state that he recommended -ammoniacal preparations, particularly his oleaginous volatile salt, and -spirit of hartshorn, &c., as cures for almost all diseases. Sometimes -they were employed to correct the acidity of the lymph, sometimes -to destroy the acid acridity of the pancreatic juice, sometimes to -correct the inertness of the vital spirits, sometimes to promote the -secretions, and to induce a flow of the menses. Volatile spirit of -amber and opium were prescribed by him in intermittent fevers; and -volatile salts in almost all acute diseases. He united them with -antivenomous potions, angelica, contrayerva, bezoard, crabs’ eyes, and -other similar substances. These absorbents seemed to him very necessary -to correct the acidity of the pancreatic juice, and the acridity of the -bile. In administering them he paid no attention to the regular course -which acute diseases usually run; he neither inquired into the remote -nor proximate causes of disease, nor to the symptoms: every thing was -neglected connected with induction, and his whole proceedings regulated -by wild speculations and absurd theories, quite inconsistent with the -phenomena of nature. - -To attempt to refute these wild notions of Sylvius would be loss of -time. It is extraordinary, and almost incredible, that he could have -regulated his practice by them: and it is a still more incredible -thing, and exhibits a very humiliating view of human nature, that these -crudities and absurdities were swallowed with avidity by crowds of -students, who placed a blind reliance on the dogmas of their master, -and were initiated by him into a method of treating their patients, -better calculated than any other that could easily have been devised, -to aggravate all their diseases, and put an end to their lives. If any -of the patients of the iatro-chemists ever recovered their health, well -might it be said that their recovery was not the consequence of the -prescriptions of their physicians, but that it took place in spite of -them.[168] - -[168] As an example of the prescriptions of Sylvius, we give the -following for malignant fever: - - _R._ Theriac. veter. ᴣij - Antim. diaphor. ᴣj - Syrup. Card. Benedic. ℥ij - Aq. prophylact. ℥j - -- Cinnam. ℥ss - -- Scabios. ℥ij - M. D. - - -It is a very remarkable circumstance, and shows clearly that mankind -in general had become disgusted with the dogmas of the Galenists, -that iatro-chemistry was adopted more or less completely by almost -all physicians. There were, indeed, a few individuals who raised -their voices against it; but, what is curious and inexplicable, they -never attempted to start objections against the principles of the -iatro-chemists, or to point out the futility of their hypothesis, and -their inconsistency with fact. They combated them by arguments not more -solid than those of their antagonists. - -During the presidency of Riolan over the Medical College of Paris, -that learned body set itself against all innovations. Guy Patin, who -was a medical professor in the University of Paris, and a man of great -celebrity, opposed the chemical system of medicine with much zeal. In -his Martyrologium Antimonii he collects all the cases in which the use -of antimony, as a medicine, had proved injurious to the patient. But -in the year 1666, the dispute relative to antimony, and particularly -relative to tartar emetic, became so violent, that all the doctors of -the faculty of Paris were assembled by an order of the parliament, -under the presidency of Dean Vignon, and after a long deliberation, -it was concluded by a majority of ninety-two votes, that tartar -emetic, and other antimonials, should not only be permitted, but even -recommended. Patin after this decision pretended no longer to combat -chemical medicine; but he did not remain inactive. One of his friends, -Francis Blondel, demanded the resolution to be cancelled; but his -exertions were unsuccessful; nor were the writings of Guillemeau and -Menjot, who were also keen partisans of the views of Patin, attended -with better success. - -In England iatro-chemistry assumed a direction quite peculiar. It was -embraced by a set of men who had cultivated anatomy with the most -marked success, and who were quite familiar with the experimental -method of investigating nature. The most eminent of all the English -supporters of iatro-chemistry was Thomas Willis, who was a contemporary -of Sylvius. - -Dr. Willis was born at Great Bodmin, in Wiltshire, in 1621. He was -a student at Christchurch College, in Oxford, when that city was -garrisoned for King Charles I. Like the other students, he bore arms -for his Majesty, and devoted his leisure hours to the study of physic. -After the surrender of Oxford to the parliament, he devoted himself to -the practice of medicine, and soon acquired reputation. He appropriated -a room as an oratory for divine service, according to the forms of -the church of England, to which most of the loyalists of Oxford daily -resorted. In 1660, he became Sedleian professor of natural philosophy, -and the same year he took the degree of doctor of physic. He settled -ultimately in London, and soon acquired a higher reputation, and a more -extensive practice, than any of his contemporaries. He died in 1675, -and was buried in Westminster Abbey. He was a first-rate anatomist. To -him we are indebted for the first accurate description of the brain and -nerves. - -But it is as an iatro-chemist that he claims a place in this work. His -notions approach nearer to those of Paracelsus than to the hypotheses -of Van Helmont and Sylvius. He admits the three chemical elements of -Paracelsus, salt, sulphur, and mercury, in all the bodies in nature, -and employs them to explain their properties and changes; but he gives -the name of _spirit_ to the _mercury_ of Paracelsus. He ascribes to it -the virtue of volatilizing all the constituent parts of bodies: salt, -on the other hand, is the cause of fixity in bodies; _sulphur_ produces -colour and heat, and unites the _spirit_ to the _salt_. In the stomach -there occurs an acid ferment, which forms the chyle with the sulphur -of the aliments: this chyle enters into effervescence in the heart, -because the salt and sulphur take fire together. From this results -the vital flame, which penetrates every thing. The vital spirits are -secreted in the brain by a real distillation. The vessels of the testes -draw an elixir from the constituent parts of the blood; but the spleen -retains the earthy part, and communicates a new igneous ferment to the -circulating fluid. On this account the blood must be considered as a -humour, constantly disposed to fermentation, and in this respect it may -be compared to wine. Every humour in which salt, sulphur, and spirit -predominates in a certain manner, may be converted into a _ferment_. -All diseases proceed from a morbid state or action of this ferment; and -a physician may be compared to a wine-merchant; for, like him, he has -nothing to do but to watch that the necessary fermentations take place -with regularity, and that no foreign substance come to derange the -operation. - -At this period the mania of explaining every thing had proceeded to -such a length, that no distinction was made between dead and living -bodies. The chemical facts which were at that time known, were applied -without hesitation to explain all the functions and all the diseases -of the living body. According to Willis, fever is the simple result -of a violent and preternatural effervescence of the blood and the -other humours of the body, either produced by external causes, or by -internal ferments, into which the chyle is converted when it mixes -with the blood. The effervescence of the vital spirits is the source -of quotidians; that of salt and sulphur produces continued fever; and -external ferments of a malignant nature produce malignant fevers. Thus -the smallpox is owing to the seeds of fermentation set in activity by -an external principle of contagion. Spasms and convulsions are produced -by an explosion of the salt and sulphur with the animal spirits. -Hypochondriacal affections and hysteria depend originally on the morbid -putrifaction of the blood in the spleen, or on a bad fermentescible -principle, loaded with salt and sulphur, which unites with the vital -spirits and deranges them. Scurvy is owing to an alteration of the -blood, which may then be compared to vapid or stale wine. The gout is -merely the coagulation of the nutritive juices altered by the acidified -animal spirits; just as sulphuric acid forms a coagulum with carbonate -of potash. - -The action of medicines is easily explained by the effects which they -produce on the nourishing principles. Sudorifics are considered as -cordials, because they augment the sulphur of the blood, which is the -true food of the vital flame. Cordials purify the animal spirits, -and fix the too volatile blood. Willis disagrees with the other -iatro-chemists of his time in one thing: he recommends bleeding in -the greater number of diseases, as an excellent method of diminishing -unnatural fermentation. - -Dr. Croone, a celebrated Fellow of the Royal Society, was another -English iatro-chemist, who attempted to explain muscular motion by the -effervescence of the nervous fluid, or animal spirits. - -It is not worth while to notice the host of writers--English, French, -Italian, Dutch, and German, who exerted themselves to maintain, -improve, and defend, the chemical doctrines of medicine. The first -person who attempted to overturn these absurd doctrines, and to -introduce something more satisfactory in their place, was Mr. Boyle, at -that time in the height of his celebrity. - -Robert Boyle was born at Youghall, in the province of Munster, on the -25th of January, 1627. He was the seventh son, and the fourteenth -child of Richard, Earl of Cork. He was partly educated at home, and -partly at Eton, where he was under the tuition of Sir Henry Wotton. At -the age of eleven, he travelled with his brother and a French tutor -through France to Geneva, where he pursued his studies for twenty-one -months, and then went to Italy. During this period, he acquired the -French and Italian languages; and, indeed, talked in the former with -so much fluency and correctness, that he passed, when he thought -proper, for a Frenchman. In 1642, his father’s finances were deranged, -by the breaking out of the great Irish rebellion. His tutor, who was -a Genevese, was obliged to borrow, on his own credit, a sum of money -sufficient to carry him home. On his arrival, he found his father dead; -and, though two estates had been left to him, such was the state of the -times, that several years elapsed before he could command the requisite -sum of money to supply his exigencies. He retired to an estate at -Stalbridge, in Dorsetshire. - -In 1654 he went to Oxford, where he associated himself with a number of -eminent men (Dr. Willis among others), who had constituted themselves -into a combination for experimental investigations, distinguished by -the name of the _Philosophical College_. This society was transferred -to London; and, in 1663, was incorporated by Charles II. under the -name of the _Royal Society_. In 1668 Mr. Boyle took up his residence -in London, where he continued till the last day of December, 1691, -assiduously occupied in experimental investigations, on which day he -died, in the sixty-fifth year of his age. - -We are indebted to Mr. Boyle for the first introduction of the air-pump -and the thermometer into Britain, and for contributing so much, by -means of Dr. Hooke, to the improvement of both. His hydrostatical and -pneumatical investigations and experiments constitute the foundation -of these two sciences. The thermometer was first made an accurate -instrument of investigation by Sir Isaac Newton, in 1701. This he -did by selecting as two fixed points the temperatures at which water -freezes and boils; marking these upon the stem of the thermometer, -and dividing the interval between them into a certain number of -degrees. All thermometers made in this way will stand at the same -point when plunged into bodies of the same temperature. The number of -divisions between the freezing and boiling points constitute the cause -of the differences between different thermometers. In Fahrenheit’s -thermometer, which is used in Great Britain, the number of degrees, -between the freezing and boiling points of water, is 180; in Reaumur’s -it is 80; in Celsius’s, or the centigrade, it is 100; and in De Lisle’s -it is 150. - -But my reason for mentioning Mr. Boyle here was, the attempt which he -made in 1661, by the publication of his Sceptical Chemist, to overturn -the absurd opinions of the iatro-chemists. He raises doubts, not only -respecting the existence of the elements of the Peripatetics, but even -of those of the chemists. The first elements of bodies, in his opinion, -are _atoms_, of different shapes and sizes; the union of which gives -origin to what we vulgarly call _elements_. We cannot restrain the -number of these to four, as the Peripatetics do; nor to three, with the -chemists: neither are they immutable, but convertible into each other. -Fire is not the means that ought to be employed to obtain them; for -the _salt_ and _sulphur_ are formed during its action by the union of -different simple bodies. - -Boyle shows, besides, that the chemical theory of qualities is -exceedingly inaccurate and uncertain; because it takes for granted -things which are very doubtful, and in many cases directly contrary -to the phenomena of nature. He endeavours to prove the truth of these -ideas, and particularly the production of the chemical principles, by a -great number of convincing and conclusive experiments. - -In another treatise, entitled “The Imperfections of the Chemical -Doctrine of Qualities,”[169] he points out, in the second section, the -insufficiency of the hypotheses of Sylvius relative to the generality -of acids and alkalies. He shows that the offices ascribed to them -are arbitrary, and the notions respecting them unsettled; that the -hypotheses respecting them are needless, and insufficient, and afford -but an unsatisfactory solution of the phenomena. - -[169] Shaw’s Boyle, iii, 424. - -These arguments of Boyle did not immediately shake the credit of the -chemical system. In the year 1691, a chemical academy was founded -at Paris by Nicolas de Blegny, the express object of which was to -examine these objections of Boyle, which by this time had attracted -great attention. Boyle’s experiments were repeated and confirmed; but -the academicians, notwithstanding, came to the conclusion, that it is -unnecessary to have recourse to the true elements of bodies; and that -the phenomena which occur in the animal economy may be explained by the -predominance of acids or alkalies. Various other publications appeared, -all on the same side. - -In Germany, Hermann Conringius, the most skilful physician of his time, -opposed the chemical theory; and his opinions were impugned by Olaus -Borrichius, who defended not only alchymy, but the chemical theory of -medicine, with equal erudition and zeal.[170] - -[170] De Ortu et Progressu Chemiæ. _Hafniæ_, 1674. - -Towards the end of the sixteenth century, the chemists thought of -examining the liquids of the living body, to ascertain whether they -really contained the acids and alkalies which had been assigned them, -and considered as the cause of all diseases. But at that time chemistry -had made so little progress, and such was the want of skill of those -who undertook these investigations, that they readily obtained every -thing that was wanted to confirm their previous notions. John Viridet, -a physician of Geneva, announced that he had found an acid in the -saliva and the pancreatic juice, and an alkali in the gastric juice -and the bile. But the most celebrated experiments of that period were -those of Raimond Vieussens, undertaken in 1698, in order to discover -the presence of an acid spirit in the blood. His method was, to mix -blood with a species of clay, called _bole_, and to subject the mixture -to distillation. He found that the liquid distilled over was acid. -Charmed with this discovery, which he considered as of first-rate -importance, he announced it by letter to the different academies and -colleges in Europe. Some doubts being raised about the accuracy of -his experiment, it having been alleged that the acid came from the -clay which he had mixed with the blood, and not from the blood itself, -Vieussens purified the _bole_ from all the acid which it could contain, -and repeated his experiment again. The result was the same--the acrid -salt of the fluid yielded an acid spirit. - -It would be needless in the present state of our knowledge to point -out the inaccuracy of such an experiment, or how little it contributed -to prove that blood contains a free acid. It is now well known to -chemists, that blood is remarkably free from acids; and, that if we -except a little common salt, which exists in all the liquids of the -human body, there is neither any acid nor salt whatever in that liquid. - -Michael Ettmuller, at Leipsic, who was a chemist of some eminence in -his day, and published a small treatise on the science, which was much -sought after, was also a zealous iatro-chemist; but his opinions were -obviously regulated by the researches of Boyle. He denies the existence -of acids and alkalies in certain bodies, and distinguishes carefully -between acid and putrid fermentation. - -One of the most formidable antagonists to the iatro-chemical doctrines -was Dr. Archibald Pitcairne, first a professor of medicine in the -University of Leyden, and afterwards of Edinburgh, and one of the most -eminent physicians of his time. He was born in Edinburgh, on the 25th -of December, 1652. After finishing his school education in Dalkeith, -he went to the University of Edinburgh, where he improved himself in -classical learning, and completed a regular course of philosophy. He -turned his attention to the law, and prosecuted his studies with so -much ardour and intensity that his health began to suffer. He was -advised to travel, and set out accordingly for the South of France: by -the time he reached Paris he was so far recovered that he determined -to renew his studies; but as there was no eminent professor of law in -that city, and as several gentlemen of his acquaintance were engaged in -the study of medicine, he went with them to the lectures and hospitals, -and employed himself in this way for several months, till his affairs -called him home. - -On his return he applied himself chiefly to mathematics, in which, -under the auspices of his friend, the celebrated Dr. David Gregory, he -made uncommon progress. Struck with the charms of this science, and -hoping by the application of it to medicine to reduce the healing art -under the rigid rules of mathematical demonstration, he formed the -resolution of devoting himself to the study of medicine. There was at -that time no medical school in Edinburgh, and no hospital at which he -could improve himself; he therefore repaired to Paris, and devoted -himself to his studies with a degree of ardour that ensured an almost -unparalleled success. In 1680 he received from the faculty of Rheims -the degree of doctor of medicine, a degree also conferred on him in -1699 by the University of Aberdeen. - -In the year 1691 his reputation was so high that the University of -Leyden solicited him to fill the medical chair, at that time vacant; -he accepted the invitation, and delivered a course of lectures at -Leyden, which was greatly admired by all his auditors, among whom -were Boerhaave and Mead. At the close of the session he set out for -Scotland, to marry the daughter of Sir Archibald Stevenson: his friends -in his own country would not consent to part with him, and thus he was -reluctantly obliged to resign his chair in the University of Leyden. - -He settled as a physician in Edinburgh, where he was appointed titular -professor of medicine. His practice extended beyond example, and he was -more consulted by foreigners than any Edinburgh physician either before -or after his time. He died in October, 1713, admired and regretted by -the whole country. He was a zealous supporter of iatro-mathematics, and -as such a professed antagonist of the iatro-chemists. He refuted their -opinions with much strength of reasoning, while his high reputation -gave his opinions an uncommon effect; so that he contributed perhaps as -much as any one, to put a period to the most disgraceful, as well as -dangerous, set of opinions that ever overspread the medical horizon. - -Into the merits of the iatro-mathematicians it is not the business of -this work to enter; they at least display science, and labour, and -erudition, and in all these respects are far before the iatro-chemists. -Perhaps their own opinions were not more agreeable to the real -structure of the human body, nor their practice more conformable to -reason, or more successful than those of the chemists. Probably the -most valuable of all Dr. Pitcairne’s writings, is his vindication of -the claims of Hervey to the great discovery of the circulation. - -Boerhaave, the pupil of Pitcairne, and afterwards a professor -in Leyden, was a no less zealous or successful opponent of the -iatro-chemists. - -Herman Boerhaave, perhaps the most celebrated physician that ever -existed, if we except Hippocrates, was born at Voorhout, a village near -Leyden, in 1668, where his father was the parish clergyman. At the age -of sixteen he was left without parents, protection, advice, or fortune. -He had already studied theology, and the other branches of knowledge -that are considered as requisite for a clergyman, to which situation he -aspired; and while occupied with these studies he supported himself at -Leyden by teaching mathematics to the students--a branch of knowledge -to which he had devoted himself with considerable ardour while living -in his father’s house. But, a report being raised that he was attached -to the doctrines of Spinoza, the clamour against him was so loud -that he thought it requisite to renounce his intention of going into -_orders_.[171] He turned his studies to medicine, and the branches of -science connected with that pursuit, and these delightful subjects soon -engrossed the whole of his attention. In 1693 he was created doctor of -medicine, and began to practise. He continued to teach mathematics for -some time, till his practice increased sufficiently to enable him to -live by his fees. His spare money was chiefly laid out upon books; he -also erected a chemical laboratory, and though he had no garden he paid -great attention to the study of plants. His reputation increased with -considerable rapidity; but his fortune rather slowly. He was invited to -the Hague by a nobleman, who stood high in the favour of William III., -King of Great Britain; but he declined the invitation. His three great -friends, to whom he was in some measure indebted for his success, were -James Trigland, professor of theology, Daniel Alphen, and John Van den -Berg, both of them successively chief magistrates of Leyden, and men of -great influence. - -[171] While travelling in a tract-boat, one of his fellow-travellers -more orthodox than well informed, attacked the system of Spinoza with -so little spirit, that Boerhaave was tempted to ask him if he had ever -read Spinoza. The polemic was obliged to confess that he had not; but -he was so much provoked at this public exposure of his ignorance, that -he propagated the report of Boerhaave’s attachment to Spinozism, and -thus blasted his intention of becoming a clergyman. - -Van den Berg recommended him to the situation of professor of medicine -in the University of Leyden, to which chair he was raised, fortunately -for the reputation of the university, on the death of Drelincourt, -in 1702. He not only gave public lectures on medicine, but was in -the habit also of giving private instructions to his pupils. His -success as a teacher was so great, that a report having been spread -of his intention to quit Leyden, the curators of the university added -considerably to his salary on condition that he would not leave them. - -This first step towards fortune and eminence having been made, others -followed with great rapidity. He was appointed successively professor -of botany and of chemistry, while rectorships and deanships were -showered upon him with an unsparing hand. And such was the activity, -the zeal, and the ability with which he filled all these chairs, -that he raised the University of Leyden to the very highest rank of -all the universities of Europe. Students flocked to him from all -quarters--every country of Europe furnished him with pupils; Leyden -was filled and enriched by an unusual crowd of strangers. Though his -class-rooms were large, yet so great was the number of students, that -it was customary for them to keep places, just as is done in a theatre -when a first-rate actor is expected to perform. He died in the year -1738, while still filling the three different chairs with undiminished -reputation. - -It is not our object here to speak of Boerhaave as a physician, or as a -teacher of medicine, or of botany; though in all these capacities he is -entitled to the very highest eulogium; his practice was as unexampled -as his success as a teacher. It is solely as a chemist that he claims -our attention here. His system of chemistry, published in two quarto -volumes in 1732, and of which we have an excellent English translation -by Dr. Shaw, printed in 1741, was undoubtedly the most learned and -most luminous treatise on chemistry that the world had yet seen; it -is nothing less than a complete collection of all the chemical facts -and processes which were known in Boerhaave’s time, collected from -a thousand different sources, and from writings equally disgusting -from their obscurity and their mysticism. Every thing is stated in -the plainest way, stripped of all mystery, and chemistry is shown as -a science and an art of the first importance, not merely to medicine, -but to mankind in general. The processes given by him are too numerous -and too tedious to have been all repeated by one man, how laborious -soever he may have been: many of them have been taken upon trust, and, -as no distinction is made in the book, between those which are stated -upon his own authority and those which are merely copied from others, -this treatise has been accused, and with some justice, as not always -to be depended on. But the real information which it communicates is -prodigious, and when we compare it with any other system of chemistry -that preceded it, the superiority of Boerhaave’s information will -appear in a very conspicuous point of view. - -After a short but valuable historical introduction he divides his work -into two parts; the first treats of the _theory of chemistry_, the -second of the _practical processes_. - -He defines chemistry as follows: “Chemistry is an art which teaches -the manner of performing certain physical operations, whereby bodies -cognizable to the senses, or capable of being rendered cognizable, -and of being contained in vessels, are so changed by means of proper -instruments, as to produce certain determinate effects; and at the same -time discover the causes thereof; for the service of various arts.” - -This definition is not calculated to throw much light on chemistry to -those who are unacquainted with its nature and object. Neither is it -conformable to the modern notions entertained of chemistry; but it is -requisite to keep in mind Boerhaave’s definition of chemistry, when -we examine his system, that we may not accuse him of omissions and -imperfections, which are owing merely to the state of the science when -he gave his system to the world. - -In his theory of chemistry he begins with the metals, which he treats -of in the following order: Gold, mercury, lead, silver, copper, iron, -tin. The account of them, though imperfect, is much fuller and more -satisfactory than any that preceded it. He then treats of the salts, -which are, common salt, saltpetre, borax, sal ammoniac and alum. This -it will be admitted is but a meagre list. However other salts occur in -different parts of the book which are not described here. He next gives -an account of sulphur. Here he introduces _white arsenic_, obtained, -he says, from cobalt, and not known for more than two hundred years. -He considers it as a real sulphur, and takes no notice of metallic -arsenic, though it had been already alluded to by Paracelsus. He then -treats of bitumens, including under the name not merely bitumens liquid -and solid, but likewise pit-coal, amber, and ambergris. An account -of stones and earths comes next, and constitutes the most defective -part of the book. It is very surprising that in this part of his work -he takes no notice of _lime_. The semi-metals come next: they are, -antimony, bismuth, zinc. Here he gives an account of the three vitriols -or sulphates of iron, copper, and zinc. He knew the composition of -sulphate of iron; but was ignorant of that of sulphate of copper and -sulphate of zinc. He considers semi-metals as compounds of a true metal -and sulphur, and therefore enumerates cinnabar among the semi-metals. -Lastly he treats of vegetables and animals; and it is needless to say -that his account is very imperfect. - -He next treats of the utility of chemistry, and shows its importance -in natural philosophy, medicine, and the arts. Afterwards he describes -the instruments of chemistry. This constitutes the longest and the most -important part of the whole work. He first treats of fire at great -length. Here we have an account of the thermometer, of the expansion -produced by heat, of steam, and in fact the germ of many of the most -important parts of the science of heat, which have since been expanded -and applied to the improvement, not merely of chemistry, but of the -arts and resources of human industry. The experiments of Fahrenheit -related by him, on the change of temperature induced by agitating water -and mercury together at different degrees of heat, gave origin to the -whole doctrine of specific heats. Though Boerhaave himself seemed not -aware of the importance of these experiments, or indeed even to have -considered them with any attention. But when afterwards analyzed by Dr. -Black, these experiments gave origin to one of the most important parts -of the whole science of heat. - -He next treats at great length on _fuel_. Here his opinions are often -very erroneous, from his ignorance of a vast number of facts which -have since come to light. It is curious that during the whole of his -very long account of combustion he makes no allusion to the peculiar -opinions of Stahl on the subject; though they were known to the public, -and had been admitted by chemists in general, before his work was -published. To what are we to ascribe this omission? It could scarcely -have been owing to ignorance, Stahl’s reputation being too high to -allow his opinions to be treated with neglect. We must suppose, I -think, that Boerhaave did not adopt Stahl’s doctrine of combustion; but -at the same time did not think it proper to enter into any controversy -on the subject. - -He next treats of the heat produced when different liquids are mixed, -as alcohol and water, &c. He gives many examples of such increase -of temperature, and describes the phenomena very correctly. But he -was unable to assign the cause of the evolution of this heat. The -subject was elucidated many years after by Dr. Irvine, who showed that -it was owing to a diminution of the specific heat which takes place -when liquids combine chemically together. It is in this part of his -work that he gives an account of phosphorus, of the action of nitric -acid on volatile oils, and he concludes, from all the facts which he -states, that elementary fire is a corporeal body. His explanation -of the combustion of Homberg’s pyrophorus and of common phosphorus, -shows clearly that he had no correct notion of the reason why air is -necessary to maintain combustion, nor of the way in which that elastic -fluid performs its part in the great phenomena of nature. - -He next treats of the mode of regulating fire for chemical purposes: -then he treats of _air_, his account being chiefly taken from Boyle. -He ascribes the discovery of the law of the elasticity of air both -to Boyle and Mariotte. Boyle, I believe, was the first discoverer of -it. The French are in the habit of calling it the law of Mariotte. -He then treats of _water_, and lastly of _earth_; but even here no -mention whatever is made of lime. In the last part of the theory of -chemistry he treats at great length of menstruums. These are water, -oils, alcohol, alkalies, acids, and neutral salts. He mentions potash -and ammonia, but takes no notice of soda; the difference between potash -and soda not being accurately known. Nor can we expect any particular -account of the difference between the properties of mild and caustic -potash; as this subject was not understood till the time of Dr. Black. -The only acids which he mentions are the _acetic_, _sulphuric_, -_nitric_, _muriatic_, and _aqua regia_. He subjoins a disquisition on -the alcahest or universal solvent, which it is obvious enough, however, -from the way in which he speaks of it, that he was not a believer in. -The object of his practical part is to teach the method of making all -the different chemical substances known when he wrote. This he does in -two hundred and twenty-seven processes, in which all the manipulations -are described with considerable minuteness. This part of the work must -have been long considered as of great utility, and must have been long -resorted to by the student as a mine of practical information upon -almost every subject that could arrest his attention. So immense is -the progress that chemistry has made since the days of Boerhaave, and -so different are the researches that at present occupy chemists, and -so much greater the degree of precision requisite to be attained, that -his processes and directions are now of little or no use to a practical -student of chemistry, as they convey little or none of the knowledge -which it is requisite for him to possess. - -Boerhaave made a set of most elaborate experiments, to refute the ideas -of the alchymists respecting the possibility of fixing mercury. He -put a quantity of pure mercury into a glass vessel, and kept it for -fifteen years at a temperature rather higher than 100°. It underwent no -alteration whatever, excepting that a small portion of it was converted -into a black powder. But this black powder was restored to the state of -running mercury by trituration in a mortar. In this experiment the air -had free access to the mercury. It was repeated in a close vessel with -the same result, excepting that the mercury was kept hot for only six -months instead of fifteen years. - -To show that mercury cannot be obtained from metals by the processes -recommended by the alchymists, he dissolved pure nitrate of lead in -water, and, mixing the solution with sal ammoniac, chloride of lead -precipitated. Of this chloride he put a quantity into a retort, and -poured over it a strong lixivium of caustic potash, The whole was -digested at the temperature of 96° for six months and six days. It was -then distilled in a glass retort, by a temperature gradually raised to -redness, but not a particle of mercury was evaporated, as it had been -alleged by the alchymists would be the case. - -Isaac Hollandus had stated that mercury could be easily obtained from -the salt of lead made by means of distilled vinegar. To prove this he -calcined a quantity of acetate of lead, ground the residue to powder, -and triturated it with a very strong alkaline lixivium, and kept the -lixivium over it covered with paper for months, taking care to add -water in proportion as it evaporated. The calx was then distilled in -a heat gradually raised to redness; but not a particle of mercury was -obtained.[172] - -[172] Mem. Paris, 1734, p. 539. - -These were not the only laborious experiments which he made with this -metal. He distilled it above five hundred times, and found that it -underwent no alteration. When long agitated in a glass bottle it is -convertible into a black acrid powder, obviously protoxide of mercury. -This black powder, when distilled, is converted into running mercury. -Exposure of mercury for some months in a heat of 180°, converts it also -into protoxide; and if the heat be higher than this, the mercury is -converted into a red acrid substance, obviously peroxide of mercury. -But this peroxide, by simple distillation, is again reduced into the -state of running mercury.[173] - -[173] Phil. Trans. 1733. No. 430, p. 145. - -Boerhaave combated the opinions of the iatro-chemists with great -eloquence, and with a weight derived from his high reputation, and -the extraordinary veneration in which his opinions were held by his -disciples. His efforts were assisted by those of Bohn, who combated -the medical opinions by arguments drawn both from experience and -observation, and perfectly irresistible; and the ruin of the chemical -sect was consummated by the exertions of the celebrated Frederick -Hoffmann, the founder of the most perfect and satisfactory system of -medicine that has ever appeared. His efforts were probably roused into -action by a visit which he paid to England in 1683, during which he -got acquainted with Boyle and with Sydenham; the former the greatest -experimentalist, and the latter the greatest physician of the time; and -both of whom were declared enemies to iatro-chemistry. - - - - -CHAPTER VI. - -OF AGRICOLA AND METALLURGY. - - -I have been induced by a wish to prosecute the history of the opinions -first supported by Paracelsus, and carried so much further by Van -Helmont and Sylvius, to give a connected view of their effects -upon medical practice and medical theory; and I have come to the -commencement of the eighteenth century, without taking notice of one -of the most extraordinary men, and one of the greatest promoters of -chemistry that ever existed: I mean George Agricola. I shall consecrate -the whole of this chapter to his labours, and those of his immediate -successors. - -George Agricola was born at Glaucha, in Misnia, in the year 1494. -When a young man he acquired such a passion for mining and minerals, -by frequenting the mountains of Bohemia, that he could not be -persuaded to relinquish the study. He settled, indeed, as a physician, -at Joachimstal; but his favourite study engrossed so much of his -attention, that he succeeded but ill in his medical capacity. This -induced him to withdraw to Chemnitz, where he devoted himself to his -favourite pursuits. He studied the mineralogical writings of the -ancients with the most minute accuracy; but not satisfied with this, he -visited the mines in person, examined the processes followed by the -miners in extracting the different ores, and in washing and sorting -them. He made collections of all the different ores, and studied their -nature and properties attentively: he likewise collected information -about the methods of smelting them, and extracting from them the metals -in a state of purity. The information which he collected, respecting -the mines wrought in the different countries of Europe, is quite -wonderful, if we consider the period in which he lived, the little -intercourse which existed between nations, and the total want of all -those newspapers and journals which now carry every new scientific fact -with such rapidity to every part of the world. - -Agricola died at Chemnitz in the year 1555, after he had reached -the sixty-first year of his age. Maurice, the celebrated Elector of -Saxony, settled on him a pension, the whole of which he devoted to -his metallurgic pursuits. To him we find him dedicating the edition -of his works which he published in the year of his death, and which -is dated the fourteenth before the calends of April, 1555. He even -spent a considerable proportion of his own estate in following out -his favourite investigations. In the earlier part of his life he had -expressed himself rather favourable to the protestant opinions; but in -his latter days he had attacked the reformed religion. This rendered -him so odious to the Lutherans, at that time predominant in Chemnitz, -that they suffered his body to remain unburied for five days together; -so that it was necessary to remove it from Chemnitz to Zeitz, where it -was interred in the principal church. - -His great work is his treatise De Re Metallica, in twelve books. In -this work he gives an account of the instruments and machines, and -every thing connected with mining and metallurgy; and even gives -figures of all the different pieces of apparatus employed in his -time. He has also exhibited the Latin and German names for all these -different utensils. This work may be considered as a very complete -treatise on metallurgy, as it existed in the sixteenth century. The -first six books are occupied with an account of mining and smelting. In -the seventh book he treats of _docimasy_, or the method of determining -the quantity of metal which can be extracted from every particular -ore. This he does so completely, that most of his processes are still -followed by miners and smelters. He gives a minute and accurate account -of the furnaces, muffles, crucibles, &c., almost such as are still -employed, with minute directions for preparing the ores which are -to be subjected to examination, the fluxes with which they must be -mixed, and the precautions necessary in order to obtain a satisfactory -result. In short, this book may be considered as a complete manual of -docimasy. How much of the methods given originated with Agricola it -is impossible to say. He probably did little more than collect the -scattered processes employed by the smelters of metals, in different -parts of the world, and reduce the whole to a regular system. But this -was a great deal. Perhaps it is not saying too much, that the great -progress made in the chemical investigation of the metals, was owing in -a great measure to the labours of Agricola. Certainly the progress made -by the moderns, in the difficult arts of mining and metallurgy, must in -a great measure be ascribed to the labours of Agricola. - -In the eighth book he describes the mechanical preparation of the ores, -and the mode of roasting them, either in the open air or in furnaces. -The ninth book is occupied with an account of smelting-furnaces. It -contains also a description of the processes for obtaining mercury, -antimony, and bismuth, from their ores. The tenth book treats of the -separation of silver and gold from each other, by means of nitric acid -and aqua regia: minute directions for the preparation of which are -given. The modes of purifying the precious metals by means of sulphur, -antimony, and cementations, are also described. In the eleventh book -he treats of the method of purifying silver from copper and iron, by -means of lead. He gives an account also of the processes employed for -smelting and purifying copper. In the twelfth book he treats of the -methods of preparing common salt, saltpetre, alum, and green vitriol, -or sulphate of iron: of the preparation and purification of sulphur, -and of the mode of manufacturing glass. In short, Agricola’s work De Re -Metallica is beyond comparison the most valuable chemical work which -the sixteenth century produced, and places the author very high indeed -among the list of the improvers of chemistry. - -The other works of Agricola are his treatise De Natura Fossilium, -in ten books; De Ortu et Causis Subterraneorum, in five books; De -Natura eorum quæ effluunt ex Terra, in four books; De veteribus et -novis Metallis, in two books; and his Bermannus sive de re metallica -Dialogus. The treatise De veteribus et novis Metallis is amusing. -He not only collects together all the historical facts on record, -respecting the first discoverers of the different metals and the -first workers of mines, but he gives many amusing anecdotes nowhere -else to be found, respecting the way in which some of the most -celebrated German mines were discovered. In the second book he takes -a geographical view of every part of the known world, and states -the mines wrought and the metals found in each. We must not suppose -that all his statements in this historical sketch are accurate: to -admit it would be to allow him a greater share of information than -could possibly belong to any one man. He frequently gives us the -authority upon which his statements are founded; but he often makes -statements without any authority whatever. Thus he says, that a mine of -quicksilver had been recently discovered in Scotland: the fact however, -is, that no quicksilver-mine ever existed in any part of Britain. There -was, indeed, a foolish story circulated about thirty years ago, about -a vein of quicksilver found under the town of Berwick-upon-Tweed; but -it was an assertion unsupported by any authentic evidence. - -Many years elapsed before much addition was made to the processes -described by Agricola. In the year 1566, Pedro Fernandes de Velasco -introduced a method of extracting gold and silver from their ores -in Mexico and Peru by means of quicksilver. But I have never seen -a description of his process. Alonzo Barba claims for himself, and -seemingly with justice, the method of amalgamating the ores of gold -and silver by boiling. Barba was a Spanish priest, who lived about the -year 1609, at Tarabuco, a market-town in the province of Charcso, eight -miles from Plata, in South America. In the year 1615 he was curate at -Tiaguacano, in the Province of Pacayes, and in 1617, he lived at Lepas -in Peru. He is said to have been a native of Lepe, a small township -in Andalusia, and had for many years the living of the church of St. -Bernard at Potosi. His work on the amalgamation of gold and silver -ores appeared at Madrid in the year 1640, in quarto.[174] In the year -1629 a new edition of it appeared with an appendix, under the title of -“Trattado de las Antiquas Minas de España de Alonzo Carillo Lasso.” -The English minister at the Court of Madrid, the Earl of Sandwich, -published the first part of it in an English translation at London, -in 1674, under the title of “The First Book of the Art of Metals, in -which is declared the manner of their generation, and the concomitants -of them, written in Spanish by Albaro Alonzo Barba. By E. Earl of -Sandwich.” - -[174] It is entitled, “El Arte de los Metales, en que se ensena el -verdadero beneficio de los de oro y plata por azoque,” &c. - -The next improver of metallurgic processes was Lazarus Erckern, -who was upper bar-master at Kuttenberg, in the year 1588, and was -superintendent of the mines in Germany, Hungary, Transylvania, the -Tyrol, &c., to three successive emperors. His work has been translated -into English under the title of “Heta Minor; or the laws of art and -nature in knowing, judging, assaying, fining, refining, and enlarging -the bodies of confined metals. To which are added essays on metallic -words, illustrated with sculptures. By Sir J. Pettus. London, 1683, -folio.” But this translation is a very bad one. Erckern gives a plain -account of all the processes employed in his time without a word of -theory or reasoning. It is an excellent practical book; though it is -obvious enough that the author was inferior in point of abilities to -Agricola. His treatment of Don Juan de Corduba, who offered, in 1588, -to put the Court of Vienna in possession of the Spanish method of -extracting gold and silver from the ores by amalgamation, as related by -Baron Born in his work on amalgamation, shows very clearly that Erckern -was a very illiberal-minded man, and puffed up with an undue conceit -of his own superior knowledge.[175] Had he condescended to assist the -Spaniard, and to furnish him with proper materials to work upon, the -Austrians might have been in possession of the process of amalgamation -with all its advantages a couple of centuries before its actual -introduction. - -[175] Born’s New Process of Amalgamation, translated by Raspe, p. 11. - -I need not take any notice of the docimastic treatises of Schindlers -and Schlutter, which are of a much later date, and both of which have -been translated into French, the former by Geoffroy, junior; the latter -by Hellot. This last translation, in two large quartos, published in -1764, constitutes a very valuable book, and exhibits all the docimastic -and metallurgic processes known at that period with much fidelity -and minuteness. Very great improvements have taken place since that -period, but I am not aware of any work published in any of the European -languages, that is calculated to give us an exact idea of the present -state of the various mining and metallurgic processes--important as -they are to civilized society. - -Gellert’s Metallurgic Chemistry, so far as it goes, is an excellent -book. - - - - -CHAPTER VII. - -OF GLAUBER, LEMERY, AND SOME OTHER CHEMISTS OF THE END OF THE -SEVENTEENTH CENTURY. - - -Hitherto I have treated of the alchymists, or iatro-chemists, and -have brought the history of chemistry down to the beginning of the -eighteenth century. But during the seventeenth century there existed -several laborious chemists, who contributed very materially by their -exertions, either to extend the bounds of the science, or to increase -its popularity and respectability in the eyes of the world. Of some of -the most eminent of these it is my intention to give an account in this -chapter. - -Of John Rudolf Glauber, the first of these meritorious men in point of -time, I know very few particulars. He was a German and a medical man, -and spent most of his time at Salzburg, Ritzingen, Frankfort on the -Maine, and at Cologne. Towards the end of his life he went to Holland, -but during the greatest part of his residence in that country he was -confined to a sick-bed. He died at Amsterdam in 1668, after having -reached a very advanced age. Like Paracelsus, whom he held in high -estimation, he was in open hostility with the Galenical physicians of -his time. This led him into various controversies, and induced him -to publish various apologies; most of which still remain among his -writings. One of the most curious of these apologies is the one against -Farmer. To this man Glauber had communicated certain secrets of his -own, which were at that time considered as of great value; Farrner -binding himself not to communicate them to any person. This obligation -he not only broke, but publicly deprecated the skill and integrity of -Glauber, and offered to communicate to others, for stipulated sums, -a set of secrets of his own, which he vaunted of as particularly -valuable. Glauber examines these secrets, and shows that every one -of them possessed of any value, had been communicated by himself to -Farrner, and to put an end to Farrner’s unfair attempt to make money by -selling Glauber’s secrets, he in this apology communicates the whole -processes to the public. - -Glauber’s works were published in Amsterdam, partly in Latin, and -partly in the German language. In the year 1689 an English translation -of them was published in London by Mr. Christopher Packe, in one -large folio volume. Glauber was an alchymist and a believer in the -universal medicine. But he did not confine his researches to these -two particulars, but endeavoured to improve medicine and the arts by -the application of chemical processes to them. In his treatise of -_philosophical furnaces_ he does not confine himself to a description -of the method of constructing furnaces, and explaining the use of -them, but gives an account of a vast many processes, and medicinal and -chemical preparations, which he made by means of these furnaces. One of -the most important of these preparations was muriatic acid, which he -obtained by distilling a mixture of common salt, sulphate of iron, and -alum, in one of the furnaces which he describes. - -He makes known the method of dissolving most of the metals in muriatic -acid, and the resulting chlorides, which he denominates oils of the -respective metals, constitute in his opinion valuable medicines. He -mentions particularly the chloride of gold, and from the mode of -preparing it, the solution must have been strong. Yet he recommends it -as an internal medicine, which he says may be taken with safety, and -is a sovereign remedy in old ulcers of the mouth, tongue, and throat, -arising from the French pox, leprosy, scorbute, &c. Thus we see the use -of gold as a remedy for the venereal disease did not originate with M. -Chretiens, of Montpelier. This chloride of gold is so violent a poison -that it is remarkable that Glauber does not specify the dose that -patients labouring under the diseases for which he recommends it ought -to take.--The sesqui-chloride of iron he recommends as a most excellent -application to ill-conditioned ulcers and cancers. We see from this -that the use of iron in cancers, lately recommended, is not so new a -remedy as has been supposed. - -He mentions the violent action of chloride of mercury (obviously -corrosive sublimate), and says that he saw a woman suddenly killed by -it, being administered internally by a surgeon. Butter of antimony -he first recognised as nothing else than a combination of chlorine -and antimony; before his time it had been always supposed to contain -mercury. - -He describes the method of obtaining sulphuric acid by distilling -sulphate of iron; gives an account of the mode of obtaining sulphate -of iron and sulphate of copper, in crystals: the method of obtaining -nitric acid from nitre by means of alum, was much improved by him. He -gives a particular detail of the way of obtaining fulminating gold. -This fulminating gold he says is of little use in medicine; but he -gives a method of preparing from it a red tincture of gold, which he -considers as one of the most useful and efficacious of all medicines: -this tincture is nothing else than chloride of gold. It would take up -too much space to attempt an analysis of all the curious facts and -preparations described in this treatise on philosophical furnaces; -but it will repay the perusal of any person who will take the trouble -to look into it. All the different pharmacopœias of the seventeenth -century borrowed from it largely. The third part of this treatise -is peculiarly interesting. It will be seen that Glauber had already -thought of the peculiar efficacy of applying solutions of sulphur, -&c. to the skin, and had anticipated the various vapour and gaseous -baths which have been introduced in Vienna and other places, during -the course of the present century, and considered as new, and as -constituting an important era in the healing art. In the fourth part -he not only treats of the docimastic processes, so well described by -Agricola and Erckern, but gives us the method of making glass, and -of imitating the precious stones by means of coloured glasses. The -fifth part is peculiarly valuable; in it he treats of the methods of -preparing lutes for glass vessels, of the construction and qualities of -crucibles, and of the vitrification of earthen vessels. - -Another of his tracts is called “The Mineral Work;” the object of which -is to show the method of separating gold from flints, sand, clay, -and other minerals, by the spirit of salt (_muriatic acid_), which -otherwise cannot be purged; also a panacea, or universal antimonial -medicine. This panacea was a solution of deutoxide of antimony in -pyrotartaric acid; Glauber gives a most flattering account of its -efficacy in removing the most virulent diseases, particularly all kinds -of cutaneous eruptions. The second and third parts of The Mineral Work -are entirely alchymistical. In the treatise called “Miraculum Mundi,” -his chief object is to write a panegyric on _sulphate of soda_, of -which he was the discoverer, and to which he gave the name of _sal -mirabile_. The high terms in which he speaks of this innocent salt -are highly amusing, and serve well to show the spirit of the age, -and the dreams which still continued to haunt the most laborious and -sober-minded chemists. The _sal mirabile_ was not merely a purgative, -a virtue which it certainly possesses in a high degree, being as mild -a purgative, perhaps the very best, of all the saline preparations -yet tried; but it was a universal medicine, a panacea, a cure for all -diseases: nor was Glauber contented with this, but pointed out many -uses in the various arts and manufactures for which in his opinion -it was admirably fitted. But by far the fullest account of this _sal -mirabile_ is given by him in his treatise on the nature of salts. - -I shall satisfy myself with giving the titles of his other tracts. -Every one of them contains facts of considerable importance, not to be -found in any chemical writings that preceded him; but to attempt to -connect these facts into one point of view would be needless, because -they are not such as would be likely to interest the general reader. - -1. The Consolation of Navigators. This gives an account of a method by -which sailors may carry with them a great deal of nourishment in very -small bulk. The method consists in evaporating the wort of malt to -dryness, and carrying the dry extract to sea. This method has been had -recourse to in modern times, and has been found to furnish an effectual -remedy against the scurvy. He recommends also the use of muriatic acid -as a remedy for thirst, and a cure for the scurvy. - -2. A true and perfect Description of the extracting good Tartar from -the Lees of Wine. - -3. The first part of the Prosperity of Germany; in which is treated of -the concentration of wine, corn, and wood, and the more profitable use -of them than has hitherto been. - -4. The second part of the Prosperity of Germany; wherein is shown by -what means minerals may be concentrated by nitre, and turned into -metallic and better bodies. - -5. The third part of the Prosperity of Germany; in which is delivered -the way of most easily and plentifully extracting saltpetre out of -various subjects, every where obvious and at hand. Together with a -succinct explanation of Paracelsus’s prophecy; that is to say, in what -manner it is to be understood the northern lion will institute or plant -his political or civil monarchy; and that Paracelsus himself will not -abide in his grave; and that a vast quantity of riches will offer -itself. Likewise who the artist Elias is, of whose coming in the last -days, and his disclosing abundance of secrets, Paracelsus and others -have predicted. - -6. The fourth part of the Prosperity of Germany; in which are revealed -many excellent, useful secrets, and such as are serviceable to the -country; and withal several preparations of efficacious cates extracted -out of the metals and appointed to physical uses; as also various -confections of golden potions. To which is also adjoined a small -treatise which maketh mention of my laboratory; in which there shall be -taught and demonstrated (for the public good and benefit of mankind) -wonderful secrets, and unto every body most profitable but hitherto -unknown. - -7. The fifth part of the Prosperity of Germany; clearly and solidly -demonstrating and as it were showing with the fingers, what alchymy is, -and what benefit may, by the help thereof, be gotten every where and in -most places of Germany. Written and published to the honour of God, the -giver of all good things, primarily; and to the honour of all the great -ones of the country; and for the health, profit, and assistance against -foreign invasions, of all their inhabitants that are by due right and -obedience subject unto them. - -8. The sixth and last part of the Prosperity of Germany; in which the -arcanas already revealed in the fifth part, are not only illustrated -and with a clear elucidation, but also such are manifested as are most -highly necessary to be known for the defence of the country against -the Turks. Together with an evident demonstration adjoined, showing, -that both a particular and universal transmutation of the imperfect -metals into more perfect ones by salt and fire, is most true; and -withal, by what means any one, that is endued with but a mean knowledge -in managing the fire, may experimentally try the truth hereof in -twenty-four hours’ space. - -9. The first century of Glauber’s wealthy Storehouse of -Treasures.--Many of the processes given in this treatise are mystically -stated, or even concealed. - -10. The second, third, fourth, and fifth century of Glauber’s wealthy -Storehouse of Treasures. - -11. New chemical Light; being a revelation of a certain new invented -secret, never before manifested to the world.--This was a method of -extracting gold from stones. Probably the gold found by Glauber in his -processes existed in some of the reagents employed; this, at least, is -the most natural way of accounting for the result of Glauber’s trials. - -15. The spagyrical Pharmacopœia, or Dispensatory.--In this book he -treats chiefly of medicines peculiarly his own; one of those, on -which he bestows the greatest praise, is _secret sal ammoniac_, or -sulphate of ammonia. He describes the method of preparing this salt, by -saturating sulphuric acid with ammonia. He informs us that it was much -employed by Paracelsus and Van Helmont, who distinguished it by the -name of _alkahest_. - -13. Book of Fires.--Full of enigmas. - -14. Treatise of the three Principles of Metals; viz. sulphur, mercury, -and salt of philosophers; how they may be profitably used in medicine, -alchymy, and other arts. - -15. A short Book of Dialogues. Chiefly relating to alchymy. - -16. Proserpine, or the Goddess of Riches. - -17. Of Elias the Artist. - -18. Of the three most noble Stones generated by three Fires. - -19. Of the Purgatory of Philosophers. - -20. Of the secret Fire of Philosophers. - -21. A Treatise concerning the Animal Stone. - -John Kunkel, who acquired a high reputation as a chemist, was born -in the Duchy of Sleswick; in the year 1630: his father was a trading -chemist, or apothecary; and Kunkel himself had, in his younger years, -paid great attention to the business of an apothecary: he had also -diligently studied the different processes of glass-making; and had -paid particular attention to the assaying of metals. In the year 1659, -he was chamberlain, chemist, and superintendent of apothecaries to the -dukes Francis Charles and Julius Henry, of Lauenburg. While in this -situation, he examined many pretended transmutations of metals, and -undertook other researches of importance. From this situation he was -invited, by John George II., Elector of Saxony, on the recommendation -of Dr. Langelott and Counsellor Vogt, as chamberlain and superintendent -of the elector’s laboratory, with a considerable salary. From this -situation he went to Berlin, where he was chemist to the elector -Frederick William; after whose death, his laboratory and glass-house -were accidentally burnt. From Berlin he was invited to Stockholm by -Charles XI., King of Sweden, who gave him the title of counsellor -of metals, and raised him to the rank of a nobleman: here he died, -in 1702, in the seventy-second year of his age. Kunkel’s greatest -discovery was, the method of extracting phosphorus from urine. This -curious substance had been originally discovered by Brandt, a chemist, -of Hamburg, in the year 1669, as he was attempting to extract from -human urine a liquid capable of converting silver into gold. He showed -a specimen of it to Kunkel, with whom he was acquainted: Kunkel -mentioned the fact as a piece of news to one Kraft, a friend of his in -Dresden, where he then resided: Kraft immediately repaired to Hamburg, -and purchased the secret from Brandt for 200 rix-dollars, doubtless -exacting from him, at the same time, a promise not to reveal it to -any other person. Soon after, he exhibited the phosphorus publicly -in Britain and in France; whether for money, or not, does not appear. -Kunkel, who had mentioned to his friend his intention of getting -possession of the process, being vexed at the treacherous conduct of -Kraft, attempted to discover it himself, and, after three or four years -labour, he succeeded, though all that he knew from Brandt was, that -urine was the substance from which the phosphorus was procured. In -consequence of this success, phosphorus was at first distinguished by -the epithet of _Kunkel_ added to the name. - -Kunkel published, in 1678, a treatise on phosphorus, in which he -describes the properties of this substance, at that time a subject of -great wonder and curiosity. In this treatise, he proposes phosphorus -as a remedy of some efficacy, and gives a formula for preparing pills -of it, to be taken internally. It is therefore erroneous to suppose, -as has been done, that the introduction of this dangerous remedy into -medicine is a modern discovery. Kunkel appears to have been acquainted -with nitric ether. One of the most valuable of his books, is his -treatise on glass-making, which was translated into French; and which, -till nearly the end of the eighteenth century, constituted by far the -best account of glass-making in existence. The following is a list of -the most important of his works: - -1. Observations on fixed and volatile Salts, potable Gold and Silver, -Spiritus Mundi, &c.; also of the colour and smell of metals, minerals, -and bitumens.--This tract was published at Hamburg, in 1678, and has -been several times reprinted since. - -2. Chemical Remarks on the chemical Principles, acid, fixed and -volatile alkaline Salts, in the three kingdoms of nature, the mineral, -vegetable, and animal; likewise concerning their colour and smell, &c.; -with a chemical appendix against non-entia chymica. - -3. Treatise of the Phosphorus mirabilis, and its wonderful shining -Pills; together with a discourse on what was formerly rightly named -nitre, but is now called the _blood of nature_. - -4. An Epistle against Spirit of Wine without an acid. - -5. Touchstone de Acido et Urinoso, Sale calido et frigido. - -6. Ars Vitraria experimentalis. - -7. Collegium Physico-chymicum experimentale, _or_ Laboratorium -chymicum.[176] - -[176] I have never seen a copy of this last work; it must have been -valuable, as it was the book from which Scheele derived the first -rudiments of his knowledge. - -Nicolas Lemery, the first Frenchman who completely stripped chemistry -of its mysticism, and presented it to the world in all its native -simplicity, deserves our particular attention, in consequence of the -celebrity which he acquired, and the benefits which he conferred on -the science. He was born at Rouen on the 17th of November, 1645. His -father, Julian Lemery, was _procureur_ of the Parliament of Normandy, -and a protestant. His son, when very young, showed a decided partiality -for chemistry, and repaired to an apothecary in Rouen, a relation of -his own, in hopes of being initiated into the science; but finding that -little information could be procured from him, young Lemery left him in -1666, and went to Paris, where he boarded himself with M. Glaser, at -that time demonstrator of chemistry at the Jardin du Roi. - -Glaser was a _true chemist_, according to the meaning at that time -affixed to the term--full of obscure notions--unwilling to communicate -what knowledge he possessed--and not at all sociable. In two months -Lemery quitted his house in disgust, and set out with a resolution to -travel through France, and pick up chemical information as he best -could, from those who were capable of giving him information on the -subject. He first went to Montpelier, where he boarded in the house -of M. Vershant, an apothecary in that town. With his situation there -he was so much pleased, that he continued in it for three years: -he employed himself assiduously in the laboratory, and in teaching -chemistry to a number of young students who boarded with his host. -Here his reputation gradually increased so much, that he drew round -him the professors of the faculty of medicine of Montpelier, and all -the curious of the place, to witness his experiments. Here, too, he -practised medicine with considerable success. - -After travelling through all France, he returned to Paris in 1672. -Here he frequented the different scientific meetings at that time -held in that capital, and soon distinguished himself by his chemical -knowledge. In a few years he got a laboratory of his own, commenced -apothecary, and began to give public lectures on chemistry, which were -speedily attended by great crowds of students from foreign countries. -For example, we are told that on one occasion forty Scotchmen repaired -to Paris on purpose to hear his lectures, and those of M. Du Verney -on anatomy. The medicines which he prepared in his laboratory became -fashionable, and brought him a great deal of money. The magistery -of bismuth (or pearl-white), which he prepared as a cosmetic, was -sufficient, we are told, to support the whole expense of his house. In -the year 1675 he published his Cours de Chimie, certainly one of the -most successful chemical books that ever appeared; it ran through a -vast number of editions in a few years, and was translated into Latin, -German, Spanish, and English. - -In 1681 he began to be troubled in consequence of his religious -opinions. Louis XIV. was at that time in the height of his glory, -entirely under the control of his priests, and zealously bent upon -putting an end to the reformed religion in his dominions. Indeed, from -the infamous conduct of Charles II. of England, and the bigotry of his -successor, a prospect was opened to him, and of which he was anxious to -avail himself, of annihilating the reformed religion altogether, and -of plunging Europe a second time into the darkness of Roman Catholicism. - -Lemery found it expedient, in 1683, to pass over into England. -Here he was well received by Charles II.: but England was at that -time convulsed with those religious and political struggles, which -terminated five years afterwards in the revolution. Lemery, in -consequence of this state of things, found it expedient to leave -England, and return to France. He took a doctor’s degree at Caen, -in Normandy; and, returning to Paris, he commenced all at once -practitioner in medicine and surgery, apothecary, and lecturer on -chemistry. The edict of Nantes was revoked in 1685, when James II. had -assured Louis of his intention to overturn the established religion, -and bring Great Britain again under the dominion of the pope. Lemery -was obliged to give up practice and conceal himself, in order to avoid -persecution. Finding his success hopeless, as long as he continued -a protestant, he changed his religion in 1686, and declared himself -a Roman catholic. This step secured his fortune: he was now as much -caressed and protected by the court and the clergy, as he had been -formerly persecuted by them. In 1699 when the Academy of Sciences was -new modelled, he was appointed associated chemist, and, on the death of -Bourdelin, before the end of that year, he became a pensioner. He died -on the 19th of June, 1715, at the age of seventy, in consequence of an -attack of palsy, which terminated in apoplexy. - -Besides his System of Chemistry, which has been already mentioned, he -published the following works: - -1. Pharmacopée universelle, contenant toutes les Operations de -Pharmacie qui sont en usage dans la Médicine. - -2. Traité universelle des Drogues simples mis en ordre alphabétique. - -3. Traité de l’Antimoine, contenant l’analyse chimique de ce mineral. - -Besides these works, five different papers by Lemery were printed in -the Memoirs of the French Academy, between 1700 and 1709 inclusive. -These are as follow: - -1. Explication physique et chimique des Feux souterrains, des -tremblemens de Terre, des Ouragans, des Eclairs et du Tonnere.--This -explanation is founded on the heat and combustion produced by the -mutual action of iron filings and sulphur on each other, when mixed in -large quantities. - -2. Du Camphre. - -3. Du Miel et de son analyse chimique. - -4. De l’Urine de Vache, de ses effets en médicine et de son analyse -chimique. - -5. Reflexions et Experiences sur le Sublimé Corrosive.--It appears from -this paper, that in 1709, when Lemery wrote, corrosive sublimate was -considered as a compound of mercury with the sulphuric and muriatic -acids. Lemery’s statement, that he made corrosive sublimate simply -by heating a mixture of mercury and decrepitated salt, is not easily -explained. Probably the salt which he had employed was impure. This is -the more likely, because, from his account of the matter which remained -at the bottom of the matrass after sublimation, it must have either -contained peroxide of iron or peroxide of mercury, for its colour he -says was red. - -M. Lemery left a son, who was also a member of the French Academy; an -active chemist, and author of various papers, in which he endeavours to -give a mechanical explanation of chemical phenomena. - -Another very active member of the French Academy, at the same time with -Lemery, was M. William Homberg, who was born on the 8th of January, -1652, at Batavia, in the island of Java. His father, John Homberg, was -a Saxon gentleman, who had been stripped of all his property during -the thirty years war. After receiving some education by the care of a -relation, he went into the service of the Dutch East India Company, and -got the command of the arsenal at Batavia. There he married the widow -of an officer, by whom he had four children, of whom William was the -second. - -His father quitted the service of the India Company and repaired to -Amsterdam with his family. Young Homberg studied with avidity: he -devoted himself to the law, and in 1674 was admitted advocate of -Magdeburg; but his taste for natural history and science was great. -He collected plants in the neighbourhood, and made himself acquainted -with their names and uses. At night he studied the stars, and learned -the names and positions of the different constellations. Thus he -became a self-taught botanist and astronomer. He constructed a hollow -transparent celestial globe, on which, by means of a light placed -within, the principal fixed stars were seen in the same relative -positions as in the heavens. - -Otto Guericke was at that time burgomaster of Magdeburg. His -experiments on a vacuum, and his invention of the air-pump, are -universally known. Homberg attached himself to Otto Guericke, and -this philosopher, though fond of mystery, either explained to him -his secrets, in consequence of his admiration of his genius, or was -unable to conceal them from his penetration. At last Homberg, quite -tired of his profession of advocate, left Magdeburg and went to Italy. -He sojourned for some time at Padua, where he devoted himself to the -study of medicine, anatomy, and botany. At Bologna he examined the -famous Bologna stone, the nature of which had been almost forgotten, -and succeeded in making a pyrophorus out of it. At Rome he associated -particularly with Marc-Antony Celio, famous for the large glasses for -telescopes which he was able to grind. Nor did he neglect painting, -sculpture, and music; pursuits in which, at that time, the Italians -excelled all other nations. - -From Italy he went to France, and thence passed into England, where he -wrought for some time in the laboratory of Mr. Boyle, at that time one -of the most eminent schools of science in Europe. He then passed into -Holland, studied anatomy under De Graaf, and after visiting his family, -went to Wittemberg, where he took the degree of doctor of medicine. - -After this he visited Baldwin and Kunkel, to get more accurate -information respecting the phosphorus which each had respectively -discovered. He purchased a knowledge of Kunkel’s phosphorus, by giving -in exchange a meteorological toy of Otto Guericke, now familiarly -known, by which the moisture or dryness of the air was indicated--a -little man came out of his house and stood at the door in dry weather, -but retired under cover in moist weather. He next visited the mines -of Saxony, Bohemia, and Hungary: he even went to Sweden, to visit the -copper-mines of that country. At Stockholm he wrought in the chemical -laboratory, lately established by the king, along with Hjerna, and -contributed considerably to the success of that new establishment. - -He repaired a second time to France, where he spent some time, -actively engaged with the men of science in Paris. His father strongly -pressed him to return to Holland and settle as a physician: he at -last consented, and the day of his departure was come, when, just as -he was going into his carriage, he was stopped by a message from M. -Colbert on the part of the king. Offers of so advantageous a nature -were made him if he would consent to remain in France, that, after some -consideration, he was induced to embrace them. - -In 1682 he changed his religion and became Roman catholic: this -induced his father to disinherit him. In 1688 he went to Rome, where -he practised medicine with considerable success. A few years after -he returned to Paris, where his knowledge and discoveries gave him -a very high reputation. In 1691 he became a member of the Academy -of Sciences, and got the direction of the laboratory belonging to -the academy: this enabled him to devote his undivided attention to -chemical investigations. In 1702 he was taken into the service of the -Duke of Orleans, who gave him a pension, and put him in possession of -the most splendid and complete laboratory that had ever been seen. He -was presented with the celebrated burning-glass of M. Tchirnhaus, by -the Duke of Orleans, and was enabled by means of it to determine many -points that had hitherto been only conjectural. - -In 1704 he was made first physician to the Duke of Orleans, who -honoured him with his particular esteem. This appointment obliging him -to reside out of Paris, would have made it necessary for him to resign -his seat in the academy, had not the king made a special exemption in -his favour. In 1708 he married a daughter of the famous M. Dodart, to -whom he had been long attached. Some years after he was attacked by a -dysentery, which was cured, but returned from time to time. In 1715 it -returned with great violence, and Homberg died on the 24th of September. - -His knowledge was uncommonly great in almost every department of -science. His chemical papers were very numerous; though there are few -of them, in this advanced period of the science, that are likely to -claim much attention from the chemical world. His pyrophorus, of which -he has given a description in the Mémoires de l’Académie,[177] was made -by mixing together human fæces and alum, and roasting the mixture till -it was reduced to a dry powder. It was then exposed in a matrass to a -red heat, till every thing combustible was driven off. Any combustible -will do as a substitute for human fæces--gum, flour, sugar, charcoal, -may be used. When a little of this phosphorus is poured upon paper, it -speedily catches fire and kindles the paper. Davy first explained the -nature of this phosphorus. The potash of the alum is converted into -potassium, which, by its absorption of oxygen from the atmosphere, -generates heat, and sets fire to the charcoal contained in the powder. - -[177] For 1711, p. 238. - -Homberg’s papers printed in the Memoirs of the French Academy amount -to thirty-one. They are to be found in the volumes for 1699 to 1714 -inclusive. - -M. Geoffroy, who was a member of the academy about the same time with -Lemery and Homberg, though he outlived them both, and who was an -active chemist for a considerable number of years, deserves also to be -mentioned here. - -Stephen Francis Geoffroy was born in Paris on the 13th of February, -1672, where his father was an apothecary. While a young man, regular -meetings of the most eminent scientific men of Paris were held in his -father’s house, at which he was always present. This contributed very -much to increase his taste for scientific pursuits. After this he -studied botany, chemistry, and anatomy in Paris. In 1692 his father -sent him to Montpelier, to study pharmacy in the house of a skilful -apothecary, who at the same time sent his son to Paris, to acquire the -same art in the house of M. Geoffroy, senior. Here he attended the -different classes in the university, and his name began to be known as -a chemist. After spending some time in Montpelier, he travelled round -the coast to see the principal seaports, and was at St. Malo’s in 1693, -when it was bombarded by the British fleet. - -In 1698 Count Tallard being appointed ambassador extraordinary to -London, made choice of M. Geoffroy as his physician, though he had -not taken a medical degree. Here he made many valuable acquaintances, -and was elected a fellow of the Royal Society. From London he went to -Holland, and thence into Italy, in 1700, where he went in the capacity -of physician to M. de Louvois. The great object of M. Geoffroy was -always natural history, and materia medica. In 1693 he had subjected -himself to an examination, and he had been declared qualified to act -as an apothecary; but his own object was to be a physician, while that -of his father was that he should succeed himself as an apothecary: -this in some measure regulated his education. At last he declared -his intentions, and his father agreed to them; he became bachelor of -medicine in 1702, and doctor of medicine in 1704. - -In 1709 he was made professor of medicine in the Royal College. In 1707 -he began to lecture on chemistry, at the Jardin du Roi, in place of M. -Fagan, and continued to teach this important class during the remainder -of his life. In 1726 he was chosen dean of the faculty of medicine; -and, after the two years for which he was elected was finished, he was -again chosen to fill the same situation. There existed at that time a -lawsuit between the physicians and surgeons in Paris; a kind of civil -war very injurious to both; and the mildness and suavity of his manners -fitted him particularly for being at the head of the body of physicians -during its continuance. He became a member of the academy in 1699, and -died on the 6th of January, 1731. - -The most important of all his chemical labours, and for which he -will always be remembered in the annals of the science, was the -contrivance which he fell upon, in 1718, of exhibiting the order of -chemical decompositions under the form of a table.[178] This method -was afterwards much enlarged and improved. Such tables are now usually -known by the name of _tables of affinity_; and, though they have been -of late years somewhat neglected, there can be but one opinion of their -importance when properly constructed. - -[178] Mem. Paris, 1718, p. 202; and 1720, p. 20. - -M. Geoffroy first communicated to the French chemists the mode of -making Prussian blue, as Dr. Woodward did to the English. - -Claude Joseph Geoffroy, the younger brother of the preceding, was -also a member of the Academy of Sciences, and a zealous cultivator -of chemistry. Many of his chemical papers are to be found in the -memoirs of the French Academy. He demonstrated the composition of sal -ammoniac, which however was known to Glauber. He made many experiments -upon the combustion of the volatile oils, by pouring nitric acid on -them. He explained the pretended property which certain waters have -of converting iron into copper, by showing that in such cases copper -was held in solution in the water by an acid, and that the iron merely -precipitated the copper, and was dissolved and combined with the acid -in its place. He pointed out the constituents of the three vitriols, -the green, the blue, and the white; showing that the two former were -combinations of sulphuric acid with oxides of iron and copper, and the -latter a solution of lapis calaminaris (_carbonate of zinc_) in the -same acid. He has also a memoir on the emeticity of antimony, tartar -emetic, and kermes mineral; but it is rather medical than chemical. -He determined experimentally the nature of the salt of Seignette, or -Rochelle salt, and showed that it was obtained by saturating cream of -tartar with carbonate of soda, and crystallizing. It is curious that -this discovery was made about the same time by M. Boulduc. I have -noticed only a few of the papers of M. Geoffroy, junior; because, -though they all do him credit, and contributed to the improvement of -chemistry, yet none of them contain any of those great discoveries, -which stand as landmarks in the progress of science, and constitute an -era in the history of mankind. For the same reason I omit several other -names that, in a more minute history of chemistry, would deserve to be -particularized. - - - - -CHAPTER VIII. - -OF THE ATTEMPTS TO ESTABLISH A THEORY IN CHEMISTRY. - - -Bacon, Lord Verulam, as early as the commencement of the 17th century, -had pointed out the importance of chemical investigations, and had -predicted the immense advantages which would result from the science, -when it came to be properly cultivated and extended; but he did not -himself attempt either to construct a theory of chemistry, or even -to extend it beyond the bounds which it had reached before he began -to write. Neither did Boyle, notwithstanding the importance of his -investigations, and his comparative freedom from the prejudices of the -alchymists, attempt any thing like a theory of chemistry; though the -observations which he made in his Sceptical Chemist, had considerable -effect in overturning, or at least in hastening the downfall of the -absurd chemical opinions which at that time prevailed, and the puerile -hypotheses respecting the animal functions, and the pathology and -treatment of diseases founded on these opinions. The first person who -can with propriety be said to have attempted to construct a theory of -chemistry, was Beccher. - -John Joachim Beccher, one of the most extraordinary men of the age in -which he lived, was born at Spires, in Germany, in the year 1635. His -father, as Beccher himself informs us, was a very learned Lutheran -preacher. As he lost his father when he was very young, and as that -part of Germany where he lived had been ruined by the thirty years’ -war, his family was reduced to great poverty. However, his passion -for information was so great, that he contrived to educate himself by -studying what books he could procure, and in this way acquired a great -deal of knowledge. Afterwards he travelled through the greatest part of -Germany, Italy, Sweden, and Holland. - -In the year 1666 he was appointed public professor of medicine in the -University of Mentz, and soon after chief physician to the elector. -In that capacity he took up his residence in Munich, where he was -furnished by the elector with an excellent laboratory: but he soon fell -into difficulties, the nature of which does not appear, and was obliged -to leave the place. He took refuge in Vienna, where, from his knowledge -of finance, he was appointed chamberlain to Count Zinzendorf, and -through him acquired so much importance in the eyes of the court, that -he was named a member of the newly-erected College of Commerce, and -obtained the title of imperial commercial counsellor and chamberlain. -But here also he speedily raised up so many enemies against himself, -that he found it necessary to leave Vienna, and to carry with him his -wife and children. He repaired to Holland, and settled at Haerlem in -1678. Here he was likely to have been successful; but his enemies from -Vienna followed him, and obliged him to leave Holland. In 1680 we -find him in Great Britain, where he examined the Scottish lead-mines, -and smelting-works; and in 1681, and 1682, he traversed Cornwall, and -studied the mines and smelting-works of that great mining county; here -he suggested several improvements and ameliorations. Soon after this -an advantageous proposal was made to him by the Duke of Mecklenburg -Gustrow, by means of Count Zinzendorf; but all his projects were -arrested by his death, which took place in the year 1682. It is said -that he died in London, but I have not been able to find any evidence -of this. - -It would be a difficult task to particularize his various discoveries, -which are scattered through a multiplicity of writings. He was -undoubtedly the first discoverer of boracic acid, though the credit of -the discovery has usually been given to Homberg.[179] But then he gives -no account of boracic acid, nor does he seem to have attended to its -qualities. The following is a list of Beccher’s writings: - -[179] In the sixth chemical thesis, in the second supplement to the -Physica Subterranea (page 791, Stahl’s Edition. Lipsiæ, 1703), he says, -“ubi etiam, continuato igne, ipsum sal volatile acquires, quod eadem -methodo cum vitriolo seu spiritu aut oleo vitrioli, et oleo tartari, -vel _borace_ succedit.” - -1. Metallurgia, or the Natural Science of Metals. - -2. Institutiones Chymicæ. - -3. Parnassus Medicinalis illustrata. - -4. Œdipus Chymicus seu Institutiones Chymicæ. - -5. Acta laboratorii Chymici Monacensis seu Physica Subterranea.--This, -which is the most important of all his works, is usually known by the -name of “Physica Subterranea.” This is the sole title affixed to it in -the edition published at Leipsic, in 1703, to which Stahl has prefixed -a long introduction. It is divided into seven sections. In the first he -treats of the creation of the world; in the second he gives a chemical -account of the motions and changes which are constantly going on in the -earth; in the third he treats of the three principles of all bodies, -which he calls _earths_. The first of these principles of metals and -stones is the _fusible_ or _stony earth_; the second principle of -minerals is the _fat earth_, improperly called _sulphur_; the third -principle is the _fluid earth_, improperly called _mercury_; in the -fourth section he treats of the action of subterraneous principles, or -the formation of _mixts_; in the fifth he treats of the solution of the -three classes of mixts, animals, vegetables, and metals; in the sixth -he treats of _mixts_, in which he gives their chemical constituents. -This section is very curious, because it gives Beccher’s views of the -constitution of compound bodies. It will be seen from it that he had -much more correct notions of the real objects of chemistry, than any of -his contemporaries. In the seventh and last section he treats of the -accidents and physical affections of subterraneous bodies. - -6. Experimentum Chymicum novum quo artificialis et instantanea -metallorum generatio et transmutatio, ad oculum demonstratur.--This -constitutes the first supplement to the Physica Subterranea. - -7. Supplementum secundum in Physicam subterraneam, demonstratio -philosophica seu Theses Chymicæ, veritatem et possibilitatem -transmutationis metallorum in aurum evincentes. - -8. Trifolium Beccherianum Hollandicum. - -9. Experimentum novum et curiosum de Minera arenaria perpetua, sive -prodromus historiæ seu propositionis Præp. D.D. Hollandiæ ordinibus ab -authore factæ, circa auri extractionem mediante arena littorali per -modum mineræ perpetuæ seu operationis magnæ fusoriæ cum emolumento. -Loco supplementi tertii in Physicam suam subterraneam. - -10. Chemical Luckpot, or great chemical agreement; in a collection of -one thousand five hundred chemical processes. - -11. Foolish Wisdom and wise Folly. - -12. Magnalia Naturæ. - -13. Tripus Hermeticus fatidicus pandens oracula chemica; seu I. -Laboratorium portatile, cum methodo vere spagyricæ seu juxta exigentiam -naturæ laborandi. Accessit pro praxi et exemplo; II. Centrum mundi -concatenatum seu Duumviratus hermeticus s. magnorum duorum productorum -nitri et salis textura et anatomia atque in omnium præcedentium -confirmationem adjunctum est; III. Alphabetum Minerale seu viginti -quatuor theses de subterraneorum mineralium genesi, textura et analysi; -his accessit concordantia mercurii lunæ et menstruorum. - -14. Chemical Rose-garden. - -15. Pantaleon delarvatus. - -16. Beccheri, Lancelotti, etc. Epistolæ quatuor Chemicæ. - -Beccher’s great merit was the contrivance of a chemical theory, by -which all the known facts were connected together and deduced from one -general principle. But as this theory was adopted and considerably -modified by Stahl, it will be better to lay a sketch of it before the -reader, after mentioning a few particulars of the life and labours of -one of the most extraordinary men whom Germany has produced; a man who, -in spite of the moroseness and haughtiness of his character, and in -spite of the barbarity of his style, raised himself to the very first -rank as a man of science; and had the rare or almost unique fortune of -giving laws at the same time to two different and important sciences, -which he cultivated together, without letting his opinions respecting -the one influence him with regard to the other. These sciences were -chemistry and medicine. - -George Ernest Stahl was born at Anspach, in the year 1660. He studied -medicine at Jena under George Wolfgang Wedel; and got his doctor’s -degree at the age of twenty-three. Immediately after this he began -his career as a public lecturer. In 1687 the Duke of Weimar gave him -the title of physician to the court. In 1694 he was named, at the -solicitation of Frederick Hoffmann, second professor of medicine in -the University of Halle, which had just been established. Hoffmann and -he were at that time great friends, though they afterwards quarrelled. -Both of them were men of the very highest talents and both were the -founders of medical systems which, of course, each was anxious to -support. Hoffmann had greatly the superiority in elegance and clearness -of style, and in all the amenities of polite manners. But perhaps the -moroseness of Stahl, and the obscurity, or rather mysticism of his -style, contributed equally with the more amiable qualities of Hoffmann -to excite the attention and produce the veneration with which he was -viewed by his pupils, and, indeed, by the world at large. - -At Halle he continued as a teacher of medicine for twenty-two years. In -1716 he was appointed physician to the King of Prussia. In consequence -of this appointment he left Halle, and resided in Berlin, where he died -in the year 1734, in the seventy-fifth year of his age. Notwithstanding -the great figure that Stahl made as a chemist, there is no evidence -that he ever taught that science in any public school. The Berlin -Academy had been founded under the superintendence of Leibnitz, who was -its first president; and therefore existed when Stahl was in Berlin: -but, till it was renovated in 1745 by Frederick the Great, this academy -possessed but little activity, and could scarcely, therefore, have -stimulated Stahl to attend to chemical science. However, his Chymia -rationalis et experimentalis was published in 1720, while he resided -in Berlin. The same date is appended to the preface of his Fundamenta -Chymiæ; but, from some expressions in that preface, it must, I should -think, have been written, not by Stahl, but by some other person.[180] -I suspect that the book had been written by some of his pupils, from -the lectures of the author while at Halle. If this was really the -case, it is obvious that Stahl must have taught chemistry as well as -medicine in the University of Halle. - -[180] “Primus in his facem prætulit Beccherus; eumque magno cum artis -progressu sequentem videmus in ostendenda corporum analysi et synthesi -chymica versatissimum et acutissimum--_Stahlium_.” - -Stahl’s medical theory is not less deserving of notice than his -chemical. But it is not the object of this work to enter into medical -speculations. Like Van Helmont, he resolved all diseases into the -actions of the _soul_, which was not merely the former of the body, but -its ruler and regulator. When any of the functions are deranged, the -soul exerts itself to restore them again to their healthy state; and -she accomplishes this by what in common language is called disease. -The business of a medical man, then, is not to prevent diseases, or to -stop them short when they appear; because they are the efforts of the -soul, the _vis medicatrix naturæ_, to restore the deranged state of the -functions: but he must watch these diseases, and prevent the symptoms -from becoming too violent. He must assist nature to produce the -intended effect, and check her exertions when they become abnormal. It -was a kind of modification of this theory, or rather a mixture of the -Stahlian and Hoffmannian theories, that Dr. Cullen afterwards taught -in Edinburgh with so much eclat. And these opinions, so far as medical -theories have any influence on practice, still continue in some measure -prevalent. Indeed, much of the vulgar practice followed by medical men, -chiefly in consequence of the education which they have received, is -deduced from these two theories. But it would be too great a digression -from the object of this work to enter into any details: suffice it -to say, that the rival theories of Hoffmann and Stahl for many years -divided the medical world in Germany, if not in the greater part of -Europe. It was no small matter of exultation to so young a medical -school as Halle, to have at once within its walls two such eminent -teachers as Hoffmann and Stahl. - -Let us turn our attention to the chemical writings of Stahl. Of -these the most important is his Fundamenta Chymiæ dogmaticæ et -experimentalis. It is divided, like the chemistry of Boerhaave, into a -theoretical and practical part. The perusal of it is very disagreeable, -as it is full of German words and phrases, and symbols are almost -constantly substituted for words, as was at that time the custom. - -His definition of chemistry is much more exact than Boerhaave’s. It -is, according to him, the art of resolving compound bodies into their -constituents, and of again forming them by uniting these constituents -together. - -He is inclined to believe with Beccher, that the simple principles are -four in number. The _mixts_ are compounds of these principles; and he -shows by the doctrine of permutations that if we suppose the simple -principles four, then the number of mixts will be 40,340. He treats in -the first place of _mixts_, _compounds_, and _aggregates_. - -The first object of chemistry is _corruption_, the second _generation_. -Of these he treats at considerable length, giving an account of the -different chemical processes, and of the apparatus employed. - -He next treats of _salts_, which he defines mixts composed of water -and earth, both simple and pure, and intimately united. The salts are -vitriol, alum, nitre, common salt, and sal ammoniac. He next treats of -more compound salts. These are sugar, tartar, salts from the animal and -salts from the mineral kingdom, and quicklime. - -After this comes sulphur, cinnabar, antimony, the sulphur of vitriol, -the sulphur of nitre, resins, and distilled oils. Then he treats of -water, which he divides into aqua _humida_ or common water, and aqua -_sicca_ or mercury. Next he treats of earths, which are of two kinds, -viz., _friable earths_, such as _clay_, _loam_, sand, &c., and metallic -earths constituting the bases of the metals. - -He next treats of the metals; and, as a preliminary, we have a -description of the method of smelting, and operating upon the different -metals. The metals are then described successively in the following -order: Gold, silver, copper, iron, tin, lead, bismuth, zinc, antimony. - -To this part of the system are added three sections. The first treats -of mercuries, the second of the philosopher’s stone, and the third of -the universal medicine. We must not suppose that Stahl was a believer -in these ideal compositions; his object is merely to give a history of -the different processes which had been recommended by the alchymists. - -The second part of his work is divided into two _tracts_. The first -tract contains three sections. The first of these treats of the nature -of solids and fluids, of solutions and menstrua, of the effects of heat -and fire, of effervescence and boiling, of volatilization, of fusion -and liquefaction, of distillation, of precipitation, of calcination -and incineration, of detonation, of amalgamation, of crystallization -and inspissation, and of the fixity and firmness of bodies. In the -second section we have an account of salts, and of their generation -and transmutation, of sulphur and inflammability, of phosphorus, of -colours, and of the nature of metals and minerals. In this article -he gives short definitions of these bodies, and shows how they may -be known. The bodies thus defined are gold, silver, iron, copper, -lead, tin, mercury, antimony, sulphur, arsenic, vitriol, common salt, -nitre, alum, sal ammoniac, alkalies, and salts; viz., muriatic acid, -sulphuric, nitric, and sulphurous. - -In the third section he treats of the method of reducing metallic -calces, of the mode of separating metals from their scoriæ, of the mode -of making artificial gems, and finally of the mode of giving copper a -golden colour. - -The second tract is divided into two parts. The first part is -subdivided into four sections. In the first section he treats of the -instruments of chemical motion, of fire, of air, of water, of the most -subtile earth or salt. In the second section he treats _de subjectis_, -under the several heads of dissolving aggregates, of triturations and -solutions, and of calcinations and combustions. In the third section -he treats of the object of chemistry under the following heads: Of -chemical corruption, consisting of compounds from liquids, of the -separation of solids and fluids, of mixts, of the solution of compounds -from solids. In the fourth section he treats of fermentation. - -The second part of this second tract treats of chemical generation, -and is divided into two sections. In the first section he treats of -the aggregate collection of bodies into fluids and solids. The section -treats of compositions under the heads of volatile and solid bodies. He -gives in the last article an account of the combination of mixts. - -The third and last part of this elaborate work discusses three -subjects; viz. _zymotechnia_ or _fermentation_, _halotechnia_, or the -production and properties of salts, and _pyrotechnia_, in which the -whole of the Stahlian doctrine of _phlogiston_ is developed. This -third part has all the appearance of having been notes written down by -some person during the lectures of Stahl: for it consists of alternate -sentences of Latin and German. It is not at all likely that Stahl -himself would have produced such a piebald work; but if he lectured in -Latin, as was at that time the universal custom, it was natural for a -person occupied in taking down the lectures, to write as far as was -possible in Latin, but when any of the Latin phrases were lost, or did -not immediately occur to memory, it were equally natural to write down -the meaning of what the professor stated in the language most familiar -to the writer, which was undoubtedly the German. - -Another of Stahl’s works is entitled “Opusculum -Chymico-physico-medicum,” published at Halle in a thick quarto volume, -in the year 1715. It contains a great number of tracts, partly chemical -and partly medical, which it is needless to specify. Perhaps the most -curious of them all is his dissertation to show the way in which Moses -ground the golden calf to powder, dissolved it in water, and obliged -the children of Israel to drink it. He shows that a solution of hepar -sulphuris (_sulphuret of potassium_), has the property of dissolving -gold, and he draws as a conclusion from his experiments that this was -the artifice employed by Moses. We have in the same volume a pretty -detailed treatise on metallurgic pyrotechny and docimasy. This is the -more curious, because Stahl never appears to have frequented the mines -and smelting-houses of Germany. He must, therefore, have drawn his -information from books and from experiment. - -Another of his books is entitled “Experimenta, Observationes, -Animadversiones, CCC. Numero.” An octavo volume, printed at Berlin -in 1731. Another of his books is entitled “Specimen Beccherianum.” -There are also two chemical books of Stahl, which I have seen only in -a French translation, viz., _Traité de Soufre_ and _Traité de Sels_. -These are the only chemical writings of Stahl that I have seen. There -are probably others; indeed I have seen the titles of several other -chemical works ascribed to him. But as it is doubtful whether he really -wrote them or not, I think it unnecessary to specify them here. - -Stahl’s writings evince the great progress which chemistry had -made even since the time of Beccher. But it is difficult to say -what particular new facts, which appear first in his writings were -discovered by himself, and what by others. I shall not, therefore, -attempt any enumeration of them. His reasoning is more subtile, and his -views much more extensive and profound than those of his predecessors. -The great improvement which he introduced into chemistry was the -employment of _phlogiston_, to explain the phenomena of combustion -and calcination. This theory had been originally broached by Beccher, -from whom Stahl evidently borrowed it, but he improved and simplified -it so much that the whole credit of it was given to him. It was called -the Stahlian theory, and raised him to the highest rank among chemists. -The sole objects of chemists for thirty or forty years after his time -was to illucidate and extend his theory. It applied so happily to all -the known facts, and was supported by experiments, which appeared -so decisive that nobody thought of calling it in question, or of -interrogating nature in any other way than he had pointed out. It will -be requisite, therefore, before proceeding further with this historical -sketch, to lay the outlines of the phlogistic theory before the reader. - -It was conceived by Beccher and Stahl that all _combustible_ bodies -are compounds. One of the constituents they supposed to be dissipated -during the combustion, while the other constituent remained behind. -Now when combustible bodies are subjected to combustion, some of them -leave an acid behind them; while others leave a fixed powdery matter, -possessing the properties of an _earth_, and called usually the _calx_ -of the combustible body. The metals are the substances which leave -a calx behind them when burnt, and sulphur and phosphorus leave an -acid. With respect to those bodies that would not burn, chemists did -not speculate much at first; but afterwards they came to think that -they consisted of the fixed substance that remained after combustion. -Hence the conclusion was natural, that they had already undergone -combustion. Thus quicklime possessed properties very similar to the -calces of metals. It was natural, therefore, to consider it as a calx, -and to believe that if the matter dissipated during combustion could be -again restored, lime would be converted into a substance similar to the -metals. - -Combustibility then, according to this view of the subject, depends -upon a principle or material substance, existing in every combustible -body, and dissipated during the combustion. This substance was -considered to be absolutely the same in all combustible bodies -whatever; hence the difference between combustible bodies proceeded -from the other principle or number of principles with which this common -substance is combined. In consequence of this identity Stahl invented -the term _phlogiston_, by which he denoted this common principle of -combustible bodies. Inflammation, with the several phenomena that -attend it, depended on the gradual separation of this principle, -which being once separated, what remained of the body could no -longer be an inflammable substance, but must be similar to the other -kinds of matter. It was this opinion that combustibility is owing -to the presence of phlogiston, and inflammation to its escape, that -constituted the peculiar theory of Beccher, and which was afterwards -illustrated by Stahl with so much clearness, and experiments to prove -its truth were advanced by him of so much force, that it came to be -distinguished by the name of the Stahlian theory. - -The identity of phlogiston in all combustible bodies was founded upon -observations and experiments of so decisive a nature, that after the -existence of the principle itself was admitted, they could not fail -to be satisfactory. When phosphorus is made to burn it gives out a -strong flame, much heat is evolved, and the phosphorus is dissipated -in a white smoke: but if the combustion be conducted within a glass -vessel of a proper shape, this white smoke will be deposited on the -inside of the glass; it quickly absorbs moisture from the atmosphere, -and runs into an acid liquid, known by the name of phosphoric acid. -If this liquid be put into a platinum crucible, and gradually heated -to redness, the water is dissipated, and a substance remains which, -on cooling, congeals into a transparent colourless body like glass: -this is dry _phosphoric_ acid. If now we mix phosphoric acid with -a quantity of charcoal powder, and heat it sufficiently in a glass -retort, taking care to exclude the external air, a _portion_ or the -_whole_ of the charcoal will disappear, and phosphorus will be formed -possessed of the same properties that it had before it was subjected -to combustion. The conclusion deduced from this process appeared -irresistible; the charcoal, or a portion of it, had combined with the -phosphoric acid, and both together had constituted phosphorus. - -Now, in changing phosphoric acid into phosphorus, we may employ almost -any kind of combustible substance that we please, provided it be -capable of bearing the requisite heat; they will all equally answer, -and will all convert the acid into phosphorus. Instead of charcoal we -may take lamp-black, or sugar, or resin, or even several of the metals. -Hence it was concluded that all of these bodies contain a common -principle which they communicate to the phosphoric acid; and since the -new body formed is in all cases identical, the principle communicated -must also be identical. Hence combustible bodies contain an identical -principle, and this principle is phlogiston. - -Sulphur by burning is converted into sulphuric acid; and if sulphuric -acid be heated with charcoal, or phosphorus, or even sulphur, it is -again converted into sulphur. Several of the metals produce the same -effect. The reasoning here was the same as with regard to phosphoric -acid, and the conclusion was similar. - -When lead is kept nearly at a red heat in the open air for some time, -being constantly stirred to expose new surfaces to the air, it is -converted into the beautiful pigment called _red lead_; this is a calx -of lead. To restore this calx again to the state of metallic lead, we -have only to heat it in contact with almost any combustible matter -whatever. Pit-coal, peat, charcoal, sugar, flour, iron, zinc, &c., -all these bodies then must contain one common principle, which they -communicate to red lead, and by so doing convert it into lead. This -common principle is phlogiston. - -These examples are sufficient to show the reader the way in which -Stahl proved the identity of phlogiston in all combustible bodies. And -the demonstration was considered as so complete that the opinion was -adopted by every chemist without exception. - -When we inquire further, and endeavour to learn what qualities -phlogiston was supposed to have in its separate state, we find this -part of the subject very unsatisfactory, and the opinions very -unsettled. Beccher and Stahl represented phlogiston as a dry substance, -or of an earthy nature, the particles of which are exquisitely -subtile, and very much disposed to be agitated and set in motion with -inconceivable velocity. This was called by Stahl _motus verticillaris_. -When the particles of any body are agitated with this kind of motion, -the body exhibits the phenomena of heat or ignition, or inflammation, -according to the violence and rapidity of the motion. - -This very crude opinion of the earthy nature of phlogiston, appears to -have been deduced from the insolubility of most combustible substances -in water. If we except alcohol, and ether, and gums, very few of -them are capable of being dissolved in that liquid. Thus the metals, -sulphur, phosphorus, oils, resins, bitumens, charcoal, &c., are well -known to be insoluble. Now, at the time that Beccher and Stahl lived, -insolubility in water was considered as a character peculiar to earthy -bodies; and as those bodies which contain a great deal of phlogiston -are insoluble in water, though the other constituents be very soluble -in that liquid, it was natural enough to conclude that phlogiston -itself was of an earthy nature. - -But though the opinions of chemists about the nature and properties -of phlogiston in a separate state were unsettled, no doubts were -entertained respecting its existence, and respecting its identity in -all combustible bodies. Its presence or its absence produced almost -all the changes which bodies undergo. Hence chemistry and combustion -came to be in some measure identified, and a theory of combustion was -considered as the same thing with a theory of chemistry. - -Metals were compounds of _calces_ and phlogiston. The different -species of metals depend upon the different species of calx which each -contains; for there are as many _calces_ (each simple and peculiar) as -there are metals. These calces are capable of uniting with phlogiston -in indefinite proportions. The calx united to a little phlogiston still -retains its earthy appearance--a certain additional portion restores -the calx to the state of a metal. An enormous quantity of phlogiston -with which some calces, as calx of manganese, are capable of combining, -destroys the metallic appearance of the body, and renders it incapable -of dissolving in acids. - -The affinity between a metallic calx and phlogiston is strong; but the -facility of union is greatly promoted when the calx still retains a -little phlogiston. If we drive off the whole phlogiston we can scarcely -unite the calx with phlogiston again, or bring it back to the state of -a metal: hence the extreme difficulty of reducing the calx of zinc, and -even the red calx of iron. - -The various colours of bodies are owing to phlogiston, and these -colours vary with every alteration in the proportion of phlogiston -present. - -It was observed very early that when a metal was converted into a calx -its weight was increased. But this, though known to Beecher and Stahl, -does not seem to have had any effect on their opinions. Boyle, who does -not seem to have been aware of the phlogistic theory, though it had -been broached before his death, relates an experiment on tin which he -made. He put a given weight of it into an open glass vessel, and kept -it melted on the fire till a certain portion of it was converted into -a calx: it was now found to have increased considerably in weight. This -experiment he relates in order to prove the materiality of heat: in his -opinion a certain quantity of heat had united to the tin and occasioned -the increase of weight. This opinion of Boyle was incompatible with -the Stahlian theory: for the tin had not only increased in weight, but -had been converted into a calx. It was therefore the opinion of Boyle -that calx of tin was a combination of _tin_ and _heat_. It could not -consequently be true that calx of tin was tin deprived of phlogiston. - -When this difficulty struck the phlogistians, which was not till long -after the time of Stahl, they endeavoured to evade it by assigning new -properties to phlogiston. According to them it is not only destitute -of weight, but endowed with a principle of levity. In consequence of -this property, a body containing phlogiston is always lighter than it -would otherwise be, and it becomes heavier when the phlogiston makes -its escape: hence the reason why calx of tin is heavier than the same -tin in the metallic state. The increase of weight is not owing, as -Boyle believed, to the fixation of heat in the tin, but to the escape -of phlogiston from it. - -Those philosophic chemists, who thus refined upon the properties of -phlogiston, did not perceive that by endowing it with a principle of -levity, they destroyed all the other characters which they had assigned -to it. What is gravity? Is it not an attraction by means of which -bodies are drawn towards each other, and remain united? And is there -any reason for supposing that chemical attraction differs in its nature -from the other kinds of attraction which matter possesses? If, then, -phlogiston be destitute of gravity, it cannot possess any attraction -for other bodies; if it be endowed with a principle of levity, it must -have the property of repelling other bodies, for that is the only -meaning that can be attached to the term. But if phlogiston has the -property of repelling all other substances, how comes it to be fixed -in combustible bodies? It must be united to the calces or the acids, -which constitute the other principle of these bodies; and it could not -be united, and remain united, unless a principle of attraction existed -between it and these bases; that is to say, unless it possessed a -principle the very opposite of levity. - -Thus the fact, that calces are heavier than the metals from which they -are formed, in reality overturned the whole doctrine of phlogiston; -and the only reason why the doctrine continued to be admitted after -the fact was known is, that in these early days of chemistry, the -balance was scarcely ever employed in experimenting: hence alterations -in weight were little attended to or entirely overlooked. We shall -see afterwards, that when Lavoisier introduced a more accurate mode -of experimenting, and rendered it necessary to compare the original -weights of the substances employed, with the weights of the products, -he made use of this very experiment of Boyle, and a similar one made -with mercury, to overturn the whole doctrine of phlogiston. - -The phlogistic school being thus founded by Stahl, in Berlin, a race -of chemists succeeded him in that capital, who contributed in no -ordinary degree to the improvement of the science. The most deservedly -celebrated of these were Neumann, Pott, Margraaf, and Eller. - -Caspar Neumann was born at Zullichau, in Germany, in 1682. He was -early received into favour by the King of Prussia, and travelled -at the expense of that monarch into Holland, England, France, and -Italy. During these travels he had an opportunity of making a -personal acquaintance with the most eminent men of science in all -the different countries which he visited. On his return home, in -1724, he was appointed professor of chemistry in the Royal College of -Physic and Surgery at Berlin, where he delivered a course of lectures -annually. During the remainder of his life he enjoyed the situation of -superintendent of the Royal Laboratory, and apothecary to the King of -Prussia. He died in 1737. He was a Fellow of the Royal Society, and -several papers of his appeared in the Transactions of that learned -body. The following is a list of these papers, all of which were -written in Latin: - -1. Disquisitio de camphora. - -2. De experimento probandi spiritum vini Gallici, per quam usitato, sed -revera falso et fallaci. - -Some merchants in Holland, England, Hamburg, and Dantzic, were in -possession of what they considered an infallible test to distinguish -French brandy from every other kind of spirit. It was a dusky yellowish -liquid. When one or two drops of it were let fall into a glass of -French brandy, a beautiful blue colour appeared at the bottom of -the glass, and when the brandy is stirred, the whole liquid becomes -azure. But if the spirit tried be malt spirit, no such colour appears -in the glass. Neumann ascertained that the test liquid was merely a -solution of sulphate of iron in water, and that the blue colour was -the consequence of the brandy having been kept in oak casks, and thus -having dissolved a portion of tannin. Every spirit will exhibit the -same colour, if it has been kept in oak casks. - -3. De salibus alkalino-fixis. - -4. De camphora thymi. - -5. De ambragrysea. - -His other papers, published in Germany, are the following: - - -In the Ephemerides. - -1. De oleo distillato formicorum æthereo. - -2. De albumine ovi succino simili. - - -In the Miscellania Berolinensia. - -1. Meditationes in binas observationes de aqua per putrefactionem -rubra, vulgo pro tali in sanguinem versa habita. - -2. Succincta relatio exactis Pomeraniis de prodigio sanguinis in palude -viso. - -3. De prodigio sanguinis ex Pomeranio nunciato. - -4. Disquisitio de camphora. - -5. De experimento probandi spiritum vini Gallicum. - -6. De spiritu urinoso caustico. - -7. Demonstratio syrupum violarum ad probanda liquida non sufficere. - -8. Examen correctionis olei raparum. - -9. De vi caustica et conversione salium alkalino-fixorum aëri -expositorum in salia neutra. - - -He published separately, - -1. De salibus alkalino-fixis et camphora. - -2. De succino, opio, caryophyllis aromaticis et castoreo. - -3. On saltpetre, sulphur, antimony, and iron. - -4. On tea, coffee, beer, and wine. - -5. Disquisitio de ambragrysea. - -6. On common salt, tartar, sal ammoniac and ants. - -After Neumann’s death, two copies of his chemical lectures were -published. The first consisting of notes taken by one of his pupils, -intermixed with incoherent compilations from other authors, was printed -at Berlin in 1740. The other was printed by the booksellers of the -Orphan Hospital of Zullichau (the place of Neumann’s birth), and is -said to have been taken from the original papers in the author’s -handwriting. Of this last an excellent translation, with many additions -and corrections, was published by Dr. Lewis, in London, in the year -1759; it was entitled, “The Chemical Works of Caspar Neumann, M.D., -Professor of Chemistry at Berlin, F.R.S., &c. Abridged and methodized; -with large additions, containing the later discoveries and improvements -made in Chemistry, and the arts depending thereon. By William -Lewis, M.B., F.R.S. London, 1759.” This is an excellent book, and -contains many things that still retain their value, notwithstanding -the improvements which have been made since in every department of -chemistry. - -I have reason to believe that the laborious part of this translation -and compilation was made by Mr. Chicholm, whom Dr. Lewis employed as -his assistant. Mr. Chicholm, when a young man, went to London from -Aberdeen, where he had studied at the university, and acquired a -competent knowledge of Greek and Latin, but no means of supporting -himself. On his arrival in London, one of the first things that -struck his attention was a Greek book, placed open against the pane -of a bookseller’s window. Chicholm went up to the window, at which -he continued standing till he had perused the whole Greek page thus -exposed to his view. Dr. Lewis happened to be in the shop: he had -been looking out for a young man whom he could employ to take charge -of his laboratory, and manage his processes, and who should possess -sufficient intelligence to read chemical works for him, and collect -out of each whatever deserved to be known, either from its novelty -or ingenuity. The appearance and manners of Chicholm struck him, and -made him think of him as a man likely to answer the purposes which he -had in view. He called him into the shop, and after some conversation -with him, took him home, and kept him all his life as his assistant -and operator. Chicholm was a laborious and painstaking man, and by -continually working in Lewis’s laboratory, soon acquired a competent -knowledge of chemistry. He compiled several manuscript volumes, partly -consisting of his own experiments, and partly of collections from other -authors. At Dr. Lewis’s death, all his books were sold by auction, and -these manuscript volumes among the rest. They were purchased by Mr. -Wedgewood, senior, who at the same time took Mr. Chicholm into his -service, and gave him the charge of his own laboratory. It was Mr. -Chicholm that was the constructor of the well-known piece of apparatus -known by the name of Wedgewood’s pyrometer. After his death the -instrument continued still to be constructed for some time; but so many -complaints were made of the unequal contraction of the pieces, that -Mr. Wedgewood, junior, who had succeeded to the pottery in consequence -of the death of his father, put an end to the manufacture of them -altogether. - -John Henry Pott was born at Halberstadt, in the year 1692. He was a -scholar of Hoffmann and Stahl, and from this last he seems to have -imbibed his taste for chemistry. He settled at Berlin, where he became -assessor of the Royal College of Medicine and Surgery, inspector of -medicines, superintendent of the Royal Laboratory, and dean of the -Academy of Sciences of Berlin. He was chosen professor of theoretical -chemistry at Berlin; and on the death of Neumann, in 1737, he succeeded -him as professor of practical chemistry. He was beyond question the -most learned and laborious chemist of his day. His erudition, indeed, -was very great; and his historical introductions to his dissertation -displays the extent of his reading on every subject of which he -had occasion to treat. It has often struck me that the historical -introductions which Bergmann has prefixed to his papers, are several -of them borrowed from Pott. The Lithogeognosia of Pott is one of the -most extraordinary productions of the age in which he lived. It was the -result of a request of the King of Prussia, to discover the ingredients -of which Saxon porcelain was made. Mr. Pott, not being able to procure -any satisfactory information relative to the nature of the substances -employed at Dresden, resolved to undertake a chemical examination -of all the substances that were likely to be employed in such a -manufacture. He tried the effect of fire upon all the stones, earths, -and minerals, that he could procure, both separately and mixed together -in various proportions. He made at least thirty thousand experiments -in six years, and laid the foundation for a chemical knowledge of these -bodies.[181] It is to this work of Pott that we are indebted for our -knowledge of the effects of heat upon various earthy bodies, and upon -mixtures of them. Thus he found that pure white clay, or mixtures of -pure clay and quartz-sand, would not fuse at any temperature which he -could produce; but clay, mixed with lime or with oxide of iron, enters -speedily into fusion. Clay also fuses with its own weight of borax; it -forms a compact mass with half its weight, and does not concrete into -a hard body when mixed with a third of its weight of that salt. Clay -fuses easily with fluor spar; it fuses, also, with twice its weight of -protoxide of lead, and with its own weight of sulphate of lime, but -with no other proportion tried. It was a knowledge of these mutual -actions of bodies on each other, when exposed to heat, that gradually -led to the methods of examining minerals by the blowpipe. These methods -were brought to the present state of perfection by Assessor Gahn, of -Fahlun, the result of whose labours has been published by Berzelius, in -his treatise on the blowpipe. Pott died in 1777, in the eighty-fifth -year of his age. - -[181] There is a French translation of this work, entitled -“Litheognosie, ou Examen Chymique des Pierres et des Terres en -général, et du Talc de la Topaz, et de la Steatite en particulier; -avec une Dissertation sur le Feu et sur la Lumière.” Paris, 1753. -With a continuation, constituting a second volume, in which all the -experiments in the first volume are exhibited in the form of tables. - -His different chemical works (his Lithogeognosia excepted) were -collected and translated into French by M. Demachy, in the year 1759, -and published in four small octavo volumes. The chemical papers -contained in these volumes are thirty-two in number. Some of these -papers cannot but appear somewhat extraordinary to a modern chemist: -for example, M. Duhamel had published in the memoirs of the French -Academy, in the year 1737, a set of experiments on common salt, from -which he deduced that its basis was a fixed alkali, which possessed -properties different from those of potash, and which of course required -to be distinguished by a peculiar name. It is sufficiently known that -the term _soda_ was afterwards applied to this alkali; by which name it -is known at present. Pott, in a very elaborate and long dissertation -on the base of common salt, endeavours to refute these opinions -of Duhamel. The subject was afterwards taken up by Margraaf, who -demonstrated, by decisive experiments, that the base of common salt is -_soda_; and that soda differs essentially in its properties from potash. - -Pott’s dissertation on _bismuth_ is of considerable value. He collects -in it the statements and opinions of all preceding writers on this -metal, and describes its properties with considerable accuracy and -minuteness. The same observations apply to his dissertation on zinc. - -John Theodore Eller, of Brockuser, was born on the 29th of November, -1689, at Pletzkau, in the principality of Anhalt Bernburg. He was -the fourth son of Jobst Hermann Eller, a man of a respectable -family, whose ancestors were proprietors of considerable estates in -Westphalia and the Netherlands. Young Eller received the rudiments -of his education in his father’s house, from which he went to the -University of Quedlinburg; and from thence to the University of Jena, -in 1709. He was sent thither to study law; but his passion was for -natural philosophy, which led him to devote himself to the study of -medicine. From Jena he went to Halle, and finally to Leyden, attracted -by the reputation of the older Albinus, of Professor Sengerd and the -celebrated Boerhaave, at that time in the height of his reputation. -The only practical anatomist then in Leyden, was M. Bidloo, an old man -of eighty, and of course unfit for teaching. This induced Eller to -repair to Amsterdam, to study under Rau, and to inspect the anatomical -museum of Ruysch. Bidloo soon dying, Rau was appointed his successor -at Leyden, whither Eller followed him, and dissected under him till -the year 1716. After taking his degree at Leyden, Eller returned to -Germany, and devoted a considerable time to the study and examination -of the mines of Saxony and the Hartz, and of the metallurgic processes -connected with these mines. From these mines he repaired to France, and -resumed his anatomical studies under Du Verney and Winslow. Chemistry -also attracted a good deal of his attention, and he frequented the -laboratories of Grosse, Lemery, Bolduc, and Homberg, at that time the -most eminent chemists in Paris. - -From Paris he repaired to London, where he formed an acquaintance with -the numerous medical men of eminence who at that time adorned this -capital. On returning to Germany in 1721, he was appointed physician -to Prince Victor Frederick of Anhalt Bernburg. From Bernburg he -went to Magdeburg; and the King of Prussia called him to Berlin in -1724, to teach anatomy in the great anatomic theatre which had been -just erected. Soon after he was appointed physician to the king, a -counsellor and professor in the Royal Medico-Chirurgical College, -which had been just founded in Berlin. He was also appointed dean of -the Superior College of Medicine, and physician to the army and to -the great Hospital of Frederick. In the year 1755 Frederick the Great -made him a privy-counsellor, which is the highest rank that a medical -man can attain in Prussia. The same year he was made director of the -Royal Academy of Sciences of Berlin. He died in the year 1760, in the -seventy-first year of his age. He was twice married, and his second -wife survived him. - -Many chemical papers of Eller are to be found in the memoirs of the -Berlin Academy. They were of sufficient importance, at the time when -he published them, to add considerably to his reputation, though not -sufficiently so to induce me to give a catalogue of them here. I am -not aware of any chemical discovery for which we are indebted to him; -but have been induced to give this brief notice of him, because he is -usually associated with Pott and Margraaf, making with them the three -celebrated chemists who adorned Berlin, during the splendid reign of -Frederick the Great. - -Andrew Sigismund Margraaf was born in Berlin, in the year 1709, and -acquired the first principles of chemistry from his father, who was -an apothecary in that city. He afterwards studied under Neumann, and -travelling in quest of information to Frankfort, Strasburg, Halle, and -Freyburg, he returned to Berlin enriched with all the knowledge of his -favourite science which at that time existed. In 1760, on the death -of Eller, he was made director of the physical class of the Berlin -Academy of Sciences. He died in the year 1782, in the seventy-third -year of his age. He gradually acquired a brilliant reputation in -consequence of the numerous chemical papers which he successively -published, each of which usually contained a new chemical fact, of -more or less importance, deduced from a set of experiments generally -satisfactory and convincing. His papers have a greater resemblance -to those of Scheele than of any other chemist to whom we can compare -them. He may be considered as in some measure the beginner of chemical -analysis; for, before his time, the chemical analysis of bodies had -hardly been attempted. His methods, as might have been expected, -were not very perfect; nor did he attempt numerical results. His -experiments on phosphorus and on the method of extracting it from urine -are valuable; they communicated the first accurate notions relative -to this substance and to phosphoric acid. He first determined the -properties of the earth of alum, now known by the name of _alumina_; -showed that it differed from every other, and that it existed in clay, -and gave to that substance its peculiar properties. He demonstrated -the peculiar nature of soda, the base of common salt, which Pott had -called in question, and thus verified the conclusions of Duhamel. He -gives an easy process for obtaining pure silver from the chloride of -that metal: his method is to dissolve the pure chloride of silver in a -solution of caustic ammonia, and to put into the liquid a sufficient -quantity of pure mercury; the silver is speedily reduced and converted -into an amalgam, and when this amalgam is exposed to a red heat the -mercury is driven off and pure silver remains. The usual method of -reducing the chloride of silver is to heat it in a crucible with a -sufficient quantity of carbonate of potash, a process which was first -recommended by Kunkel. But it is scarcely possible to prevent the loss -of a portion of the silver when the chloride is reduced in this way. -The modern process is undoubtedly the simplest and the best, to reduce -it by means of hydrogen. If a few pieces of zinc be put into the bottom -of a beer-glass and some dilute sulphuric acid be poured over it an -effervescence takes place, and hydrogen gas is disengaged. Chloride of -silver, placed above the zinc in the same glass, is speedily reduced by -this hydrogen and converted into metallic silver. - -Margraaf’s chemical papers, down to the time of publication, were -collected together, translated into French and published at Paris -in the year 1762, in two very small octavo volumes, they consist of -twenty-six different papers: some of the most curious and important -of which are those that have been just particularized. Several other -papers written by him appeared in the memoirs of the Berlin Academy, -after this collection of his works was published, particularly “A -demonstration of the possibility of drawing fixed alkaline salts -from tartar by means of acids, without employing the action of a -violent fire.” It was this paper, probably, that led Scheele, a few -years after, to his well-known method of obtaining tartaric acid, a -modification of which is still followed by manufacturers. - -“Observations concerning a remarkable volatilization of a portion of -a kind of stone known by the names of flosse, flusse, fluor spar, and -likewise by that of hesperos: which volatilization was effectuated by -means of acids.” Pott had already shown the value of fluor spar as a -flux. Three years after the appearance of Margraaf’s paper, Scheele -discovered the nature of fluor spar, and first drew the attention of -chemists to the peculiar properties of fluoric acid. - -In France, in consequence chiefly of the regulations established in -the Academy of Sciences, in the year 1699, a race of chemists always -existed, whose specific object was to cultivate chemistry, and extend -and improve it. The most eminent of these chemical labourers, after the -Stahlian theory was fully admitted in France till its credit began to -be shaken, were Reaumur, Hellot, Duhamel, Rouelle, and Macquer. Besides -these, who were the chief chemists in the academy, there were a few -others to whom we are indebted for chemical discoveries that deserve to -be recorded. - -René Antoine Ferchault, Esq., Seigneur de Reaumur, certainly one of the -most extraordinary men of his age, was born at Rochelle, in 1683. He -went to the school of Rochelle, and afterwards studied philosophy under -the Jesuits at Poitiers. Hence he went to Bourges, to which one of his -uncles, canon of the holy chapel in that city, had invited him. At this -time he was only seventeen years of age, yet his parents ventured to -intrust a younger brother to his care, and this care he discharged -with all the fidelity and sagacity of a much older man. Here he devoted -himself to mathematics and physics, and he soon after went to Paris to -improve the happy talents which he had received from nature. He was -fortunate enough to meet with a friend and relation in the president, -Henault, equally devoted to study with himself, equally eager for -information, and possessed of equal honour and integrity, and equally -promising talents. - -He came to Paris in 1703. In 1708 he was admitted into the Academy of -Sciences, in the situation of _élève_ of M. Varignon, vacant by the -promotion of M. Saurin to the rank of associate. - -The first papers of his which were inserted in the Memoirs of the -Academy were geometrical: he gave a general method of finding an -infinity of curves, described by the extremity of a straight line, -the other extremity of which, passing along the surface of a given -curve, is always obliged to pass through the same point. Next year he -gave a geometrical work on Developes; but this was the last of his -mathematical tracts. He was charged by the academy with the task of -giving a description of the arts, and his taste for natural history -began to draw to that study the greatest part of his attention. His -first work as a naturalist was his observations on the formation of -shells. It was unknown whether shells increase by intussusception, like -animal bodies, or by the exterior and successive addition of new parts. -By a set of delicate observations he showed that shells are formed by -the addition of new parts, and that this was the cause of the variety -of colour, shape, and size which they usually affect. His observations -on snails, with a view to the way in which their shells are formed, -led him to the discovery of a singular insect, which not only lives on -snails, but in the inside of their bodies, from which it never stirs -till driven out by the snail. - -During the same year, he wrote his curious paper on the silk of -spiders. The experiments of M. Bohn had shown that spiders could spin -a silk that might be usefully employed. But it remained to be seen -whether these creatures could be fed with profit, and in sufficiently -great numbers to produce a sufficient quantity of silk to be of use. -Reaumur undertook this disagreeable task, and showed that spiders could -not be fed together without attacking and destroying one another. - -The next research which he undertook, was to discover in what way -certain sea-animals are capable of attaching themselves to fixed -bodies, and again disengaging themselves at pleasure. He discovered the -various threads and pinnæ which some of them possess for this purpose, -and the prodigious number of limbs by which the sea-star is enabled to -attach itself to solid bodies. Other animals employ a kind of cement -to glue themselves to those substances to which they are attached, -while some fix themselves by forming a vacuum in the interval between -themselves and the solid substances to which they are attached. - -It was at this period that he found great quantities of the buccinum, -which yielded the purple dye of the ancients, upon the coast of Poitou. -He observed, also, that the stones and little sandy ridges round which -the shellfish had collected were covered with a kind of oval grains, -some of which were white, and others of a yellowish colour, and having -collected and squeezed some of these upon the sleeve of his shirt, so -as to wet it with the liquid which they contained, he was agreeably -surprised in about half an hour to find the wetted spot assume a -beautiful purple colour, which was not discharged by washing. He -collected a number of these grains, and carrying them to his apartment, -bruised and squeezed different parcels of them upon bits of linen; but -to his great surprise, after two or three hours, no colour appeared -on the wetted part; but, at the same time, two or three spots of the -plaster at the window, on which drops of the liquid had fallen, had -become purple; though the day was cloudy. On carrying the pieces -of linen to the window, and leaving them there, they also acquired -a purple colour. It was the action of light, then, on the liquor, -that caused it to tinge the linen. He found, likewise, that when the -colouring matter was put into a phial, which filled it completely, it -remained unchanged; but when the phial was not full, and was badly -corked, it acquired colour. From these facts it is evident, that the -purple colour is owing to the joint action of the light and the oxygen -of the atmosphere upon the liquor of the shellfish. - -About this time, likewise, he made experiments upon a subject which -attracted the attention of mechanicians--to determine whether the -strength of a cord was greater, or less, or equal to the joint strength -of all the fibres which compose it. The result of Reaumur’s experiments -was, that the strength of the cord is less than that of all the fibres -of which it is composed. Hence it follows, that the less that a cord -differs from an assemblage of straight fibres, the stronger it is. -This, at that time considered as a singular mechanical paradox, was -afterwards elucidated by M. Duhamel. - -It was a popular opinion of all the inhabitants of the sea-shore, that -when the claws of crabs, lobsters, &c., are lost by any means, they are -gradually replaced by others, and the animal in a short time becomes as -perfect as at first. This opinion was ridiculed by men of science as -inconsistent with all our notions of true philosophy. Reaumur subjected -it to the test of experiment, by removing the claws of these animals, -and keeping them alone for the requisite time in sea-water: new claws -soon sprang out, and perfectly replaced those that had been removed. -Thus the common opinion was verified,and the contemptuous smile of the -half-learned man of science was shown to be the result of ignorance, -not of knowledge. - -Reaumur was not so fortunate in his attempts to explain the nature of -the shock given by the torpedo; which we now know to be an electric -shock produced by a peculiar apparatus within the animal. Reaumur -endeavoured to prove, from dissection, that the shock was owing to the -prodigious rapidity of the blow given by the animal in consequence of a -peculiar structure of its muscles. - -The turquoise was at that time, as it still is, considerably admired in -consequence of the beauty of its colour. Persia was the country from -which this precious stone came, and it was at that time considered as -the only country in the universe where it occurred. Reaumur made a set -of experiments on the subject and showed that the fossil bones found in -Languedoc, when exposed to a certain heat, assume the same beautiful -green colour, and become turquoises equally beautiful with the Persian. -It is now known, that the true Persian turquoise, the _calamite_ -of mineralogists, is quite different from fossil bones coloured -with copper. So far, therefore, Reaumur deceived himself by these -experiments; but at that time chemical knowledge was too imperfect to -enable him to subject Persian turquoise to an analysis, and determine -its constitution. - -About the same period, he undertook an investigation of the nature -of imitation pearls, which resemble the true pearls so closely, that -it is very difficult, from appearances, to distinguish the true from -the false. He showed that the substance which gave the false pearls -their colour and lustre, was taken from a small fish called by the -French _able_, or _ablette_. He likewise undertook an investigation -of the origin of true pearls, and showed that they were indebted for -their production to a disease of the animal. It is now known, that -the introduction of any solid body, as a grain of sand, within the -shell of the living pearl-shellfish, gives occasion to the formation -of pearl. Linnæus boasted that he knew a method of forming artificial -pearls; and doubtless his process was merely introducing some solid -particle of matter into the living shell. Pearls consist of alternate -layers of carbonate of lime and animal membrane; and the colour and -lustre to which they owe their value depends upon the thinness of the -alternate coats. - -The next paper of Reaumur was an account of the rivers in France -whose sand yielded gold-dust, and the method employed to extract the -gold. This paper will well repay the labour of a perusal; it owes its -interest in a great measure to the way in which the facts are laid -before the reader. - -His paper on the prodigious bank of fossil shells at Touraine, from -which the inhabitants draw manure in such quantities for their fields, -deserves attention in a geological point of view. But his paper on -flints and stones is not so valuable; it consists in speculations, -which, from the infant state of chemical analysis when he wrote, could -not be expected to lead to correct conclusions. - -I pass over many of the papers of this most indefatigable man, because -they are not connected with chemistry; but his history of insects -constitutes a charming book, and contains a prodigious number of facts -of the most curious and important nature. This book alone, supposing -Reaumur had done nothing else, would have been sufficient to have -immortalized the author. - -In the year 1722 he published his work on the _art of converting iron -into steel, and of softening cast-iron_. At that time no steel whatever -was made in France; the nation was supplied with that indispensable -article from foreign countries, chiefly from Germany. The object of -Reaumur’s book was to teach his countrymen the art of making steel, -and, if possible, to explain the nature of the process by which iron -is changed into steel. Reaumur concluded from his experiments, that -steel is iron impregnated with _sulphureous_ and _saline_ matters. The -word _sulphureous_, as at that time used, was nearly synonymous with -our present term _combustible_. The process which he found to answer, -and which he recommends to be followed, was to mix together - - 4 parts of soot - 2 parts of charcoal-powder - 2 parts of wood-ashes - 1½ parts of common salt. - -The iron bars to be converted into steel were surrounded with this -mixture, and kept red-hot till converted into steel. Reaumur’s notion -of the difference between iron and steel was an approximation to -the truth. The saline matters which he added do not enter into the -composition of steel; and if they did, so far from improving, they -would injure its qualities. But the charcoal and soot, which consist -chiefly of carbon, really produce the desired effect; for steel is a -combination of _iron_ and _carbon_. - -In consequence of these experiments of Reaumur, it came to be an -opinion entertained by chemists, that steel differed from iron merely -by containing a greater proportion of phlogiston; for the charcoal -and soot with which the iron bars were surrounded was considered as -consisting almost entirely of phlogiston; and the only useful purpose -which they could serve, was supposed to be to furnish phlogiston. This -opinion continued prevalent till it was overturned towards the end of -the last century, first by the experiments of Bergmann, and afterwards -by those of Berthollet, Vandermond, and Monge, published in the Memoirs -of the French Academy for 1786 (page 132). In this elaborate memoir the -authors take a view of all the different processes followed in bringing -iron from the ore to the state of steel: they then give an account of -the researches of Reaumur and of Bergmann; and lastly relate their own -experiments, from which they finally draw, as a conclusion, that steel -is a compound of iron and carbon. - -The regent Orleans, who at that time administered the affairs of -France, thought that this work of Reaumur was deserving a reward, and -accordingly offered him a pension of 12,000 livres. Reaumur requested -of the regent that this pension should be given in the name of the -academy, and that after his death it should continue, and be devoted to -defray the necessary expenses towards bringing the arts into a state of -perfection. The request was granted, and the letters patent made out on -the 22d of December, 1722. - -At that time tin-plate, as well as steel, was not made in France; -but all the tin-plates wanted were brought from Germany, where the -processes followed were kept profoundly secret. Reaumur undertook to -discover a method of tinning iron sufficiently cheap to admit the -article to be manufactured in France--and he succeeded. The difficulty -consisted in removing the scales with which the iron plates, as -prepared, were always covered. These scales consist of a vitrified -oxide of iron, to which the tin will not unite. Reaumur found, that -when these plates are steeped in water acidulated by means of bran, -and then allowed to rust in stoves, the scales become loose, and are -easily detached by rubbing the plates with sand. If after being thus -cleansed they are plunged into melted tin, covered with a little tallow -to prevent oxidizement, they are easily tinned. In consequence of this -explanation of the process by Reaumur, tin-plate manufactories were -speedily established in different parts of France. It was about the -same time, or only a little before it, that tin-plate manufactories -were first started in England. The English tin-plate was much more -beautiful than the German, and therefore immediately preferred to it; -because in Germany the iron was converted into plates by hammering, -whereas in England it was rolled out. This made it much smoother, and -consequently more beautiful. - -Another art, at that time unknown in France, and indeed in every part -of Europe except Saxony, was the art of making porcelain, a name given -to the beautiful translucent stoneware which is brought from China and -Japan. Reaumur undertook to discover the process employed in making -it. He procured specimens of porcelain from China and Japan, and also -of the imitations of those vessels at that time made in various parts -of France and other European countries. The true porcelain remained -unaltered, though exposed to the most violent heat which he was capable -of producing; but the imitations, in a furnace heated by no means -violently, melted into a perfect glass. Hence he concluded, that the -imitation-porcelains were merely glass, not heated sufficiently to be -brought into fusion; but true porcelain he conceived to be composed -of two different ingredients, one of which is capable of resisting -the most violent heat which can be raised, but the other, when heated -sufficiently, melts into a glass. It is this last ingredient that gives -porcelain its translucency, while the other makes it refractory in -the fire. This opinion of Reaumur was soon after confirmed by Father -d’Entrecolles, a French missionary in China, who sent some time after -a memoir to the academy, describing the mode followed by the Chinese -in the manufactory of their porcelain. Two substances are employed -by them, the one called _kaolin_ and the other _petunse_. It is now -known that _kaolin_ is what we call porcelain-clay, and that _petunse_ -is a fine white felspar. Felspar is fusible in a violent heat, but -porcelain-clay is refractory in the highest temperatures that we have -it in our power to produce in furnaces. - -Reaumur made another curious observation on glass, which has been, -since his time, employed very successfully to explain the appearances -of many of our trap-rocks. If a glass vessel, properly secured in -sand, be raised to a red heat, and then allowed to cool very slowly, -it puts off the appearance of glass and assumes that of stoneware, or -porcelain. Vessels thus altered have received the name of _Reaumur’s -porcelain_. They are much more refractory than glass, and therefore -may be exposed to a pretty strong red heat without any danger of -softening or losing their shape. This change is occasioned by the -glass being kept long in a soft state: the various substances of -which it is composed are at liberty to exercise their affinities -and to crystallize. This makes the vessel lose its glassy structure -altogether. In like manner it was found by Sir James Hall and Mr. -Gregory Watt, that when common greenstone was heated sufficiently, -and then rapidly cooled, it melted and concreted into a glass; but if -after having been melted it was allowed to cool exceedingly slowly, the -constituents again crystallized and arranged themselves as at first--so -that a true greenstone was again formed. In the same way lavas from a -volcano either assume the appearance of slag or of stone, according as -they have cooled rapidly or slowly. Many of the lavas from Vesuvius -cannot be distinguished from our _greenstones_. - -Reaumur’s labours upon the thermometer must not be omitted here; -because he gave his name to a thermometer, which was long used in -France and in other parts of Europe. The first person that brought -thermometers into a state capable of being compared with each other -was Sir Isaac Newton, in a paper published in the Philosophical -Transactions for 1701. Fahrenheit, of Amsterdam, was the first person -that put Newton’s method in practice, by fixing two points on his -scale, the freezing-water point and the boiling-water point, and -dividing the interval between them into one hundred and eighty degrees. - -But no fixed point existed in the thermometers employed in France, -every one graduating them according to his fancy; so that no two -thermometers could be compared together. Reaumur graduated his -thermometers by plunging them into freezing water or a mixture of -snow and water. This point was marked zero, and was called the -freezing-water point. The liquid used in his thermometers was spirit -of wine: he took care that it should be always of the same strength, -and the interval between the point of freezing and boiling water -was divided into eighty degrees. Deluc afterwards rectified this -thermometer, by substituting mercury for spirit of wine. This not only -enabled the thermometer to be used to measure higher temperatures, -but corrected an obvious error which existed in all the thermometers -constructed upon Reaumur’s principle: for spirit of wine cannot bear -a temperature of eighty degrees Reaumur without being dissipated -into vapour--absolute alcohol boiling at a hundred and sixty-two -degrees two-thirds. It is obvious from this, that the boiling point in -Reaumur’s thermometer could not be accurate, and that it would vary, -according to the quantity of empty space left above the alcohol. - -Finally, he contrived a method of hatching chickens by means of -artificial heat, as is practised in Egypt. - -We are indebted to him also for a set of important observations on the -organs of digestion in birds. He showed, that in birds of prey, which -live wholly upon animal food, digestion is performed by solvents in -the stomach, as is the case with digestion in man: while those birds -that live upon vegetable food have a very powerful stomach or gizzard, -capable of triturating the seeds which they swallow. To facilitate this -triturating process, these fowls are in the habit of swallowing small -pebbles. - -The moral qualities of M. Reaumur seem not to have been inferior to the -extent and variety of his acquirements. He was kind and benevolent, and -remarkably disinterested. He performed the duties of intendant of the -order of St. Louis from the year 1735 till his death, without accepting -any of the emoluments of the office, all of which were most religiously -given to the person to whom they belonged, had she been capable of -performing the duties of the place. M. Reaumur died on the 17th of -October, 1756, after having lived very nearly seventy-five years. - -John Hellot was born in Paris in the year 1685, on the 20th of -November. His father, Michael Hellot, was of a respectable family, and -the early part of his son’s education was at home: it seems to have -been excellent, as young Hellot acquired the difficult art of writing -on all manner of subjects in a precise, clear, and elegant style. His -father intended him for the church; but his own taste led him decidedly -to the study of chemistry. He had an uncle a physician, some of whose -papers on chemical subjects fell into his hands. This circumstance -kindled his natural taste into a flame: he formed an acquaintance with -M. Geoffroy, whose reputation as a chemist was at that time high, and -this friendship was afterwards cemented by Geoffroy marrying the niece -of M. Hellot. - -His circumstances being easy, he went over to England, to form a -personal acquaintance with the many eminent philosophers who at that -time adorned that country. His fortune was considerably deranged by -Law’s celebrated scheme during the regency of the Duke of Orleans. This -obliged him to look out for some resource: he became editor of the -Gazette de France, and continued in this employment from 1718 to 1732. -During these fourteen years, however, he did not neglect chemistry, -though his progress was not so rapid as it would have been, could he -have devoted to that science his undivided attention. In 1732 he was -put forward by his friends as a candidate for a place in the Academy of -Sciences; and in the year 1735 he was chosen adjunct chemist, vacant by -the promotion of M. de la Condamine to the place of associate. Three -years after he was declared a supernumerary pensioner, without passing -through the step of associate. His reputation as a chemist was already -considerable, and after he became a member of the academy, he devoted -himself to the investigations connected with his favourite science. - -His first labours were on zinc; in two successive papers he endeavoured -to decompose this metal, and to ascertain the nature of its -constituents. Though his labour was unsuccessful, yet he pointed out -many new properties of this metal, and various new compounds into which -it enters. Neither was he more successful in his attempt to account for -the origin of the red vapours which are exhaled from nitre in certain -circumstances. He ascribed them to the presence of ferruginous matters -in the nitre; whereas they are owing to the expulsion and partial -decomposition of the nitric acid of the nitre, in consequence of the -action of some more powerful acid. - -His paper on sympathetic ink is of more importance. A German chemist -had shown him a saline solution of a red colour which became blue when -heated: this led him to form a sympathetic ink, which was pale red, -while the paper was moist, but became blue upon drying it by holding it -to the fire. This sympathetic ink was a solution of cobalt in muriatic -acid. It does not appear from Hellot’s paper that he was exactly aware -of the chemical constitution of the liquid which constituted his -sympathetic ink; though it is clear he knew that cobalt constitutes an -essential part of it. - -Kunkel’s phosphorus, though it had been originally discovered in -Germany, could not be prepared by any of the processes which had been -given to the public. Boyle had taught his operator, Godfrey Hankwitz, -the method of making it. This man had, after Boyle’s death, opened a -chemist’s shop in London, and it was he that supplied all Europe with -this curious article: on that account it was usually distinguished -by the name of _English phosphorus_. But in the year 1737 a stranger -appeared in Paris, who offered for a stipulated reward to communicate -the method of manufacturing this substance to the Academy of Sciences. -The offer was accepted by the French government, and a committee of -the academy, at the head of which was Hellot, was appointed to witness -the process, and ascertain all its steps. The process was repeated -with success; and Hellot drew up a minute detail of the whole, which -was inserted in the Memoirs of the Academy, for the year 1737. The -publication of this paper constitutes an era in the preparation of -phosphorus: it was henceforward in the power of every chemist to -prepare it for himself. A few years after the process was much improved -by Margraaf; and, within little more than twenty years after, the very -convenient process still in use was suggested by Scheele. Hellot’s -experiments on the comparative merits of the salts of Peyrac, and of -Pecais were of importance, because they decided a dispute--they may -also perhaps be considered as curiosities in an historical point of -view; because we see from them the methods which Hellot had recourse to -at that early period in order to determine the purity of common salt. -They are not entitled, however, to a more particular notice here. - -In the year 1740 M. Hellot was charged with the general inspection of -dyeing; a situation which M. du Foy had held till the time of his death -in 1739. It was this appointment, doubtless, which turned his attention -to the theory of dyeing, which he tried to explain in two memoirs read -to the academy in 1740 and 1741. The subject was afterwards prosecuted -by him in subsequent memoirs which were published by the academy. - -In 1745 he was named to go to Lyons in order to examine with care the -processes followed for refining gold and silver. Before his return -he took care to give to these processes the requisite precision and -exactness. Immediately after his return to Paris he was appointed to -examine the different mines and assay the different ores in France; -this appointment led him to turn his thoughts to the subject. The -result of this was the publication of an excellent work on assaying -and metallurgy, entitled “De la Fonte des Mines, des Fonderies, &c. -Traduit de l’Allemand de Christophe-André Schlutter.” The first volume -of this book appeared in 1750, and the second in 1753. Though this book -is called by Hellot a translation, it contains in fact a great deal -of original matter; the arrangement is quite altered; many processes -not noticed by Schlutter are given, and many essential articles are -introduced, which had been totally omitted in the original work. He -begins with an introduction, in which he gives a short sketch of all -the mines existing in every part of France, together with some notice -of the present state of each. The first volume treats entirely of -docimasy, or the art of assaying the different metallic ores. Though -this art has been much improved since Hellot’s time, yet the processes -given in this volume are not without their value. The second volume -treats of the various metallurgic processes followed in order to -extract metals from their ores. This volume is furnished with no fewer -than fifty-five plates, in which all the various furnaces, &c. used in -these processes are exhibited to the eye. - -While occupied in preparing this work for the press he was chosen to -endeavour to bring the porcelain manufactory at Sevre to a greater -state of perfection than it had yet reached. In this he was successful. -He even discovered various new colours proper for painting upon -porcelain; which contributed to give to this manufactory the celebrity -which it acquired. - -In the year 1763 a phenomenon at that time quite new to France took -place in the coal-mine of Briançon. A quantity of carburetted hydrogen -gas had collected in the bottom of the mine, and being kindled by -the lights employed by the miners, it exploded with great violence, -and killed or wounded every person in the mine. This destructive gas, -distinguished in this country by the name of _fire-damp_, had been -long known in Great Britain and in the Low Countries, though it had -not before been known in France. The Duke de Choiseul, informed of -this event, had recourse to the academy for assistance, who appointed -Messrs. de Montigny, Duhamel, and Hellot, a committee to endeavour -to discover the remedies proper to prevent any such accident from -happening for the future. The report of these gentlemen was published -in the Memoirs of the Academy;[182] they give an account both of the -fire-damp, and _choke-damp_, or _carbonic acid gas_, which sometimes -also makes its appearance in coal-mines. They very justly observe -that the proper way to obviate the inconveniency of these gases is to -ventilate the mine properly; and they give various methods by which -this ventilation may be promoted by means of fires lighted at the -bottom of the shaft, &c. - -[182] 1763, p. 235. - -In 1763 M. Hellot was appointed, conjointly with M. Tillet, to examine -the process followed for assaying gold and silver. They showed that the -cupels always retained a small portion of the silver assayed, and that -this loss, ascribed to the presence of a foreign metal, made the purity -of the silver be always reckoned under the truth, which occasioned a -loss to the proprietor. - -His health continued tolerably good till he reached his eightieth year: -he was then struck with palsy, but partially recovered from the first -attack; but a second attack, on the 13th of February, 1765, refused -to yield to every medical treatment, and he died on the 15th of that -month, at an age a little beyond eighty. - -Henry Louis Duhamel du Monceau was born at Paris in the year 1700. -He was descended from Loth Duhamel, a Dutch gentleman, who came to -France in the suite of the infamous Duke of Burgundy, about the year -1400. Young Duhamel was educated in the College of Harcourt; but the -course of study did not suit his taste. He left it with only one fact -engraven on his memory--that men, by observing nature, had created a -science called _physics_; and he resolved to profit by his freedom -from restraint and turn the whole of his attention to that subject. He -lodged near the Jardin du Roi, where alone, at that time, physics were -attended to in Paris. Dufoy, Geoffroy, Lemery, Jussieu, and Vaillant, -were the friends with whom he associated on coming to Paris. His -industry was stimulated solely by a love of study, and by the pleasure -which he derived from the increase of knowledge; love of fame does not -appear to have entered into his account. - -In the year 1718 saffron, which is much cultivated in that part of -France formerly distinguished by the name of Gâtinois, where Duhamel’s -property lay, was attacked by a malady which appeared contagious. -Healthy bulbs, when placed in the neighbourhood of those that were -diseased, soon became affected with the same malady. Government -consulted the academy on the subject; and this learned body thought -they could not do better than request M. Duhamel to investigate the -cause of the disease; though he was only eighteen years of age, and -not even a member of the academy. He ascertained that the malady was -owing to a parasitical plant, which attached itself to the bulb of the -saffron, and drew nourishment from it. This plant extended under the -earth, from one bulb to another, and thus infected the whole saffron -plantations. - -M. Duhamel formed the resolution at the commencement of his scientific -career to devote himself to public utility, and to prosecute those -subjects which were likely to contribute most effectually to the -comfort of the lower ranks of men. Much of his time was spent in -endeavouring to promote the culture of vegetables, and in rendering -that culture more useful to society. This naturally led to a careful -study of the physiology of trees. The fruit of this study he gave to -the world in the year 1758, when his Physique des Arbres was published. -This constitutes one of the most important works on the subject which -has ever appeared. It contains a great number of new and original -facts; and contributed very much indeed to advance this difficult, but -most important branch of science: nor is it less remarkable for modesty -than for value. The facts gathered from other sources, even those -which make against his own opinions, are most carefully and accurately -stated: the experiments that preceded his are repeated and verified -with much care; and the reader is left to discover the new facts and -new views of the author, without any attempt on his part to claim them -as his own. - -M. Duhamel had been attached to the department of the marine by M. de -Maurepas, who had given him the title of _inspector-general_. This led -him to turn his attention to naval science in general. The construction -of vessels, the weaving of sailcloths, the construction of ropes and -cables, the method of preserving the wood, occupied his attention -successively, and gave birth to several treatises, which, like all -his works, contain immense collections of facts and experiments. He -endeavours always to discover which is the best practice, to reduce -it to fixed rules, and to support it by philosophical principles; but -abstains from all theory when it can be supported only by hypothesis. - -From the year 1740, when he became an academician, till his death -in 1781, he made a regular set of meteorological observations at -Pithiviers, with details relative to the direction of the needle, to -agriculture, to the medical constitution of the year, and to the time -of nest-building, and of the passage of birds. - -Above sixty memoirs of his were published in the Transactions of the -French Academy of Sciences. They are so multifarious in their nature, -and embrace such a variety of subjects, that I shall not attempt even -to give their titles, but satisfy myself with stating such only as bear -more immediately upon the science of chemistry. - -It will be proper in conducting this review to notice the result of -his labours connected with the ossification of bones; because, though -not strictly chemical, they throw light upon some branches of the -animal economy, more closely connected with chemistry than with any -other of the sciences. He examined, in the first place, whether the -ossification of bones, and their formation and reparation, did not -follow the same law that he had assigned to the increments of trees, -and he established, by a set of experiments, that bones increase by -the ossification of layers of the periosteum, as trees do by the -hardening of their cortical layers. Bones in a soft state increase in -every direction, like the young branches of plants; but after their -induration they increase only like trees, by successive additions of -successive layers. This organization was incompatible with the opinion -of those who thought that bones increased by the addition of an earthy -matter deposited in the meshes of the organized network which forms -the texture of bones. M. Duhamel combated this opinion by an ingenious -experiment. He had been informed by Sir Hans Sloane that the bones -of young animals fed upon madder were tinged red. He conceived the -plan of feeding them alternately with food mingled with madder, and -with ordinary food. The bones of animals thus treated were found to -present alternate concentric layers of red and white, corresponding -to the different periods in which the animal had been fed with -food containing or not containing madder. When these bones are sawn -longitudinally we see the thickness of the coloured layers, greater or -less, according to the number of plates of the periosteum that have -ossified. As for the portions still soft, or susceptible of extending -themselves in every direction, such as the plates in the neighbourhood -of the marrow, the reservoir of which increases during a part of the -time that the animal continues to grow, the red colour marks equally -the progress of their ossification by coloured points more or less -extended. - -This opinion was attacked by Haller, and defended by M. Fougeroux, -nephew of M. Duhamel; but it is not our business here to inquire how -far correct. - -One of the most important of M. Duhamel’s papers, which will secure -his name a proud station in the annals of chemistry, is that which was -inserted in the Memoirs of the Academy for 1737, in which he shows -that the base of common salt is a true fixed alkali, different in some -respects from the alkali extracted from land plants, and known by the -name of _potash_, but similar to that obtained by the incineration of -marine plants. We are surprised that a fact so simple and elementary -was disputed by the French chemists, and rather indicated than proved -by Stahl and his followers. The conclusions of Duhamel were disputed -by Pott; but finally confirmed by Margraaf. M. Duhamel carried his -researches further, he wished to know if the difference between potash -and soda depends on the plants that produce them, or on the nature -of the soil in which they grow. He sowed kali at Denainvilliers, and -continued his experiments during a great number of years. M. Cadet, at -his request, examined the salts contained in the ashes of the kali of -Denainvilliers. He found that during the first year soda predominated -in these ashes. During the successive years the potash increased -rapidly, and at last the soda almost entirely disappeared. It was -obvious from this, that the alkalies in plants are drawn at least -chiefly from the soil in which they vegetate. - -The memoirs of M. Duhamel on ether, at that time almost unknown, on -soluble tartars, and on lime, contain many facts both curious and -accurately stated; though our present knowledge of these bodies is -so much greater than his--the new facts ascertained respecting them -are so numerous and important, that the contributions of this early -experimenter, which probably had a considerable share in the success -of subsequent investigations, are now almost forgotten. Nor would many -readers bear patiently with an attempt to enumerate them. - -There is a curious paper of his in the Memoirs of the Academy for -1757. In this he gives the details of a spontaneous combustion of -large pieces of cloth soaked in oil and strongly pressed. Cloth thus -prepared had often produced similar accidents. Those who were fortunate -enough to prevent them, took care to conceal the facts, partly from -ignorance of the real cause of the combustion, and partly from a fear -that if they were to state what they saw, their testimony would not -gain credit. If the combustion had not been prevented, then the public -voice would have charged those who had the care of the cloths with -culpable negligence, or even with criminal conduct. The observation -of M. Duhamel, therefore, was useful, in order to prevent such unjust -suspicions from hindering those concerned from taking the requisite -precautions. Yet, twenty years after the publication of his paper, -two accidental spontaneous combustions, in Russia, were ascribed to -treason. The empress Catharine II. alone suspected that the combustion -was spontaneous, and experiments made by her orders fully confirmed the -evidence previously advanced by the French philosopher. - -One man alone would have been insufficient for all the labours -undertaken by M. Duhamel; but he had a brother who lived upon his -estate at Denainvilliers (the name of which he bore), and divided his -time between the performance of benevolent actions and studying the -operations of nature. M. Denainvilliers prosecuted in his retreat the -observations and experiments intrusted by his brother to his charge. -Thus in fact the memoirs of Duhamel exhibit the assiduous labours -of two individuals, one of whom contentedly remained unknown to the -world, satisfied with the good which he did, and the favours which he -conferred upon his country and the human race. - -The works of M. Duhamel are very voluminous, and are all written with -the utmost plainness. Every thing is elementary, no previous knowledge -is taken for granted. His writings are not addressed to philosophers, -but to all those who are in quest of practical knowledge. He has been -accused of diffuseness of style, and of want of correctness; but -his style is simple and clear; and as his object was to inform, not -philosophers, but the common people, greater conciseness would have -been highly injudicious. - -Neither he nor his brother ever married, but thought it better to -devote their undivided attention to study. Both were assiduous in no -ordinary degree, but the ardour of Duhamel himself continued nearly -undiminished till within a year of his death; when, though he still -attended the meetings of the academy, he no longer took the same -interest in its proceedings. On the 22d of July, 1781, just after -leaving the academy, he was struck with apoplexy, and died after -lingering twenty-two days in a state of coma. - -He was without doubt one of the most eminent men of the age in which -he lived; but his merits as a chemist will chiefly be remembered -in consequence of his being the first person who demonstrated -by satisfactory evidence the peculiar nature of soda, which had -been previously confounded with potash. His merits as a vegetable -physiologist and agriculturist were of a very high order. - -Peter Joseph Macquer was born at Paris, in 1718. His father, Joseph -Macquer, was descended from a noble Scottish family, which had -sacrificed its property and its country, out of attachment to the -family of the Stuarts.[183] Young Macquer made choice of medicine as -a profession, and devoted himself chiefly to chemistry, for which -he showed early a decided taste. He was admitted a member of the -Academy of Sciences in the year 1745, when he was twenty-seven years -of age. Original researches in chemistry, the composition of chemical -elementary works, and the study of the arts connected with chemistry, -occupied the whole remainder of his life. - -[183] I do not know what the true name was of which Macquer is a -corruption. Ker is a Scottish name belonging to two noble families, -the Duke of Roxburgh and the Marquis of Lothian; but I am not aware of -M’Ker being a Scottish name: besides, neither of these families was -attached to the house of Stuart. - -His first paper treated of the effect produced by heating a mixture of -saltpetre and white arsenic. It was previously known, that when such a -mixture is distilled nitric acid comes over tinged with a blue colour; -but nobody had thought of examining the residue of this distillation. -Macquer found it soluble in water and capable of crystallizing into a -neutral salt composed of potash (the base of saltpetre), and an acid -into which the arsenic was changed by the nitric acid communicating -oxygen to it. - -Macquer found that a similar salt might be obtained with soda or -ammonia for its base. Thus he was the first person who pointed out -the existence of arsenic acid, and ascertained the properties of some -of the salts which it forms. But he made no attempt to obtain arsenic -acid in a separate state, or to determine its properties. That very -important step was reserved for Scheele, for Macquer seems to have had -no suspicion of the true nature of the salt which he had formed. - -His next set of experiments was on Prussian blue. He made the first -step towards the discovery of the nature of the principle to which -that pigment owes its colour. Prussian blue had been accidentally -discovered by Diesbach, an operative chemist of Berlin, in 1710, but -the mode of producing it was kept secret till it was published in -1724, by Dr. Woodward in the Philosophical Transactions. It consisted -in mixing potash and blood together, and heating the mixture in a -covered crucible, having a small hole in the lid, till it ceased to -give out smoke. The solution of this mixture in water, when mixed with -a solution of sulphate of iron, threw down a green powder, which became -blue when treated with muriatic acid: this blue matter was _Prussian -blue_. Macquer ascertained that when Prussian blue is exposed to a -red heat its blue colour disappears, and it is converted into common -peroxide of iron. Hence he concluded that Prussian blue is a compound -of oxide of iron, and of something which is destroyed or driven off -by a red heat. He showed that this something possessed the characters -of an acid; for when Prussian blue is boiled with caustic potash it -loses its blue colour, and if the potash be boiled with successive -portions of Prussian blue, as long as it is capable of discolouring -them, it loses the characters of an acid and assumes those of a neutral -salt, and at the same time acquires the property of precipitating iron -from the solutions of the sulphate at once of a blue colour. Macquer -ascribed the green colour thrown down, by mixing the blood-lie and -sulphate of iron to the potash in the blood-lie, not being saturated -with the colouring matter of Prussian blue. Hence a portion of the iron -is thrown down in the state of Prussian blue, and another portion in -that of yellow oxide of iron: these two being mixed form a green. The -muriatic acid dissolves the yellow oxide and leaves the Prussian blue -untouched. Macquer, however, did not succeed in determining the nature -of the colouring matter; a task reserved for Scheele, whose lot it was -to take up the half-finished investigations of Macquer, and throw upon -them a new and brilliant light. Macquer thought that this colouring -matter was _phlogiston_. On that account the potash saturated with -it, which was employed by chemists to detect the presence of iron by -forming with it Prussian blue, was called _phlogisticated alkali_. - -Macquer, conjointly with Baumé, subjected the grains of crude platinum, -to which the attention of chemists had been newly drawn, to experiment. -Their principle object was to examine its fusibility and ductility. -They succeeded in fusing it imperfectly, by means of a burning -mirror, and found that the grains thus treated were not destitute of -ductility. But upon the whole the experiments of these chemists threw -but little light upon the subject. Many years elapsed before chemists -were able to work this refractory metal, and to make it into vessels -fitted for the uses of the laboratory. For this important improvement, -which constitutes an era in chemistry, the chemical world was chiefly -indebted to Dr. Wollaston. - -In the year 1750 M. Macquer was charged with a commission by the court. -There existed at that time in Brittany a man, the Count de la Garaie, -who, yielding to a passion for benevolence, had for forty years devoted -himself to the service of suffering humanity. He had built an hospital -by the side of a chemical laboratory: he took care of the patients in -the hospital himself; and treated them with medicines prepared in his -laboratory. Some of these were new, and, in his opinion, excellent -medicines; and he offered to sell them to government for the service of -his hospital. Macquer was charged by government with the examination of -these medicines. The project of the Count de la Garaie was to extract -the salutary parts of minerals, by a long maceration with neutral -salts. Among other things he had prepared a mercurial tincture, by a -process which lasted several months: but this tincture was merely a -solution of corrosive sublimate in spirit of wine. Such is the history -of most of those boasted secrets; sometimes they are chimerical, and -sometimes known to all the world, except to those who purchase them. - -M. Macquer had the fortune to live at a time when chemistry began to -be freed from the reveries of alchymists; but methodical arrangement -was a merit still unknown to the elementary chemical books, especially -in France, where a residue of Cartesianism added to the natural -obscurity of the science, by surcharging it with pretended mechanical -explanations. Macquer was the first French chemist who gave to an -elementary treatise the same clearness, simplicity, and method, -which is to be found in the other branches of science. This was no -small merit, and undoubtedly contributed considerably to the rapid -improvement of the science which so speedily followed. His elements -of chemistry were translated into different languages, especially -into English; and long constituted the textbook employed in the -different European universities. Dr. Black recommended it for many -years in the University of Edinburgh. Indeed, it was only superseded in -consequence of the new views introduced into chemistry by Lavoisier, -which, requiring a new language to render them intelligible, naturally -superseded all the elementary chemical books which had preceded the -introduction of that language. - -Macquer, during a number of years, delivered regular courses of -chemical lectures, conjointly with Baumé. In these courses he preferred -that arrangement which appeared to him to require the least preliminary -knowledge of chemistry. He described the experiments, stated the facts -with clearness and precision, and explained them in the way which -appeared to him most plausible, according to the opinions generally -received; but without placing much confidence in the accuracy of these -explanations. He thought it necessary to theorize a little, to enable -his pupils the better to connect the facts and to remember them; and to -put an end to that painful state of uncertainty which always results -from a collection of facts without any theoretical links to bind -them together. When the discoveries of Lavoisier began to shake the -foundation of the Stahlian theory, Macquer was old; and it appears from -a letter of his, published by Delametherie in the Journal de Physique, -that he was alarmed at the prophetic announcements of Lavoisier in -the academy that the reign of Phlogiston was drawing towards an end. -M. Condorcet assures us that his attachment to theory, by which he -means phlogiston, was by no means strong;[184] but his own letter to -Delametherie rather shows that this statement was not quite correct. -How, indeed, could he fail to experience an attachment to opinions -which it had been the business of his whole life to inculcate? - -[184] Hist. de l’Acad. R. des Sciences, 1784, p. 24. - -Macquer also published a dictionary of chemistry, which was very -successful, and which was translated into most of the European -languages. This mode of treating chemistry was well suited to a science -still in its infancy, and which did not yet constitute a complete -whole. It enabled him to discuss the different topics in succession, -and independent of each other: and thus to introduce much important -matter which could not easily have been introduced into a systematic -work on chemistry. The second edition of this dictionary was published -just at the time when the gases began to attract the attention of -scientific men; when facts began to multiply with prodigious rapidity, -and to shake the confidence of chemists in all received theories. He -acquitted himself of the difficult task of collecting and stating -these new facts with considerable success; and doubtless communicated -much new information to his countrymen: for the discoveries connected -with the gases originated, and were chiefly made, in England, from -which, on account of the revolutionary American war, there was some -difficulty of obtaining early information. - -M. Hellot, who was commissioner of the counsel for dyeing, and chemist -to the porcelain manufacture, requested to have M. Macquer for an -associate. This request did much honour to Hellot, as he was conscious -that the reputation of Macquer as a chemist was superior to his -own. Macquer endeavoured, in the first place, to lay down the true -principles of the art of dyeing, as the best method of dissipating the -obscurity which still hung over it. A great part of his treatise on -the art of dyeing silk, published in the collection of the Academy of -Sciences, has these principles for its object. He gave processes also -for dyeing silk with Prussian blue, and for giving to silk, by means -of cochineal, as brilliant a scarlet colour as can be given to woollen -cloth by the same dye-stuff. He published nothing on the porcelain -manufacture, though he attended particularly to the processes, and -introduced several ameliorations. The beautiful porcelain earth at -present used at Sevre, was discovered in consequence of a premium which -he offered to any person who could point out a clay in every respect -proper for making porcelain. - -Macquer passed a great part of his life with a brother, whom he -affectionately loved: after his death he devoted himself entirely to -his wife and two children, whose education he superintended. He was -rather averse to society, but conducted himself while in it with much -sweetness and affability. He was fond of tranquillity and independence. -Though his health had been injured a good many years before his death, -the calmness and serenity of his temper prevented strangers from being -aware that he was afflicted with any malady. He himself was sensible -that his strength was gradually sinking; he predicted his approaching -end to his wife, whom he thanked for the happiness which she had spread -over his life. He left orders that his body should be opened after his -decease, that the cause of his death might be discovered. He died on -the 15th of February, 1784. An ossification of the aorta, and several -calculous concretions found in the cavities of the heart, had been the -cause of the disease under which he had suffered for several years -before his death. - -These four chemists, of whose lives a sketch has just been given, were -the most eminent that France ever produced belonging to the Stahlian -school of chemistry. Baron, Malouin, Rouelle senior, Tillet, Cadet, -Baumé, Sage, and several others whose names I purposely omit, likewise -cultivated chemistry, during that period, with assiduity and success; -and were each of them the authors of papers which deserve attention, -but which it would be impossible to particularize without swelling this -work into a size greatly beyond its proper limits. - -Hilaire-Marin Rouelle, who was born at Caen in 1718, was, however, too -eminent a chemist to be passed over in silence. His elder brother, -William Francis, was a member of the Academy of Sciences, and -demonstrator to Macquer, who gave lectures in the Jardin du Roi. At -the death of Macquer, in 1770, Hilaire-Marin Rouelle succeeded him. He -devoted the whole of his time and money to this situation, and quite -altered the nature of the experimental course of chemistry given in the -Jardin du Roi. He was in some measure the author of the chemistry of -animal bodies, at least in France. When he published his experiments -on the salts of urine, and of blood, he had scarcely any model; and -though he committed some considerable mistakes, he ascertained several -essential and important facts, which have been since fully confirmed -by more modern experimenters. He died on the 7th of April, 1779, aged -sixty-one years. His temper was peculiar, and he was too honest and -too open for the situation in which he was placed, and for a state of -society in which every thing was carried by intrigue and finesse. This -is the reason why, in France, his reputation was lower than it ought -to have been. It accounts, too, for his never becoming a member of -the Academy of Sciences, nor of any of the other numerous academies -which at that time swarmed in France. Nothing is more common than to -find these unjust decisions raise or depress men of science far above -or far below their true standard. Romé de Lisle, the first person who -commenced the study of crystals, and placed that study in a proper -point of view, was a man of the same stamp with the younger Rouelle, -and never on that account, became a member of any academy, or acquired -that reputation during his lifetime, to which his laborious career -justly entitled him. It would be an easy, though an invidious task, to -point out various individuals, especially in France, whose reputation, -in consequence of accidental and adventitious circumstances, rose just -as much above their deserts, as those of Rouelle, and Romé de Lisle -were sunk below. - - - - -CHAPTER IX. - -OF THE FOUNDATION AND PROGRESS OF SCIENTIFIC CHEMISTRY IN GREAT BRITAIN. - - -The spirit which Newton had infused for the mathematical science -was so great, that during many years they drew within their vortex -almost all the scientific men in Great Britain. Dr. Stephen Hales is -almost the only remarkable exception, during the early part of the -eighteenth century. His vegetable statics constituted a most ingenious -and valuable contribution to vegetable physiology. His hæmastatics was -a no less valuable contribution to iatro-mathematics, at that time -the fashionable medical theory in Great Britain. While his _analysis -of air_, and experiments on the animal calculus constituted, in all -probability, the foundation-stone of the whole discoveries respecting -the gases to which the great subsequent progress of chemistry is -chiefly owing. - -Dr. William Cullen, to whom medicine lies under deep obligations, -and who afterwards raised the medical celebrity of the College of -Edinburgh to so high a pitch, had the merit of first perceiving the -importance of scientific chemistry, and the reputation which that man -was likely to earn, who should devote himself to the cultivation of -it. Hitherto chemistry in Great Britain, and on the continent also, -was considered as a mere appendage to medicine, and useful only so -far as it contributed to the formation of new and useful remedies. -This was the reason why it came to constitute an essential part of the -education of every medical man, and why a physician was considered as -unfit for practice unless he was also a chemist. But Dr. Cullen viewed -the science as far more important; as capable of throwing light on the -constitution of bodies, and of improving and amending of those arts and -manufactures that are most useful to man. He resolved to devote himself -to its cultivation and improvement; and he would undoubtedly have -derived celebrity from this science, had not his fate led rather to the -cultivation of medicine. But Dr. Cullen, as the true commencer of the -study of scientific chemistry in Great Britain, claims a conspicuous -place in this historical sketch. - -William Cullen was born in Lanarkshire, in Scotland, in the year -1712, on the 11th of December. His father, though chief magistrate of -Hamilton, was not in circumstances to lay out much money on his son. -William, therefore, after serving an apprenticeship to a surgeon in -Glasgow, went several voyages to the West Indies, as surgeon, in a -trading-vessel from London; but tiring of this, he settled, when very -young, in the parish of Shotts; and after residing for a short time -among the farmers and country people, he went to Hamilton, with a view -of practising as a physician. - -While he resided near Shotts, it happened that Archibald, Duke of -Argyle, who at that time bore the chief political sway in Scotland, -paid a visit to a gentleman of rank in that neighbourhood. The duke -was fond of science, and was at that time engaged in some chemical -researches which required to be elucidated by experiment. Eager in -these pursuits, while on his visit he found himself at a loss for some -piece of chemical apparatus which his landlord could not furnish; but -he mentioned young Cullen to the duke as a person fond of chemistry, -and likely therefore to possess the required apparatus. He was -accordingly invited to dine, and introduced to his Grace. The duke -was so pleased with his knowledge, politeness, and address, that an -acquaintance commenced, which laid the foundation of all Cullen’s -future advancement. - -His residence in Hamilton naturally made his name known to the Duke of -Hamilton, whose palace is situated in the immediate vicinity of that -town. His Grace being taken with a sudden illness, sent for Cullen, -and was highly delighted with the sprightly character, and ingenious -conversation of the young physician. He found no difficulty, especially -as young Cullen was already known to the Duke of Argyle, in getting him -appointed to a place in the University of Glasgow, where his singular -talents as a teacher soon became very conspicuous. - -It was while Dr. Cullen was a practitioner in Shotts that he formed a -connexion with William, afterwards Doctor Hunter, the famous lecturer -on anatomy in London, who was a native of the same part of the country -as Cullen. These two young men, stimulated by genius, though thwarted -by the narrowness of their circumstances, entered into a copartnery -business, as surgeons and apothecaries, in the country. The chief -object of their contract was to furnish the parties with the means -of carrying on their medical studies, which they were not able to do -separately. It was stipulated that one of them, alternately, should be -allowed to study in whatever college he preferred, during the winter, -while the other carried on the common business in his absence. In -consequence of this agreement, Cullen was first allowed to study in -the University of Edinburgh, for a winter. When it came to Hunter’s -turn next winter, he rather chose to go to London. There his singular -neatness in dissecting, and uncommon dexterity in making anatomical -preparations, his assiduity in study, his mild manners, and easy -temper, drew upon him the attention of Dr. Douglas, who at that time -read lectures on anatomy and midwifery in the capital. He engaged -him as his assistant, and he afterwards succeeded him in the same -department with much honour to himself, and advantage to the public. -Thus was dissolved a copartnership of perhaps as singular a kind as any -that occurs in the annals of science. Cullen was not disposed to let -any engagement with him prove a bar to his partner’s advancement in the -world. The articles were abandoned, and Cullen and Hunter kept up ever -after a friendly correspondence; though there is reason to believe that -they never afterwards met. - -It was while a country practitioner that young Cullen married a Miss -Johnston, daughter of a neighbouring clergyman. The connexion was -fortunate and lasting. She brought her husband a numerous family, and -continued his faithful companion through all the alterations of his -fortune. She died in the summer of 1786. - -In the year 1746 Cullen, who had now taken the degree of doctor of -medicine, was appointed lecturer on chemistry in the University of -Glasgow; and in the month of October began a course on that science. -His singular talent for arrangement, his distinctness of enunciation, -his vivacity of manner, and his knowledge of the science which he -taught, rendered his lectures interesting to a degree which had -been till then unknown in that university: he was adored by the -students. The former professors were eclipsed by the brilliancy of his -reputation, and he had to encounter all those little rubs and insults -that disappointed envy naturally threw in his way. But he proceeded in -his career regardless of these petty mortifications; and supported by -the public, he was more than consoled for the contumely heaped upon him -by the ill nature and pitiful malignity of his colleagues. His practice -as a physician increased every day, and a vacancy occurring in the -chair in 1751, he was appointed by the crown professor of medicine, -which put him on a footing of equality with his colleagues in the -university. This new appointment called forth powers which he was not -before known to possess, and thus served still further to increase his -reputation. - -At that time the patrons of the University of Edinburgh were eagerly -bent on raising the reputation of their medical school, and were in -consequence on the look out for men of abilities and reputation to fill -their respective chairs. Their attention was soon drawn towards Cullen, -and on the death of Dr. Plummer, in 1756, he was unanimously invited to -fill the vacant _chemical chair_. He accepted the invitation, and began -his academical career in the College of Edinburgh in October of that -year, and here he continued during the remainder of his life. - -The appearance of Dr. Cullen in the College of Edinburgh constitutes -a memorable era in the progress of that celebrated school. Hitherto -chemistry being reckoned of little importance, had been attended by -very few students; when Cullen began to lecture it became a favourite -study, almost all the students flocking to hear him, and the chemical -class becoming immediately more numerous than any other in the college, -anatomy alone excepted. The students in general spoke of the new -professor with that rapturous ardour so natural to young men when -highly pleased. These eulogiums were doubtless extravagant, and proved -disgusting to his colleagues. A party was formed to oppose this new -favourite of the public. His opinions were misrepresented, it was -affirmed that he taught doctrines which excited the alarm of some of -the most moderate and conscientious of his colleagues. Thus a violent -ferment was excited, and some time elapsed before the malignant arts by -which this flame had been blown up were discovered. - -During this time of public ferment Cullen went steadily forward; he -never gave an ear to the gossip brought him respecting the conduct -of his colleagues, nor did he take any notice of the doctrines which -they taught. Some of their unguarded strictures on himself might -occasionally have come to his ears; but if it was so, he took no notice -of them whatever; they seemed to have made no impression on him. - -This futile attempt to lower his character being thus baffled, his fame -as a professor, and his reputation as a physician, increased daily: nor -could it be otherwise; his professional knowledge was always great, and -his manner of lecturing singularly clear and intelligible, lively, and -entertaining. To his patients his conduct was so pleasing, his address -so affable and engaging, and his manner so open, so kind, and so little -regulated by pecuniary considerations, that those who once applied to -him for medical assistance could never afterwards dispense with it: he -became the friend and companion of every family he visited, and his -future acquaintance could not be dispensed with. - -His private conduct to his students was admirable, and deservedly -endeared him to every one of them. He was so uniformly attentive to -them, and took so much interest in the concerns of those who applied -to him for advice; was so cordial and so warm, that it was impossible -for any one, who had a heart susceptible of generous emotions, not to -be delighted with a conduct so uncommon and so kind. It was this which -served more than any thing else to extend his reputation over every -civilized quarter of the globe. Among ingenuous youth gratitude easily -degenerates into rapture; hence the popularity which he enjoyed, and -which to those who do not well weigh the causes which operated on the -students must appear excessive. - -The general conduct of Cullen to his students was this: with all -such as he observed to be attentive and diligent he formed an early -acquaintance, by inviting them by twos, by threes, and by fours at a -time to sup with him; conversing with them at such times with the most -engaging ease, entering freely with them into the subject of their -studies, their amusements, their difficulties, their hopes and future -prospects. In this way he usually invited the whole of his numerous -class till he made himself acquainted with their private character, -their abilities, and their objects of pursuit. Those of whom he formed -the highest opinion were of course invited most frequently, till an -intimacy was gradually formed which proved highly beneficial to them. -To their doubts and difficulties he listened with the most obliging -condescension, and he solved them to the utmost of his power. His -library was at all times open for their accommodation: in short, he -treated them as if they had been all his relatives and friends. Few men -of distinction left the University of Edinburgh, in his time, with whom -he did not keep up a correspondence till they were fairly established -in business. This enabled him gradually to form an accurate knowledge -of the state of medicine in every country, and the knowledge thus -acquired put it in his power to direct students in the choice of places -where they might have an opportunity of engaging in business with a -reasonable prospect of success. - -Nor was it in this way alone that he befriended the students in the -University of Edinburgh. Remembering the difficulties with which he had -himself to struggle in his younger days, he was at all times singularly -attentive to the pecuniary wants of the students. From the general -intimacy which he contracted with them he found no difficulty in -discovering those whose circumstances were contracted, or who laboured -under any pecuniary embarrassment, without being under the necessity of -hurting their feelings by a direct inquiry. To such persons, when their -habits of study admitted it, he was peculiarly attentive: they were -more frequently invited to his house than others, they were treated -with unusual kindness and familiarity, they were conducted to his -library and encouraged by the most delicate address to borrow from it -freely whatever books he thought they had occasion for; and as persons -under such circumstances are often extremely shy, books were sometimes -pressed upon them as a sort of task, the doctor insisting upon knowing -their opinion of such and such passages which they had not read, and -desiring them to carry the book home for that purpose: in short, he -behaved to them as if he had courted their company. He thus raised -them in the opinion of their acquaintances, which, to persons in their -circumstances, was of no little consequence. They were inspired at the -same time with a secret sense of dignity, which elevated their minds, -and excited an uncommon ardour, instead of that desponding inactivity -so natural to depressed circumstances. Nor was he less delicate in the -manner of supplying their wants: he often found out some polite excuse -for refusing to take money for a first course, and never was at a loss -for one to an after course. Sometimes (as his lectures were never -written) he would request the favour of a sight of their notes, if he -knew that they were taken with care, in order to refresh his memory. -Sometimes he would express a wish to have their opinion of a particular -part of his course, and presented them with a ticket for the purpose. -By such delicate pieces of address, in which he greatly excelled, he -took care to anticipate their wants. Thus he not only gave them the -benefit of his own lectures, but by refusing to take money enabled them -to attend such others as were necessary for completing their course of -medical study. - -He introduced another general rule into the university dictated by the -same spirit of disinterested benevolence. Before he came to Edinburgh, -it was the custom of the medical professors to accept of fees for their -medical attendance when wanted, even from medical students themselves, -though they were perhaps attending the professor’s lectures at the -time. But Dr. Cullen never would take a fee from any student of the -university, though he attended them, when called on as a physician, -with the same assiduity and care as if they had been persons of the -first rank who paid him most liberally. This gradually led others -to follow his example; and it has now become a general rule for -medical professors to decline taking any fees when their assistance -is necessary to a student. For this useful reform, as well as for -many others, the students in the University of Edinburgh are entirely -indebted to Dr. Cullen. - -The first lectures which Dr. Cullen delivered in Edinburgh were on -chemistry; and for many years he also gave lectures on the cases -that occurred in the infirmary. In the month of February, 1763, Dr. -Alston died, after having begun his usual course of lectures on the -materia medica. The magistrates of Edinburgh, who are the patrons of -the university, appointed Dr. Cullen to that chair, requesting that -he would finish the course of lectures that had been begun by his -predecessor. This he agreed to do, and, though he had only a few days -to prepare himself, he never once thought of reading the lectures of -his predecessor, but resolved to deliver a new course, which should be -entirely his own. Some idea may be formed of the popularity of Cullen, -by the increase of students to a class nearly half finished: Dr. Alston -had been lecturing to ten; as soon as Dr. Cullen began, a hundred new -students enrolled themselves. - -Some years after, on the death of Dr. Whytt, professor of the theory of -medicine, Dr. Cullen was appointed to give lectures in his stead. It -was then that he thought it requisite to resign the chemical chair in -favour of Dr. Black, his former pupil, whose talents in that department -of science were well known. Soon after, on the death of Dr. Rutherford, -professor of the practice of medicine, Dr. John Gregory having become a -candidate for this place, along with Dr. Cullen, a sort of compromise -took place between them, by which they agreed to give lectures -alternately, on the theory and practice of medicine, during their joint -lives, the longest survivor being allowed to hold either of the classes -he should incline. Unluckily this arrangement was soon destroyed, by -the sudden and unexpected death of Dr. Gregory, in the flower of his -age. Dr. Cullen thenceforth continued to give lectures on the practice -of medicine till within a few months of his death, which happened on -the 5th of February, 1790, when he was in the seventy-seventh year of -his age. - -It is not our business to follow Dr. Cullen’s medical career, nor -to point out the great benefits which he conferred on nosology and -the practice of medicine. He taught four different classes in the -University of Edinburgh, which we are not aware to have happened to any -other individual, except to professor Dugald Stewart. - -Notwithstanding the important impulse which he gave to chemistry, -he published nothing upon that science, except a short paper on the -cold produced by the evaporation of ether, which made its appearance -in one of the volumes of the Edinburgh Physical and Literary Essays. -Dr. Cullen employed Dr. Dobson of Liverpool, at that time his pupil, -to make experiments on the heat and cold produced by mixing liquids -and solids with each other. Dr. Dobson, in making these experiments, -observed that the thermometer, when lifted out of many of the liquids, -and suspended a short time in the air beside them, fell to a lower -degree than indicated by another thermometer which had undergone no -such process. After varying his observations on this phenomenon, he -found reason to conclude that it was occasioned by the evaporation of -the last drop of liquid which adhered to the bulb of the thermometer; -the sinking of the thermometer being always greatest when this -instrument was taken out of the most volatile liquids. Dr. Cullen -had the curiosity to try whether the same phenomenon would appear -on repeating these experiments under the exhausted receiver of an -air-pump. To satisfy himself, he put on the plate of the air-pump -a glass goblet containing water; and in the goblet he placed a -wide-mouthed phial containing sulphuric ether. The whole was covered -with an air-pump receiver, having at the upper end a collar of leathers -in a brass socket, through which a thick smooth wire could be moved; -and from the lower end of this wire, projecting into the receiver, was -suspended a thermometer. By pushing down the wire, the thermometer -could be dipped into the ether; by drawing it up it could be taken out, -and suspended over the phial. - -The apparatus being thus adjusted, the air-pump was worked to extract -the air. An unexpected phenomenon immediately appeared, which prevented -the experiment from being made in the way intended. The ether was -thrown into a violent agitation, which Dr. Cullen ascribed to the -extrication of a great quantity of air: in reality, however, it was -boiling violently. What was still more remarkable, the ether, by this -boiling or rapid evaporation, became all of a sudden so cold, as to -freeze the water in the goblet around it; though the temperature of -the air and of all the materials were at the fifty-fourth degree of -Fahrenheit at the beginning of the experiment. - -I have been particular in giving an account of this curious phenomenon, -as it was the only direct contribution to the science of chemistry -which Dr. Cullen communicated to the public. The nature of the -phenomenon was afterwards explained by Dr. Black; in addition to Dr. -Cullen, a philosopher, whom the grand stimulus which his lectures gave -to the cultivation of scientific chemistry in this country, had the -important merit of bringing forward. - -Joseph Black was born in France, on the banks of the Garonne, in the -year 1728: his father, Mr. John Black, was a native of Belfast, but -of a Scottish family which had been for some time settled there. Mr. -Black resided for the most part at Bordeaux, where he was engaged in -the wine trade. He married a daughter of Mr. Robert Gordon, of the -family of Hillhead, in Aberdeenshire, who was also engaged in the same -trade at Bordeaux. Mr. Black was a gentleman of most amiable manners, -candid and liberal in his sentiments, and of no common information. -These qualities, together with the warmth of his heart, appear very -conspicuous in a series of letters to his son, which that son preserved -with the nicest care. His good qualities did not escape the discerning -eye of the great Montesquieu, one of the presidents of the court of -justice in that province. This illustrious and excellent man honoured -Mr. Black with a friendship and intimacy altogether rare; of which his -descendants were justly proud. - -Long before Mr. Black retired from business, his son Joseph was sent -home to Belfast, that he might have the education of a British subject. -This was in the year 1740, when he was twelve years of age. After the -ordinary instruction at the grammar-school, he was sent, in 1746, to -continue his education in the University of Glasgow. Here he studied -with much assiduity and success: physical science, however, chiefly -engrossed his attention. He was a favourite pupil of Dr. Robert Dick, -professor of natural philosophy, and the intimate companion of his -son and successor. This young professor was of a character peculiarly -suited to Dr. Black’s taste, having the clearest conception, and -soundest judgment, accompanied by a modesty that was very uncommon. -When he succeeded his father, in 1751, he became the delight of the -students. He was carried off by a fever in 1757. - -Young Black being required by his father to make choice of a -profession, he preferred that of medicine as the most suitable to the -general habits of his studies. Fortunately Dr. Cullen had just begun -his great career in the College of Glasgow, and having made choice -of the field of philosophical chemistry which lay as yet unoccupied -before him. Hitherto chemistry had been treated as a curious and useful -art; but Cullen saw in it a vast department of the science of nature, -depending on principles as immutable as the laws of mechanism, and -capable of being formed into a system as comprehensive and as complete -as astronomy itself. He conceived the resolution of attempting himself -to explore this magnificent field, and expected much reputation from -accomplishing his object. Nor was he altogether disappointed. He -quickly took the science out of the hands of artists, and exhibited -it as a study fit for a gentleman. Dr. Black attended his chemical -lectures, and, from the character which has already been given of him, -it is needless to say that he soon discovered the uncommon value of -his pupil, and attached him to himself, rather as a co-operator and a -friend, than a pupil. He was considered as his assistant in all his -operations, and his experiments were frequently adduced in the lecture -as good authority. - -Young Black laid down a very comprehensive and serious plan of study. -This appears from a number of note-books found among his papers. There -are some in which he seems to have inserted every thing as it took his -fancy, in medicine, chemistry, jurisprudence, or matters of taste. Into -others, the same things are transferred, but distributed according -to their scientific connexions. In short, he kept a journal and -ledger of his studies, and has posted his books like a merchant. What -particularly strikes one in looking over these books, is the steadiness -with which he advanced in any path of knowledge. Things are inserted -for the first time from some present impression of their singularity or -importance, but without any allusion to their connexions. When a thing -of the same kind is mentioned again, there is generally a reference -back to its fellow; and thus the most isolated facts often acquired a -connexion which gave them importance. - -He went to Edinburgh to finish his medical studies in 1750 or 1751, -where he lived with his cousin german, Mr. James Russel, professor of -natural philosophy in that university. - -It was the good fortune of chemical science, that at this very time -the opinions of professors were divided concerning the manner in -which certain lithontriptic medicines, particularly lime-water, acted -in alleviating the excruciating pains of the stone and gravel. The -students usually partake of such differences of opinion: they are -thereby animated to more serious study, and science gains by their -emulation. This was a subject quite to the taste of young Mr. Black, -one of Dr. Cullen’s most zealous and intelligent chemical pupils. It -was, indeed, a most interesting subject, both to the chemist and the -physician. - -All the medicines which were then in vogue as solvents of urinary -calculi had a greater or less resemblance to caustic potash or soda; -substances so acrid, when in a concentrated state, that in a short time -they reduce the fleshy parts of the animal body to a mere pulp. Thus, -though they might possess lithontriptic properties, their exhibition -was dangerous, if in unskilful hands. They all seemed to derive their -efficacy from quicklime, which again derives its power from the fire. -It was therefore very natural for them to ascribe its power to igneous -matter imbibed from the fire, retained by the lime, and communicated by -it to alkalies, which it renders powerfully acrid. Hence, undoubtedly, -the term _caustic_ applied to the alkalies in that state, and hence -also the _acidum pingue_ of Mayer, which was a peculiar state of fire. -It appears from Dr. Black’s note-books, that he originally entertained -the opinion, that caustic alkalies acquired igneous matter from -quicklime. In one of them he hints at some way of catching this matter -as it escapes from lime, while it becomes mild by exposure to the -air; but on the opposite blank page is written, “Nothing escapes--the -cup rises considerably by absorbing air.” A few pages further on, -he compares the loss of weight sustained by an ounce of chalk when -calcined, with its loss while dissolved in muriatic acid. Immediately -after this, a medical case is mentioned, which occurred in November, -1752. Hence it would appear, that he had before that time suspected the -real cause of the difference between limestone and burnt lime. He had -prosecuted his inquiry with vigour; for the experiments with magnesia -are soon after mentioned. - -These experiments laid open the whole mystery, as appears by another -memorandum. “When I precipitate lime by a common alkali there is no -effervescence: the air quits the alkali for the lime; but it is lime no -longer, but C. C. C.: it now effervesces, which good lime will not.” -What a multitude of important consequences naturally flowed from this -discovery! He now knew to what the causticity of alkalies is owing, -and how to induce it or remove it at pleasure. The common notion was -entirely reversed. Lime imparts nothing to the alkalies; it only -removes from them a peculiar kind of air (_carbonic acid gas_) with -which they were combined, and which prevented their natural caustic -properties from being developed. All the former mysteries disappear, -and the greatest simplicity appears in those operations of nature which -before appeared so intricate and obscure. - -Dr. Black had fixed upon this subject for his inaugural dissertation, -and was induced, in consequence, to defer applying for his degree till -he had succeeded in establishing his doctrine beyond the possibility of -contradiction. The inaugural essay was delivered at a moment peculiarly -favourable to the advancement of science. Dr. Cullen had been just -removed to Edinburgh, and there was a vacancy in the chemical chair -in Glasgow: it could not be bestowed better than on such an _alumnus_ -of the university--on one who had distinguished himself both as a -chemist and an excellent reasoner; for few finer models of inductive -investigation exist than are displayed in Black’s essay on quicklime -and magnesia. He was appointed professor of anatomy and lecturer on -chemistry in the University of Glasgow in 1756. It was a fortunate -circumstance both for himself and for the public, that a situation thus -presented itself, just at the time when he was under the necessity of -settling in the world--a situation which allowed him to dedicate his -talents chiefly to the cultivation of chemistry, his favourite science. - -When Dr. Black took his degree in medicine, he sent some copies of his -essay to his father at Bordeaux. A copy was given by the old gentleman -to his friend, the President Montesquieu, who, after a few days called -on Mr. Black, and said to him, “Mr. Black, my very good friend, I -rejoice with you; your son will be the honour of your name and family.” -This anecdote was told Professor John Robison by the brother of Dr. -Black. - -Thus Dr. Black, while in Glasgow, taught at one and the same time two -different classes. He did not consider himself very well qualified to -teach anatomy, but determined to do his utmost; but he soon afterwards -made arrangements with the professor of medicine, who, with the -concurrence of the university, exchanged his own chair for that of Dr. -Black. - -Black’s medical lectures constituted his chief task while in -Glasgow. They gave the greatest satisfaction by their perspicuity -and simplicity, and by the cautious moderation of all his general -doctrines: and, indeed, all his perspicuity, and all his neatness -of manner in exhibiting simple truths, were necessary to create a -relish for moderation and caution, after the brilliant prospects of -systematic knowledge to which the students had been accustomed by Dr. -Cullen, his celebrated predecessor. But Dr. Black had no wish to form -a medical school, distinguished by some all-comprehending doctrine: he -satisfied himself with a clear account of as much of physiology as he -thought founded on good principles, and a short sketch of such general -doctrines as were maintained by the most eminent authors, though -perhaps on a less firm foundation. He then endeavoured to deduce a few -canons of medical practice, and concluded with certain rules founded -on successful practice only, but not deducible from the principles of -physiology previously laid down. With his medical lectures he does not -appear to have been himself entirely satisfied: he did not encourage -conversation on the different topics, and no remains of these lectures -were to be found among his papers. The preceding account of them was -given to Professor Robison by a surgeon in Glasgow, who attended the -two last medical courses which Dr. Black ever delivered. - -Dr. Black’s reception at Glasgow by the university was in the highest -degree encouraging. His former conduct as a student had not only done -him credit in his classes, but had conciliated the affection of the -professors to a very high degree. He became immediately connected -in the strictest friendship with the celebrated Dr. Adam Smith--a -friendship which continued intimate and confidential through the -whole of their lives. Both were remarkable for a certain simplicity -of character and the most incorruptible integrity. Dr. Smith used to -say, that no one had less nonsense in his head than Dr. Black; and he -often acknowledged himself obliged to him for setting him right in his -judgment of character, confessing that he himself was too apt to form -his opinion from a single feature. - -It was during his residence in Glasgow, between the years 1759 and -1763, that he brought to maturity those speculations concerning the -combination of _heat_ with _matter_, which had frequently occupied -a portion of his thoughts. It had long been known that ice has the -property of continuing always at the temperature of 32° till it be -melted. This happens equally though it be placed in contact with the -warm hand or surrounded with bodies many degrees hotter than itself. -The hotter the bodies are that surround it, the sooner is it melted; -but its temperature during the whole process of melting, continues -uniformly the same. Yet, during the whole process of melting, it is -constantly robbing the surrounding bodies of heat; for it makes them -colder, without acquiring itself any sensible heat. - -Dr. Black had some vague notion that the heat so received by the ice, -during its conversion into water, was not lost, but was contained in -the water. This opinion was founded chiefly on a curious observation -of Fahrenheit, recorded by Boerhaave; namely, that water might in some -cases be made considerably colder than melting snow, without freezing. -In such cases, when disturbed it would freeze in a moment, and in the -act of freezing always gave out a quantity of heat. This opinion was -confirmed by observing the slowness with which water is converted -into ice, and ice into water. A fine winter-day of sunshine is never -sufficient to clear the hills of snow; nor is one frosty night capable -of covering the ponds with a thick coating of ice. The phenomena -satisfied him that much heat was absorbed and fixed in the water which -trickles from wreaths of snow, and that much heat emerged from it while -water was slowly converted into ice; for during a thaw the melting snow -is always colder than the air, and must, therefore, be always receiving -heat from it; while, during a frost, the air is always colder than the -freezing water, and must therefore be always receiving heat from it. -These observations, and many others which it is needless to state, -satisfied Dr. Black that when ice is converted into water it unites -with a quantity of heat, without increasing in temperature; and that -when water is frozen into ice it gives out a quantity of heat without -diminishing in temperature. The heat thus combined is the cause of the -fluidity of the water. As it is not sensible to the thermometer, Dr. -Black called it _latent heat_. He made an experiment to determine the -quantity of heat necessary to convert ice into water. This he estimated -by the length of time necessary to melt a given weight of ice, -measuring how much heat entered into the same weight of water, reduced -as nearly to the temperature of ice as possible during the first -half-hour that the experiment lasted. As the ice continued during the -whole of its melting at the same temperature as at first, he concluded -that it would absorb, every half-hour that the process lasted, as much -heat as the water did during the first half hour. The result of this -experiment was, that the latent heat of water amounts to 140°; or, in -other words, that this heat, if thrown into a quantity of water, equal -in weight to that of the ice melted, would raise its temperature 140°. - -Dr. Black, having established this discovery in the most -incontrovertible manner by simple and decisive experiments, drew up an -account of the whole investigation, and the doctrine which he founded -upon it, and read it to a literary society which met every Friday in -the faculty-room of the college, consisting of the members of the -university and several gentlemen of the city, who had a relish for -science and literature. This paper was read on the 23d of April, as -appears by the registers of the society. - -Dr. Black quickly perceived the vast importance of this discovery, and -took a pleasure in laying before his students a view of the beneficial -effects of this habitude of heat in the economy of nature. During the -summer season a vast magazine of heat was accumulated in the water, -which, by gradually emerging during congelation, serves to temper the -cold of winter. Were it not for this accumulation of heat in water and -other bodies, the sun would no sooner go a few degrees to the south of -the equator, than we should feel all the horrors of winter. He did not -confine his views to the congelation of water alone, but extended them -to every case of congelation and liquefaction which he has ascribed -equally to the evolution or fixation of latent heat. Even those bodies -which change from solid to fluid, not all at once, but by slow degrees, -as butter, tallow, resins, owe, he found, their gradual softening to -the same absorption of heat, and the same combination of it with the -substance undergoing liquefaction. - -Another subject that engaged his attention at this time, was an -examination of the scale of the thermometer, to learn whether -equal differences of expansion corresponded to equal additions or -abstractions of heat. His mode was to mix together equal weights of -water of different temperatures, and to measure the temperature of the -mixture by a thermometer. It is obvious that the temperature must be -the exact mean of that of the two portions of water; and that if the -expansion or contraction of the mercury in the thermometer be an exact -measure of the difference of temperature, a thermometer, so placed, -will indicate the exact mean. Suppose one pound of water at 100° to -be mixed with one pound of water at 200°, and the whole heat still -to remain in the mixture, it is obvious that it would divide itself -equally between the two portions of water. The water of 100° would -become hotter, and the water of 200° would become colder: and the -increase of temperature in the colder portion would be just as much -as the diminution of temperature in the hotter portion. The colder -portion would become hotter by 50°, while the hotter portion would -become colder by 50°. Hence the real temperature, after mixture, would -be 150°; and a thermometer plunged into such a mixture, if a true -measurer of heat, would indicate 150°. The result of his experiments -was, that as high up as he could try by mixing water of different -temperatures, the mercurial thermometer is an accurate measurer of the -alterations of temperature. - -An account of his experiments on this subject was drawn up by him, and -read to the literary society of the College of Glasgow, on the 28th of -March, 1760. Dr. Black, at the time he made these experiments, did not -know that he had been already anticipated in them by Dr. Brooke Taylor, -the celebrated mathematician, who had obtained similar results, and had -consigned his experiments to the Royal Society, in whose Transactions -for 1723 they were published. It has been since found by Coulomb -and Petit, that at higher temperatures than 212° the rate of the -expansion of mercury begins to increase. Hence it happens that at high -temperatures the expansion of mercury is no longer an accurate measurer -of temperature. Fortunately, the expansion of glass very nearly equals -the increment of that of mercury. The consequence is, that in a common -glass-thermometer mercury measures the true increments of temperature -very nearly up to its boiling point; for the boiling point of mercury -measured by an air-thermometer is 662°: and if a glass mercurial -thermometer be plunged into boiling mercury, it will indicate 660°, a -difference of only 2° from the true point. - -There is such an analogy between the cessation of thermometric -expansion during the liquefaction of ice, and during the conversion of -water into steam, that there could be no hesitation about explaining -both in the same way. Dr. Black immediately concluded that as water is -ice united to a certain quantity of _latent heat_, so steam is water -united to a still greater quantity. The slow conversion of water into -steam, notwithstanding the great quantity of heat constantly flowing -into it from the fire, left no reasonable doubt about the accuracy of -this conclusion. In short, all the phenomena are precisely similar to -those of the conversion of ice into water; and so, of course, must -the explanation be. So much was he convinced of this, that he taught -the doctrine in his lectures in 1761, before he had made a single -experiment on the subject; and he explained, with great felicity of -argument, many phenomena of nature, which result from this vaporific -combination of heat. From notes taken in his class during this session, -it appears that nothing more was wanting to complete his views on this -subject, than a set of experiments to determine the exact quantity -of heat which was combined in steam in a state not indicated by the -thermometer, and therefore _latent_, in the same sense that the heat of -liquefaction in water is _latent_. - -The requisite experiments were first attempted by Dr. Black, in 1764. -They consisted merely in measuring the time requisite to convert a -certain weight of water of a given temperature into steam. The water -was put into a tin-plate wide-mouthed vessel, and laid upon a red-hot -plate of iron, the initial temperature of the water was marked, and the -time necessary to heat it from that point to the boiling point noted, -and then the time requisite to boil the whole to dryness. It was taken -for granted that as much heat would enter into the water during every -minute that the experiment lasted, as did during the first minute. From -this it was concluded that the latent heat of steam is not less than -810 degrees. - -Mr. James Watt afterwards repeated these experiments with a better -apparatus and very great care, and calculated from his results that the -latent heat of steam is not under 950 degrees. Lavoisier and Laplace -afterwards made experiments in a different way, and deduced 1000° as -the result of their experiments. The subsequent experiments of Count -Rumford, made in a very ingenious manner, so as to obviate most of the -sources of error, to which such researches are liable, come very nearly -to those of Lavoisier. 1000° therefore, is usually now-a-days adopted -as the number which denotes the true latent heat of steam. - -Dr. Black continued in the University of Glasgow from 1756 to 1766, -much esteemed as an eminent professor, much employed as an able and -attentive physician, and much beloved as an amiable and accomplished -man, happy in the enjoyment of a small but select society of friends. -Meanwhile his reputation as a chemical philosopher was every day -increasing, and pupils from foreign countries carried home with them -the peculiar doctrines of his courses--so that _fixed air_ and _latent -heat_ began to be spoken of among the naturalists of the continent. In -1766 Dr. Cullen, at that time professor of chemistry in Edinburgh, was -appointed professor of medicine, and thus a vacancy was made in the -chemical chair of that university. There was but one wish with regard -to a successor. Indeed, when the vacancy happened in 1756, on the death -of Dr. Plummer, the reputation of Dr. Black, who had just taken his -degree, was so high, both as a chemist and an accurate thinker and -reasoner, that, had the choice depended on the university, he would -have been the new professor of chemistry. He had now, in 1766, greatly -added to his claim of merit by his important discovery of latent heat; -and he had acquired the esteem of all by the singular moderation and -scrupulous caution which marked all his researches. - -Dr. Black was appointed to the chemical chair in Edinburgh in 1766, to -the general satisfaction of the public, but the University of Glasgow -suffered an irreparable loss. In this new situation his talents were -more conspicuous and more extensively useful. He saw that the case was -so, and while he could not but be gratified by the number of students -whom the high reputation of Edinburgh, as a medical school, brought -together, his mind was forcibly struck by the importance of his duties -as a teacher. This led him to form the resolution of devoting the -whole of his study to the improvement of his pupils in the elementary -knowledge of chemistry. Many of them came to his class with a very -scanty stock of previous knowledge. Many from the workshop of the -manufacturer had little or none. He was conscious that the number -of this kind of pupils must increase with the increasing activity -and prosperity of the country; and they appeared to him by no means -the least important part of his auditory. To engage the attention of -such pupils, and to be perfectly understood by the most illiterate -of his audience, Dr. Black considered as a sacred duty: he resolved, -therefore, that plain doctrines taught in the plainest manner, should -henceforth employ his chief study. To render his lectures perfectly -intelligible they were illustrated by suitable experiments, by the -exhibition of specimens, and by the repetition of chemical processes. - -To this method of lecturing Dr. Black rigidly adhered, endeavouring -every year to make his courses more plain and familiar, and -illustrating them by a greater variety of examples in the way of -experiment. No man could perform these more neatly or successfully; -they were always ingeniously and judiciously contrived, clearly -establishing the point in view, and were never more complicated than -was sufficient for the purpose. Nothing that had the least appearance -of quackery; nothing calculated to surprise and astonish his audience; -nothing savouring of a showman or sleight-of-hand man was ever -permitted in his lecture-room. Every thing was simple, neat, and -elegant, calculated equally to please and to inform: indeed simplicity -and neatness stamped his character. It was this that constituted the -charm of his lectures, and rendered them so delightful to his pupils. -I can speak of them from experience, for I was fortunate enough to -hear the last course of lectures which he ever delivered. I can say -with perfect truth that I never listened to any lectures with so -much pleasure as to his: and it was the elegant simplicity of his -manner, the perfect clearness of his statements, and the vast quantity -of information which he contrived in this way to communicate, that -delighted me. I was all at once transported into a new world--my views -were suddenly enlarged, and I looked down from a height which I had -never before reached; and all this knowledge was communicated without -any apparent effort either on the part of the professor or his pupils. -His illustrations were just sufficient to answer completely the object -in view, and nothing more. No quackery, no trickery, no love of mere -dazzle and glitter, ever had the least influence upon his conduct. He -constituted the most complete model of a perfect chemical lecturer that -I have ever had an opportunity of witnessing. - -The discovery which Dr. Black had made that marble is a combination -of lime and a peculiar substance, to which he gave the name of _fixed -air_, began gradually to attract the attention of chemists in other -parts of the world. It was natural in the first place to examine the -nature and properties of this fixed air, and the circumstances under -which it is generated. It may seem strange and unaccountable that Dr. -Black did not enter with ardour into this new career which he had -himself opened, and that he allowed others to reap the corn after -having himself sown the grain. Yet he did take some steps towards -ascertaining the properties of _fixed air_; though I am not certain -what progress he made. He knew that a candle would not burn in it, -and that it is destructive to life, when any living animal attempts -to breathe it. He knew that it was formed in the lungs during the -breathing of animals, and that it is generated during the fermentation -of wine and beer. Whether he was aware that it possesses the properties -of an acid I do not know; though with the knowledge which he possessed -that it combines with alkalies and alkaline earths, and neutralizes -them, or at least blunts and diminishes their alkaline properties, -the conclusion that it partook of alkaline properties was scarcely -avoidable. All these, and probably some other properties of _fixed air_ -he was in the constant habit of stating in his lectures from the very -commencement of his academical career; though, as he never published -anything on the subject himself, it is not possible to know exactly -how far his knowledge of the properties of _fixed air_ extended. The -oldest manuscript copy of his lectures that I have seen was taken -down in writing in the year 1773; and before that time Mr. Cavendish -had published his paper on _fixed air_ and _hydrogen gas_, and had -detailed the properties of each. It was impossible from the manuscript -of Dr. Black’s lectures to know which of the properties of _fixed air_ -stated by him were discovered by himself, and which were taken from Mr. -Cavendish. - -This languor and listlessness, on the part of Dr. Black, is chiefly to -be ascribed to the delicate state of his health, which precluded much -exertion, and was particularly inconsistent with any attempt at putting -his thoughts down upon paper. Hence, probably, that carelessness -about posthumous fame, and that regardlessness of reputation, which, -however it may be accounted for from bodily ailment, must still be -considered as a blemish. How differently did Paschal act in a similar -state of health! With what energy did he exert himself in spite of -bodily ailment! But the tone of his mind was quite different from that -of Dr. Black. Gentleness, diffidence, and perhaps even slowness of -apprehension, were the characteristic features by which the latter was -distinguished. - -There is an anecdote of Black which I was told by the late Mr. Benjamin -Bell, of Edinburgh, author of a well-known system of surgery, and -he assured me that he had it from the late Sir George Clarke, of -Pennicuik, who was a witness of the circumstance related. Soon after -the appearance of Mr. Cavendish’s paper on hydrogen gas, in which he -made an approximation to the specific gravity of that body, showing -that it was at least ten times lighter than common air, Dr. Black -invited a party of his friends to supper, informing them that he had -a curiosity to show them. Dr. Hutton, Mr. Clarke of Elden, and Sir -George Clarke of Pennicuik, were of the number. When the company -invited had assembled, he took them into a room. He had the allentois -of a calf filled with hydrogen gas, and upon setting it at liberty, -it immediately ascended, and adhered to the ceiling. The phenomenon -was easily accounted for: it was taken for granted that a small black -thread had been attached to the allentois, that this thread passed -through the ceiling, and that some one in the apartment above, by -pulling the thread, elevated it to the ceiling, and kept it in this -position. This explanation was so probable, that it was acceded to -by the whole company; though, like many other plausible theories, it -turned out wholly unfounded; for when the allentois was brought down no -thread whatever was found attached to it. Dr. Black explained the cause -of the ascent to his admiring friends; but such was his carelessness -of his own reputation, and of the information of the public, that he -never gave the least account of this curious experiment even to his -class; and more than twelve years elapsed before this obvious property -of hydrogen gas was applied to the elevation of air-balloons, by M. -Charles, in Paris. - -The constitution of Dr. Black had always been exceedingly delicate. The -slightest cold, the most trifling approach to repletion, immediately -affected his chest, occasioned feverishness, and if the disorder -continued for two or three days, brought on a spitting of blood. -In this situation, nothing restored him to ease, but relaxation of -thought, and gentle exercise. The sedentary life to which study -confined him, was manifestly hurtful; and he never allowed himself to -indulge in any investigation that required intense thought, without -finding these complaints increased. - -Thus situated, Dr. Black was obliged to be a contented spectator of the -rapid progress which chemistry was making, without venturing himself to -engage in any of the numerous investigations which presented themselves -on every side. Such indeed was the eagerness with which chemistry was -at that time prosecuted, and such the passion for discovery, that there -was some risk that his undoubted claim to originality and priority -in his own great discoveries, might be called in question, and even -rendered doubtful. His friends at least were afraid of this, and often -urged him to do justice to himself, by publishing an account of his -own discoveries. He more than once began the task; but was so nice in -his notions of the manner in which it should be executed, that the -pains he took in forming a plan of the work never failed to affect -his health, and oblige him to desist. It is known that he felt hurt -at the publication of several of Lavoisier’s papers, in the Mémoires -de l’Académie, without any allusion whatever to what he himself had -previously done on the same subject. How far Lavoisier was really -culpable, and whether he did not intend to do full justice to all the -claims of his predecessors, cannot now be known; as he was cut off -in the midst of his career, while so many of his scientific projects -remained unexecuted. From the posthumous works of Lavoisier, there -is some reason for believing that if he had lived, he would have -done justice to all parties; but there is no doubt that Dr. Black, -in the mean time, thought himself aggrieved, and that he formed the -intention of doing himself justice, by publishing an account of his own -discoveries; however this intention was thwarted and prevented by bad -health. - -No one contributed more largely to establish, to support, and to -increase, the high character of the medical school in the University -of Edinburgh than Dr. Black. His talent for communicating knowledge -was not less eminent than his faculty of observation. He soon became -one of the principal ornaments of the university; and his lectures -were attended by an audience which continued increasing from year to -year for more than thirty years. His personal appearance and manners -were those of a gentleman, and peculiarly pleasing: his voice, in -lecturing, was low, but fine; and his articulation so distinct, that he -was perfectly well heard by an audience consisting of several hundreds. -While in Glasgow, he had practised extensively as a physician; but in -Edinburgh he declined general practice, and confined his attendance to -a few families of intimate and respected friends. He was, however, a -physician of good repute in a place where the character of a physician -implied no common degree of liberality, propriety, and dignity of -manners, as well as of learning and skill. - -Such was Dr. Black as a public man. While young, his countenance was -comely and interesting; and as he advanced in years, it continued to -preserve that pleasing expression of inward satisfaction which, by -giving ease to the beholder, never fails to please. His manners were -simple, unaffected, and graceful; he was of the most easy approach, -affable, and readily entered into conversation, whether serious -or trivial: for he was not merely a man of science, but was well -acquainted with the elegant accomplishments. He had an accurate musical -ear, and a voice which would obey it in the most perfect manner; he -sang and performed on the flute with great taste and feeling; and could -sing a plain air at sight, which many instrumental performers cannot -do. Music was his amusement in Glasgow; after his removal to Edinburgh -he gave it up entirely. Without having studied drawing he had acquired -a considerable power of expression with his pencil, both in figures -and in landscape. He was peculiarly happy in expressing the passions, -and seemed in this respect to have the talents of a historical -painter. Figure indeed, of every kind, attracted his attention; in -architecture, furniture, ornament of every sort, it was never a matter -of indifference to him. Even a retort, or a crucible, was to his eye -an example of beauty, or deformity. These are not indifferent things; -they are features of an elegant mind, and they account for some part of -that satisfaction and pleasure which persons of different habits and -pursuits felt in Dr. Black’s company and conversation. - -Those circumstances of form, and in which Dr. Black perceived or sought -for beauty, were suitableness or propriety: something that rendered -them well adapted for the purposes for which they were intended. This -love of propriety constituted the leading feature in Dr. Black’s mind; -it was the standard to which he constantly appealed, and which he -endeavoured to make the directing principle of his conduct. - -Dr. Black was fond of society, and felt himself beloved in it. His -chief companions, in the earlier part of his residence in Edinburgh, -were Dr. Adam Smith, Mr. David Hume, Dr. Adam Ferguson, Mr. John Home, -Dr. Alexander Carlisle, and a few others. Mr. Clarke of Elden, and his -brother Sir George, Dr. Roebuck, and Dr. James Hutton, particularly -the latter, were affectionately attached to him, and in their society -he could indulge in his professional studies. Dr. Hutton was the -only person near him to whom Dr. Black imparted every speculation in -chemical science, and who knew all his literary labours: seldom were -the two friends asunder for two days together. - -Towards the close of the eighteenth century, the infirmities of -advanced life began to bear more heavily on his feeble constitution. -Those hours of walking and gentle exercise, which had hitherto -been necessary for his ease, were gradually curtailed. Company and -conversation began to fatigue: he went less abroad, and was visited -only by his intimate friends. His duty at college became too heavy for -him, and he got an assistant, who took a share of the lectures, and -relieved him from the fatigue of the experiments. The last course of -lectures which he delivered was in the winter of 1796-7. After this, -even lecturing was too much for his diminished strength, and he was -obliged to absent himself from the class altogether; but he still -retained his usual affability of temper, and his habitual cheerfulness, -and even to the very last was accustomed to walk out and take -occasional exercise. As his strength declined, his constitution became -more and more delicate. Every cold he caught occasioned some degree of -spitting of blood; yet he seemed to have this unfortunate disposition -of body almost under command, so that he never allowed it to proceed -far, or to occasion any distressing illness. He spun his thread of -life to the very last fibre. He guarded against illness by restricting -himself to an abstemious diet; and he met his increasing infirmities -with a proportional increase of attention and care, regulating his food -and exercise by the measure of his strength. Thus he made the most of a -feeble constitution, by preventing the access of disease from abroad. -And enjoyed a state of health which was feeble, indeed, but scarcely -interrupted; as well as a mind undisturbed in the calm and cheerful use -of its faculties. His only apprehension was that of a long-continued -sick-bed--from the humane consideration of the trouble and distress -that he might thus occasion to attending friends; and never was such -generous wish more completely gratified than in his case. - -On the 10th of November, 1799, in the seventy-first year of his age, he -expired without any convulsion, shock, or stupor, to announce or retard -the approach of death. Being at table with his usual fare, some bread, -a few prunes, and a measured quantity of milk, diluted with water, -and having the cup in his hand when the last stroke of his pulse was -to be given, he set it down on his knees, which were joined together, -and kept it steady with his hand in the manner of a person perfectly -at ease; and in this attitude expired without spilling a drop, and -without a writhe in his countenance; as if an experiment had been -required to show to his friends the facility with which he departed. -His servant opened the door to tell him that some one had left his -name; but getting no answer, stepped about halfway to him; and seeing -him sitting in that easy posture, supporting his basin of milk with one -hand, he thought that he had dropped asleep, which was sometimes wont -to happen after meals. He went back and shut the door; but before he -got down stairs some anxiety, which he could not account for, made him -return and look again at his master. Even then he was satisfied, after -coming pretty near him, and turned to go away; but he again returned, -and coming close up to him, he found him without life. His very near -neighbour, Mr. Benjamin Bell, the surgeon, was immediately sent for; -but nothing whatever could be done.[185] - -[185] The preceding character of Dr. Black is from Professor Robison, -who knew him intimately; and from Dr. Adam Ferguson, who was his next -relation. See the preface to Dr. Black’s lectures. The portrait of Dr. -Black prefixed to these lectures is an excellent likeness. - -Dr. Black’s writings are exceedingly few, consisting altogether of -no more than three papers. The first, entitled “Experiments upon -Magnesia alba, Quicklime, and other Alkaline Substances,” constituted -the subject of his inaugural dissertation. It afterwards appeared -in an English dress in one of the volumes of The Edinburgh Physical -and Literary Essays, in the year 1755. Mr. Creech, the bookseller, -published it in a separate pamphlet, together with Dr. Cullen’s -little essay on the “cold produced by evaporating fluids,” in the -year 1796. This essay exhibits one of the very finest examples of -inductive reasoning to be found in the English language. The author -shows that magnesia is a peculiar earthy body, possessed of properties -very different from lime. He gives the properties of lime in a pure -state, and proves that it differs from limestone merely by the absence -of the carbonic acid, which is a constituent of limestone. Limestone -is a _carbonate of lime_; quicklime is the pure uncombined earth. He -shows that magnesia has also the property of combining with carbonic -acid; that caustic potash, or soda, is merely these bodies in a pure -or isolated state; while the mild alkalies are combinations of these -bodies with carbonic acid. The reason why quicklime converts mild -into caustic alkali is, that the lime has a stronger affinity for -the carbonic acid than the alkali; hence the lime is converted into -carbonate of lime, and the alkali, deprived of its carbonic acid, -becomes caustic. Mild potash is a carbonate of potash; caustic potash, -is potash freed from carbonic acid.--The publication of this essay -occasioned a controversy in Germany, which was finally settled by -Jacquin and Lavoisier, who repeated Dr. Black’s experiments and showed -them to be correct. - -Dr. Black’s second paper was published in the Philosophical -Transactions for 1775. It is entitled “The supposed Effect of boiling -on Water, in disposing it to freeze more readily, ascertained by -Experiments.” He shows, that when water that has been recently boiled -is exposed to cold air, it begins to freeze as soon as it reaches the -freezing point; while water that has not been boiled may be cooled some -degrees below the freezing point before it begins to congeal. But if -the unboiled water be constantly stirred during the whole time of its -exposure, it begins to freeze when cooled down to the freezing point as -well as the other. He shows that the difference between the two waters -consists in this, that the boiled water is constantly absorbing air, -which disturbs it, whereas the other water remains in a state of rest. - -His last paper was “An Analysis of the Water of some boiling Springs -in Iceland,” published in the Transactions of the Royal Society of -Edinburgh. This was the water of the Geyser spring, brought from -Iceland by Sir J. Stanley. Dr. Black found it to contain a great deal -of silica, held in solution in the water by caustic soda. - -The tempting career which Dr. Black opened, and which he was unable to -prosecute for want of health, soon attracted the attention of one of -the ablest men that Great Britain has produced--I mean Mr. Cavendish. - -The Honourable Henry Cavendish was born in London on the 10th of -October, 1731: his father was Lord Charles Cavendish, a cadet of the -house of Devonshire, one of the oldest families in England. During his -father’s lifetime he was kept in rather narrow circumstances, being -allowed an annuity of £500 only; while his apartments were a set of -stables, fitted up for his accommodation. It was during this period -that he acquired those habits of economy, and those singular oddities -of character, which he exhibited ever after in so striking a manner. At -his father’s death he was left a very considerable fortune; and an aunt -who died at a later period bequeathed him a very handsome addition to -it; but, in consequence of the habits of economy which he had acquired, -it was not in his power to spend the greater part of his annual income. -This occasioned a yearly increase to his capital, till at last it -accumulated so much, without any care on his part, that at the period -of his death he left behind him nearly £1,300,000; and he was at that -time the greatest proprietor of stock in the Bank of England. - -On one occasion, the money in the hands of his bankers had accumulated -to the amount of £70,000. These gentlemen thinking it improper to keep -so large a sum in their hands, sent one of the partners to wait upon -him, in order to learn how he desired it disposed of. This gentleman -was admitted; and, after employing the necessary precautions to a man -of Mr. Cavendish’s peculiar disposition, stated the circumstance, and -begged to know whether it would not be proper to lay out the money at -interest. Mr. Cavendish dryly answered, “You may lay it out if you -please,” and left the room. - -He hardly ever went into any other society than that of his scientific -friends: he never was absent from the weekly dinner of the Royal -Society club at the Crown and Anchor Tavern in the Strand. At these -dinners, when he happened to be seated near those that he liked, he -often conversed a great deal; though at other times he was very silent. -He was likewise a constant attendant at Sir Joseph Banks’s Sunday -evening meetings. He had a house in London, which he only visited -once or twice a-week at stated times, and without ever speaking to -the servants: it contained an excellent library, to which he gave all -literary men the freest and most unrestrained access. But he lived -in a house on Clapham Common, where he scarcely ever received any -visitors. His relation, Lord George Cavendish, to whom he left by will -the greatest part of his fortune, visited him only once a-year, and the -visit hardly ever exceeded ten or twelve minutes. - -He was shy and bashful to a degree bordering on disease; he could not -bear to have any person introduced to him, or to be pointed out in any -way as a remarkable man. One Sunday evening he was standing at Sir -Joseph Banks’s in a crowded room, conversing with Mr. Hatchett, when -Dr. Ingenhousz, who had a good deal of pomposity of manner, came up -with an Austrian gentleman in his hand, and introduced him formally to -Mr. Cavendish. He mentioned the titles and qualifications of his friend -at great length, and said that he had been peculiarly anxious to be -introduced to a philosopher so profound and so universally known and -celebrated as Mr. Cavendish. As soon as Dr. Ingenhousz had finished, -the Austrian gentleman began, and assured Mr. Cavendish that his -principal reason for coming to London was to see and converse with one -of the greatest ornaments of the age, and one of the most illustrious -philosophers that ever existed. To all these high-flown speeches Mr. -Cavendish answered not a word, but stood with his eyes cast down quite -abashed and confounded. At last, spying an opening in the crowd, he -darted through it with all the speed of which he was master; nor did he -stop till he reached his carriage, which drove him directly home. - -Of a man, whose habits were so retired, and whose intercourse with -society was so small, there is nothing else to relate except his -scientific labours: the current of his life passed on with the utmost -regularity; the description of a single day would convey a correct idea -of his whole existence. At one time he was in the habit of keeping -an individual to assist him in his experiments. This place was for -some time filled by Sir Charles Blagden; but they did not agree well -together, and after some time Sir Charles left him. Mr. Cavendish died -on the 4th of February, 1810, aged seventy-eight years, four months, -and six days. When he found himself dying, he gave directions to his -servant to leave him alone, and not to return till a certain time which -he specified, and by which period he expected to be no longer alive. -The servant, however, who was aware of the state of his master, and -was anxious about him, opened the door of the room before the time -specified, and approached the bed to take a look at the dying man. Mr. -Cavendish, who was still sensible, was offended at the intrusion, and -ordered him out of the room with a voice of displeasure, commanding him -not by any means to return till the time specified. When he did come -back at that time, he found his master dead. What a contrast between -the characters of Mr. Cavendish and Dr. Black! - -The appearance of Mr. Cavendish did not much prepossess strangers in -his favour; he was somewhat above the middle size, his body rather -thick, and his neck rather short. He stuttered a little in his speech, -which gave him an air of awkwardness: his countenance was not strongly -marked, so as to indicate the profound abilities which he possessed. -This was probably owing to the total absence of all the violent -passions. His education seems to have been very complete; he was an -excellent mathematician, a profound electrician, and a most acute -and ingenious chemist. He never ventured to give an opinion on any -subject, unless he had studied it to the bottom. He appeared before -the world first as a chemist, and afterwards as an electrician. The -whole of his literary labours consist of eighteen papers, published -in the Philosophical Transactions, which, though they occupy only a -few pages, are full of the most important discoveries and the most -profound investigations. Of these papers, there are ten which treat -of chemical subjects, two treat of electricity, two of meteorology, -three are connected with astronomy, and there is one, the last which -he wrote, which gives his method of dividing astronomical instruments. -Of the papers in question, those alone which treat of Chemistry can be -analyzed in a work like this. - -1. His first paper, entitled, “Experiments on fictitious Air,” was -published in the year 1766, when Mr. Cavendish was thirty-five years -of age. Dr. Hales had demonstrated (as had previously been done by -Van Helmont and Glauber) that _air_ is given out by a vast number of -bodies in peculiar circumstances. But he never suspected that any of -the _airs_ which he obtained differed from common air. Indeed common -air had always been considered as an elementary substance to which -every elastic fluid was referred. Dr. Black had shown that the mild -alkalies and limestone, and carbonate of magnesia, were combinations -of these bodies with a gaseous substance, to which he had given -the name of _fixed air_; and he had pointed out various methods of -collecting this fixed air; though he himself had not made much progress -in investigating its properties. This paper of Mr. Cavendish may be -considered as a continuation of the investigations begun by Dr. Black. -He shows that there exist two species of air quite different in their -properties from common air: and he calls them _inflammable air_ and -_fixed air_. - -Inflammable air (hydrogen gas) is evolved when iron, zinc, or tin, -are dissolved in dilute sulphuric or muriatic acid. Iron yielded -about 1-22d part of its weight, of inflammable air, zinc about -1-23d or 1-24th of its weight, and tin about 1-44th of its weight. -The properties of the inflammable air were the same, whichever of -the three metals was used to procure it, and whether they were -dissolved in sulphuric or muriatic acids. When the sulphuric acid was -concentrated, iron and zinc dissolved in it with difficulty and only -by the assistance of heat. The air given out was not inflammable, but -consisted of sulphurous acid. These facts induced Mr. Cavendish to -conclude that the inflammable air evolved in the first case was the -unaltered _phlogiston_ of the metals, while the sulphurous acid evolved -in the second case, was a compound of the same phlogiston and a portion -of the acid, which deprived it of its inflammability. This opinion was -very different from that of Stahl, who considered combustible bodies as -compounds of phlogiston with acids or calces. - -Cavendish found the specific gravity of his inflammable air about -eleven times less than that of common air. This determination is under -the truth; but the error is, at least in part, owing to the quantity -of water held in solution by the air, and which, as Mr. Cavendish -showed, amounted to about 1-9th of the weight of the air. He tried -the combustibility of the inflammable air, when mixed with various -proportions of common air, and found that it exploded with the greatest -violence when mixed with rather more than its bulk of common air. - -Copper he found, when dissolved in muriatic acid by the assistance of -heat, yielded no inflammable air, but an air which lost its elasticity -when it came in contact with water. This _air_, the nature of which Mr. -Cavendish did not examine, was _muriatic acid gas_, the properties of -which were afterwards investigated by Dr. Priestley. - -The _fixed air_ (_carbonic acid gas_) on which Mr. Cavendish made his -experiments was obtained by dissolving marble in muriatic acid. He -found that it might be kept over mercury for any length of time without -undergoing any alteration; that it was gradually absorbed by cold -water; and that 100 measures of water of the temperature 55° absorbed -103·8 measures of fixed air. The whole of the air thus absorbed was -separated again by exposing the water to a boiling heat, or by leaving -it for sometime in an open vessel. Alcohol (the specific gravity not -mentioned) absorbed 2¼ times its bulk of this air, and olive-oil about -1-3d of its bulk. - -The specific gravity of fixed air he found 1·57, that of common air -being 1.[186] Fixed air is incapable of supporting combustion, and -common air, when mixed with it, supports combustion a much shorter time -than when pure. A small wax taper burnt eighty seconds in a receiver -which held 180 ounce measures, when filled with common air only. The -same taper burnt fifty-one seconds in the same receiver when filled -with a mixture of one volume fixed air, and nineteen volumes of common -air. When the fixed air was 3-40ths of the whole volume the taper -burnt twenty-three seconds. When the fixed air was 1-10th, the taper -burnt eleven seconds. When it was 6-55ths or 1-9·16 of the whole -mixture, the taper would not burn at all. - -[186] This I apprehend to be a little above the truth, the true -specific gravity of carbonic acid gas being 1·5277, that of air being -unity. - -Mr. Cavendish was of opinion that more than one kind of fixed air was -given out by marble; in other words, that the elastic fluid emitted, -consisted of two different airs, one more absorbable by water than -the other. He drew his conclusion from the circumstance that after a -solution of potash had been exposed to a quantity of fixed air for -some time, it ceased to absorb any more; yet, if the residual portion -of air were thrown away and new fixed air substituted in its place, it -began to absorb again; but Mr. Dalton has since given a satisfactory -explanation of this seeming anomaly by showing that the absorbability -of fixed air in water is proportional to its purity, and that when -mixed with a great quantity of common air or any other gas not soluble -in water, it ceases to be sensibly absorbed. - -Mr. Cavendish ascertained the quantity of fixed air contained in -marble, carbonate of ammonia, common pearlashes, and carbonate of -potash: but notwithstanding the care with which these experiments were -made they are of little value; because the proper precautions could not -be taken, in that infant state of chemical science, to have these salts -in a state of purity. The following were the results obtained by Mr. -Cavendish: - - 1000 grains of marble contained 408 grs. fixed air. - 1000 -- carb. of ammonia 533 -- - 1000 -- pearlashes 284 -- - 1000 -- carb. of potash 423 -- - -Supposing the marble, carbonate of ammonia, and carbonate of potash, to -have been pure anhydrous simple salts, their composition would be - - 1000 grains of marble contain 440 grs. fixed air. - 1000 -- carb. of ammonia 709·6 -- - 1000 -- carb. of potash 314·2 -- - -Bicarbonate of potash was first obtained by Dr. Black. Mr. Cavendish -formed the salt by dissolving pearlashes in water, and passing a -current of carbonic acid gas through the solution till it deposited -crystals. These crystals were not altered by exposure to the air, did -not deliquesce, and were soluble in about four times their weight of -cold water. - -Dr. M’Bride had already ascertained that vegetable and animal -substances yield fixed air by putrefaction and fermentation. Mr. -Cavendish found by experiment that sugar when dissolved in water -and fermented, gives out 57-100ths of its weight of fixed air, -possessing exactly the properties of fixed air from marble. During -the fermentation no air was absorbed, nor was any change induced on -the common air, at the surface of the fermenting liquor. Apple-juice -fermented much faster than sugar; but the phenomena were the same, -and the fixed air emitted amounted to 381/1000 of the weight of the -solid extract of apples. Gravy and raw meat yielded inflammable air -during their putrefaction, the former in much greater quantity than the -latter. This air, as far as Mr. Cavendish’s experiments went, he found -the same as the inflammable air from zinc by dilute sulphuric acid; but -its specific gravity was a little higher. - -This paper of Mr. Cavendish was the first attempt by chemists to -collect the different kinds of air, and endeavour to ascertain their -nature. Hence all his processes were in some measure new: they served -as a model to future experimenters, and were gradually brought to their -present state of simplicity and perfection. He was the first person -who attempted to determine the specific gravity of airs, by comparing -their weight with that of the same bulk of common air; and though -his apparatus was defective, yet the principle was good, and is the -very same which is still employed to accomplish the same object. Mr. -Cavendish then first began the true investigation of gases, and in his -first paper he determined the peculiar nature of two very remarkable -gases, _carbonic_ and _hydrogen_. - -2. Mineral waters have at all times attracted the attention of the -faculty in consequence of their peculiar properties and medical -virtues. Some faint steps towards their investigation were taken by -Boyle. Du Clos attempted a chemical analysis of the mineral waters in -France; and Hierne made a similar investigation of the mineral waters -of Sweden. Though these experiments were rude and inaccurate, they -led to the knowledge of several facts respecting mineral waters which -chemists were unable to explain. One of these was the existence of a -considerable quantity of _calcareous earth_ in some mineral waters, -which was precipitated by boiling. Nobody could conceive in what way -this insoluble substance (_carbonate of lime_) was held in solution, -nor why it was thrown down when the water was raised to a boiling -heat. It was to determine this point that Mr. Cavendish made his -experiments on Rathbone-place water, which were published in the year -1767, and which may be considered as the first analysis of a mineral -water that possessed tolerable accuracy. Rathbone-place water was -raised by a pump, and supplied the portion of London in its immediate -neighbourhood. Mr. Cavendish found that when boiled, it deposited a -quantity of earthy matter, consisting chiefly of lime, but containing -also a little magnesia. This he showed was held in solution by fixed -air; and he proved experimentally, that when an excess of this gas -is present, it has the property of holding lime and magnesia in -solution.[187] Besides these earthy carbonates, the water was found to -contain a little ammonia, some sulphate of lime, and some common salt. -Mr. Cavendish examined, likewise, some other pump-water in London, and -showed that it contained lime, held in solution by carbonic acid. - -[187] The salts held in solution are in the state of bicarbonates of -lime and magnesia. Boiling drives off half the carbonic acid, and the -simple carbonates being insoluble are precipitated. - -3. Dr. Priestley, at a pretty early period of his chemical career, -had discovered that when nitrous gas is mixed with common air over -water, a diminution of bulk takes place; that there is a still greater -diminution of bulk when oxygen gas is employed instead of common -air; and that the diminution is always proportional to the quantity -of oxygen gas present in the gas mixed with the nitrous gas. This -discovery induced him to employ nitrous gas as a test of the quantity -of oxygen present in common air; and various instruments were contrived -to facilitate the mixture of the gases, and the measurement of the -diminution of volume which took place. As the goodness of air, or its -fitness to support combustion, and maintain animal life, was conceived -to depend upon the proportion of oxygen gas which it contained, these -instruments were distinguished by the name of _eudiometers_; the -simplest of them was contrived by Fontana, and is usually distinguished -by the name of the _eudiometer of Fontana_. Philosophers, in examining -air by means of this instrument, at various seasons, and in various -places, had found considerable differences in the diminution of -bulk: hence they inferred that the proportion of oxygen varies in -different places; and to this variation they ascribed the healthiness -or noxiousness of particular situations. For example, Dr. Ingenhousz -had found a greater proportion of oxygen in the air above the sea, and -on the sea-coast; and to this he ascribed the healthiness of maritime -situations. Mr. Cavendish examined this important point with his usual -patient industry and acute discernment, and published the result in the -Philosophical Transactions for 1783. He ascertained that the apparent -variations were owing to inaccuracies in making the experiment; and -that when the requisite precautions are taken, the proportion of oxygen -in air is found constant in all places, and at all seasons. This -conclusion has since been confirmed by numerous observations in every -part of the globe. Mr. Cavendish also analyzed common air, and found it -to consist of - - 79·16 volumes azotic gas, - 20·84 volumes oxygen gas. - ------ - 100·00 - -4. For many years it was the opinion of chemists that mercury is -essentially liquid, and that no degree of cold is capable of congealing -it. Professor Braun’s accidental discovery that it may be frozen by -cold, like other liquids, was at first doubted; and when it was finally -established by the most conclusive experiments, it was inferred from -the observations of Braun that the freezing point of mercury is several -hundred degrees below zero on Fahrenheit’s scale. It became an object -of great importance to determine the exact point of the congelation -of this metal by accurate experiments. This was done at Hudson’s Bay, -by Mr. Hutchins, who followed a set of directions given him by Mr. -Cavendish, and from his experiments Mr. Cavendish, in a paper inserted -in the Philosophical Transactions for 1783, deduced that the freezing -point of mercury is 38·66 degrees below the zero of Fahrenheit’s -thermometer. - -5. These experiments naturally drew the attention of Mr. Cavendish to -the phenomena of freezing, to the action of freezing mixtures, and the -congelation of acids. He employed Mr. M’Nab, who was settled in the -neighbourhood of Hudson’s Bay, to make the requisite experiments; and -he published two very curious and important papers on these subjects -in the Philosophical Transactions for 1786 and 1788. He explained the -phenomena of congelation exactly according to the theory of Dr. Black, -but rejecting the hypothesis that heat is a _substance_ sui generis, -and thinking it more probable, with Sir Isaac Newton, that it is -owing to the rapid internal motion of the particles of the hot body. -The latent heat of water, he found to be 150°. The observations on the -congelation of nitric and sulphuric acids are highly interesting: he -showed that their freezing points vary considerably, according to the -strength of each; and drew up tables indicating the freezing points of -acids, of various degrees of strength. - -6. But the most splendid and valuable of Mr. Cavendish’s chemical -experiments were published in two papers, entitled, “Experiments on -Air,” in the Transactions of the Royal Society for 1784 and 1785. The -object of these experiments was to determine what happened during the -_phlogistication of air_, as it was at that time termed; that is, the -change which air underwent when metals were calcined in contact with -it, when sulphur or phosphorus was burnt in it, and in several similar -processes. He showed, in the first place, that there was no reason for -supposing that carbonic acid was formed, except when some animal or -vegetable substance was present; that when _hydrogen gas_ was burnt -in contact with air or oxygen gas, it _combined_ with that gas, and -formed _water_; that _nitrous gas_, by combining with the oxygen of the -atmosphere, formed _nitrous acid_; and that when _oxygen_ and _azotic_ -gas are mixed in the requisite proportions, and electric sparks passed -through the mixture, they _combine_, and form _nitric_ acid. - -The first of these opinions occasioned a controversy between Mr. -Cavendish, and Mr. Kirwan, who maintained that carbonic acid is always -produced when air is phlogisticated. Two papers on this subject by -Kirwan, and one by Cavendish, are inserted in the Philosophical -Transactions for 1784, each remarkable examples of the peculiar manner -of the respective writers. All the arguments of Kirwan are founded on -the experiments of others. He displays great reading, and a strong -memory; but does not discriminate between the merits of the chemists -on whose authority he founds his opinions. Mr. Cavendish, on the other -hand, never advances a single opinion, which he has not put to the -test of experiment; and never suffers himself to go any further than -his experiment will warrant. Whatever is not accurately determined -by unexceptionable trials, is merely stated as a conjecture on which -little stress is laid. - -In the first of these celebrated papers, Mr. Cavendish has drawn a -comparison between the phlogistic and antiphlogistic theories of -chemistry; he has shown that each of them is capable of explaining -the phenomena in a satisfactory manner; though it is impossible to -demonstrate the truth of either; and he has given the reasons which -induced him to prefer the phlogistic theory--reasons which the French -chemists were unable to refute, and which they were wise enough not -to notice. There cannot be a more striking proof of the influence of -fashion, even in science, and of the unwarrantable precipitation with -which opinions are rejected or embraced by philosophers, than the total -inattention paid by the chemical world to this admirable dissertation. -Had Mr. Kirwan adopted the opinions of Mr. Cavendish, when he undertook -the defence of phlogiston, instead of trusting to the vague experiments -of inaccurate chemists, he would not have been obliged to yield to his -French antagonists, and the antiphlogistic theory would not so speedily -have gained ground. - -Such is an epitome of the chemical papers of Mr. Cavendish. They -contain five notable discoveries; namely, 1. The nature and properties -of hydrogen gas. 2. The solubility of bicarbonates of lime and magnesia -in water. 3. The exact proportion of the constituents of common air. 4. -The composition of water. 5. The composition of nitric acid. It is to -him also that we are indebted for our knowledge of the freezing point -of mercury; and he was likewise the first person who showed that potash -has a stronger affinity for acids than soda has. His experiments on the -subject are to be found in a paper on Mineral Waters, published in the -Philosophical Transactions, by Dr. Donald Monro. - - - - -END OF VOL. I. - - - C. WHITING, BEAUFORT HOUSE, STRAND. - - - - - -ANCIENT HISTORIANS, POETS, &c. - - - _Now in course of Publication, in Monthly volumes (containing - on the average 350 pages of letter-press), price only 4s. 6d. - each, neatly bound, and embellished with Engravings on steel by - the first Artists_, - -THE FAMILY CLASSICAL LIBRARY; or, ENGLISH TRANSLATIONS of the -most valuable GREEK AND LATIN HISTORIANS, POETS AND ORATORS. With -BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES of EACH AUTHOR, and COPIOUS ILLUSTRATIVE NOTES. -Edited by A. J. VALPY, M. A. - -CICERO remarks, that not to know what has been transacted in -former times, is to continue always a child. If no use be made of the -labours of past ages, the world must remain always in the infancy of -knowledge: and the learned Dr. Parr says, “If you desire your son, -though no great scholar, to read and reflect, it is your duty _to -place_ in his hands the best _Translations_ of the best _Classical_ -Authors.” - -To those, therefore, who are desirous of obtaining a knowledge of the -most esteemed authors of Greece and Rome, but possess not the means or -leisure for pursuing a regular course of study, the present undertaking -must prove a valuable acquisition. 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You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: The History of Chemistry, Volume 1 (of 2) - -Author: Thomas Thomson - -Release Date: November 27, 2015 [EBook #50565] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HISTORY OF CHEMISTRY, VOL 1 *** - - - - -Produced by MWS, Wayne Hammond and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was -produced from images generously made available by The -Internet Archive) - - - - - - -</pre> - - -<div class="figcenter"> -<img id="coverpage" src="images/cover.jpg" -alt="" /> -<p class="copy">The cover image was created by the transcriber and is placed in the public domain.</p> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/i_frontis.jpg" -alt="" /> -<span class="table" style="width: 450px"> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell tdl"><i>Raeburn. pinx<sup>t</sup>.</i></span> - <span class="tcell tdr"><i>Dean, sculp<sup>t</sup>.</i></span> - </span> -</span> -<span class="caption">JOSEPH BLACK, M.D. F.R.S.E.<br /> -<small><i>London. Published by Henry Colburn & Richard Bentley. 1830.</i></small> -</span> -</div> - -<hr /> - -<h1><span class="medium">THE</span><br /> - -HISTORY<br /> - -<span class="medium">OF</span><br /> - -CHEMISTRY.<br /> - -<span class="medium">BY</span><br /> -<span class="xlarge">THOMAS THOMSON, M.D. F.R.S.E.</span><br /> -<span class="small">PROFESSOR OF CHEMISTRY IN THE UNIVERSITY OF GLASGOW.</span><br /> - -<span class="large">IN TWO VOLUMES.</span><br /> - -<span class="xlarge">VOL. I.</span><br /> - -<span class="large">LONDON:<br /> -HENRY COLBURN, AND RICHARD BENTLEY,</span><br /> -<span class="medium">NEW BURLINGTON STREET.<br /> - -1830.</span><br /> - -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_i">i</span> - -<span class="medium">C. WHITING, BEAUFORT HOUSE, STRAND.</span></h1> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_ii">ii</span></p> - -<h2 id="PREFACE">PREFACE.</h2> - -<p>It may be proper, perhaps, to state here, in a very -few words, the objects which the author had in view -in drawing up the following History of Chemistry. -Alchymy, or the art of making gold, with which the -science originated, furnishes too curious a portion of -the aberrations of the human intellect to be passed over -in silence. The writings of the alchymists are so voluminous -and so mystical, that it would have afforded -materials for a very long work. But I was prevented -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_iii">iii</span> -from extending this part of the subject to any greater -length than I have done, by considering the small -quantity of information which could have been gleaned -from the reveries of these fanatics or impostors; I -thought it sufficient to give a general view of the nature -of their pursuits: but in order to put it in the -power of those who feel inclined to prosecute such investigations, -I have given a catalogue of the most -eminent of the alchymists and a list of their works, so -far as I am acquainted with them. This catalogue -might have been greatly extended. Indeed it would -have been possible to have added several hundred -names. But I think the works which I have quoted -are more than almost any reasonable man would think -it worth his while to peruse; and I can state, from experience, -that the information gained by such a perusal -will very seldom repay the trouble.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>The account of the chemical arts, with which the -ancients were acquainted, is necessarily imperfect; -because all arts and trades were held in so much contempt -by them that they did not think it worth their -while to make themselves acquainted with the processes. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_iv">iv</span> -My chief guide has been Pliny, but many of -his descriptions are unintelligible, obviously from his -ignorance of the arts which he attempts to describe. -Thus circumstanced, I thought it better to be short -than to waste a great deal of paper, as some have done, -on hypothesis and conjecture.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>The account of the Chemistry of the Arabians is -almost entirely limited to the works of Geber, which I -consider to be the first book on Chemistry that ever -was published, and to constitute, in every point of -view, an exceedingly curious performance. I was -much struck with the vast number of facts with which -he was acquainted, and which have generally been supposed -to have been discovered long after his time. I -have, therefore, been at some pains in endeavouring to -convey a notion of Geber’s opinions to the readers of -this history; but am not sure that I have succeeded. -I have generally given his own words, as literally as -possible, and, wherever it would answer the purpose, -have employed the English translation of 1678.</p> - -<p>Paracelsus gave origin to so great a revolution in medicine -and the sciences connected with it, that it would -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_v">v</span> -have been unpardonable not to have attempted to lay -his opinions and views before the reader; but, after perusing -several of his most important treatises, I found -it almost impossible to form accurate notions on the -subject. I have, therefore, endeavoured to make use -of his own words as much as possible, that the want -of consistency and the mysticism of his opinions may -fall upon his own head. Should the reader find any -difficulty in understanding the philosophy of Paracelsus, -he will be in no worse a situation than every one -has been who has attempted to delineate the principles -of this prince of quacks and impostors. Van -Helmont’s merits were of a much higher kind, and I -have endeavoured to do him justice; though his weaknesses -are so visible that it requires much candour -and patience to discriminate accurately between his -excellencies and his foibles.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>The history of Iatro-chemistry forms a branch of -our subject scarcely less extraordinary than Alchymy -itself. It might have been extended to a much greater -length than I have done. The reason why I did not -enter into longer details was, that I thought the subject -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_vi">vi</span> -more intimately connected with the history of medicine -than of chemistry: it undoubtedly contributed to the -improvement of chemistry; not, however, by the -opinions or the physiology of the iatro-chemists, but by -inducing their contemporaries and successors to apply -themselves to the discovery of chemical medicines.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>The History of Chemistry, after a theory of combustion -had been introduced by Beccher and Stahl, becomes -much more important. It now shook off the -trammels of alchymy, and ventured to claim its station -among the physical sciences. I have found it necessary -to treat of its progress during the eighteenth century -rather succinctly, but I hope so as to be easily intelligible. -This made it necessary to omit the names of -many meritorious individuals, who supplied a share of -the contributions which the science was continually -receiving from all quarters. I have confined myself -to those who made the most prominent figure as chemical -discoverers. I had no other choice but to follow -this plan, unless I had doubled the size of this little -work, which would have rendered it less agreeable and -less valuable to the general reader. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_vii">vii</span></p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>With respect to the History of Chemistry during -that portion of the nineteenth century which is already -past, it was beset with several difficulties. Many of -the individuals, of whose labours I had occasion to -speak, are still actively engaged in the prosecution of -their useful works. Others have but just left the -arena, and their friends and relations still remain to -appreciate their merits. In treating of this branch of -the science (by far the most important of all) I have -followed the same plan as in the history of the preceding -century. I have found it necessary to omit many -names that would undoubtedly have found a place in a -larger work, but which the limited extent to which I -was obliged to confine myself, necessarily compelled -me to pass over. I have been anxious not to injure the -character of any one, while I have rigidly adhered to -truth, so far as I was acquainted with it. Should I -have been so unfortunate as to hurt the feelings of any -individual by any remarks of mine in the following -pages, it will give me great pain; and the only alleviation -will be the consciousness of the total absence on -my part of any malignant intention. To gratify the -wishes of every individual may, perhaps, be impossible; -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_viii">viii</span> -but I can say, with truth, that my uniform -object has been to do justice to the merits of all, so far -as my own limited knowledge put it in my power -to do. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_ix">ix</span> -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_x">x</span></p> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<h2 id="CONTENTS">CONTENTS<br /> - -<span class="medium">OF</span><br /> - -<span class="large">THE FIRST VOLUME.</span></h2> - -<table> - <tr> - <td></td> - <td class="tdr">Page</td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td><a href="#INTRODUCTION">Introduction</a></td> - <td class="tdr">1</td> - </tr> - <tr> - <th colspan="2"><a href="#CHAPTER_I">CHAPTER I.</a></th> - </tr> - <tr> - <td>Of Alchymy</td> - <td class="tdr">3</td> - </tr> - <tr> - <th colspan="2"><a href="#CHAPTER_II">CHAPTER II.</a></th> - </tr> - <tr> - <td>Of the chemical knowledge possessed by the Ancients</td> - <td class="tdr">49</td> - </tr> - <tr> - <th colspan="2"><a href="#CHAPTER_III">CHAPTER III.</a></th> - </tr> - <tr> - <td>Chemistry of the Arabians</td> - <td class="tdr">110</td> - </tr> - <tr> - <th colspan="2"><a href="#CHAPTER_IV">CHAPTER IV.</a></th> - </tr> - <tr> - <td>Of the progress of Chemistry under Paracelsus and his disciples</td> - <td class="tdr">140</td> - </tr> - <tr> - <th colspan="2"><a href="#CHAPTER_V">CHAPTER V.</a></th> - </tr> - <tr> - <td>Of Van Helmont and the Iatro-Chemists</td> - <td class="tdr">179</td> - </tr> - <tr> - <th colspan="2"><a href="#CHAPTER_VI">CHAPTER VI.</a></th> - </tr> - <tr> - <td>Of Agricola and metallurgy</td> - <td class="tdr">219</td> - </tr> - <tr> - <th colspan="2"><a href="#CHAPTER_VII">CHAPTER VII.</a></th> - </tr> - <tr> - <td>Of Glauber, Lemery, and some other chemists of the end of the seventeenth century</td> - <td class="tdr">226</td> - </tr> - <tr> - <th colspan="2"><a href="#CHAPTER_VIII">CHAPTER VIII.</a></th> - </tr> - <tr> - <td>Of the attempts to establish a theory in chemistry</td> - <td class="tdr">246</td> - </tr> - <tr> - <th colspan="2"><a href="#CHAPTER_IX">CHAPTER IX.</a></th> - </tr> - <tr> - <td>Of the foundation and progress of scientific chemistry in Great Britain</td> - <td class="tdr">303</td> - </tr> -</table> -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_xi">xi</span></p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_1">1</span></p> - -<p class="ph1">HISTORY OF CHEMISTRY.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<h2 id="INTRODUCTION">INTRODUCTION.</h2> - -<p>Chemistry, unlike the other sciences, sprang originally -from delusion and superstition, and was at its -commencement exactly on a level with magic and -astrology. Even after it began to be useful to -man, by furnishing him with better and more powerful -medicines than the ancient physicians were acquainted -with, it was long before it could shake off -the trammels of alchymy, which hung upon it like a -nightmare, cramping and blunting all its energies, -and exposing it to the scorn and contempt of the -enlightened part of mankind. It was not till about -the middle of the eighteenth century that it was -able to free itself from these delusions, and to venture -abroad in all the native dignity of a useful science. -It was then that its utility and its importance -began to attract the attention of the world; that it -drew within its vortex some of the greatest and most -active men in every country; and that it advanced -towards perfection with an accelerated pace. The -field which it now presents to our view is vast and -imposing. Its paramount utility is universally acknowledged. -It has become a necessary part of education. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_2">2</span> -It has contributed as much to the progress of -society, and has done as much to augment the comforts -and conveniences of life, and to increase the -power and the resources of mankind, as all the other -sciences put together.</p> - -<p>It is natural to feel a desire to be acquainted with -the origin and the progress of such a science; and to -know something of the history and character of those -numerous votaries to whom it is indebted for its progress -and improvement. The object of this little work -is to gratify these laudable wishes, by taking a rapid -view of the progress of Chemistry, from its first rude -and disgraceful beginnings till it has reached its present -state of importance and dignity. I shall divide -the subject into fifteen chapters. In the first I shall -treat of Alchymy, which may be considered as the inauspicious -commencement of the science, and which, -in fact, consists of little else than an account of dupes -and impostors; every where so full of fiction and obscurity, -that it is a hopeless and almost impossible -task to reach the truth. In the second chapter I shall -endeavour to point out the few small chemical rills, -which were known to the ancients. These I shall follow -in their progress, in the succeeding chapters, till -at last, augmented by an infinite number of streams -flowing at once from a thousand different quarters, -they have swelled to the mighty river, which now flows -on majestically, wafting wealth and information to the -civilized world. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_3">3</span></p> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<h2 id="CHAPTER_I">CHAPTER I.<br /> - -<span class="large">OF ALCHYMY.</span></h2> - -<p>The word <i>chemistry</i> (χημεια, <i>chemeia</i>) first occurs in -Suidas, a Greek writer, who is supposed to have lived -in the eleventh century, and to have written his -lexicon during the reign of Alexius Comnenus.<a id="FNanchor_1" href="#Footnote_1" class="fnanchor">1</a> -Under the word χημεια in his dictionary we find the -following passage:</p> - -<p>“<span class="smcap">Chemistry</span>, the preparation of silver and gold. -The books on it were sought out by Dioclesian and -burnt, on account of the new attempts made by the -Egyptians against him. He treated them with cruelty -and harshness, as he sought out the books written by -the ancients on the chemistry (Περι χημειας) of gold -and silver, and burnt them. His object was to prevent -the Egyptians from becoming rich by the knowledge -of this art, lest, emboldened by abundance of -wealth, they might be induced afterwards to resist the -Romans.”<a id="FNanchor_2" href="#Footnote_2" class="fnanchor">2</a> -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_4">4</span></p> - -<p>Under the word Δερας, <i>deras</i> (<i>a skin</i>), in the lexicon, -occurs the following passage: “Δερας, the golden fleece, -which Jason and the Argonauts (after a voyage through -the Black Sea to Colchis) took, together with Medea, -daughter of Ætes, the king. But this was not what -the poets represent, but a treatise written on skins -(δερμασι), teaching how gold might be prepared by -chemistry. Probably, therefore, it was called by -those who lived at that time, <i>golden</i>, on account of -its great importance.”<a id="FNanchor_3" href="#Footnote_3" class="fnanchor">3</a></p> - -<p>From these two passages there can be no doubt that -the word <i>chemistry</i> was known to the Greeks in the eleventh -century; and that it signified, at that time, the -art of making gold and silver. It appears, further, -that in Suidas’s opinion, this art was known to the -Egyptians in the time of Dioclesian; that Dioclesian -was convinced of its reality; and that, to put an end -to it, he collected and burnt all the chemical writings -to be found in Egypt. Nay, Suidas affirms that a -book, describing the art of making gold, existed at -the time of the Argonauts: and that the object of -Jason and his followers was to get possession of that -invaluable treatise, which the poets disguised under -the term <i>golden fleece</i>.</p> - -<p>The first meaning, then, of chemistry, was the <i>art -of making gold</i>. And this art, in the opinion of -Suidas, was understood at least as early as one thousand -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_5">5</span> -two hundred and twenty-five years before the -Christian era: for that is the period at which the Argonautic -expedition is commonly fixed by chronologists.</p> - -<p>Though the lexicon of Suidas be the first printed -book in which the word Chemistry occurs, yet it is -said to be found in much earlier tracts, which still -continue in manuscript. Thus Scaliger informs us -that he perused a Greek manuscript of Zosimus, the -Panapolite, written in the fifth century, and deposited -in the King of France’s library. Olaus Borrichius -mentions this manuscript; but in such terms that it -is difficult to know whether he had himself read it; -though he seems to insinuate as much.<a id="FNanchor_4" href="#Footnote_4" class="fnanchor">4</a> The title -of this manuscript is said to be “A faithful Description -of the sacred and divine Art of making Gold -and Silver, by Zosimus, the Panapolite.”<a id="FNanchor_5" href="#Footnote_5" class="fnanchor">5</a> In this -treatise, Zosimus distinguishes the art by the name -χημια, <i>chemia</i>. From a passage in this manuscript, -quoted by Scaliger, and given also by Olaus Borrichius, -it appears that Zosimus carries the antiquity of -the art of making gold and silver, much higher than -Suidas has ventured to do. The following is a literal -translation of this curious passage:</p> - -<p>“The sacred Scriptures inform us that there exists -a tribe of genii, who make use of women. Hermes -mentions this circumstance in his Physics; and almost -every writing (λογος), whether sacred (φανερος) or apocryphal, -states the same thing. The ancient and -divine Scriptures inform us, that the angels, captivated -by women, taught them all the operations of nature. -Offence being taken at this, they remained out of -heaven, because they had taught mankind all manner -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_6">6</span> -of evil, and things which could not be advantageous -to their souls. The Scriptures inform us that the -giants sprang from these embraces. Chema is the -first of their traditions respecting these arts. The -book itself they called Chema; hence the art is called -<i>Chemia</i>.”</p> - -<p>Zosimus is not the only Greek writer on Chemistry. -Olaus Borrichius has given us a list of thirty-eight -treatises, which he says exist in the libraries of Rome, -Venice, and Paris: and Dr. Shaw has increased this -list to eighty-nine.<a id="FNanchor_6" href="#Footnote_6" class="fnanchor">6</a> But among these we find the -names of Hermes, Isis, Horus, Democritus, Cleopatra, -Porphyry, Plato, &c.—names which undoubtedly have -been affixed to the writings of comparatively modern -and obscure authors. The style of these authors, as -Borrichius informs us, is barbarous. They are chiefly -the production of ecclesiastics, who lived between the -fifth and twelfth centuries. In these tracts, the art -of which they treat is sometimes called <i>chemistry</i> -(χημεια); sometimes the <i>chemical art</i> (χημευτικα); -sometimes the <i>holy art</i>; and the <i>philosopher’s stone</i>.</p> - -<p>It is evident from this, that between the fifth century -and the taking of Constantinople in the fifteenth -century, the Greeks believed in the possibility of making -gold and silver artificially; and that the art which -professed to teach these processes was called by them -Chemistry.</p> - -<p>These opinions passed from the Greeks to the Arabians, -when, under the califs of the family of Abassides, -they began to turn their attention to science, -about the beginning of the ninth century; and when -the enlightened zeal of the Fatimites in Africa, and -the Ommiades in Spain, encouraged the cultivation -of the sciences. From Spain they gradually made -their way into the different Christian kingdoms of Europe. -From the eleventh to the sixteenth century, the art -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_7">7</span> -of making gold and silver was cultivated in Germany, -Italy, France, and England, with considerable assiduity. -The cultivators of it were called <i>Alchymists</i>; -a name obviously derived from the Greek word <i>chemia</i>, -but somewhat altered by the Arabians. Many -alchymistical tracts were written during that period. -A considerable number of them were collected by -Lazarus Zetzner, and published at Strasburg in 1602, -under the title of “Theatrum Chemicum, præcipuos -selectorum auctorum tractatus de Chemiæ et Lapidis -Philosophici Antiquitate, veritate, jure, præstantia, -et operationibus continens in gratiam veræ Chemiæ -et Medicinæ Chemicæ Studiosorum (ut qui uberrimam -unde optimorum remediorum messem facere poterunt) -congestum et in quatuor partes seu volumina digestum.” -This book contains one hundred and five -different alchymistical tracts.</p> - -<p>In the year 1610 another collection of alchymistical -tracts was published at Basil, in three volumes, under -the title of “Artis Auriferæ quam Chemiam vocant volumina -tria.” It contains forty-seven different tracts.</p> - -<p>In the year 1702 Mangetus published at Geneva -two very large folio volumes, under the name of “Bibliotheca -Chemica Curiosa, seu rerum ad Alchymiam -pertinentium thesaurus instructissimus, quo non tantum -Artis Auriferæ ac scriptorum in ea nobiliorum -Historia traditur; lapidis veritas Argumentis et Experimentis -innumeris, immo et Juris Consultorum Judiciis -evincitur; Termini obscuriores explicantur; Cautiones -contra Impostores et Difficultates in Tinctura -Universali conficienda occurrentes declarantur: verum -etiam Tractatus omnes Virorum Celebriorum, qui in -Magno sudarunt Elixyre, quique ab ipso Hermete, ut -dicitur, Trismegisto, ad nostra usque tempora de Chrysopoea -scripserunt, cum præcipuis suis Commentariis, -concinno ordine dispositi exhibentur.” This Bibliotheca -contains one hundred and twenty-two alchymistical -treatises, many of them of considerable length. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_8">8</span></p> - -<p>Two additional volumes of the Theatrum Chemicum -were afterwards published; but these I have never -had an opportunity of seeing.</p> - -<p>From these collections, which exhibit a pretty complete -view of the writings of the alchymists, a tolerably -accurate notion may be formed of their opinions. But -before attempting to lay open the theories and notions -by which the alchymists were guided, it will be proper -to state the opinions which were gradually adopted -respecting the origin of Alchymy, and the contrivances -by which these opinions were supported.</p> - -<p>Zosimus, the Panapolite, in a passage quoted above -informs us, that the art of making gold and silver was -not a human invention; but was communicated to -mankind by angels or demons. These angels, he says, -fell in love with women, and were induced by their -charms to abandon heaven altogether, and take up -their abode upon earth. Among other pieces of information -which these spiritual beings communicated -to their paramours, was the sublime art of Chemistry, -or the fabrication of gold and silver.</p> - -<p>It is quite unnecessary to refute this extravagant -opinion, obviously founded on a misunderstanding of -a passage in the sixth chapter of Genesis. “And it -came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face -of the earth, and daughters were born unto them, -that the sons of God saw the daughters of men, that -they were fair; and they took them wives of all which -they chose.—There were giants in the earth in those -days; and also after that, when the sons of God came -in unto the daughters of men, and they bare <i>children</i> -to them; the same became mighty men, which were of -old, men of renown.”</p> - -<p>There is no mention whatever of angels, or of any -information on science communicated by them to -mankind.</p> - -<p>Nor is it necessary to say much about the opinion -advanced by some, and rather countenanced by Olaus -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_9">9</span> -Borrichius, that the art of making gold was the invention -of Tubal-cain, whom they represent as the same as -Vulcan. All the information which we have respecting -Tubal-cain, is simply that he was an instructor of -every artificer in brass and iron.<a id="FNanchor_7" href="#Footnote_7" class="fnanchor">7</a> No allusion whatever -is made to gold. And that in these early ages of -the world there was no occasion for making gold artificially, -we have the same authority for believing. For -in the second chapter of Genesis, where the garden of -Eden is described, it is said, “And a river went out -of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was -parted, and came into four heads: the name of the -first is Pison, that is it which encompasseth the whole -land of Havilah, where there is gold. And the gold -of that land is good: there is bdellium and onyx-stone.”</p> - -<p>But the most generally-received opinion is, that -alchymy originated in Egypt; and the honour of the -invention has been unanimously conferred upon -Hermes Trismegistus. He is by some supposed to be -the same person with Chanaan, the son of Ham, -whose son Mizraim first occupied and peopled Egypt. -Plutarch informs us, that Egypt was sometimes called -<i>Chemia</i>.<a id="FNanchor_8" href="#Footnote_8" class="fnanchor">8</a> This name is supposed to be derived from -Chanaan (ןענכ); thence it was believed that Chanaan -was the true inventor of alchymy, to which he -affixed his own name. Whether the Hermes (Ἑρμης) -of the Greeks was the same person with Chanaan or -his son Mizraim, it is impossible at this distance of -time to decide; but to Hermes is assigned the invention -of alchymy, or the art of making gold, by almost -the unanimous consent of the adepts.</p> - -<p>Albertus Magnus informs us, that “Alexander the -Great discovered the sepulchre of Hermes, in one of -his journeys, full of all treasures, not metallic, but -golden, written on a table of <i>zatadi</i>, which others call -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_10">10</span> -emerald.” This passage occurs in a tract of Albertus -<i>de secretis chemicis</i>, which is considered as supposititious. -Nothing is said of the source whence the information -contained in this passage was drawn: but, -from the quotations produced by Kriegsmann, it -would appear that the existence of this emerald table -was alluded to by Avicenna and other Arabian writers. -According to them, a woman called Sarah took it -from the hands of the dead body of Hermes, some -ages after the flood, in a cave near Hebron. The inscription -on it was in the Phœnician language. The -following is a literal translation of this famous inscription, -from the Latin version of Kriegsmann:<a id="FNanchor_9" href="#Footnote_9" class="fnanchor">9</a></p> - -<p>1. I speak not fictitious things, but what is true and -most certain. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_11">11</span></p> - -<p>2. What is below is like that which is above, and -what is above is similar to that which is below, to accomplish -the miracles of one thing.</p> - -<p>3. And as all things were produced by the meditation -of one Being, so all things were produced from -this one thing by adaptation.</p> - -<p>4. Its father is <i>Sol</i>, its mother <i>Luna</i>; the wind -carried it in its belly, the earth is its nurse.</p> - -<p>5. It is the cause of all perfection throughout the -whole world.</p> - -<p>6. Its power is perfect, if it be changed into earth.</p> - -<p>7. Separate the earth from the fire, the subtile -from the gross, acting prudently and with judgment.</p> - -<p>8. Ascend with the greatest sagacity from the earth -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_12">12</span> -to heaven, and then again descend to the earth, and -unite together the powers of things superior and things -inferior. Thus you will possess the glory of the whole -world; and all obscurity will fly far away from you.</p> - -<p>9. This thing has more fortitude than fortitude itself; -because it will overcome every subtile thing, and -penetrate every solid thing.</p> - -<p>10. By it this world was formed.</p> - -<p>11. Hence proceed wonderful things, which in this -wise were established.</p> - -<p>12. For this reason I am called Hermes Trismegistus, -because I possess three parts of the philosophy of -the whole world.</p> - -<p>13. What I had to say about the operation of <i>Sol</i> -is completed.</p> - -<p>Such is a literal translation of the celebrated inscription -of Hermes Trismegistus upon the emerald -tablet. It is sufficiently obscure to put it in the power -of commentators to affix almost any explanation to it -that they choose. The two individuals who have devoted -most time to illustrate this tablet, are Kriegsmann -and Gerard Dorneus, whose commentaries may -be seen in the first volume of Mangetus’s Bibliotheca -Chemica. They both agree that it refers to the <i>universal -medicine</i>, which began to acquire celebrity -about the time of Paracelsus, or a little earlier.</p> - -<p>This exposition, which appears as probable as any -other, betrays the time when this celebrated inscription -seems to have been really written. Had it been -taken out of the hands of the dead body of Hermes by -Sarah (obviously intended for the wife of Abraham) as -is affirmed by Avicenna, it is not possible that Herodotus, -and all the writers of antiquity, both Pagan and -Christian, should have entirely overlooked it; or how -could Avicenna have learned what was unknown to all -those who lived nearest the time when the discovery -was supposed to have been made? Had it been discovered -in Egypt by Alexander the Great, would it -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_13">13</span> -have been unknown to Aristotle, and to all the numerous -tribe of writers whom the Alexandrian school produced, -not one of whom, however, make the least allusion -to it? In short, it bears all the marks of a forgery -of the fifteenth century. And even the tract ascribed -to Albertus Magnus, in which the tablet of Hermes is -mentioned, and the discovery related, is probably also -a forgery; and doubtless a forgery of the same individual -who fabricated the tablet itself, in order to -throw a greater air of probability upon a story which -he wished to palm upon the world as true. His object -was in some measure accomplished; for the authenticity -of the tablet was supported with much zeal -by Kriegsmann, and afterwards by Olaus Borrichius.</p> - -<p>There is another tract of Hermes Trismegistus, entitled -“Tractatus Aureus de Lapidis Physici Secreto;” -on which no less elaborate commentaries have been -written. It professes to teach the process of making -the <i>philosopher’s stone</i>; and, from the allusions in it, -to the use of this stone, as a universal medicine, was -probably a forgery of the same date as the emerald -tablet. It would be in vain to attempt to extract any -thing intelligible out of this Tractatus Aureus: it may -be worth while to give a single specimen, that the reader -may be able to form some idea of the nature of the style.</p> - -<p>“Take of moisture an ounce and a half; of meridional -redness, that is the soul of the sun, a fourth -part, that is half an ounce; of yellow seyr, likewise -half an ounce; and of auripigmentum, a half ounce, -making in all three ounces. Know that the vine of -wise men is extracted in threes, and its wine at last is -completed in thirty.”<a id="FNanchor_10" href="#Footnote_10" class="fnanchor">10</a> -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_14">14</span></p> - -<p>Had the opinion, that gold and silver could be artificially -formed originated with Hermes Trismegistus, -or had it prevailed among the ancient Egyptians, it -would certainly have been alluded to by Herodotus, -who spent so many years in Egypt, and was instructed -by the priests in all the science of the Egyptians. Had -<i>chemistry</i> been the name of a science, real or fictitious, -which existed as early as the expedition of the -Argonauts, and had so many treatises on it, as Suidas -alleges existed in Egypt before the reign of Dioclesian, -it could hardly have escaped the notice of Pliny, who -was so curious and so indefatigable in his researches, -and who has collected in his natural history a kind of -digest of all the knowledge of the ancients in every -department of practical science. The fact that the -term chemistry (χημεια) never occurs in any Greek or -Roman writer prior to Suidas, who wrote so late as the -eleventh century, seems to overturn all idea of the -existence of that pretended science among the ancients, -notwithstanding the elaborate attempts of -Olaus Borrichius to prove the contrary.</p> - -<p>I am disposed to believe, that chemistry or alchymy, -understanding by the term the <i>art of making gold -and silver</i>, originated among the Arabians, when -they began to turn their attention to medicine, after -the establishment of the caliphs; or if it had previously -been cultivated by Greeks (as the writings of -Zosimus, the Panapolite, if genuine, would lead us to -suppose), that it was taken up by the Arabians, and -reduced by them into regular form and order. -If the works of Geber be genuine, they leave little -doubt on this point. Geber is supposed to have been -a physician, and to have written in the seventh century. -He admits, as a first principle, that metals are -compounds of mercury and sulphur. He talks of the -philosopher’s stone; professes to give the mode of preparing -it; and teaches the way of converting the -different metals, known in his time, into medicines, on -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_15">15</span> -whose efficacy he bestows the most ample panegyrics. -Thus the principles which lie at the bottom of alchymy -were implicitly adopted by him. Yet I can nowhere -find in him any attempt to make gold artificially. His -chemistry was entirely devoted to the improvement of -medicine. The subsequent pretensions of the alchymists -to convert the baser metals into gold are no -where avowed by him. I am disposed from this to -suspect, that the theory of gold-making was started -after Geber’s time, or at least that it was after the -seventh century, before any alchymist ventured to -affirm that he himself was in possession of the secret, -and could fabricate gold artificially at pleasure. For -there is a wide distance between the opinion that gold -may be made artificially and the affirmation that we -are in possession of a method by which this transmutation -of the baser metals into gold can be accomplished. -The first may be adopted and defended with -much plausibility and perfect honesty; but the second -would require a degree of skill far exceeding that of -the most scientific votary of chemistry at present -existing.</p> - -<p>The opinion of the alchymists was, that all the metals -are compounds; that the baser metals contain -the same constituents as gold, contaminated, indeed, -with various impurities, but capable, when their impurities -are removed or remedied, of assuming all the -properties and characters of gold. The substance -possessing this wonderful power they distinguish by -the name of <i>lapis philosophorum</i>, or, philosopher’s -stone, and they usually describe it as a red powder, -having a peculiar smell. Few of the alchymists who -have left writings behind them boast of being possessed -of the philosopher’s stone. Paracelsus, indeed, -affirms, that he was acquainted with the method of -making it, and gives several processes, which, however, -are not intelligible. But many affirm that they -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_16">16</span> -had seen the philosopher’s stone; that they had portions -of it in their possession; and that they had seen -several of the inferior metals, especially lead and -quicksilver, converted by means of it into gold. Many -stories of this kind are upon record, and so well authenticated, -that we need not be surprised at their -having been generally credited. It will be sufficient -if we state one or two of those which depend upon -the most unexceptionable evidence. The following -relation is given by Mangetus, on the authority of -M. Gros, a clergyman of Geneva, of the most unexceptionable -character, and at the same time a skilful -physician and expert chemist:</p> - -<p>“About the year 1650 an unknown Italian came to -Geneva, and took lodgings at the sign of the <i>Green -Cross</i>. After remaining there a day or two, he requested -De Luc, the landlord, to procure him a man -acquainted with Italian, to accompany him through -the town and point out those things which deserved to -be examined. De Luc was acquainted with M. Gros, -at that time about twenty years of age, and a student -in Geneva, and knowing his proficiency in the Italian -language, requested him to accompany the stranger. -To this proposition he willingly acceded, and attended -the Italian every where for the space of a fortnight. -The stranger now began to complain of want of money, -which alarmed M. Gros not a little—for at that -time he was very poor—and he became apprehensive, -from the tenour of the stranger’s conversation, that he -intended to ask the loan of money from him. But -instead of this, the Italian asked him if he was acquainted -with any goldsmith, whose bellows and other -utensils they might be permitted to use, and who -would not refuse to supply them with the different -articles requisite for a particular process which he -wanted to perform. M. Gros named a M. Bureau, to -whom the Italian immediately repaired. He readily -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_17">17</span> -furnished crucibles, pure tin, quicksilver, and the -other things required by the Italian. The goldsmith -left his workshop, that the Italian might be under the -less restraint, leaving M. Gros, with one of his own -workmen, as an attendant. The Italian put a quantity -of tin into one crucible, and a quantity of quicksilver -into another. The tin was melted in the fire and the -mercury heated. It was then poured into the melted -tin, and at the same time a red powder enclosed in wax -was projected into the amalgam. An agitation took -place, and a great deal of smoke was exhaled from -the crucible; but this speedily subsided, and the -whole being poured out, formed six heavy ingots, -having the colour of gold. The goldsmith was called -in by the Italian, and requested to make a rigid examination -of the smallest of these ingots. The goldsmith, -not content with the touchstone and the application -of aqua fortis, exposed the metal on the cupel -with lead, and fused it with antimony, but it sustained -no loss. He found it possessed of the ductility -and specific gravity of gold; and full of admiration, -he exclaimed that he had never worked before -upon gold so perfectly pure. The Italian made him a -present of the smallest ingot as a recompence, and -then, accompanied by M. Gros, he repaired to the -Mint, where he received from M. Bacuet, the mintmaster, -a quantity of Spanish gold coin, equal in -weight to the ingots which he had brought. To M. -Gros he made a present of twenty pieces, on account -of the attention that he had paid to him; and, after -paying his bill at the inn, he added fifteen pieces -more, to serve to entertain M. Gros and M. Bureau -for some days, and in the mean time he ordered a -supper, that he might, on his return, have the pleasure -of supping with these two gentlemen. He went -out, but never returned, leaving behind him the -greatest regret and admiration. It is needless to add, -that M. Gros and M. Bureau continued to enjoy -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_18">18</span> -themselves at the inn till the fifteen pieces, which the -stranger had left, were exhausted.”<a id="FNanchor_11" href="#Footnote_11" class="fnanchor">11</a></p> - -<p>Mangetus gives also the following relation, which he -states upon the authority of an English bishop, who -communicated it to him in the year 1685, and at the -same time gave him about half an ounce of the gold -which the alchymist had made:</p> - -<p>A stranger, meanly dressed, went to Mr. Boyle, and -after conversing for some time about chemical processes, -requested him to furnish him with antimony, -and some other common metallic substances, which -then fortunately happened to be in Mr. Boyle’s laboratory. -These were put into a crucible, which was -then placed in a melting-furnace. As soon as these -metals were fused, the stranger showed a powder to the -attendants, which he projected into the crucible, and -instantly went out, directing the servants to allow the -crucible to remain in the furnace till the fire went out -of its own accord, and promising at the same time to -return in a few hours. But, as he never fulfilled this -promise, Boyle ordered the cover to be taken off the -crucible, and found that it contained a yellow-coloured -metal, possessing all the properties of pure gold, and -only a little lighter than the weight of the materials -originally put into the crucible.<a id="FNanchor_12" href="#Footnote_12" class="fnanchor">12</a></p> - -<p>The following strange story is related by Helvetius, -physician to the Prince of Orange, in his Vitulus Aureus: -Helvetius was a disbeliever of the philosopher’s stone, -and the universal medicine, and even turned Sir -Kenelm Digby’s sympathetic powder into ridicule. -On the 27th of December, 1666, a stranger called -upon him, and after conversing for some time about a -universal medicine, showed a yellow powder, which he -affirmed to be the philosopher’s stone, and at the same -time five large plates of gold, which had been made -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_19">19</span> -by means of it. Helvetius earnestly entreated that he -would give him a little of this powder, or at least that -he would make a trial of its power; but the stranger -refused, promising however to return in six weeks. He -returned accordingly, and after much entreaty he gave -to Helvetius a piece of the stone, not larger than the -size of a rape-seed. When Helvetius expressed his -doubt whether so small a portion would be sufficient -to convert four grains of lead into gold, the adept -broke off one half of it, and assured him that what -remained was more than sufficient for the purpose. -Helvetius, during the first conference, had concealed -a little of the stone below his nail. This he threw into -melted lead, but it was almost all driven off in smoke, -leaving only a vitreous earth. When he mentioned -this circumstance, the stranger informed him that the -powder must be enclosed in wax, before it be thrown -into the melted lead, lest it should be injured by the -smoke of the lead. The stranger promised to return -next day, and show him the method of making the -projection; but having failed to make his appearance, -Helvetius, in the presence of his wife and son, put six -drachms of lead into a crucible, and as soon as it was -melted he threw into it the fragment of philosopher’s -stone in his possession, previously covered over with -wax. The crucible was now covered with its lid, and -left for a quarter of an hour in the fire, at the end of -which time he found the whole lead converted into -gold. The colour was at first a deep green; being -poured into a conical vessel, it assumed a blood-red -colour; but when cold, it acquired the true tint of -gold. Being examined by a goldsmith, he considered -it as pure gold. He requested Porelius, who had the -charge of the Dutch mint, to try its value. Two -drachms of it being subjected to quartation, and solution -in aqua fortis, were found to have increased in -weight by two scruples. This increase was doubtless -owing to the silver, which still remained enveloped in -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_20">20</span> -the gold, after the action of the aqua fortis. To endeavour -to separate the silver more completely, the -gold was again fused with seven times its weight of -antimony, and treated in the usual manner; but no -alteration took place in the weight.<a id="FNanchor_13" href="#Footnote_13" class="fnanchor">13</a></p> - -<p>It would be easy to relate many other similar narratives; -but the three which I have given are the best -authenticated of any that I am acquainted with. The -reader will observe, that they are all stated on the -authority, not of the persons who were the actors, but -of others to whom they related them; and some of -these, as the English bishop, perhaps not very familiar -with chemical processes, and therefore liable to leave -out or misstate some essential particulars. The evidence, -therefore, though the best that can be got, is -not sufficient to authenticate these wonderful stories. -A little latent vanity might easily induce the narrators -to suppress or alter some particulars, which, if known, -would have stripped the statements of every thing marvellous -which they contain, and let us into the secret -of the origin of the gold, which these alchymists -boasted that they had fabricated. Whoever will read -the statements of Paracelsus, respecting his knowledge -of the philosopher’s stone, which he applied not to the -formation of gold but to medicine, or whoever will -examine his formulas for making the stone, will easily -satisfy himself that Paracelsus possessed no real knowledge -on the subject.<a id="FNanchor_14" href="#Footnote_14" class="fnanchor">14</a></p> - -<p>But to convey as precise ideas on this subject as -possible, it may be worth while to state a few of the -methods by which the alchymists persuaded themselves -that they could convert the baser metals into gold.</p> - -<p>In the year 1694 an old gentleman called upon -Mr. Wilson, at that time a chemist in London, and -informed him that at last, after forty years’ search, he -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_21">21</span> -had met with an ample recompence for all his trouble -and expenses. This he confirmed with some oaths -and imprecations; but, considering his great weakness -and age, he looked upon himself as incapable to undergo -the fatigues of the process. “I have here,” -says he, “a piece of sol (<i>gold</i>) that I made from -silver, about four years ago, and I cannot trust any -man but you with so rare a secret. We will share -equally the charges and profit, which will render us -wealthy enough to command the world.” The nature -of the process being stated, Mr. Wilson thought it not -unreasonable, especially as he aimed at no peculiar -advantage for himself. He accordingly put it to the -trial in the following manner:</p> - -<p>1. Twelve ounces of Japan copper were beat into -thin plates, and laid <i>stratum super stratum</i> with three -ounces of flowers of sulphur, in a crucible. It was -exposed in a melting-furnace to a gentle heat, till the -sulphureous flames expired. When cold, the æs ustum -(<i>sulphuret of copper</i>) was pounded, and stratified -again; and this process was repeated five times. Mr. -Wilson does not inform us whether the powder was mixed -with flowers of sulphur every time that it was heated; -but this must have been the case, otherwise the sulphuret -would have been again converted into metallic -copper, which would have melted into a mass. By -this first process, then, bisulphuret of copper was formed, -composed of equal weights of sulphur and copper.</p> - -<p>2. Six pounds of iron wire were put into a large -glass body, and twelve pounds of muriatic acid poured -upon it. Six days elapsed (during which it stood in -a gentle heat) before the acid was saturated with the -iron. The solution was then decanted off, and filtered, -and six pounds of new muriatic acid poured on the -undissolved iron. This acid, after standing a sufficient -time, was decanted off, and filtered. Both liquids -were put into a large retort, and distilled by a sand-heat. -Towards the end, when the drops from the -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_22">22</span> -retort became yellow, the receiver was changed, and -the fire increased to the highest degree, in which the -retort was kept between four and six hours. When -all was cold, the receiver was taken off, and a quantity -of flowers was found in the neck of the retort, -variously coloured, like the rainbow. The yellow -liquor in the receiver weighed ten ounces and a half; -the flowers (<i>chloride of iron</i>), two ounces and three -drams. The liquid and flowers were put into a clean -bottle.</p> - -<p>3. Half a pound of sal enixum (<i>sulphate of potash</i>) -and a pound and a half of nitric acid were put into a -retort. When the salt had dissolved in the acid, ten -ounces of mercury (previously distilled through quicklime -and salt of tartar) were added. The whole being -distilled to dryness, a fine yellow mass (<i>pernitrate of -mercury</i>) remained in the bottom of the retort. The -liquor was returned, with half a pound of fresh nitric -acid, and the distillation repeated. The distillation -was repeated a third time, urging this last cohobation -with the highest degree of fire. When all was cold, a -various-coloured mass was found in the bottom of the -retort: this mass was doubtless a mixture of sulphate -of potash, and pernitrate of mercury, with some oxide -of mercury.</p> - -<p>4. Four ounces of fine silver were dissolved in a -pound of aqua fortis; to the solution was added, of -the bisulphuret of copper four ounces; of the mixture -of sulphate of potash, pernitrate of mercury, and oxide -of mercury one ounce and a half, and of the solution -of perchloride of iron two ounces and a half. When -these had stood in a retort twenty-four hours, the -liquor was decanted off, and four ounces of nitric acid -were poured upon the little matter that was not dissolved. -Next morning a total dissolution was obtained. -The whole of this dissolution was put into a retort and -distilled almost to dryness. The liquid was poured -back, and the distillation repeated three times; the -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_23">23</span> -last time the retort being urged by a very strong fire -till no fumes appeared, and not a drop fell.</p> - -<p>5. The matter left in the bottom of the retort was -now put into a crucible, all the corrosive fumes were -gently evaporated, and the residue melted down with -a fluxing powder.</p> - -<p>This process was expected to yield five ounces of -pure gold; but on examination the silver was the same -(except the loss of half a pennyweight) as when dissolved -in the aqua fortis: there were indeed some grains -among the scoria, which appeared like gold, and would -not dissolve in aqua fortis. No doubt they consisted -of peroxide of iron, or, perhaps, persulphuret of iron.<a id="FNanchor_15" href="#Footnote_15" class="fnanchor">15</a></p> - -<p>Mr. Wilson’s alchymistical friend, not satisfied with -this first failure, insisted upon a repetition of the process, -with some alteration in the method and the addition -of a certain quantity of gold. The whole was -accordingly gone through again; but it is unnecessary -to say that no gold was obtained, or at least, the two -drams of gold employed had increased in weight by -only two scruples and thirteen grains; this addition -was doubtless owing to a little silver from which it had -not been freed.<a id="FNanchor_16" href="#Footnote_16" class="fnanchor">16</a></p> - -<p>I shall now give a process for making the philosopher’s -stone, which was considered by Mangetus as of -great value, and on that account was given by him in -the preface to his Bibliotheca Chemica.</p> - -<p>1. Prepare a quantity of spirit of wine, so free from -water that it is wholly combustible, and so volatile that -when a drop of it is let fall it evaporates before it -reaches the ground;—this constitutes the first menstruum.</p> - -<p>2. Take pure mercury, revived in the usual manner -from cinnabar, put it into a glass vessel with common -salt and distilled vinegar; agitate violently, and when -the vinegar acquires a black colour pour it off and add -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_24">24</span> -new vinegar; agitate again, and continue these repeated -agitations and additions till the vinegar ceases -to acquire a black colour from the mercury: the mercury -is now quite pure and very brilliant.</p> - -<p>3. Take of this mercury four parts; of sublimed -mercury<a id="FNanchor_17" href="#Footnote_17" class="fnanchor">17</a> (<i>mercurii meteoresati</i>), prepared with your -own hands, eight parts; triturate them together in a -wooden mortar with a wooden pestle, till all the grains -of running mercury disappear. This process is tedious -and rather difficult.</p> - -<p>4. The mixture thus prepared is to be put into an -aludel, or a sand-bath, and exposed to a subliming -heat, which is to be gradually raised till the whole -sublimes. Collect the sublimed matter, put it again -into the aludel, and sublime a second time; this process -must be repeated five times. Thus a very sweet -and crystallized sublimate is obtained: it constitutes -the salt of wise men (<i>sal sapientum</i>), and possesses -wonderful properties.<a id="FNanchor_18" href="#Footnote_18" class="fnanchor">18</a></p> - -<p>5. Grind it in a wooden mortar, and reduce it to -powder; put it into a glass retort, and pour upon it -the spirit of wine (No. 1) till it stands about three -finger-breadths above the powder; seal the retort -hermetically, and expose it to a very gentle heat for -seventy-four hours, shaking it several times a-day; -then distil with a gentle heat and the spirit of wine -will pass over, together with spirit of mercury. Keep -this liquid in a well-stopped bottle, lest it should -evaporate. More spirit of wine is to be poured upon -the residual salt, and after digestion it must be distilled -off as before; and this process must be repeated -till the whole salt is dissolved, and distilled over with -the spirit of wine. You have now performed a great -work. The mercury is now rendered in some measure -volatile, and it will gradually become fit to receive the -tincture of gold and silver. Now return thanks to -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_25">25</span> -God, who has hitherto crowned your wonderful work -with success; nor is this great work involved in Cimmerian -darkness, but clearer than the sun; though -preceding writers have imposed upon us with parables, -hieroglyphics, fables, and enigmas.</p> - -<p>6. Take this mercurial spirit, which contains our -magical steel in its belly, put it into a glass retort, to -which a receiver must be well and carefully luted: -draw off the spirit by a very gentle heat, there will -remain in the bottom of the retort the quintessence or -soul of mercury; this is to be sublimed by applying a -stronger heat to the retort that it may become volatile, -as all the philosophers express themselves— - -<span class="table"> -<span class="trow">Si fixum solvas faciesque volare solutum,<br /></span> -<span class="trow">Et volucrum figas faciet te vivere tutum.<br /></span> -</span> - -This is our luna, our fountain, in which the king and -queen may bathe. Preserve this precious quintessence -of mercury, which is very volatile, in a well-shut vessel -for further use.</p> - -<p>8. Let us now proceed to the operation of common -gold, which we shall communicate clearly and distinctly, -without digression or obscurity; that from vulgar -gold we may obtain our philosophical gold, just as -from common mercury we obtained, by the preceding -processes, philosophical mercury.</p> - -<p>In the name of God, then, take common gold, purified -in the usual way by antimony, convert it into -small grains, which must be washed with salt and vinegar, -till it be quite pure. Take one part of this gold, -and pour on it three parts of the quintessence of mercury; -as philosophers reckon from seven to ten, so we -also reckon our number as philosophical, and we begin -with three and one; let them be married together like -husband and wife, to produce children of their own -kind, and you will see the common gold sink and -plainly dissolve. Now the marriage is consummated; -now two things are converted into one: thus the philosophical -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_26">26</span> -sulphur is at hand, as the philosophers say, -<i>the sulphur being dissolved the stone is at hand</i>. -Take then, in the name of God, our philosophical vessel, -in which the king and queen embrace each other -as in a bedchamber, and leave it till the water is converted -into earth, then peace is concluded between -the water and fire, then the elements have no longer -any thing contrary to each other; because, when the -elements are converted into earth they no longer oppose -each other; for in earth all elements are at rest. -For the philosophers say, “When you shall have seen -the water coagulate itself, think that your knowledge -is true, and that your operations are truly philosophical.” -The gold is now no longer common, but -ours is philosophical, on account of our processes: at -first exceedingly fixed; then exceedingly volatile, and -finally exceedingly fixed; and the whole science depends -upon the change of the elements. The gold at -first was a metal, now it is a sulphur, capable of converting -all metals into its own sulphur. Now our -tincture is wholly converted into sulphur, which possesses -the energy of curing all diseases: this is our -universal medicine against all the most deplorable -diseases of the human body; therefore, return infinite -thanks to Almighty God for all the good things which -he has bestowed upon us.</p> - -<p>9. In this great work of ours, two modes of fermenting -and projecting are wanting, without which the -uninitiated will not easily follow our process. The -mode of fermenting is as follows: Take of our sulphur -above described one part, and project it upon three -parts of very pure gold fused in a furnace; in a moment -you will see the gold, by the force of the sulphur, -converted into a red sulphur of an inferior quality to -the first sulphur; take one part of this, and project it -upon three parts of fused gold, the whole will be again -converted into a sulphur, or a friable mass; mixing -one part of this with three parts of gold, you will have -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_27">27</span> -a malleable and extensible metal. If you find it so, -well; if not add other sulphur and it will again pass into -sulphur. Now the sulphur will be sufficiently fermented, -or our medicine will be brought into a metallic -nature.</p> - -<p>10. The mode of projecting is this: Take of the fermented -sulphur one part, and project it upon ten parts -of mercury, heated in a crucible, and you will have a -perfect metal; if its colour is not sufficiently deep, -fuse it again, and add more fermented sulphur, and -thus it will acquire colour. If it becomes frangible, -add a sufficient quantity of mercury and it will be -perfect.</p> - -<p>Thus, friend, you have a description of the universal -medicine, not only for curing diseases and prolonging -life, but also for transmuting all metals into gold. -Give therefore thanks to Almighty God, who, taking -pity on human calamities, has at last revealed this -inestimable treasure, and made it known for the common -benefit of all.<a id="FNanchor_19" href="#Footnote_19" class="fnanchor">19</a></p> - -<p>Such is the formula (slightly abridged) of Carolus -Musitanus, by which the philosopher’s stone, according -to him, may be formed. Compared with the formulas -of most of the alchymists, it is sufficiently plain. -What the <i>sublimed mercury</i> is does not appear; from -the process described we should be apt to consider it -as <i>corrosive sublimate</i>; on that supposition, the sal -sapientum formed in No. 5, would be calomel: the -only objection to this supposition is the process described -in No. 5; for calomel is not soluble in alcohol. -The philosopher’s stone prepared by this elaborate -process could hardly have been any thing else than an -<i>amalgam of gold</i>; it could not have contained chloride -of gold, because such a preparation, instead of -acting medicinally, would have proved a most virulent -poison. There is no doubt that amalgam of gold, if -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_28">28</span> -projected into melted lead or tin, and afterwards cupellated, -would leave a portion of gold—all the gold of -course that existed previously in the amalgam. It -might therefore have been employed by impostors to -persuade the ignorant that it was really the philosopher’s -stone; but the alchymists who prepared the -amalgam could not be ignorant that it contained gold.</p> - -<p>There is another process given in the same preface -of a very different nature, but too long to be transcribed -here, and the nature of the process is not sufficiently -intelligible to render an account of it of much -consequence.<a id="FNanchor_20" href="#Footnote_20" class="fnanchor">20</a></p> - -<p>The preceding observations will give the reader some -notion of the nature of the pursuits which occupied the -alchymists: their sole object was the preparation of a -substance to which they gave the name of the philosopher’s -stone, which possessed the double property of -converting the baser metals into gold, and of curing all -diseases, and of preserving human life to an indefinite -extent. The experiments of Wilson, and the formula -of Musitanus, which have been just inserted, will give -the reader some notion of the way in which they attempted -to manufacture this most precious substance. -Being quite ignorant of the properties of bodies, and -of their action on each other, their processes were -guided by no scientific analogies, and one part of the -labour not unfrequently counteracted another; it would -be a waste of time, therefore, to attempt to analyze their -numerous processes, even though such an attempt -could be attended with success. But in most cases, -from the unintelligible terms in which their books are -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_29">29</span> -written, it is impossible to divine the nature of the -processes by which they endeavoured to manufacture -the philosopher’s stone, or the nature of the substances -which they obtained.<a id="FNanchor_21" href="#Footnote_21" class="fnanchor">21</a></p> - -<p>In consequence of the universality of the opinion -that gold could be made by art, there was a set of -impostors who went about pretending that they were -in possession of the philosopher’s stone, and offering -to communicate the secret of making it for a suitable -reward. Nothing is more astonishing than that -persons should be found credulous enough to be the -dupes of such impostors. The very circumstance of -their claiming a reward was a sufficient proof that -they were ignorant of the secret which they pretended -to reveal; for what motive could a man have for asking -a reward who was in possession of a method of -creating gold at pleasure? To such a person money -could be no object, as he could procure it in any -quantity. Yet, strange as it may appear, they met -with abundance of dupes credulous enough to believe -their asseverations, and to supply them with money -to enable them to perform the wished-for processes. -The object of these impostors was either to pocket the -money thus furnished, or they made use of it to purchase -various substances from which they extracted -oils, acids, or similar products, which they were -enabled to sell at a profit. To keep the dupes, who -thus supplied them with the means of carrying on -these processes, in good spirits, it was necessary to -show them occasionally small quantities of the baser -metals converted into gold; this they performed in -various ways. M. Geoffroy, senior, who had an opportunity -of witnessing many of their performances, -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_30">30</span> -has given us an account of a number of their tricks. It -may be worth while to state a few by way of specimen.</p> - -<p>Sometimes they made use of crucibles with a false -bottom; at the real bottom they put a quantity of -oxide of gold or silver, this was covered with a portion -of powdered crucible, glued together by a little -gummed water or a little wax; the materials being put -into this crucible, and heat applied, the false bottom -disappears, the oxide of gold or silver is reduced, and -at the end of the process is found at the bottom of -the crucible, and considered as the product of the -operation.</p> - -<p>Sometimes they make a hole in a piece of charcoal -and fill it with oxide of gold or silver, and stop up -the mouth with a little wax; or they soak charcoal in -solutions of these metals; or they stir the mixtures in -the crucible with hollow rods containing oxide of gold -or silver within, and the bottom shut with wax: by these -means the gold or silver wanted is introduced during the -process, and considered as a product of the operation.</p> - -<p>Sometimes they have a solution of silver in nitric -acid, or of gold in aqua regia, or an amalgam of gold -or silver, which being adroitly introduced, furnishes -the requisite quantity of metal. A common exhibition -was to dip nails into a liquid, and take them out half converted -into gold. The nails consisted of one-half gold, -neatly soldered to the iron, and covered with something -to conceal the colour, which the liquid removed. -Sometimes they had metals one-half gold the other -half silver, soldered together, and the gold side whitened -with mercury; the gold half was dipped into the transmuting -liquid and then the metal heated; the mercury -was dissipated, and the gold half of the metal appeared.<a id="FNanchor_22" href="#Footnote_22" class="fnanchor">22</a></p> - -<p>As the alchymists were assiduous workmen—as they -mixed all the metals, salts, &c. with which they were -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_31">31</span> -acquainted, in various ways with each other, and subjected -such mixtures to the action of heat in close -vessels, their labours were occasionally repaid by the -discovery of new substances, possessed of much greater -activity than any with which they were previously -acquainted. In this way they were led to the discovery -of sulphuric, nitric, and muriatic acids. These, -when known, were made to act upon the metals; solutions -of the metals were obtained, and this gradually -led to the knowledge of various metalline salts and -preparations, which were introduced with considerable -advantage into medicine. Thus the alchymists, by -their absurd pursuits, gradually formed a collection of -facts, which led ultimately to the establishment of -scientific chemistry. On this account it will be proper -to notice, in this place, such of them as appeared in -Europe during the darker ages, and acquired the -highest reputation either on account of their skill as -physicians, or their celebrity as chemists.<a id="FNanchor_23" href="#Footnote_23" class="fnanchor">23</a></p> - -<p>1. The first alchymist who deserves notice is Albertus -Magnus, or Albert Groot, a German, who was -born, it is supposed, in the year 1193, at Bollstaedt, -and died in the year 1282.<a id="FNanchor_24" href="#Footnote_24" class="fnanchor">24</a> When very young he is -said to have been so remarkable for his dulness, that -he became the jest of his acquaintances. He studied -the sciences at Padua, and afterwards taught at -Cologne, and finally in Paris. He travelled through -all Germany as Provincial of the order of Dominican -Monks, visited Rome, and was made bishop of Ratisbon: -but his passion for science induced him to give -up his bishopric, and return to a cloister at Cologne, -where he continued till his death.</p> - -<p>Albertus was acquainted with all the sciences cultivated in -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_32">32</span> -his time. He was at once a theologian, a -physician, and a man of the world: he was an astronomer -and an alchymist, and even dipped into magic -and necromancy. His works are very voluminous. -They were collected by Petr. Jammy, and published -at Leyden in twenty-one folio volumes, in 1651. His -principal alchymistical tracts are the following: - -<span class="table"> -<span class="trow">1. De Rebus Metallicis et Mineralibus.</span> - -<span class="trow">2. De Alchymia.</span> - -<span class="trow">3. Secretorum Tractatus.</span> - -<span class="trow">4. Breve Compendium de Ortu Metallorum.</span> - -<span class="trow">5. Concordantia Philosophorum de Lapide.</span> - -<span class="trow">6. Compositum de Compositis.</span> - -<span class="trow">7. Liber octo Capitum de Philosophorum Lapide.</span> -</span></p> - -<p>Most of these tracts have been inserted in the -Theatrum Chemicum. They are in general plain and -intelligible. In his treatise De Alchymia, for example, -he gives a distinct account of all the chemical substances -known in his time, and of the manner of -obtaining them. He mentions also the apparatus then -employed by chemists, and the various processes which -they had occasion to perform. I may notice the most -remarkable facts and opinions which I have observed -in turning over these treatises.</p> - -<p>He was of opinion that all metals are composed of -sulphur and mercury; and endeavoured to account -for the diversity of metals partly by the difference in -the purity, and partly by the difference in the proportions -of the sulphur and mercury of which they are -composed. He thought that water existed also as a -constituent of all metals.</p> - -<p>He was acquainted with the water-bath, employed -alembics for distillation, and aludels for sublimation; -and he was in the habit of employing various lutes, -the composition of which he describes.</p> - -<p>He mentions alum and caustic alkali, and seems -to have known the alkaline basis of cream of tartar. -He knew the method of purifying the precious metals -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_33">33</span> -by means of lead and of gold, by cementation; and -likewise the method of trying the purity of gold, and -of distinguishing pure from impure gold.</p> - -<p>He mentions red lead, metallic arsenic, and liver of -sulphur. He was acquainted with green vitriol and -iron pyrites. He knew that arsenic renders copper -white, and that sulphur attacks all the metals except -gold.</p> - -<p>It is said by some that he was acquainted with gunpowder; -but nothing indicating any such knowledge -occurs in any of his writings that I have had an opportunity -of perusing.<a id="FNanchor_25" href="#Footnote_25" class="fnanchor">25</a></p> - -<p>2. Albertus is said to have had for a pupil, while -he taught in Paris, the celebrated Thomas Aquinas, a -Dominican, who studied at Bologna, Rome, and -Naples, and distinguished himself still more in divinity -and scholastic philosophy than in alchymy. He -wrote, - -<span class="table"> -<span class="trow">1. Thesaurum Alchymiæ Secretissimum.</span> -<span class="trow">2. Secreta Alchymiæ Magnalia.</span> -<span class="trow">3. De Esse et Essentia Mineralium; -and perhaps some other works, which I have not seen.</span> -</span></p> - -<p>These works, so far as I have perused them, are -exceedingly obscure, and in various places unintelligible. -Some of the terms still employed by modern -chemists occur, for the first time, in the writings of -Thomas Aquinas. Thus the term <i>amalgam</i>, still employed -to denote a compound of mercury with another -metal, occurs in them, and I have not observed it in -any earlier author.</p> - -<p>3. Soon after Albertus Magnus, flourished Roger -Bacon, by far the most illustrious, the best informed, -and the most philosophical of all the alchymists. He -was born in 1214, in the county of Somerset. After -studying in Oxford, and afterwards in Paris, he became -a cordelier friar; and, devoting himself to philosophical -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_34">34</span> -investigations, his discoveries, notwithstanding the -pains which he took to conceal them, made such a -noise, that he was accused of magic, and his brethren -in consequence threw him into prison. He died, it is -said, in the year 1284, though Sprengel fixes the year -of his death to be 1285.</p> - -<p>His writings display a degree of knowledge and -extent of thought scarcely credible, if we consider the -time when he wrote, the darkest period of the dark -ages. In his small treatise De Mirabili Potestate Artis -et Naturæ, he begins by pointing out the absurdity of -believing in magic, necromancy, charms, or any of those -similar opinions which were at that time universally -prevalent. He points out the various ways in which -mankind are deceived by jugglers, ventriloquists, &c.; -mentions the advantages which physicians may derive -from acting on the imaginations of their patients by -means of charms, amulets, and infallible remedies: -he affirms that many of those things which are considered -as supernatural, are merely so because mankind -in general are unacquainted with natural philosophy. -To illustrate this he mentions a great number of natural -phenomena, which had been reckoned miraculous; and -concludes with several secrets of his own, which he -affirms to be still more extraordinary imitations of some -of the most singular processes of nature. These he -delivers in the enigmatical style of the times; induced, -as he tells us, partly by the conduct of other philosophers, -partly by the propriety of the thing, and partly -by the danger of speaking too plainly.</p> - -<p>From an attentive perusal of his works, many of -which have been printed, it will be seen that Bacon -was a great linguist, being familiar with Latin, Greek, -Hebrew, and Arabic; and that he had perused the -most important books at that time existing in all these -languages. He was also a grammarian; he was well -versed in the theory and practice of perspective; he -understood the use of convex and concave glasses, and -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_35">35</span> -the art of making them. The camera obscura, burning-glasses, -and the powers of the telescope, were -known to him. He was well versed in geography and -astronomy. He knew the great error in the Julian -calendar, assigned the cause, and proposed the remedy. -He understood chronology well; he was a skilful physician, -and an able mathematician, logician, metaphysician, -and theologist; but it is as a chemist that -he claims our attention here. The following is a list -of his chemical writings, as given by Gmelin, the -whole of which I have never had an opportunity of -seeing: - -<span class="table"> -<span class="trow">1. Speculum Alchymiæ.<a id="FNanchor_26" href="#Footnote_26" class="fnanchor">26</a></span> - -<span class="trow">2. Epistola de Secretis Operibus Artis et Naturæ et -de Nullitate Magiæ.</span> - -<span class="trow">3. De Mirabili Potestate Artis et Naturæ.</span> - -<span class="trow">4. Medulla Alchymiæ.</span> - -<span class="trow">5. De Arte Chemiæ.</span> - -<span class="trow">6. Breviorium Alchymiæ.</span> - -<span class="trow">7. Documenta Alchymiæ.</span> - -<span class="trow">8. De Alchymistarum Artibus.</span> - -<span class="trow">9. De Secretis.</span> - -<span class="trow">10. De Rebus Metallicis.</span> - -<span class="trow">11. De Sculpturis Lapidum.</span> - -<span class="trow">12. De Philosophorum Lapide.</span> - -<span class="trow">13. Opus Majus, <i>or</i> Alchymia Major.</span> - -<span class="trow">14. Breviarium de Dono Dei.</span> - -<span class="trow">15. Verbum abbreviatum de Leone Viridi.</span> - -<span class="trow">16. Secretum Secretorum.</span> - -<span class="trow">17. Tractatus Trium Verborum.</span> - -<span class="trow">18. Speculum Secretorum.</span> -</span> - -A number of these were collected together, and published -at Frankfort in 1603, under the title of “Rogeri -Baconis Angli de Arte Chemiæ Scripta,” in a small -duodecimo volume. The Opus Majus was published -in London in 1733, by Dr. Jebb, in a folio volume. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_36">36</span> -Several of his tracts still continue in manuscript in -the Harleian and Bodleian libraries at Oxford. He -considered the metals as compound of mercury and -sulphur. Gmelin affirms that he was aware of the -peculiar nature of manganese, and that he was acquainted -with bismuth; but after perusing the whole -of the Speculum Alchymiæ, the third chapter of which -he quotes as containing the facts on which he founds -his opinion, I cannot find any certain allusion either -to manganese or bismuth. The term <i>magnesia</i> indeed -occurs, but nothing is said respecting its nature: and -long after the time of Paracelsus, bismuth (<i>bisematum</i>) -was considered as an impure kind of <i>lead</i>. That he -was acquainted with the composition and properties of -<i>gunpowder</i> admits of no doubt. In the sixth chapter -of his epistle De Secretis Operibus Artis et Naturæ et -de Nullitate Magiæ, the following passage occurs:</p> - -<p>“For sounds like thunder, and coruscations like -lightning, may be made in the air, and they may be -rendered even more horrible than those of nature herself. -A small quantity of matter, properly manufactured, -not larger than the human thumb, may be made -to produce a horrible noise and coruscation. And this -may be done many ways, by which a city or an army -may be destroyed, as was the case when Gideon and -his men broke their pitchers and exhibited their lamps, -fire issuing out of them with inestimable noise, destroyed -an infinite number of the army of the Midianites.” -And in the eleventh chapter of the same epistle -occurs the following passage: “Mix together saltpetre, -luru vopo vir con utriet, and sulphur, and you -will make thunder and lightning, if you know the -method of mixing them.” Here all the ingredients of -gunpowder are mentioned except charcoal, which is -doubtless concealed under the barbarous terms <i>luru -vopo vir con utriet</i>.</p> - -<p>But though Bacon was acquainted with gunpowder, -we have no evidence that he was the inventor. How -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_37">37</span> -far the celebrated Greek fire, concerning which so -much has been written, was connected with gunpowder, -it is impossible to say; but there is good evidence to -prove that gunpowder was known and used in China -before the commencement of the Christian era; and -Lord Bacon is of opinion that the thunder and lightning -and magic stated by the Macedonians to have -been exhibited in Oxydrakes, when it was besieged by -Alexander the Great, was nothing else than gunpowder. -Now as there is pretty good evidence that -the use of gunpowder had been introduced into Spain -by the Moors, at least as early as the year 1343, and -as Roger Bacon was acquainted with Arabic, it is by -no means unlikely that he might have become acquainted -with the mode of making the composition, -and with its most remarkable properties, by perusing -some Arabian writer, with whom we are at present -unacquainted. Barbour, in his life of Bruce, informs -us that guns were first employed by the English at the -battle of Werewater, which was fought in 1327, about -forty years after the death of Bacon.</p> - -<div class="poetry"> -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">Two novelties that day they saw,<br /></span> -<span class="i0">That forouth in Scotland had been nene;<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Timbers for helmes was the ane<br /></span> -<span class="i0">That they thought then of great beautie,<br /></span> -<span class="i0">And also wonder for to see.<br /></span> -<span class="i0">The other <i>crakys</i> were of war<br /></span> -<span class="i0">That they before heard never air.<br /></span> -</div></div> -</div> - -<p>In another part of the same book we have the -phrase <i>gynnys for crakys</i>, showing that the term -crakys was used to denote a gun or musket of some -form or other. It is curious that the English would -seem to have been the first European nation that employed -gunpowder in war; they used it in the battle -of Crecy, fought in 1346, when it was unknown to the -French, and it is supposed to have contributed materially -to the brilliant victory which was obtained. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_38">38</span></p> - -<p>4. Raymond Lully is said to have been a scholar -and a friend of Roger Bacon. He was a most voluminous -writer, and acquired as high a reputation as -any of the alchymists. According to Mutius he was -born in Majorca in the year 1235. His father was -seneschal to King James the First of Arragon. -In his younger days he went into the army; but -afterwards held a situation in the court of his sovereign. -Devoting himself to science he soon acquired -a competent knowledge of Latin and Arabic. After -studying in Paris he got the degree of doctor conferred -upon him. He entered into the order of Minorites, -and induced King James to establish a cloister of that -order in Minorca. He afterwards travelled through -Italy, Germany, England, Portugal, Cyprus, Armenia -and Palestine. He is said by Mutius to have died in -the year 1315, and to have been buried in Majorca. -The following epitaph is given by Olaus Borrichius as -engraven on his tomb:</p> - -<div class="poetry"> -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">Raymundus Lulli, cujus pia dogmata nulli<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Sunt odiosa viro, jacet hic in marmore miro<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Hic M. et CC. Cum P. cœpit sine sensibus esse.<br /></span> -</div></div> -</div> - -<p>M C C C in these lines denote 1300, and P which -is the 15th letter of the alphabet denotes 15, so that -if this epitaph be genuine it follows that his death -took place in the year 1315.</p> - -<p>It seems scarcely necessary to notice the story that -Raymond Lully made a present to Edward, King of England, -of six millions of pieces of gold, to enable him to -make war on the Saracens, which sum that monarch employed, -contrary to the intentions of the donor, in his -French wars. This story cannot apply to Edward III., -because in 1315, at the time of Raymond’s death, that -monarch was only three years of age. It can scarcely -apply to Edward II., who ascended the throne in -1305: but who had no opportunity of making war, -either on the Saracens or French, being totally occupied -in opposing the intrigues of his queen and rebellious -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_39">39</span> -subjects, to whom he ultimately fell a sacrifice. -Edward the First made war both upon the Saracens -and the French, and lived during the time of Raymond: -but his wars with the Saracens were finished -before he ascended the throne, and during the whole of -his reign he was too much occupied with his projected -conquest of Scotland, to pay much serious attention -to any French war whatever. The story, therefore, -cannot apply to any of the three Edwards, and cannot -be true. Raymond Lully is said to have been stoned -to death in Africa for preaching Christianity in the -year 1315. Others will have it that he was alive in -England in the year 1332, at which time his age -would have been 97.</p> - -<p>The following table exhibits a list of his numerous -writings, most of which are to be found in the Theatrum -Chemicum, the Artis Auriferæ, or the Biblotheca -Chemica. - -<span class="table"> -<span class="trow">1. Praxis Universalis Magni Operis.</span> - -<span class="trow">2. Clavicula.</span> - -<span class="trow">3. Theoria et Practica.</span> - -<span class="trow">4. Compendium Animæ Transmutationis Artis Metallorum.</span> - -<span class="trow">5. Ultimum Testamentum. Of this work, which -professes to give the whole doctrine of alchymy, there -is an English translation.</span> - -<span class="trow">6. Elucidatio Testamenti.</span> - -<span class="trow">7. Potestas Divitiorum cum Expositione Testamenti -Hermetis.</span> - -<span class="trow">8. Compendium Artis Magicæ, quoad Compositionem -Lapidis.</span> - -<span class="trow">9. De Lapide et Oleo Philosophorum.</span> - -<span class="trow">10. Modus accipiendi Aurum Potabile.</span> - -<span class="trow">11. Compendium Alchymiæ et Naturalis Philosophiæ.</span> - -<span class="trow">12. Lapidarium.</span> - -<span class="trow">13. Lux Mercuriorum.</span> - -<span class="trow">14. Experimenta. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_40">40</span></span> - -<span class="trow">15. Ars Compendiosa vel Vademecum.</span> - -<span class="trow">16. De Accurtatione Lapidis.</span> -</span></p> - -<p>Several other tracts besides these are named by -Gmelin; but I have never seen any of them. I have -attempted several times to read over the works of -Raymond Lully, particularly his Last Will and Testament, -which is considered the most important of -them all. But they are all so obscure, and filled with -such unintelligible jargon, that I have found it impossible -to understand them. In this respect they -form a wonderful contrast with the works of Albertus -Magnus and Roger Bacon, which are comparatively -plain and intelligible. For an account, therefore, of -the chemical substances with which he was acquainted, -I am obliged to depend on Gmelin; though -I put no great confidence in his accuracy.</p> - -<p>Like his predecessors, he was of opinion that all -the metals are compounds of sulphur and mercury. -But he seems first to have introduced those hieroglyphical -figures or symbols, which appear in such -profusion in the English translation of his Last Will -and Testament, and which he doubtless intended to -illustrate his positions. Though what other purpose -they could serve, than to induce the reader to consider -his statements as allegorical, it is not easy to conjecture. -Perhaps they may have been designed to impose -upon his contemporaries by an air of something -very profound and inexplicable. For that he possessed -a good deal of charlatanry is pretty evident, from the -slightest glance at his performances.</p> - -<p>He was acquainted with cream of tartar, which he -distilled: the residue he burnt, and observed that the -alkali extracted deliquesced when exposed to the air. -He was acquainted with nitric acid, which he obtained -by distilling a mixture of saltpetre and green -vitriol. He mentions its power of dissolving, not -merely mercury, but likewise other metals. He could -form aqua regia by adding sal ammoniac or common -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_41">41</span> -salt to nitric acid, and he was aware of the property -which it had of dissolving gold.</p> - -<p>Spirit of wine was well known to him, and distinguished -by him by the names of aqua vitæ ardens and -argentum vivum vegetabile. He knew the method of -rendering it stronger by an admixture of dry carbonate -of potash, and of preparing vegetable tinctures by -means of it. He mentions alum from Rocca, marcasite, -white and red mercurial precipitate. He knew the -volatile alkali and its coagulations by means of alcohol. -He was acquainted with cupellated silver, and -first obtained rosemary oil by distilling the plant with -water. He employed a mixture of flour and white of -egg spread upon a linen cloth to cement cracked -glass vessels, and used other lutes for similar purposes.<a id="FNanchor_27" href="#Footnote_27" class="fnanchor">27</a></p> - -<p>5. Arnoldus de Villa Nova is said to have been -born at Villeneuve, a village of Provence, about the -year 1240. Olaus Borrichius assures us, that in his -time his posterity lived in the neighbourhood of Avignon; -that he was acquainted with them, and that -they were by no means destitute of chemical knowledge. -He is said to have been educated at Barcelona, -under John Casamila, a celebrated professor of medicine. -This place he was obliged to leave, in consequence -of foretelling the death of Peter of Arragon. He went -to Paris, and likewise travelled through Italy. He -afterwards taught publicly in the University of Montpelier. -His reputation as a physician became so -great, that his attendance was solicited in dangerous -cases by several kings, and even by the pope himself. -He was skilled in all the sciences of his time, and was -besides a proficient in Greek, Hebrew, and Arabic. -When at Paris he studied astrology, and calculating -the age of the world, he found that it was to terminate -in the year 1335. The theologians of Paris exclaimed -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_42">42</span> -against this and several other of his opinions, -and condemned our astrologer as a heretic. This -obliged him to leave France; but the pope protected -him. He died in the year 1313, on his way to visit -Pope Clement V. who lay sick at Avignon. The following -table exhibits a pretty full list of his works: - -<span class="table"> -<span class="trow">1. Antidotorium</span> - -<span class="trow">2. De Vinis.</span> - -<span class="trow">3. De Aquis Laxativis.</span> - -<span class="trow">4. Rosarius Philosophorum.</span> - -<span class="trow">5. Lumen Novum.</span> - -<span class="trow">6. De Sigillis.</span> - -<span class="trow">7. Flos Florum.</span> - -<span class="trow">8. Epistolæ super Alchymia ad Regem Neapolitanum.</span> - -<span class="trow">9. Liber Perfectionis Magisterii.</span> - -<span class="trow">10. Succosa Carmina.</span> - -<span class="trow">11. Questiones de Arte Transmutationis Metallorum.</span> - -<span class="trow">12. Testamentum.</span> - -<span class="trow">13. Lumen Luminum.</span> - -<span class="trow">14. Practica.</span> - -<span class="trow">15. Speculum Alchymiæ.</span> - -<span class="trow">16. Carmen.</span> - -<span class="trow">17. Questiones ad Bonifacium.</span> - -<span class="trow">18. Semita Semitæ.</span> - -<span class="trow">19. De Lapide Philosophorum.</span> - -<span class="trow">20. De Sanguine Humano.</span> - -<span class="trow">21. De Spiritu Vini, Vino Antimonii et Gemmorum Viribus.</span> -</span></p> - -<p>Perhaps the most curious of all these works is the -<i>Rosarium</i>, which is intended as a complete compend -of all the alchymy of his time. The first part of it -on the theory of the art is plain enough; but the second -part on the practice, which is subdivided into -thirty-two chapters, and which professes to teach the -art of making the philosopher’s stone, is in many -places quite unintelligible to me. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_43">43</span></p> - -<p>He considered, like his predecessors, mercury as a -constituent of metals, and he professed a knowledge -of the philosopher’s stone, which he could increase at -pleasure. Gold and gold-water was, in his opinion, -one of the most precious of medicines. He employed -mercury in medicine. He seems to designate bismuth -under the name <i>marcasite</i>. He was in the habit of -preparing oil of turpentine, oil of rosemary, and spirit -of rosemary, which afterwards became famous under -the name of Hungary-water. These distillations -were made in a glazed earthen vessel with a glass top -and helm.</p> - -<p>His works were published at Venice in a single -folio volume, in the year 1505. There were seven -subsequent editions, the last of which appeared at -Strasburg in 1613.</p> - -<p>6. John Isaac Hollandus and his countryman of the -same name, were either two brothers or a father and -son; it is uncertain which. For very few circumstances -respecting these two laborious and meritorious -men have been handed down to posterity. They were -born in the village of Stolk in Holland, it is supposed -in the 13th century. They certainly were after Arnoldus -de Villa Nova, because they refer to him in -their writings. They wrote many treatises on chemistry, -remarkable, considering the time when they -wrote, for clearness and precision, describing their processes -with accuracy, and even giving figures of the -instruments which they employed. This makes their -books intelligible, and they deserve attention because -they show that various processes, generally supposed -of a more modern date were known to them. Their -treatises are written partly in Latin and partly in German. -The following list contains the names of most -of them: - -<span class="table"> -<span class="trow">1. Opera Vegetabilia ad ejus alia Opera Intelligenda Necessaria. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_44">44</span></span> - -<span class="trow">2. Opera Mineralia seu de Lapide Philosophico Libri duo.</span> - -<span class="trow">3. Tractat vom stein der Weisen.</span> - -<span class="trow">4. Fragmenta Quædam Chemica.</span> - -<span class="trow">5. De Triplice Ordine Elixiris et Lapidis Theorea.</span> - -<span class="trow">6. Tractatus de Salibus et Oleis Metallorum.</span> - -<span class="trow">7. Fragmentum de Opere Philosophorum.</span> - -<span class="trow">8. Rariores Chemiæ Operationes.</span> - -<span class="trow">9. Opus Saturni.</span> - -<span class="trow">10. De Spiritu Urinæ.</span> - -<span class="trow">11. Hand der Philosopher.</span> -</span></p> - -<p>Olaus Borrichius complains that their <i>opera mineralia</i> -abound with processes; but that they are ambiguous, -and such that nothing certain can be deduced -from them even after much labour. Hence they draw -on the unwary tyro from labour to labour. I am -disposed myself to draw a different conclusion, from -what I have read of that elaborate work. It is true -that the processes which profess to make the philosopher’s -stone, are fallacious, and do not lead to the -manufacture of gold, as the author intended, and expected: -but it is a great deal when alchymistical -processes are delivered in such intelligible language -that you know the substances employed. This enables -us easily to see the results in almost every case, and -to know the new compounds which were formed during -a vain search for the philosopher’s stone. Had the -other alchymists written as plainly, the absurdity of -their researches would have been sooner discovered, -and thus a useless or pernicious investigation would -have sooner terminated.</p> - -<p>7. Basil Valentine is said to have been born about -the year 1394, and is, perhaps, the most celebrated of -all the alchymists, if we except Paracelsus. He was -a Benedictine monk, at Erford, in Saxony. If we -believe Olaus Borrichius, his writings were enclosed -in the wall of a church at Erford, and were discovered -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_45">45</span> -long after his death, in consequence of the wall having -been driven down by a thunderbolt. But this story is -not well authenticated, and is utterly improbable. -Much of his time seems to have been taken up in the -preparation of chemical medicines. It was he that -first introduced antimony into medicine; and it is -said, though on no good authority, that he first tried -the effects of antimonial medicines upon the monks of -his convent, upon whom it acted with such violence -that he was induced to distinguish the mineral from -which these medicines had been extracted, by the -name of <i>antimoine</i> (hostile to monks). What shows -the improbability of this story is, that the works of -Basil Valentine, and in particular his Currus triumphalis -Antimonii, were written in the German language. -Now the German name for antimony is not -<i>antimoine</i>, but <i>speissglass</i>. The Currus triumphalis -Antimonii was translated into Latin by Kerkringius, -who published it, with an excellent commentary, at -Amsterdam, in 1671.</p> - -<p>Basil Valentine writes with almost as much virulence -against the physicians of his time, as Paracelsus himself -did afterwards. As no particulars of his life have -been handed down to posterity, I shall satisfy myself -with giving a catalogue of his writings, and then -pointing out the most striking chemical substances -with which he was acquainted.</p> - -<p>The books which have appeared under the name of -Basil Valentine, are very numerous; but how many -of them were really written by him, and how many -are supposititious, is extremely doubtful. The following -are the principal: - -<span class="table"> -<span class="trow">1. Philosophia Occulta.</span> - -<span class="trow">2. Tractat von naturlichen und ubernaturlichen -Dingen; auch von der ersten tinctur, Wurzel und -Geiste der Metallen.</span> - -<span class="trow">3. Von dern grossen stein der Uhralten. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_46">46</span></span> - -<span class="trow">4. Vier tractatlein vom stein der Weisen.</span> - -<span class="trow">5. Kurzer anhang und klare repetition oder Wiederholunge -vom grosen stein der Uhralten.</span> - -<span class="trow">6. De prima Materia Lapidis Philosophici.</span> - -<span class="trow">7. Azoth Philosophorum seu Aureliæ occultæ de -Materia Lapidis Philosophorum.</span> - -<span class="trow">8. Apocalypsis Chemica.</span> - -<span class="trow">9. Claves 12 Philosophiæ.</span> - -<span class="trow">10. Practica.</span> - -<span class="trow">11. Opus præclarum ad utrumque, quod pro Testamento -dedit Filio suo adoptivo.</span> - -<span class="trow">12. Letztes Testament.</span> - -<span class="trow">13. De Microcosmo.</span> - -<span class="trow">14. Von der grosen Heimlichkeit der Welt und ihrer -Arzney.</span> - -<span class="trow">15. Von der Wissenschaft der sieben Planeten.</span> - -<span class="trow">16. Offenbahrung der verborgenen Handgriffe.</span> - -<span class="trow">17. Conclusiones or Schlussreden.</span> - -<span class="trow">18. Dialogus Fratris Alberti cum Spiritu.</span> - -<span class="trow">19. De Sulphure et fermento Philosophorum.</span> - -<span class="trow">20. Haliographia.</span> - -<span class="trow">21. Triumph wagen Antimonii.</span> - -<span class="trow">22. Einiger Weg zur Wahrheit.</span> - -<span class="trow">23. Licht der Natur.</span> -</span></p> - -<p>The only one of these works that I have read with -care, is Kerkringius’s translation and commentary on -the Currus triumphalis Antimonii. It is an excellent -book, written with clearness and precision, and contains -every thing respecting antimony that was known -before the commencement of the 19th century. How -much of this is owing to Kerkringius I cannot say, as -I have never had an opportunity of seeing a copy of -the original German work of Basil Valentine.</p> - -<p>Basil Valentine, like Isaac Hollandus, was of opinion -that the metals are compounds of salt, sulphur, -and mercury. The philosopher’s stone was composed -of the same ingredients. He affirmed, that there exists -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_47">47</span> -a great similarity between the mode of purifying gold -and curing the diseases of men, and that antimony -answers best for both. He was acquainted with -arsenic, knew many of its properties, and mentions -the red compound which it forms with sulphur. Zinc -seems to have been known to him, and he mentions -bismuth, both under its own name, and under that of -<i>marcasite</i>. He was aware that manganese was employed -to render glass colourless. He mentions nitrate -of mercury, alludes to corrosive sublimate, and seems -to have known the red oxide of mercury. It would be -needless to specify the preparations of antimony with -which he was acquainted; scarcely one was unknown -to him which, even at present, exists in the European -Pharmacopœias. Many of the preparations of lead -were also familiar to him. He was aware that lead -gives a sweet taste to vinegar. He knew sugar of -lead, litharge, yellow oxide of lead, white carbonate -of lead; and mentions that this last preparation was -often adulterated in his time. He knew the method -of making green vitriol, and the double chloride of -iron and ammonia. He was aware that iron could be -precipitated from its solution by potash, and that iron -has the property of throwing down copper. He was -aware that tin sometimes contains iron, and ascribed -the brittleness of Hungarian iron to copper. He knew -that oxides of copper gave a green colour to glass; -that Hungarian silver contained gold; that gold is -precipitated from aqua regia by mercury, in the state -of an amalgam. He mentions fulminating gold. But -the important facts contained in his works are so -numerous, while we are so uncertain about the genuineness -of the writings themselves, that it will scarcely -be worth while to proceed further with the catalogue.</p> - -<p>Thus I have brought the history of alchymy to the -time of Paracelsus, when it was doomed to undergo a -new and important change. It will be better, therefore, -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_48">48</span> -not to pursue the history of alchymy further, but -to take up the history of true chemistry; and in the -first place to endeavour to determine what chemical -facts were known to the Ancients, and how far the -science had proceeded to develop itself before the time -of Paracelsus. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_49">49</span></p> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<h2 id="CHAPTER_II">CHAPTER II.<br /> - -<span class="large">OF THE CHEMICAL KNOWLEDGE POSSESSED BY THE -ANCIENTS.</span></h2> - -<p>Notwithstanding the assertions of Olaus Borrichius, -and various other writers who followed him on -the same side, nothing is more certain than that the -ancients have left no chemical writings behind them, -and that no evidence whatever exists to prove that the -science of chemistry was known to them. Scientific -chemistry, on the contrary, took its origin from the collection -and comparison of the chemical facts, made -known by the practice and improvement of those -branches of manufactures which can only be conducted -by chemical processes. Thus the smelting of ores, and -the reduction of the metals which they contain, is a -chemical process; because it requires, for its success, -the separation of certain bodies which exist in the ore -chemically combined with the metals; and it cannot be -done, except by the application or mixture of a new -substance, having an affinity for these substances, and -capable, in consequence, of separating them from the -metal, and thus reducing the metal to a state of -purity. The manufacture of glass, of soap, of leather, -are all chemical, because they consist of processes, by -means of which bodies, having an affinity for each -other, are made to unite in chemical combination. -Now I shall in this chapter point out the principal -chemical manufactures that were known to the ancients, -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_50">50</span> -that we may see how much they contributed towards -laying the foundation of the science. The chief sources -of our information on this subject are the writings of -the Greeks and Romans. Unfortunately the arts and -manufactures stood in a very different degree of estimation -among the ancients from what they do among -the moderns. Their artists and manufacturers were -chiefly slaves. The citizens of Greece and Rome devoted -themselves to politics or war. Such of them -as turned their attention to learning confined themselves -to <i>oratory</i>, which was the most fashionable -and the most important study, or to history, or poetry. -The only scientific pursuits which ever engaged their -attention, were politics, ethics, and mathematics. For, -unless Archimedes is to be considered as an exception, -scarcely any of the numerous branches of physics and -mechanical philosophy, which constitute so great a -portion of modern science, even attracted the attention -of the ancients.</p> - -<p>In consequence of the contemptible light in which -all mechanical employments were viewed by the ancients, -we look in vain in any of their writings for -accurate details respecting the processes which they -followed. The only exception to this general neglect -and contempt for all the arts and trades, is Pliny the -Elder, whose object, in his natural history, was to -collect into one focus, every thing that was known at -the period when he lived. His work displays prodigious -reading, and a vast fund of erudition. It is to -him that we are chiefly indebted for the knowledge of -the chemical arts which were practised by the ancients. -But the low estimation in which these arts were held, -appears evident from the wonderful want of information -which Pliny so frequently displays, and the -erroneous statements which he has recorded respecting -these processes. Still a great deal may be drawn from -the information which has been collected and transmitted -to us by this indefatigable natural historian. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_51">51</span></p> - -<p><span class="smcap">I.</span>—The ancients were acquainted with <span class="smcap">SEVEN -METALS</span>; namely, gold, silver, mercury, copper, iron, -tin, and lead. They knew and employed various preparations -of zinc, and antimony, and arsenic; though -we have no evidence that these bodies were known to -them in the metallic state.</p> - -<p>1. Gold is spoken of in the second chapter of Genesis -as existing and familiarly known before the flood.</p> - -<p>“The name of the first is Pison; that is it which -encompasseth the whole land of Havilah, where there -is gold. And the gold of that land is good: there is -bdellium and the onyx-stone.” The Hebrew word for -gold, בהז (<i>zahav</i>) signifies to be clear, to shine; alluding, -doubtless, to the brilliancy of that metal. The term -<i>gold</i> occurs frequently in the writings of Moses, and -the metal must have been in common use among the -Egyptians, when that legislator led the children of -Israel out of Egypt.<a id="FNanchor_28" href="#Footnote_28" class="fnanchor">28</a> Gold is found in the earth almost -always in a native state. There can be no doubt that -it was much more abundant on the surface of the earth, -and in the beds of rivers in the early periods of society, -than it is at present: indeed this is obvious, -from the account which Pliny gives of the numerous -places in Asia and Greece, and other European countries, -where gold was found in his time.</p> - -<p>Gold, therefore, could hardly fail to attract the attention -of the very first inhabitants of the globe; its -beauty, its malleability, its indestructibility, would -give it value: accident would soon discover the possibility -of melting it by heat, and thus of reducing the -grains or small pieces of it found on the surface of the -earth into one large mass. It would be speedily made -into ornaments and utensils of various kinds, and -thus gradually would come into common use. This -we find to have occurred in America, when it was discovered -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_52">52</span> -by Columbus. The inhabitants of the tropical -parts of that vast continent were familiarly acquainted -with gold; and in Mexico and Peru it existed in great -abundance; indeed the natives of these countries -seem to have been acquainted with no other metal, or -at least no other metal was brought into such general -use, except silver, which in Peru was, it is true, still -more common than gold.</p> - -<p>Gold, then, was probably the first metal with which -man became acquainted; and that knowledge must -have preceded the commencement of history, since it -is mentioned as a common and familiar substance in -the Book of Genesis, the oldest book in existence, of -the authenticity of which we possess sufficient evidence. -The period of leading the children of Israel out of -Egypt by Moses, is generally fixed to have been one -thousand six hundred and forty-eight years before -the commencement of the Christian era. So early, -then, we are certain, that not only gold, but the -other six malleable metals known to the ancients, were -familiar to the inhabitants of Egypt. The Greeks -ascribe the discovery of gold to the earliest of their -heroes. According to Pliny, it was discovered on -Mount Pangæus by Cadmus, the Phœnician: but -Cadmus’s voyage into Greece was nearly coeval with -the exit of the Israelites out of Egypt, at which time -we learn from Moses that gold was in common use -in Egypt. All that can be meant, then, is, that Cadmus -first discovered gold in Greece; not that he made -mankind first acquainted with it. Others say that -Thoas and Eaclis, or Sol, the son of Oceanus, first -found gold in Panchaia. Thoas was a contemporary -of the heroes of the Trojan war, or at least was posterior -to the Argonautic expedition, and consequently long -posterior to Moses and the departure of the children -of Israel from Egypt.</p> - -<p>2. Silver also was not only familiarly known to the -Egyptians in the time of Moses, but, as we learn from -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_53">53</span> -Genesis, was coined into money before Joseph was set -over the land of Egypt by Pharaoh, which happened one -thousand eight hundred and seventy-two years before -the commencement of the Christian era, and consequently -two hundred and twenty-four years before the -departure of the children of Israel out of Egypt.</p> - -<p>“And Joseph gathered up all the money that was -found in the land of Egypt, and in the land of Canaan, -for the corn which they bought; and Joseph brought -the money into Pharaoh’s house.”<a id="FNanchor_29" href="#Footnote_29" class="fnanchor">29</a> The Hebrew word -ףםכ (<i>keseph</i>), translated <i>money</i>, signifies silver, and -was so called from its pale colour. Silver occurs in -many other passages of the writings of Moses.<a id="FNanchor_30" href="#Footnote_30" class="fnanchor">30</a> The -Greeks inform us, that Erichthonius the Athenian, or -Ceacus, were the discoverers of silver; but both of -these individuals were long posterior to the time of -Joseph.</p> - -<p>Silver, like gold, occurs very frequently in the -metallic state. This, no doubt, was a still more frequent -occurrence in the early ages of the world; it would -therefore attract the attention of mankind as early as -gold, and for the same reason. It is very ductile, -very beautiful, and much more easily fused than -gold: it would be therefore more easily reduced into -masses, and formed into different utensils and ornaments -than even gold itself. The ores of it which occur -in the earth are heavy, and would therefore draw the -attention of even rude men to them: they have, most -of them at least, the appearance of being metallic, and -the most common of them may be reduced to the state -of metallic silver, simply by keeping them a sufficient -time in fusion. Accordingly we find that the Peruvians, -before they were overrun by the Spaniards, had -made themselves acquainted with the mode of digging -out and smelting the ores of silver which occur in -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_54">54</span> -their country, and that many of their most common -utensils were made of that metal.</p> - -<p>Silver and gold approached each other nearer in -value among the ancients than at present: an ounce -of fine gold was worth from ten to twelve ounces of fine -silver, the variation depending upon the accidental -relation of the supply of both metals. But after the -discovery of America, the quantity of silver found in -that continent, especially in Mexico, was so great, -compared with that of the gold found, that silver -became considerably cheaper; so that an ounce of -fine gold came to be equivalent to about fourteen -ounces and a half of fine silver. Of course these -relative values have fluctuated a little according to -the abundance of the supply of silver. Though the -revolution in the Spanish American colonies has considerably -diminished the supply of silver from the -mines, that deficiency seems to have been supplied by -other ways, and thus the relative proportion between -the value of gold and silver has continued nearly unaltered.</p> - -<p>3. That copper must have been known in the earliest -ages of society, is sufficiently evident. It occurs frequently -native, and could not fail to attract the attention -of mankind, from its colour, weight, and malleability. -It would not be difficult to fuse it even in the -rudest ages: and when melted into masses, as it is -malleable and ductile, it would not require much skill -to convert it into useful and ornamental utensils. The -Hebrew word תשחנ (<i>nechooshat</i>) translated <i>brass</i>, obviously -means <i>copper</i>. We have the authority of the -Book of Genesis to satisfy us that copper was known -before the flood, and probably as early as either silver -or gold.</p> - -<p>“And Zillah, she also bore Tubal-cain, an instructor -of every artificer in brass (<i>copper</i>) and iron.”<a id="FNanchor_31" href="#Footnote_31" class="fnanchor">31</a> -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_55">55</span></p> - -<p>The word <i>copper</i> occurs in many other passages of -the writings of Moses.<a id="FNanchor_32" href="#Footnote_32" class="fnanchor">32</a> That the Hebrew word translated -<i>brass</i> must have meant copper is obvious, from -the following passage: “Out of whose hills thou -mayest dig brass.”<a id="FNanchor_33" href="#Footnote_33" class="fnanchor">33</a> Brass does not exist in the earth, -nor any ore of it, it is always made artificially; it -must therefore have been copper, or an ore of copper, -that was alluded to by Moses.</p> - -<p>Copper must have been discovered and brought into -common use long before iron or steel; for Homer represents -his heroes of the Trojan war as armed with -swords, &c. of copper. Copper itself is too soft to be -made into cutting instruments; but the addition of a -little tin gives it the requisite hardness. Now we learn -from the analyses of Klaproth, that the copper swords -of the ancients were actually hardened by the addition -of tin.<a id="FNanchor_34" href="#Footnote_34" class="fnanchor">34</a></p> - -<p>Copper was the metal in common use in the early -part of the Roman commonwealth. Romulus coined -copper money alone. Numa established a college of -workers in copper (<i>ærariorum fabrum</i>).<a id="FNanchor_35" href="#Footnote_35" class="fnanchor">35</a></p> - -<p>The Latin word <i>æs</i> sometimes signifies copper, and -sometimes brass. It is plain from what Pliny says on -the subject, that he did not know the difference between -copper and brass; he says, that an ore of <i>æs</i> occurs -in Cyprus, called <i>chalcitis</i>, where <i>æs</i> was first discovered. -Here <i>æs</i> obviously means copper. In another -place he says, that <i>æs</i> is obtained from a mineral called -<i>cadmia</i>. Now from the account of cadmia by Pliny -and Dioscorides, there cannot be a doubt that it is the -ore to which the moderns have given the name of -<i>calamine</i>, by means of which brass is made. It is -sometimes a silicate and sometimes a carbonate of -zinc; for both of these ores are confounded together -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_56">56</span> -under the name of cadmia, and both are employed in -the manufacture of brass.</p> - -<p>Solinus says, that <i>æs</i> was first made at Chalcis, a -town in Eubœa. Hence the Greek name, χαλκος -(<i>chalkos</i>), by which copper was distinguished.</p> - -<p>The proper name for brass, by which is meant an -alloy of copper and zinc, was <i>aurichalcum</i>, or golden, -or yellow copper. Pliny says, that long before his -time, the ore of aurichalcum was exhausted, so that -no more of that beautiful alloy was made. Are we to -conclude from this, that there once existed an ore consisting -of calamine and ore of copper, mixed or -united together? After the exhaustion of the aurichalcum -mine, the <i>salustianum</i> became the most famous; -but it soon gave place to the <i>livianum</i>, a copper-mine -in Gaul, named after Livia, the wife of -Augustus. Both these mines were exhausted in the -time of Pliny. The <i>æs marianum</i>, or copper of Cordova, -was the most celebrated in his time. This last -<i>æs</i>, he says, absorbs most cadmia, and acquires the -greatest resemblance to aurichalcum. We see from -this, that in Pliny’s time brass was made artificially, -and by a process similar to that still followed by the -moderns.</p> - -<p>The most celebrated alloy of copper among the -ancients, was the <i>æs corinthium</i>, or Corinthian copper, -formed accidentally, as Pliny informs us, during -the burning of Corinth by Mummius in the year 608, -after the building of Rome, or one hundred and forty-five -years before the commencement of the Christian -era. There were four kinds of it, of which Pliny gives -the following description; not, however, very intelligible: - -<span class="table"> -<span class="trow">1. White. It resembled silver much in its lustre, -and contained an excess of that metal.</span> - -<span class="trow">2. Red. In this kind there is an excess of gold.</span> - -<span class="trow">3. In the third kind, gold, silver, and copper are -mixed in equal proportions. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_57">57</span></span> - -<span class="trow">4. The fourth kind is called <i>hepatizon</i>, from its -having a liver colour. It is this colour which gives it -its value.<a id="FNanchor_36" href="#Footnote_36" class="fnanchor">36</a></span> -</span></p> - -<p>Copper was put by the ancients to almost all the -uses to which it is put by the moderns. One of the -great sources of consumption was bronze statues, -which were first introduced into Rome after the conquest -of Asia Minor. Before that time, the statues of -the Romans were made of wood or stoneware. Pliny -gives various formulas for making bronze for statues. -Of these it may be worth while to put down the most -material.</p> - -<p>1. To new copper add a third part of old copper. To -every hundred pounds of this mixture, twelve pounds -and a half of tin<a id="FNanchor_37" href="#Footnote_37" class="fnanchor">37</a> are added, and the whole melted -together.</p> - -<p>2. Another kind of bronze for statues was formed, -by melting together - -<span class="table"> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell tdr">100lbs.</span> - <span class="tcell">copper,</span> - </span> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell tdr">10lbs.</span> - <span class="tcell">lead,</span> - </span> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell tdr">5lbs.</span> - <span class="tcell">tin.</span> - </span> -</span></p> - -<p>3. Their copper-pots for boiling consisted of 100lbs. -of copper, melted with three or four pounds of tin.</p> - -<p>The four celebrated statues of horses which, during -the reign of Theodosius II. were transported from -Chio to Constantinople; and, when Constantinople -was taken and plundered by the Crusaders and Venetians -in 1204, were sent by Martin Zeno and set up -by the doge, Peter Ziani, in the portal of St. Mark; -were in 1798, transported by the French to Paris; and -finally, after the overthrow of Buonaparte, and the -restoration of the Bourbons in 1815, returned to -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_58">58</span> -Venice and placed upon their ancient pedestals. The -metal of which these horses had been made was examined -by Klaproth, and found by him composed of - -<span class="table"> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell">Copper,</span> - <span class="tcell tdr">993</span> - <span class="tcell"> </span> - </span> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell">Tin,</span> - <span class="tcell tdr">7</span> - <span class="tcell"> </span> - </span> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell"> </span> - <span class="tcell tdr bt">1000</span> - <span class="tcell"><a id="FNanchor_38" href="#Footnote_38" class="fnanchor">38</a></span> - </span> -</span></p> - -<p>Klaproth also analyzed an ancient bronze statue in -one of the German cabinets, and found it composed of - -<span class="table"> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell">Copper,</span> - <span class="tcell tdr">916</span> - <span class="tcell"> </span> - </span> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell">Tin,</span> - <span class="tcell tdr">75</span> - <span class="tcell"> </span> - </span> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell">Lead,</span> - <span class="tcell tdr">97</span> - <span class="tcell"> </span> - </span> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell"> </span> - <span class="tcell tdr bt">1000</span> - <span class="tcell"><a id="FNanchor_39" href="#Footnote_39" class="fnanchor">39</a></span> - </span> -</span></p> - -<p>Several other old brass and bronze pieces of metal, -very ancient, but found in Germany, were also analyzed -by Klaproth. The result of his analyses was as -follows:</p> - -<p>The metal of which the altar of Krodo was made -consisted of - -<span class="table"> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell">Copper,</span> - <span class="tcell tdr">69</span> - <span class="tcell"> </span> - </span> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell">Zinc,</span> - <span class="tcell tdr">18</span> - <span class="tcell"> </span> - </span> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell">Lead,</span> - <span class="tcell tdr">13</span> - <span class="tcell"> </span> - </span> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell"> </span> - <span class="tcell tdr bt">100</span> - <span class="tcell"><a id="FNanchor_40" href="#Footnote_40" class="fnanchor">40</a></span> - </span> -</span></p> - -<p>The emperor’s chair, which had in the eleventh century -been transported from Harzburg to Goslar, where -it still remains, was found to be composed of - -<span class="table"> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell">Copper,</span> - <span class="tcell tdr">92·5</span> - <span class="tcell"> </span> - </span> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell">Tin,</span> - <span class="tcell tdr">5·0</span> - <span class="tcell"> </span> - </span> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell">Lead,</span> - <span class="tcell tdr">2·5</span> - <span class="tcell"> </span> - </span> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell"> </span> - <span class="tcell tdr bt">100</span> - <span class="tcell"><a id="FNanchor_41" href="#Footnote_41" class="fnanchor">41</a></span> - </span> -</span></p> - -<p>Another piece of metal, which enclosed the high altar -in a church in Germany, was composed of -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_59">59</span> - -<span class="table"> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell">Copper,</span> - <span class="tcell tdr">75·0</span> - <span class="tcell"> </span> - </span> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell">Tin,</span> - <span class="tcell tdr">12·5</span> - <span class="tcell"> </span> - </span> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell">Lead,</span> - <span class="tcell tdr">12·5</span> - <span class="tcell"> </span> - </span> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell"> </span> - <span class="tcell tdr bt">100</span> - <span class="tcell"><a id="FNanchor_42" href="#Footnote_42" class="fnanchor">42</a></span> - </span> -</span></p> - -<p>These analyses, though none of them corresponds -exactly with the proportions given by Pliny, confirms -sufficiently his general statement, that the bronze of -the ancients employed for statues was copper, alloyed -with lead and tin.</p> - -<p>Some of the bronze statues cast by the ancients were -of enormous dimensions, and show decisively the great -progress which had been made by them in the art of -working and casting metals. The addition of the lead -and tin would not only add greatly to the hardness of -the alloy, but would at the same time render it more -easily fusible. The bronze statue of Apollo, placed in -the capitol at the time of Pliny, was forty-five feet -high, and cost 500 talents, equivalent to about £50,000 -of our money. It was brought from Apollonia, in -Pontus, by Lucullus. The famous statue of the sun -at Rhodes was the work of Chares, a disciple of Lysippus; -it was ninety feet high, was twelve years in -making, and cost 300 talents (about £30,000). It -was made out of the engines of war left by Demetrius -when he raised the siege of Rhodes. After standing -fifty-six years, it was overthrown by an earthquake. -It lay on the ground 900 years, and was sold by -Mauvia, king of the Saracens, to a merchant, who -loaded 900 camels with the fragments of it.</p> - -<p>Copper was introduced into medicine at rather an -early period of society, and various medicinal preparations -of it are described by Dioscorides and Pliny. -It remains for us to notice the most remarkable of -these. Pliny mentions an institution, to which he -gives the name of <i>Seplasia</i>; the object of which was, -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_60">60</span> -to prepare medicines for the use of medical men. It -seems, therefore, to have been similar to our apothecaries’ -shops of the present day. Pliny reprobates the -conduct of the persons who had the charge of these -Seplasiæ in his time. They were in the habit of adulterating -medicines to such a degree, that nothing good -or genuine could be procured from them.<a id="FNanchor_43" href="#Footnote_43" class="fnanchor">43</a></p> - -<p>Both the oxides of copper were known to the ancients, -though they were not very accurately distinguished -from each other: they were known by the -names <i>flos æris</i> and <i>scoria æris</i>, or <i>squama æris</i>. -They were obtained by heating bars of copper red-hot -and letting them cool, exposed to the air. What fell -off during the cooling was the <i>flos</i>, what was driven -off by blows of a hammer was the <i>squama</i> or <i>scoria -æris</i>. It is obvious, that all these substances were -nearly of the same nature, and that they were in -reality mixtures of the black and red oxides of copper.</p> - -<p><i>Stomoma</i> seems also to have been an oxide of copper, -which was gradually formed upon the surface of -the metal, when it was kept in a state of fusion.</p> - -<p>These oxides of copper were used as external applications -in cases of polypi of the nose, diseases of -the anus, ear, mouth, &c., seemingly as escharotics.</p> - -<p><i>Ærugo</i>, verdigris, was a subacetate of copper, -doubtless often mixed with subacetate of zinc, as not -only copper but brass also was used for preparing it. -The mode of preparing this substance was similar to -the process still followed. Whether verdigris was -employed as a paint by the ancients does not appear; -for Pliny takes no notice of any such use of it.</p> - -<p><i>Chalcantum</i>, called also <i>atramentum sutorium</i>, -was probably a mixture of sulphate of copper and -sulphate of iron. Pliny’s account of the mode of procuring -it is too imperfect to enable us to form precise -ideas concerning it; but it was crystallized on strings, -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_61">61</span> -which were extended for the purpose in the solution: -its colour was blue, and it was transparent like glass. -This description might apply to sulphate of copper; -but as the substance was used for blackening leather, -and on that account was called <i>atramentum sutorium</i>, -it is obvious that it must have contained also <i>sulphate -of iron</i>.</p> - -<p><i>Chalcitis</i> was the name for an ore of copper. The -account given of it by Pliny agrees best with copper -pyrites, which is now known to be a <i>sulphur salt</i>, -composed of one atom of sulphide of copper (the -acid) united to one atom of sulphide of iron (the -base). Pliny informs us, that it is a mixture of <i>copper</i>, -<i>misy</i>, and <i>sory</i>: its colour is that of honey. By -age, he says, it changes into sory. I think it most -probable that native sory, of which Pliny speaks, was -sulphuret of copper, and artificial sory sulphate of -copper. The native sory is said to constitute black -veins in chalcitis. Pliny’s description of misy (μισυ) -best agrees with copper pyrites. Dioscorides describes -it as hard, as having the colour of gold, and as shining -like a star.<a id="FNanchor_44" href="#Footnote_44" class="fnanchor">44</a> All this agrees pretty well with copper -pyrites.</p> - -<p><i>Scoleca</i> (so called because it assumed the shape of -a worm) was formed by triturating alumen, carbonate of -soda, and white vinegar, till the matter became green. -It was probably a mixture of sulphate of soda, acetate -of soda, acetate of alumina, and acetate of copper, -probably with more or less oxide of copper, &c., depending -upon the proportions of the respective constituents -employed.</p> - -<p>Such are the preparations of copper, employed by -the ancients. They were only used as external applications, -partly as escharotics, and partly to induce -ulcers to put on a healthy appearance. It does not -appear that copper was ever used by the ancients as -an internal remedy. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_62">62</span></p> - -<p>4. Though <i>zinc</i> in the metallic state was unknown -to the ancients, yet as they knew some of its ores, -and employed preparations of it in medicine, and -were in the habit of alloying copper with it, and converting -it into brass, it will be proper to state here -what was known to them concerning it.</p> - -<p>Pliny nowhere makes us acquainted with the process -by which copper was converted into brass, nor -does he seem to have been acquainted with it; but -from several facts incidentally mentioned by him, it -is obvious that their process was similar to that which -is followed at present by modern brass-makers. The -copper in grains is mixed with a certain quantity of -calamine (cadmia) and charcoal, and exposed for some -time to a moderate heat in a covered crucible. The -calamine is reduced to the metallic state, and imbibed -by the copper grains. When the copper is thus converted -into brass, the temperature is raised sufficiently -high to melt the whole: it is then poured out and cast -into a slab or ingot.</p> - -<p>The cadmia employed by the ancients in medicine -was not calamine, but oxide of zinc, which sublimed -during the fusion of brass in an open vessel. It was -distinguished by a variety of names, according to the -state in which it was obtained: the lighter portion was -called <i>capnitis</i>. <i>Botryitis</i> was the name of the portion -in the interior of the chimney: the name was derived -from some resemblance which it was supposed -to have to a bunch of grapes. It had two colours, -ash and red. The red variety was reckoned best. This -red colour it might derive from some copper mixed -with it, but more probably from iron; for a small -quantity of oxide of iron is sufficient to give oxide of -zinc a rather beautiful red colour. The portion collected -on the sides of the furnace was called <i>placitis</i>: -it constituted a crust, and was distinguished by different -names, according to its colour; <i>onychitis</i> when -it was blue externally, but spotted internally: <i>ostracitis</i>, -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_63">63</span> -when it was black and dirty-looking. This last -variety was considered as an excellent application to -wounds. The best cadmia in Pliny’s time was furnished -by the furnaces of the Isle of Cyprus: it was -used as an external application in ulcers, inflammations, -eruptions, &c., so that its use in medicine was -pretty much the same as at present. Sulphate and -acetate of zinc were unknown to the ancients. No attempt -seems to have been made by them to introduce -any preparations of zinc as internal medicines.</p> - -<p><i>Pompholyx</i> was the name given to oxide of zinc, -sublimed by the combustion of the zinc which exists in -brass. <i>Spodos</i> seems to have been a mixture of oxides -of zinc and copper. There were different varieties of -it distinguished by various names.<a id="FNanchor_45" href="#Footnote_45" class="fnanchor">45</a></p> - -<p>5. Iron exists very rarely in the earth in a metallic -state, but most commonly in the state of an oxide; -and the processes necessary to extract metallic iron -from these ores are much more complicated, and require -much greater skill, than the reduction of gold, -silver, or copper from their respective ores. This -would lead us to expect that iron would have been -much longer in being discovered than the three metals -whose names have been just given. But we learn from -the Book of Genesis that iron, like copper and gold, -was known before the flood, Tubal-cain being represented -as an artificer in copper and iron.<a id="FNanchor_46" href="#Footnote_46" class="fnanchor">46</a> The Hebrew -word for iron, לזרב (<i>barzel</i>), is said to be derived -from רב (<i>bar</i>), bright, לזנ (<i>nazal</i>), to melt; -and would lead one to the suspicion, that it referred -to <i>cast</i> iron rather than <i>malleable</i> iron. It is possible -that in these early times native iron may have existed -as well as native gold, silver, and copper; and in this -way Tubal-cain may have become acquainted with the -existence and properties of this metal. In the time -of Moses, who was learned in all the wisdom of the -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_64">64</span> -Egyptians, iron must have been in common use in -Egypt: for he mentions furnaces for working iron;<a id="FNanchor_47" href="#Footnote_47" class="fnanchor">47</a> -ores from which it was extracted;<a id="FNanchor_48" href="#Footnote_48" class="fnanchor">48</a> and tells us that -swords,<a id="FNanchor_49" href="#Footnote_49" class="fnanchor">49</a> knives,<a id="FNanchor_50" href="#Footnote_50" class="fnanchor">50</a> axes,<a id="FNanchor_51" href="#Footnote_51" class="fnanchor">51</a> and tools for cutting stones,<a id="FNanchor_52" href="#Footnote_52" class="fnanchor">52</a> -were then made of that metal. Now iron in its pure -metallic state is too soft to be applied to these uses: -it is obvious, therefore, that in Moses’s time, not -only iron but steel also must have been in common -use in Egypt. From this we see how much further -advanced the Egyptians were than the Greeks in the -knowledge of the manufacture of this most important -metal: for during the Trojan war, which was several -centuries after the time of Moses, Homer represents -his heroes as armed with swords of copper, hardened -by tin, and as never using any weapons of iron whatever. -Nay, in such estimation was it held, that -Achilles, when he celebrated games in honour of Patrocles, -proposes a ball of iron as one of his most valuable -prizes.<a id="FNanchor_53" href="#Footnote_53" class="fnanchor">53</a></p> - -<div class="poetry"> -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“Then hurl’d the hero, thundering on the ground,<br /></span> -<span class="i0">A mass of iron (an enormous round),<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Whose weight and size the circling Greeks admire,<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Rude from the furnace and but shaped by fire.<br /></span> -<span class="i0">This mighty quoit Ætion wont to rear,<br /></span> -<span class="i0">And from his whirling arm dismiss’d in air;<br /></span> -<span class="i0">The giant by Achilles slain, he stow’d<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Among his spoils this memorable load.<br /></span> -<span class="i0">For this he bids those nervous artists vie<br /></span> -<span class="i0">That teach the disk to sound along the sky.<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Let him whose might can hurl this bowl, arise;<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Who farthest hurls it, takes it as his prize:<br /></span> -<span class="i0">If he be one enrich’d with large domain<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Of downs for flocks and arable for grain,<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Small stock of iron needs that man provide,<br /></span> -<span class="i0">His hinds and swains whole years shall be supplied<br /></span> -<span class="i0">From hence: nor ask the neighbouring city’s aid<br /></span> -<span class="i0">For ploughshares, wheels, and all the rural trade.”<br /></span> -</div></div> -</div> -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_65">65</span></p> - -<p>The mass of iron was large enough to supply a -shepherd or a ploughman with iron for five years. -This circumstance is a sufficient proof of the high estimation -in which iron was held during the time of -Homer. Were a modern poet to represent his hero -as holding out a large lump of iron as a prize, and -were he to represent this prize as eagerly contended -for by kings and princes, it would appear to us perfectly -ridiculous.</p> - -<p>Hesiod informs us, that the knowledge of iron was -brought over from Phrygia to Greece by the Dactyli, -who settled in Crete during the reign of Minos I., -about 1431 years before the commencement of the -Christian era, and consequently about sixty years -before the departure of the children of Israel from -Egypt: and it does not appear, that in Homer’s -time, which was about five hundred years later, the art -of smelting iron had been so much improved, as to -enable men to apply it to the common purposes of -life, as had long before been done by the Egyptians. -The general opinion of the ancients was, that the method -of smelting iron ore had been brought to perfection -by the Chalybes, a small nation situated near the -Black Sea,<a id="FNanchor_54" href="#Footnote_54" class="fnanchor">54</a> and that the name <i>chalybs</i>, occasionally -used for steel, was derived from that people.</p> - -<p>Pliny informs us, that the ores of iron are scattered -very profusely almost every where: that they exist in -Elba; that there was a mountain in Cantabria composed -entirely of iron ore; and that the earth in Cappadocia, -when watered from a certain river, is converted -into iron.<a id="FNanchor_55" href="#Footnote_55" class="fnanchor">55</a> He gives no account of the mode of -smelting iron ores; nor does he appear to have been -acquainted with the processes; for he says that iron -is reduced from its ore precisely in the same way as -copper is. Now we know, that the processes for -smelting copper and iron are quite different, and -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_66">66</span> -founded upon different principles. He says, that in -his time many different kinds of iron existed, and -they were <i>stricturæ</i>, in Latin <i>a stringenda acie</i>.</p> - -<p>That steel was well known and in common use when -Pliny wrote is obvious from many considerations; but -he seems to have had no notion of what constituted -the difference between iron and steel, or of the method -employed to convert iron into steel. In his opinion -it depended upon the nature of the water, and -consisted in heating iron red-hot, and plunging it, -while in that state, into certain waters. The waters -at Bilbilis and Turiasso, in Spain, and at Comum, -in Italy, possessed this extraordinary virtue. The -best steel in Pliny’s time came from China; the next -best, in point of quality, was manufactured in -Parthia.</p> - -<p>It would appear, that at Noricum steel was manufactured -directly from the ore of iron. This process -was perfectly practicable, and it is said still to be practised -in certain cases.</p> - -<p>The ancients were acquainted with the method of -rendering iron, or rather steel, magnetic; as appears -from a passage in the fourteenth chapter of the thirty-fourth -book of Pliny. Magnetic iron was distinguished -by the name of <i>ferrum vivum</i>.</p> - -<p>When iron is dabbed over with alumen and vinegar -it becomes like copper, according to Pliny. Cerussa, -gypsum, and liquid pitch, keep it from rusting. Pliny -was of opinion that a method of preventing iron from -rusting had been once known, but had been lost before -his time. The iron chains of an old bridge over -the Euphrates had not rusted in Pliny’s time; but a -few new links, which had been added to supply the -place of some that had decayed, were become rusty.</p> - -<p>It would appear from Pliny, that the ancients made -use of something very like <i>tractors</i>; for he says that -pain in the side is relieved by holding near it the -point of a dagger that has wounded a man. Water -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_67">67</span> -in which red-hot iron had been plunged was recommended -as a cure for the dysentery; and the actual -cautery with red-hot iron, Pliny informs us, prevents -hydrophobia, when a person has been bitten by a mad -dog.</p> - -<p>Rust of iron and scales of iron were used by the -ancients as astringent medicines.</p> - -<p>6. Tin, also, must have been in common use in the -time of Moses; for it is mentioned without any observation -as one of the common metals.<a id="FNanchor_56" href="#Footnote_56" class="fnanchor">56</a> And from -the way in which it is spoken of by Isaiah and Ezekiel, -it is obvious that it was considered as of far inferior -value to silver and gold. Now tin, though the -ores of it where it does occur are usually abundant, -is rather a scarce metal: that is to say, there are but -few spots on the face of the earth where it is known -to exist. Cornwall, Spain, in the mountains of Gallicia, -and the mountains which separate Saxony and -Bohemia, are the only countries in Europe where tin -occurs abundantly. The last of these localities has -not been known for five centuries. It was from Spain -and from Britain that the ancients were supplied with -tin; for no mines of tin exist, or have ever been -known to exist, in Africa or Asia, except in the East -Indies. The Phœnicians were the first nation which -carried on a great trade by sea. There is evidence -that at a very early period they traded with Spain -and with Britain, and that from these countries they -drew their supplies of tin. It was doubtless the Phœnicians -that supplied the Egyptians with this metal. -They had imbibed strongly a spirit of monopoly; and -to secure the whole trade of tin they carefully concealed -the source from which they drew that metal. -Hence, doubtless, the reason why the Grecian geographers, -who derived their information from the Phœnicians, -represented the Insulæ Cassiterides, or tin -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_68">68</span> -islands, as a set of islands lying off the north coast -of Spain. We know that in fact the Scilly islands, -in these early ages, yielded tin, though doubtless the -great supply was drawn from the neighbouring province -of Cornwall. It was probably from these islands -that the Greek name for <i>tin</i> was derived (κασσιτερος). -Even Pliny informs us, that in his time tin was obtained -from the Cassiterides, and from Lusitania -and Gallicia. It occurs, he says, in grains in alluvial -soil, from which it is obtained by washing. It is in -black grains, the metallic nature of which is only recognisable -by the great weight. This is a pretty accurate -description of <i>stream tin</i>, which we know formerly -constituted the only ore of that metal wrought -in Cornwall. He says that the ore occurs also along -with grains of gold; that it is separated from the soil -by washing along with the grains of gold, and afterwards -smelted separately.</p> - -<p>Pliny gives no particulars about the mode of reducing -the ore of tin to the metallic state; nor is it at -all likely that he was acquainted with the process.</p> - -<p>The Latin term for tin was <i>plumbum album</i>. <i>Stannum</i> -is also used by Pliny; but it is impossible to -understand the account which he gives of it. There -is, he says, an ore consisting of lead, united to silver. -When this ore is smelted, the first metal that flows -out is <i>stannum</i>. What flows next is <i>silver</i>. What -remains in the furnace is <i>galena</i>. This being smelted, -yields <i>lead</i>.</p> - -<p>Were we to admit the existence of an ore composed -of lead and silver, it is obvious that no such products -could be obtained by simply smelting it.</p> - -<p>Cassiteros, or tin, is mentioned by Homer; and, -from the way in which the metal is said by him to -have been used, it is obvious that in his time it bore a -much higher price, and, consequently, was more valued -than at present. In his description of the breastplate -of Agamemnon, he says that it contained ten bands -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_69">69</span> -of steel, twelve of gold, and twenty of tin (κασσιτεροιο).<a id="FNanchor_57" href="#Footnote_57" class="fnanchor">57</a> -And in the twenty-third book of the Iliad (line 561), -Achilles describes a copper breastplate surrounded -with shining tin (φαεινου κασσιτεροιο). Pliny informs -us, that in his time tin was adulterated by adding to -it about one-third of white copper. A pound of tin, -when Pliny lived, cost ten denarii. Now, if we reckon -a denarius at 7¾<i>d.</i>, with Dr. Arbuthnot, this would make -a Roman pound of tin to cost 6<i>s.</i> 5½<i>d.</i> But, as the -Roman pound was only equal to three-fourths of our -avoirdupois pound, it is plain that in the time of Pliny -an avoirdupois pound of tin was worth 8<i>s.</i> 7¼<i>d.</i>, which -is almost seven times the price of tin in the present -day.</p> - -<p>Tin, in the time of Pliny, was used for covering the -inside of copper vessels, as it is at this day. And, no -doubt, the process still followed is of the same nature -as the process used by the ancients for tinning copper. -Pliny remarks, with surprise, that copper thus tinned -does not increase in weight. Now Bayen ascertained -that a copper pan, nine inches in diameter, and three -inches three lines in depth, when tinned, only acquired -an additional weight of twenty-one grains. -These measures and weights are French. When we -convert them into English, we have a copper pan 9·59 -inches in diameter, and 3·46 inches deep, which, when -tinned, increased in weight 17·23 troy grains. Now -the surface of the copper pan, thus tinned, was 176·468 -square inches. Hence it follows, that a square inch -of copper, when tinned, increases in weight only 0·097 -grains. This increase is so small, that we may excuse -Pliny, who probably had never seen the increase of -weight determined, except by means of a rude Roman -statera, for concluding that there was no increase of -weight whatever.</p> - -<p>Tin was employed by the ancients for mirrors: but -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_70">70</span> -mirrors of silver were gradually substituted; and these -in Pliny’s time had become so common, that they were -even employed by female servants or slaves.</p> - -<p>That Pliny’s knowledge of the properties of tin -was very limited, and far from accurate, is obvious -from his assertion that <i>tin</i> is less fusible than -silver.<a id="FNanchor_58" href="#Footnote_58" class="fnanchor">58</a> It is true that the ancients had no measure -to determine the different degrees of heat; but as -tin melts at a heat under redness, while silver requires -a bright red heat to bring it into fusion, a single -comparative trial would have shown him which was -most fusible. This trial, it is obvious, had never been -made by him.</p> - -<p>The ancients seem to have been ignorant of the -method of tinning iron. At least, no reference to -<i>tin plate</i> is made by Pliny, or by any other ancient -author, that I have had an opportunity of consulting.</p> - -<p>It would appear from Pliny, that both copper and -brass were tinned by the Gauls at an early period. -Tinned brass was called <i>æra coctilia</i>, and was so beautiful -that it almost passed for silver. <i>Plating</i> (or -covering the metal with plates of silver), was gradually -substituted for tinning; and finally <i>gilding</i> took the -place of plating. The trappings of horses, chariots, -&c., were thus ornamented. Pliny nowhere gives a -description of the process of plating; but there can -be little doubt that it was similar to that at present -practised. Gilding was accomplished by laying an -amalgam of gold on the copper or brass, as at present.</p> - -<p>7. Lead appears also to have been in common use -among the Egyptians, at the time of Moses.<a id="FNanchor_59" href="#Footnote_59" class="fnanchor">59</a> It was -distinguished among the Romans by the name of <i>plumbum -nigrum</i>. In Pliny’s time the lead-mines existed -chiefly in Spain and Britain. In Britain lead was so -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_71">71</span> -abundant, that it was prohibited to extract above a -certain quantity in a year. The mines lay on the -surface of the earth. Derbyshire was the county in -which lead ores were chiefly wrought by the Romans. -The rich mines in the north of England seem to have -been unknown to them.</p> - -<p>Pliny was of opinion that if a lead-mine, after being -exhausted, be shut up for some time, the ore will be -again renewed.</p> - -<p>In the time of Pliny leaden pipes were commonly used -for conveying water. The vulgar notion that the ancients -did not know that water will always rise in pipes -as high as the source from which it proceeds, and that -it was this ignorance which led to the formation of -aqueducts, is quite unfounded. Nobody can read -Pliny without seeing that this important fact was well -known in his time.</p> - -<p>Sheet lead was also used in the time of Pliny, and -applied to the same purposes as at present. But lead -was much higher priced among the ancients than it is -at present. Pliny informs us that its price was to -that of tin as 7 to 10. Hence it must have sold at -the rate of 6<i>s.</i> 0¼<i>d.</i> per pound. The present price of -lead does not much exceed three halfpence the pound. -It is therefore only 1-48th part of the price which it -bore in the time of Pliny. This difference must be -chiefly owing to the improvements made by the moderns -in working the mines and smelting the ores of -lead.</p> - -<p>Tin, in Pliny’s time, was used as a solder for lead. -For this purpose it is well adapted, as it is so much -easier smelted than lead. But when he says that lead -is used also as a solder for tin, his meaning is not so -clear. Probably he means an alloy of lead and tin, -which, fusing at a lower point than tin, may be used -to solder that metal. The addition of some bismuth -reduces the fusing point materially; but that metal -was unknown to the ancients. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_72">72</span></p> - -<p><i>Argentarium</i> is an alloy of equal parts of lead and -tin. <i>Tertiarium</i>, of two parts lead and one part tin. -It was used as a solder.</p> - -<p>Some preparations of lead were used by the ancients -in medicine, as we know from the description of them -given us by Dioscorides and Pliny. These preparations -consisted chiefly of protoxide of lead and lead reduced -to powder, and partially oxidized by triturating it -with water in a mortar. They were applied to ulcers, -and employed externally as astringents.</p> - -<p><i>Molybdena</i> was also employed in medicine. Pliny -says it was the same as galena. From his description -it is obvious that it was <i>litharge</i>; for it was in scales, -and was more valued the nearer its colour approached -to that of gold. It was employed, as it still is, for -making plasters. Pliny gives us the process for -making the plaster employed by the Roman surgeons. -It was made by heating together - -<span class="table"> -<span class="trow"> -<span class="tcell tdr">3</span> -<span class="tcell">lbs. molybdena or litharge,</span> -</span> -<span class="trow"> -<span class="tcell tdr">1</span> -<span class="tcell">lb. wax,</span> -</span> -<span class="trow"> -<span class="tcell tdr">3</span> -<span class="tcell">heminæ, or 1½ pint, of olive oil.</span> -</span> -</span> - -This process is very nearly the same as the one at present -followed by apothecaries for making adhesive -plaster.</p> - -<p><i>Psimmythium</i>, or <i>cerussa</i>, was the same as our <i>white -lead</i>. It was made by exposing lead in sheets to the -fumes of vinegar. It would seem probable from Pliny’s -account, though it is confused and inaccurate, that -the ancients were in the habit of dissolving cerussa in -vinegar, and thus making an impure acetate of lead.</p> - -<p>Cerussa was used in medicine. It constituted also -a common white paint. At one time, Pliny says, it -was found native; but in his time all that was used -was prepared artificially.</p> - -<p><i>Cerussa usta</i> seems to have been nearly the same as -our <i>red lead</i>. It was formed accidentally from cerussa -during the burning of the Pyræus. The colour was -purple. It was imitated at Rome by burning <i>silis</i> -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_73">73</span> -<i>marmarosus</i>, which was probably a variety of some of -our ochres.</p> - -<p>8. Besides the metals above enumerated, the ancients -were also acquainted with quicksilver. Nothing -is known about the first discovery of this metal; though -it obviously precedes the commencement of history. -I am not aware that the term occurs in the writings of -Moses. We have therefore no evidence that it was -known to the Egyptians at that early period; nor do -I find any allusion to it in the works of Herodotus. -But this is not surprising, as that author confines himself -chiefly to subjects connected with history. Dioscorides -and Pliny both mention it as common in their -time. Dioscorides gives a method of obtaining it by -sublimation from cinnabar. It is remarkable, because -it constitutes the first example of a process which ultimately -led to distillation.<a id="FNanchor_60" href="#Footnote_60" class="fnanchor">60</a></p> - -<p>Cinnabar is also described by Theophrastus. The -term <i>minium</i> was applied to it also, till in consequence -of the adulteration of cinnabar with <i>red lead</i>, the -term minium came at last to be restricted to that preparation -of lead. Theophrastus describes an artificial -cinnabar, which came from the country above Ephesus. -It was a shining red-coloured sand, which was collected -and reduced to a fine powder by pounding it in -vessels of stone. We do not know what it was. The -native cinnabar was found in Spain, and was used -chiefly as a paint. Dioscorides employs <i>minium</i> as -the name for what we at present call cinnabar, or bisulphuret -of mercury. His cinnabar was a red paint -from Africa, produced in such small quantity that -painters could scarcely procure enough of it to answer -their purposes.</p> - -<p>Mercury is described by Pliny as existing native in -the mines of Spain, and Dioscorides gives the process -for extracting it from cinnabar. It was employed in -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_74">74</span> -gilding precisely as it is by the moderns. Pliny was -aware of its great specific gravity, and of the readiness -with which it dissolves gold. The amalgam was squeezed -through leather, which separated most of the quicksilver. -When the solid amalgam remaining was heated, the -mercury was driven off and pure gold remained.</p> - -<p>It is obvious from what Dioscorides says, that the -properties of mercury were very imperfectly known to -him. He says that it may be kept in vessels of glass, -or of lead, or of tin, or of silver.<a id="FNanchor_61" href="#Footnote_61" class="fnanchor">61</a> Now it is well -known that it dissolves lead, tin, and silver with so -much rapidity, that vessels of these metals, were mercury -put into them, would be speedily destroyed. -Pliny’s account of quicksilver is rather obscure. It -seems doubtful whether he was aware that native <i>argentum -vivum</i> and the <i>hydrargyrum</i> extracted from -cinnabar were the same.</p> - -<p>Cinnabar was occasionally used as an external -medicine; but Pliny disapproves of it, assuring his -readers that quicksilver and all its preparations are -virulent poisons. No other mercurial preparations -except cinnabar and the amalgam of mercury seem -to have been known to the ancients.<a id="FNanchor_62" href="#Footnote_62" class="fnanchor">62</a></p> - -<p>9. The ancients were unacquainted with the metal -to which we at present give the name of <i>antimony</i>; -but several of the ores of that metal, and of the products -of these ores were not altogether unknown to -them. From the account of stimmi and stibium, by -Dioscorides<a id="FNanchor_63" href="#Footnote_63" class="fnanchor">63</a> and Pliny,<a id="FNanchor_64" href="#Footnote_64" class="fnanchor">64</a> there can be little doubt that -these names were applied to the mineral now called -<i>sulphuret of antimony</i> or crude antimony. It is found -most commonly, Pliny says, among the ores of silver, -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_75">75</span> -and consists of two kinds, the male and the female; -the latter of which is most valued.</p> - -<p>This pigment was known at a very early period, -and employed by the Asiatic ladies in painting their -eyelashes, or rather the insides of their eyelashes, -black. Thus it is said of Jezebel, that when Jehu -came to Jezreel she painted her face. The original -is, <i>she put her eyes in sulphuret of antimony</i>.<a id="FNanchor_65" href="#Footnote_65" class="fnanchor">65</a> A -similar expression occurs in Ezekiel, “For whom -thou didst wash thyself, paintedst thy eyes”—literally, -put thy eyes in sulphuret of antimony.<a id="FNanchor_66" href="#Footnote_66" class="fnanchor">66</a> This custom -of painting the eyes black with antimony was transferred -from Asia to Greece, and while the Moors occupied -Spain it was employed by the Spanish ladies -also. It is curious that the term <i>alcohol</i>, at present -confined to <i>spirit of wine</i>, was originally applied to -the powder of sulphuret of antimony.<a id="FNanchor_67" href="#Footnote_67" class="fnanchor">67</a> The ancients -were in the habit of roasting sulphuret of antimony, -and thus converting it into an impure oxide. This -preparation was also called stimmi and stibium. It was -employed in medicine as an external application, and -was conceived to act chiefly as an astringent; Dioscorides -describes the method of preparing it. We -see, from Pliny’s account of stibium, that he did not -distinguish between sulphuret of antimony and oxide -of antimony.<a id="FNanchor_68" href="#Footnote_68" class="fnanchor">68</a></p> - -<p>9. Some of the compounds of arsenic were also -known to the ancients; though they were neither acquainted -with this substance in the metallic state, nor -with its oxide; the nature of which is so -violent that had it been known to them it could not -have been omitted by Dioscorides and Pliny. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_76">76</span></p> - -<p>The word σανδαραχη (<i>sandarache</i>) occurs in Aristotle, -and the term αρῥενιχον (<i>arrhenichon</i>) in Theophrastus.<a id="FNanchor_69" href="#Footnote_69" class="fnanchor">69</a> -Dioscorides uses likewise the same name with Aristotle. -It was applied to a scarlet-coloured mineral, which occurs -native, and is now known by the name of <i>realgar</i>. -It is a compound of arsenic and sulphur. It was employed -in medicine both externally and internally, and -is recommended by Dioscorides, as an excellent remedy -for an inveterate cough.</p> - -<p><i>Auripigmentum</i> and <i>arsenicum</i> were names given to -the native yellow sulphuret of arsenic. It was used -in the same way, and considered by Dioscorides and -Pliny as of the same nature with realgar. But there -is no reason for supposing that the ancients were acquainted -with the compositions of either of these -bodies; far less that they had any suspicion of the -existence of the metal to which we at present give the -name of arsenic.</p> - -<p>Such is a sketch of the facts known to the ancients -respecting metals. They knew the six malleable -metals which are still in common use, and applied -them to most of the purposes to which the moderns -apply them. Scarcely any information has been left us -of the methods employed by them to reduce these -metals from their ores. But unless the ores were -of a much simpler nature than the modern ores of -these metals, of which we have no evidence, the -smelting processes with which the ancients were familiar, -could scarcely have been contrived without a -knowledge of the substances united with the different -metals in their ores, and of the means by which these -foreign bodies could be separated, and the metals isolated -from all impurities. This doubtless implied a -certain quantity of chemical knowledge, which having -been handed down to the moderns, served as a foundation -upon which the modern science of chemistry was -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_77">77</span> -gradually reared: at the same time it will be admitted -that this foundation was very slender, and would of -itself have led to little. Most of the oxides, sulphurets, -&c., and almost all the salts into which these -metallic bodies enter, were unknown to the ancients.</p> - -<p>Besides the working in metals there were some other -branches of industry practised by the ancients, so intimately -connected with chemical science, that it -would be improper to pass them over in silence. The -most important of these are the following:</p> - -<h3>II.—COLOURS USED BY PAINTERS.</h3> - -<p>It is well known that the ancient Grecian artists -carried the art of painting to the highest degree of -perfection, and that their paintings were admired and -sought after by the most eminent and accomplished -men of antiquity; and Pliny gives us a catalogue of -a great number of first-rate pictures, and a historical -account of a vast many celebrated painters of antiquity. -In his own time, he says, the art of painting had -lost its importance, statues and tablets having -came in place of pictures.</p> - -<p>Two kinds of colours were employed by the ancients; -namely, the florid and the austere. The florid -colours, as enumerated by Pliny, were <i>minium</i>, <i>armenium</i>, -<i>cinnaberis</i>, <i>chrysocolla</i>, <i>purpurissum</i>, and <i>indicum -purpurissum</i>.</p> - -<p>The word <i>minium</i> as used by Pliny means <i>red -lead</i>; though Dioscorides employs it for bisulphuret -of mercury or cinnabar.</p> - -<p><i>Armenium</i> was obviously an ochre, probably of a -yellow or orange colour.</p> - -<p><i>Cinnaberis</i> was bisulphuret of mercury, which is -known to have a scarlet colour. Dioscorides employs -it to denote a vegetable red colour, probably similar to -the resin at present called <i>dragon’s blood</i>.</p> - -<p><i>Chrysocolla</i> was a green-coloured paint, and from -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_78">78</span> -Pliny’s description of it, could have been nothing else -than carbonate of copper or malachite.</p> - -<p><i>Purpurissum</i> was a <i>lake</i>, as is obvious from the -account of its formation given by Pliny. The colouring -matter is not specified, but from the term used -there can be little doubt that it was the liquor from the -shellfish that yielded the celebrated purple dye of -the Tyrians.</p> - -<p><i>Indicum purpurissum</i> was probably <i>indigo</i>. This -might be implied from the account of it given by -Pliny.</p> - -<p>The austere colours used by the ancient painters -were of two kinds, native and artificial. The native -were <i>sinopis</i>, <i>rubrica</i>, <i>parætonium</i>, <i>melinum</i>, <i>eretria</i>, -<i>auripigmentum</i>. The artificial were, <i>ochra</i>, <i>cerussa -usta</i>, <i>sandaracha</i>, <i>sandyx</i>, <i>syricum</i>, <i>atramentum</i>.</p> - -<p><i>Sinopis</i> is the red substance now known by the -name of reddle, and used for marking. On that account -it is sometimes called <i>red chalk</i>. It was found -in Pontus, in the Balearian islands, and in Egypt. -The price was three denarii, or 1<i>s.</i> 11¼<i>d.</i> the pound -weight. The most famous variety of <i>sinopis</i> was -from the isle of Lemnos; it was sold sealed and -stamped: hence it was called <i>sphragis</i>. It was employed -to adulterate minium. In medicine it was -used to appease inflammation, and as an antidote to -poison.</p> - -<p><i>Ochre</i> is merely sinopis heated in a covered vessel. -The higher the temperature to which it has been exposed -the better it is.</p> - -<p><i>Leucophorum</i> is a compound of - -<span class="table"> -<span class="trow">6 lbs. sinopis of Pontus,</span> -<span class="trow">10 lbs. siris,</span> -<span class="trow">2 lbs. melinum,</span> -</span> -triturated together for thirty days. It was used to -make gold adhere to wood.</p> - -<p><i>Rubrica</i> from the name, was probably a red ochre.</p> - -<p><i>Parætonium</i> was a white colour, so called from a -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_79">79</span> -place in Egypt, where it was found. It was obtained -also in the island of Crete, and in Cyrene. It was -said to be a combination of the froth of the sea consolidated -with mud. It consisted probably of carbonate -of lime. Six pounds of it cost only one -denarius.</p> - -<p><i>Melinum</i> was also a white-coloured powder found -in Melos and Samos in veins. It was most probably -a carbonate of lime.</p> - -<p><i>Eretria</i> was named from the place where it was -found. Pliny gives its medical properties, but does -not inform us of its colour. It is impossible to say -what it was.</p> - -<p><i>Auripigmentum</i> was yellow sulphuret of arsenic. -It was probably but little used as a pigment by the -ancient painters.</p> - -<p><i>Cerussa usta</i> was red lead.</p> - -<p><i>Sandaracha</i> was red sulphuret of arsenic. The -pound of sandaracha cost 5 as.: it was imitated by -red lead. Both it and <i>ochra</i> were found in the island -Topazos in the Red Sea.</p> - -<p><i>Sandyx</i> was made by torrefying equal parts of true -sandaracha and sinopis. It cost half the price of sandaracha. -Virgil mistook this pigment for a plant, as is -obvious from the following line:</p> - -<div class="poetry"> -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">Sponte sua sandix, pascentes vestiet agnos.<a id="FNanchor_70" href="#Footnote_70" class="fnanchor">70</a><br /></span> -</div></div> -</div> - -<p><i>Siricum</i> is made by mixing sinopis and sandyx.</p> - -<p><i>Atramentum</i> was obviously from Pliny’s account of -it <i>lamp-black</i>. He mentions ivory-black as an invention -of Apelles: it was called <i>elephantinum</i>. -There was a native atramentum, which had the colour -of sulphur, and got a black colour artificially. It is -not unlikely that it contained sulphate of iron, and -that it got its black colour from the admixture of some -astringent substance. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_80">80</span></p> - -<p>The ink of the ancients was lamp-black mixed with -water, containing gum or glue dissolved in it. <i>Atramentum -indicum</i> was the same as our <i>China ink</i>.</p> - -<p>The <i>purpurissum</i> was a high-priced pigment. It -was made by putting <i>creta argentaria</i> (a species of -white clay) into the caldrons containing the ingredients -for dying purple. The creta imbibed the purple -colour and became <i>purpurissum</i>. The first portion of -<i>creta</i> put in constituted the finest and highest-priced -pigment. The portions put in afterwards became -successively worse, and were, of consequence lower -priced. We see, from this description, that it was a -lake similar to our modern cochineal lakes.<a id="FNanchor_71" href="#Footnote_71" class="fnanchor">71</a></p> - -<p>That the purpurissum indicum was indigo is obvious -from the statement of Pliny, that when thrown -upon hot coals it gives out a beautiful purple flame. -This constitutes the character of indigo. Its price in -Pliny’s time was ten denarii, or six shillings and five-pence -halfpenny the Roman pound; which is equivalent -to 8<i>s.</i> 7⅓<i>d.</i> the avoirdupois.</p> - -<p>Though few or none of the ancient pictures have -been preserved, yet several specimens of the colours -used by them still remain in Rome and in the ruins of -Herculaneum. Among others the fresco paintings, -in the baths of Titus, still remain; and as these were -made for a Roman emperor, we might expect to find -the most beautiful and costly colours employed in -them. These paints, and some others, were examined -by Sir Humphrey Davy, in 1813, while he was in -Rome. From his researches we derive some pretty -accurate information respecting the colours employed -by the painters of Greece and Rome.</p> - -<p>1. <i>Red paints.</i> Three different kinds of red were -found in a chamber opened in 1811, in the baths of -Titus, namely, a bright orange red, a dull red, and a -brown red. The bright orange red was <i>minium</i>, or -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_81">81</span> -<i>red lead</i>; the other two were merely two varieties of -iron ochres. Another still brighter red was observed -on the walls; it proved, on examination, to be <i>vermilion</i> -or <i>cinnabar</i>.</p> - -<p>2. <i>Yellow paints.</i> All the <i>yellows</i> examined by -Davy proved to be <i>iron ochres</i>, sometimes mixed with -a little <i>red lead</i>. Orpiment was undoubtedly employed, -as is obvious from what Pliny says on the -subject: but Davy found no traces of it among the -yellow colours which he examined. A very deep -yellow, approaching orange, which covered a piece of -stucco in the ruins near the monument of Caius Cestius, -proved to be protoxide of lead, or massicot, -mixed with some red lead. The yellows in the Aldobrandini -pictures were all ochres, and so were those -in the pictures on the walls of the houses at Pompeii.</p> - -<p>3. <i>Blue paints.</i> Different shades of blues are used -in the different apartments of the baths of Titus, which -are darker or lighter, as they contain more or less -carbonate of lime with which the blue pigment had been -mixed by the painter. This blue pigment turned out, -on examination, to be a frit composed of alkali and -silica, fused together with a certain quantity of oxide of -copper. This was the colour called χυανος (<i>kyanos</i>) -by the Greeks, and <i>cæruleum</i> by the Romans. Vitruvius -gives the method of preparing it by heating -strongly together sand, carbonate of soda, and filings -of copper. Davy found that fifteen parts by weight -of anhydrous carbonate of soda, twenty parts of powdered -opaque flints, and three parts of copper filings, -strongly heated together for two hours, gave a substance -exactly similar to the blue pigment of the -ancients, and which, when powdered, produced a fine -deep blue colour. This cæruleum has the advantage -of remaining unaltered even when the painting is -exposed to the actions of the air and sun.</p> - -<p>There is reason to suspect, from what Vitruvius and -Pliny say, that glass rendered blue by means of cobalt -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_82">82</span> -constituted the basis of some of the blue pigments -of the ancients; but all those examined by Davy consisted -of glass tinged blue by copper, without any -trace of cobalt whatever.</p> - -<p>4. <i>Green paints.</i> All the green paints examined by -Davy proved to be carbonates of copper, more or less -mixed with carbonate of lime. I have already mentioned -that verdigris was known to the ancients. It -was no doubt employed by them as a pigment, though -it is not probable that the acetic acid would be able -to withstand the action of the atmosphere for a couple -of thousand years.</p> - -<p>5. <i>Purple paints.</i> Davy ascertained that the colouring -matter of the ancient purple was combustible. It -did not give out the smell of ammonia, at least perceptibly. -There is little doubt that it was the <i>purpurissum</i> -of the ancients, or a clay coloured by means -of the purple of the buccinum employed by the Syrians -in the celebrated purple dye.</p> - -<p>6. <i>Black and brown paints.</i> The black paints were -lamp-black: the browns were some of them ochres and -some of them oxides of manganese.</p> - -<p>7. <i>White paints.</i> All the ancient white paints examined -by Davy were carbonates of lime.<a id="FNanchor_72" href="#Footnote_72" class="fnanchor">72</a> We know -from Pliny that white lead was employed by the -ancients as a pigment; but it might probably become -altered in its nature by long-continued exposure to -the weather.</p> - -<h3>III.—GLASS.</h3> - -<p>It is admitted by some that the word which in our -English Bible is translated crystal, means glass, in -the following passage of Job: “The gold and the -crystal cannot equal it.”<a id="FNanchor_73" href="#Footnote_73" class="fnanchor">73</a> Now although the exact -time when Job was written is not known, it is admitted -on all hands to be one of the oldest of the books contained -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_83">83</span> -in the Old Testament. There are strong reasons -for believing that it existed before the time of -Moses; and some go so far as to affirm that there are -several allusions to it in the writings of Moses. If -therefore glass were known when the Book of Job was -written, it is obvious that the discovery of it preceded -the commencement of history. But even though the -word used in Job should not refer to glass, there can -be no doubt that it was known at a very early period; -for glass beads are frequently found on the Egyptian -mummies, and they are known to have been embalmed -at a very remote period. The first Greek author who uses -the word glass (ὑαλος, <i>hyalos</i>) is Aristophanes. In his -comedy of The Clouds, act ii. scene 1, in the ridiculous -dialogue between Socrates and Strepsiades, the -latter announces a method which had occurred to him -to pay his debts. “You know,” says he, “the beautiful -transparent stone used for kindling fire.” “Do you -mean glass (τον ὕαλον, <i>ton hyalon</i>)?” replied Socrates. “I -do,” was the answer. He then describes how he would -destroy the writings by means of it, and thus defraud -his creditors. Now this comedy was acted about four -hundred and twenty-three years before the beginning -of the Christian era. The story related by Pliny, respecting -the discovery of this beautiful and important -substance, is well known. Some Phœnician merchants, -in a ship loaded with carbonate of soda from Egypt, -stopped, and went ashore on the banks of the river -Belus: having nothing to support their kettles while -they were dressing their food, they employed lumps of -carbonate of soda for that purpose. The fire was -strong enough to fuse some of this soda, and to unite -it with the fine sand of the river Belus: the consequence -of this was the formation of glass.<a id="FNanchor_74" href="#Footnote_74" class="fnanchor">74</a> Whether -this story be entitled to credit or not, it is clear that -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_84">84</span> -the discovery must have originated in some such accident. -Pliny’s account of the manufacture of glass, like -his account of every other manufacture, is very imperfect: -but we see from it that in his time they were in -the habit of making coloured glasses; that colourless -glasses were most highly prized, and that glass was -rendered colourless then as it is at present, by the -addition of a certain quantity of oxide of manganese. -Colourless glass was very high priced in Pliny’s time. -He relates, that for two moderate-sized colourless -drinking-glasses the Emperor Nero paid 6000 sistertii, -which is equivalent to 25<i>l.</i> of our money.</p> - -<p>Pliny relates the story of the man who brought a -vessel of malleable glass to the Emperor Tiberius, and -who, after dimpling it by dashing it against the floor, -restored it to its original shape and beauty by means -of a hammer; Tiberius, as a reward for this important -discovery, ordered the artist to be executed, in order, -as he alleged, to prevent gold and silver from becoming -useless. But though Pliny relates this story, it is -evident that he does not give credit to it; nor does it -deserve credit. We can assign no reason why malleable -substances may not be transparent; but all of -them hitherto known are opaque. Chloride of silver, -chloride of lead and iron constitute no exception, for -they are not malleable, though by peculiar contrivances -they may be extended; and their transparency is very -imperfect.</p> - -<p>Many specimens of the coloured glasses made by -the ancients still remain, particularly the beads employed -as ornaments to the Egyptian mummies. Of -these ancient glasses several have been examined chemically -by Klaproth, Hatchett, and some other individuals, -in order to ascertain the substances employed -to give colour to the glass. The following are the -facts that have been ascertained:</p> - -<p>1. <i>Red glass.</i> This glass was opaque, and of a -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_85">85</span> -lively copper-red colour. It was probably the kind of -red glass to which Pliny gave the name of hæmatinon. -Klaproth analyzed it, and obtained from 100 grains -of it the following constituents: - -<span class="table"> -<span class="trow"> -<span class="tcell">Silica</span> -<span class="tcell tdr">71·0</span> -<span class="tcell"> </span> -</span> -<span class="trow"> -<span class="tcell">Oxide of lead</span> -<span class="tcell tdr">10·0</span> -<span class="tcell"> </span> -</span> -<span class="trow"> -<span class="tcell">Oxide of copper</span> -<span class="tcell tdr">7·5</span> -<span class="tcell"> </span> -</span> -<span class="trow"> -<span class="tcell">Oxide of iron</span> -<span class="tcell tdr">1·0</span> -<span class="tcell"> </span> -</span> -<span class="trow"> -<span class="tcell">Alumina</span> -<span class="tcell tdr">2·5</span> -<span class="tcell"> </span> -</span> -<span class="trow"> -<span class="tcell">Lime</span> -<span class="tcell tdr">1·5</span> -<span class="tcell"> </span> -</span> -<span class="trow"> -<span class="tcell"> </span> -<span class="tcell tdr bt">93·5</span> -<span class="tcell"><a id="FNanchor_75" href="#Footnote_75" class="fnanchor">75</a></span> -</span> -</span> - -No doubt the deficiency was owing to the presence of -an alkali. From this analysis we see that the colouring -matter of this glass was <i>red oxide of copper</i>.</p> - -<p>2. <i>Green glass.</i> The colour was light verdigris-green, -and the glass, like the preceding, was opaque. -The constituents from 100 grains were, - -<span class="table"> -<span class="trow"> -<span class="tcell">Silica</span> -<span class="tcell tdr">65·0</span> -<span class="tcell"> </span> -</span> -<span class="trow"> -<span class="tcell">Black oxide of copper</span> -<span class="tcell tdr">10·0</span> -<span class="tcell"> </span> -</span> -<span class="trow"> -<span class="tcell">Oxide of lead</span> -<span class="tcell tdr">7·5</span> -<span class="tcell"> </span> -</span> -<span class="trow"> -<span class="tcell">Oxide of iron</span> -<span class="tcell tdr">3·5</span> -<span class="tcell"> </span> -</span> -<span class="trow"> -<span class="tcell">Lime</span> -<span class="tcell tdr">6·5</span> -<span class="tcell"> </span> -</span> -<span class="trow"> -<span class="tcell">Alumina</span> -<span class="tcell tdr">5·5</span> -<span class="tcell"> </span> -</span> -<span class="trow"> -<span class="tcell"> </span> -<span class="tcell tdr bt">98·0</span> -<span class="tcell"><a id="FNanchor_76" href="#Footnote_76" class="fnanchor">76</a></span> -</span> -</span> - -Thus it appears that both the red and green glass are -composed of the same ingredients, though in different -proportions. Both owe their colour to copper. The -red glass is coloured by the red oxide of that metal; -the green by the black oxide, which forms green-coloured -compounds, with various acids, particularly -with carbonic acid and with silica.</p> - -<p>3. <i>Blue glass.</i> The variety analyzed by Klaproth -had a sapphire-blue colour, and was only translucent -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_86">86</span> -on the edges. The constituents from 100 grains of it -were, - -<span class="table"> -<span class="trow"> -<span class="tcell">Silica</span> -<span class="tcell tdr">81·50</span> -<span class="tcell"> </span> -</span> -<span class="trow"> -<span class="tcell">Oxide of iron</span> -<span class="tcell tdr">9·50</span> -<span class="tcell"> </span> -</span> -<span class="trow"> -<span class="tcell">Alumina</span> -<span class="tcell tdr">1·50</span> -<span class="tcell"> </span> -</span> -<span class="trow"> -<span class="tcell">Oxide of copper</span> -<span class="tcell tdr">0·50</span> -<span class="tcell"> </span> -</span> -<span class="trow"> -<span class="tcell">Lime</span> -<span class="tcell tdr">0·25</span> -<span class="tcell"> </span> -</span> -<span class="trow"> -<span class="tcell"> </span> -<span class="tcell tdr bt">93·25</span> -<span class="tcell"><a id="FNanchor_77" href="#Footnote_77" class="fnanchor">77</a></span> -</span> -</span> - -From this analysis it appears that the colouring matter -of this glass was oxide of iron: it was therefore analogous -to the lapis lazuli, or ultramarine, in its nature.</p> - -<p>Davy, as has been formerly noticed, found another -blue glass, or frit, coloured by means of copper; and -he showed that the blue paint of the ancients was -often made from this glass, simply by grinding it to -powder.</p> - -<p>Klaproth could find no cobalt in the blue glass -which he examined; but Davy found the transparent -blue glass vessels, which are along with the vases, in -the tombs of Magna Græcia, tinged with cobalt; and -he found cobalt in all the transparent ancient blue -glasses with which Mr. Millingen supplied him. The -mere fusion of these glasses with alkali, and subsequent -digestion of the product with muriatic acid, was -sufficient to produce a sympathetic ink from them.<a id="FNanchor_78" href="#Footnote_78" class="fnanchor">78</a> -The transparent blue beads which occasionally adorn -the Egyptian mummies have also been examined, and -found coloured by cobalt. The opaque glass beads -are all tinged by means of oxide of copper. It is -probable from this that all the transparent blue glasses -of the ancients were coloured by cobalt; yet we find -no allusion to cobalt in any of the ancient authors. -Theophrastus says that copper (χαλκος, <i>chalcos</i>) was used -to give glass a fine colour. Is it not likely that the impure -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_87">87</span> -oxide of cobalt, in the state in which they used -it, was confounded by them with χαλκος (<i>chalcos</i>)?</p> - -<h3>IV.—VASA MURRHINA.</h3> - -<p>The Romans obtained from the east, and particularly -from Egypt, a set of vessels which they distinguished -by the name of <i>vasa murrhina</i>, and which -were held by them in very high estimation. They -were never larger than to be capable of containing -from about thirty-six to forty cubic inches. One of -the largest size cost, in the time of Pliny, about 7000<i>l.</i> -Nero actually gave for one 3000<i>l.</i> They began to be -known in Rome about the latter days of the republic. -The first six ever seen in Rome were sent by Pompey -from the treasures of Mithridates. They were deposited -in the temple of Jupiter in the capitol. Augustus, -after the battle of Actium, brought one of these -vessels from Egypt, and dedicated it also to the gods. -In Nero’s time they began to be used by private persons; -and were so much coveted that Petronius, the -favourite of that tyrant, being ordered for execution, -and conceiving that his death was owing to a wish of -Nero to get possession of a vessel of this kind which -he had, broke the vessel in pieces in order to prevent -Nero from gaining his object.</p> - -<p>There appear to have been two kinds of these vasa -murrhina; those that came from Asia, and those that -were made in Egypt. The latter were much more -common, and much lower priced than the former, as -appears from various passages in Martial and Propertius.</p> - -<p>Many attempts have been made, and much learning -displayed by the moderns to determine the nature of -these celebrated vessels; but in general these attempts -were made by individuals too little acquainted with -chemistry and with natural history in general to qualify -them for researches of so difficult a nature. Some -will have it that they consisted of a kind of gum; -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_88">88</span> -others that they were made of glass; others, of a particular -kind of shell. Cardan and Scaliger assure us -that they were <i>porcelain</i> vessels; and this opinion was -adopted likewise by Whitaker, who supported it with -his usual violence and arrogance. Many conceive -them to have been made of some precious stone, some -that they were of <i>obsidian</i>; Count de Veltheim thinks -that they were made of the Chinese <i>agalmatolite</i>, or -<i>figure stone</i>; and Dr. Hager conceives that they were -made from the Chinese stone <i>yu</i>. Bruckmann was of -opinion that these vessels were made of sardonyx, and -the Abbé Winckelmann joins him in the same conclusion.</p> - -<p>Pliny informs us that these vasa murrhina were -formed from a species of stone dug out of the earth in -Parthia, and especially in Carimania, and also in other -places but little known.<a id="FNanchor_79" href="#Footnote_79" class="fnanchor">79</a> They must have been very -abundant at Rome in the time of Nero; for Pliny -informs us that a man of consular rank, famous for -his collection of vasa murrhina, having died, Nero -forcibly deprived his children of these vessels, and they -were so numerous that they filled the whole inside of -a theatre, which Nero hoped to have seen filled with -Romans when he came to it to sing in public.</p> - -<p>It is clear that the value of these vessels depended -on their size. Small vessels bore but a small price, while -that of large vessels was very high; this shows us that -it must have been difficult to procure a block of the -stone out of which they were cut, of a size sufficiently -great to make a large vessel.</p> - -<p>These vessels were so soft that an impression might -be made upon them with the teeth; for Pliny relates -the story of a man of consular rank, who drank out of -one, and was so enamoured with it that he bit pieces -out of the lip of the cup: “Potavit ex eo ante hos -annos consularis, ob amorem abraso ejus margine.” -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_89">89</span> -And what is singular, the value of the cup, so far from -being injured by this abrasure, was augmented: “ut -tamen injuria ilia pretium augeret; neque est hodie -murrhini alterius præstantior indicatura.”<a id="FNanchor_80" href="#Footnote_80" class="fnanchor">80</a> It is clear -from this that the matter of these vessels was neither -rock crystal, agate, nor any precious stone whatever, all -of which are too hard to admit of an impression from -the teeth of a man.</p> - -<p>The lustre was vitreous to such a degree that the -name <i>vitrum murrhinum</i> was given to the artificial -fabric, in Egypt.</p> - -<p>The splendour was not very great, for Pliny observes, -“Splendor his sine viribus nitorque verius -quam splendor.”</p> - -<p>The colours, from their depth and richness, were what -gave these vessels their value and excited admiration. -The principal colours were purple and white, disposed -in undulating bands, and usually separated by a third -band, in which the two colours being mixed, assumed -the tint of flame: “Sed in pretio varietas colorum, -subinde circumagentibus se maculis in purpuram candoremque, -et tertium ex utroque ignescentem, velut -per transitum coloris, purpura rubescente, aut lacte -candescente.”</p> - -<p>Perfect transparency was considered as a defect, -they were merely translucent; this we learn not merely -from Pliny, but from the following epigram of Martial: - -<span class="table"> -<span class="trow i0">Nos bibimus vitro, tu murra, Pontice: quare?<br /></span> -<span class="trow i0">Prodat perspicuus ne duo vina calix.<br /></span> -</span> - -Some specimens, and they were the most valued, exhibited -a play of colour like the rainbow: Pliny says -they were very commonly spotted with “sales, verrucæque -non eminentes, sed ut in corpore etiam plerumque -sessiles.” This, no doubt, refers to foreign bodies, -such as grains of pyrites, antimony, galena, &c., -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_90">90</span> -which were often scattered through the substances -of which the vessels were made.</p> - -<p>Such are all the facts respecting the vasa murrhina -to be found in the writings of the ancients; they all -apply to fluor spar, and to nothing else; but to it -they apply so accurately as to leave little doubt that -they were in reality vessels of fluor spar, similar to -those at present made in Derbyshire.<a id="FNanchor_81" href="#Footnote_81" class="fnanchor">81</a></p> - -<p>The artificial vasa murrhina made at Thebes, in -Egypt, were doubtless of glass, coloured to imitate -fluor spar as much as possible, and having the -semi-transparency which distinguishes that mineral. -The imitations being imperfect, these factitious vessels -were not much prized nor sought after by the Romans, -they were rather distributed among the Arabians and -Ethiopians, who were supplied with glass from Egypt.</p> - -<p>Rock crystal is compared by Pliny with the stone -from which the vasa murrhina were made; the former, -in his opinion, had been coagulated by cold, the latter -by heat. Though the ancients, as we have seen, were -acquainted with the method of colouring glass, yet -they prized colourless glass highest on account of its -resemblance to rock crystal; cups of it, in Pliny’s -time, had supplanted those of silver and gold; Nero -gave for a crystal cup 150,000 sistertii, or 625<i>l.</i></p> - -<h3>V.—DYEING AND CALICO-PRINTING.</h3> - -<p>Very little has been handed down by the ancients -respecting the processes of dyeing. It is evident, from -Pliny, that they were acquainted with madder, and -that preparations of iron were used in the black dyes. -The most celebrated dye of all, the <i>purple</i>, was discovered -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_91">91</span> -by the Tyrians about fifteen centuries before -the Christian era. This colour was given by various -kinds of shellfish which inhabit the Mediterranean. -Pliny divides them into two genera; the first, comprehending -the smaller species, he called <i>buccinum</i>, from -their resemblance to a hunting-horn; the second, included -those called <i>purpura</i>: Fabius Columna thinks -that these were distinguished also by the name of -<i>murex</i>.</p> - -<p>These shellfish yielded liquor of different shades of -colour; they were often mixed in various proportions -to produce particular shades of colour. One, or at -most two drops of this liquor were obtained from each -fish, by extracting and opening a little reservoir placed -in the throat. To avoid this trouble, the smaller species -were generally bruised whole, in a mortar; this -was also frequently done with the large, though the -other liquids of the fish must have in some degree injured -the colour. The liquor, when extracted, was -mixed with a considerable quantity of salt to keep it -from putrifying; it was then diluted with five or six -times as much water, and kept moderately hot in -leaden or tin vessels, for eight or ten days, during -which the liquor was often skimmed to separate all -the impurities. After this, the wool to be dyed, -being first well washed, was immersed and kept therein -for five hours; then taken out, cooled, and again immersed, -and continued in the liquor till all the colour -was exhausted.<a id="FNanchor_82" href="#Footnote_82" class="fnanchor">82</a></p> - -<p>To produce particular shades of colour, carbonate -of soda, urine, and a marine plant called <i>fucus</i>, were -occasionally added: one of these colours was a very -dark reddish violet—“Nigrantis rosæ colore sublucens.”<a id="FNanchor_83" href="#Footnote_83" class="fnanchor">83</a> -But the most esteemed, and that in which -the Tyrians particularly excelled, resembled coagulated -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_92">92</span> -blood—“laus ei summa in colore sanguinis concreti, -nigricans aspectu, idemque suspectu refulgens.”<a id="FNanchor_84" href="#Footnote_84" class="fnanchor">84</a></p> - -<p>Pliny says that the Tyrians first dyed their wool in -the liquor of the purpura, and afterwards in that of -the buccinum; and it is obvious from Moses that this -purple was known to the Egyptians in his time.<a id="FNanchor_85" href="#Footnote_85" class="fnanchor">85</a> Wool -which had received this double Tyrian dye (<i>dia bapha</i>) -was so very costly that, in the reign of Augustus, it -sold for about 36<i>l.</i> the pound. But lest this should -not be sufficient to exclude all from the use of it but -those invested with the very highest dignities of the -state, laws were made inflicting severe penalties, and -even death, upon all who should presume to wear it -under the dignity of an emperor. The art of dyeing -this colour came at length to be practised by a few individuals -only, appointed by the emperors, and having -been interrupted about the beginning of the twelfth -century all knowledge of it died away, and during several -ages this celebrated dye was considered and lamented -as an irrecoverable loss.<a id="FNanchor_86" href="#Footnote_86" class="fnanchor">86</a> How it was afterwards -recovered and made known by Mr. Cole, of Bristol, -M. Jussieu, M. Reaumur, and M. Duhamel, would -lead us too far from our present object, were we to -relate it: those who are interested in the subject will -find an historical detail in Bancroft’s work on Permanent -Colours, just referred to.</p> - -<p>There is reason to suspect that the Hebrew word translated -<i>fine linen</i> in the Old Testament, and so celebrated -as a production of Egypt, was in reality <i>cotton</i>, and not -linen. From a curious passage in Pliny, there is -reason to believe that the Egyptians in his time, and -probably long before, were acquainted with the method -of calico-printing, such as is still practised in India -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_93">93</span> -and the east. The following is a literal translation of -the passage in question:</p> - -<p>“There exists in Egypt a wonderful method of dyeing. -The white cloth is stained in various places, not with -dye stuffs, but with substances which have the property -of absorbing (<i>fixing</i>) colours, these applications -are not visible upon the cloth; but when they are dipped -into a hot caldron of the dye they are drawn out an -instant after dyed. The remarkable circumstance is, -that though there be only one dye in the vat, yet different -colours appear upon the cloth; nor can the -colour be afterwards removed.”<a id="FNanchor_87" href="#Footnote_87" class="fnanchor">87</a></p> - -<p>It is evident enough that these substances applied -were different mordants which served to fix the dye -upon the cloth; the nature of these mordants cannot -be discovered, as nothing specific seems to have been -known to Pliny. The modern mordants are solutions -of alumina; of the oxide of tin, oxide of iron, oxide of -lead, &c.: and doubtless these, or something equivalent -to these, were the substances employed by the -ancients. The purple dye required no mordant, it fixed -itself to the cloth in consequence of the chemical -affinity which existed between them. Whether indigo -was used by the ancients as a dye does not appear, -but there can be no doubt, at least, that its use -was known to the Indians at a very remote period.</p> - -<p>From these facts, few as they are, there can be little -doubt that dyeing, and even calico-printing, had made -considerable progress among the ancients; and this -could not have taken place without a considerable -knowledge of colouring matters, and of the mordants -by which these colouring matters were fixed. These -facts, however, were probably but imperfectly understood, -and could not be the means of furnishing the -ancients with any accurate chemical knowledge. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_94">94</span></p> - -<h3>VI.—SOAP.</h3> - -<p>Soap, which constitutes so important and indispensable -an article in the domestic economy of the -moderns, was quite unknown to the ancient inhabitants -of Asia, and even of Greece. No allusion to it occurs -in the Old Testament. In Homer, we find Nausicaa, -the daughter of the King of the Phæacians, using -nothing but water to wash her nuptial garments:</p> - -<div class="poetry"> -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">They seek the cisterns where Phæacian dames<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Wash their fair garments in the limped streams;<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Where gathering into depth from falling rills,<br /></span> -<span class="i0">The lucid wave a spacious bason fills.<br /></span> -<span class="i0">The mules unharness’d range beside the main,<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Or crop the verdant herbage of the plain.<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Then emulous the royal robes they lave,<br /></span> -<span class="i0">And plunge the vestures in the cleansing wave.<br /></span> -<span class="i20"><i>Odyssey</i>, vi. 1. 99.<br /></span> -</div></div> -</div> - -<p>We find, in some of the comic poets, that the Greeks -were in the habit of adding wood-ashes to water to -make it a better detergent. Wood-ashes contain a -certain portion of carbonate of potash, which of course -would answer as a detergent; though, from its caustic -qualities, it would be injurious to the hands of the -washerwomen. There is no evidence that carbonate -of soda, the <i>nitrum</i> of the ancients, was ever used as -a detergent; this is the more surprising, because we -know from Pliny that it was employed in dyeing, and -one cannot see how a solution of it could be employed -by the dyers in their processes without discovering that -it acted powerfully as a detergent.</p> - -<p>The word <i>soap</i> (<i>sapo</i>) occurs first in Pliny. He informs -us that it was an invention of the Gauls, who -employed it to render their hair shining; that it was -a compound of wood-ashes and tallow, that there were -two kinds of it, <i>hard</i> and <i>soft</i> (<i>spissus et liquidus</i>); -and that the best kind was made of the ashes of the -beech and the fat of goats. Among the Germans -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_95">95</span> -it was more employed by the men than the women.<a id="FNanchor_88" href="#Footnote_88" class="fnanchor">88</a> -It is curious that no allusion whatever is made by -Pliny to the use of soap as a detergent; shall we conclude -from this that the most important of all the uses -of soap was unknown to the ancients?</p> - -<p>It was employed by the ancients as a pomatum; -and, during the early part of the government of the -emperors, it was imported into Rome from Germany, -as a pomatum for the young Roman beaus. Beckmann -is of opinion that the Latin word <i>sapo</i> is derived -from the old German word <i>sepe</i>, a word still -employed by the common people of Scotland.<a id="FNanchor_89" href="#Footnote_89" class="fnanchor">89</a></p> - -<p>It is well known that the state of soap depends upon -the alkali employed in making it. <i>Soda</i> constitutes a -<i>hard</i> soap, and <i>potash</i> a <i>soft</i> soap. The ancients being -ignorant of the difference between the two alkalies, -and using wood-ashes in the preparation of it, -doubtless formed soft soap. The addition of some -common salt, during the boiling of the soap, would -convert the soft into hard soap. As Pliny informs us -that the ancients were acquainted both with hard and -soft soap, it is clear that they must have followed some -such process.</p> - -<h3>VII.—STARCH.</h3> - -<p>The manufacture of starch was known to the ancients. -Pliny informs us that it was made from wheat -and from <i>siligo</i>, which was probably a variety or sub-species -of wheat. The invention of starch is ascribed -by Pliny to the inhabitants of the island of Chio, where -in his time the best starch was still made. Pliny’s description -of the method employed by the ancients of -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_96">96</span> -making starch is tolerably exact. Next to the China -starch that of Crete was most celebrated; and next -to it was the Egyptian. The qualities of starch were -judged of by the weight; the lightest being always -reckoned the best.</p> - -<h3>VIII.—BEER.</h3> - -<p>That the ancients were acquainted with wine is -universally known. This knowledge must have been -nearly coeval with the origin of society; for we are -informed in Genesis that Noah, after the flood, -planted a vineyard, and made wine, and got intoxicated -by drinking the liquid which he had manufactured.<a id="FNanchor_90" href="#Footnote_90" class="fnanchor">90</a> -Beer also is a very old manufacture. It -was in common use among the Egyptians in the time -of Herodotus, who informs us that they made use of a -kind of wine made from barley, because no vines -grew in their country.<a id="FNanchor_91" href="#Footnote_91" class="fnanchor">91</a> Tacitus informs us, that in -his time it was the drink of the Germans.<a id="FNanchor_92" href="#Footnote_92" class="fnanchor">92</a> Pliny informs -us that it was made by the Gauls, and by other -nations. He gives it the name of <i>cerevisia</i> or <i>cervisia</i>; -the name obviously alluding to the grain from which -it was made.</p> - -<p>But though the ancients seem acquainted with both -wine and beer, there is no evidence of their having -ever subjected these liquids to distillation, and of -having collected the products. This would have furnished -them with ardent spirits or alcohol, of which -there is every reason to believe they were entirely ignorant. -Indeed, the method employed by Dioscorides -to obtain mercury from cinnabar, is a sufficient proof -that the true process of distillation was unknown to -them. He mixed cinnabar with iron filings, put the -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_97">97</span> -mixture into a pot, to the top of which a cover of stoneware -was luted. Heat was applied to the pot, and -when the process was at an end, the mercury was -found adhering to the inside of the cover. Had they -been aware of the method of distilling the quicksilver -ore into a receiver, this imperfect mode of collecting -only a small portion of the quicksilver, separated from -the cinnabar, would never have been practised. Besides, -there is not the smallest allusion to ardent spirits, -either in the writings of the poets, historians, naturalists, -or medical men of ancient Greece; a circumstance -not to be accounted for had ardent spirits -been known, and applied even to one-tenth of the -uses to which they are put by the moderns.</p> - -<h3>IX.—STONEWARE.</h3> - -<p>The manufacture of stoneware vessels was known at -a very early period of society. Frequent allusions to -the potter’s wheel occur in the Old Testament, showing -that the manufacture must have been familiar to the -Jewish nation. The porcelain of the Chinese boasts -of a very high antiquity indeed. We cannot doubt -that the processes of the ancients were similar to those of -the moderns, though I am not aware of any tolerably accurate -account of them in any ancient author whatever.</p> - -<p>Moulds of plaster of Paris were used by the ancients -to take casts precisely as at present.<a id="FNanchor_93" href="#Footnote_93" class="fnanchor">93</a></p> - -<p>The sand of Puzzoli was used by the Romans, as -it is by the moderns, to form a mortar capable of -hardening under water.</p> - -<p>Pliny gives us some idea of the Roman bricks, which -are known to have been of an excellent quality. There -were three sizes of bricks used by the Romans.</p> - -<p>1. Lydian, which were 1½ foot long and 1 foot -broad. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_98">98</span></p> - -<p>2. Tetradoron, which was a square of 16 inches -each side.</p> - -<p>3. Pentadoron, which was a square, each side of -which was 20 inches long.</p> - -<p>Doron signifies the palm of the hand: of course it -was equivalent to 4 inches.</p> - -<h3>X.—PRECIOUS STONES AND MINERALS.</h3> - -<p>Pliny has given a pretty detailed description of the -precious stones of the ancients; but it is not very easy -to determine the specific minerals to which he alludes.</p> - -<p>1. The description of the diamond is tolerably precise. -It was found in Ethiopia, India, Arabia, and -Macedonia. But the Macedonian diamond, as well -as the adamas cyprius and siderites, were obviously -not diamonds, but soft stones.</p> - -<p>2. The <i>emerald</i> of the ancients (<i>smaragdus</i>) must -have varied in its nature. It was a green, transparent, -hard stone; and, as colour was the criterion by which -the ancients distinguished minerals and divided them -into species, it is obvious that very different minerals -must have been confounded together, under the name -of emerald. Sapphire, beryl, doubtless fluor spar when -green, and probably even serpentine, nephrite, and -some ores of copper, seem to have occasionally got the -same name. There is no reason to believe that the -<i>emerald</i> of the moderns was known before the discovery -of America. At least it has been only found in -modern times in America. Some of the emeralds described -by Pliny as losing their colour by exposure to -the sun, must have been fluor spars. There is a remarkably -deep and beautiful green fluor spar, met -with some years ago in the county of Durham, in one -of the Weredale mines that possesses this property. -The emeralds of the ancients were of such a size (13½ -feet, large enough to be cut into a pillar), that we can -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_99">99</span> -consider them in no other light than as a species of -rock.</p> - -<p>3. Topaz of the ancients had a green colour, which is -never the case with the modern topaz. It was found in -the island Topazios, in the Red Sea.<a id="FNanchor_94" href="#Footnote_94" class="fnanchor">94</a> It is generally -supposed to have been the <i>chrysolite</i> of the moderns. -But Pliny mentions a statue of it six feet long. Now -chrysolite never occurs in such large masses. Bruce -mentions a green substance in an emerald island in the -Red Sea, not harder than glass. Might not this be -the emerald of the ancients?</p> - -<p>4. <i>Calais</i>, from the locality and colour was probably -the Persian turquoise, as it is generally supposed -to be.</p> - -<p>5. Whether the <i>prasius</i> and <i>chrysoprasius</i> of Pliny -were the modern stones to which these names are given, -we have no means of determining. It is generally -supposed that they are, and we have no evidence to -the contrary.</p> - -<p>6. The <i>chrysolite</i> of Pliny is supposed to be our -<i>topaz</i>: but we have no other evidence of this than -the opinion of M. Du Tems.</p> - -<p>7. <i>Asteria</i> of Pliny is supposed by Saussure to be -our sapphire. The lustre described by Pliny agrees -with this opinion. The stone is said to have been very -hard and colourless.</p> - -<p>8. <i>Opalus</i> seems to have been our <i>opal</i>. It is called, -Pliny says, <i>pæderos</i> by many, on account of its beauty. -The Indians called it <i>sangenon</i>.</p> - -<p>9. <i>Obsidian</i> was the same as the mineral to which -we give that name. It was so called because a Roman -named Obsidianus first brought it from Egypt. I have -a piece of obsidian, which the late Mr. Salt brought -from the locality specified by Pliny, and which possesses -all the characters of that mineral in its purest state. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_100">100</span></p> - -<p>10. <i>Sarda</i> was the name of <i>carnelian</i>, so called because -it was first found near Sardis. The <i>sardonyx</i> -was also another name for <i>carnelian</i>.</p> - -<p>11. Onyx was a name sometimes given to a rock, -<i>gypsum</i>; sometimes it was a light-coloured <i>chalcedony</i>. -The Latin name for chalcedony was <i>carchedonius</i>, so -called because Carthage was the place where this -mineral was exposed to sale. The Greek name for -Carthage was Καρχηδων (<i>carchedon</i>).</p> - -<p>12. <i>Carbunculus</i> was the garnet; and <i>anthrax</i> was -a name for another variety of the same mineral.</p> - -<p>13. The <i>oriental amethyst</i> of Pliny was probably a -sapphire. The fourth species of amethyst described by -Pliny, seems to have been our amethyst. Pliny derives -the name from α (<i>a</i>) and μυθη (<i>mythe</i>), <i>wine</i>, because it -has not quite the colour of wine. But the common -derivation is from α and μυθυω, <i>to intoxicate</i>, because -it was used as an amulet to prevent intoxication.</p> - -<p>14. The <i>sapphire</i> is described by Pliny as always -opaque, and as unfit for engraving on. We do not -know what it was.</p> - -<p>15. The <i>hyacinth</i> of Pliny is equally unknown. -From its name it was obviously of a blue colour. Our -hyacinth has a reddish-brown colour, and a great deal -of hardness and lustre.</p> - -<p>16. The <i>cyanus</i> of Pliny may have been our <i>cyanite</i>.</p> - -<p>17. <i>Astrios</i> agrees very well, as far as the description -of Pliny goes, with the variety of felspar called <i>adularia</i>.</p> - -<p>18. <i>Belioculus</i> seems to have been our <i>catseye</i>.</p> - -<p>19. <i>Lychnites</i> was a violet-coloured stone, which -became electric by heat. Unless it was a <i>blue tourmalin</i>, -I do not know what it could be.</p> - -<p>20. The <i>jasper</i> of the ancients was probably the -same as ours.</p> - -<p>21. <i>Molochites</i> may have been our <i>malachite</i>. The -name comes from the Greek word μολοχη, <i>mallow</i>, or -<i>marshmallow</i>. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_101">101</span></p> - -<p>22. Pliny considers <i>amber</i> as the juice of a tree -concreted into a solid form. The largest piece of it -that he had ever seen weighed 13 lbs. Roman weight, -which is nearly equivalent to 9¾ lbs. avoirdupois. <i>Indian -amber</i>, of which he speaks, was probably <i>copal</i>, -or some transparent resin. It may be dyed, he says, -by means of <i>anchusa</i> and the <i>fat of kids</i>.</p> - -<p>23. <i>Lapis specularis</i> was foliated sulphate of lime, -or selenite.</p> - -<p>24. <i>Pyrites</i> had the same meaning among the ancients -that it has among the moderns; at least as far -as iron pyrites or bisulphuret of iron is concerned. -Pliny describes two kind of pyrites; namely, the -<i>white</i> (<i>arsenical pyrites</i>), and the <i>yellow</i> (iron pyrites). -It was used for striking fire with steel, in order -to kindle tinder. Hence the name <i>pyrites</i> or <i>firestone</i>.</p> - -<p>25. <i>Gagates</i>, from the account given of it by -Pliny, was obviously pit-coal or jet.</p> - -<p>26. <i>Marble</i> had the same meaning among the ancients -that it has among the moderns. It was sawed -by the ancients into slabs, and the action of the saw -was facilitated by a sand brought for the purpose from -Ethiopia and the isle of Naxos. It is obvious that -this sand was powdered corundum, or emery.</p> - -<p>27. <i>Creta</i> was a name applied by the ancients not -only to chalk, but to <i>white clay</i>.</p> - -<p>28. <i>Melinum</i> was an <i>oxide of iron</i>. Pliny gives a -list of one hundred and fifty-one species of stones in -the order of the alphabet. Very few of the minerals -contained in this list can be made out. He gives -also a list of fifty-two species of stones, whose names -are derived from a fancied resemblance which the -stones are supposed to bear to certain parts of animals. -Of these, also, very few can be made out.</p> - -<h3>XI.—MISCELLANEOUS OBSERVATIONS.</h3> - -<p>The ancients seem to have been ignorant of the nature -and properties of air, and of all gaseous bodies. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_102">102</span> -Pliny’s account of air consists of a single sentence: -“Aër densatur nubibus; furit procellis.” “Air is -condensed in clouds, it rages in storms.” Nor is his -description of water much more complete, since it consists -only of the following phrases: “Aquæ subeunt -in imbres, rigescunt in grandines, tumescunt in fluctus, -præcipitantur in torrentes.”<a id="FNanchor_95" href="#Footnote_95" class="fnanchor">95</a> “Water falls in -showers, congeals in hail, swells in waves, and rushes -down in torrents.” In the thirty-eighth chapter of the -second book, indeed, he professes to treat of <i>air</i>; but -the chapter contains merely an enumeration of meteorological -phenomena, without once touching upon -the nature and properties of air.</p> - -<p>Pliny, with all the philosophers of antiquity, admitted -the existence of the four elements, fire, air, water, -and earth; but though he enumerates these in the fifth -chapter of his first book, he never attempts to explain -their nature or properties. Earth, among the ancients, -had two meanings, namely, the planet on which we -live, and the soil upon which vegetables grow. These -two meanings still exist in common language. The -meaning afterwards given to the <i>term</i>, earth, by the -chemists, did not exist in the days of Pliny, or, at -least, was unknown to him; a sufficient proof that -chemistry, in his time, had made no progress as a -science; for some notions respecting the properties and -constituents of those supposed four elements must have -constituted the very foundation of scientific chemistry.</p> - -<p>The ancients were acquainted with none of the acids -which at present constitute so numerous a tribe, except -<i>vinegar</i>, or <i>acetic acid</i>; and even this acid was -not known to them in a state of purity. They knew -none of the saline bases, except lime, soda, and potash, -and these very imperfectly. Of course the whole -tribe of salts was unknown to them, except a very few, -which they found ready formed in the earth, or which -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_103">103</span> -they succeeded in forming by the action of vinegar on -lead and copper. Hence all that extensive and most -important branch of chemistry, consisting of the combinations -of the acids and bases, on which scientific -chemistry mainly depends, must have been unknown -to them.</p> - -<p>Sulphur occurring native in large quantities, and -being remarkable for its easy combustibility, and its -disagreeable smell when burning, was known in the -very earliest ages. Pliny describes four kinds of sulphur, -differing from each other, probably, merely in -their purity. These were - -<span class="table"> -<span class="trow">1. Sulphur vivum, or apyron. It was dug out of the -earth solid, and was doubtless pure, or nearly so. -It alone was used in medicine.</span> - -<span class="trow">2. Gleba—used only by fullers.</span> - -<span class="trow">3. Egula—used also by fullers.</span> - -<span class="trow">Pliny says, it renders woollen stuffs white and soft. -It is obvious from this, that the ancients knew the -method of bleaching flannel by the fumes of sulphur, -as practised by the moderns.</span> - -<span class="trow">4. The fourth kind was used only for sulphuring -matches.</span> -</span></p> - -<p>Sulphur, in Pliny’s time, was found native in the -Æolian islands, and in Campania. It is curious that -he never mentions Sicily, whence the great supply is -drawn for modern manufacture.</p> - -<p>In medicine, it seems to have been only used externally -by the ancients. It was considered as excellent -for removing eruptions. It was used also for fumigating.</p> - -<p>The word <i>alumen</i>, which we translate <i>alum</i>, occurs -often in Pliny; and is the same substance which the -Greeks distinguished by the name of στυπτηρια (<i>stypteria</i>). -It is described pretty minutely by Dioscorides, and also -by Pliny. It was obviously a natural production, dug -out of the earth, and consequently quite different from -our alum, with which the ancients were unacquainted. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_104">104</span> -Dioscorides says that it was found abundantly in -Egypt; that it was of various kinds, but that the slaty -variety was the best. He mentions also many other -localities. He says that, for medical purposes, the -most valued of all the varieties of alumen were the -<i>slaty</i>, the <i>round</i>, and the <i>liquid</i>. The slaty alumen -is very white, has an exceedingly astringent taste, a -strong smell, is free from stony concretions, and -gradually cracks and emits long capillary crystals from -these rifts; on which account it is sometimes called -<i>trichites</i>. This description obviously applies to a kind -of slate-clay, which probably contained pyrites mixed -with it of the decomposing kind. The capillary crystals -were probably similar to those crystals at present -called <i>hair-salt</i> by mineralogists, which exude pretty -abundantly from the shale of the coal-beds, when it -has been long exposed to the air. <i>Hair-salt</i> differs -very much in its nature. Klaproth ascertained by -analysis, that the <i>hair-salt</i> from the quicksilver-mines -in Idria is sulphate of magnesia, mixed with a small -quantity of sulphate of iron.<a id="FNanchor_96" href="#Footnote_96" class="fnanchor">96</a> The <i>hair-salt</i> from the -abandoned coal-pits in the neighbourhood of Glasgow -is a double salt, composed of sulphate of alumina, and -sulphate of iron, in definite proportions; the composition -being - -<span class="table"> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell tdc">1</span> - <span class="tcell">atom protosulphate of iron,</span> - </span> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell tdc">1½</span> - <span class="tcell">atom sulphate of alumina,</span> - </span> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell tdc">15</span> - <span class="tcell">atoms water.</span> - </span> -</span></p> - -<p>I suspect strongly that the capillary crystals from -the schistose alumen of Dioscorides were nearly of the -same nature.</p> - -<p>From Pliny’s account of the uses to which alumen -was applied, it is quite obvious that it must have -varied very much in its nature. <i>Alumen nigrum</i> was -used to strike a black colour, and must therefore have -contained iron. It was doubtless an impure native -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_105">105</span> -sulphate of iron, similar to many native productions of -the same nature still met with in various parts of the -world, but not employed; their use having been superseded -by various artificial salts, more definite in -their nature, and consequently more certain in their -application, and at the same time cheaper and more -abundant than the native.</p> - -<p>The alumen employed as a mordant by the dyers, -must have been a sulphate of alumina more or less -pure; at least it must have been free from all sulphate -of iron, which would have affected the colour of the -cloth, and prevented the dyer from accomplishing his -object.<a id="FNanchor_97" href="#Footnote_97" class="fnanchor">97</a></p> - -<p>What the <i>alumen rotundum</i> was, is not easily conjectured. -Dioscorides says, that it was sometimes -made artificially; but that the artificial alumen rotundum -was not much valued. The best, he says, was -full of air-bubbles, nearly white, and of a very astringent -taste. It had a slaty appearance, and was found -in Egypt or the Island of Melos.</p> - -<p>The <i>liquid alumen</i> was limpid, milky, of an equal -colour, free from hard concretions, and having a fiery -shade of colour.<a id="FNanchor_98" href="#Footnote_98" class="fnanchor">98</a> In its nature, it was similar to the -alumen candidum; it must therefore have consisted -chiefly, at least, of sulphate of alumina.</p> - -<p>Bitumen and naphtha were known to the ancients, -and used by them to give light instead of oil; they -were employed also as external applications in cases -of disease, and were considered as having the same -virtues as sulphur. It is said, that the word translated -<i>salt</i> in the New Testament—“Ye are the salt of -the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith -shall it be salted? It is henceforth good for nothing, -but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_106">106</span> -of men”<a id="FNanchor_99" href="#Footnote_99" class="fnanchor">99</a>—it is said, that the word salt in this passage -refers to asphalt, or bitumen, which was used by the -Jews in their sacrifices, and called <i>salt</i> by them. But -I have not been able to find satisfactory evidence of -the truth of this opinion. It is obvious from the context, -that the word translated <i>salt</i> could not have had -that meaning among the Jews; because salt never can -be supposed to lose its savour. Bitumen, while liquid, -has a strong taste and smell, which it loses gradually -by exposure to the air, as it approaches more and more -to a solid form.</p> - -<p>Asphalt was one of the great constituents of the -Greek fire. A great bed of it still existing in Albania, -supplied the Greeks with this substance. Concerning -the nature of the Greek fire, it is clear that many exaggerated -and even fabulous statements have been -published. The obvious intention of the Greeks being, -probably, to make their invention as much dreaded -as possible by their enemies. Nitre was undoubtedly -one of the most important of its constituents; -though no allusion whatever is ever made. We do -not know when <i>nitrate of potash</i>, the nitre of the -moderns, became known in Europe. It was discovered -in the east; and was undoubtedly known in China and -India before the commencement of the Christian era. -The property of nitre, as a supporter of combustion, -could not have remained long unknown after the discovery -of the salt. The first person who threw a piece -of it upon a red-hot coal would observe it. Accordingly -we find that its use in fireworks was known very -early in China and India; though its prodigious expansive -power, by which it propels bullets with so -great and destructive velocity, is a European invention, -posterior to the time of Roger Bacon. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_107">107</span></p> - -<p>The word <i>nitre</i> (רתנ) had been applied by the ancients -to <i>carbonate of soda</i>, a production of Egypt, -where it is still formed from sea-water, by some unknown -process of nature in the marshes near Alexandria. -This is evident, not merely from the account -given of it by Dioscorides and Pliny; for the following -passage, from the Old Testament, shows that it had -the same meaning among the Jews: “As he that -taketh away a garment in cold weather, is as vinegar -upon nitre: so is he that singeth songs to a heavy -heart.”<a id="FNanchor_100" href="#Footnote_100" class="fnanchor">100</a> Vinegar poured upon saltpetre produces no -sensible effect whatever, but when poured upon carbonate -of soda, it occasions an <i>effervescence</i>. When -saltpetre came to be imported to Europe, it was natural -to give it the same name as that applied to carbonate -of soda, to which both in taste and appearance -it bore some faint resemblance. Saltpetre possessing -much more striking properties than carbonate of soda -much more attention was drawn to it, and it gradually -fixed upon itself the term <i>nitre</i>, at first applied to a -different salt. When this change of nomenclature -took place does not appear; but it was completed -before the time of Roger Bacon, who always applies -the term <i>nitrum</i> to our nitrate of potash and never to -carbonate of soda.</p> - -<p>In the preceding history of the chemical facts known -to the ancients, I have taken no notice of a well-known -story related of Cleopatra. This magnificent -and profligate queen boasted to Antony that she -would herself consume a million of sistertii at a supper. -Antony smiled at the proposal, and doubted -the possibility of her performing it. Next evening -a magnificent entertainment was provided, at which -Antony, as usual, was present, and expressed his opinion -that the cost of the feast, magnificent as it was, -fell far short of the sum specified by the queen. She -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_108">108</span> -requested him to defer computing till the dessert was -finished. A vessel filled with vinegar was placed before -her, in which she threw two pearls, the finest in -the world, and which were valued at ten millions of -sistertii; these pearls were dissolved by the vinegar,<a id="FNanchor_101" href="#Footnote_101" class="fnanchor">101</a> -and the liquid was immediately drunk by the queen. -Thus she made good her boast, and destroyed the two -finest pearls in the world.<a id="FNanchor_102" href="#Footnote_102" class="fnanchor">102</a> This story, supposing it -true, shows that Cleopatra was aware that vinegar has -the property of dissolving pearls. But not that she -knew the nature of these beautiful productions of -nature. We now know that pearls consist essentially -of carbonate of lime, and that the beauty is owing to -the thin concentric laminæ, of which they are composed.</p> - -<p>Nor have I taken any notice of lime with which the -ancients were well acquainted, and which they applied -to most of the uses to which the moderns put it. Thus -it constituted the base of the Roman mortar, which -is known to have been excellent. They employed it -also as a manure for the fields, as the moderns do. It -was known to have a corrosive nature when taken internally; -but was much employed by the ancients externally, -and in various ways as an application to -ulcers. Whether they knew its solubility in water -does not appear; though, from the circumstance of its -being used for making mortar, this fact could hardly -escape them. These facts, though of great importance, -could scarcely be applied to the rearing of a chemical -structure, as the ancients could have no notion of the -action of acids upon lime, or of the numerous salts -which it is capable of forming. Phenomena which -must have remained unknown till the discovery of the -acids enabled experimenters to try their effects upon -limestone and quicklime. Not even a conjecture appears -in any ancient writer that I have looked into, -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_109">109</span> -about the difference between quicklime and limestone. -This difference is so great that it must have -been remarked by them, yet nobody seems ever to -have thought of attempting to account for it. Even -the method of burning or calcining lime is not described -by Pliny; though there can be no doubt that -the ancients were acquainted with it.</p> - -<p>Nor have I taken any notice of leather or the method -of tanning it. There are so many allusions to -leather and its uses by the ancient poets and historians, -that the acquaintance of the ancients with it is -put out of doubt. But so far as I know, there is no -description of the process of tanning in any ancient -author whatever. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_110">110</span></p> - -<h2 id="CHAPTER_III">CHAPTER III.<br /> - -<span class="large">CHEMISTRY OF THE ARABIANS.</span></h2> - -<p>Hitherto I have spoken of Alchymy, or of the chemical -manufactures of the ancients. The people to -whom scientific chemistry owes its origin are the -Arabians. Not that they prosecuted scientific chemistry -themselves; but they were the first persons who -attempted to form chemical medicines. This they did -by mixing various bodies with each other, and applying -heat to the mixture in various ways. This led to the -discovery of some of the mineral acids. These they -applied to the metals, &c., and ascertained the effects -produced upon that most important class of bodies. -Thus the Arabians began those researches which led -gradually to the formation of scientific chemistry. We -must therefore endeavour to ascertain the chemical -facts for which we are indebted to the Arabians.</p> - -<p>When Mahomet first delivered his dogmas to his -countrymen they were not altogether barbarous. Possessed -of a copious and expressive language, and inhabiting -a burning climate, their imaginations were -lively and their passions violent. Poetry and fiction -were cultivated by them with ardour, and with considerable -success. But science and inductive philosophy, -had made little or no progress among them. -The fatalism introduced by Mahomet, and the blind -enthusiasm which he inculcated, rendered them furious -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_111">111</span> -bigots and determined enemies to every kind of -intellectual improvement. The rapidity with which -they overran Asia, Africa, and even a portion of -Europe, is universally known. At that period the -western world, was sunk into extreme barbarism, and -the Greeks, with whom the remains of civilization still -lingered, were sadly degenerated from those sages -who graced the classic ages. Bent to the earth under -the most grinding but turbulent despotism that ever -disgraced mankind, and having their understandings -sealed up by the most subtle and absurd, and uncompromising -superstition, all the energy of mind, all -the powers of invention, all the industry and talent, -which distinguished their ancestors, had completely -forsaken them. Their writers aimed at nothing new -or great, and were satisfied with repeating the scientific -facts determined by their ancestors. The lamp of -science fluttered in its socket, and was on the eve of -being extinguished.</p> - -<p>Nothing good or great could be expected from such -a state of society. It was, therefore, wisely determined -by Providence that the Mussulman conquerors, -should overrun the earth, sweep out those miserable -governors, and free the wretched inhabitants from the -trammels of despotism and superstition. As a despotism -not less severe, and a superstition still more -gloomy and uncompromising, was substituted in their -place, it may seem at first sight, that the conquests of -the Mahometans brought things into a worse state -than they found them. But the listless inactivity, the -almost deathlike torpor which had frozen the minds of -mankind, were effectually roused. The Mussulmans -displayed a degree of energy and activity which have -few parallels in the history of the world: and after the -conquests of the Mahometans were completed, and -the Califs quietly seated upon the greatest and most -powerful throne that the world had ever seen; after -Almanzor, about the middle of the eighth century, had -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_112">112</span> -founded the city of Bagdad, and settled a permanent -and flourishing peace, the arts and sciences, which -usually accompany such a state of society, began to -make their appearance.</p> - -<p>That calif founded an academy at Bagdad, which -acquired much celebrity, and gradually raised itself -above all the other academies in his dominions. A -medical college was established there with powers to -examine all those persons who intended to devote -themselves to the medical profession. So many professors -and pupils flocked to this celebrated college, -from all parts of the world, that at one time their number -amounted to no fewer than six thousand. Public -hospitals and laboratories were established to facilitate -a knowledge of diseases, and to make the students -acquainted with the method of preparing medicines. -It was this last establishment which originated with the -califs that gave a first beginning to the science of -chemistry.</p> - -<p>In the thirteenth century the calif Mostanser re-established -the academy and the medical college at -Bagdad: for both had fallen into decay, and had -been replaced by an infinite number of Jewish seminaries. -Mostanser gave large salaries to the professors, -collected a magnificent library, and established a -new school of pharmacy. He was himself often present -at the public lectures.</p> - -<p>The successor of Mostanser was the calif Haroun-Al-Raschid, -the perpetual hero of the Arabian tales. -He not only carried his love for the sciences further -than his predecessors, but displayed a liberality and a -tolerance for religious opinions, which was not quite -consistent with Mahometan bigotry and superstition. -He drew round him the Syrian Christians, who translated -the Greek classics, rewarded them liberally, and -appointed them instructors of his Mahometan subjects, -especially in medicine and pharmacy. He protected -the Christian school of Dschondisabour, founded -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_113">113</span> -by the Nestorian Christians, before the time of Mahomet, -and still continuing in a flourishing state: always -surrounded by literary men, he frequently condescended -to take a part in their discussions, and not -unfrequently, as might have been expected from his -rank, came off victorious.</p> - -<p>The most enlightened of all the califs was Almamon, -who has rendered his name immortal by his -exertions in favour of the sciences. It was during his -reign that the Arabian schools came to be thoroughly -acquainted with Greek science; he procured the -translation of a great number of important works. -This conduct inflamed the religious zeal of the faithful, -who devoted him to destruction, and to the -divine wrath, for favouring philosophy, and in that -way diminishing the authority of the Koran. Almamon -purchased the ancient classics, from all quarters, -and recommended the care of doing so in a particular -manner to his ambassadors at the court of the -Greek emperors. To Leo, the philosopher, he made -the most advantageous offers, to induce him to come -to Bagdad; but that philosopher would not listen to -his invitation. It was under the auspices of this enlightened -prince, that the celebrated attempt was made -to determine the size of the earth by measuring a -degree of the meridian. The result of this attempt -it does not belong to this work to relate.</p> - -<p>Almotassem and Motawakkel, who succeeded Almamon, -followed his example, favoured the sciences, -and extended their protection to men of science who -were Christians. Motawakkel re-established the celebrated -academy and library of Alexandria. But -he acted with more severity than his predecessors with -regard to the Christians, who may perhaps have -abused the tolerance which they enjoyed.</p> - -<p>The other vicars of the prophet, in the different -Mahometan states, followed the fine example set them -by Almamon. Already in the eighth century the sovereigns -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_114">114</span> -of Mogreb and the western provinces of Africa -showed themselves the zealous friends of the sciences. -One of them called Abdallah-Ebn-Ibadschab rendered -commerce and industry flourishing at Tunis. -He himself cultivated poetry and drew numerous -artists and men of science into his state. At Fez and -in Morocco the sciences flourished, especially during -the reign of the Edrisites, the last of whom, Jahiah, a -prince possessed of genius, sweetness, and goodness, -changed his court into an academy, and paid attention -to those only who had distinguished themselves -by their scientific knowledge.</p> - -<p>But Spain was the most fortunate of all the Mahometan -states, and had arrived at such a degree of -prosperity both in commerce, manufactures, population, -and wealth, as is hardly to be credited. The -three Abdalrahmans and Alhakem carried, from the -eighth to the tenth century, the country subject to the -Calif of Cordova to the highest degree of splendour. -They protected the sciences, and governed with so -much mildness, that Spain was probably never so -happy under the dominion of any Christian prince. -Alhakem established at Cordova an academy, which -for several ages was the most celebrated in the whole -world. All the Christians of Western Europe repaired -to this academy in search of information. It -contained, in the tenth century, a library of 280,000 -volumes. The catalogue of this library filled no less -than forty-four volumes. Seville, Toledo, and Murcia, -had likewise their schools of science and their libraries, -which retained their celebrity as long as the dominion -of the Moors lasted. In the twelfth century there -were seventy public libraries in that part of Spain -which belonged to the Mahometans. Cordova had -produced one hundred and fifty authors, Almeria fifty-two, -and Murcia sixty-two.</p> - -<p>The Mahometan states of the east continued also -to favour the sciences. An emir of Irak, Adad-El-Daula -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_115">115</span> -by name, distinguished himself towards the -end of the tenth century by the protection which he -afforded to men of science. To him almost all the -philosophers of the age dedicated their works. Another -emir of Irak, Saif-Ed-Daula, established schools -at Kufa and at Bussora, which soon acquired great celebrity. -Abou-Mansor-Baharam, established a public -library at Firuzabad in Curdistan, which at its very -commencement contained 7000 volumes. In the -thirteenth century there existed a celebrated school of -medicine in Damascus. The calif Malek-Adel endowed -it richly, and was often present at the lectures with a -book under his arm.</p> - -<p>Had the progress of the sciences among the Arabians -been proportional to the number of those who -cultivated them, we might hail the Saracens as the -saviours of literature during the dark and benighted -ages of Christianity; but we must acknowledge with -regret, that notwithstanding the enlightened views of -the califs, notwithstanding the multiplicity of academies -and libraries, and the prodigious number of -writers, the sciences received but little improvement -from the Arabians. There are very few Arabian -writers in whose works we find either philosophical -ideas, successful researches, new facts, or great and -new and important truths. How, indeed, could such -things be expected from a people naturally hostile to -mental exertion; professing a religion which stigmatizes -all exercise of the judgment as a crime, and -weighed down by the heavy yoke of despotism? It -was the religion of the Arabians, and the despotism -of their princes, that opposed the greatest obstacles -to the progress of the sciences, even during the most -flourishing period of their civilization.<a id="FNanchor_103" href="#Footnote_103" class="fnanchor">103</a> Fortunately -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_116">116</span> -chemistry was the branch of science least obnoxious -to the religious prejudices of the Mahometans. It was -in it, therefore, that the greatest improvements were -made: of these improvements it will be requisite now -to endeavour to give the reader some idea. Astrology -and alchymy, they both derived from the Greeks: -neither of them were inconsistent with the taste of the -nation—neither of them were anathematized by the -Mahometan creed, though Islamism prohibited magic -and all the arts of divination. Alchymy may have -suggested the chemical processes—but the Arabians -applied them to the preparation of medicines, and -thus opened a new and most copious source of investigation.</p> - -<p>The chemical writings of the Arabians which I have -had an opportunity of seeing and perusing in a Latin -dress, being ignorant of the original language in which -they were written, are those of Geber and Avicenna.</p> - -<p>Geber, whose real name was Abou-Moussah-Dschafar-Al-Soli, -was a Sabean of Harran, in Mesopotamia, -and lived during the eighth century. Very -little is known respecting the history of this writer, -who must be considered as the patriarch of chemistry. -Golius, professor of the oriental languages in the -University of Leyden, made a present of Geber’s work -in manuscript to the public library. He translated it -into Latin, and published it in the same city in folio, -and afterwards in quarto, under the title of “Lapis -Philosophorum.”<a id="FNanchor_104" href="#Footnote_104" class="fnanchor">104</a> It was translated into English by -Richard Russel in 1678, under the title of, “The -Works of Geber, the most famous Arabian Prince and -Philosopher.”<a id="FNanchor_105" href="#Footnote_105" class="fnanchor">105</a> The works of Geber, so far as they -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_117">117</span> -appeared in Latin or English, consist of four tracts. -The first is entitled, “Of the Investigation or Search -of Perfection.” The second is entitled, “Of the Sum -of Perfection, or of the perfect Magistery.” The -third, “Of the Invention of Verity or Perfection.” -And the last, “Of Furnaces, &c.; with a Recapitulation -of the Author’s Experiments.”</p> - -<p>The object of Geber’s work is to teach the method -of making the philosopher’s stone, which he distinguishes -usually by the name of <i>medicine of the third -class</i>. The whole is in general written with so much -plainness, that we can understand the nature of the -substances which he employed, the processes which -he followed, and the greater number of the products -which he obtained. It is, therefore, a book of some -importance, because it is the oldest chemical treatise -in existence,<a id="FNanchor_106" href="#Footnote_106" class="fnanchor">106</a> and because it makes us acquainted -with the processes followed by the Arabians, and the -progress which they had made in chemical investigations. -I shall therefore lay before the reader the most -important facts contained in Geber’s work.</p> - -<p>1. He considered all the metals as compounds of -mercury and sulphur: this opinion did not originate -with him. It is evident from what he says, that the -same notion had been adopted by his predecessors—men -whom he speaks of under the title of the -<i>ancients</i>.</p> - -<p>2. The metals with which he was acquainted were -<i>gold</i>, <i>silver</i>, <i>copper</i>, <i>iron</i>, <i>tin</i>, and <i>lead</i>. These are -usually distinguished by him under the names of <i>Sol</i>, -<i>Luna</i>, <i>Venus</i>, <i>Mars</i>, <i>Jupiter</i>, and <i>Saturn</i>. Whether -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_118">118</span> -these names of the planets were applied to the metals -by Geber, or only by his translators, I cannot say; -but they were always employed by the alchymists, -who never designated the metals by any other appellations.</p> - -<p>3. Gold and silver he considered as perfect metals; -but the other four were imperfect metals. The difference -between them depends, in his opinion, partly -upon the proportions of mercury and sulphur in each, -and partly upon the purity or impurity of the mercury -and sulphur which enters into the composition of each.</p> - -<p>Gold, according to him, is created of the most -subtile substance of mercury and of most clear fixture, -and of a small substance of sulphur, clean and of pure -redness, fixed, clear, and changed from its own nature, -tinging that; and because there happens a diversity in -the colours of that sulphur, the yellowness of gold -must needs have a like diversity.<a id="FNanchor_107" href="#Footnote_107" class="fnanchor">107</a> His evidence that -gold consisted chiefly of mercury, is the great ease -with which mercury dissolves gold. For mercury, in -his opinion, dissolves nothing that is not of its own -nature. The lustre and splendour of gold is another -proof of the great proportion of mercury which it contains. -That it is a fixed substance, void of all burning -sulphur, he thinks evident by every operation in -the fire, for it is neither diminished nor inflamed. -His other reasons are not so intelligible.<a id="FNanchor_108" href="#Footnote_108" class="fnanchor">108</a></p> - -<p>Silver, like gold, is composed of much mercury and -a little sulphur; but in the gold the sulphur is red; -whereas the sulphur that goes to the formation of -silver is white. The sulphur in silver is also clean, -fixed, and clear. Silver has a purity short of that of -gold, and a more gross inspissation. The proof of -this is, that its parts are not so condensed, nor is it -so fixed as gold; for it may be diminished by fire, -which is not the case with gold.<a id="FNanchor_109" href="#Footnote_109" class="fnanchor">109</a> -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_119">119</span></p> - -<p>Iron is composed of earthy mercury and earthy -sulphur, highly fixed, the latter in by far the greatest -quantity. Sulphur, by the work of fixation, more easily -destroys the easiness of liquefaction than mercury. -Hence the reason why iron is not fusible, as is the -case with the other metals.<a id="FNanchor_110" href="#Footnote_110" class="fnanchor">110</a></p> - -<p>Sulphur not fixed melts sooner than mercury; but -fixed sulphur opposes fusion. What contains more -fixed sulphur, more slowly admits of fusion than what -partakes of burning sulphur, which more easily and -sooner flows.<a id="FNanchor_111" href="#Footnote_111" class="fnanchor">111</a></p> - -<p>Copper is composed of sulphur unclean, gross and -fixed as to its greater part; but as to its lesser part -not fixed, red, and livid, in relation to the whole not -overcoming nor overcome and of gross mercury.<a id="FNanchor_112" href="#Footnote_112" class="fnanchor">112</a></p> - -<p>When copper is exposed to ignition, you may discern -a sulphureous flame to arise from it, which is a -sign of sulphur not fixed; and the loss of the quantity -of it by exhalation through the frequent combustion -of it, shows that it has fixed sulphur. This last being -in abundance, occasions the slowness of its fusion -and the hardness of its substance. That copper -contains red and unclean sulphur, united to unclean -mercury, is, he thinks, evident, from its sensible -qualities.<a id="FNanchor_113" href="#Footnote_113" class="fnanchor">113</a></p> - -<p>Tin consists of sulphur of small fixation, white with -a whiteness not pure, not overcoming but overcome, -mixed with mercury partly fixed and partly not fixed, -white and impure.<a id="FNanchor_114" href="#Footnote_114" class="fnanchor">114</a> That this is the constitution of -tin he thinks evident; for when calcined, it emits a -sulphureous stench, which is a sign of sulphur not -fixed: it yields no flame, not because the sulphur is -fixed, but because it contains a great portion of mercury. -In tin there is a twofold sulphur and also a -twofold mercury. One sulphur is less fixed, because -in calcining it gives out a stench as sulphur. The fixed -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_120">120</span> -sulphur continues in the tin after it is calcined. He -thinks that the twofold mercury in tin is evident, from -this, that before calcination it makes a crashing -noise when bent, but after it has been thrice calcined, -that crashing noise can no longer be perceived.<a id="FNanchor_115" href="#Footnote_115" class="fnanchor">115</a> -Geber says, that if lead be washed with -mercury, and after its washing melted in a fire not -exceeding the fire of its fusion, a portion of the mercury -will remain combined with the lead, and will -give it the crashing noise and all the qualities of tin. -On the other hand, you may convert tin into lead. -By manifold repetition of its calcination, and the administration -of fire convenient for its reduction, it is -turned into lead.<a id="FNanchor_116" href="#Footnote_116" class="fnanchor">116</a></p> - -<p>Lead, in Geber’s opinion, differs from tin only in -having a more unclean substance commixed of the -two more gross substances, sulphur and mercury. -The sulphur in it is burning and more adhesive to the -substance of its own mercury, and it has more of the -substance of fixed sulphur in its composition than tin -has.<a id="FNanchor_117" href="#Footnote_117" class="fnanchor">117</a></p> - -<p>Such are the opinions which Geber entertained respecting -the composition of the metals. I have been -induced to state them as nearly in his own words as -possible, and to give the reasons which he has assigned -for them, even when his facts were not quite correct, -because I thought that this was the most likely way of -conveying to the reader an accurate notion of the sentiments -of this father of the alchymists, upon the very -foundation of the whole doctrine of the transmutation -of metals. He was of opinion that all the imperfect -metals might be transformed into gold and silver, by -altering the proportions of the mercury and sulphur of -which they are composed, and by changing the nature -of the mercury and sulphur so as to make them the -same with the mercury and sulphur which constitute -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_121">121</span> -gold and silver. The substance capable of producing -these important changes he calls sometimes the <i>philosopher’s -stone</i>, but generally the <i>medicine</i>. He gives -the method of preparing this important <i>magistery</i>, as -he calls it. But it is not worth while to state his process, -because he leaves out several particulars, in -order to prevent the foolish from reaping any benefit -from his writings, while at the same time those readers -who possess the proper degree of sagacity will be able, -by studying the different parts of his writings, to divine -the nature of the steps which he omits, and thus -profit by his researches and explanations. But it -will be worth while to notice the most important of -his processes, because this will enable us to judge of -the state of chemistry in his time.</p> - -<p>4. In his book on furnaces, he gives a description -of a furnace proper for calcining metals, and from -the fourteenth chapter of the fourth part of the first -book of his Sum of Perfection, it is obvious that -the method of calcining or oxidizing iron, copper, -tin, and lead, and also mercury and arsenic were familiarly -known to him.</p> - -<p>He gives a description of a furnace for distilling, -and a pretty minute account of the glass or stoneware, -or metallic aludel and alembic, by means of -which the process was conducted. He was in the -habit of distilling by surrounding his aludel with hot -ashes, to prevent it from being broken. He was acquainted -also with the water-bath. These processes were -familiar to him. The description of the distillation of -many bodies occurs in his work; but there is not the -least evidence that he was acquainted with ardent -spirits. The term <i>spirit</i> occurs frequently in his -writings, but it was applied to volatile bodies in general, -and in particular to sulphur and white arsenic, -which he considered as substances very similar in their -properties. Mercury also he considered as a spirit.</p> - -<p>The method of distilling <i>per descensum</i>, as is practised -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_122">122</span> -in the smelting of zinc, was also known to him. -He describes an apparatus for the purpose, and gives -several examples of such distillations in his writings.</p> - -<p>He gives also a description of a furnace for melting -metals, and mentions the vessels in which such processes -were conducted. He was acquainted with crucibles; -and even describes the mode of making cupels, -nearly similar to those used at present. The process -of cupellating gold and silver, and purifying them by -means of lead, is given by him pretty minutely and -accurately: he calls it <i>cineritium</i>, or at least that is -the term used by his Latin translator.</p> - -<p>He was in the habit of dissolving salts in water and -acetic acid, and even the metals in different menstrua. -Of these menstrua he nowhere gives any account; but -from our knowledge of the properties of the different -metals, and from some processes which he notices, it -is easy to perceive what his solvents must have been; -namely, the mineral acids which were known to him, -and to which there is no allusion whatever in any -preceding writer that I have had an opportunity of -consulting. Whether Geber was the discoverer of these -acids cannot be known, as he nowhere claims the discovery: -indeed his object was to slur over these acids, -as much as possible, that their existence, or at least -their remarkable properties, might not be suspected by -the uninitiated. It was this affectation of secrecy and -mystery that has deprived the earliest chemists of that -credit and reputation to which they would have been -justly entitled, had their discoveries been made known -to the public in a plain and intelligible manner.</p> - -<p>The mode of purifying liquids by filtration, and of -separating precipitates from liquids by the same means, -was known to Geber. He called the process <i>distillation -through a filter</i>.</p> - -<p>Thus the greater number of chemical processes, such -as they were practised almost to the end of the eighteenth -century, were known to Geber. If we compare his -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_123">123</span> -works with those of Dioscorides and Pliny, we shall -perceive the great progress which chemistry or rather -pharmacy had made. It is more than probable that -these improvements were made by the Arabian physicians, -or at least by the physicians who filled the -chairs in the medical schools, which were under the -protection of the califs: for as no notice is taken of -these processes by any of the Greek or Roman writers -that have come down to us, and as we find them -minutely described by the earliest chemical writers -among the Arabians, we have no other alternative -than to admit that they originated in the east.</p> - -<p>I shall now state the different chemical substances -or preparations which were known to Geber, or which -he describes the method of preparing in his works.</p> - -<p>1. Common salt. This substance occurring in such -abundance in the earth, and being indispensable as a -seasoner of food, was known from the earliest ages. -But Geber describes the method which he adopted to -free it from impurities. It was exposed to a red heat, -then dissolved in water, filtered, crystallized by evaporation, -and the crystals being exposed to a red heat, -were put into a close vessel, and kept for use.<a id="FNanchor_118" href="#Footnote_118" class="fnanchor">118</a> -Whether the identity of sal-gem (<i>native salt</i>) and -common salt was known to Geber is nowhere said. -Probably not, as he gives separate directions for -purifying each.</p> - -<p>2. Geber gives an account of the two fixed alkalies, -<i>potash</i> and <i>soda</i>, and gives processes for obtaining -them. Potash was obtained by burning cream of tartar -in a crucible, dissolving the residue in water, filtering -the solution, and evaporating to dryness.<a id="FNanchor_119" href="#Footnote_119" class="fnanchor">119</a> This -would yield a pure carbonate of potash.</p> - -<p>Carbonate of soda he calls <i>sagimen vitri</i>, and salt -of soda. He mentions plants which yield it when -burnt, points out the method of purifying it, and even -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_124">124</span> -describes the method of rendering it caustic by means -of quicklime.<a id="FNanchor_120" href="#Footnote_120" class="fnanchor">120</a></p> - -<p>3. Saltpetre, or nitrate of potash, was known to -him; and Geber is the first writer in whom we find an -account of this salt. Nothing is said respecting its -origin; but there can be little doubt that it came -from India, where it was collected, and known long -before Europeans were acquainted with it. The knowledge -of this salt was probably one great cause of the -superiority of the Arabians over Europeans in chemical -knowledge; for it enabled them to procure <i>nitric acid</i>, -by means of which they dissolved all the metals known -in their time, and thus acquired a knowledge of various -important saline compounds, which were of considerable -importance.</p> - -<p>There is a process for preparing saltpetre artificially, -in several of the Latin copies of Geber, though it does -not appear in our English translation. The method -was to dissolve sagimen vitri, or carbonate of soda, in -aqua fortis, to filter and crystallize by evaporation.<a id="FNanchor_121" href="#Footnote_121" class="fnanchor">121</a> -If this process be genuine, it is obvious that Geber -must have been acquainted with nitrate of soda; but -I have some doubts about the genuineness of the passage, -because the term <i>aqua fortis</i> occurs in it. Now -this term occurs nowhere else in Geber’s work: even -when he gives the process for procuring nitric acid, he -calls it simply water; but observes, that it is a water -possessed of much virtue, and that it constitutes a -precious instrument in the hands of the man who -possesses sagacity to use it aright.</p> - -<p>4. Sal ammoniac was known to Geber, and seems -to have been quite common in his time. There is no -evidence that it was known to the Greeks or Romans, -as neither Dioscorides nor Pliny make any allusion -to it. The word in old books is sometimes <i>sal armoniac</i>, -sometimes <i>sal ammoniac</i>. It is supposed to -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_125">125</span> -have been brought originally from the neighbourhood -of the temple of Jupiter Ammon: but had this been -the case, and had it occurred native, it could scarcely -have been unknown to the Romans, under whose -dominions that part of Africa fell. In the writings of -the alchymists, sal ammoniac is mentioned under the -following whimsical names: - -<span class="table"> -<span class="trow">Anima sensibilis,<br /></span> -<span class="trow">Aqua duorum fratrum ex sorore,<br /></span> -<span class="trow">Aquila,<br /></span> -<span class="trow">Lapis aquilinis,<br /></span> -<span class="trow">Cancer,<br /></span> -<span class="trow">Lapis angeli conjungentis,<br /></span> -<span class="trow">Sal lapidum,<br /></span> -<span class="trow">Sal alocoph.<br /></span> -</span> -</p> - -<p>Geber not only knew sal ammoniac, but he was -aware of its volatility; and gives various processes -for subliming it, and uses it frequently to promote the -sublimation of other bodies, as of oxides of iron and -copper. He gives also a method of procuring it from -urine, a liquid which, when allowed to run into putrefaction, -is known to yield it in abundance. Sal -ammoniac was much used by Geber, in his various -processes to bring the inferior metals to a state of -greater perfection. By adding it or common salt to -aqua fortis, he was enabled to dissolve gold, which -certainly could not be accomplished in the time of -Dioscorides or Pliny. The description, indeed, of -Geber’s process for dissolving gold is left on purpose -in a defective state; but an attentive reader will find -no great difficulty in supplying the defects, and thus -understanding the whole of the process.</p> - -<p>5. Alum, precisely the same as the alum of the -moderns, was familiarly known to Geber, and employed -by him in his processes. The manufacture of -this salt, therefore, had been discovered between the -time when Pliny composed his Natural History and -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_126">126</span> -the eighth century, when Geber wrote; unless we -admit that the mode of making it had been known to -the Tyrian dyers, but that they had kept the secret -so well, that no suspicion of its existence was entertained -by the Greeks and Romans. That they employed -<i>alumina</i> as a mordant in some of their dyes, -is evident; but there is no proof whatever that <i>alum</i>, -in the modern sense of the word, was known to them.</p> - -<p>Geber mentions three alums which he was in the -habit of using; namely, icy alum, or Rocca alum; -Jamenous alum, or alum of Jameni, and feather alum. -<i>Rocca</i>, or <i>Edessa</i>, in Syria, is admitted to have been -the place where the first manufactory of alum was -established; but at what time, or by whom, is quite -unknown: we know only that it must have been posterior -to the commencement of the Christian era, and -prior to the eighth century, when Geber wrote. Jameni -must have been another locality where, at the -time of Geber, a manufactory of alum existed. <i>Feather -alum</i> was undoubtedly one of the native impure varieties -of <i>alum</i>, known to the Greeks and Romans. -Geber was in the habit of distilling alum by a strong -heat, and of preserving the water which came over -as a valuable menstruum. If alum be exposed to a -red heat in glass vessels, it will give out a portion of -sulphuric acid: hence water distilled from alum by -Geber was probably a weak solution of sulphuric acid, -which would undoubtedly act powerfully as a solvent -of iron, and of the alkaline carbonates. It was probably -in this way that he used it.</p> - -<p>6. Sulphate of iron or copperas, as it is called -(<i>cuperosa</i>), in the state of a crystalline salt, was well -known to Geber, and appears in his time to have been -manufactured.</p> - -<p>7. Baurach, or borax, is mentioned by him, but -without any description by which we can know whether -or not it was our borax: the probability is that it was. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_127">127</span> -Both glass and borax were used by him when the -oxides of metals were reduced by him to the metallic -state.</p> - -<p>8. Vinegar was purified by him by distilling it over, -and it was used as a solvent in many of his processes.</p> - -<p>9. Nitric acid was known to him by the name of -<i>dissolving water</i>. He prepared it by putting into an -alembic one pound of sulphate of iron of Cyprus, half -a pound of saltpetre, and a quarter of a pound of alum -of Jameni: this mixture was distilled till every thing -liquid was driven over. He mentions the red fumes -which make their appearance in the alembic during -the process.<a id="FNanchor_122" href="#Footnote_122" class="fnanchor">122</a> This process, though not an economical -one, would certainly yield nitric acid; and it is -remarkable, because it is here that we find the first -hint of the knowledge of chemists of this most important -acid, without which many chemical processes -of the utmost importance could not be performed -at all.</p> - -<p>10. This acid, thus prepared, he made use of to -dissolve silver: the solution was concentrated till the -nitrate of silver was obtained by him in a crystallized -state. This process is thus described by him: “Dissolve -silver calcined in solutive water (<i>nitric acid</i>), as -before; which being done, coct it in a phial with a -long neck, the orifice of which must be left unstopped, -for one day only, until a third part of the water be -consumed. This being effected, set it with its vessel -in a cold place, and then it is converted into small -fusible stones, like crystal.”<a id="FNanchor_123" href="#Footnote_123" class="fnanchor">123</a></p> - -<p>11. He was in the habit also of dissolving sal -ammoniac in this nitric acid, and employing the solution, -which was the aqua regia of the old chemists, to -dissolve gold.<a id="FNanchor_124" href="#Footnote_124" class="fnanchor">124</a> He assures us that this aqua regia -would dissolve likewise sulphur and silver. The latter -assertion is erroneous. But sulphur is easily converted -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_128">128</span> -into sulphuric acid by the action of aqua regia, and of -course it disappears or dissolves.</p> - -<p>12. Corrosive sublimate is likewise described by -Geber in a very intelligible manner. His method of -preparing it was as follows: “Take of mercury one -pound, of dried sulphate of iron two pounds, of alum -calcined one pound, of common salt half a pound, -and of saltpetre a quarter of a pound: incorporate -altogether by trituration and sublime; gather the -white, dense, and ponderous portions which shall be -found about the sides of the vessel. If in the first -sublimation you find it turbid or unclean (which may -happen by reason of your own negligence), sublime a -second time with the same fuses.”<a id="FNanchor_125" href="#Footnote_125" class="fnanchor">125</a> Still more minute -directions are given in other parts of the work: we -have even some imperfect account of the properties of -corrosive sublimate.</p> - -<p>13. Corrosive sublimate is not the only preparation -of mercury mentioned by Geber. He informs -us that when mercury is combined with sulphur -it assumes a red colour, and becomes cinnabar.<a id="FNanchor_126" href="#Footnote_126" class="fnanchor">126</a> He -describes the affinities of mercury for the different -metals. It adheres easily to three metals; namely, -lead, tin, and gold; to silver with more difficulty. To -copper with still more difficulty than to silver; but to -iron it unites in nowise unless by artifice.<a id="FNanchor_127" href="#Footnote_127" class="fnanchor">127</a> This is a -tolerably accurate account of the matter. He says, -that mercury is the heaviest body in nature except -gold, which is the only metal that will sink in it.<a id="FNanchor_128" href="#Footnote_128" class="fnanchor">128</a> -Now this was true, applied to all the substances known -when Geber lived.</p> - -<p>He gives an account of the method of forming the -peroxide of mercury by heat; that variety of it formerly -distinguished by the name of <i>red precipitati -per se</i>. “Mercury,” he says, “is also coagulated by -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_129">129</span> -long and constant retention in fire, in a glass vessel -with a very long neck and round belly; the orifice of -the neck being kept open, that the humidity may vanish -thereby.”<a id="FNanchor_129" href="#Footnote_129" class="fnanchor">129</a> He gives another process for preparing -this oxide, possible, perhaps, though certainly requiring -very cautious regulation of the fire. “Take,” -says he, “of mercury one pound, of vitriol (sulphate -of iron) rubified two pounds, and of saltpetre one -pound. Mortify the mercury with these, and then -sublime it from rock alum and saltpetre in equal -weights.”<a id="FNanchor_130" href="#Footnote_130" class="fnanchor">130</a></p> - -<p>14. Geber was acquainted with several of the compounds -of metals with sulphur. He remarks that -sulphur when fused with metals increases their weight.<a id="FNanchor_131" href="#Footnote_131" class="fnanchor">131</a> -Copper combined with sulphur becomes yellow, and -mercury red.<a id="FNanchor_132" href="#Footnote_132" class="fnanchor">132</a> He knew the method of dissolving -sulphur in caustic potash, and again precipitating it -by the addition of an acid. His process is as follows: -“Grind clear and gummose sulphur to a most subtile -powder, which boil in a lixivium made of ashes of -<i>heartsease</i> and quicklime, gathering from off the -surface its oleaginous combustibility, until it be discerned -to be clear. This being done, stir the whole -with a stick, and then warily take off that which -passeth out with the lixivium, leaving the more gross -parts in the bottom. Permit that extract to cool a -little, and upon it pour a fourth part of its own -quantity of distilled vinegar, and then will the whole -suddenly be congealed as milk. Remove as much of -the clear lixivium as you can; but dry the residue -with a gentle fire and keep it.”<a id="FNanchor_133" href="#Footnote_133" class="fnanchor">133</a></p> - -<p>15. It would appear from various passages in -Geber’s works that he was acquainted with arsenic in -the metallic state. He frequently mentions its combustibility, -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_130">130</span> -and considers it as the <i>compeer</i> of sulphur. -And in his book on <i>Furnaces</i>, chapter 25 (or 28 in -some copies), he expressly mentions <i>metallic arsenic</i> -(<i>arsenicum metallinum</i>), in a preparation not very intelligible, -but which he considered of great importance. -The white oxide of arsenic or arsenious acid, was obviously -well known to him. He gives more than one -process for obtaining it by sublimation.<a id="FNanchor_134" href="#Footnote_134" class="fnanchor">134</a> He observes -in his Sum of Perfection, book i. part iv. chap. 2, which -treats of sublimation, “Arsenic, which before its -sublimation was evil and prone to adustion, after its -sublimation, suffers not itself to be inflamed; but -only resides without inflammation.”</p> - -<p>Geber states the fact, that when arsenic is heated -with copper that metal becomes white.<a id="FNanchor_135" href="#Footnote_135" class="fnanchor">135</a> He gives -also a process by which the white arseniate of iron is -obviously made. “Grind one pound of iron filings -with half a pound of sublimed arsenic (arsenious acid). -Imbibe the mixture with the water of saltpetre, and -salt-alkali, repeating this imbibation thrice. Then -make it flow with a violent fire, and you will have -your iron white. Repeat this labour till it flow sufficiently -with peculiar dealbation.”<a id="FNanchor_136" href="#Footnote_136" class="fnanchor">136</a></p> - -<p>16. He mentions oxide of copper under the name -of <i>æs ustum</i>, the red oxide of iron under the name of -<i>crocus</i> of iron. He mentions also litharge and red -lead.<a id="FNanchor_137" href="#Footnote_137" class="fnanchor">137</a> But as all these substances were known to the -Greeks and Romans, it is needless to enter into any -particular details.</p> - -<p>17. I am not sure what substance Geber understood -by the word <i>marchasite</i>. It was a substance which -must have been abundant, and in common use, for he -refers to it frequently, and uses it in many of his processes; -but he nowhere informs us what it is. I suspect -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_131">131</span> -it may have been sulphuret of antimony, which -was certainly in common use in Asia long before the -time of Geber. But he also makes mention of antimony -by name, or at least the Latin translator has made -use of the word <i>antimonium</i>. When speaking of the -reduction of metals after heating them with sulphur, -he says, “The reduction of tin is converted into clear -antimony; but of lead, into a dark-coloured antimony, -as we have found by proper experience.”<a id="FNanchor_138" href="#Footnote_138" class="fnanchor">138</a> It is not -easy to conjecture what meaning the word antimony -is intended to convey in this passage. In another -passage he says, “Antimony is calcined, dissolved, -clarified, congealed, and ground to powder, so it is -prepared.”<a id="FNanchor_139" href="#Footnote_139" class="fnanchor">139</a></p> - -<p>18. Geber’s description of the metals is tolerably -accurate, considering the time when he wrote. As an -example I shall subjoin his account of gold. “Gold -is a metallic body, yellow, ponderous, mute, fulged, -equally digested in the bowels of the earth, and very -long washed with mineral water; under the hammer -extensible, fusible, and sustaining the trial of the cupel -and cementation.”<a id="FNanchor_140" href="#Footnote_140" class="fnanchor">140</a> He gives an example of copper -being changed into gold. “In copper-mines,” he -says, “we see a certain water which flows out, and -carries with it thin scales of copper, which (by a continual -and long-continued course) it washes and -cleanses. But after such water ceases to flow, we find -these thin scales with the dry sand, in three years time -to be digested with the heat of the sun; and among -these scales the purest gold is found: therefore we -judge those scales were cleansed by the benefit of the -water, but were equally digested by heat of the sun, -in the dryness of the sand, and so brought to equality.”<a id="FNanchor_141" href="#Footnote_141" class="fnanchor">141</a> -Here we have an example of plausible reasoning from -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_132">132</span> -defective premises. The gold grains doubtless existed -in the sand before, while the scales of copper in the -course of three years would be oxidized and converted -into powder, and disappear, or at least lose all their -metallic lustre.</p> - -<p>Such are the most remarkable chemical facts which -I have observed in the works of Geber. They are so -numerous and important, as to entitle him with some -justice to the appellation of the father and founder of -chemistry. Besides the metals, sulphur and salt, with -which the Greeks and Romans were acquainted, he -knew the method of preparing sulphuric acid, nitric -acid, and aqua regia. He knew the method of dissolving -the metals by means of these acids, and actually prepared -nitrate of silver and corrosive sublimate. He -was acquainted with potash and soda, both in the state -of carbonates and caustic. He was aware that these -alkalies dissolve sulphur, and he employed the process -to obtain sulphur in a state of purity.</p> - -<p>But notwithstanding the experimental merit of Geber, -his spirit of philosophy did not much exceed that -of his countrymen. He satisfied himself with accounting -for phenomena by occult causes, as was the universal -custom of the Arabians; a practice quite inconsistent -with real scientific progress. That this was -the case will appear from the following passage, in -which Geber attempts to give an explanation of the -properties of the <i>great elixir</i> or <i>philosopher’s stone</i>: -“Therefore, let him attend to the properties and ways -of action of the composition of the greater elixir. For -we endeavour to make one substance, yet compounded -and composed of many, so permanently fixed, that -being put upon the fire, the fire cannot injure; and -that it may be mixed with metals in flux and flow with -them, and enter with that which in them is of an ingressible -substance, and be fermented with that which -in them is of a permixable substance; and be consolidated -with that which in them is of a consolidable -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_133">133</span> -substance; and be fixed with that which in them is of -a fixable substance; and not be burnt by those things -which burn not gold and silver; and take away consolidation -and weights with due ignition.”<a id="FNanchor_142" href="#Footnote_142" class="fnanchor">142</a></p> - -<p>The next Arabian whose name I shall introduce -into this history, is Al-Hassain-Abou-Ali-Ben-Abdallah-Ebn-Sina, -surnamed Scheik Reyes, or prince of -physicians, vulgarly known by the name of <i>Avicenna</i>. -Next to Aristotle and Galen, his reputation was the -highest, and his authority the greatest of all medical -practitioners; and he reigned paramount, or at least -shared the medical sceptre till he was hurled from his -throne by the rude hands of Paracelsus.</p> - -<p>Avicenna was born in the year 978, at Bokhara, to -which place his father had retired during the emirate -of the calif Nuhh, one of the sons of the celebrated -Almansor. Ali, his father, had dwelt in Balkh, in -the Chorazan. After the birth of Avicenna he went to -Asschena in Bucharia, where he continued to live till -his son had reached his fifteenth year. No labour nor -expense was spared on the education of Avicenna, -whose abilities were so extraordinary that he is said to -have been able to repeat the whole Koran by heart -at the age of ten years. Ali gave him for a master -Abou-Abdallah-Annatholi, who taught him grammar, -dialectics, the geometry of Euclid, and the astronomy -of Ptolemy. But Avicenna quitted his tuition because -he could not give him the solution of a problem -in logic. He attached himself to a merchant, who -taught him arithmetic, and made him acquainted with -the Indian numerals from which our own are derived. -He then undertook a journey to Bagdad, where he -studied philosophy under the great Peripatician, Abou-Nasr-Alfarabi, -a disciple of Mesue the elder. At the -same time he applied himself to medicine, under the -tuition of the Nestorian, Abou-Sahel-Masichi. He -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_134">134</span> -informs us himself that he applied with an extraordinary -ardour to the study of the sciences. He was in -the habit of drinking great quantities of liquids during -the night, to prevent him from sleeping; and he often -obtained in a dream a solution of those problems at -which he had laboured in vain while he was awake. -When the difficulties to be surmounted appeared to -him too great, he prayed to God to communicate to -him a share of his wisdom; and these prayers, he assures -us, were never offered in vain. The metaphysics -of Aristotle was the only book which he could not -comprehend, and after reading them over forty times, -he threw them aside with great anger at himself.</p> - -<p>Already, at the age of sixteen, he was a physician -of eminence; and at eighteen he performed a brilliant -cure on the calif Nuhh, which gave him such celebrity -that Mohammed, Calif of Chorazan, invited him to -his palace; but Avicenna rather chose to reside at -Dschordschan, where he cured the nephew of the -calif Kabus of a grievous distemper.</p> - -<p>Afterwards he went to Ray, where he was appointed -physician to Prince Magd-Oddaula. Here he composed -a dictionary of the sciences. Sometime after -this he was raised to the dignity of vizier at Hamdan; -but he was speedily deprived of his office and thrown -into prison for having favoured a sedition. While incarcerated -he wrote many works on medicine and -philosophy. By-and-by he was set at liberty, and -restored to his dignity; but after the death of his protector, -Schems-Oddaula, being afraid of a new attempt -to deprive him of his liberty, he took refuge in -the house of an apothecary, where he remained long -concealed and completely occupied with his literary -labours. Being at last discovered he was thrown into -the castle of Berdawa, where he was confined for four -months. At the end of that time a fortunate accident -enabled him to make his escape, in the disguise of a -monk. He repaired to Ispahan, where he lived much -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_135">135</span> -respected at the court of the calif Ola-Oddaula. He -did not live to a great age, because he had worn out -his constitution by too free an indulgence of women -and wine. Having been attacked by a violent colic, -he caused eight injections, prepared from long pepper, -to be thrown up in one day. This excessive use of so -irritating a remedy, occasioned an excoriation of the -intestines, which was followed by an attack of epilepsy. -A journey to Hamdan, in company with the calif, -and the use of mithridate, into which his servant by -mistake had put too much opium, contributed still further -to put an end to his life. He had scarcely arrived -at the town when he died in the fifty-eighth year of -his age, in the year 1036.</p> - -<p>Avicenna was the author of the immense work entitled -“Canon,” which was translated into Latin, and -for five centuries constituted the great standard, the infallible -guide, the confession of faith of the medical -world. All medical knowledge was contained in it; -and nothing except what was contained in it was considered -by medical men as of any importance. When -we take a view of the Canon, and compare it with the -writings of the Greeks, and even of the Arabians, that -preceded it, we shall find some difficulty in accounting -for the unbounded authority which he acquired over -the medical world, and for the length of time during -which that authority continued.</p> - -<p>But it must be remembered, that Avicenna’s reign -occupies the darkest and most dreary period of the -history of the human mind. The human race seems to -have been asleep, and the mental faculties in a state -of complete torpor. Mankind, accustomed in their -religious opinions to obey blindly the infallible decisions -of the church, and to think precisely as the -church enjoined them to think, would naturally look -for some means to save them the trouble of thinking -on medical subjects; and this means they found fortunately -in the canons of Avicenna. These canons, -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_136">136</span> -in their opinion, were equally infallible with the decisions -of the holy father, and required to be as implicitly -obeyed. The whole science of medicine was -reduced to a simple perusal of Avicenna’s Canon, and -an implicit adherence to his rules and directions.</p> - -<p>When we compare this celebrated work with the -medical writings of the Greeks, and even of the -Arabians, the predecessors of Avicenna, we shall be -surprised that it contains little or nothing which can -be considered as original; the whole is borrowed from -the writings of Galen, or Ætius, or Rhazes: scarcely -ever does he venture to trust his own wings, but rests -entirely on the sagacity of his Greek and Arabian -predecessors. Galen is his great guide; or, if he ever -forsake him, it is to place himself under the direction -of Aristotle.</p> - -<p>The Canon contains a collection of most of the -valuable information contained in the writings of the -ancient Greek physicians, arranged, it must be allowed, -with great clearness. The Hhawi of Razes is almost -as complete; but it wants the <i>lucidus ordo</i> which -distinguishes the Canon of Avicenna. I conceive that -the high reputation which Avicenna acquired, was -owing to the care which he bestowed upon his arrangement. -He was undoubtedly a man of abilities, but -not of inventive genius. There is little original matter -in the Canon. But the physicians in the west, while -Avicenna occupied the medical sceptre, had no opportunity -of judging of the originality of their oracle, -because they were unacquainted with the Greek language, -and could not therefore consult the writings of -Galen or Ætius, except through the corrupt medium -of an Arabian version.</p> - -<p>But it is not the medical reputation of Avicenna that -induced me to mention his name here. Like all the -Arabian physicians, he was also a chemist; and his -chemical tracts having been translated into Latin, and -published in Western Europe, we are enabled to judge -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_137">137</span> -of their merit, and to estimate the effect which they may -have had upon the progress of chemistry. The first -Latin translation of the chemical writings of Avicenna -was published at Basil in 1572; they consist of two -separate books; the first, under the name of “Porta -Elementorum,” consists of a dialogue between a master -and his pupil, respecting the mysteries of Alchymy. -He gives an account of the four elements, fire, air, -water, earth, and gives them their usual qualities of -dry, moist, hot, and cold. He then treats of air, which, -he says, is the food of fire, of water, of honey, of the -mutual conversion of the elements into each other; of -milk and cheese, of the mixture of fire and water, and -that all things are composed of the four elements. -There is nothing in this tract which has any pretension -to novelty; he merely retails the opinions of the Greek -philosophers.</p> - -<p>The other treatise is much larger, and professes to -teach the whole art of alchymy; it is divided into ten -parts, entitled “Dictiones.” The first diction treats of -the philosopher’s stone in general; the second diction -treats of the method of converting light things into -heavy, hard things into soft; of the mutation of the -elements; and of some other particulars of a nature not -very intelligible. The third diction treats of the formation -of the elixir; and the same subject is continued -in the fourth.</p> - -<p>The fifth diction is one of the most important in the -whole treatise; it is in general intelligible, which is -more than can be said of those that precede it. This -diction is divided into twenty-eight chapters: the first -chapter treats of copper, which, he says, is of three -kinds; permenian copper, natural copper, and Navarre -copper. But of these three varieties he gives no account -whatever; though he enlarges a good deal on the -qualities of copper—not its properties, but its supposed -medicinal action. It is hot and dry, he says, -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_138">138</span> -but in the calx of it there is humidity. His account -of the composition of copper is the same with that of -Geber.</p> - -<p>The second chapter treats of lead, the third of tin, -and in the remaining chapters he treats successively -of brass, iron, gold, silver, marcasite, sulphuret of -antimony, which is distinguished by the name of -alcohol; of soda, which he says is the juice of a plant -called <i>sosa</i>. And he gives an unintelligible process -by which it is extracted from that plant, without mentioning -a syllable about the combustion to which it is -obvious that it must have been subjected.</p> - -<p>In the twelfth chapter he treats of saltpetre, which, -he says, is brought from Sicily, from India, from -Egypt, and from Herminia. He describes several -varieties of it, but mentions nothing about its characteristic -property of deflagrating upon burning coals. -He then treats successively of common salt, of sal-gem, -of vitriol, of sulphur, of orpiment, and of sal ammoniac, -which, he says, comes from Egypt, from India, and -from Forperia. In the nineteenth and subsequent -chapters he treats of aurum vivum, of hair, of urine, of -eggs, of blood, of glass, of white linen, of horse-dung, -and of vinegar.</p> - -<p>The sixth diction, in thirty-three chapters, treats of -the calcination of the metals, of sublimation, and of -some other processes. I think it unnecessary to be -more particular, because I cannot perceive any thing -in it that had not been previously treated of by Geber.</p> - -<p>The seventh diction treats of the preparation of -blood and eggs, and the method of dividing them into -their four elements. It treats also of the elixir of silver, -and the elixir of gold; but it contains no chemical -fact of any importance.</p> - -<p>The eighth diction treats of the preparation of the -ferment of silver, and of gold. The ninth diction treats -of the whole magistery, and of the nuptials of the sun -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_139">139</span> -and moon; that is, of gold and silver. The tenth diction -treats of weights.</p> - -<p>The chemical writings of Avicenna are of little -value, and apply chemistry rather to the supposed -medical qualities of the different substances treated of, -than to the advancement of the science. All the -chemical knowledge which he possesses is obviously -drawn from Geber. Geber, then, may be looked upon -as the only chemist among the Arabians to whom we -are indebted for any real improvements and new facts. -It is true that the Arabian physicians improved considerably -the materia medica of the Greeks, and introduced -many valuable medicines into common use -which were unknown before their time. It is enough -to mention corrosive sublimate, manna, opium, asafœtida. -It would be difficult to make out many of -the vegetable substances used by the Arabian chemists; -because the plants which they designated by -particular names, can very seldom be identified. -Botany at that time had made so little progress, that -no method was known of describing plants so as to -enable other persons to determine what they were. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_140">140</span></p> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<h2 id="CHAPTER_IV">CHAPTER IV<br /> - -<span class="large">OF THE PROGRESS OF CHEMISTRY UNDER PARACELSUS AND -HIS DISCIPLES.</span></h2> - -<p>Hitherto we have witnessed only the first rude -beginnings, or, as it were, the early dawn of the chemical -day. It is from the time of Paracelsus that the -true commencement of chemical investigations is to be -dated. Not that Paracelsus or his followers understood -the nature of the science, or undertook any -regular or successful investigation. But Paracelsus -shook the medical throne of Galen and Avicenna to -its very foundation; he roused the latent energies of -the human mind, which had for so long a period lain -torpid; he freed medical men from those trammels, -and put an end to that despotism which had existed -for five centuries. He pointed out the importance of -chemical medicines, and of chemical investigations, to -the physician. This led many laborious men to turn -their attention to the subject. Those metals which -were considered as likely to afford useful medicines, -mercury for example, and antimony, were exposed to -the action of an infinite number of reagents, and a -prodigious collection of new products obtained and -introduced into medicine. Some of these were better, -and some worse, than the preparations formerly employed; -but all of them led to an increase of the -stock of chemical knowledge, which now began to -accumulate with considerable rapidity. It will be -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_141">141</span> -proper, therefore, to give a somewhat particular account -of the life and opinions of Paracelsus, so far as -they can be made out from his writings, because, -though he was not himself a scientific chemist, he may -be truly considered as the man through whose means -the stock of chemical knowledge was accumulated, -which was afterwards, by the ingenuity of Beccher, -and Stahl, moulded into a scientific form.</p> - -<p>Philippus Aureolus Theophrastus Paracelsus Bombast -ab Hohenheim (as he denominates himself) was -born at Einsideln, two German miles from Zurich. -His father was called William Bombast von Hohenheim. -He was a very near relation of George Bombast von -Hohenheim, who became afterwards grand master of -the order of Johannites. William Bombast von Hohenheim -practised medicine at Einsideln.<a id="FNanchor_143" href="#Footnote_143" class="fnanchor">143</a> After -receiving the first rudiments of his education in his -native city, he became a wandering scholastic, as was -then the custom with poor scholars. He wandered -from province to province, predicting the future by -the position of the stars, and the lines on the hand, -and exhibiting all the chemical processes which he had -learned from founders and alchymists. For his initiation -in alchymy, astrology, and medicine, he was indebted -to his father, who was much devoted to these -three sciences. Paracelsus mentions also the names -of several ecclesiastics from whom he received chemical -information; among others, Tritheimius, abbot of -Spanheim; Bishop Scheit, of Stettbach; Bishop Erhart, -of Laventall; Bishop Nicolas, of Hippon; and Bishop -Matthew Schacht. He seems also to have served -some years as an army surgeon, for he mentions many -cures which he performed in the Low Countries, in the -States of the Church, in the kingdom of Naples, and -during the wars against the Venetians, the Danes, and -the Dutch. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_142">142</span></p> - -<p>There is some uncertainty whether he received a -regular college education, as was then the practice -with all medical men. He acknowledges himself that -his medical antagonists reproached him with never -having frequented their schools; and he is perpetually -affirming, that a physician should receive all his -knowledge from God, and not from man. But if we -can trust his own assertions, there can be no doubt -that he took a regular medical degree, which implies -a regular college education. He tells us, in his preface -to his Chirurgia Magna, that he visited the universities -of Germany, France, and Italy. He assures -his readers, that he was the ornament of the schools -where he studied. He even speaks of the oath which -he was obliged to take when he received his medical -degree; but where he studied, or where and when he -received his medical degree, are questions which neither -Paracelsus nor his disciples, nor his biographers, -have enabled us to solve. If he ever attended a -university, he must have neglected his studies, otherwise -he could not have been ignorant, as he confessedly -was, of the very first elements of the most common -kinds of knowledge. But if he neglected the universities, -he laboured long and assiduously with the rich -Sigismond Fuggerus, of Schwartz, in order to learn -the true secret of forming the philosopher’s stone.</p> - -<p>He gives us some details of the numerous journeys -that he made, as was customary with the alchymists -of the time, into the mountains of Bohemia, the East, -and Sweden, to inspect the mines, to get himself initiated -into the mysteries of the eastern adepts, to -inspect the wonders of nature, and to view the celebrated -diamond mountain, the position of which, however, -he unfortunately forgets to specify.</p> - -<p>In the preface to his Chirurgia Magna, he informs -us that he traversed Spain, Portugal, England, Prussia, -Poland, and Transylvania; where he not only -profited by the information of the medical men with -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_143">143</span> -whom he became acquainted, but that he drew much -precious information from old women, gipsies, conjurors, -and chemists.<a id="FNanchor_144" href="#Footnote_144" class="fnanchor">144</a> He spent several years in -Hungary; and informs us that at Weissenburg, in -Croatia, and in Stockholm, he was taught by several -old women to prepare drinks capable of curing ulcers. -He is said also to have made a voyage into Egypt, -and even into Tartary; and he accompanied the son -of the Kan of the Tartars to Constantinople, in order -to learn the secret of the philosopher’s stone from -Trismogin, who inhabited that capital. This prodigious -activity, this constant motion from place to place, -left him but little leisure for reading: accordingly he -informs us himself, that during the space of ten years -he never opened a book, and that his whole library -consisted only of six sheets. The inventory of his -books, drawn up after his death, confirms this recital; -for they consisted only of the Bible, the Concordance -to the Bible, the New Testament, and the Commentaries -of St. Jerome on the Evangelists.</p> - -<p>We know not at what period he returned back to -Germany; but at the age of thirty-three the great -number of fortunate cures which he had performed -rendered him an object of admiration to the people, -and of jealousy to the rival physicians of the time. -He assures us that he cured eighteen princes whose -diseases had been aggravated by the practitioners devoted -to the system of Galen. Among others he cured -Philip, Margrave of Baden, of a dysentery, who promised -him a great reward, but did not keep his promise, -and even treated him in a way unworthy of that -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_144">144</span> -prince. This cure, however, and others of a similar -nature, added greatly to his celebrity; and in order -to raise his reputation to the highest possible pitch, he -announced publicly that he was able to cure all the -diseases hitherto reckoned incurable; and that he had -discovered an elixir, by means of which the life of -man might be prolonged at pleasure to any extent -whatever. He began the practice, which has since -been so successfully followed in this country, of dispensing -medicines gratuitously to the poor, in order to -induce the rich to apply to him for assistance when -they were overtaken with diseases.</p> - -<p>In the year 1526 Paracelsus was appointed professor -of physic and surgery in the University of -Basil. This appointment was given him, it is said, -by the recommendation of Œcolampadius. He introduced -the custom of lecturing in the common language -of the country, as is at present the universal -practice: but during the time of Paracelsus, and long -after indeed, all lectures were delivered in Latin. The -new method which he followed in explaining the theory -and practice of the art; the numerous fortunate cures -which he stated in confirmation of his method of treatment; -the emphasis with which he spoke of his secrets -for prolonging life, and for curing every kind of disease -without distinction, but still more his lecturing in -a language which was understood by the whole population, -drew to Bâle an immense crowd of idle, enthusiastic, -and credulous hearers.</p> - -<p>The lectures which he delivered on Practical Medicine -still remain, written in a confused mixture of -German and barbarous Latin, and containing little or -nothing except a farrago of empirical remedies, advanced -with the greatest confidence. They have a -much greater resemblance to a collection of quack -advertisements than to the sober lectures of a professor -in a university. In the month of November, -1526, he wrote to Christopher Clauser, a physician in -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_145">145</span> -Zurich, that as Hippocrates was the first physician -among the Greeks, Avicenna among the Arabians, -Galen among the Pergamenians, and Marsilius among -the Italians, so he was beyond dispute the greatest -physician among the Germans. Every country produces -an illustrious physician, whose medicines are -adapted to the climate in which he lived, but not -suited to other countries. The remedies of Hippocrates -were good to the Greeks, but not suitable to -the Germans; thus it was necessary that an inspired -physician should spring up in every country, and that -he was the person destined to teach the Germans the -art of curing all diseases.<a id="FNanchor_145" href="#Footnote_145" class="fnanchor">145</a></p> - -<p>Paracelsus began his professorial career by burning -publicly, in his class-room, and in the presence of his -pupils, the works of Galen and Avicenna, assuring his -hearers that the strings of his shoes possessed more -knowledge than those two celebrated physicians. All -the universities united had not, he assured them, as -much knowledge as was contained in his own beard, -and the hairs upon his neck were better informed than -all the writers that ever existed put together. To -give the reader an idea of the arrogant absurdity of -his pretensions, I shall translate a few sentences of the -preface to his tract, entitled “Paragranum,” where he -indulges in his usual strain of rodomontade: “Me, -me you shall follow, you Avicenna, you Galen, you -Rhazes, you Montagnana, you Mesue. I shall not -follow you, but you shall follow me. You, I say, you -inhabitants of Paris, you inhabitants of Montpelier, -you Suevi, you Misnians, you inhabitants of Cologne, -you inhabitants of Vienna; all you whom the Rhine -and the Danube nourish, you who inhabit the islands -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_146">146</span> -of the sea; you also Italy, you Dalmatia, you Athens, -you Greek, you Arabian, you Israelite—I shall not -follow you, but you shall follow me. Nor shall any -one lurk in the darkest and most remote corner whom -the dogs shall not piss upon. I shall be the monarch, -the monarchy shall be mine. If I administer, and I -bind up your loins, is he with whom you are at present -delighted a Cacophrastus? This ordure must be eaten -by you.”</p> - -<p>“What will your opinion be when you see your -Cacophrastus constituted the chief of the monarchy? -What will you think when you see the sect of Theophrastus -leading on a solemn triumph, if I make you -pass under the yoke of my philosophy? your Pliny -will you call Cacopliny, and your Aristotle, Cacoaristotle? -If I plunge them together with your Porphyry, -Albertus, &c., and the whole of their compatriots -into my <i>necessary</i>.” But the terms become -now so coarse and indelicate, that I cannot bring -myself to proceed further with the translation. Enough -has been given to show the extreme arrogance and -folly of Paracelsus.</p> - -<p>So far, however, was this impudence and grossness -from injuring the interest of Paracelsus, that we are -assured by Ramus and Urstisius that it contributed still -further to increase it. The coarseness of his language -was well suited to the vulgarity of the age; and his arrogance -and boasting were considered, as usual, as a -proof of superior merit. The cure which he performed -on Frobenius, drew the attention of Erasmus himself, -who consulted him about the diseases with which he -was afflicted; and the letters that passed between -them are still preserved. The epistle of Paracelsus is -short, enigmatical, and unintelligible; that of Erasmus -is distinguished by that clearness and elegance -which characterize his writings.<a id="FNanchor_146" href="#Footnote_146" class="fnanchor">146</a> But Frobenius died -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_147">147</span> -in the month of October, 1527, and the antagonists -of Paracelsus attributed his death (and probably with -justice) to the violent remedies which had been administered -to a man whose constitution had been -destroyed by the gout.</p> - -<p>His death contributed not a little to tarnish the -glory of Paracelsus: but he suffered the greatest -injury from the habits of intoxication in which he indulged, -and from the vulgarity of the way in which -he spent his time. He hardly ever went into his -class-room to deliver a lecture till he was half intoxicated, -and scarcely ever dictated to his secretaries -till he had lost the use of his reason by a too liberal -indulgence in wine. If he was summoned to visit a -patient, he scarcely ever went but in a state of intoxication. -Not unfrequently he passed the whole -night in the alehouse, in the company of peasants, and -when morning came, was quite incapable of performing -the duties of his station. On one occasion, after -a debauch, which lasted the whole night, he was called -next morning to visit a patient; on entering the room, -he inquired if the sick person had taken any thing: -“Nothing,” was the answer, “except the body of our -Lord.” “Since you have already,” says he, “provided -yourself with another physician, my presence here is unnecessary,” -and he left the apartment instantly. When -Albertus Basa, physician to the king of Poland, visited -Paracelsus in the city of Basel, he carried him to see -a patient whose strength was completely exhausted, -and which, in his opinion, it was impossible to restore; -but Paracelsus, wishing to make a parade of his skill, -administered to him three drops of his laudanum, and -invited him to dine with him next day.<a id="FNanchor_147" href="#Footnote_147" class="fnanchor">147</a> The invitation -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_148">148</span> -was accepted, and the sick man dined next day -with his physician.</p> - -<p>Towards the end of the year 1527 a disgraceful -dispute into which he entered brought his career, as -a professor, to a sudden termination. The canon -Cornelius, of Lichtenfels, who had been long a martyr -to the gout, employed him as his physician, and promised -him one hundred florins if he could cure him. -Paracelsus made him take three pills of laudanum, -and having thus freed him from pain, demanded the -sum agreed upon; but Lichtenfels refused to pay him -the whole of it. Paracelsus summoned him before -the court, and the magistrate of Basle decided that -the canon was bound to pay only the regular price of -the medicine administered. Irritated at this decision, -our intoxicated professor uttered a most violent invective -against the magistrate, who threatened to -punish him for his outrageous conduct. His friends -advised him to save himself by flight. He took their -advice, and thus abdicated his professorship. But, by -this time, his celebrity as a teacher had been so completely -destroyed by his foolish and immoral conduct, -that he had lost all his hearers. In consequence of -this state of things, his flight from Basle produced no -sensation whatever in that university.</p> - -<p>Paracelsus betook himself, in the first place, to -Alsace, and sent for his faithful follower, the bookseller, -Operinus, together with the whole of his chemical -apparatus. In 1528 we find him at Colmar, -where he recommenced his ambulating life of a theosophist, -which he had led during his youth. His book -upon syphilis, known at that time by the name of -Morbus Gallicus, was dedicated at Colmar, to the chief -magistrate of Colmar, Hieronymus Bonerus.<a id="FNanchor_148" href="#Footnote_148" class="fnanchor">148</a> In 1531 -he was at Saint-Gallen; in 1535, at Pfeffersbade, and -in 1536, at Augsburg, where he dedicated his Chirurgia -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_149">149</span> -Magna to Malhausen. At the request of John de -Leippa, Marshal of Bohemia, he undertook a journey -into Moravia; as that nobleman, having been informed -that Paracelsus understood the method of curing the -gout radically, was anxious to put himself under his -care. Paracelsus lived for a long time at Kroman, -and its environs. John de Leippa, instead of receiving -any benefit from the medicines administered to -him, became daily worse, and at last died. This was -the fate also of the lady of Zerotin, in whom the -remedies of Paracelsus produced no fewer than twenty-four -epileptic fits in one day. Paracelsus, instead of -waiting the disgrace with which the death of this lady -would have overwhelmed him, announced his intention -of going to Vienna, that he might see how they would -treat him in that capital.</p> - -<p>It is said, that from Vienna he went into Hungary; -but in 1538, we find him in Villach, where he dedicated -his Chronica et Origo Carinthiæ to the states of -Carinthia.<a id="FNanchor_149" href="#Footnote_149" class="fnanchor">149</a> His book, De Natura Rerum, had been -dedicated to Winkelstein, and the dedication is dated -also at Villach, in the year 1537.<a id="FNanchor_150" href="#Footnote_150" class="fnanchor">150</a> In 1540 he was -at Mindelheim, and in 1541, at Strasburg, where he -died, in St. Stephen’s hospital, in the forty-eighth -year of his age.</p> - -<p>To form an accurate idea of this most extraordinary -man, we must attend to his habits, and to the situation -in which he was placed. He had acquired such -a habit of moving about, that he assures us himself he -found it impossible for him to continue for any length -of time in one place. He was always surrounded by -a number of followers, whom neither his habits of intoxication, -nor the foolish and immoral conduct in -which he was accustomed to indulge, could induce -to forsake him. The most celebrated of these was -Operinus, a printer at Basle, on whom Paracelsus -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_150">150</span> -lavishes the most excessive praises, in his book De -Morbo Gallico. But Operinus loaded his master with -obloquy, being provoked at him because he had not -made him acquainted with the secret of the philosopher’s -stone, as he had promised to do. We must -therefore be cautious in believing the stories that he -relates to the discredit of his master. We know the -names of two others of his followers; Francis, who -assures us that Paracelsus was devoted to the transmutation -of metals; and George Vetter, who considered -him as a magician; as was the opinion also of -Operinus. Paracelsus himself, speaks of Dr. Cornelius, -whom he calls his secretary, and in honour of -whom he wrote several of his libels. Other libels are -dedicated to Doctors Peter, Andrew, and Ursinus, to -the licentiate Pancrace, and to Mr. Raphael. On -this occasion he complains bitterly of the infidelity of -his servants, who, he says, had succeeded in stealing -from him several of his secrets; and had by this means -been enabled to establish their reputation. He accuses -equally the barbers and bathers that followed him, and -is no less severe upon the physicians of every country -through which he travelled.</p> - -<p>When we attempt to form an accurate conception of -the medical and philosophical opinions of this singular -man, we find ourselves beset with almost insurmountable -difficulties. His statements are so much at -variance with each other, in his different pieces, and -so much confusion reigns with respect to the order of -publication, that we know not what to fix on as his last -and maturest opinions. His style is execrable; filled -with new words of his own coining, and of mysticisms -either introduced to excite the admiration of the ignorant, -or from the fanaticism and credulity of the -writer, who was undoubtedly, to a considerable extent, -the dupe of his own impostures. That he was in possession -of the philosopher’s stone, or of a medicine -capable of prolonging life to an indefinite length, as -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_151">151</span> -he all along asserted, he could not himself believe; -but he had boasted so long and so loudly of his wonderful -cures, and of the efficacy of his medicines, that -there can be no doubt that he ultimately placed implicit -faith in them. The blunders of the transcribers -whom he employed to copy his works, may perhaps -account for some of the contradictions which they -contain. But how can we look for a regular system -of opinions from a man who generally dictated his -works when in a state of intoxication, and thus laboured -under an almost constant deprivation of reason.</p> - -<p>His obscurity was partly the effect of design, and -no doubt was intended to exalt the notions entertained -of his profundity. He uses common words in new -significations, without giving any indication of the -change which he introduced. Thus <i>anatomy</i>, in the -writings of Paracelsus, signifies not the dissection of -dead animals to determine their structure, but it -means the nature, force, and magical designation of -a thing. And as, according to the Platonic and -Cabalistic theory, every earthly body is formed after -the model of a heavenly body, Paracelsus calls <i>anatomy</i> -the knowledge of that model, of that ideal, or of -that paradigm after which all things are created. He -terms the fundamental force of a thing <i>a star</i>, and -defines alchymy the art of drawing out the stars of -metals. The star is the source of all knowledge. -When we eat, we introduce into our bodies <i>the star</i>, -which is then modified, and favours nutrition.</p> - -<p>It is probable that many of his obscure and unintelligible -expressions are the fruit of ignorance. Thus -he uses the term <i>pagoyus</i>, instead of <i>paganus</i>. He -gives the name of <i>pagoyæ</i> to the four <i>entities</i>, or causes -of diseases, founded on the influence of the stars, to -the elementary qualities; to the occult qualities, and -to the influence of spirits; because these had been -already admitted by the <i>Pagans</i>. But the fifth <i>entity</i>, -or cause of disease, which has God immediately for -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_152">152</span> -its author, is <i>non pagoya</i>. The <i>undimia</i> of Paracelsus -is our <i>œdema</i>; only he applies the name to every kind -of dropsy. The Latin word <i>tonitru</i>, we find is declined -by Paracelsus. Thus he says, <i>lapis tonitrui</i>. The -well-known line of Ovid, - -<span class="table"> -<span class="trow">Tollere nodosam nescit medicina podagram,<br /></span> -</span> - -He travestied into - -<span class="table"> -<span class="trow">Nescit tartaream Roades curare podagram.<a id="FNanchor_151" href="#Footnote_151" class="fnanchor">151</a><br /></span> -</span> - -<i>Roades</i>, he says, means medicines for horses; and -if any person wishes a more elegant verse, he may -make it for himself.<a id="FNanchor_152" href="#Footnote_152" class="fnanchor">152</a> He employs, also, a great number -of words to which no meaning whatever can be -attached; and to which, in all probability, he himself -had affixed none.</p> - -<p>As is the case with all fanatics, he treated with contempt -every kind of knowledge acquired by labour -and application; and boasted that his wisdom was -communicated to him directly by God Almighty. The -theosophist who is worthy of partaking of the divine -light, has no occasion for adopting a positive religion, -nor of subjecting himself to any kind of religious ceremony. -The divine light within, which assimilates him -to the Deity, more than compensates for all these vulgar -usages, and raises the illuminated votary far above the -beggarly elements of external worship. Accordingly, -Paracelsus has been accused of treating the public -worship of the Deity with contempt. Not satisfied -with the plain sense of the book, he attempted to explain -in a mystical manner the words and syllables of -the Bible. He accused Luther of not going far enough. -“Luther,” says he, “is not worthy of untying the -strings of my shoes: should I undertake a reformation, -I would begin by sending the pope and the reformers -themselves to school.” God, says Paracelsus, is the -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_153">153</span> -first and most excellent of writers. The Holy Scripture -conducts us to all truth, and teaches us all -things. But medicine, philosophy, and astronomy, -are among the number of things. Therefore, when we -want to know what magical medicine is, we must consult -the Apocalypse. The Bible, with its paraphrases, -is the key to the theory of diseases. It puts it in our -power to understand St. John, who, like Daniel, Ezekiel, -Moses, &c., was a magician, a cabalist, a diviner. -The first duty of a physician is to study the Cabala, -without which he must every moment commit a thousand -blunders. “Learn,” says he, “the cabalistic -art, which includes under it all the others.” “Man -invents nothing, the devil invents nothing; it is God -alone who unveils to us the light of nature.” “God -honoured at first with his illumination the blind pagans, -Apollo, Æsculapius, Machaon, Podalirius, and Hippocrates, -and imparted to them the genius of medicine; -their successors were the sophists.” One would suppose, -from this passage, that Paracelsus had read and -studied Hippocrates, and that he held him in high estimation. -But the commentaries which he has left on -some of the aphorisms, show evidently that he did -not even understand the Greek physician. “The -compassion of God,” says he, “is the only foundation -of medical science, and not a knowledge of the great -masters, or of the writings which they have left in Greek -and Latin.” “God often acts in dreams by the light -of nature, and points out to man the manner of curing -diseases.” “This knowledge renders all those objects -visible which would otherwise escape the sight; and -when faith is joined with it, nothing is then impossible -to the theosophist, who may transport the ocean to -the top of Mount Ætna, and Olympus into the Red -Sea.” Paracelsus predicts that by the year 1590 -Christian theosophy would be generally spread over -the world, and that the Galenical schools would be -almost or entirely overthrown. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_154">154</span></p> - -<p>We find in Paracelsus some traces of the opinions -of the Gnostics and Arians, who considered Christ as -the first emanation of the Deity. He calls the first -man <i>parens hominis</i>; and makes all spirits emanate -from him. He is the <i>limbus minor</i>, or the last creature, -into whom enters the great <i>limbus</i>, or the seed -of all the creatures, the infinite being. All the sciences, -and all the arts of man, are derived from this -great <i>limbus</i>; and he who can sink himself in the little -<i>limbus</i>, that is to say, in Adam, and who can communicate -by faith with Jesus Christ, may invoke all -<i>spirits</i>. Those who owe their science to this <i>limbus</i>, -are the best informed; those who derive it from the -stars, occupy the last rank; and those who owe it to -the light of nature, are intermediate between the preceding. -Jesus Christ, in his capacity of <i>limbus minor</i> -and first man, being always an emanation of the Divinity; -and, consequently, a subordinate personage. -These ideas explain to us why Paracelsus passed for -an Arian, and was supposed not to believe in the Divinity -of Jesus Christ. He was of opinion that the -faithful performed miracles, and operated magical -cures by their simple confidence in God the Father, -and not by their faith in Christ; but he adds, however, -that we ought to pray to Jesus, in order to obtain his -intercession.</p> - -<p>From the preceding attempt to explain the opinions -of Paracelsus, it will be evident to the reader that he -was both a fanatic and impostor, and that his theory -(if such a name can be given to the reveries of a -drunkard), consisted in uniting medicine with the doctrines -of the Cabala. A few more observations will -be necessary to develop his dogmas still further.</p> - -<p>Every body, in his opinion, and man in particular, -is double, consisting of a material and spiritual -substance.<a id="FNanchor_153" href="#Footnote_153" class="fnanchor">153</a> The spiritual, which may be called the -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_155">155</span> -<i>sideric</i>, results from the celestial influences; and we -may trace after it a figure capable of producing all -kinds of magical effects. When we can act upon the -body itself, we act at the same time upon the spiritual -form by characters and conjurations.<a id="FNanchor_154" href="#Footnote_154" class="fnanchor">154</a> Yet, in another -passage, he blames all magical ceremonies, and ascribes -them to want of faith. The celestial intelligences -impress upon material bodies certain signs, -which manifest their influence. The perfection of -art consists in understanding the meaning of these -signs, and in determining from them the nature, qualities, -and essence of a body. Adam, the first man, -had a perfect knowledge of the Cabala; he could interpret -the signatures of all things. It was this which -enabled him to assign to the animals names which -suited them best. A man who renounces all sensuality, -and is blindly obedient to the will of God, is capable -of taking a share in the actions which celestial intelligences -perform; and consequently is possessed of -the philosopher’s stone. Never does he want any -thing; all creatures in earth and in heaven are obedient -to him; he can cure all diseases, and prolong -his life as long as he pleases; because he possesses -the tincture which Adam and the patriarch’s before -the flood employed to prolong the term of their existence.<a id="FNanchor_155" href="#Footnote_155" class="fnanchor">155</a> -Beelzebub, the chief of the demons, is also -subject to the power of magic: and who can blame -the theosophist for believing in the devil? He ought, -however, to take care to prevent this malignant spirit -from commanding him. Paracelsus was often wont -to say, “If God does not aid me, the devil will help -me.” -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_156">156</span></p> - -<p>Pantheism was one of the principal dogmas of the -Cabala; and Paracelsus adopts it in all its grossness. -He affirms perpetually that every thing is animated in -the universe; that every thing which exists, eats, -drinks, and voids excrements: even minerals and -liquids take food and void the digested remains of -their nourishment.<a id="FNanchor_156" href="#Footnote_156" class="fnanchor">156</a> This opinion leads necessarily to -the admission of a great number of spiritual substances, -intermediate between material and immaterial in every -part of the sublunary world, in water, air, earth, and -fire; who, as well as man, eat, drink, converse, beget -children; but which approach pure spirits in this, that -they are more transparent, and infinitely more agile -than all other animal bodies. Man possesses a soul, -of which these pure spirits are destitute. Hence it -happens that these spiritual substances are at once -body and spirit without a soul. When they die (for -like the human race they are subject to death), no -soul remains. Like us they are exposed to diseases. -Their names vary according to the places that they -occupy. When they inhabit the air, they are called -<i>sylphs</i>; when the water, <i>nymphs</i>; when the earth, -<i>pigmies</i>; when the fire, <i>salamanders</i>.<a id="FNanchor_157" href="#Footnote_157" class="fnanchor">157</a> The inhabitants -of the waters are also called <i>undinæ</i>, and those -of the fire <i>vulcani</i>. The sylphs approach nearest to -our nature, as they live in the air like us. The sylphs, -nymphs, and pigmies, sometimes obtain permission -from God to make themselves visible, to converse -with men, to indulge in carnal pleasures, and to produce -children. But the salamanders have no relation -to man. These spiritual beings are acquainted with -the future, and capable of revealing it to man. They -appear under the form of <i>ignes fatui</i>. We have also -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_157">157</span> -the history of the fairies and the giants; and are told -how these spiritual beings are the guardians of concealed -treasures; and how these sylphs, nymphs, pigmies, -and salamanders, may be charmed, and their -treasures taken from them.</p> - -<p>This division of man into body and spirit, and of -the things of nature into visible and invisible, has in -all ages of the world, been adopted by fanatics, because -it enabled them to explain the history of ghosts, -and a thousand similar prejudices. Hence the distinction -between soul and spirit, which is so very ancient; -and hence the three following harmonies to -which the successors of Paracelsus paid a particular -attention: - -<span class="table"> -<span class="trow"> -<span class="tcell"><i>Soul</i>,</span> -<span class="tcell"><i>Spirit</i>,</span> -<span class="tcell"><i>Body</i>,</span> -</span> -<span class="trow"> -<span class="tcell"><i>Mercury</i>,</span> -<span class="tcell"><i>Sulphur</i>,</span> -<span class="tcell"><i>Salt</i>,</span> -</span> -<span class="trow"> -<span class="tcell"><i>Water</i>,</span> -<span class="tcell"><i>Air</i>,</span> -<span class="tcell"><i>Earth</i>.</span> -</span> -</span> - -The will and the imagination of man acts principally -by means of the spirit. Hence the reason of the -efficacy of sorcery and magic. The <i>nævi materni</i> are -the impressions of these <i>vice-men</i>, and Paracelsus -calls them <i>cocomica signa</i>. The <i>sideric</i> body of man -draws to him, by imagination, all that surrounds him, -and particularly the stars, on which it acts like a magnet. -In this manner, women with child, and during -the regular period of monthly evacuation, having a -diseased imagination, are not only capable of poisoning -a mirror by their breath, but of injuring the infants -in their wombs, and even also of poisoning the -moon. But it seems needless to continue this disagreeable -detail of the absurd and ridiculous opinions -which Paracelsus has consigned to us in his different -tracts.</p> - -<p>The Physiology of Paracelsus (if such a name can -be applied to his reveries) is nothing else than an application -of the laws of the Cabala to the explanation -of the functions of the body. There exists, he assures -us, an intimate connexion between the sun and the -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_158">158</span> -heart, the moon and the brain, Jupiter and the liver, -Saturn and the spleen, Mercury and the lungs, Mars -and the bile, Venus and the kidneys. In another -part of his works, he informs us that the sun acts on -the umbilicus and the middle parts of the abdomen, -the moon on the spine, Mercury on the bowels, Venus -on the organs of generation, Mars on the face, Jupiter -on the head, and Saturn on the extremities. The -pulse is nothing else than the measure of the temperature -of the body, according to the space of the six -places which are in relation to the planets. Two pulses -under the sole of the feet belong to Saturn and Jupiter, -two at the elbow to Mars and Venus, two in the -temples to the moon and mercury. The pulse of the -sun is found under the heart. The <i>macrocosm</i> has -also seven pulses, which are the revolutions of the -seven planets, and the irregularity or intermittence of -these pulses, is represented by the eclipses. The moon -and Saturn are charged in the macrocosm with thickening -the water, which causes it to congeal. In like -manner the moon of the microcosm, that is to say the -brain, coagulates the blood. Hence <i>melancholy persons</i>, -whom Paracelsus calls <i>lunatics</i>, have a thick -blood. We ought not to say of a man that he has -such and such a complexion; but that it is Mars, -Venus, &c., so that a physician ought to know the -planets of the microcosm, the arctic and antarctic -pole, the meridian, the zodiac, the east and the west, -before trying to explain the functions or cure the diseases.<a id="FNanchor_158" href="#Footnote_158" class="fnanchor">158</a> -This knowledge is acquired by a continual -comparison of the macrocosm with the microcosm. -What must have been the state of medicine at the -time when Paracelsus wrote, when the propagator of -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_159">159</span> -such opinions could be reckoned one of the greatest -of its reformers?</p> - -<p>The system of Galen had for its principal basis the -doctrine of the four elements, <i>fire</i>, <i>air</i>, <i>water</i>, and -<i>earth</i>. Paracelsus neglected these elements, and -multiplied the substances of the disease itself. He -admits, strictly speaking, three or four elements; -namely, the <i>star</i>, the <i>root</i>, the <i>element</i>, the <i>sperm</i>, -which he distinguishes by the name of the <i>true seed</i>. -All these elements were originally confounded together -in the <i>chaos</i> or <i>yliados</i>. The <i>star</i> is the active force -which gives form to matter. The <i>stars</i> are reasonable -beings addicted to sodomy and adultery, like other -creatures. Each of them draws at pleasure out of -the <i>chaos</i>, the plant and the metal to which it has -an affinity, and gives a <i>sideric</i> form to their <i>root</i>. -There are two kinds of <i>seed</i>; the <i>sperm</i> is the vehicle -of the true seed. It is engendered by speculation, by -imagination, by the power of the <i>star</i>. The occult, invisible, -<i>sideric</i> body produces the <i>true seed</i>, and the -Adamic man secretes only the visible envelope of it. -Putrefaction cannot give birth to a new body: the -seed must pre-exist, and it is developed during putrefaction -by the power of the stars. The generation of -animals is produced by the concourse of the infinite -number of seeds which detach themselves from all -parts of the body. Thus the seed of the nose reproduces -a nose, that of the eye the eye, and so on.</p> - -<p>With respect to the elements themselves, Paracelsus -admits occasionally their influence on the functions of -the body, and the theory of diseases; but he deduces -the faculties which they possess from the <i>stars</i>. It -was he that first shook the doctrine of the four elements, -originally contrived by Empedocles. Alchymy -had introduced another set of elements, and the alchymists -maintained that salt, sulphur, and mercury, -were the true elements of things. Paracelsus endeavoured -to reconcile these chemical elements with his -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_160">160</span> -cabalistic ideas, and to show more clearly their utility -in the theory of medicine. He invented a <i>sideric -salt</i>, which can only be perceived by the exquisite -senses of a theosophist, elevated by the abnegation of -all gross sensuality to a level with pure and spiritual -demons. This <i>salt</i> is the cause of the consistence of -bodies, and it is it which gives them the faculty of -being reproduced from their ashes.</p> - -<p>Paracelsus imagined also a <i>sideric sulphur</i>, which -being vivified by the influence of the stars, gives bodies -the property of growing, and of being combustible. -He admits also a <i>sideric mercury</i>, the foundation of -fluidity and volatilization. The concourse of these -three substances forms the body. In different parts of -his works, Paracelsus says, that the <i>elements</i> are composed -of these three principles. In plants he calls the -salt <i>balsam</i>, the sulphur <i>resin</i> and the mercury <i>gotaronium</i>. -In other passages he opposes the assertion of -the Galenists, that <i>fire</i> is <i>dry</i> and <i>hot</i>, <i>air cold</i> and -<i>moist</i>, <i>earth dry</i> and <i>cold</i>, <i>water moist</i> and <i>cold</i>. Each -of these elements, he says, is capable of admitting all -qualities, so that in reality there exists a <i>dry water</i>, a -<i>cold fire</i>, &c.</p> - -<p>I must not omit another remarkable physiological -doctrine of Paracelsus, namely, that there exists in the -stomach a demon called <i>Archæus</i>, who presides over -the chemical operations which take place in it, separating -the poisonous from the nutritive part of food, -and furnishing the alimentary substances with the -tincture, in consequence of which they become capable -of being assimilated. This <i>ruler of the stomach</i>, who -changes bread into blood, is the type of the physician, -who ought to keep up a good understanding with him, -and lend him his assistance. To produce a change in -the humours ought never to be the object of the true -physician, he should endeavour to concentrate all his -operations on the stomach and the ruler who reigns in it. -This Archæus to whom the name of <i>Nature</i> may also -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_161">161</span> -be given, produces all the changes by his own power. -It is he alone who cures diseases. He has a <i>head</i> and -<i>hands</i>, and is nothing else than the <i>spirit of life</i>, the -<i>sideric body</i> of man, and no other spirit besides exists -in the body. Each part of the body has also a peculiar -stomach in which the secretions are elaborated.</p> - -<p>There are, he informs us, five different causes of -diseases. The first is the <i>ens astrorum</i>. The constellations -do not immediately induce diseases, but they -alter and infect the air. This is what, properly speaking -constitutes the <i>entity of the stars</i>. Some constellations -<i>sulphurize</i> the atmosphere, others communicate -to it <i>arsenical</i>, <i>saline</i>, or <i>mercurial</i> qualities. -The arsenical astral entities injure the blood, the mercurial -the head, the saline the bones and the vessels. -Orpiment occasions tumours and dropsies, and the -<i>bitter stars</i> induce fever.</p> - -<p>The second morbific cause is the <i>ens veneni</i>, which -proceeds from alimentary substances: when the archeus -is languid putrefaction ensues, either <i>localiter</i> or -<i>emuncturaliter</i>. This last takes place when those evacuations, -which ought to be expelled by the nose, the -intestines, or the bladder, are retained in the body. -Dissolved mercury escapes through the pores of the -skin, white sulphur by the nose, arsenic by the ears, -sulphur diluted with water by the eyes, salt in solution -by the urine, and sulphur deliquesced by the intestines.</p> - -<p>The third morbific cause of disease is the <i>ens naturale</i>; -but Paracelsus subjects to the ens astrorum -the principles which the schools are in the habit of arranging -among the number of natural causes. The -<i>ens spirituale</i> forms the fourth species and the <i>ens -deale</i> or <i>Christian entity</i> the fifth. This last class -comprehends all the immediate effects of divine predestination.</p> - -<p>It would lead us too far if I were to point out the -strange methods which he takes to discover the cause -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_162">162</span> -of diseases. But his doctrine concerning <i>tartar</i> is too -important, and does our fanatic too much credit to be -omitted. It is without doubt the most useful of all -the innovations which he introduced. <i>Tartar</i> according -to him, is the principle of all the maladies proceeding -from the thickening of the humours, the -rigidity of the solids, or the accumulation of earthy -matter. Paracelsus thought the term <i>stone</i> not suitable -to indicate that matter, because it applies only to -one species of it. Frequently the principle proceeds -from mucilage, and mucilage is tartar. He calls this -principle <i>tartar</i> (<i>tartarus</i>) because it burns like hellfire, -and occasions the most dreadful diseases. As -<i>tartar</i> (<i>bitartrate of potash</i>) is deposited at the bottom -of the wine-cask, in the same way <i>tartar</i> in the living -body is deposited on the surface of the teeth. It is -deposited on the internal parts of the body when the -archæus acts with too great impetuosity and in an irregular -manner, and when it separates the nutritive -principle with too much impetuosity. Then the saline -spirit unites itself to it and coagulates the earthy -principle, which is always present, but often in the -state of <i>materia prima</i> without being coagulated.</p> - -<p>In this manner tartar, in the state of <i>materia prima</i>, -may be transmitted from father to son. But it is not -hereditary and transmittable when it has already assumed -the form of gout, of renal calculus, or of obstruction. -The saline spirit which gives it its form, -and causes its coagulation, is seldom pure and free -from mixture; usually it contains alum, vitriol, or -common salt; and this mixture contributes also to -modify the tartarous diseases. The tartar may be -likewise distinguished according as it comes from the -blood itself, or from foreign matters accumulated in -the humours. The great number of calculi which have -been found in every part of the body, and the obstructions, -confirm the generality of this morbific cause, -to which are due most of the diseases of the liver. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_163">163</span> -When the tartarous matter is increased by certain articles -of food, renal calculi are engendered, a calculous -paroxysm is induced, and violent pain is occasioned. -It acts as an emetic, and may even give occasion to -death, when the saline spirit becomes corrosive; and -when the tartar coagulated by it becomes too irritating.</p> - -<p>Tartar, then, is always an excrementitious substance, -which in many cases results from the too great -activity of the digestive forces. It may make its appearance -in all parts of the body, from the irregularity -and the activity, too energetic or too indolent, of the -archeus; and then it occasions particular accidents relative -to each of the functions. Paracelsus enumerates -a great number of diseases of the organs, which may -be explained by that one cause; and affirms, that the -profession of medicine would be infinitely more useful, -if medical men would endeavour to discover the tartar -before they tried to explain the affections.</p> - -<p>Paracelsus points out, also, the means by which we -can distinguish the presence of tartar in urine. For -this it is necessary, not merely to inspect the urine, -but to subject it to a chemical analysis. He declaims -violently against the ordinary ouroscopy. He divides -urine into internal and external; the internal comes -from the blood, and the external announces the nature -of the food and drink which has been employed. -To the sediment of urine he gives the new name of -<i>alcola</i>, and admits three species of it, namely, <i>hypostasis</i>, -<i>divulsio</i>, and <i>sedimen</i>. The first is connected -with the stomach, the second with the liver, and the -third with the kidneys; and tartar predominates in all -the three.</p> - -<p>The Cabala constantly directs Paracelsus in his -therapeutics and materia medica. As all terrestrial -things have their image in the region of the stars, and -as diseases depend also on the influence of the stars, -we have nothing more to do, in order to obtain a certain -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_164">164</span> -cure for these diseases, than to discover, by means -of the Cabala, the harmony of the constellations. -<i>Gold</i> is a specific against all diseases of the <i>heart</i>, because, -in the mystic scale, it is in harmony with that -viscus. The <i>liquor of the moon</i> and crystal cure the -diseases of the <i>brain</i>. The liquor <i>alkahest</i> and <i>cheiri</i> -are efficacious against those of the <i>liver</i>. When we -employ vegetable substances, we must consider their -harmony with the constellations, and their magical -harmony with the parts of the body and the diseases, -each star drawing, by a sort of magical virtue, the -plant for which it has an affinity, and imparting to it -its activity. So that plants are a kind of sublunary -stars. To discover the virtues of plants, we must study -their anatomy and cheiromancy; for the leaves are -their hands, and the lines observable on them enable -us to appreciate the virtues which they possess. Thus -the anatomy of the <i>chelidonium</i> shows us that it is a -remedy for jaundice. These are the celebrated <i>signatures</i> -by means of which we deduce the virtues of -vegetables, and the medicines of analogy which they -present in relation to their form. Medicines, like women, -are known by the forms which they affect. He -who calls in question this principle, accuses the -Divinity of falsehood, the infinite wisdom of whom has -contrived these external characters to bring the study -of them more upon a level with the weakness of the -human understanding. On the corolla of the euphrasia -there is a black dot; from this we may conclude that -it furnishes an excellent remedy against all diseases of -the eye. The lizard has the colour of malignant ulcers, -and of the carbuncle; this points out the efficacy -which that animal possesses as a remedy.</p> - -<p>These signatures were exceedingly convenient for -the fanatics, since they saved them the trouble of -studying the medical virtues of plants, but enabled -them to decide the subject <i>à priori</i>. Paracelsus acted -very considerately, when he ascribed these virtues -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_165">165</span> -principally to the stars, and affirmed that the observation -of favourable constellations is an indispensable -condition in the employment of these medicines. “The -remedies are subjected to the will of the stars, and -directed by them; you ought therefore to wait till -heaven is favourable, before ordering a medicine.”</p> - -<p>Paracelsus considered all the effects of plants as -specifics, and the use of them as secrets. The same -notions explain the eulogy which he bestowed on the -<i>elixir of long life</i>, and upon all the means which he -employed to prolong the term of existence. He believed -that these methods, which contained the <i>materia -prima</i>, served to repair the constant waste of that matter -in the human body. He was acquainted, he says, -with four of these arcana, to which he applied the -mystic terms, <i>mercury of life</i>, <i>philosopher’s stone</i>, -&c. The <i>polygonum persicaria</i> was an infallible -specific against all the effects of magic. The method -of using it is, to apply it to the suffering part, and then -to bury it in the earth. It draws out the malignant -spirits like a magnet, and it is buried to prevent these -malignant spirits from making their escape.</p> - -<p>The reformation of Paracelsus had the great advantage -of representing <i>chemistry</i> as an indispensable art -in the preparation of medicines. The disgusting decoctions -and useless syrups gave place to <i>tinctures</i>, -<i>essences</i>, and <i>extracts</i>. Paracelsus says, expressly, -that the true use of chemistry is to prepare medicines, -and not to make gold. He takes that opportunity of -declaiming against cooks and innkeepers, who drown -medicines in soup, and thus destroy all their properties. -He blames medical men for prescribing simples, -or mixtures of simples, and affirms that the object -should always be to extract the quintessence of each -substance; and he describes at length the method of -extracting this quintessence. But he was very little -scrupulous about the substances from which this quintessence -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_166">166</span> -was to be extracted. The heart of a hare, the -bones of a hare, the bone of the heart of a stag, mother-of-pearl, -coral, and various other bodies may, he -says, be used indiscriminately to furnish a quintessence -capable of curing some of the most grievous diseases.</p> - -<p>Paracelsus combats with peculiar energy the method -of cure employed by the disciples of Galen, directed -solely against the predominating humours, and the -elementary qualities. He blames them for attempting -to correct the action of their medicines, by the addition -of useless ingredients. Fire and chemistry, he affirmed, -are the sole correctives. It was Paracelsus that first -introduced <i>tin</i> as a remedy for worms, though his mode -of employing it was not good.</p> - -<p>I have been thus particular in pointing out the philosophical -and medical opinions of Paracelsus, because -they were productive of such important consequences, -by setting medical men free from the slavish deference -which they had been accustomed to pay to the dogmas -of Galen and Avicenna. But it was the high rank to -which he raised chemistry, by making a knowledge of -it indispensable to all medical men; and by insisting -that the great importance of chemistry did not consist -in the formation of gold, but in the preparation of -medicines, that rendered the era of Paracelsus so -important in the history of chemistry; for after his -time the art of chemistry was cultivated by medical -men in general—it became a necessary part of their -education, and began to be taught in colleges and -medical schools. The object of chemistry came to -be, not to discover the philosopher’s stone, but to -prepare medicines; and a great number of new medicines, -both from the mineral and vegetable kingdom—some -of more, some of less, consequence, -soon issued from the laboratories of the chemical -physicians.</p> - -<p>There can be little doubt that many chemical preparations -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_167">167</span> -were either first introduced into medicine by -Paracelsus, or at least were first openly prescribed by -him: though from the nature of his writings, and the -secrecy in which he endeavoured to keep his most -valuable remedies, it is not easy to point out what -these remedies were. Mercury is said to have been -employed in medicine by Basil Valentine; but it was -Paracelsus who first used it openly as a cure for the -venereal disease, and who drew general attention to it -by his encomiums on its medical virtues, and by the -eclat of the cures which he performed by means of it, -after all the Galenical prescriptions of the schools had -been tried in vain.</p> - -<p>He ascertained that alum contains, united to an -acid, not a metallic oxide, but an earth. He mentions -metallic arsenic; but there is some reason for believing -that this metal was known to Geber and the -Arabian physicians. Zinc is mentioned by him, and -likewise bismuth, as substances not truly metallic, but -approaching to metals in their properties: for malleability -and ductility were considered by him as essential -to the metals.<a id="FNanchor_159" href="#Footnote_159" class="fnanchor">159</a> I cannot be sure of any other chemical -fact which appears in Paracelsus, and which was not -known before his time. The use of sal ammoniac in -subliming several metallic calces, was familiar to him, -but it had long ago been explained by Geber. It is -clear also that Geber was acquainted with aqua regia, -and that he employed it to dissolve gold. Paracelsus’s -reputation as a chemist, therefore, depends not upon -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_168">168</span> -any discoveries which he actually made, but upon the -great importance which he attached to the knowledge -of it, and to his making an acquaintance with chemistry -an indispensable requisite of a medical education.</p> - -<p>Paracelsus, as the founder of a new system of -medicine, the object of which was to draw chemistry -out of that state of obscurity and degradation into -which it had been plunged, and to give it the charge -of the preparation of medicine, and presiding over the -whole healing art, deserved a particular notice; and -I have even endeavoured, at some length, to lay his -system of opinions, absurd as it is, before the reader. -But the same attention is not due to the herd of followers -who adopted his absurdities, and even carried -them, if possible, still further than their master: at -the same time there are one or two particulars connected -with the Paracelsian sect which it would be -improper to omit.</p> - -<p>The most celebrated of his followers was Leonhard -Thurneysser-zum-Thurn, who was born in 1530, at -Basle, where his father was a goldsmith. His life, -like that of his master, was checkered with very extraordinary -vicissitudes. In 1560 he was sent to Scotland -to examine the lead-mines in that country. In -1558 he commenced miner and sulphur extractor at -Tarenz on the Inn, and was so successful, that he -acquired a great reputation. He had turned his attention -to medicine on the Paracelsian plan, and in 1568 -made himself distinguished by several important cures -which he performed. In 1570 he published his Quinta -Essentia, with wooden cuts, in Munster; from thence -he went to Frankfort on the Oder, and published his -Piso, a work which treats of <i>waters</i>, <i>rivers</i>, and -<i>springs</i>. John George, Elector of Brandenburg, was -at that time in Frankfort, and was informed that the -treatise of Thurneysser pointed out the existence of a -great deal of riches in the March of Brandenburg, till -that time unknown. His courtiers, who were anxious -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_169">169</span> -to establish mines in their possessions, united in recommending -the author. He was consulted about a -disease under which the wife of the elector was labouring, -and having performed a cure, he was immediately -named physician to this prince.</p> - -<p>He turned this situation to the best account. He -sold Spanish white, and other cosmetics, to the ladies -of the court; and instead of the disgusting decoctions -of the Galenists, he administered the remedies of -Paracelsus under the pompous titles of <i>tincture of -gold</i>, <i>magistery of the sun</i>, <i>potable gold</i>, &c. By -these methods he succeeded in amassing a prodigious -fortune, but was not fortunate enough to be able to -keep it. Gaspard Hoffmann, professor at Frankfort, -a well-informed and enlightened man, published a -treatise, the object of which was to expose the extravagant -pretensions and ridiculous ignorance of Thurneysser. -This book drew the attention of the courtiers, -and opened the eyes of the elector. Thurneysser -lost much of his reputation; and the methods -by which he attempted to bolster himself up, served -only to sink him still lower in the estimation of -men of sense. Among other things, he gave out that -he was the possessor of a devil, which he carried about -with him in a bottle. This pretended devil was nothing -else than a scorpion, preserved in a phial of oil. -The trick was discovered, and the usual consequences -followed. He lost a process with his wife, from whom -he was separated; this deprived him of the greatest -part of his fortune. In 1584 he fled to Italy, where -he occupied himself with the transmutation of metals, -and he died at Cologne in 1595.</p> - -<p>Thurneysser extols Paracelsus as the only true physician -that ever existed. His Quintessence is written -in verse. In the first book <i>The Secret</i> is the speaker. -He is represented with a padlock in his mouth, a key -in his hand, and seated on a coffer in a chamber, the -windows of which are shut. This personage teaches that -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_170">170</span> -all things are composed of salt, sulphur, and mercury, -or of earth, air, and water; and consequently that -<i>fire</i> is excluded from the number of the elements. We -must search for the secret in the <i>Bible</i>, and then in -the <i>stars</i> and the <i>spirits</i>. In the second book, <i>Alchymy</i> -is the speaker. She points out the mode of performing -the processes; and says that to endeavour to fix -volatile substances, is the same thing as to endeavour -to trace white letters on a wall with a piece of charcoal. -She prohibits all long processes, because God -created the world in six days.</p> - -<p>His method of judging of the diseases from the -urine of the patient deserves to be mentioned. He -distilled the urine, and fixed to the receiver a tube -furnished with a scale, the degrees of which consisted -of all the parts of the body. The phenomena which -he observed during the distillation of the urine, enabled -him to draw inferences respecting the state of all these -different organs.</p> - -<p>I pass over Bodenstein, Taxites, and Dorn, who -distinguished themselves as partisans of Paracelsus. -Dorn derived the whole of chemistry from the first -chapter of Genesis, the words of which he explained -in an alchymistical sense. These words in particular, -“And God made the firmament, and divided the -waters which were under the firmament from the -waters which were above the firmament,” appeared to -him to be an account of the <i>great work</i>. Severinus, -physician to the King of Denmark, and canon of Roskild, -was also a celebrated partisan of Paracelsus; -but his writings do not show either that knowledge or -stretch of thought which would enable us to account -for the reputation which he acquired and enjoyed.</p> - -<p>There were very few partisans of Paracelsus out of -Germany. The most celebrated of his followers among -the French, was Joseph du Chesne, better known by -the name of Quercitanus, who was physician to -Henry IV. He was a native of Gascony, and drew -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_171">171</span> -many enemies upon himself by his arrogant and overbearing -conduct. He pretended to be acquainted -with the method of making gold. He was a thorough-going -Paracelsian. He affirmed that diseases, like -plants, spring from seeds. The word alchymy, according -to him, is composed of the two Greek words -ἁλς (salt) and χημεια, because the <i>great secret</i> is concealed -in salt. All bodies are composed of three -principles, as God is of three substances. These -principles are contained in saltpetre, the salts of sulphur -solid and volatile, and the volatile mercurial -salt. He who possesses <i>sal generalis</i> may easily produce -philosophical gold, and draw potable gold from the -three kingdoms of nature. To prove the possibility -of this transmutation, he cites an experiment very -often repeated after him, and which some theologians -have even employed as analogous to the resurrection of -the dead; namely, the faculty which plants have of -being produced from their ashes. His materia medica is -founded on the <i>signatures</i> of plants, which he carries -so far as to assert that male plants are more suitable -to men, and female plants to women. Sulphuric acid, -he says, has a magnetic virtue, in consequence of -which it is capable of curing the epilepsy. He recommends -the <i>magisterium cranii humani</i> as an excellent -medicine, and boasts much of the virtues of -antimony.</p> - -<p>Du Chesne was opposed by Riolanus, who attacked -chemical remedies with much bitterness. The medical -faculty of Paris took up the cause of the Galenists -with much zeal, and prohibited their fellows and -licentiates from using any chemical medicines whatever. -He had to sustain a dispute with Aubert relative -to the origin and the transmutation of metals. Fenot -came to the assistance of Aubert, and affirmed that -gold possesses no medical properties whatever, that -<i>crabs’ eyes</i> are of no use when administered in intermittents, -and that the laudanum of Paracelsus (being -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_172">172</span> -an opiate) is in reality hurtful instead of being beneficial.</p> - -<p>The decree of the medical faculty of Paris which -placed antimony among the poisons, and which occasioned -that of the Parliament of Paris, was composed -by Simon Pietre, the elder, a man of great erudition -and the most unimpeachable probity. Had it been -literally obeyed it would have occasioned very violent -proceedings; because chemical remedies, as they act -more promptly and with greater energy, were getting -daily into more general use. In 1603 the celebrated -Theodore Turquet de Mayenne was prosecuted, because, -in spite of the prohibition, he had sold antimonial -preparations. The decree of the faculty against -him exhibits a remarkable proof of the bigotry and -intolerance of the times.<a id="FNanchor_160" href="#Footnote_160" class="fnanchor">160</a> However Turquet does -not seem to have been molested notwithstanding this -decree. He ceased indeed to be professor of chemistry, -but continued to practise medicine as formerly; -and two members of the faculty, Seguin and Akakia, -even wrote an apology for him. At last he went to -England, whither he had been invited, to accept an -honourable appointment. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_173">173</span></p> - -<p>The mystical doctrines of Paracelsus are supposed -to have given origin to the sect of Rosecrucians, concerning -which so much has been written and so little -certain is known. It is not at all unlikely that the -greatest part, if not the whole that has been stated -about the antiquity, and extent, and importance of -this sect, is mere fiction, and that the origin of the -whole was nothing else than a ludicrous performance -of Valentine Andreæ, an ecclesiastic of Calwe, in the -country of Wirtemburg, a man of much learning, -genius, and philanthropy. From his life, written by -himself, and preserved in the library of Wolfenbuttel, -we learn that in the year 1603 he drew up the celebrated -Noce Chimique of Christian Rosenkreuz, in order -to counteract the alchymistical and the theosophistical -dogmas so common at that period. He was unable to -restrain his risible faculties when he saw this <i>ludibrium -juvenilis ingenii</i> adopted as a true history, while he -meant it merely as a satire. It is believed that the -Fama Fraternitatis is a production of this ecclesiastic, -and that he published it in order to correct the chemists -and enthusiasts of the time. He himself was -called Andreæ, Knight of the Rose-cross (<i>rosæ crucis</i>) -because he had engraven on his seal a cross with four -roses.</p> - -<p>It is true that Andreæ instituted, in 1620, a <i>fraternitas -christiana</i>, but with quite other views than those -which are supposed to have actuated the Rosecrucians. -His object was to correct the religious opinions of -the times, and to separate Christian theology from -scholastic controversies, with which it had been unhappily -intermixed. He himself, in different parts of his -writings, distinguishes carefully between the Rosecrucians -and his own society, and amuses himself with -the credulity of the German theosophists, who adopted -so readily his fiction for a series of truths. It would -appear, therefore, that this secret order of Rosecrucians, -notwithstanding the brilliant origin assigned to -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_174">174</span> -it, really owes its birth to the pleasantry of a clergyman -of Wirtemburg, who endeavoured by that means to -set bounds to the chimeras of theosophy, but who unfortunately -only increased still more the adherents of -this absurd science.</p> - -<p>A crowd of enthusiasts found it too advantageous -to propagate the principles of the <i>rosa crux</i> not to -endeavour to unite them into a sect. Valentine Weigel, -a fanatical preacher at Tschoppau, near Chemnitz, -left at his death a prodigious number of followers, who -were already Rosecrucians, without bearing the name. -Egidius Gutmann, of Suabia, was equally a Rosecrucian, -without bearing the name; he condemned all -pagan medicines, and affirmed that he possessed the -universal remedy which ennobles man, cures all diseases, -and gives man the power of fabricating gold. -“To fly in the air, to transmute metals, and to know -all the sciences,” says he, “nothing more is requisite -than faith.”</p> - -<p>Oswald Crollius, of Hesse, must also take his station -in this honourable fraternity of enthusiasts. He -was physician to the Prince of Anhalt, and afterwards -a counsellor of the Emperor Rodolphus II. The introduction -to his Basilica Chymica, contains a short -but exact epitome of the opinions of Paracelsus. It is -not worth while to give the reader a notion of his own -opinions, which are quite as absurd and unintelligible -as those of Paracelsus and his followers. As a preparer -of chemical medicines he deserves more credit; -<i>antimonium diaphoreticum</i> was a favourite preparation -of his, and so was sulphate of potash, which was -known at the time by the name of <i>specificum purgans -Paracelsi</i>: he knew chloride of silver well, and first -gave it the name of <i>luna cornea</i>, or <i>horn silver</i>: fulminating -gold was known to him, and called by him -<i>aurum volatile</i>.</p> - -<p>This is the place to mention Andrew Libavius, of -Halle, in Saxony, where he was a physician, and a -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_175">175</span> -professor in the gymnasium of Coburg, who was one of -the most successful opponents of the school of Paracelsus, -and whose writings do him much credit. As -a chemist, he deserves perhaps to occupy a higher -rank than any of his contemporaries: he was, it is -true, a believer in the possibility of transmuting metals, -and boasted of the wonderful powers of <i>aurum potabile</i>; -but he always distinguishes between rational -alchymy and the <i>mental</i> alchymy of Paracelsus. He -separated, with great care, <i>chemistry</i> from the reveries -of the theosophists, and stands at the head of those -who opposed most successfully the progress of superstition -and fanaticism, which was making such an -overwhelming progress in his time. His writings are -very numerous and various, and were collected and -published at Frankfort, in 1615, in three folio volumes, -under the title of “Opera omnia Medico-chymica.” -Libavius himself died in 1616. It would occupy more -space than we have room for, to attempt an abstract of -his very multifarious works. A few observations will -be sufficient: he wrote no fewer than five different -tracts to expose the quackery of George Amwald, -who had boasted that he was in possession of a panacea, -by means of which he was enabled to perform the most -wonderful cures, and which he was in the habit of -selling to his patients at an enormous price; Libavius -showed that this boasted panacea was nothing -else than <i>cinnabar</i>, which neither possessed the virtues -ascribed to it by Amwald, nor deserved to be purchased -at so high a price. He entered also into a controversy -with Crollius, and exposed his fanatical and absurd -opinions. He engaged likewise in a dispute with Henning -Scheunemann, a physician in Bamberg, who was -a Rosecrucian, and, like the rest of his brethren, profoundly -ignorant not merely of all science, but even -of philology. The expressions of Scheunemann are -so obscure, that we learn more of his opinions from -Libavius than from his own writings. He divides the -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_176">176</span> -internal nature of man into seven different degrees, from -the seven changes it undergoes: these are, combustion, -sublimation, dissolution, putrefaction, distillation, -coagulation, and tincture. He gives us likewise an -account of ten modifications which the three elements -undergo; but as they are quite unintelligible, it is not -worth while to state them. Libavius had the patience -to analyze and expose all these gallimatias.</p> - -<p>Libavius’s system of chemistry, entitled “Alchymia -è dispersis passim optimorum auctorum, veterum et -recentiorum exemplis potissimum, tum etiam preceptis -quibusdam operose collecta, adhibitisque ratione et -experientia quanta potuit esse methodo accurate explicata -et in integrum corpus redacta. Accesserunt -tractati nonnulli physici chymici item methodistici.” -Frankfort, 1595, folio, 1597, 4to.—is really an excellent -book, considering the period in which it was -written, and deserves the attention of every person -who is interested in the history of chemistry. I shall -notice some of the most remarkable chemical facts -which occur in Libavius, and which I have not observed -in any preceding writer; who the actual discoverer of -these facts really was, it is impossible to say, in consequence -of the secrecy which at that time was affected, -and the obscure terms in which chemical facts are -in general stated.</p> - -<p>He was aware that the fumes of sulphur have the -property of blackening white lead. He was in the -habit of purifying cinnabar by means of arsenic and -oxide of lead. He knew the method of giving glass a -red colour by means of gold or its oxide, and was -aware of the method of making artificial gems, such -as ruby, topaz, hyacinth, garnet, balass, by tinging -glass by means of metallic oxides. He points out -fluor spar as an excellent flux for various metals and -their oxides. He knew that when metals were fused -along with alkaline bodies, a certain portion of them -was converted into slags, and this portion he endeavoured to -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_177">177</span> -recover by the addition of iron filings. -He was aware of the mode of acidifying sulphur by -means of nitric acid. He knew that camphor is soluble -in nitric acid, and forms with it a kind of oil. -Of the perchloride of tin he was undoubtedly the discoverer, -as it has continued ever since his time to -pass by his name; namely, <i>fuming liquor of Libavius</i>. -He was aware, that alcohol or spirits could be obtained -by distilling the fermented juice of a great variety -of sweet fruits. He procured sulphuric acid by -the distillation of alum and sulphate of iron, as Geber -had done long before his time; but he determined -the nature of the acid with more care than had been -done, and showed, that it was the same as that obtained -by the combustion of sulphur along with saltpetre. -To him, therefore, in some measure, are we -indebted for the process of preparing sulphuric acid -which is at present practised by manufacturers.</p> - -<p>Libavius found a successor in Angelus Sala, of -Vicenza, physician to the Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, -worthy of his enlightened views and indefatigable -exertions to oppose the torrent of fanaticism -which threatened to overwhelm all Europe. Sala was -still more addicted to chemical remedies than Libavius -himself; but he had abjured a multitude of prejudices -which had distinguished the school of Paracelsus. -He discarded <i>aurum potabile</i>, and considered fulminating -gold as the only remedy of that metal that -deserved to be prescribed by medical men. He treated -the notion of the existence of a universal remedy -with contempt. He described sulphuret of gold and -glass of antimony with a good deal of precision. He -recommended sulphuric acid as an excellent remedy, -and showed that it might be formed indifferently from -sulphur, or by distilling blue vitriol or green vitriol. -He affirmed, that the essential salts obtained from -plants had not the same virtues as the plants from -which they are obtained. He showed that sal ammoniac -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_178">178</span> -is a compound of muriatic acid and ammonia. -To him, therefore, we are indebted for the first accurate -mention of ammonia. It could not but have -been noticed before by chemists, as it is procured with -so much ease by the distillation of animal substances; -but Sala is the first person who seems to have examined -it with attention, and to have recognised its -peculiar properties, and the readiness with which it -saturates the different acids. He showed that iron -has the property of precipitating copper from acid solutions: -he pointed out also various precipitations of -metals by other metals. He seems to have been acquainted -with calomel, and to have been aware of -at least some of its medical properties. He says, -that fulminating gold loses its fulminating property -when mixed with its own weight of sulphur, and the -sulphur is burnt off it. Many other curious chemical -facts occur in his writings, which it would be too tedious -to particularize here. His works were collected -and published in a quarto volume at Frankfort, in -1647, under the title of “Opera Medico-chymica, quæ -extant omnia.” There was another edition in the -same place in 1682, and an edition was published at -Rome in 1650. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_179">179</span></p> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<h2 id="CHAPTER_V">CHAPTER V.<br /> - -<span class="large">OF VAN HELMONT AND THE IATRO-CHEMISTS.</span></h2> - -<p>Paracelsus first raised the dignity of chemistry, -by pointing out the necessity of it for medical men, -and by showing the superiority of chemical medicines -over the disgusting decoctions of the Galenists. Libavius -and Angelus Sala had carefully separated chemistry -from the fanatical opinions of the followers of -Paracelsus and the Rosecrucians. But matters were -not doomed to remain in this state. Chemistry underwent -a new revolution at this period, which shook the -Spagirical system to its foundation; substituted other -principles, and gave to medicine an aspect entirely -new. This revolution was in a great measure due to -the labours of Van Helmont.</p> - -<p>John Baptist Van Helmont was a gentleman of -Brabant, and Lord of Merode, of Royenboch, of -Oorschot, and of Pellines. He was born in Brussels -in 1577, and studied scholastic philosophy in Louvain -till the age of seventeen. After having finished his -<i>humanity</i> (as it was termed), he ought, according to -the usage of the place, to have taken his degree of -master of arts; but, having reflected on the futility of -these ceremonies, he resolved never to solicit any academical -honour. He next associated himself to the -Jesuits, who then delivered courses of philosophy at -Louvain, to the great displeasure of the professors of -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_180">180</span> -that city. One of the most celebrated of the Jesuits, -Martin del Rio, even taught him magic. But Van -Helmont was disappointed in his expectations: instead -of that true wisdom which he hoped to acquire, -he met with nothing but scholastic dialectics, -with all its usual subtilties. He was no better satisfied -with the doctrines of the Stoics, who taught him his -own weakness and misery.</p> - -<p>At last the works of Thomas à Kempis, and John -Taulerus fell into his hands. These sacred books of -mysticism attracted his attention: he thought that he -perceived that wisdom is the gift of the Supreme -Being; that it must be obtained by prayer; and that -we must renounce our own will, if we wish to participate -in the influence of the divine grace. From this -moment he imitated Jesus Christ, in his humility. He -abandoned all his property to his sister, renouncing -the privileges of his birth, and laying aside the rank -which he had hitherto occupied in society. It was -not long before he reaped the fruit of these abnegations. -A genius appeared to him in all the important -circumstances of his life. In the year 1633 his own -soul appeared to him under the figure of a resplendent -crystal.</p> - -<p>The desire which he had of imitating in every -respect the conduct of Christ, suggested to him the -idea of practising medicine as a work of charity and -benevolence. He began, as was then the custom of -the time, by studying the art of healing in the writings -of the ancients. He read the works of Hippocrates -and Galen with avidity; and made himself so -well acquainted with their opinions, that he astonished -all the medical men by the profundity of his knowledge. -But as his taste for mysticism was insatiable, -he soon became disgusted with the writings of the -Greeks; an accident led him to abandon them for -ever. Happening to take up the glove of a young -girl afflicted with the <i>itch</i>, he caught that disagreeable -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_181">181</span> -disease. The Galenists whom he consulted, attributed -it to the combustion of the bile, and the saline state of -the phlegm. They prescribed a course of purgatives -which weakened him considerably, without effecting a -cure. This circumstance disgusted him with the system -of the humorists, and led him to form the resolution -of reforming medicine, as Paracelsus had done. -The works of this reformer, which he read with attention, -awakened in him a spirit of reformation, but did -not satisfy him; because his knowledge, being much -greater than that of Paracelsus, he could not avoid -despising the disgusting egotism, and the ridiculous -ignorance of that fanatic. Though he had already -refused a canonicate, he took the degree of doctor of -medicine, in 1599, and afterwards travelled through -the greatest part of France and Italy; and he assures -us, that during his travels, he performed a great number -of cures. On his return, he married a rich Brabantine -lady, by whom he had several children; among -others a son, afterwards celebrated under the name of -Francis Mercurius, who edited his father’s works, and -who went a good deal further than his father had done, -in all the branches of theosophy. Van Helmont passed -the rest of his life on his estate at Vilvorde, almost -constantly occupied with the processes of his laboratory. -He died in the year 1644, on the 13th of December, -at six o’clock in the evening, after having nearly -reached the age of sixty-seven years.</p> - -<p>The system of Van Helmont has for its basis the -opinions of the spiritualists. He arranged even the -influence of evil genii, the efforts of sorcerers, and the -power of magicians among the causes which produce -diseases. The archeus of Paracelsus constituted one -of the capital points of his theory; but he ascribed to -it a more substantial nature than Paracelsus had done. -This archeus is independent of the elements; it has -no form; for form constitutes the object of generation, -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_182">182</span> -or of production. These ideas are obviously borrowed -from the ancients. The <i>form</i> of Aristotle is not the -μορφη, but the ενεργεια (<i>the power of acting</i>) which -matter does not possess.</p> - -<p>The archeus draws all the corpuscles of matter to -the aid of <i>fermentation</i>. There are, properly speaking, -only two causes of things; the cause <i>ex qua</i>, and -the cause <i>per quam</i>. The first of these causes is -<i>water</i>. Van Helmont considered water as the true -principle of every thing which exists; and he brought -forward very specious arguments in favour of his opinion, -drawn both from the animal and vegetable -kingdom. The reader will find his arguments on the -subject, in his treatise entitled “Complexionum atque -Mistionum elementalium Figmentum.”<a id="FNanchor_161" href="#Footnote_161" class="fnanchor">161</a> The only one -of his experiments that, in the present state of our -knowledge, possesses much plausibility, is the following: -He took a large earthen vessel, and put into it -200 lbs. of earth, previously dried in an oven. This -earth he moistened with rain-water, and planted in it -a willow which weighed five pounds. After an interval -of five years, he pulled up his willow and found -that its weight amounted to 169 pounds, and about -three ounces. During these five years, the earth in -the pot was duly watered with rain or distilled water. -To prevent the earth in which the willow grew from -being mixed with new earth blown upon it by the -winds, the pot was covered with tin plate, pierced with -a great number of holes to admit the air freely. The -leaves which fell every autumn during the vegetation -of the willow in the pot, were not reckoned in the -169 lbs. 3 oz. The earth in the pot being again dried -in the oven, was found to have lost about two ounces -of its original weight. Thus 164 lbs. of wood, bark, -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_183">183</span> -roots, &c., were produced from water alone.<a id="FNanchor_162" href="#Footnote_162" class="fnanchor">162</a> This, -and several other experiments which it is needless to -state, satisfied him that all vegetable substances are -produced from water alone. He takes it for granted -that fish live (ultimately at least) on water alone; but -they contain almost all the peculiar animal substances -that exist in the animal kingdom. Hence he concludes -that animal substances are derived also from pure -water.<a id="FNanchor_163" href="#Footnote_163" class="fnanchor">163</a> His reasoning with respect to sulphur, glass, -stone, metals, &c., all of which he thinks may ultimately -be resolved into water, is not so satisfactory.</p> - -<p>Water produces elementary earth, or pure quartz; -but this elementary earth does not enter into the composition -of organic bodies. Van Helmont excludes -<i>fire</i> from the number of elements, because it is not a -substance, nor even the essential form of a substance. -The matter of fire is compound, and differs entirely -from the matter of light. Water gives origin also to -the three chemical principles, salt, sulphur, and mercury, -which cannot be considered as elements or active -principles. I do not see clearly how he gets rid of -<i>air</i>; for he says, that though water may be elevated in -the form of vapour, yet that these vapours are no more -air than the dust of marble is water.</p> - -<p>According to Van Helmont, a particular disposition -of matter, or a particular mixture of that matter is not -necessary for the formation of a body. The archeus, -by its sole power, draws all bodies from water, when -the <i>ferment</i> exists. This <i>ferment</i>, in its quality of a -mean which determines the action of the archeus, is -not a formal being; it can neither be called a <i>substance</i>, -nor an <i>accident</i>. It pre-exists in the seed which -is developed by it, and which contains in itself a second -ferment of the seed, the product of the first. The -ferment exhales an odour, which attracts the generating -spirit of the archeus. This spirit consists in an -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_184">184</span> -<i>aura vitalis</i>, and it creates the bodies of nature in its -own image, after its own <i>idea</i>. It is the true foundation -of life, and of all the functions of organized -bodies; it disappears only at the instant of death to -produce a new creation of the body, which enters then, -for the second time, into fermentation. The seed, then, -is not indispensable to enable an animal to propagate -its species; it is merely necessary that the archeus -should act upon a suitable ferment. Animals produced -in this manner are as perfect as those which -spring from eggs.</p> - -<p>When water, as an element, ferments, it develops -a vapour, to which Van Helmont gave the name of -<i>gas</i>, and which he endeavours to distinguish from <i>air</i>. -This gas contains the chemical principles of the body -from which it escapes in an aerial form by the impulse -of the archeus. It is a substance intermediate between -spirit and matter, the principle of action of life, and of -generation of all bodies; for its production is the first -result of the action of the vital spirit on the torpid -ferment, and it may be compared to the <i>chaos</i> of the -ancients.</p> - -<p>The term <i>gas</i>, now in common use among chemists, -and applied by them to all elastic fluids which differ in -their properties from common air, was first employed -by Van Helmont: and it is evident, from different -parts of his writings, that he was aware that different -species of gas exist. His <i>gas sylvestre</i> was evidently -our <i>carbonic acid gas</i>, for he says, that it is evolved -during the fermentation of wine and beer; that it is -formed when charcoal is burnt in air; and that it exists -in the Grotto del Cane. He was aware that this gas -extinguishes a lighted candle. But he says that the -gases from dung, and those formed in the large intestines, -when passed through a candle, catch fire, and -exhibit a variety of colours, like the rainbow.<a id="FNanchor_164" href="#Footnote_164" class="fnanchor">164</a> To -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_185">185</span> -these combustible gases he gave the names of <i>gas -pingue</i>, <i>gas siccum</i>, <i>gas fuliginosum</i>, or <i>endimicum</i>.</p> - -<p>Sal ammoniac, he says, may be distilled alone, without -danger, and so may aqua fortis (<i>aqua chrysulca</i>), -but if they be mixed together so much gas sylvestre -is produced, that the vessels employed, however -strong, will burst asunder, unless an opening be left -for the escape of this gas.<a id="FNanchor_165" href="#Footnote_165" class="fnanchor">165</a> In the same way cream -of tartar cannot be distilled in close vessels without -breaking them in pieces, an opening must be left -for the escape of the <i>gas sylvestre</i>, which is generated -in such abundance.<a id="FNanchor_166" href="#Footnote_166" class="fnanchor">166</a> He says, also, that when -carbonate of lime is dissolved in distilled vinegar, or -silver in nitric acid, abundance of gas sylvestre is -extricated. From these, and many other passages -which might be quoted, it is evident that Van Helmont -was aware of the evolution of gas during the -solution of carbonates and metals in acids, and during -the distillation of various animal and vegetable substances, -that he had anticipated the experiments made -so many years after by Dr. Hales, and for which that -philosopher got so much credit. But it would be -going too far to say, as some have done, that Van -Helmont knew accurately the differences which characterize -the different gases which he produced, or -indeed that he distinguished accurately between them. -For it is evident, from the passages quoted and from -many others which occur in his treatise, De Flatibus, -that carbonic acid, protoxide of azote, and deutoxide -of azote, and probably also muriatic acid gas were -all considered by him as constituting one and the -same gas. How, indeed, could he distinguish between -different gases when he was not acquainted -with the method of collecting them, or of determining -their properties? These observations of Van Helmont, -then, though they do him much credit, and -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_186">186</span> -show how far his chemical knowledge was superior -to that of the age in which he lived, take nothing -from the merit or the credit of those illustrious chemists -who, in the latter half of the eighteenth century, -devoted themselves to the investigation of this part -of chemistry, at that time attended with much difficulty, -but intimately connected with the subsequent -progress which the science has made.</p> - -<p>Van Helmont was aware, also, that the bulk of -air is diminished when bodies are burnt in it. He -considered respiration to be necessary in this way: -the air was drawn into the blood by the pulmonary -arteries and veins, and occasioned a fermentation in -it requisite for the continuance of life.</p> - -<p>Gas, according to Van Helmont, has an affinity -with the principle of the movement of the stars, to -which he gave the name of <i>blas</i>. It had, he supposed, -much influence on all sublunary bodies. He -admitted in the ferment which gives birth to plants, -a substance which, after the example of Paracelsus, -he called <i>pessas</i>, and to the metallic ferment he gave -the name of <i>bur</i>.<a id="FNanchor_167" href="#Footnote_167" class="fnanchor">167</a></p> - -<p>The archeus of Van Helmont, like that of Paracelsus, -has its seat in the stomach. It is the same -thing as the sentient soul. This notion of the nature -and seat of the archeus was founded on the following -experiment: He swallowed a quantity of <i>aconitum</i> -(<i>henbane</i>). In two hours he experienced the most -disagreeable sensation in his stomach. His feeling -and understanding seemed to be concentrated in that -organ, for he had no longer the free use of his mental -faculties. This feeling induced him to place the seat -of understanding in the stomach, of volition in the -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_187">187</span> -heart, and of memory in the brain. The faculty of -desire, to which the ancients had assigned the liver -as its organ, he placed in the spleen. What confirmed -him still more in the idea that the stomach is -the seat of the soul, is the fact, that life sometimes -continues after the destruction of the brain, but never, -he alleges, after that of the stomach. The sentient -soul acts constantly by means of the <i>vital spirits</i>, -which are of a resplendent nature, and the nerves -serve merely to moisten these spirits which constitute -the mediums of sensation. By virtue of the archeus -man is much nearer to the realm of spirits and the -father of all the genii, than to the world. He thinks -that Paracelsus’s constant comparison of the human -body with the world is absurd. Yet Van Helmont, -at least in his youth, was a believer in magnetism, -which he employed as a method of explaining the -effect of sympathy.</p> - -<p>The archeus exercises the greatest influence on -digestion, and he has chiefly the stomach and spleen -under his superintendence. These two organs form a -duumvirate in the body; for the stomach cannot act -alone and without the concurrence of the spleen. -Digestion is produced by means of an acid liquor, -which dissolves the food, under the superintendence -of the archeus. Van Helmont assures us that he had -himself tasted this acid liquor in the stomach of birds. -Heat, strictly speaking, does not favour digestion; -for we see no increase of the digestive powers -during the most ardent fever. Nor are the powers -of digestion wanting in fishes, although they want -the animal heat which is requisite for mammiferous -animals. Certain birds even digest fragments of glass, -which, certainly, simple heat would not enable them -to do. The pylorus is, in some measure, the director -of digestion. It acts by a peculiar and immaterial -power, in virtue of a <i>blas</i>, and not as a muscle. It -opens and shuts the stomach according to the orders -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_188">188</span> -of the archeus. It is in it, therefore, that the causes -of derangement of digestion must be sought for.</p> - -<p>The duumvirate just spoken of is the cause of -natural sleep, which does not belong to the soul, -as far as it resides in the stomach. Sleep is a natural -action, and one of the first vital actions. Hence the -reason why the embryo sleeps without ceasing. At -any rate it is not true that sleep is owing to vapours -which mount to the brain. During sleep the soul -is naturally occupied, and it is then that the deity -approaches most intimately to man. Accordingly, -Van Helmont informs us, that he received in dreams -the revelation of several secrets, which he could not -have learnt otherwise.</p> - -<p>The duumvirate operates the <i>first</i> digestion, of -which, Van Helmont enumerates six different species. -When the acid, which is prepared for digestion, -passes into the duodenum it is neutralized by the -bile of the gall-bladder. This constitutes the second -digestion. To the bile of the gall-bladder, Van Helmont -gave the name of <i>fel</i>, and he carefully distinguished -it from the biliary principle in the mass -of the blood. This last he called <i>bile</i>. The <i>fel</i> is -not an excrementitious matter, but a humour necessary -to life, a true vital balsam. Van Helmont -endeavoured to show by various experiments that it -is not <i>bitter</i>.</p> - -<p>The <i>third</i> digestion takes place in the vessels of -the mesentery, into which the gall-bladder sends the -prepared fluid. The <i>fourth</i> digestion is operated in -the heart, where the red blood becomes more yellow -and more volatile by the addition of the vital spirits. -This is owing to the passage of the vital spirit from -the posterior to the anterior ventricle, through the -pores of the septum. At the same time the pulse -is produced, which of itself develops heat; but does -not regulate it in any manner, as the ancients pretended -that it did. The <i>fifth</i> digestion consists in the -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_189">189</span> -conversion of the arterial blood into vital spirit. It -takes place principally in the brain, but is produced -also throughout all the body. The <i>sixth</i> digestion -consists in the elaboration of the nutritive principle -in each member, where the archeus prepares its own -nourishment by means of the vital spirits. Thus, -there are six digestions: the number seven has been -chosen by nature for a state of repose.</p> - -<p>From the preceding sketch of the physiology of -Van Helmont, it is evident that he paid little or no -regard to the structure of the parts in explaining -the functions. In his pathology we find the same -passion for spiritualism. He admitted, indeed, the -importance of anatomy, but he regretted that the -pathological part of that science had been so little -cultivated. As the archeus is the foundation of life -and of all the functions, it is plain that the diseases -can neither be derived from the four cardinal -humours, nor from the disposition or the action of -opposite things; the proximate cause of diseases must -be sought for in the sufferings, the anger, the fear, -and the other affections of the archeus, and their -remote cause may be considered as the ideal seed -of the archeus. Disease, in his opinion, is not a -negative state or a mere absence of health, it is a -substantial and active thing as well as a state of -health. Most of the diseases which attack certain -parts or members of the body result from an error -in the archeus, who sends his ferment from the -stomach in which he resides into the other parts of -the body. Van Helmont explained in this way not -only the epilepsy and madness, but likewise the <i>gout</i>, -which does not proceed from a flux, and has not -its seat in the limb in which the pain resides, but -is always owing to an error in the vital spirit. It -is true that the character of the gout acts upon the -semen in which the vital spirit principally manifests -its action, and that in this way diseases are propagated -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_190">190</span> -in the act of generation; but if, during life -instead of altering the semen it is carried to the -liquid of the articulations, this is a proof of the -prudence of nature, which lavishes all her cares on -the preservation of the species, and loves better to -alter the humours of the articulations than the semen -itself. The gout acidifies the liquors of the articulations, -which is then coagulated by the acids. The -duumvirate is the cause of apoplexy, vertigo, and -particularly of a species of asthma, which Van Helmont -calls <i>caducus pulmonalis</i>. Pleurisy is produced -in a similar way. The archeus, in a movement -of rage, sends acrid acids to the lungs, which occasion -an inflammation. Dropsy is also owing to the -anger of the archeus, who prevents the secretions of -the kidneys from going on in the usual way.</p> - -<p>Of all the diseases, fever appeared to him most conformable -to his notions of the unlimited power of the -archeus. The causes of fever are all much more -proper to offend the archeus, than to alter the structure -of parts and the mixture of humours. The cold -fit is owing to a state of fear and consternation, into -which the archeus is thrown, and the hot stage results -from his disordered movements. All fevers have their -peculiar seat in the duumvirate.</p> - -<p>Van Helmont was in general much more successful -in refuting the scholastic opinions by which the practice -of medicine was regulated in his time, than in establishing -his own. We are struck with the force of his arguments -against the Galenical doctrine of fever, and -against the influence of the cardinal humours on the -different kinds of fever. He refuted no less vehemently -the idea of the putridity of the blood, while that liquid -circulates in the vessels. Perhaps he carried the opposite -doctrine too far; but his opinions have had a -good effect upon subsequent medical theory, and medical -men learned from them to make less use of the -term putridity. The phrase <i>mixture of humours</i>, not -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_191">191</span> -more intelligible, however, came to be substituted -for it.</p> - -<p>Van Helmont’s theory of urinary calculi deserves -peculiar attention, because it exhibits the germ of a -more rational explanation of these concretions than -had been previously attempted by physiologists. Van -Helmont was aware that Paracelsus, who ascribed -these concretions to tartar, had formed an idea of -their nature, which a careful chemical analysis would -immediately refute. He satisfied himself that urinary -calculi differ completely from common stones, and -that they do not exist in the food or drink which the -calculous person had taken. Tartar, he says, precipitates -from wine, not as an earth, but as a crystallized -salt. In like manner, the natural salt of urine -precipitates from that liquid, and gives origin to calculi. -We may imitate this natural process by mixing -spirit of urine with rectified alcohol. Immediately an -<i>offa alba</i> is precipitated.</p> - -<p>It is needless to observe that Van Helmont was -mistaken, in supposing that this <i>offa</i> was the matter -of calculus. Spirit of urine was a strong solution of -carbonate of ammonia. The alcohol precipitated this -salt; so that his <i>offa</i> was merely <i>carbonate of ammonia</i>. -Nor is there the shadow of evidence that alcohol, -as Van Helmont thought it did, ever makes its way -into the mass of humours; yet his notion of the origin -of calculi is not less accurate, though of course he -was ignorant of the chemical nature of the various -substances which constitute these calculi. From this -reasoning Van Helmont was induced to reject the -term <i>tartar</i>, employed by Paracelsus. To avoid all -false interpretations he substitutes the word <i>duelech</i>, -to denote the state in which the spirit of urine precipitates -and gives origin to these calculous concretions.</p> - -<p>As all diseases proceeded in his opinion from the -archeus, the object of his treatment was to calm the -archeus, to stimulate it, and to regulate its movements. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_192">192</span> -To accomplish these objects he relied upon dietetics, -and upon acting on the imaginations of his patients. -He considered <i>certain words</i> as very efficacious in -curing the diseases of the archeus. He admitted the -existence of the universal medicine, to which he gave -the names of <i>liquor alkahest</i>, <i>ens primum salium</i>, -<i>primus metallus</i>. Mercurials, antimonials, opium, -and wine, are particularly agreeable to the archeus, -when in a state of delirium from fever.</p> - -<p>Among the mercurial preparations, he praises what -he calls <i>mercurius diaphoreticus</i> as the best. He -gives no account of the mode of preparing it; but -from some circumstances I think it must have been -<i>calomel</i>. He considers it as a sovereign remedy -in fevers, dropsies, diseases of the liver, and ulcers of -the lungs. He employed the red oxide of mercury -as an external application to ulcers. The principal -antimonial preparations which he employed were the -hydrosulphuret, or <i>golden sulphur</i>, and the deutoxide, -or <i>antimonium diaphoreticum</i>. This last medicine -was used in scruple doses—a proof of its great inertness -compared with the protoxide of antimony.</p> - -<p>Opium he considered as a fortifying and calming -medicine. It contains an acrid salt and a bitter oil, -which give it the virtue of putting a stop to the errors -of the archeus, when it was sending its acid ferment -into other acid parts of the body. Van Helmont assures -us that he wrought many important cures by the -employment of wine.</p> - -<p>Such is a very short statement of the opinions of a -man, who, notwithstanding his attachment to the fanatical -opinions which distinguished the time in which -he lived, had the merit of overturning a vast number -of errors, both theoretical and practical; and of laying -down many principles, which, for want of erudition, -have been frequently assigned to modern writers. Van -Helmont has been frequently placed on the same level -with Paracelsus, and treated like him with contempt. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_193">193</span> -But his claims upon the medical world are much -higher, and his merits infinitely greater. His notions, -it is true, were fanatical; but his erudition was great, -his understanding excellent, and his industry indefatigable. -His writings did not become known till rather -a late period; for, with the exception of a single tract, -they were not published till 1648, by his son, after his -death.</p> - -<p>The decided preference given to chemical medicines -by Van Helmont, and the uses to which he applies -chemical theory, had a natural tendency to raise chemistry -to a higher rank in the eyes of medical men -than it had yet reached. But the man to whom the -credit of founding the iatro-chemical sect is due, is -Francis de le Boé Sylvius, who was born in the year -1614. While a practitioner of medicine at Amsterdam, -he studied with profound attention the system of Van -Helmont, and the rival and much more popular theory -of Descartes: upon these he founded his own theory, -which, in reality, contains little entitled to the name -of original, notwithstanding the tone in which he -speaks of it, and his repeated declarations that he had -borrowed from no one. He was appointed professor -of the theory and practice of medicine in the University -of Leyden, where he taught with such eclat, and drew -after him so great a number of pupils, that Boerhaave -alone surpassed him in this respect. It was he that -first introduced the practice of giving clinical lectures -in the hospitals, on the cases treated in the presence -of the pupils. This admirable innovation has been -productive of much benefit to medicine. He greatly -promoted anatomical studies, and inspected, himself, a -vast number of dead bodies. This is the more remarkable, -because his own system, like that of Van -Helmont, from whom it was borrowed, was quite independent -of the structure of the parts.</p> - -<p>Every thing was explained by him according to the -principles of chemistry, as they were then understood. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_194">194</span> -The celebrity of the university in which he taught, -and the vast number of his pupils, contributed to -spread this theory into every part of the world, and to -give it an eclat which is really surprising, when we -consider it with attention. But he possessed the -talents just suited for securing the reception of his -opinions by his pupils as infallible oracles, and of -being the idol of the university. Yet it is melancholy -to be obliged to add, that few persons ever more -abused the favours of nature, or the advantages of -situation and elocution.</p> - -<p>To form a clear idea of the principles of this founder -of iatro-chemistry, we have only to call to mind the -ferments of Van Helmont, which constitute the foundation-stone -of the whole system. We cannot, says -he, conceive a single change in the mixture of the -humours, which is not the consequence of fermentation; -and yet he assigns to this fermentation conditions -which are scarcely to be found united in the -living body. Digestion, in his opinion, is a true fermentation -produced by the application of a ferment. -Like Van Helmont, he admits a <i>triumvirate</i>; but places -it in the humours; the effervescence or fermentation of -which enabled him to explain most of the functions -of the body. Digestion is the result of the mixture of -the saliva with the pancreatic juice and the bile, and -the fermentation of these humours. The saliva, as -well as the pancreatic juice, contains an acidulous -salt easily recognised by the taste. Here Sylvius derives -advantage from the experiments of Regnier de -Graaf on the pancreatic juice, which he had constantly -found acid.</p> - -<p>Sylvius, who affirmed that the bile contained an -alkali, united with an oil and a volatile spirit, supposes -an effervescence from the union of the alkali of the -bile with the acid of the pancreatic juice, and this <i>fermentation</i> -he considered as the cause of digestion. -By this fermentation the <i>chyle</i> is produced, which is -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_195">195</span> -nothing else than the <i>volatile spirit</i> of the food accompanied -by an <i>oil</i> and an alkali, neutralized by a weak -acid. The blood is more than completed (<i>plus quam -perficitur</i>) in the spleen. It acquires its highest -perfection by the addition of a certain quantity of -vital spirits. The <i>bile</i> is not drawn from the blood -in the liver, but pre-exists in the circulating fluid. -It mixes with that fluid anew to be carried to the -heart together with the <i>lymph</i>, equally mixed with the -blood, and there it gives origin to a vital fermentation. -In this way the blood becomes the centre of reunion -of all the humours of the secretions, which mix together -or separate, without the solids taking the smallest -share in the operations. Indeed, so completely -are the solids banished from the system of Sylvius that -he attends to nothing whatever except the humours.</p> - -<p>The formation and motion of the blood is explained -by the fermentation of the oily volatile salt of the bile, -and the dulcified acid of the lymph, which develops -the vital heat, by which the blood is attenuated and -becomes capable of circulating. This vital fire, quite -different from ordinary fire is kept up in its turn by -the uniform mixture of the blood. It attenuates the -humours, not because it is <i>heat</i> but because it is composed -of <i>pyramids</i>. This last notion is obviously -borrowed from Descartes, just as the fermentation -in the heart, as the cause of the motion of the blood, -reminds us of the opinions of Van Helmont.</p> - -<p>Sylvius explains the preparation of the vital spirits -in the encephalos by distillation, and he finds a great -resemblance between their properties and those of -spirit of wine. The nerves conduct these spirits to -the different parts, and they spread themselves in -the substance of the organs to render them sensible. -When they insinuate themselves into the glands the -addition of the acid of the blood produces a liquid -analogous to naphtha, which constitutes the <i>lymph</i>. -Lymph, then, is a compound of the vital spirit and -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_196">196</span> -the acid of the blood. <i>Milk</i> is formed in the mammæ -by the afflux of a very mild acid, which gives a white -colour to the red humour of the blood.</p> - -<p>The theory of the natural functions was no less -chemical. Even the diseases themselves were explained -upon chemical principles. Sylvius first introduced -the word <i>acridity</i> to denote a predominance of -the chemical elements of the humours, and he looked -upon these <i>acridities</i> as the proximate cause of all -diseases. But as every thing acrid may be referred to -one or other of two classes, acids and alkalies, there -are only two great classes of diseases; namely, those -proceeding from an <i>acid acridity</i>, and those proceeding -from an <i>alkaline</i>.</p> - -<p>Sylvius was not altogether ignorant of the constituent -parts of the animal humours; but it is obvious, -from the account of his opinions just given, that this -knowledge was very incomplete; indeed the whole of -his chemical science resolves itself into a comparison -of the humours of the living body with chemical -liquids. Perhaps his notions respecting such of the -<i>gases</i>, as he had occasion to observe, were somewhat -clearer than those of Van Helmont. He called them -<i>halitus</i>, and takes some notice of their different chemical -properties, and states the influence which he -supposes them to exert in certain diseases.</p> - -<p>In the human body he saw nothing but a magna of -humours continually in fermentation, distillation, effervescence, -or precipitation; and the physician was degraded -by him to the rank of a distiller or a brewer.</p> - -<p>Bile acquires different acridities, when bad food, -altered air, or other similar causes act apon the body. -It becomes <i>acid</i> or <i>alkaline</i>. In the former case it -thickens and occasions obstructions; in the latter it -excites febrile heat; and the viscid vapours elevated -from it are the cause of the cold fit with which fever -commences. All acute and continued fevers have -their origin in this acridity of the bile. The vicious -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_197">197</span> -mixture of the bile with the blood, or its specific acridity, -produces <i>jaundice</i>, which is far from being always -owing to obstructions in the liver. The vicious -effervescence of the bile with the pancreatic juice produces -almost all other diseases. But all these assertions -of Sylvius are unsupported by evidence.</p> - -<p>The acid acridity of the pancreatic juice, and the -obstruction of the pancreatic ducts, which are produced -by it, are considered by him as the cause of -intermittent fevers. When the acid of the pancreatic -juice acquires still more acridity, hypochondriasis and -hysteria are the consequences of it. If, during the -morbid effervescence of the pancreatic juice with the -bile an acid and viscid humour arise, the vital spirits -of the heart are overwhelmed during a certain time. -This occasions syncope, palpitation of the heart, and -other nervous affections.</p> - -<p>When the acid acridity of the pancreatic juice or of -the lymph (for both are similar) is deposited on the -nerves, the consequence is spasms or convulsions; -epilepsy in particular depends upon the acrid vapours -produced by the morbid effervescence of the pancreatic -juice with acrid bile. Gout has the same origin -as intermittent fevers, for we must look for it in the -obstruction of the pancreas and the lymphatic glands, -accompanied with an acid acridity of the lymph. -Rheumatism is owing to the acrid acid, deprived of -the oil which dulcifies it. The smallpox is occasioned -by an acid acridity in the lymph, which gives origin -to the pustules. Indeed all suppuration in general -is owing to a coagulating acid in the lymph. Syphilis -results from a caustic acid in the lymph. The itch is -produced by an acid acridity of the lymph. Dropsies -are produced by the same acid acridity of the lymph. -Urinary calculi are the consequences of a coagulating -acid existing in the lymph and the pancreatic juice. -Corrosive acids, and the loss of volatile spirits, -occasion leucorrhœa. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_198">198</span></p> - -<p>From the preceding statement it would appear that -almost all diseases proceed from acids. However, -Sylvius informs us that malignant fevers are owing to -a superabundance of volatile salts and to a too great -tenuity of the blood. The vital spirits themselves give -occasion to diseases. They are sometimes too aqueous, -sometimes they effervesce too violently, and sometimes -not at all. Hence all the nervous diseases, which -Sylvius never considers as existing by themselves; -but as always derived from the acid, acrid, or alkaline -vapours which trouble the vital spirits.</p> - -<p>The method of cure which Sylvius deduced from -these absurd and contemptible hypotheses, was worthy -of the hypotheses themselves; and certainly constitute -the most detestable mode of treatment that ever has -disgraced medical science. To diseases produced by -the effervescence of the bile he opposed purgatives; -because in his opinion emetics produced injurious -effects. The reason was, that the emetics which he -employed were too violent, consisting of antimonial -preparations, particularly <i>powder of Algerotti</i>, or an -impure protoxide of antimony. For though <i>emetic -tartar</i> had been discovered in 1630, it does not seem -to have come into use till a much later period. We -do not find any notice of it in the <i>praxis chymiatrica</i> -of Hartmann published in 1647, at Geneva.</p> - -<p>He endeavoured to moderate the acridity of the bile -by opiates and other narcotics. It will scarcely be -believed, though it was a natural consequence of his -opinions, when we state that he recommended ammoniacal -preparations, particularly his oleaginous volatile -salt, and spirit of hartshorn, &c., as cures for almost -all diseases. Sometimes they were employed to correct -the acidity of the lymph, sometimes to destroy the -acid acridity of the pancreatic juice, sometimes to -correct the inertness of the vital spirits, sometimes to -promote the secretions, and to induce a flow of the -menses. Volatile spirit of amber and opium were -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_199">199</span> -prescribed by him in intermittent fevers; and volatile -salts in almost all acute diseases. He united them -with antivenomous potions, angelica, contrayerva, bezoard, -crabs’ eyes, and other similar substances. These -absorbents seemed to him very necessary to correct -the acidity of the pancreatic juice, and the acridity of -the bile. In administering them he paid no attention -to the regular course which acute diseases usually -run; he neither inquired into the remote nor proximate -causes of disease, nor to the symptoms: every thing -was neglected connected with induction, and his -whole proceedings regulated by wild speculations and -absurd theories, quite inconsistent with the phenomena -of nature.</p> - -<p>To attempt to refute these wild notions of Sylvius -would be loss of time. It is extraordinary, and almost -incredible, that he could have regulated his practice -by them: and it is a still more incredible thing, and -exhibits a very humiliating view of human nature, -that these crudities and absurdities were swallowed -with avidity by crowds of students, who placed a blind -reliance on the dogmas of their master, and were -initiated by him into a method of treating their patients, -better calculated than any other that could easily have -been devised, to aggravate all their diseases, and put -an end to their lives. If any of the patients of the -iatro-chemists ever recovered their health, well might -it be said that their recovery was not the consequence -of the prescriptions of their physicians, but that it took -place in spite of them.<a id="FNanchor_168" href="#Footnote_168" class="fnanchor">168</a> -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_200">200</span></p> - -<p>It is a very remarkable circumstance, and shows -clearly that mankind in general had become disgusted -with the dogmas of the Galenists, that iatro-chemistry -was adopted more or less completely by almost -all physicians. There were, indeed, a few individuals -who raised their voices against it; but, what -is curious and inexplicable, they never attempted to -start objections against the principles of the iatro-chemists, -or to point out the futility of their hypothesis, -and their inconsistency with fact. They combated -them by arguments not more solid than those of -their antagonists.</p> - -<p>During the presidency of Riolan over the Medical -College of Paris, that learned body set itself against -all innovations. Guy Patin, who was a medical professor -in the University of Paris, and a man of great -celebrity, opposed the chemical system of medicine -with much zeal. In his Martyrologium Antimonii he -collects all the cases in which the use of antimony, as -a medicine, had proved injurious to the patient. But -in the year 1666, the dispute relative to antimony, -and particularly relative to tartar emetic, became so -violent, that all the doctors of the faculty of Paris -were assembled by an order of the parliament, under -the presidency of Dean Vignon, and after a long -deliberation, it was concluded by a majority of -ninety-two votes, that tartar emetic, and other antimonials, -should not only be permitted, but even recommended. -Patin after this decision pretended no -longer to combat chemical medicine; but he did not -remain inactive. One of his friends, Francis Blondel, -demanded the resolution to be cancelled; but his exertions -were unsuccessful; nor were the writings of -Guillemeau and Menjot, who were also keen partisans -of the views of Patin, attended with better success.</p> - -<p>In England iatro-chemistry assumed a direction -quite peculiar. It was embraced by a set of men who -had cultivated anatomy with the most marked success, -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_201">201</span> -and who were quite familiar with the experimental -method of investigating nature. The most eminent -of all the English supporters of iatro-chemistry was -Thomas Willis, who was a contemporary of Sylvius.</p> - -<p>Dr. Willis was born at Great Bodmin, in Wiltshire, -in 1621. He was a student at Christchurch College, -in Oxford, when that city was garrisoned for King -Charles I. Like the other students, he bore arms for -his Majesty, and devoted his leisure hours to the study -of physic. After the surrender of Oxford to the parliament, -he devoted himself to the practice of medicine, -and soon acquired reputation. He appropriated -a room as an oratory for divine service, according to -the forms of the church of England, to which most of -the loyalists of Oxford daily resorted. In 1660, he -became Sedleian professor of natural philosophy, and -the same year he took the degree of doctor of physic. -He settled ultimately in London, and soon acquired -a higher reputation, and a more extensive practice, -than any of his contemporaries. He died in 1675, -and was buried in Westminster Abbey. He was a -first-rate anatomist. To him we are indebted for the -first accurate description of the brain and nerves.</p> - -<p>But it is as an iatro-chemist that he claims a place -in this work. His notions approach nearer to those -of Paracelsus than to the hypotheses of Van Helmont -and Sylvius. He admits the three chemical elements -of Paracelsus, salt, sulphur, and mercury, in all the -bodies in nature, and employs them to explain their -properties and changes; but he gives the name of -<i>spirit</i> to the <i>mercury</i> of Paracelsus. He ascribes to -it the virtue of volatilizing all the constituent parts of -bodies: salt, on the other hand, is the cause of fixity -in bodies; <i>sulphur</i> produces colour and heat, and -unites the <i>spirit</i> to the <i>salt</i>. In the stomach there -occurs an acid ferment, which forms the chyle with -the sulphur of the aliments: this chyle enters into -effervescence in the heart, because the salt and sulphur -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_202">202</span> -take fire together. From this results the vital -flame, which penetrates every thing. The vital spirits -are secreted in the brain by a real distillation. The -vessels of the testes draw an elixir from the constituent -parts of the blood; but the spleen retains the earthy -part, and communicates a new igneous ferment to the -circulating fluid. On this account the blood must be -considered as a humour, constantly disposed to fermentation, -and in this respect it may be compared to -wine. Every humour in which salt, sulphur, and -spirit predominates in a certain manner, may be converted -into a <i>ferment</i>. All diseases proceed from a -morbid state or action of this ferment; and a physician -may be compared to a wine-merchant; for, like -him, he has nothing to do but to watch that the necessary -fermentations take place with regularity, and -that no foreign substance come to derange the operation.</p> - -<p>At this period the mania of explaining every thing -had proceeded to such a length, that no distinction -was made between dead and living bodies. The chemical -facts which were at that time known, were applied -without hesitation to explain all the functions -and all the diseases of the living body. According to -Willis, fever is the simple result of a violent and preternatural -effervescence of the blood and the other -humours of the body, either produced by external -causes, or by internal ferments, into which the chyle -is converted when it mixes with the blood. The effervescence -of the vital spirits is the source of quotidians; -that of salt and sulphur produces continued fever; -and external ferments of a malignant nature produce -malignant fevers. Thus the smallpox is owing to the -seeds of fermentation set in activity by an external -principle of contagion. Spasms and convulsions are -produced by an explosion of the salt and sulphur -with the animal spirits. Hypochondriacal affections -and hysteria depend originally on the morbid putrifaction -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_203">203</span> -of the blood in the spleen, or on a bad fermentescible -principle, loaded with salt and sulphur, which -unites with the vital spirits and deranges them. Scurvy -is owing to an alteration of the blood, which may then -be compared to vapid or stale wine. The gout is -merely the coagulation of the nutritive juices altered -by the acidified animal spirits; just as sulphuric acid -forms a coagulum with carbonate of potash.</p> - -<p>The action of medicines is easily explained by the -effects which they produce on the nourishing principles. -Sudorifics are considered as cordials, because they -augment the sulphur of the blood, which is the true -food of the vital flame. Cordials purify the animal -spirits, and fix the too volatile blood. Willis disagrees -with the other iatro-chemists of his time in one -thing: he recommends bleeding in the greater number -of diseases, as an excellent method of diminishing -unnatural fermentation.</p> - -<p>Dr. Croone, a celebrated Fellow of the Royal Society, -was another English iatro-chemist, who attempted -to explain muscular motion by the effervescence of -the nervous fluid, or animal spirits.</p> - -<p>It is not worth while to notice the host of writers—English, -French, Italian, Dutch, and German, who -exerted themselves to maintain, improve, and defend, -the chemical doctrines of medicine. The first person -who attempted to overturn these absurd doctrines, -and to introduce something more satisfactory in their -place, was Mr. Boyle, at that time in the height of -his celebrity.</p> - -<p>Robert Boyle was born at Youghall, in the province -of Munster, on the 25th of January, 1627. He -was the seventh son, and the fourteenth child of -Richard, Earl of Cork. He was partly educated at -home, and partly at Eton, where he was under the -tuition of Sir Henry Wotton. At the age of eleven, -he travelled with his brother and a French tutor -through France to Geneva, where he pursued his -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_204">204</span> -studies for twenty-one months, and then went to -Italy. During this period, he acquired the French -and Italian languages; and, indeed, talked in the former -with so much fluency and correctness, that he -passed, when he thought proper, for a Frenchman. In -1642, his father’s finances were deranged, by the -breaking out of the great Irish rebellion. His tutor, -who was a Genevese, was obliged to borrow, on his -own credit, a sum of money sufficient to carry him -home. On his arrival, he found his father dead; and, -though two estates had been left to him, such was the -state of the times, that several years elapsed before he -could command the requisite sum of money to supply -his exigencies. He retired to an estate at Stalbridge, -in Dorsetshire.</p> - -<p>In 1654 he went to Oxford, where he associated -himself with a number of eminent men (Dr. Willis -among others), who had constituted themselves into a -combination for experimental investigations, distinguished -by the name of the <i>Philosophical College</i>. -This society was transferred to London; and, in 1663, -was incorporated by Charles II. under the name of the -<i>Royal Society</i>. In 1668 Mr. Boyle took up his residence -in London, where he continued till the last day -of December, 1691, assiduously occupied in experimental -investigations, on which day he died, in the -sixty-fifth year of his age.</p> - -<p>We are indebted to Mr. Boyle for the first introduction -of the air-pump and the thermometer into -Britain, and for contributing so much, by means of -Dr. Hooke, to the improvement of both. His hydrostatical -and pneumatical investigations and experiments -constitute the foundation of these two sciences. -The thermometer was first made an accurate instrument -of investigation by Sir Isaac Newton, in 1701. -This he did by selecting as two fixed points the temperatures -at which water freezes and boils; marking -these upon the stem of the thermometer, and dividing -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_205">205</span> -the interval between them into a certain number of degrees. -All thermometers made in this way will stand at -the same point when plunged into bodies of the same -temperature. The number of divisions between the freezing -and boiling points constitute the cause of the differences -between different thermometers. In Fahrenheit’s -thermometer, which is used in Great Britain, the number -of degrees, between the freezing and boiling points -of water, is 180; in Reaumur’s it is 80; in Celsius’s, or -the centigrade, it is 100; and in De Lisle’s it is 150.</p> - -<p>But my reason for mentioning Mr. Boyle here was, -the attempt which he made in 1661, by the publication -of his Sceptical Chemist, to overturn the absurd -opinions of the iatro-chemists. He raises doubts, not -only respecting the existence of the elements of the -Peripatetics, but even of those of the chemists. The -first elements of bodies, in his opinion, are <i>atoms</i>, of -different shapes and sizes; the union of which gives -origin to what we vulgarly call <i>elements</i>. We cannot -restrain the number of these to four, as the Peripatetics -do; nor to three, with the chemists: neither are they -immutable, but convertible into each other. Fire is -not the means that ought to be employed to obtain -them; for the <i>salt</i> and <i>sulphur</i> are formed during its -action by the union of different simple bodies.</p> - -<p>Boyle shows, besides, that the chemical theory of -qualities is exceedingly inaccurate and uncertain; because -it takes for granted things which are very doubtful, -and in many cases directly contrary to the phenomena -of nature. He endeavours to prove the truth of -these ideas, and particularly the production of the -chemical principles, by a great number of convincing -and conclusive experiments.</p> - -<p>In another treatise, entitled “The Imperfections of -the Chemical Doctrine of Qualities,”<a id="FNanchor_169" href="#Footnote_169" class="fnanchor">169</a> he points out, in -the second section, the insufficiency of the hypotheses of -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_206">206</span> -Sylvius relative to the generality of acids and alkalies. -He shows that the offices ascribed to them are arbitrary, -and the notions respecting them unsettled; that the -hypotheses respecting them are needless, and insufficient, -and afford but an unsatisfactory solution of the -phenomena.</p> - -<p>These arguments of Boyle did not immediately shake -the credit of the chemical system. In the year 1691, -a chemical academy was founded at Paris by Nicolas -de Blegny, the express object of which was to examine -these objections of Boyle, which by this time had attracted -great attention. Boyle’s experiments were repeated -and confirmed; but the academicians, notwithstanding, -came to the conclusion, that it is unnecessary -to have recourse to the true elements of -bodies; and that the phenomena which occur in the -animal economy may be explained by the predominance -of acids or alkalies. Various other publications -appeared, all on the same side.</p> - -<p>In Germany, Hermann Conringius, the most skilful -physician of his time, opposed the chemical theory; -and his opinions were impugned by Olaus Borrichius, -who defended not only alchymy, but the chemical -theory of medicine, with equal erudition and zeal.<a id="FNanchor_170" href="#Footnote_170" class="fnanchor">170</a></p> - -<p>Towards the end of the sixteenth century, the chemists -thought of examining the liquids of the living -body, to ascertain whether they really contained the -acids and alkalies which had been assigned them, and -considered as the cause of all diseases. But at that -time chemistry had made so little progress, and such -was the want of skill of those who undertook these investigations, -that they readily obtained every thing -that was wanted to confirm their previous notions. -John Viridet, a physician of Geneva, announced that -he had found an acid in the saliva and the pancreatic -juice, and an alkali in the gastric juice and the bile. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_207">207</span> -But the most celebrated experiments of that period -were those of Raimond Vieussens, undertaken in 1698, -in order to discover the presence of an acid spirit in -the blood. His method was, to mix blood with a -species of clay, called <i>bole</i>, and to subject the mixture -to distillation. He found that the liquid distilled over -was acid. Charmed with this discovery, which he considered -as of first-rate importance, he announced it by -letter to the different academies and colleges in Europe. -Some doubts being raised about the accuracy -of his experiment, it having been alleged that the acid -came from the clay which he had mixed with the -blood, and not from the blood itself, Vieussens purified -the <i>bole</i> from all the acid which it could contain, -and repeated his experiment again. The result was -the same—the acrid salt of the fluid yielded an acid -spirit.</p> - -<p>It would be needless in the present state of our -knowledge to point out the inaccuracy of such an -experiment, or how little it contributed to prove that -blood contains a free acid. It is now well known to -chemists, that blood is remarkably free from acids; -and, that if we except a little common salt, which exists -in all the liquids of the human body, there is neither -any acid nor salt whatever in that liquid.</p> - -<p>Michael Ettmuller, at Leipsic, who was a chemist -of some eminence in his day, and published a small -treatise on the science, which was much sought after, -was also a zealous iatro-chemist; but his opinions -were obviously regulated by the researches of Boyle. -He denies the existence of acids and alkalies in certain -bodies, and distinguishes carefully between acid -and putrid fermentation.</p> - -<p>One of the most formidable antagonists to the iatro-chemical -doctrines was Dr. Archibald Pitcairne, first -a professor of medicine in the University of Leyden, -and afterwards of Edinburgh, and one of the most -eminent physicians of his time. He was born in Edinburgh, -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_208">208</span> -on the 25th of December, 1652. After finishing -his school education in Dalkeith, he went to the -University of Edinburgh, where he improved himself in -classical learning, and completed a regular course of -philosophy. He turned his attention to the law, and -prosecuted his studies with so much ardour and intensity -that his health began to suffer. He was advised -to travel, and set out accordingly for the South of -France: by the time he reached Paris he was so far -recovered that he determined to renew his studies; -but as there was no eminent professor of law in that -city, and as several gentlemen of his acquaintance -were engaged in the study of medicine, he went with -them to the lectures and hospitals, and employed himself -in this way for several months, till his affairs called -him home.</p> - -<p>On his return he applied himself chiefly to mathematics, -in which, under the auspices of his friend, the -celebrated Dr. David Gregory, he made uncommon -progress. Struck with the charms of this science, and -hoping by the application of it to medicine to reduce -the healing art under the rigid rules of mathematical -demonstration, he formed the resolution of devoting -himself to the study of medicine. There was at that -time no medical school in Edinburgh, and no hospital -at which he could improve himself; he therefore repaired -to Paris, and devoted himself to his studies with -a degree of ardour that ensured an almost unparalleled -success. In 1680 he received from the faculty -of Rheims the degree of doctor of medicine, a degree -also conferred on him in 1699 by the University of -Aberdeen.</p> - -<p>In the year 1691 his reputation was so high that -the University of Leyden solicited him to fill the medical -chair, at that time vacant; he accepted the invitation, -and delivered a course of lectures at Leyden, which -was greatly admired by all his auditors, among whom -were Boerhaave and Mead. At the close of the session -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_209">209</span> -he set out for Scotland, to marry the daughter -of Sir Archibald Stevenson: his friends in his own -country would not consent to part with him, and thus -he was reluctantly obliged to resign his chair in the -University of Leyden.</p> - -<p>He settled as a physician in Edinburgh, where he -was appointed titular professor of medicine. His -practice extended beyond example, and he was more -consulted by foreigners than any Edinburgh physician -either before or after his time. He died in October, -1713, admired and regretted by the whole country. -He was a zealous supporter of iatro-mathematics, and -as such a professed antagonist of the iatro-chemists. -He refuted their opinions with much strength of reasoning, -while his high reputation gave his opinions an -uncommon effect; so that he contributed perhaps as -much as any one, to put a period to the most disgraceful, -as well as dangerous, set of opinions that -ever overspread the medical horizon.</p> - -<p>Into the merits of the iatro-mathematicians it is not -the business of this work to enter; they at least display -science, and labour, and erudition, and in all -these respects are far before the iatro-chemists. Perhaps -their own opinions were not more agreeable to -the real structure of the human body, nor their practice -more conformable to reason, or more successful -than those of the chemists. Probably the most valuable -of all Dr. Pitcairne’s writings, is his vindication -of the claims of Hervey to the great discovery of the -circulation.</p> - -<p>Boerhaave, the pupil of Pitcairne, and afterwards a -professor in Leyden, was a no less zealous or successful -opponent of the iatro-chemists.</p> - -<p>Herman Boerhaave, perhaps the most celebrated -physician that ever existed, if we except Hippocrates, -was born at Voorhout, a village near Leyden, in 1668, -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_210">210</span> -where his father was the parish clergyman. At the -age of sixteen he was left without parents, protection, -advice, or fortune. He had already studied theology, -and the other branches of knowledge that are considered -as requisite for a clergyman, to which situation -he aspired; and while occupied with these studies -he supported himself at Leyden by teaching mathematics -to the students—a branch of knowledge to -which he had devoted himself with considerable ardour -while living in his father’s house. But, a report being -raised that he was attached to the doctrines of Spinoza, -the clamour against him was so loud that he -thought it requisite to renounce his intention of going -into <i>orders</i>.<a id="FNanchor_171" href="#Footnote_171" class="fnanchor">171</a> He turned his studies to medicine, and -the branches of science connected with that pursuit, -and these delightful subjects soon engrossed the whole -of his attention. In 1693 he was created doctor of -medicine, and began to practise. He continued to -teach mathematics for some time, till his practice increased -sufficiently to enable him to live by his fees. -His spare money was chiefly laid out upon books; he -also erected a chemical laboratory, and though he had -no garden he paid great attention to the study of -plants. His reputation increased with considerable -rapidity; but his fortune rather slowly. He was invited -to the Hague by a nobleman, who stood high in -the favour of William III., King of Great Britain; but -he declined the invitation. His three great friends, -to whom he was in some measure indebted for his -success, were James Trigland, professor of theology, -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_211">211</span> -Daniel Alphen, and John Van den Berg, both of them -successively chief magistrates of Leyden, and men of -great influence.</p> - -<p>Van den Berg recommended him to the situation of -professor of medicine in the University of Leyden, to -which chair he was raised, fortunately for the reputation -of the university, on the death of Drelincourt, in 1702. -He not only gave public lectures on medicine, but -was in the habit also of giving private instructions to -his pupils. His success as a teacher was so great, that -a report having been spread of his intention to quit -Leyden, the curators of the university added considerably -to his salary on condition that he would not -leave them.</p> - -<p>This first step towards fortune and eminence having -been made, others followed with great rapidity. He -was appointed successively professor of botany and of -chemistry, while rectorships and deanships were showered -upon him with an unsparing hand. And such -was the activity, the zeal, and the ability with which -he filled all these chairs, that he raised the University -of Leyden to the very highest rank of all the universities -of Europe. Students flocked to him from all -quarters—every country of Europe furnished him with -pupils; Leyden was filled and enriched by an unusual -crowd of strangers. Though his class-rooms were -large, yet so great was the number of students, that it -was customary for them to keep places, just as is done -in a theatre when a first-rate actor is expected to perform. -He died in the year 1738, while still filling the -three different chairs with undiminished reputation.</p> - -<p>It is not our object here to speak of Boerhaave as a -physician, or as a teacher of medicine, or of botany; -though in all these capacities he is entitled to the very -highest eulogium; his practice was as unexampled as -his success as a teacher. It is solely as a chemist that -he claims our attention here. His system of chemistry, -published in two quarto volumes in 1732, and of which -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_212">212</span> -we have an excellent English translation by Dr. Shaw, -printed in 1741, was undoubtedly the most learned -and most luminous treatise on chemistry that the world -had yet seen; it is nothing less than a complete collection -of all the chemical facts and processes which -were known in Boerhaave’s time, collected from a -thousand different sources, and from writings equally -disgusting from their obscurity and their mysticism. -Every thing is stated in the plainest way, stripped of -all mystery, and chemistry is shown as a science -and an art of the first importance, not merely to -medicine, but to mankind in general. The processes -given by him are too numerous and too tedious to have -been all repeated by one man, how laborious soever he -may have been: many of them have been taken upon -trust, and, as no distinction is made in the book, between -those which are stated upon his own authority -and those which are merely copied from others, this -treatise has been accused, and with some justice, as -not always to be depended on. But the real information -which it communicates is prodigious, and when -we compare it with any other system of chemistry that -preceded it, the superiority of Boerhaave’s information -will appear in a very conspicuous point of view.</p> - -<p>After a short but valuable historical introduction -he divides his work into two parts; the first treats of -the <i>theory of chemistry</i>, the second of the <i>practical -processes</i>.</p> - -<p>He defines chemistry as follows: “Chemistry is an -art which teaches the manner of performing certain -physical operations, whereby bodies cognizable to the -senses, or capable of being rendered cognizable, and -of being contained in vessels, are so changed by means -of proper instruments, as to produce certain determinate -effects; and at the same time discover the causes -thereof; for the service of various arts.”</p> - -<p>This definition is not calculated to throw much -light on chemistry to those who are unacquainted with -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_213">213</span> -its nature and object. Neither is it conformable to -the modern notions entertained of chemistry; but it -is requisite to keep in mind Boerhaave’s definition of -chemistry, when we examine his system, that we may -not accuse him of omissions and imperfections, which -are owing merely to the state of the science when he -gave his system to the world.</p> - -<p>In his theory of chemistry he begins with the -metals, which he treats of in the following order: -Gold, mercury, lead, silver, copper, iron, tin. The -account of them, though imperfect, is much fuller -and more satisfactory than any that preceded it. He -then treats of the salts, which are, common salt, saltpetre, -borax, sal ammoniac and alum. This it will be -admitted is but a meagre list. However other salts -occur in different parts of the book which are not described -here. He next gives an account of sulphur. -Here he introduces <i>white arsenic</i>, obtained, he says, -from cobalt, and not known for more than two hundred -years. He considers it as a real sulphur, and -takes no notice of metallic arsenic, though it had been -already alluded to by Paracelsus. He then treats of -bitumens, including under the name not merely bitumens -liquid and solid, but likewise pit-coal, amber, -and ambergris. An account of stones and earths -comes next, and constitutes the most defective part of -the book. It is very surprising that in this part of -his work he takes no notice of <i>lime</i>. The semi-metals -come next: they are, antimony, bismuth, zinc. -Here he gives an account of the three vitriols or sulphates -of iron, copper, and zinc. He knew the composition -of sulphate of iron; but was ignorant of that -of sulphate of copper and sulphate of zinc. He considers -semi-metals as compounds of a true metal and -sulphur, and therefore enumerates cinnabar among -the semi-metals. Lastly he treats of vegetables and -animals; and it is needless to say that his account is -very imperfect. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_214">214</span></p> - -<p>He next treats of the utility of chemistry, and -shows its importance in natural philosophy, medicine, -and the arts. Afterwards he describes the instruments -of chemistry. This constitutes the longest and the most -important part of the whole work. He first treats of -fire at great length. Here we have an account of the -thermometer, of the expansion produced by heat, of -steam, and in fact the germ of many of the most important -parts of the science of heat, which have since -been expanded and applied to the improvement, not -merely of chemistry, but of the arts and resources of -human industry. The experiments of Fahrenheit related -by him, on the change of temperature induced -by agitating water and mercury together at different -degrees of heat, gave origin to the whole doctrine of -specific heats. Though Boerhaave himself seemed not -aware of the importance of these experiments, or indeed -even to have considered them with any attention. -But when afterwards analyzed by Dr. Black, these -experiments gave origin to one of the most important -parts of the whole science of heat.</p> - -<p>He next treats at great length on <i>fuel</i>. Here his -opinions are often very erroneous, from his ignorance -of a vast number of facts which have since come to -light. It is curious that during the whole of his very -long account of combustion he makes no allusion to -the peculiar opinions of Stahl on the subject; though -they were known to the public, and had been admitted -by chemists in general, before his work was -published. To what are we to ascribe this omission? -It could scarcely have been owing to ignorance, -Stahl’s reputation being too high to allow his opinions -to be treated with neglect. We must suppose, I think, -that Boerhaave did not adopt Stahl’s doctrine of combustion; -but at the same time did not think it proper -to enter into any controversy on the subject.</p> - -<p>He next treats of the heat produced when different -liquids are mixed, as alcohol and water, &c. He -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_215">215</span> -gives many examples of such increase of temperature, -and describes the phenomena very correctly. But he -was unable to assign the cause of the evolution of -this heat. The subject was elucidated many years -after by Dr. Irvine, who showed that it was owing to -a diminution of the specific heat which takes place -when liquids combine chemically together. It is in -this part of his work that he gives an account of phosphorus, -of the action of nitric acid on volatile oils, -and he concludes, from all the facts which he states, -that elementary fire is a corporeal body. His explanation -of the combustion of Homberg’s pyrophorus -and of common phosphorus, shows clearly that he had -no correct notion of the reason why air is necessary -to maintain combustion, nor of the way in which that -elastic fluid performs its part in the great phenomena -of nature.</p> - -<p>He next treats of the mode of regulating fire for -chemical purposes: then he treats of <i>air</i>, his account -being chiefly taken from Boyle. He ascribes the discovery -of the law of the elasticity of air both to Boyle -and Mariotte. Boyle, I believe, was the first discoverer -of it. The French are in the habit of calling it the -law of Mariotte. He then treats of <i>water</i>, and lastly -of <i>earth</i>; but even here no mention whatever is made -of lime. In the last part of the theory of chemistry -he treats at great length of menstruums. These are -water, oils, alcohol, alkalies, acids, and neutral salts. -He mentions potash and ammonia, but takes no notice -of soda; the difference between potash and soda not -being accurately known. Nor can we expect any -particular account of the difference between the properties -of mild and caustic potash; as this subject -was not understood till the time of Dr. Black. The -only acids which he mentions are the <i>acetic</i>, <i>sulphuric</i>, -<i>nitric</i>, <i>muriatic</i>, and <i>aqua regia</i>. He subjoins -a disquisition on the alcahest or universal solvent, -which it is obvious enough, however, from the -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_216">216</span> -way in which he speaks of it, that he was not a believer -in. The object of his practical part is to teach -the method of making all the different chemical substances -known when he wrote. This he does in two -hundred and twenty-seven processes, in which all the -manipulations are described with considerable minuteness. -This part of the work must have been long -considered as of great utility, and must have been -long resorted to by the student as a mine of practical -information upon almost every subject that could arrest -his attention. So immense is the progress that -chemistry has made since the days of Boerhaave, and -so different are the researches that at present occupy -chemists, and so much greater the degree of precision -requisite to be attained, that his processes and directions -are now of little or no use to a practical student -of chemistry, as they convey little or none of the -knowledge which it is requisite for him to possess.</p> - -<p>Boerhaave made a set of most elaborate experiments, -to refute the ideas of the alchymists respecting -the possibility of fixing mercury. He put a quantity -of pure mercury into a glass vessel, and kept it for -fifteen years at a temperature rather higher than 100°. -It underwent no alteration whatever, excepting that a -small portion of it was converted into a black powder. -But this black powder was restored to the state of -running mercury by trituration in a mortar. In this -experiment the air had free access to the mercury. It -was repeated in a close vessel with the same result, -excepting that the mercury was kept hot for only six -months instead of fifteen years.</p> - -<p>To show that mercury cannot be obtained from metals -by the processes recommended by the alchymists, -he dissolved pure nitrate of lead in water, and, mixing -the solution with sal ammoniac, chloride of lead precipitated. -Of this chloride he put a quantity into a retort, -and poured over it a strong lixivium of caustic -potash, The whole was digested at the temperature -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_217">217</span> -of 96° for six months and six days. It was then distilled -in a glass retort, by a temperature gradually -raised to redness, but not a particle of mercury was -evaporated, as it had been alleged by the alchymists -would be the case.</p> - -<p>Isaac Hollandus had stated that mercury could be -easily obtained from the salt of lead made by means -of distilled vinegar. To prove this he calcined a -quantity of acetate of lead, ground the residue to -powder, and triturated it with a very strong alkaline -lixivium, and kept the lixivium over it covered with -paper for months, taking care to add water in proportion -as it evaporated. The calx was then distilled in -a heat gradually raised to redness; but not a particle -of mercury was obtained.<a id="FNanchor_172" href="#Footnote_172" class="fnanchor">172</a></p> - -<p>These were not the only laborious experiments which -he made with this metal. He distilled it above five -hundred times, and found that it underwent no alteration. -When long agitated in a glass bottle it is convertible -into a black acrid powder, obviously protoxide -of mercury. This black powder, when distilled, is -converted into running mercury. Exposure of mercury -for some months in a heat of 180°, converts it -also into protoxide; and if the heat be higher than -this, the mercury is converted into a red acrid substance, -obviously peroxide of mercury. But this -peroxide, by simple distillation, is again reduced into -the state of running mercury.<a id="FNanchor_173" href="#Footnote_173" class="fnanchor">173</a></p> - -<p>Boerhaave combated the opinions of the iatro-chemists -with great eloquence, and with a weight derived -from his high reputation, and the extraordinary veneration -in which his opinions were held by his disciples. -His efforts were assisted by those of Bohn, who combated -the medical opinions by arguments drawn both from -experience and observation, and perfectly irresistible; -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_218">218</span> -and the ruin of the chemical sect was consummated -by the exertions of the celebrated Frederick Hoffmann, -the founder of the most perfect and satisfactory system -of medicine that has ever appeared. His efforts -were probably roused into action by a visit which he -paid to England in 1683, during which he got acquainted -with Boyle and with Sydenham; the former -the greatest experimentalist, and the latter the greatest -physician of the time; and both of whom were declared -enemies to iatro-chemistry. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_219">219</span></p> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<h2 id="CHAPTER_VI">CHAPTER VI.<br /> - -<span class="large">OF AGRICOLA AND METALLURGY.</span></h2> - -<p>I have been induced by a wish to prosecute the -history of the opinions first supported by Paracelsus, -and carried so much further by Van Helmont and -Sylvius, to give a connected view of their effects -upon medical practice and medical theory; and I -have come to the commencement of the eighteenth -century, without taking notice of one of the most extraordinary -men, and one of the greatest promoters of -chemistry that ever existed: I mean George Agricola. -I shall consecrate the whole of this chapter to his labours, -and those of his immediate successors.</p> - -<p>George Agricola was born at Glaucha, in Misnia, -in the year 1494. When a young man he acquired such -a passion for mining and minerals, by frequenting the -mountains of Bohemia, that he could not be persuaded to -relinquish the study. He settled, indeed, as a physician, -at Joachimstal; but his favourite study engrossed -so much of his attention, that he succeeded -but ill in his medical capacity. This induced him to -withdraw to Chemnitz, where he devoted himself to his -favourite pursuits. He studied the mineralogical -writings of the ancients with the most minute accuracy; -but not satisfied with this, he visited the mines -in person, examined the processes followed by the -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_220">220</span> -miners in extracting the different ores, and in washing -and sorting them. He made collections of all the -different ores, and studied their nature and properties -attentively: he likewise collected information about -the methods of smelting them, and extracting from -them the metals in a state of purity. The information -which he collected, respecting the mines wrought in -the different countries of Europe, is quite wonderful, -if we consider the period in which he lived, the little -intercourse which existed between nations, and the -total want of all those newspapers and journals which -now carry every new scientific fact with such rapidity -to every part of the world.</p> - -<p>Agricola died at Chemnitz in the year 1555, after he -had reached the sixty-first year of his age. Maurice, the -celebrated Elector of Saxony, settled on him a pension, -the whole of which he devoted to his metallurgic pursuits. -To him we find him dedicating the edition of his works -which he published in the year of his death, and which -is dated the fourteenth before the calends of April, 1555. -He even spent a considerable proportion of his own -estate in following out his favourite investigations. In -the earlier part of his life he had expressed himself -rather favourable to the protestant opinions; but in -his latter days he had attacked the reformed religion. -This rendered him so odious to the Lutherans, at that -time predominant in Chemnitz, that they suffered his -body to remain unburied for five days together; so -that it was necessary to remove it from Chemnitz to -Zeitz, where it was interred in the principal church.</p> - -<p>His great work is his treatise De Re Metallica, in -twelve books. In this work he gives an account of -the instruments and machines, and every thing connected -with mining and metallurgy; and even gives -figures of all the different pieces of apparatus employed -in his time. He has also exhibited the Latin -and German names for all these different utensils. -This work may be considered as a very complete treatise -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_221">221</span> -on metallurgy, as it existed in the sixteenth century. -The first six books are occupied with an account -of mining and smelting. In the seventh book he -treats of <i>docimasy</i>, or the method of determining the -quantity of metal which can be extracted from every -particular ore. This he does so completely, that most -of his processes are still followed by miners and -smelters. He gives a minute and accurate account of -the furnaces, muffles, crucibles, &c., almost such as -are still employed, with minute directions for preparing -the ores which are to be subjected to examination, -the fluxes with which they must be mixed, and -the precautions necessary in order to obtain a satisfactory -result. In short, this book may be considered -as a complete manual of docimasy. How much of -the methods given originated with Agricola it is impossible -to say. He probably did little more than -collect the scattered processes employed by the -smelters of metals, in different parts of the world, and -reduce the whole to a regular system. But this was -a great deal. Perhaps it is not saying too much, that -the great progress made in the chemical investigation -of the metals, was owing in a great measure to the -labours of Agricola. Certainly the progress made by -the moderns, in the difficult arts of mining and metallurgy, -must in a great measure be ascribed to the -labours of Agricola.</p> - -<p>In the eighth book he describes the mechanical preparation -of the ores, and the mode of roasting them, -either in the open air or in furnaces. The ninth book -is occupied with an account of smelting-furnaces. It -contains also a description of the processes for obtaining -mercury, antimony, and bismuth, from their ores. -The tenth book treats of the separation of silver and -gold from each other, by means of nitric acid and aqua -regia: minute directions for the preparation of which -are given. The modes of purifying the precious metals -by means of sulphur, antimony, and cementations, -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_222">222</span> -are also described. In the eleventh book he treats of -the method of purifying silver from copper and iron, -by means of lead. He gives an account also of the -processes employed for smelting and purifying copper. -In the twelfth book he treats of the methods of preparing -common salt, saltpetre, alum, and green vitriol, -or sulphate of iron: of the preparation and purification -of sulphur, and of the mode of manufacturing glass. -In short, Agricola’s work De Re Metallica is beyond -comparison the most valuable chemical work which -the sixteenth century produced, and places the author -very high indeed among the list of the improvers of -chemistry.</p> - -<p>The other works of Agricola are his treatise De -Natura Fossilium, in ten books; De Ortu et Causis -Subterraneorum, in five books; De Natura eorum quæ -effluunt ex Terra, in four books; De veteribus et novis -Metallis, in two books; and his Bermannus sive de -re metallica Dialogus. The treatise De veteribus et -novis Metallis is amusing. He not only collects together -all the historical facts on record, respecting the -first discoverers of the different metals and the first -workers of mines, but he gives many amusing anecdotes -nowhere else to be found, respecting the way in -which some of the most celebrated German mines -were discovered. In the second book he takes a geographical -view of every part of the known world, and -states the mines wrought and the metals found in each. -We must not suppose that all his statements in this -historical sketch are accurate: to admit it would be -to allow him a greater share of information than could -possibly belong to any one man. He frequently gives -us the authority upon which his statements are founded; -but he often makes statements without any authority -whatever. Thus he says, that a mine of quicksilver -had been recently discovered in Scotland: the fact -however, is, that no quicksilver-mine ever existed in -any part of Britain. There was, indeed, a foolish -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_223">223</span> -story circulated about thirty years ago, about a vein of -quicksilver found under the town of Berwick-upon-Tweed; -but it was an assertion unsupported by any -authentic evidence.</p> - -<p>Many years elapsed before much addition was -made to the processes described by Agricola. In the -year 1566, Pedro Fernandes de Velasco introduced a -method of extracting gold and silver from their ores in -Mexico and Peru by means of quicksilver. But I -have never seen a description of his process. Alonzo -Barba claims for himself, and seemingly with justice, -the method of amalgamating the ores of gold and -silver by boiling. Barba was a Spanish priest, who -lived about the year 1609, at Tarabuco, a market-town -in the province of Charcso, eight miles from -Plata, in South America. In the year 1615 he was -curate at Tiaguacano, in the Province of Pacayes, and -in 1617, he lived at Lepas in Peru. He is said to have -been a native of Lepe, a small township in Andalusia, -and had for many years the living of the church of St. -Bernard at Potosi. His work on the amalgamation of -gold and silver ores appeared at Madrid in the year -1640, in quarto.<a id="FNanchor_174" href="#Footnote_174" class="fnanchor">174</a> In the year 1629 a new edition of -it appeared with an appendix, under the title of -“Trattado de las Antiquas Minas de España de Alonzo -Carillo Lasso.” The English minister at the Court of -Madrid, the Earl of Sandwich, published the first -part of it in an English translation at London, in -1674, under the title of “The First Book of the Art -of Metals, in which is declared the manner of their -generation, and the concomitants of them, written -in Spanish by Albaro Alonzo Barba. By E. Earl of -Sandwich.”</p> - -<p>The next improver of metallurgic processes was -Lazarus Erckern, who was upper bar-master at Kuttenberg, -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_224">224</span> -in the year 1588, and was superintendent of -the mines in Germany, Hungary, Transylvania, the -Tyrol, &c., to three successive emperors. His work has -been translated into English under the title of “Heta -Minor; or the laws of art and nature in knowing, -judging, assaying, fining, refining, and enlarging the -bodies of confined metals. To which are added essays -on metallic words, illustrated with sculptures. By Sir -J. Pettus. London, 1683, folio.” But this translation -is a very bad one. Erckern gives a plain account -of all the processes employed in his time without a -word of theory or reasoning. It is an excellent practical -book; though it is obvious enough that the -author was inferior in point of abilities to Agricola. -His treatment of Don Juan de Corduba, who offered, -in 1588, to put the Court of Vienna in possession of -the Spanish method of extracting gold and silver from -the ores by amalgamation, as related by Baron Born in -his work on amalgamation, shows very clearly that -Erckern was a very illiberal-minded man, and puffed -up with an undue conceit of his own superior knowledge.<a id="FNanchor_175" href="#Footnote_175" class="fnanchor">175</a> -Had he condescended to assist the Spaniard, -and to furnish him with proper materials to work upon, -the Austrians might have been in possession of the process -of amalgamation with all its advantages a couple -of centuries before its actual introduction.</p> - -<p>I need not take any notice of the docimastic treatises -of Schindlers and Schlutter, which are of a much -later date, and both of which have been translated into -French, the former by Geoffroy, junior; the latter by -Hellot. This last translation, in two large quartos, -published in 1764, constitutes a very valuable book, -and exhibits all the docimastic and metallurgic processes -known at that period with much fidelity and minuteness. -Very great improvements have taken place -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_225">225</span> -since that period, but I am not aware of any work -published in any of the European languages, that is -calculated to give us an exact idea of the present state -of the various mining and metallurgic processes—important -as they are to civilized society.</p> - -<p>Gellert’s Metallurgic Chemistry, so far as it goes, is -an excellent book. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_226">226</span></p> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<h2 id="CHAPTER_VII">CHAPTER VII.<br /> - -<span class="large">OF GLAUBER, LEMERY, AND SOME OTHER CHEMISTS OF THE -END OF THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY.</span></h2> - -<p>Hitherto I have treated of the alchymists, or -iatro-chemists, and have brought the history of chemistry -down to the beginning of the eighteenth century. -But during the seventeenth century there -existed several laborious chemists, who contributed -very materially by their exertions, either to extend the -bounds of the science, or to increase its popularity and -respectability in the eyes of the world. Of some of -the most eminent of these it is my intention to give an -account in this chapter.</p> - -<p>Of John Rudolf Glauber, the first of these meritorious -men in point of time, I know very few particulars. -He was a German and a medical man, and -spent most of his time at Salzburg, Ritzingen, Frankfort -on the Maine, and at Cologne. Towards the end -of his life he went to Holland, but during the greatest -part of his residence in that country he was confined -to a sick-bed. He died at Amsterdam in 1668, after -having reached a very advanced age. Like Paracelsus, -whom he held in high estimation, he was in open hostility -with the Galenical physicians of his time. This -led him into various controversies, and induced him -to publish various apologies; most of which still remain -among his writings. One of the most curious of -these apologies is the one against Farmer. To this -man Glauber had communicated certain secrets of his -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_227">227</span> -own, which were at that time considered as of great -value; Farrner binding himself not to communicate -them to any person. This obligation he not only -broke, but publicly deprecated the skill and integrity -of Glauber, and offered to communicate to -others, for stipulated sums, a set of secrets of his own, -which he vaunted of as particularly valuable. Glauber -examines these secrets, and shows that every one of -them possessed of any value, had been communicated -by himself to Farrner, and to put an end to Farrner’s -unfair attempt to make money by selling Glauber’s -secrets, he in this apology communicates the whole -processes to the public.</p> - -<p>Glauber’s works were published in Amsterdam, -partly in Latin, and partly in the German language. -In the year 1689 an English translation of them was -published in London by Mr. Christopher Packe, in one -large folio volume. Glauber was an alchymist and a -believer in the universal medicine. But he did not -confine his researches to these two particulars, but endeavoured -to improve medicine and the arts by the -application of chemical processes to them. In his -treatise of <i>philosophical furnaces</i> he does not confine -himself to a description of the method of constructing -furnaces, and explaining the use of them, but gives -an account of a vast many processes, and medicinal -and chemical preparations, which he made by means -of these furnaces. One of the most important of -these preparations was muriatic acid, which he obtained -by distilling a mixture of common salt, sulphate of -iron, and alum, in one of the furnaces which he -describes.</p> - -<p>He makes known the method of dissolving most of -the metals in muriatic acid, and the resulting chlorides, -which he denominates oils of the respective metals, -constitute in his opinion valuable medicines. He -mentions particularly the chloride of gold, and from -the mode of preparing it, the solution must have been -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_228">228</span> -strong. Yet he recommends it as an internal medicine, -which he says may be taken with safety, and is -a sovereign remedy in old ulcers of the mouth, tongue, -and throat, arising from the French pox, leprosy, -scorbute, &c. Thus we see the use of gold as a remedy -for the venereal disease did not originate with M. -Chretiens, of Montpelier. This chloride of gold is so -violent a poison that it is remarkable that Glauber does -not specify the dose that patients labouring under the -diseases for which he recommends it ought to take.—The -sesqui-chloride of iron he recommends as a most -excellent application to ill-conditioned ulcers and cancers. -We see from this that the use of iron in cancers, -lately recommended, is not so new a remedy as has -been supposed.</p> - -<p>He mentions the violent action of chloride of mercury -(obviously corrosive sublimate), and says that -he saw a woman suddenly killed by it, being administered -internally by a surgeon. Butter of antimony he -first recognised as nothing else than a combination of -chlorine and antimony; before his time it had been -always supposed to contain mercury.</p> - -<p>He describes the method of obtaining sulphuric -acid by distilling sulphate of iron; gives an account of -the mode of obtaining sulphate of iron and sulphate -of copper, in crystals: the method of obtaining nitric -acid from nitre by means of alum, was much improved -by him. He gives a particular detail of the -way of obtaining fulminating gold. This fulminating -gold he says is of little use in medicine; but he gives -a method of preparing from it a red tincture of gold, -which he considers as one of the most useful and efficacious -of all medicines: this tincture is nothing else -than chloride of gold. It would take up too much -space to attempt an analysis of all the curious facts -and preparations described in this treatise on philosophical -furnaces; but it will repay the perusal of any -person who will take the trouble to look into it. All -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_229">229</span> -the different pharmacopœias of the seventeenth century -borrowed from it largely. The third part of this -treatise is peculiarly interesting. It will be seen that -Glauber had already thought of the peculiar efficacy -of applying solutions of sulphur, &c. to the skin, and -had anticipated the various vapour and gaseous baths -which have been introduced in Vienna and other -places, during the course of the present century, and -considered as new, and as constituting an important -era in the healing art. In the fourth part he not only -treats of the docimastic processes, so well described -by Agricola and Erckern, but gives us the method of -making glass, and of imitating the precious stones by -means of coloured glasses. The fifth part is peculiarly -valuable; in it he treats of the methods of preparing -lutes for glass vessels, of the construction and qualities -of crucibles, and of the vitrification of earthen vessels.</p> - -<p>Another of his tracts is called “The Mineral Work;” -the object of which is to show the method of separating -gold from flints, sand, clay, and other minerals, -by the spirit of salt (<i>muriatic acid</i>), which otherwise -cannot be purged; also a panacea, or universal antimonial -medicine. This panacea was a solution of -deutoxide of antimony in pyrotartaric acid; Glauber -gives a most flattering account of its efficacy in -removing the most virulent diseases, particularly all -kinds of cutaneous eruptions. The second and third -parts of The Mineral Work are entirely alchymistical. -In the treatise called “Miraculum Mundi,” his chief -object is to write a panegyric on <i>sulphate of soda</i>, of -which he was the discoverer, and to which he gave the -name of <i>sal mirabile</i>. The high terms in which he -speaks of this innocent salt are highly amusing, and -serve well to show the spirit of the age, and the dreams -which still continued to haunt the most laborious -and sober-minded chemists. The <i>sal mirabile</i> was -not merely a purgative, a virtue which it certainly -possesses in a high degree, being as mild a purgative, -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_230">230</span> -perhaps the very best, of all the saline preparations -yet tried; but it was a universal medicine, a -panacea, a cure for all diseases: nor was Glauber -contented with this, but pointed out many uses in the -various arts and manufactures for which in his opinion -it was admirably fitted. But by far the fullest account -of this <i>sal mirabile</i> is given by him in his treatise -on the nature of salts.</p> - -<p>I shall satisfy myself with giving the titles of his -other tracts. Every one of them contains facts of considerable -importance, not to be found in any chemical -writings that preceded him; but to attempt to connect -these facts into one point of view would be needless, -because they are not such as would be likely to interest -the general reader.</p> - -<p>1. The Consolation of Navigators. This gives an -account of a method by which sailors may carry with -them a great deal of nourishment in very small bulk. -The method consists in evaporating the wort of malt -to dryness, and carrying the dry extract to sea. This -method has been had recourse to in modern times, and -has been found to furnish an effectual remedy against -the scurvy. He recommends also the use of muriatic -acid as a remedy for thirst, and a cure for the scurvy.</p> - -<p>2. A true and perfect Description of the extracting -good Tartar from the Lees of Wine.</p> - -<p>3. The first part of the Prosperity of Germany; in -which is treated of the concentration of wine, corn, -and wood, and the more profitable use of them than -has hitherto been.</p> - -<p>4. The second part of the Prosperity of Germany; -wherein is shown by what means minerals may be -concentrated by nitre, and turned into metallic and -better bodies.</p> - -<p>5. The third part of the Prosperity of Germany; -in which is delivered the way of most easily and plentifully -extracting saltpetre out of various subjects, -every where obvious and at hand. Together with a -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_231">231</span> -succinct explanation of Paracelsus’s prophecy; that is -to say, in what manner it is to be understood the -northern lion will institute or plant his political or civil -monarchy; and that Paracelsus himself will not abide -in his grave; and that a vast quantity of riches will -offer itself. Likewise who the artist Elias is, of whose -coming in the last days, and his disclosing abundance -of secrets, Paracelsus and others have predicted.</p> - -<p>6. The fourth part of the Prosperity of Germany; -in which are revealed many excellent, useful secrets, -and such as are serviceable to the country; and withal -several preparations of efficacious cates extracted out -of the metals and appointed to physical uses; as also -various confections of golden potions. To which is -also adjoined a small treatise which maketh mention -of my laboratory; in which there shall be taught and -demonstrated (for the public good and benefit of mankind) -wonderful secrets, and unto every body most -profitable but hitherto unknown.</p> - -<p>7. The fifth part of the Prosperity of Germany; -clearly and solidly demonstrating and as it were showing -with the fingers, what alchymy is, and what benefit -may, by the help thereof, be gotten every where and -in most places of Germany. Written and published -to the honour of God, the giver of all good things, primarily; -and to the honour of all the great ones of the -country; and for the health, profit, and assistance -against foreign invasions, of all their inhabitants that -are by due right and obedience subject unto them.</p> - -<p>8. The sixth and last part of the Prosperity of Germany; -in which the arcanas already revealed in the -fifth part, are not only illustrated and with a clear elucidation, -but also such are manifested as are most -highly necessary to be known for the defence of the -country against the Turks. Together with an evident -demonstration adjoined, showing, that both a -particular and universal transmutation of the imperfect -metals into more perfect ones by salt and fire, is -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_232">232</span> -most true; and withal, by what means any one, that is -endued with but a mean knowledge in managing the -fire, may experimentally try the truth hereof in twenty-four -hours’ space.</p> - -<p>9. The first century of Glauber’s wealthy Storehouse -of Treasures.—Many of the processes given in this -treatise are mystically stated, or even concealed.</p> - -<p>10. The second, third, fourth, and fifth century of -Glauber’s wealthy Storehouse of Treasures.</p> - -<p>11. New chemical Light; being a revelation of a -certain new invented secret, never before manifested -to the world.—This was a method of extracting gold -from stones. Probably the gold found by Glauber in -his processes existed in some of the reagents employed; -this, at least, is the most natural way of accounting -for the result of Glauber’s trials.</p> - -<p>15. The spagyrical Pharmacopœia, or Dispensatory.—In -this book he treats chiefly of medicines peculiarly -his own; one of those, on which he bestows the greatest -praise, is <i>secret sal ammoniac</i>, or sulphate of ammonia. -He describes the method of preparing this salt, -by saturating sulphuric acid with ammonia. He informs -us that it was much employed by Paracelsus -and Van Helmont, who distinguished it by the name -of <i>alkahest</i>.</p> - -<p>13. Book of Fires.—Full of enigmas.</p> - -<p>14. Treatise of the three Principles of Metals; viz. -sulphur, mercury, and salt of philosophers; how they -may be profitably used in medicine, alchymy, and -other arts.</p> - -<p>15. A short Book of Dialogues. Chiefly relating -to alchymy.</p> - -<p>16. Proserpine, or the Goddess of Riches.</p> - -<p>17. Of Elias the Artist.</p> - -<p>18. Of the three most noble Stones generated by -three Fires.</p> - -<p>19. Of the Purgatory of Philosophers.</p> - -<p>20. Of the secret Fire of Philosophers. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_233">233</span></p> - -<p>21. A Treatise concerning the Animal Stone.</p> - -<p>John Kunkel, who acquired a high reputation as a -chemist, was born in the Duchy of Sleswick; in the -year 1630: his father was a trading chemist, or apothecary; -and Kunkel himself had, in his younger years, -paid great attention to the business of an apothecary: -he had also diligently studied the different processes -of glass-making; and had paid particular attention to -the assaying of metals. In the year 1659, he was -chamberlain, chemist, and superintendent of apothecaries -to the dukes Francis Charles and Julius Henry, -of Lauenburg. While in this situation, he examined -many pretended transmutations of metals, and undertook -other researches of importance. From this situation -he was invited, by John George II., Elector of -Saxony, on the recommendation of Dr. Langelott and -Counsellor Vogt, as chamberlain and superintendent -of the elector’s laboratory, with a considerable salary. -From this situation he went to Berlin, where he was -chemist to the elector Frederick William; after whose -death, his laboratory and glass-house were accidentally -burnt. From Berlin he was invited to Stockholm by -Charles XI., King of Sweden, who gave him the title -of counsellor of metals, and raised him to the rank -of a nobleman: here he died, in 1702, in the seventy-second -year of his age. Kunkel’s greatest discovery -was, the method of extracting phosphorus from urine. -This curious substance had been originally discovered -by Brandt, a chemist, of Hamburg, in the year 1669, as -he was attempting to extract from human urine a liquid -capable of converting silver into gold. He showed a -specimen of it to Kunkel, with whom he was acquainted: -Kunkel mentioned the fact as a piece of news to -one Kraft, a friend of his in Dresden, where he then -resided: Kraft immediately repaired to Hamburg, -and purchased the secret from Brandt for 200 rix-dollars, -doubtless exacting from him, at the same time, -a promise not to reveal it to any other person. Soon -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_234">234</span> -after, he exhibited the phosphorus publicly in Britain -and in France; whether for money, or not, does not -appear. Kunkel, who had mentioned to his friend his -intention of getting possession of the process, being -vexed at the treacherous conduct of Kraft, attempted -to discover it himself, and, after three or four years -labour, he succeeded, though all that he knew from -Brandt was, that urine was the substance from which -the phosphorus was procured. In consequence of this -success, phosphorus was at first distinguished by the -epithet of <i>Kunkel</i> added to the name.</p> - -<p>Kunkel published, in 1678, a treatise on phosphorus, -in which he describes the properties of this substance, -at that time a subject of great wonder and curiosity. -In this treatise, he proposes phosphorus as a remedy -of some efficacy, and gives a formula for preparing -pills of it, to be taken internally. It is therefore erroneous -to suppose, as has been done, that the introduction -of this dangerous remedy into medicine is a -modern discovery. Kunkel appears to have been acquainted -with nitric ether. One of the most valuable -of his books, is his treatise on glass-making, which -was translated into French; and which, till nearly -the end of the eighteenth century, constituted by far -the best account of glass-making in existence. The -following is a list of the most important of his works:</p> - -<p>1. Observations on fixed and volatile Salts, potable -Gold and Silver, Spiritus Mundi, &c.; also of the -colour and smell of metals, minerals, and bitumens.—This -tract was published at Hamburg, in 1678, and -has been several times reprinted since.</p> - -<p>2. Chemical Remarks on the chemical Principles, -acid, fixed and volatile alkaline Salts, in the three -kingdoms of nature, the mineral, vegetable, and animal; -likewise concerning their colour and smell, &c.; -with a chemical appendix against non-entia chymica.</p> - -<p>3. Treatise of the Phosphorus mirabilis, and its -wonderful shining Pills; together with a discourse on -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_235">235</span> -what was formerly rightly named nitre, but is now -called the <i>blood of nature</i>.</p> - -<p>4. An Epistle against Spirit of Wine without an acid.</p> - -<p>5. Touchstone de Acido et Urinoso, Sale calido et -frigido.</p> - -<p>6. Ars Vitraria experimentalis.</p> - -<p>7. Collegium Physico-chymicum experimentale, <i>or</i> -Laboratorium chymicum.<a id="FNanchor_176" href="#Footnote_176" class="fnanchor">176</a></p> - -<p>Nicolas Lemery, the first Frenchman who completely -stripped chemistry of its mysticism, and presented it to -the world in all its native simplicity, deserves our particular -attention, in consequence of the celebrity which -he acquired, and the benefits which he conferred on -the science. He was born at Rouen on the 17th of -November, 1645. His father, Julian Lemery, was -<i>procureur</i> of the Parliament of Normandy, and a protestant. -His son, when very young, showed a decided -partiality for chemistry, and repaired to an apothecary -in Rouen, a relation of his own, in hopes of being -initiated into the science; but finding that little information -could be procured from him, young Lemery -left him in 1666, and went to Paris, where he boarded -himself with M. Glaser, at that time demonstrator of -chemistry at the Jardin du Roi.</p> - -<p>Glaser was a <i>true chemist</i>, according to the meaning -at that time affixed to the term—full of obscure -notions—unwilling to communicate what knowledge -he possessed—and not at all sociable. In two months -Lemery quitted his house in disgust, and set out with a -resolution to travel through France, and pick up chemical -information as he best could, from those who -were capable of giving him information on the subject. -He first went to Montpelier, where he boarded in the -house of M. Vershant, an apothecary in that town. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_236">236</span> -With his situation there he was so much pleased, that -he continued in it for three years: he employed himself -assiduously in the laboratory, and in teaching -chemistry to a number of young students who boarded -with his host. Here his reputation gradually increased -so much, that he drew round him the professors of the -faculty of medicine of Montpelier, and all the curious -of the place, to witness his experiments. Here, too, -he practised medicine with considerable success.</p> - -<p>After travelling through all France, he returned to -Paris in 1672. Here he frequented the different -scientific meetings at that time held in that capital, -and soon distinguished himself by his chemical knowledge. -In a few years he got a laboratory of his own, -commenced apothecary, and began to give public lectures -on chemistry, which were speedily attended by -great crowds of students from foreign countries. For -example, we are told that on one occasion forty Scotchmen -repaired to Paris on purpose to hear his lectures, -and those of M. Du Verney on anatomy. The medicines -which he prepared in his laboratory became -fashionable, and brought him a great deal of money. -The magistery of bismuth (or pearl-white), which he -prepared as a cosmetic, was sufficient, we are told, to -support the whole expense of his house. In the year -1675 he published his Cours de Chimie, certainly one -of the most successful chemical books that ever appeared; -it ran through a vast number of editions in a -few years, and was translated into Latin, German, -Spanish, and English.</p> - -<p>In 1681 he began to be troubled in consequence of -his religious opinions. Louis XIV. was at that time in -the height of his glory, entirely under the control of -his priests, and zealously bent upon putting an end to -the reformed religion in his dominions. Indeed, from -the infamous conduct of Charles II. of England, and -the bigotry of his successor, a prospect was opened to -him, and of which he was anxious to avail himself, of -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_237">237</span> -annihilating the reformed religion altogether, and of -plunging Europe a second time into the darkness of -Roman Catholicism.</p> - -<p>Lemery found it expedient, in 1683, to pass over into -England. Here he was well received by Charles II.: -but England was at that time convulsed with those -religious and political struggles, which terminated five -years afterwards in the revolution. Lemery, in consequence -of this state of things, found it expedient to -leave England, and return to France. He took a doctor’s -degree at Caen, in Normandy; and, returning to -Paris, he commenced all at once practitioner in medicine -and surgery, apothecary, and lecturer on chemistry. -The edict of Nantes was revoked in 1685, when -James II. had assured Louis of his intention to overturn -the established religion, and bring Great Britain -again under the dominion of the pope. Lemery was -obliged to give up practice and conceal himself, in -order to avoid persecution. Finding his success hopeless, -as long as he continued a protestant, he changed -his religion in 1686, and declared himself a Roman -catholic. This step secured his fortune: he was now -as much caressed and protected by the court and the -clergy, as he had been formerly persecuted by them. -In 1699 when the Academy of Sciences was new -modelled, he was appointed associated chemist, and, -on the death of Bourdelin, before the end of that year, -he became a pensioner. He died on the 19th of June, -1715, at the age of seventy, in consequence of an attack -of palsy, which terminated in apoplexy.</p> - -<p>Besides his System of Chemistry, which has been -already mentioned, he published the following works:</p> - -<p>1. Pharmacopée universelle, contenant toutes les -Operations de Pharmacie qui sont en usage dans la -Médicine.</p> - -<p>2. Traité universelle des Drogues simples mis en -ordre alphabétique. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_238">238</span></p> - -<p>3. Traité de l’Antimoine, contenant l’analyse chimique -de ce mineral.</p> - -<p>Besides these works, five different papers by Lemery -were printed in the Memoirs of the French Academy, -between 1700 and 1709 inclusive. These are -as follow:</p> - -<p>1. Explication physique et chimique des Feux souterrains, -des tremblemens de Terre, des Ouragans, des -Eclairs et du Tonnere.—This explanation is founded -on the heat and combustion produced by the mutual -action of iron filings and sulphur on each other, when -mixed in large quantities.</p> - -<p>2. Du Camphre.</p> - -<p>3. Du Miel et de son analyse chimique.</p> - -<p>4. De l’Urine de Vache, de ses effets en médicine -et de son analyse chimique.</p> - -<p>5. Reflexions et Experiences sur le Sublimé Corrosive.—It -appears from this paper, that in 1709, when -Lemery wrote, corrosive sublimate was considered as -a compound of mercury with the sulphuric and muriatic -acids. Lemery’s statement, that he made corrosive -sublimate simply by heating a mixture of mercury -and decrepitated salt, is not easily explained. -Probably the salt which he had employed was impure. -This is the more likely, because, from his account of -the matter which remained at the bottom of the matrass -after sublimation, it must have either contained -peroxide of iron or peroxide of mercury, for its colour -he says was red.</p> - -<p>M. Lemery left a son, who was also a member of -the French Academy; an active chemist, and author -of various papers, in which he endeavours to give a -mechanical explanation of chemical phenomena.</p> - -<p>Another very active member of the French Academy, -at the same time with Lemery, was M. William -Homberg, who was born on the 8th of January, 1652, -at Batavia, in the island of Java. His father, John -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_239">239</span> -Homberg, was a Saxon gentleman, who had been -stripped of all his property during the thirty years -war. After receiving some education by the care of -a relation, he went into the service of the Dutch East -India Company, and got the command of the arsenal -at Batavia. There he married the widow of an officer, -by whom he had four children, of whom William was -the second.</p> - -<p>His father quitted the service of the India Company -and repaired to Amsterdam with his family. -Young Homberg studied with avidity: he devoted -himself to the law, and in 1674 was admitted advocate -of Magdeburg; but his taste for natural history -and science was great. He collected plants in the -neighbourhood, and made himself acquainted with -their names and uses. At night he studied the stars, -and learned the names and positions of the different -constellations. Thus he became a self-taught botanist -and astronomer. He constructed a hollow -transparent celestial globe, on which, by means of a -light placed within, the principal fixed stars were seen -in the same relative positions as in the heavens.</p> - -<p>Otto Guericke was at that time burgomaster of -Magdeburg. His experiments on a vacuum, and his -invention of the air-pump, are universally known. -Homberg attached himself to Otto Guericke, and this -philosopher, though fond of mystery, either explained -to him his secrets, in consequence of his admiration -of his genius, or was unable to conceal them from -his penetration. At last Homberg, quite tired of his -profession of advocate, left Magdeburg and went to -Italy. He sojourned for some time at Padua, where -he devoted himself to the study of medicine, anatomy, -and botany. At Bologna he examined the famous Bologna -stone, the nature of which had been almost -forgotten, and succeeded in making a pyrophorus -out of it. At Rome he associated particularly with -Marc-Antony Celio, famous for the large glasses -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_240">240</span> -for telescopes which he was able to grind. Nor -did he neglect painting, sculpture, and music; pursuits -in which, at that time, the Italians excelled all -other nations.</p> - -<p>From Italy he went to France, and thence passed -into England, where he wrought for some time in the -laboratory of Mr. Boyle, at that time one of the most -eminent schools of science in Europe. He then -passed into Holland, studied anatomy under De -Graaf, and after visiting his family, went to Wittemberg, -where he took the degree of doctor of medicine.</p> - -<p>After this he visited Baldwin and Kunkel, to get -more accurate information respecting the phosphorus -which each had respectively discovered. He purchased -a knowledge of Kunkel’s phosphorus, by -giving in exchange a meteorological toy of Otto -Guericke, now familiarly known, by which the moisture -or dryness of the air was indicated—a little man -came out of his house and stood at the door in dry -weather, but retired under cover in moist weather. He -next visited the mines of Saxony, Bohemia, and -Hungary: he even went to Sweden, to visit the copper-mines -of that country. At Stockholm he wrought -in the chemical laboratory, lately established by the -king, along with Hjerna, and contributed considerably -to the success of that new establishment.</p> - -<p>He repaired a second time to France, where he -spent some time, actively engaged with the men of -science in Paris. His father strongly pressed him to -return to Holland and settle as a physician: he at -last consented, and the day of his departure was -come, when, just as he was going into his carriage, he -was stopped by a message from M. Colbert on the -part of the king. Offers of so advantageous a nature -were made him if he would consent to remain in -France, that, after some consideration, he was induced -to embrace them. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_241">241</span></p> - -<p>In 1682 he changed his religion and became Roman -catholic: this induced his father to disinherit -him. In 1688 he went to Rome, where he practised -medicine with considerable success. A few years -after he returned to Paris, where his knowledge and -discoveries gave him a very high reputation. In 1691 -he became a member of the Academy of Sciences, -and got the direction of the laboratory belonging to the -academy: this enabled him to devote his undivided -attention to chemical investigations. In 1702 he was -taken into the service of the Duke of Orleans, who -gave him a pension, and put him in possession of the -most splendid and complete laboratory that had ever -been seen. He was presented with the celebrated -burning-glass of M. Tchirnhaus, by the Duke of Orleans, -and was enabled by means of it to determine -many points that had hitherto been only conjectural.</p> - -<p>In 1704 he was made first physician to the Duke -of Orleans, who honoured him with his particular -esteem. This appointment obliging him to reside out -of Paris, would have made it necessary for him to resign -his seat in the academy, had not the king made -a special exemption in his favour. In 1708 he married -a daughter of the famous M. Dodart, to whom -he had been long attached. Some years after he was -attacked by a dysentery, which was cured, but returned -from time to time. In 1715 it returned with -great violence, and Homberg died on the 24th of -September.</p> - -<p>His knowledge was uncommonly great in almost -every department of science. His chemical papers -were very numerous; though there are few of them, -in this advanced period of the science, that are likely -to claim much attention from the chemical world. -His pyrophorus, of which he has given a description -in the Mémoires de l’Académie,<a id="FNanchor_177" href="#Footnote_177" class="fnanchor">177</a> was made by mixing -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_242">242</span> -together human fæces and alum, and roasting the -mixture till it was reduced to a dry powder. It was -then exposed in a matrass to a red heat, till every -thing combustible was driven off. Any combustible -will do as a substitute for human fæces—gum, flour, -sugar, charcoal, may be used. When a little of this -phosphorus is poured upon paper, it speedily catches -fire and kindles the paper. Davy first explained the -nature of this phosphorus. The potash of the alum -is converted into potassium, which, by its absorption -of oxygen from the atmosphere, generates heat, and -sets fire to the charcoal contained in the powder.</p> - -<p>Homberg’s papers printed in the Memoirs of the -French Academy amount to thirty-one. They are to -be found in the volumes for 1699 to 1714 inclusive.</p> - -<p>M. Geoffroy, who was a member of the academy -about the same time with Lemery and Homberg, -though he outlived them both, and who was an active -chemist for a considerable number of years, deserves -also to be mentioned here.</p> - -<p>Stephen Francis Geoffroy was born in Paris on the -13th of February, 1672, where his father was an -apothecary. While a young man, regular meetings -of the most eminent scientific men of Paris were held -in his father’s house, at which he was always present. -This contributed very much to increase his taste for -scientific pursuits. After this he studied botany, -chemistry, and anatomy in Paris. In 1692 his father -sent him to Montpelier, to study pharmacy in the -house of a skilful apothecary, who at the same time -sent his son to Paris, to acquire the same art in the -house of M. Geoffroy, senior. Here he attended the -different classes in the university, and his name began -to be known as a chemist. After spending some time -in Montpelier, he travelled round the coast to see the -principal seaports, and was at St. Malo’s in 1693, -when it was bombarded by the British fleet.</p> - -<p>In 1698 Count Tallard being appointed ambassador -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_243">243</span> -extraordinary to London, made choice of M. Geoffroy -as his physician, though he had not taken a medical -degree. Here he made many valuable acquaintances, -and was elected a fellow of the Royal Society. From -London he went to Holland, and thence into Italy, in -1700, where he went in the capacity of physician to -M. de Louvois. The great object of M. Geoffroy was -always natural history, and materia medica. In 1693 -he had subjected himself to an examination, and he -had been declared qualified to act as an apothecary; -but his own object was to be a physician, while that -of his father was that he should succeed himself as an -apothecary: this in some measure regulated his -education. At last he declared his intentions, and -his father agreed to them; he became bachelor of -medicine in 1702, and doctor of medicine in 1704.</p> - -<p>In 1709 he was made professor of medicine in the -Royal College. In 1707 he began to lecture on -chemistry, at the Jardin du Roi, in place of M. Fagan, -and continued to teach this important class during -the remainder of his life. In 1726 he was chosen -dean of the faculty of medicine; and, after the two -years for which he was elected was finished, he was -again chosen to fill the same situation. There existed -at that time a lawsuit between the physicians and -surgeons in Paris; a kind of civil war very injurious -to both; and the mildness and suavity of his manners -fitted him particularly for being at the head of the -body of physicians during its continuance. He became -a member of the academy in 1699, and died on the -6th of January, 1731.</p> - -<p>The most important of all his chemical labours, and -for which he will always be remembered in the annals -of the science, was the contrivance which he fell upon, -in 1718, of exhibiting the order of chemical decompositions -under the form of a table.<a id="FNanchor_178" href="#Footnote_178" class="fnanchor">178</a> This method -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_244">244</span> -was afterwards much enlarged and improved. Such -tables are now usually known by the name of <i>tables -of affinity</i>; and, though they have been of late years -somewhat neglected, there can be but one opinion of -their importance when properly constructed.</p> - -<p>M. Geoffroy first communicated to the French chemists -the mode of making Prussian blue, as Dr. -Woodward did to the English.</p> - -<p>Claude Joseph Geoffroy, the younger brother of the -preceding, was also a member of the Academy of -Sciences, and a zealous cultivator of chemistry. Many -of his chemical papers are to be found in the memoirs -of the French Academy. He demonstrated the composition -of sal ammoniac, which however was known -to Glauber. He made many experiments upon the -combustion of the volatile oils, by pouring nitric acid -on them. He explained the pretended property which -certain waters have of converting iron into copper, by -showing that in such cases copper was held in solution -in the water by an acid, and that the iron merely -precipitated the copper, and was dissolved and combined -with the acid in its place. He pointed out the -constituents of the three vitriols, the green, the blue, -and the white; showing that the two former were -combinations of sulphuric acid with oxides of iron and -copper, and the latter a solution of lapis calaminaris -(<i>carbonate of zinc</i>) in the same acid. He has also a -memoir on the emeticity of antimony, tartar emetic, -and kermes mineral; but it is rather medical than -chemical. He determined experimentally the nature -of the salt of Seignette, or Rochelle salt, and showed -that it was obtained by saturating cream of tartar with -carbonate of soda, and crystallizing. It is curious that -this discovery was made about the same time by M. -Boulduc. I have noticed only a few of the papers of -M. Geoffroy, junior; because, though they all do him -credit, and contributed to the improvement of chemistry, -yet none of them contain any of those great -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_245">245</span> -discoveries, which stand as landmarks in the progress -of science, and constitute an era in the history of -mankind. For the same reason I omit several other -names that, in a more minute history of chemistry, -would deserve to be particularized. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_246">246</span></p> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<h2 id="CHAPTER_VIII">CHAPTER VIII.<br /> - -<span class="large">OF THE ATTEMPTS TO ESTABLISH A THEORY IN CHEMISTRY.</span></h2> - -<p>Bacon, Lord Verulam, as early as the commencement -of the 17th century, had pointed out the importance -of chemical investigations, and had predicted -the immense advantages which would result from the -science, when it came to be properly cultivated and -extended; but he did not himself attempt either to -construct a theory of chemistry, or even to extend it -beyond the bounds which it had reached before he -began to write. Neither did Boyle, notwithstanding -the importance of his investigations, and his comparative -freedom from the prejudices of the alchymists, -attempt any thing like a theory of chemistry; though -the observations which he made in his Sceptical Chemist, -had considerable effect in overturning, or at least -in hastening the downfall of the absurd chemical opinions -which at that time prevailed, and the puerile -hypotheses respecting the animal functions, and the -pathology and treatment of diseases founded on these -opinions. The first person who can with propriety be -said to have attempted to construct a theory of chemistry, -was Beccher.</p> - -<p>John Joachim Beccher, one of the most extraordinary -men of the age in which he lived, was born at -Spires, in Germany, in the year 1635. His father, as -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_247">247</span> -Beccher himself informs us, was a very learned Lutheran -preacher. As he lost his father when he was very -young, and as that part of Germany where he lived -had been ruined by the thirty years’ war, his family -was reduced to great poverty. However, his passion -for information was so great, that he contrived to -educate himself by studying what books he could -procure, and in this way acquired a great deal of -knowledge. Afterwards he travelled through the -greatest part of Germany, Italy, Sweden, and Holland.</p> - -<p>In the year 1666 he was appointed public professor -of medicine in the University of Mentz, and soon after -chief physician to the elector. In that capacity he -took up his residence in Munich, where he was furnished -by the elector with an excellent laboratory: -but he soon fell into difficulties, the nature of which -does not appear, and was obliged to leave the place. -He took refuge in Vienna, where, from his knowledge -of finance, he was appointed chamberlain to Count -Zinzendorf, and through him acquired so much importance -in the eyes of the court, that he was named -a member of the newly-erected College of Commerce, -and obtained the title of imperial commercial counsellor -and chamberlain. But here also he speedily -raised up so many enemies against himself, that he -found it necessary to leave Vienna, and to carry with -him his wife and children. He repaired to Holland, -and settled at Haerlem in 1678. Here he was likely to -have been successful; but his enemies from Vienna -followed him, and obliged him to leave Holland. In -1680 we find him in Great Britain, where he examined -the Scottish lead-mines, and smelting-works; and in -1681, and 1682, he traversed Cornwall, and studied -the mines and smelting-works of that great mining -county; here he suggested several improvements -and ameliorations. Soon after this an advantageous -proposal was made to him by the Duke of Mecklenburg -Gustrow, by means of Count Zinzendorf; but all -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_248">248</span> -his projects were arrested by his death, which took -place in the year 1682. It is said that he died in -London, but I have not been able to find any evidence -of this.</p> - -<p>It would be a difficult task to particularize his -various discoveries, which are scattered through a multiplicity -of writings. He was undoubtedly the first -discoverer of boracic acid, though the credit of the -discovery has usually been given to Homberg.<a id="FNanchor_179" href="#Footnote_179" class="fnanchor">179</a> But -then he gives no account of boracic acid, nor does he -seem to have attended to its qualities. The following -is a list of Beccher’s writings:</p> - -<p>1. Metallurgia, or the Natural Science of Metals.</p> - -<p>2. Institutiones Chymicæ.</p> - -<p>3. Parnassus Medicinalis illustrata.</p> - -<p>4. Œdipus Chymicus seu Institutiones Chymicæ.</p> - -<p>5. Acta laboratorii Chymici Monacensis seu Physica -Subterranea.—This, which is the most important of all -his works, is usually known by the name of “Physica -Subterranea.” This is the sole title affixed to it in the -edition published at Leipsic, in 1703, to which Stahl -has prefixed a long introduction. It is divided into -seven sections. In the first he treats of the creation -of the world; in the second he gives a chemical account -of the motions and changes which are constantly -going on in the earth; in the third he treats of the -three principles of all bodies, which he calls <i>earths</i>. -The first of these principles of metals and stones is the -<i>fusible</i> or <i>stony earth</i>; the second principle of minerals -is the <i>fat earth</i>, improperly called <i>sulphur</i>; the -third principle is the <i>fluid earth</i>, improperly called -<i>mercury</i>; in the fourth section he treats of the action -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_249">249</span> -of subterraneous principles, or the formation of <i>mixts</i>; -in the fifth he treats of the solution of the three -classes of mixts, animals, vegetables, and metals; -in the sixth he treats of <i>mixts</i>, in which he gives their -chemical constituents. This section is very curious, -because it gives Beccher’s views of the constitution of -compound bodies. It will be seen from it that he -had much more correct notions of the real objects of -chemistry, than any of his contemporaries. In the -seventh and last section he treats of the accidents and -physical affections of subterraneous bodies.</p> - -<p>6. Experimentum Chymicum novum quo artificialis -et instantanea metallorum generatio et transmutatio, -ad oculum demonstratur.—This constitutes the first -supplement to the Physica Subterranea.</p> - -<p>7. Supplementum secundum in Physicam subterraneam, -demonstratio philosophica seu Theses Chymicæ, -veritatem et possibilitatem transmutationis metallorum -in aurum evincentes.</p> - -<p>8. Trifolium Beccherianum Hollandicum.</p> - -<p>9. Experimentum novum et curiosum de Minera -arenaria perpetua, sive prodromus historiæ seu propositionis -Præp. D.D. Hollandiæ ordinibus ab authore -factæ, circa auri extractionem mediante arena littorali -per modum mineræ perpetuæ seu operationis magnæ -fusoriæ cum emolumento. Loco supplementi tertii in -Physicam suam subterraneam.</p> - -<p>10. Chemical Luckpot, or great chemical agreement; -in a collection of one thousand five hundred chemical -processes.</p> - -<p>11. Foolish Wisdom and wise Folly.</p> - -<p>12. Magnalia Naturæ.</p> - -<p>13. Tripus Hermeticus fatidicus pandens oracula -chemica; seu I. Laboratorium portatile, cum methodo -vere spagyricæ seu juxta exigentiam naturæ laborandi. -Accessit pro praxi et exemplo; II. Centrum mundi -concatenatum seu Duumviratus hermeticus s. magnorum -duorum productorum nitri et salis textura et anatomia -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_250">250</span> -atque in omnium præcedentium confirmationem -adjunctum est; III. Alphabetum Minerale seu viginti -quatuor theses de subterraneorum mineralium genesi, -textura et analysi; his accessit concordantia mercurii -lunæ et menstruorum.</p> - -<p>14. Chemical Rose-garden.</p> - -<p>15. Pantaleon delarvatus.</p> - -<p>16. Beccheri, Lancelotti, etc. Epistolæ quatuor Chemicæ.</p> - -<p>Beccher’s great merit was the contrivance of a chemical -theory, by which all the known facts were connected -together and deduced from one general principle. -But as this theory was adopted and considerably -modified by Stahl, it will be better to lay a sketch of -it before the reader, after mentioning a few particulars -of the life and labours of one of the most extraordinary -men whom Germany has produced; a man who, in -spite of the moroseness and haughtiness of his character, -and in spite of the barbarity of his style, raised -himself to the very first rank as a man of science; -and had the rare or almost unique fortune of giving -laws at the same time to two different and important -sciences, which he cultivated together, without letting -his opinions respecting the one influence him with -regard to the other. These sciences were chemistry -and medicine.</p> - -<p>George Ernest Stahl was born at Anspach, in the -year 1660. He studied medicine at Jena under -George Wolfgang Wedel; and got his doctor’s degree -at the age of twenty-three. Immediately after this he -began his career as a public lecturer. In 1687 the -Duke of Weimar gave him the title of physician to -the court. In 1694 he was named, at the solicitation -of Frederick Hoffmann, second professor of medicine -in the University of Halle, which had just been established. -Hoffmann and he were at that time great -friends, though they afterwards quarrelled. Both of -them were men of the very highest talents and both -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_251">251</span> -were the founders of medical systems which, of course, -each was anxious to support. Hoffmann had greatly -the superiority in elegance and clearness of style, -and in all the amenities of polite manners. But perhaps -the moroseness of Stahl, and the obscurity, or -rather mysticism of his style, contributed equally with -the more amiable qualities of Hoffmann to excite the -attention and produce the veneration with which he -was viewed by his pupils, and, indeed, by the world -at large.</p> - -<p>At Halle he continued as a teacher of medicine for -twenty-two years. In 1716 he was appointed physician -to the King of Prussia. In consequence of this -appointment he left Halle, and resided in Berlin, -where he died in the year 1734, in the seventy-fifth -year of his age. Notwithstanding the great figure -that Stahl made as a chemist, there is no evidence -that he ever taught that science in any public school. -The Berlin Academy had been founded under the superintendence -of Leibnitz, who was its first president; -and therefore existed when Stahl was in Berlin: but, -till it was renovated in 1745 by Frederick the Great, -this academy possessed but little activity, and could -scarcely, therefore, have stimulated Stahl to attend -to chemical science. However, his Chymia rationalis -et experimentalis was published in 1720, while he resided -in Berlin. The same date is appended to the -preface of his Fundamenta Chymiæ; but, from some -expressions in that preface, it must, I should think, -have been written, not by Stahl, but by some other -person.<a id="FNanchor_180" href="#Footnote_180" class="fnanchor">180</a> I suspect that the book had been written by -some of his pupils, from the lectures of the author -while at Halle. If this was really the case, it is obvious -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_252">252</span> -that Stahl must have taught chemistry as well as -medicine in the University of Halle.</p> - -<p>Stahl’s medical theory is not less deserving of notice -than his chemical. But it is not the object of this -work to enter into medical speculations. Like Van -Helmont, he resolved all diseases into the actions of -the <i>soul</i>, which was not merely the former of the body, -but its ruler and regulator. When any of the functions -are deranged, the soul exerts itself to restore -them again to their healthy state; and she accomplishes -this by what in common language is called -disease. The business of a medical man, then, is not -to prevent diseases, or to stop them short when they -appear; because they are the efforts of the soul, the -<i>vis medicatrix naturæ</i>, to restore the deranged state of -the functions: but he must watch these diseases, and -prevent the symptoms from becoming too violent. He -must assist nature to produce the intended effect, and -check her exertions when they become abnormal. It -was a kind of modification of this theory, or rather a -mixture of the Stahlian and Hoffmannian theories, that -Dr. Cullen afterwards taught in Edinburgh with so -much eclat. And these opinions, so far as medical -theories have any influence on practice, still continue -in some measure prevalent. Indeed, much of the -vulgar practice followed by medical men, chiefly in -consequence of the education which they have received, -is deduced from these two theories. But -it would be too great a digression from the object -of this work to enter into any details: suffice it to -say, that the rival theories of Hoffmann and Stahl for -many years divided the medical world in Germany, if -not in the greater part of Europe. It was no small -matter of exultation to so young a medical school as -Halle, to have at once within its walls two such eminent -teachers as Hoffmann and Stahl.</p> - -<p>Let us turn our attention to the chemical writings of -Stahl. Of these the most important is his Fundamenta -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_253">253</span> -Chymiæ dogmaticæ et experimentalis. It is divided, -like the chemistry of Boerhaave, into a theoretical and -practical part. The perusal of it is very disagreeable, -as it is full of German words and phrases, and symbols -are almost constantly substituted for words, as was at -that time the custom.</p> - -<p>His definition of chemistry is much more exact -than Boerhaave’s. It is, according to him, the art of -resolving compound bodies into their constituents, and -of again forming them by uniting these constituents -together.</p> - -<p>He is inclined to believe with Beccher, that the -simple principles are four in number. The <i>mixts</i> are -compounds of these principles; and he shows by the -doctrine of permutations that if we suppose the simple -principles four, then the number of mixts will be -40,340. He treats in the first place of <i>mixts</i>, <i>compounds</i>, -and <i>aggregates</i>.</p> - -<p>The first object of chemistry is <i>corruption</i>, the second -<i>generation</i>. Of these he treats at considerable -length, giving an account of the different chemical -processes, and of the apparatus employed.</p> - -<p>He next treats of <i>salts</i>, which he defines mixts -composed of water and earth, both simple and pure, -and intimately united. The salts are vitriol, alum, -nitre, common salt, and sal ammoniac. He next treats -of more compound salts. These are sugar, tartar, salts -from the animal and salts from the mineral kingdom, -and quicklime.</p> - -<p>After this comes sulphur, cinnabar, antimony, the -sulphur of vitriol, the sulphur of nitre, resins, and -distilled oils. Then he treats of water, which he divides -into aqua <i>humida</i> or common water, and aqua -<i>sicca</i> or mercury. Next he treats of earths, which -are of two kinds, viz., <i>friable earths</i>, such as <i>clay</i>, -<i>loam</i>, sand, &c., and metallic earths constituting the -bases of the metals.</p> - -<p>He next treats of the metals; and, as a preliminary, -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_254">254</span> -we have a description of the method of smelting, and -operating upon the different metals. The metals are -then described successively in the following order: -Gold, silver, copper, iron, tin, lead, bismuth, zinc, -antimony.</p> - -<p>To this part of the system are added three sections. -The first treats of mercuries, the second of the philosopher’s -stone, and the third of the universal medicine. -We must not suppose that Stahl was a believer in these -ideal compositions; his object is merely to give a -history of the different processes which had been recommended -by the alchymists.</p> - -<p>The second part of his work is divided into two -<i>tracts</i>. The first tract contains three sections. The first -of these treats of the nature of solids and fluids, of solutions -and menstrua, of the effects of heat and fire, -of effervescence and boiling, of volatilization, of fusion -and liquefaction, of distillation, of precipitation, -of calcination and incineration, of detonation, of -amalgamation, of crystallization and inspissation, and -of the fixity and firmness of bodies. In the second -section we have an account of salts, and of their -generation and transmutation, of sulphur and inflammability, -of phosphorus, of colours, and of the -nature of metals and minerals. In this article he -gives short definitions of these bodies, and shows how -they may be known. The bodies thus defined are -gold, silver, iron, copper, lead, tin, mercury, antimony, -sulphur, arsenic, vitriol, common salt, nitre, -alum, sal ammoniac, alkalies, and salts; viz., muriatic -acid, sulphuric, nitric, and sulphurous.</p> - -<p>In the third section he treats of the method of reducing -metallic calces, of the mode of separating metals -from their scoriæ, of the mode of making artificial -gems, and finally of the mode of giving copper a -golden colour.</p> - -<p>The second tract is divided into two parts. The first -part is subdivided into four sections. In the first -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_255">255</span> -section he treats of the instruments of chemical motion, -of fire, of air, of water, of the most subtile earth or -salt. In the second section he treats <i>de subjectis</i>, under -the several heads of dissolving aggregates, of triturations -and solutions, and of calcinations and combustions. -In the third section he treats of the object of -chemistry under the following heads: Of chemical -corruption, consisting of compounds from liquids, of -the separation of solids and fluids, of mixts, of the -solution of compounds from solids. In the fourth -section he treats of fermentation.</p> - -<p>The second part of this second tract treats of chemical -generation, and is divided into two sections. In -the first section he treats of the aggregate collection -of bodies into fluids and solids. The section treats of -compositions under the heads of volatile and solid -bodies. He gives in the last article an account of the -combination of mixts.</p> - -<p>The third and last part of this elaborate work discusses -three subjects; viz. <i>zymotechnia</i> or <i>fermentation</i>, -<i>halotechnia</i>, or the production and properties of salts, -and <i>pyrotechnia</i>, in which the whole of the Stahlian -doctrine of <i>phlogiston</i> is developed. This third part -has all the appearance of having been notes written -down by some person during the lectures of Stahl: for -it consists of alternate sentences of Latin and German. -It is not at all likely that Stahl himself would -have produced such a piebald work; but if he lectured -in Latin, as was at that time the universal custom, -it was natural for a person occupied in taking -down the lectures, to write as far as was possible in -Latin, but when any of the Latin phrases were lost, or -did not immediately occur to memory, it were equally -natural to write down the meaning of what the professor -stated in the language most familiar to the -writer, which was undoubtedly the German.</p> - -<p>Another of Stahl’s works is entitled “Opusculum -Chymico-physico-medicum,” published at Halle in a -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_256">256</span> -thick quarto volume, in the year 1715. It contains a -great number of tracts, partly chemical and partly -medical, which it is needless to specify. Perhaps the -most curious of them all is his dissertation to show the -way in which Moses ground the golden calf to powder, -dissolved it in water, and obliged the children of Israel -to drink it. He shows that a solution of hepar sulphuris -(<i>sulphuret of potassium</i>), has the property of -dissolving gold, and he draws as a conclusion from his -experiments that this was the artifice employed by -Moses. We have in the same volume a pretty detailed -treatise on metallurgic pyrotechny and docimasy. This -is the more curious, because Stahl never appears to -have frequented the mines and smelting-houses of -Germany. He must, therefore, have drawn his information -from books and from experiment.</p> - -<p>Another of his books is entitled “Experimenta, Observationes, -Animadversiones, CCC. Numero.” An -octavo volume, printed at Berlin in 1731. Another of -his books is entitled “Specimen Beccherianum.” There -are also two chemical books of Stahl, which I have -seen only in a French translation, viz., <i>Traité de -Soufre</i> and <i>Traité de Sels</i>. These are the only chemical -writings of Stahl that I have seen. There are -probably others; indeed I have seen the titles of several -other chemical works ascribed to him. But as it -is doubtful whether he really wrote them or not, I -think it unnecessary to specify them here.</p> - -<p>Stahl’s writings evince the great progress which -chemistry had made even since the time of Beccher. -But it is difficult to say what particular new facts, -which appear first in his writings were discovered by -himself, and what by others. I shall not, therefore, -attempt any enumeration of them. His reasoning is -more subtile, and his views much more extensive and -profound than those of his predecessors. The great -improvement which he introduced into chemistry was -the employment of <i>phlogiston</i>, to explain the phenomena -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_257">257</span> -of combustion and calcination. This theory -had been originally broached by Beccher, from whom -Stahl evidently borrowed it, but he improved and simplified -it so much that the whole credit of it was given -to him. It was called the Stahlian theory, and raised -him to the highest rank among chemists. The sole -objects of chemists for thirty or forty years after his -time was to illucidate and extend his theory. It applied -so happily to all the known facts, and was supported -by experiments, which appeared so decisive that nobody -thought of calling it in question, or of interrogating -nature in any other way than he had pointed -out. It will be requisite, therefore, before proceeding -further with this historical sketch, to lay the outlines -of the phlogistic theory before the reader.</p> - -<p>It was conceived by Beccher and Stahl that all -<i>combustible</i> bodies are compounds. One of the constituents -they supposed to be dissipated during the -combustion, while the other constituent remained behind. -Now when combustible bodies are subjected to -combustion, some of them leave an acid behind them; -while others leave a fixed powdery matter, possessing -the properties of an <i>earth</i>, and called usually the -<i>calx</i> of the combustible body. The metals are the -substances which leave a calx behind them when -burnt, and sulphur and phosphorus leave an acid. -With respect to those bodies that would not burn, -chemists did not speculate much at first; but afterwards -they came to think that they consisted of the -fixed substance that remained after combustion. -Hence the conclusion was natural, that they had -already undergone combustion. Thus quicklime -possessed properties very similar to the calces of metals. -It was natural, therefore, to consider it as a calx, and -to believe that if the matter dissipated during combustion -could be again restored, lime would be converted -into a substance similar to the metals.</p> - -<p>Combustibility then, according to this view of the -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_258">258</span> -subject, depends upon a principle or material substance, -existing in every combustible body, and dissipated -during the combustion. This substance was -considered to be absolutely the same in all combustible -bodies whatever; hence the difference between -combustible bodies proceeded from the other principle -or number of principles with which this common substance -is combined. In consequence of this identity -Stahl invented the term <i>phlogiston</i>, by which he denoted -this common principle of combustible bodies. -Inflammation, with the several phenomena that attend -it, depended on the gradual separation of this principle, -which being once separated, what remained of -the body could no longer be an inflammable substance, -but must be similar to the other kinds of matter. It -was this opinion that combustibility is owing to the -presence of phlogiston, and inflammation to its escape, -that constituted the peculiar theory of Beccher, and -which was afterwards illustrated by Stahl with so much -clearness, and experiments to prove its truth were advanced -by him of so much force, that it came to be -distinguished by the name of the Stahlian theory.</p> - -<p>The identity of phlogiston in all combustible bodies -was founded upon observations and experiments of so -decisive a nature, that after the existence of the principle -itself was admitted, they could not fail to be -satisfactory. When phosphorus is made to burn it gives -out a strong flame, much heat is evolved, and the phosphorus -is dissipated in a white smoke: but if the combustion -be conducted within a glass vessel of a proper -shape, this white smoke will be deposited on the inside -of the glass; it quickly absorbs moisture from the atmosphere, -and runs into an acid liquid, known by the name -of phosphoric acid. If this liquid be put into a platinum -crucible, and gradually heated to redness, the water -is dissipated, and a substance remains which, on cooling, -congeals into a transparent colourless body like -glass: this is dry <i>phosphoric</i> acid. If now we mix -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_259">259</span> -phosphoric acid with a quantity of charcoal powder, -and heat it sufficiently in a glass retort, taking care to -exclude the external air, a <i>portion</i> or the <i>whole</i> of the -charcoal will disappear, and phosphorus will be formed -possessed of the same properties that it had before -it was subjected to combustion. The conclusion deduced -from this process appeared irresistible; the -charcoal, or a portion of it, had combined with the -phosphoric acid, and both together had constituted -phosphorus.</p> - -<p>Now, in changing phosphoric acid into phosphorus, -we may employ almost any kind of combustible substance -that we please, provided it be capable of bearing -the requisite heat; they will all equally answer, -and will all convert the acid into phosphorus. Instead -of charcoal we may take lamp-black, or sugar, or resin, -or even several of the metals. Hence it was concluded -that all of these bodies contain a common principle -which they communicate to the phosphoric acid; -and since the new body formed is in all cases identical, -the principle communicated must also be identical. -Hence combustible bodies contain an identical principle, -and this principle is phlogiston.</p> - -<p>Sulphur by burning is converted into sulphuric acid; -and if sulphuric acid be heated with charcoal, or phosphorus, -or even sulphur, it is again converted into -sulphur. Several of the metals produce the same -effect. The reasoning here was the same as with -regard to phosphoric acid, and the conclusion was -similar.</p> - -<p>When lead is kept nearly at a red heat in the open -air for some time, being constantly stirred to expose -new surfaces to the air, it is converted into the beautiful -pigment called <i>red lead</i>; this is a calx of lead. -To restore this calx again to the state of metallic lead, -we have only to heat it in contact with almost any combustible -matter whatever. Pit-coal, peat, charcoal, -sugar, flour, iron, zinc, &c., all these bodies then must -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_260">260</span> -contain one common principle, which they communicate -to red lead, and by so doing convert it into lead. -This common principle is phlogiston.</p> - -<p>These examples are sufficient to show the reader the -way in which Stahl proved the identity of phlogiston -in all combustible bodies. And the demonstration -was considered as so complete that the opinion was -adopted by every chemist without exception.</p> - -<p>When we inquire further, and endeavour to learn -what qualities phlogiston was supposed to have in its -separate state, we find this part of the subject very -unsatisfactory, and the opinions very unsettled. Beccher -and Stahl represented phlogiston as a dry substance, -or of an earthy nature, the particles of which -are exquisitely subtile, and very much disposed to be -agitated and set in motion with inconceivable velocity. -This was called by Stahl <i>motus verticillaris</i>. When -the particles of any body are agitated with this kind of -motion, the body exhibits the phenomena of heat -or ignition, or inflammation, according to the violence -and rapidity of the motion.</p> - -<p>This very crude opinion of the earthy nature of -phlogiston, appears to have been deduced from the -insolubility of most combustible substances in water. -If we except alcohol, and ether, and gums, very few -of them are capable of being dissolved in that liquid. -Thus the metals, sulphur, phosphorus, oils, resins, bitumens, -charcoal, &c., are well known to be insoluble. -Now, at the time that Beccher and Stahl lived, insolubility -in water was considered as a character peculiar -to earthy bodies; and as those bodies which contain -a great deal of phlogiston are insoluble in water, -though the other constituents be very soluble in that -liquid, it was natural enough to conclude that phlogiston -itself was of an earthy nature.</p> - -<p>But though the opinions of chemists about the nature -and properties of phlogiston in a separate state -were unsettled, no doubts were entertained respecting -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_261">261</span> -its existence, and respecting its identity in all combustible -bodies. Its presence or its absence produced -almost all the changes which bodies undergo. Hence -chemistry and combustion came to be in some measure -identified, and a theory of combustion was considered -as the same thing with a theory of chemistry.</p> - -<p>Metals were compounds of <i>calces</i> and phlogiston. -The different species of metals depend upon the different -species of calx which each contains; for there -are as many <i>calces</i> (each simple and peculiar) as there -are metals. These calces are capable of uniting with -phlogiston in indefinite proportions. The calx united -to a little phlogiston still retains its earthy appearance—a -certain additional portion restores the calx to the -state of a metal. An enormous quantity of phlogiston -with which some calces, as calx of manganese, are -capable of combining, destroys the metallic appearance -of the body, and renders it incapable of dissolving -in acids.</p> - -<p>The affinity between a metallic calx and phlogiston -is strong; but the facility of union is greatly promoted -when the calx still retains a little phlogiston. If we -drive off the whole phlogiston we can scarcely unite -the calx with phlogiston again, or bring it back to the -state of a metal: hence the extreme difficulty of reducing -the calx of zinc, and even the red calx of iron.</p> - -<p>The various colours of bodies are owing to phlogiston, -and these colours vary with every alteration in the -proportion of phlogiston present.</p> - -<p>It was observed very early that when a metal was -converted into a calx its weight was increased. But -this, though known to Beecher and Stahl, does not -seem to have had any effect on their opinions. Boyle, -who does not seem to have been aware of the phlogistic -theory, though it had been broached before his -death, relates an experiment on tin which he made. -He put a given weight of it into an open glass vessel, -and kept it melted on the fire till a certain portion of -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_262">262</span> -it was converted into a calx: it was now found to -have increased considerably in weight. This experiment -he relates in order to prove the materiality of -heat: in his opinion a certain quantity of heat had -united to the tin and occasioned the increase of weight. -This opinion of Boyle was incompatible with the Stahlian -theory: for the tin had not only increased in -weight, but had been converted into a calx. It was -therefore the opinion of Boyle that calx of tin was a -combination of <i>tin</i> and <i>heat</i>. It could not consequently -be true that calx of tin was tin deprived of phlogiston.</p> - -<p>When this difficulty struck the phlogistians, which -was not till long after the time of Stahl, they endeavoured -to evade it by assigning new properties to -phlogiston. According to them it is not only destitute -of weight, but endowed with a principle of levity. -In consequence of this property, a body containing -phlogiston is always lighter than it would otherwise be, -and it becomes heavier when the phlogiston makes its -escape: hence the reason why calx of tin is heavier -than the same tin in the metallic state. The increase -of weight is not owing, as Boyle believed, to the -fixation of heat in the tin, but to the escape of phlogiston -from it.</p> - -<p>Those philosophic chemists, who thus refined upon -the properties of phlogiston, did not perceive that by -endowing it with a principle of levity, they destroyed -all the other characters which they had assigned to it. -What is gravity? Is it not an attraction by means of -which bodies are drawn towards each other, and remain -united? And is there any reason for supposing that -chemical attraction differs in its nature from the other -kinds of attraction which matter possesses? If, then, -phlogiston be destitute of gravity, it cannot possess -any attraction for other bodies; if it be endowed with -a principle of levity, it must have the property of -repelling other bodies, for that is the only meaning -that can be attached to the term. But if phlogiston -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_263">263</span> -has the property of repelling all other substances, how -comes it to be fixed in combustible bodies? It must -be united to the calces or the acids, which constitute -the other principle of these bodies; and it could not -be united, and remain united, unless a principle of -attraction existed between it and these bases; that is -to say, unless it possessed a principle the very opposite -of levity.</p> - -<p>Thus the fact, that calces are heavier than the metals -from which they are formed, in reality overturned the -whole doctrine of phlogiston; and the only reason -why the doctrine continued to be admitted after the -fact was known is, that in these early days of chemistry, -the balance was scarcely ever employed in -experimenting: hence alterations in weight were little -attended to or entirely overlooked. We shall see -afterwards, that when Lavoisier introduced a more -accurate mode of experimenting, and rendered it necessary -to compare the original weights of the substances -employed, with the weights of the products, -he made use of this very experiment of Boyle, and a -similar one made with mercury, to overturn the whole -doctrine of phlogiston.</p> - -<p>The phlogistic school being thus founded by Stahl, -in Berlin, a race of chemists succeeded him in that -capital, who contributed in no ordinary degree to the -improvement of the science. The most deservedly -celebrated of these were Neumann, Pott, Margraaf, and -Eller.</p> - -<p>Caspar Neumann was born at Zullichau, in Germany, -in 1682. He was early received into favour by -the King of Prussia, and travelled at the expense of -that monarch into Holland, England, France, and -Italy. During these travels he had an opportunity of -making a personal acquaintance with the most eminent -men of science in all the different countries which he -visited. On his return home, in 1724, he was appointed -professor of chemistry in the Royal College of Physic -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_264">264</span> -and Surgery at Berlin, where he delivered a course of -lectures annually. During the remainder of his life -he enjoyed the situation of superintendent of the Royal -Laboratory, and apothecary to the King of Prussia. -He died in 1737. He was a Fellow of the Royal -Society, and several papers of his appeared in the -Transactions of that learned body. The following is -a list of these papers, all of which were written in -Latin:</p> - -<p>1. Disquisitio de camphora.</p> - -<p>2. De experimento probandi spiritum vini Gallici, -per quam usitato, sed revera falso et fallaci.</p> - -<p>Some merchants in Holland, England, Hamburg, -and Dantzic, were in possession of what they considered -an infallible test to distinguish French brandy -from every other kind of spirit. It was a dusky yellowish -liquid. When one or two drops of it were let -fall into a glass of French brandy, a beautiful blue -colour appeared at the bottom of the glass, and when -the brandy is stirred, the whole liquid becomes azure. -But if the spirit tried be malt spirit, no such colour -appears in the glass. Neumann ascertained that the -test liquid was merely a solution of sulphate of iron -in water, and that the blue colour was the consequence -of the brandy having been kept in oak casks, and thus -having dissolved a portion of tannin. Every spirit -will exhibit the same colour, if it has been kept in oak -casks.</p> - -<p>3. De salibus alkalino-fixis.</p> - -<p>4. De camphora thymi.</p> - -<p>5. De ambragrysea.</p> - -<p>His other papers, published in Germany, are the following:</p> - -<h3>In the Ephemerides.</h3> - -<p>1. De oleo distillato formicorum æthereo.</p> - -<p>2. De albumine ovi succino simili.</p> - -<h3>In the Miscellania Berolinensia.</h3> - -<p>1. Meditationes in binas observationes de aqua per -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_265">265</span> -putrefactionem rubra, vulgo pro tali in sanguinem -versa habita.</p> - -<p>2. Succincta relatio exactis Pomeraniis de prodigio -sanguinis in palude viso.</p> - -<p>3. De prodigio sanguinis ex Pomeranio nunciato.</p> - -<p>4. Disquisitio de camphora.</p> - -<p>5. De experimento probandi spiritum vini Gallicum.</p> - -<p>6. De spiritu urinoso caustico.</p> - -<p>7. Demonstratio syrupum violarum ad probanda -liquida non sufficere.</p> - -<p>8. Examen correctionis olei raparum.</p> - -<p>9. De vi caustica et conversione salium alkalino-fixorum -aëri expositorum in salia neutra.</p> - -<h3>He published separately,</h3> - -<p>1. De salibus alkalino-fixis et camphora.</p> - -<p>2. De succino, opio, caryophyllis aromaticis et -castoreo.</p> - -<p>3. On saltpetre, sulphur, antimony, and iron.</p> - -<p>4. On tea, coffee, beer, and wine.</p> - -<p>5. Disquisitio de ambragrysea.</p> - -<p>6. On common salt, tartar, sal ammoniac and ants.</p> - -<p>After Neumann’s death, two copies of his chemical -lectures were published. The first consisting of notes -taken by one of his pupils, intermixed with incoherent -compilations from other authors, was printed at Berlin -in 1740. The other was printed by the booksellers of -the Orphan Hospital of Zullichau (the place of Neumann’s -birth), and is said to have been taken from the -original papers in the author’s handwriting. Of this -last an excellent translation, with many additions and -corrections, was published by Dr. Lewis, in London, -in the year 1759; it was entitled, “The Chemical -Works of Caspar Neumann, M.D., Professor of Chemistry -at Berlin, F.R.S., &c. Abridged and methodized; -with large additions, containing the later -discoveries and improvements made in Chemistry, and -the arts depending thereon. By William Lewis, M.B., -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_266">266</span> -F.R.S. London, 1759.” This is an excellent book, -and contains many things that still retain their value, -notwithstanding the improvements which have been -made since in every department of chemistry.</p> - -<p>I have reason to believe that the laborious part of -this translation and compilation was made by Mr. -Chicholm, whom Dr. Lewis employed as his assistant. -Mr. Chicholm, when a young man, went to London -from Aberdeen, where he had studied at the university, -and acquired a competent knowledge of Greek -and Latin, but no means of supporting himself. On -his arrival in London, one of the first things that struck -his attention was a Greek book, placed open against -the pane of a bookseller’s window. Chicholm went up -to the window, at which he continued standing till he -had perused the whole Greek page thus exposed to -his view. Dr. Lewis happened to be in the shop: he -had been looking out for a young man whom he could -employ to take charge of his laboratory, and manage -his processes, and who should possess sufficient intelligence -to read chemical works for him, and collect -out of each whatever deserved to be known, either -from its novelty or ingenuity. The appearance and -manners of Chicholm struck him, and made him think -of him as a man likely to answer the purposes which -he had in view. He called him into the shop, and -after some conversation with him, took him home, -and kept him all his life as his assistant and operator. -Chicholm was a laborious and painstaking man, and -by continually working in Lewis’s laboratory, soon -acquired a competent knowledge of chemistry. He -compiled several manuscript volumes, partly consisting -of his own experiments, and partly of collections from -other authors. At Dr. Lewis’s death, all his books -were sold by auction, and these manuscript volumes -among the rest. They were purchased by Mr. Wedgewood, -senior, who at the same time took Mr. Chicholm -into his service, and gave him the charge of his own -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_267">267</span> -laboratory. It was Mr. Chicholm that was the constructor -of the well-known piece of apparatus known -by the name of Wedgewood’s pyrometer. After his -death the instrument continued still to be constructed -for some time; but so many complaints were made of -the unequal contraction of the pieces, that Mr. Wedgewood, -junior, who had succeeded to the pottery in consequence -of the death of his father, put an end to the -manufacture of them altogether.</p> - -<p>John Henry Pott was born at Halberstadt, in the -year 1692. He was a scholar of Hoffmann and Stahl, -and from this last he seems to have imbibed his taste -for chemistry. He settled at Berlin, where he became -assessor of the Royal College of Medicine and Surgery, -inspector of medicines, superintendent of the Royal -Laboratory, and dean of the Academy of Sciences of -Berlin. He was chosen professor of theoretical chemistry -at Berlin; and on the death of Neumann, in -1737, he succeeded him as professor of practical chemistry. -He was beyond question the most learned -and laborious chemist of his day. His erudition, indeed, -was very great; and his historical introductions -to his dissertation displays the extent of his reading -on every subject of which he had occasion to treat. -It has often struck me that the historical introductions -which Bergmann has prefixed to his papers, are several -of them borrowed from Pott. The Lithogeognosia of -Pott is one of the most extraordinary productions of -the age in which he lived. It was the result of a request -of the King of Prussia, to discover the ingredients -of which Saxon porcelain was made. Mr. Pott, not -being able to procure any satisfactory information relative -to the nature of the substances employed at -Dresden, resolved to undertake a chemical examination -of all the substances that were likely to be employed -in such a manufacture. He tried the effect of -fire upon all the stones, earths, and minerals, that he -could procure, both separately and mixed together in -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_268">268</span> -various proportions. He made at least thirty thousand -experiments in six years, and laid the foundation for a -chemical knowledge of these bodies.<a id="FNanchor_181" href="#Footnote_181" class="fnanchor">181</a> It is to this work -of Pott that we are indebted for our knowledge of the -effects of heat upon various earthy bodies, and upon -mixtures of them. Thus he found that pure white -clay, or mixtures of pure clay and quartz-sand, would -not fuse at any temperature which he could produce; -but clay, mixed with lime or with oxide of iron, enters -speedily into fusion. Clay also fuses with its own weight -of borax; it forms a compact mass with half its weight, -and does not concrete into a hard body when mixed with -a third of its weight of that salt. Clay fuses easily -with fluor spar; it fuses, also, with twice its weight of -protoxide of lead, and with its own weight of sulphate of -lime, but with no other proportion tried. It was a knowledge -of these mutual actions of bodies on each other, -when exposed to heat, that gradually led to the methods -of examining minerals by the blowpipe. These -methods were brought to the present state of perfection -by Assessor Gahn, of Fahlun, the result of whose labours -has been published by Berzelius, in his treatise -on the blowpipe. Pott died in 1777, in the eighty-fifth -year of his age.</p> - -<p>His different chemical works (his Lithogeognosia excepted) -were collected and translated into French by -M. Demachy, in the year 1759, and published in four -small octavo volumes. The chemical papers contained -in these volumes are thirty-two in number. Some of -these papers cannot but appear somewhat extraordinary -to a modern chemist: for example, M. Duhamel had -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_269">269</span> -published in the memoirs of the French Academy, in -the year 1737, a set of experiments on common salt, -from which he deduced that its basis was a fixed alkali, -which possessed properties different from those -of potash, and which of course required to be distinguished -by a peculiar name. It is sufficiently known -that the term <i>soda</i> was afterwards applied to this alkali; -by which name it is known at present. Pott, -in a very elaborate and long dissertation on the base -of common salt, endeavours to refute these opinions -of Duhamel. The subject was afterwards taken up -by Margraaf, who demonstrated, by decisive experiments, -that the base of common salt is <i>soda</i>; and that -soda differs essentially in its properties from potash.</p> - -<p>Pott’s dissertation on <i>bismuth</i> is of considerable -value. He collects in it the statements and opinions -of all preceding writers on this metal, and describes -its properties with considerable accuracy and minuteness. -The same observations apply to his dissertation -on zinc.</p> - -<p>John Theodore Eller, of Brockuser, was born on -the 29th of November, 1689, at Pletzkau, in the principality -of Anhalt Bernburg. He was the fourth -son of Jobst Hermann Eller, a man of a respectable -family, whose ancestors were proprietors of considerable -estates in Westphalia and the Netherlands. -Young Eller received the rudiments of his education -in his father’s house, from which he went to the University -of Quedlinburg; and from thence to the -University of Jena, in 1709. He was sent thither to -study law; but his passion was for natural philosophy, -which led him to devote himself to the study of medicine. -From Jena he went to Halle, and finally to -Leyden, attracted by the reputation of the older Albinus, -of Professor Sengerd and the celebrated Boerhaave, -at that time in the height of his reputation. -The only practical anatomist then in Leyden, was -M. Bidloo, an old man of eighty, and of course -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_270">270</span> -unfit for teaching. This induced Eller to repair to -Amsterdam, to study under Rau, and to inspect the -anatomical museum of Ruysch. Bidloo soon dying, -Rau was appointed his successor at Leyden, whither -Eller followed him, and dissected under him till the -year 1716. After taking his degree at Leyden, Eller -returned to Germany, and devoted a considerable -time to the study and examination of the mines of -Saxony and the Hartz, and of the metallurgic processes -connected with these mines. From these mines -he repaired to France, and resumed his anatomical -studies under Du Verney and Winslow. Chemistry -also attracted a good deal of his attention, and he frequented -the laboratories of Grosse, Lemery, Bolduc, -and Homberg, at that time the most eminent chemists -in Paris.</p> - -<p>From Paris he repaired to London, where he formed -an acquaintance with the numerous medical men of -eminence who at that time adorned this capital. On -returning to Germany in 1721, he was appointed physician -to Prince Victor Frederick of Anhalt Bernburg. -From Bernburg he went to Magdeburg; and the -King of Prussia called him to Berlin in 1724, to teach -anatomy in the great anatomic theatre which had been -just erected. Soon after he was appointed physician -to the king, a counsellor and professor in the Royal -Medico-Chirurgical College, which had been just -founded in Berlin. He was also appointed dean of -the Superior College of Medicine, and physician to -the army and to the great Hospital of Frederick. In -the year 1755 Frederick the Great made him a privy-counsellor, -which is the highest rank that a medical -man can attain in Prussia. The same year he was -made director of the Royal Academy of Sciences of -Berlin. He died in the year 1760, in the seventy-first -year of his age. He was twice married, and his second -wife survived him.</p> - -<p>Many chemical papers of Eller are to be found in -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_271">271</span> -the memoirs of the Berlin Academy. They were of -sufficient importance, at the time when he published -them, to add considerably to his reputation, though -not sufficiently so to induce me to give a catalogue of -them here. I am not aware of any chemical discovery -for which we are indebted to him; but have been induced -to give this brief notice of him, because he is -usually associated with Pott and Margraaf, making -with them the three celebrated chemists who adorned -Berlin, during the splendid reign of Frederick the -Great.</p> - -<p>Andrew Sigismund Margraaf was born in Berlin, -in the year 1709, and acquired the first principles -of chemistry from his father, who was an apothecary -in that city. He afterwards studied under Neumann, -and travelling in quest of information to Frankfort, -Strasburg, Halle, and Freyburg, he returned to Berlin -enriched with all the knowledge of his favourite -science which at that time existed. In 1760, on the -death of Eller, he was made director of the physical -class of the Berlin Academy of Sciences. He died -in the year 1782, in the seventy-third year of his -age. He gradually acquired a brilliant reputation -in consequence of the numerous chemical papers -which he successively published, each of which usually -contained a new chemical fact, of more or less importance, -deduced from a set of experiments generally -satisfactory and convincing. His papers have a greater -resemblance to those of Scheele than of any other -chemist to whom we can compare them. He may -be considered as in some measure the beginner of -chemical analysis; for, before his time, the chemical -analysis of bodies had hardly been attempted. His -methods, as might have been expected, were not very -perfect; nor did he attempt numerical results. His -experiments on phosphorus and on the method of -extracting it from urine are valuable; they communicated -the first accurate notions relative to this -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_272">272</span> -substance and to phosphoric acid. He first determined -the properties of the earth of alum, now known -by the name of <i>alumina</i>; showed that it differed from -every other, and that it existed in clay, and gave -to that substance its peculiar properties. He demonstrated -the peculiar nature of soda, the base of -common salt, which Pott had called in question, and -thus verified the conclusions of Duhamel. He gives -an easy process for obtaining pure silver from the -chloride of that metal: his method is to dissolve -the pure chloride of silver in a solution of caustic -ammonia, and to put into the liquid a sufficient -quantity of pure mercury; the silver is speedily reduced -and converted into an amalgam, and when this -amalgam is exposed to a red heat the mercury is -driven off and pure silver remains. The usual method -of reducing the chloride of silver is to heat it in a -crucible with a sufficient quantity of carbonate of -potash, a process which was first recommended by -Kunkel. But it is scarcely possible to prevent the -loss of a portion of the silver when the chloride is -reduced in this way. The modern process is undoubtedly -the simplest and the best, to reduce it -by means of hydrogen. If a few pieces of zinc be -put into the bottom of a beer-glass and some dilute -sulphuric acid be poured over it an effervescence -takes place, and hydrogen gas is disengaged. Chloride -of silver, placed above the zinc in the same -glass, is speedily reduced by this hydrogen and converted -into metallic silver.</p> - -<p>Margraaf’s chemical papers, down to the time of -publication, were collected together, translated into -French and published at Paris in the year 1762, -in two very small octavo volumes, they consist of -twenty-six different papers: some of the most curious -and important of which are those that have been -just particularized. Several other papers written by -him appeared in the memoirs of the Berlin Academy, -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_273">273</span> -after this collection of his works was published, particularly -“A demonstration of the possibility of drawing -fixed alkaline salts from tartar by means of acids, -without employing the action of a violent fire.” It -was this paper, probably, that led Scheele, a few -years after, to his well-known method of obtaining -tartaric acid, a modification of which is still followed -by manufacturers.</p> - -<p>“Observations concerning a remarkable volatilization -of a portion of a kind of stone known by the -names of flosse, flusse, fluor spar, and likewise by that -of hesperos: which volatilization was effectuated by -means of acids.” Pott had already shown the value -of fluor spar as a flux. Three years after the appearance -of Margraaf’s paper, Scheele discovered the -nature of fluor spar, and first drew the attention of -chemists to the peculiar properties of fluoric acid.</p> - -<p>In France, in consequence chiefly of the regulations -established in the Academy of Sciences, in the -year 1699, a race of chemists always existed, whose -specific object was to cultivate chemistry, and extend -and improve it. The most eminent of these chemical -labourers, after the Stahlian theory was fully admitted -in France till its credit began to be shaken, -were Reaumur, Hellot, Duhamel, Rouelle, and Macquer. -Besides these, who were the chief chemists -in the academy, there were a few others to whom -we are indebted for chemical discoveries that deserve -to be recorded.</p> - -<p>René Antoine Ferchault, Esq., Seigneur de Reaumur, -certainly one of the most extraordinary men -of his age, was born at Rochelle, in 1683. He went -to the school of Rochelle, and afterwards studied -philosophy under the Jesuits at Poitiers. Hence he -went to Bourges, to which one of his uncles, canon -of the holy chapel in that city, had invited him. At -this time he was only seventeen years of age, yet -his parents ventured to intrust a younger brother -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_274">274</span> -to his care, and this care he discharged with all the -fidelity and sagacity of a much older man. Here -he devoted himself to mathematics and physics, and -he soon after went to Paris to improve the happy -talents which he had received from nature. He was -fortunate enough to meet with a friend and relation -in the president, Henault, equally devoted to study -with himself, equally eager for information, and -possessed of equal honour and integrity, and equally -promising talents.</p> - -<p>He came to Paris in 1703. In 1708 he was admitted -into the Academy of Sciences, in the situation -of <i>élève</i> of M. Varignon, vacant by the promotion of -M. Saurin to the rank of associate.</p> - -<p>The first papers of his which were inserted in the -Memoirs of the Academy were geometrical: he gave -a general method of finding an infinity of curves, -described by the extremity of a straight line, the -other extremity of which, passing along the surface -of a given curve, is always obliged to pass through the -same point. Next year he gave a geometrical work on -Developes; but this was the last of his mathematical -tracts. He was charged by the academy with the task -of giving a description of the arts, and his taste for -natural history began to draw to that study the greatest -part of his attention. His first work as a naturalist -was his observations on the formation of shells. It was -unknown whether shells increase by intussusception, -like animal bodies, or by the exterior and successive -addition of new parts. By a set of delicate observations -he showed that shells are formed by the addition -of new parts, and that this was the cause of the -variety of colour, shape, and size which they usually -affect. His observations on snails, with a view to -the way in which their shells are formed, led him -to the discovery of a singular insect, which not only -lives on snails, but in the inside of their bodies, from -which it never stirs till driven out by the snail. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_275">275</span></p> - -<p>During the same year, he wrote his curious paper -on the silk of spiders. The experiments of M. Bohn -had shown that spiders could spin a silk that might -be usefully employed. But it remained to be seen -whether these creatures could be fed with profit, and -in sufficiently great numbers to produce a sufficient -quantity of silk to be of use. Reaumur undertook -this disagreeable task, and showed that spiders could -not be fed together without attacking and destroying -one another.</p> - -<p>The next research which he undertook, was to discover -in what way certain sea-animals are capable -of attaching themselves to fixed bodies, and again -disengaging themselves at pleasure. He discovered -the various threads and pinnæ which some of them -possess for this purpose, and the prodigious number of -limbs by which the sea-star is enabled to attach itself -to solid bodies. Other animals employ a kind of -cement to glue themselves to those substances to -which they are attached, while some fix themselves -by forming a vacuum in the interval between themselves -and the solid substances to which they are -attached.</p> - -<p>It was at this period that he found great quantities -of the buccinum, which yielded the purple dye of -the ancients, upon the coast of Poitou. He observed, -also, that the stones and little sandy ridges round -which the shellfish had collected were covered with -a kind of oval grains, some of which were white, and -others of a yellowish colour, and having collected -and squeezed some of these upon the sleeve of his -shirt, so as to wet it with the liquid which they contained, -he was agreeably surprised in about half an -hour to find the wetted spot assume a beautiful purple -colour, which was not discharged by washing. He -collected a number of these grains, and carrying them -to his apartment, bruised and squeezed different parcels -of them upon bits of linen; but to his great -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_276">276</span> -surprise, after two or three hours, no colour appeared -on the wetted part; but, at the same time, two or three -spots of the plaster at the window, on which drops of -the liquid had fallen, had become purple; though the -day was cloudy. On carrying the pieces of linen to -the window, and leaving them there, they also acquired -a purple colour. It was the action of light, then, on -the liquor, that caused it to tinge the linen. He found, -likewise, that when the colouring matter was put into -a phial, which filled it completely, it remained unchanged; -but when the phial was not full, and was -badly corked, it acquired colour. From these facts -it is evident, that the purple colour is owing to the -joint action of the light and the oxygen of the atmosphere -upon the liquor of the shellfish.</p> - -<p>About this time, likewise, he made experiments -upon a subject which attracted the attention of mechanicians—to -determine whether the strength of a -cord was greater, or less, or equal to the joint strength -of all the fibres which compose it. The result of -Reaumur’s experiments was, that the strength of the -cord is less than that of all the fibres of which it is composed. -Hence it follows, that the less that a cord -differs from an assemblage of straight fibres, the -stronger it is. This, at that time considered as a singular -mechanical paradox, was afterwards elucidated -by M. Duhamel.</p> - -<p>It was a popular opinion of all the inhabitants of the -sea-shore, that when the claws of crabs, lobsters, &c., -are lost by any means, they are gradually replaced -by others, and the animal in a short time becomes -as perfect as at first. This opinion was ridiculed by -men of science as inconsistent with all our notions of -true philosophy. Reaumur subjected it to the test -of experiment, by removing the claws of these animals, -and keeping them alone for the requisite time -in sea-water: new claws soon sprang out, and perfectly -replaced those that had been removed. Thus -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_277">277</span> -the common opinion was verified,and the contemptuous -smile of the half-learned man of science was shown to -be the result of ignorance, not of knowledge.</p> - -<p>Reaumur was not so fortunate in his attempts to explain -the nature of the shock given by the torpedo; -which we now know to be an electric shock produced -by a peculiar apparatus within the animal. Reaumur -endeavoured to prove, from dissection, that the shock -was owing to the prodigious rapidity of the blow given -by the animal in consequence of a peculiar structure -of its muscles.</p> - -<p>The turquoise was at that time, as it still is, considerably -admired in consequence of the beauty of its -colour. Persia was the country from which this precious -stone came, and it was at that time considered as -the only country in the universe where it occurred. -Reaumur made a set of experiments on the subject -and showed that the fossil bones found in Languedoc, -when exposed to a certain heat, assume the same -beautiful green colour, and become turquoises equally -beautiful with the Persian. It is now known, that the -true Persian turquoise, the <i>calamite</i> of mineralogists, is -quite different from fossil bones coloured with copper. -So far, therefore, Reaumur deceived himself by these -experiments; but at that time chemical knowledge -was too imperfect to enable him to subject Persian -turquoise to an analysis, and determine its constitution.</p> - -<p>About the same period, he undertook an investigation -of the nature of imitation pearls, which resemble the -true pearls so closely, that it is very difficult, from appearances, -to distinguish the true from the false. He -showed that the substance which gave the false pearls -their colour and lustre, was taken from a small fish -called by the French <i>able</i>, or <i>ablette</i>. He likewise -undertook an investigation of the origin of true -pearls, and showed that they were indebted for their -production to a disease of the animal. It is now known, -that the introduction of any solid body, as a grain of -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_278">278</span> -sand, within the shell of the living pearl-shellfish, gives -occasion to the formation of pearl. Linnæus boasted -that he knew a method of forming artificial pearls; and -doubtless his process was merely introducing some -solid particle of matter into the living shell. Pearls -consist of alternate layers of carbonate of lime and -animal membrane; and the colour and lustre to which -they owe their value depends upon the thinness of the -alternate coats.</p> - -<p>The next paper of Reaumur was an account of the -rivers in France whose sand yielded gold-dust, and the -method employed to extract the gold. This paper will -well repay the labour of a perusal; it owes its interest -in a great measure to the way in which the facts are -laid before the reader.</p> - -<p>His paper on the prodigious bank of fossil shells at -Touraine, from which the inhabitants draw manure in -such quantities for their fields, deserves attention in a -geological point of view. But his paper on flints and -stones is not so valuable; it consists in speculations, -which, from the infant state of chemical analysis when -he wrote, could not be expected to lead to correct conclusions.</p> - -<p>I pass over many of the papers of this most indefatigable -man, because they are not connected with -chemistry; but his history of insects constitutes a -charming book, and contains a prodigious number of -facts of the most curious and important nature. This -book alone, supposing Reaumur had done nothing -else, would have been sufficient to have immortalized -the author.</p> - -<p>In the year 1722 he published his work on the <i>art -of converting iron into steel, and of softening cast-iron</i>. -At that time no steel whatever was made in -France; the nation was supplied with that indispensable -article from foreign countries, chiefly from Germany. -The object of Reaumur’s book was to teach -his countrymen the art of making steel, and, if possible, -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_279">279</span> -to explain the nature of the process by which iron is -changed into steel. Reaumur concluded from his experiments, -that steel is iron impregnated with <i>sulphureous</i> -and <i>saline</i> matters. The word <i>sulphureous</i>, -as at that time used, was nearly synonymous with our -present term <i>combustible</i>. The process which he found -to answer, and which he recommends to be followed, -was to mix together - -<span class="table"> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell">4</span> - <span class="tcell">parts of soot</span> - </span> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell">2</span> - <span class="tcell">parts of charcoal-powder</span> - </span> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell">2</span> - <span class="tcell">parts of wood-ashes</span> - </span> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell">1½</span> - <span class="tcell">parts of common salt.</span> - </span> -</span></p> - -<p>The iron bars to be converted into steel were surrounded -with this mixture, and kept red-hot till converted -into steel. Reaumur’s notion of the difference between -iron and steel was an approximation to the -truth. The saline matters which he added do not -enter into the composition of steel; and if they did, so -far from improving, they would injure its qualities. -But the charcoal and soot, which consist chiefly of -carbon, really produce the desired effect; for steel is -a combination of <i>iron</i> and <i>carbon</i>.</p> - -<p>In consequence of these experiments of Reaumur, it -came to be an opinion entertained by chemists, that -steel differed from iron merely by containing a greater -proportion of phlogiston; for the charcoal and soot -with which the iron bars were surrounded was considered -as consisting almost entirely of phlogiston; and -the only useful purpose which they could serve, was -supposed to be to furnish phlogiston. This opinion -continued prevalent till it was overturned towards the -end of the last century, first by the experiments of -Bergmann, and afterwards by those of Berthollet, -Vandermond, and Monge, published in the Memoirs of -the French Academy for 1786 (page 132). In this -elaborate memoir the authors take a view of all the -different processes followed in bringing iron from the -ore to the state of steel: they then give an account of -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_280">280</span> -the researches of Reaumur and of Bergmann; and lastly -relate their own experiments, from which they finally -draw, as a conclusion, that steel is a compound of iron -and carbon.</p> - -<p>The regent Orleans, who at that time administered -the affairs of France, thought that this work of Reaumur -was deserving a reward, and accordingly offered -him a pension of 12,000 livres. Reaumur requested -of the regent that this pension should be given in the -name of the academy, and that after his death it should -continue, and be devoted to defray the necessary expenses -towards bringing the arts into a state of perfection. -The request was granted, and the letters patent -made out on the 22d of December, 1722.</p> - -<p>At that time tin-plate, as well as steel, was not made -in France; but all the tin-plates wanted were brought -from Germany, where the processes followed were -kept profoundly secret. Reaumur undertook to discover -a method of tinning iron sufficiently cheap to -admit the article to be manufactured in France—and -he succeeded. The difficulty consisted in removing -the scales with which the iron plates, as prepared, were -always covered. These scales consist of a vitrified -oxide of iron, to which the tin will not unite. Reaumur -found, that when these plates are steeped in water -acidulated by means of bran, and then allowed to rust in -stoves, the scales become loose, and are easily detached -by rubbing the plates with sand. If after being thus -cleansed they are plunged into melted tin, covered with -a little tallow to prevent oxidizement, they are easily -tinned. In consequence of this explanation of the -process by Reaumur, tin-plate manufactories were -speedily established in different parts of France. It -was about the same time, or only a little before it, -that tin-plate manufactories were first started in England. -The English tin-plate was much more beautiful -than the German, and therefore immediately preferred -to it; because in Germany the iron was converted into -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_281">281</span> -plates by hammering, whereas in England it was rolled -out. This made it much smoother, and consequently -more beautiful.</p> - -<p>Another art, at that time unknown in France, and -indeed in every part of Europe except Saxony, was -the art of making porcelain, a name given to the -beautiful translucent stoneware which is brought from -China and Japan. Reaumur undertook to discover -the process employed in making it. He procured -specimens of porcelain from China and Japan, and -also of the imitations of those vessels at that time -made in various parts of France and other European -countries. The true porcelain remained unaltered, -though exposed to the most violent heat which he was -capable of producing; but the imitations, in a furnace -heated by no means violently, melted into a -perfect glass. Hence he concluded, that the imitation-porcelains -were merely glass, not heated sufficiently -to be brought into fusion; but true porcelain -he conceived to be composed of two different ingredients, -one of which is capable of resisting the most -violent heat which can be raised, but the other, when -heated sufficiently, melts into a glass. It is this last -ingredient that gives porcelain its translucency, while -the other makes it refractory in the fire. This opinion -of Reaumur was soon after confirmed by Father -d’Entrecolles, a French missionary in China, who -sent some time after a memoir to the academy, describing -the mode followed by the Chinese in the manufactory -of their porcelain. Two substances are -employed by them, the one called <i>kaolin</i> and the -other <i>petunse</i>. It is now known that <i>kaolin</i> is what -we call porcelain-clay, and that <i>petunse</i> is a fine -white felspar. Felspar is fusible in a violent heat, but -porcelain-clay is refractory in the highest temperatures -that we have it in our power to produce in furnaces.</p> - -<p>Reaumur made another curious observation on -glass, which has been, since his time, employed very -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_282">282</span> -successfully to explain the appearances of many of -our trap-rocks. If a glass vessel, properly secured in -sand, be raised to a red heat, and then allowed to -cool very slowly, it puts off the appearance of glass -and assumes that of stoneware, or porcelain. Vessels -thus altered have received the name of <i>Reaumur’s -porcelain</i>. They are much more refractory than glass, -and therefore may be exposed to a pretty strong red -heat without any danger of softening or losing their -shape. This change is occasioned by the glass being -kept long in a soft state: the various substances of -which it is composed are at liberty to exercise their -affinities and to crystallize. This makes the vessel lose -its glassy structure altogether. In like manner it was -found by Sir James Hall and Mr. Gregory Watt, that -when common greenstone was heated sufficiently, -and then rapidly cooled, it melted and concreted into -a glass; but if after having been melted it was allowed -to cool exceedingly slowly, the constituents again -crystallized and arranged themselves as at first—so -that a true greenstone was again formed. In the same -way lavas from a volcano either assume the appearance -of slag or of stone, according as they have cooled rapidly -or slowly. Many of the lavas from Vesuvius -cannot be distinguished from our <i>greenstones</i>.</p> - -<p>Reaumur’s labours upon the thermometer must not -be omitted here; because he gave his name to a thermometer, -which was long used in France and in other -parts of Europe. The first person that brought thermometers -into a state capable of being compared with -each other was Sir Isaac Newton, in a paper published -in the Philosophical Transactions for 1701. Fahrenheit, -of Amsterdam, was the first person that put -Newton’s method in practice, by fixing two points on -his scale, the freezing-water point and the boiling-water -point, and dividing the interval between them -into one hundred and eighty degrees.</p> - -<p>But no fixed point existed in the thermometers employed -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_283">283</span> -in France, every one graduating them according -to his fancy; so that no two thermometers could -be compared together. Reaumur graduated his thermometers -by plunging them into freezing water or a -mixture of snow and water. This point was marked -zero, and was called the freezing-water point. The -liquid used in his thermometers was spirit of wine: -he took care that it should be always of the same -strength, and the interval between the point of freezing -and boiling water was divided into eighty degrees. -Deluc afterwards rectified this thermometer, by substituting -mercury for spirit of wine. This not only enabled -the thermometer to be used to measure higher -temperatures, but corrected an obvious error which -existed in all the thermometers constructed upon -Reaumur’s principle: for spirit of wine cannot bear a -temperature of eighty degrees Reaumur without being -dissipated into vapour—absolute alcohol boiling at a -hundred and sixty-two degrees two-thirds. It is obvious -from this, that the boiling point in Reaumur’s -thermometer could not be accurate, and that it would -vary, according to the quantity of empty space left -above the alcohol.</p> - -<p>Finally, he contrived a method of hatching chickens -by means of artificial heat, as is practised in Egypt.</p> - -<p>We are indebted to him also for a set of important -observations on the organs of digestion in birds. He -showed, that in birds of prey, which live wholly upon -animal food, digestion is performed by solvents in the -stomach, as is the case with digestion in man: while -those birds that live upon vegetable food have a very -powerful stomach or gizzard, capable of triturating -the seeds which they swallow. To facilitate this triturating -process, these fowls are in the habit of swallowing -small pebbles.</p> - -<p>The moral qualities of M. Reaumur seem not to have -been inferior to the extent and variety of his acquirements. -He was kind and benevolent, and remarkably -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_284">284</span> -disinterested. He performed the duties of intendant -of the order of St. Louis from the year 1735 till his -death, without accepting any of the emoluments of -the office, all of which were most religiously given to -the person to whom they belonged, had she been capable -of performing the duties of the place. M. -Reaumur died on the 17th of October, 1756, after -having lived very nearly seventy-five years.</p> - -<p>John Hellot was born in Paris in the year 1685, on -the 20th of November. His father, Michael Hellot, -was of a respectable family, and the early part of his -son’s education was at home: it seems to have been -excellent, as young Hellot acquired the difficult art -of writing on all manner of subjects in a precise, clear, -and elegant style. His father intended him for the -church; but his own taste led him decidedly to the -study of chemistry. He had an uncle a physician, -some of whose papers on chemical subjects fell into -his hands. This circumstance kindled his natural taste -into a flame: he formed an acquaintance with M. -Geoffroy, whose reputation as a chemist was at that -time high, and this friendship was afterwards cemented -by Geoffroy marrying the niece of M. Hellot.</p> - -<p>His circumstances being easy, he went over to -England, to form a personal acquaintance with the -many eminent philosophers who at that time adorned -that country. His fortune was considerably deranged -by Law’s celebrated scheme during the regency of the -Duke of Orleans. This obliged him to look out for -some resource: he became editor of the Gazette de -France, and continued in this employment from 1718 -to 1732. During these fourteen years, however, he -did not neglect chemistry, though his progress was -not so rapid as it would have been, could he have devoted -to that science his undivided attention. In 1732 -he was put forward by his friends as a candidate for a -place in the Academy of Sciences; and in the year -1735 he was chosen adjunct chemist, vacant by the -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_285">285</span> -promotion of M. de la Condamine to the place of associate. -Three years after he was declared a supernumerary -pensioner, without passing through the step -of associate. His reputation as a chemist was already -considerable, and after he became a member of the -academy, he devoted himself to the investigations -connected with his favourite science.</p> - -<p>His first labours were on zinc; in two successive -papers he endeavoured to decompose this metal, and -to ascertain the nature of its constituents. Though -his labour was unsuccessful, yet he pointed out many -new properties of this metal, and various new compounds -into which it enters. Neither was he more -successful in his attempt to account for the origin of -the red vapours which are exhaled from nitre in -certain circumstances. He ascribed them to the -presence of ferruginous matters in the nitre; whereas -they are owing to the expulsion and partial decomposition -of the nitric acid of the nitre, in consequence of -the action of some more powerful acid.</p> - -<p>His paper on sympathetic ink is of more importance. -A German chemist had shown him a saline solution of -a red colour which became blue when heated: this -led him to form a sympathetic ink, which was pale -red, while the paper was moist, but became blue upon -drying it by holding it to the fire. This sympathetic -ink was a solution of cobalt in muriatic acid. It does -not appear from Hellot’s paper that he was exactly -aware of the chemical constitution of the liquid which -constituted his sympathetic ink; though it is clear he -knew that cobalt constitutes an essential part of it.</p> - -<p>Kunkel’s phosphorus, though it had been originally -discovered in Germany, could not be prepared by any -of the processes which had been given to the public. -Boyle had taught his operator, Godfrey Hankwitz, the -method of making it. This man had, after Boyle’s -death, opened a chemist’s shop in London, and it was -he that supplied all Europe with this curious article: -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_286">286</span> -on that account it was usually distinguished by the -name of <i>English phosphorus</i>. But in the year 1737 -a stranger appeared in Paris, who offered for a stipulated -reward to communicate the method of manufacturing -this substance to the Academy of Sciences. -The offer was accepted by the French government, -and a committee of the academy, at the head of which -was Hellot, was appointed to witness the process, and -ascertain all its steps. The process was repeated with -success; and Hellot drew up a minute detail of the -whole, which was inserted in the Memoirs of the Academy, -for the year 1737. The publication of this -paper constitutes an era in the preparation of phosphorus: -it was henceforward in the power of every -chemist to prepare it for himself. A few years after -the process was much improved by Margraaf; and, -within little more than twenty years after, the very -convenient process still in use was suggested by Scheele. -Hellot’s experiments on the comparative merits of the -salts of Peyrac, and of Pecais were of importance, -because they decided a dispute—they may also perhaps -be considered as curiosities in an historical point -of view; because we see from them the methods which -Hellot had recourse to at that early period in order to -determine the purity of common salt. They are not -entitled, however, to a more particular notice here.</p> - -<p>In the year 1740 M. Hellot was charged with the -general inspection of dyeing; a situation which -M. du Foy had held till the time of his death in 1739. -It was this appointment, doubtless, which turned his -attention to the theory of dyeing, which he tried to -explain in two memoirs read to the academy in 1740 -and 1741. The subject was afterwards prosecuted by -him in subsequent memoirs which were published by -the academy.</p> - -<p>In 1745 he was named to go to Lyons in order to -examine with care the processes followed for refining -gold and silver. Before his return he took care to -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_287">287</span> -give to these processes the requisite precision and exactness. -Immediately after his return to Paris he was -appointed to examine the different mines and assay -the different ores in France; this appointment led him -to turn his thoughts to the subject. The result of this -was the publication of an excellent work on assaying -and metallurgy, entitled “De la Fonte des Mines, des -Fonderies, &c. Traduit de l’Allemand de Christophe-André -Schlutter.” The first volume of this book -appeared in 1750, and the second in 1753. Though -this book is called by Hellot a translation, it contains -in fact a great deal of original matter; the arrangement -is quite altered; many processes not noticed by -Schlutter are given, and many essential articles are -introduced, which had been totally omitted in the -original work. He begins with an introduction, in -which he gives a short sketch of all the mines existing -in every part of France, together with some notice of -the present state of each. The first volume treats entirely -of docimasy, or the art of assaying the different -metallic ores. Though this art has been much improved -since Hellot’s time, yet the processes given in -this volume are not without their value. The second -volume treats of the various metallurgic processes followed -in order to extract metals from their ores. This -volume is furnished with no fewer than fifty-five plates, -in which all the various furnaces, &c. used in these -processes are exhibited to the eye.</p> - -<p>While occupied in preparing this work for the press -he was chosen to endeavour to bring the porcelain manufactory -at Sevre to a greater state of perfection than -it had yet reached. In this he was successful. He -even discovered various new colours proper for painting -upon porcelain; which contributed to give to this -manufactory the celebrity which it acquired.</p> - -<p>In the year 1763 a phenomenon at that time quite -new to France took place in the coal-mine of Briançon. -A quantity of carburetted hydrogen gas had collected -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_288">288</span> -in the bottom of the mine, and being kindled by the -lights employed by the miners, it exploded with great -violence, and killed or wounded every person in the -mine. This destructive gas, distinguished in this -country by the name of <i>fire-damp</i>, had been long known -in Great Britain and in the Low Countries, though -it had not before been known in France. The Duke -de Choiseul, informed of this event, had recourse to -the academy for assistance, who appointed Messrs. de -Montigny, Duhamel, and Hellot, a committee to -endeavour to discover the remedies proper to prevent -any such accident from happening for the future. The -report of these gentlemen was published in the Memoirs -of the Academy;<a id="FNanchor_182" href="#Footnote_182" class="fnanchor">182</a> they give an account both of -the fire-damp, and <i>choke-damp</i>, or <i>carbonic acid gas</i>, -which sometimes also makes its appearance in coal-mines. -They very justly observe that the proper way -to obviate the inconveniency of these gases is to ventilate -the mine properly; and they give various methods -by which this ventilation may be promoted by means -of fires lighted at the bottom of the shaft, &c.</p> - -<p>In 1763 M. Hellot was appointed, conjointly with -M. Tillet, to examine the process followed for assaying -gold and silver. They showed that the cupels always -retained a small portion of the silver assayed, and -that this loss, ascribed to the presence of a foreign -metal, made the purity of the silver be always reckoned -under the truth, which occasioned a loss to the proprietor.</p> - -<p>His health continued tolerably good till he reached -his eightieth year: he was then struck with palsy, but -partially recovered from the first attack; but a second -attack, on the 13th of February, 1765, refused to -yield to every medical treatment, and he died on -the 15th of that month, at an age a little beyond -eighty. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_289">289</span></p> - -<p>Henry Louis Duhamel du Monceau was born at -Paris in the year 1700. He was descended from -Loth Duhamel, a Dutch gentleman, who came to -France in the suite of the infamous Duke of Burgundy, -about the year 1400. Young Duhamel was -educated in the College of Harcourt; but the course -of study did not suit his taste. He left it with only -one fact engraven on his memory—that men, by observing -nature, had created a science called <i>physics</i>; -and he resolved to profit by his freedom from restraint -and turn the whole of his attention to that subject. -He lodged near the Jardin du Roi, where alone, at -that time, physics were attended to in Paris. Dufoy, -Geoffroy, Lemery, Jussieu, and Vaillant, were the -friends with whom he associated on coming to Paris. -His industry was stimulated solely by a love of study, -and by the pleasure which he derived from the increase -of knowledge; love of fame does not appear to have -entered into his account.</p> - -<p>In the year 1718 saffron, which is much cultivated -in that part of France formerly distinguished by the -name of Gâtinois, where Duhamel’s property lay, was -attacked by a malady which appeared contagious. -Healthy bulbs, when placed in the neighbourhood of -those that were diseased, soon became affected with -the same malady. Government consulted the academy -on the subject; and this learned body thought -they could not do better than request M. Duhamel to -investigate the cause of the disease; though he was -only eighteen years of age, and not even a member -of the academy. He ascertained that the malady -was owing to a parasitical plant, which attached itself -to the bulb of the saffron, and drew nourishment from -it. This plant extended under the earth, from one -bulb to another, and thus infected the whole saffron -plantations.</p> - -<p>M. Duhamel formed the resolution at the commencement -of his scientific career to devote himself -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_290">290</span> -to public utility, and to prosecute those subjects which -were likely to contribute most effectually to the comfort -of the lower ranks of men. Much of his time -was spent in endeavouring to promote the culture of -vegetables, and in rendering that culture more useful -to society. This naturally led to a careful study of -the physiology of trees. The fruit of this study he -gave to the world in the year 1758, when his Physique -des Arbres was published. This constitutes one of -the most important works on the subject which has -ever appeared. It contains a great number of new -and original facts; and contributed very much indeed -to advance this difficult, but most important branch -of science: nor is it less remarkable for modesty than -for value. The facts gathered from other sources, -even those which make against his own opinions, are -most carefully and accurately stated: the experiments -that preceded his are repeated and verified with much -care; and the reader is left to discover the new facts -and new views of the author, without any attempt -on his part to claim them as his own.</p> - -<p>M. Duhamel had been attached to the department -of the marine by M. de Maurepas, who had given him -the title of <i>inspector-general</i>. This led him to turn -his attention to naval science in general. The construction -of vessels, the weaving of sailcloths, the -construction of ropes and cables, the method of preserving -the wood, occupied his attention successively, -and gave birth to several treatises, which, like all his -works, contain immense collections of facts and experiments. -He endeavours always to discover which is -the best practice, to reduce it to fixed rules, and to -support it by philosophical principles; but abstains -from all theory when it can be supported only by -hypothesis.</p> - -<p>From the year 1740, when he became an academician, -till his death in 1781, he made a regular set of -meteorological observations at Pithiviers, with details -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_291">291</span> -relative to the direction of the needle, to agriculture, -to the medical constitution of the year, and to the time -of nest-building, and of the passage of birds.</p> - -<p>Above sixty memoirs of his were published in the -Transactions of the French Academy of Sciences. -They are so multifarious in their nature, and embrace -such a variety of subjects, that I shall not attempt -even to give their titles, but satisfy myself with stating -such only as bear more immediately upon the science -of chemistry.</p> - -<p>It will be proper in conducting this review to notice -the result of his labours connected with the ossification -of bones; because, though not strictly chemical, they -throw light upon some branches of the animal economy, -more closely connected with chemistry than with any -other of the sciences. He examined, in the first place, -whether the ossification of bones, and their formation -and reparation, did not follow the same law that he -had assigned to the increments of trees, and he established, -by a set of experiments, that bones increase -by the ossification of layers of the periosteum, as trees -do by the hardening of their cortical layers. Bones in -a soft state increase in every direction, like the young -branches of plants; but after their induration they increase -only like trees, by successive additions of successive -layers. This organization was incompatible -with the opinion of those who thought that bones increased -by the addition of an earthy matter deposited -in the meshes of the organized network which forms -the texture of bones. M. Duhamel combated this -opinion by an ingenious experiment. He had been -informed by Sir Hans Sloane that the bones of young -animals fed upon madder were tinged red. He conceived -the plan of feeding them alternately with food -mingled with madder, and with ordinary food. The -bones of animals thus treated were found to present -alternate concentric layers of red and white, corresponding -to the different periods in which the animal -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_292">292</span> -had been fed with food containing or not containing -madder. When these bones are sawn longitudinally we -see the thickness of the coloured layers, greater or less, -according to the number of plates of the periosteum -that have ossified. As for the portions still soft, or -susceptible of extending themselves in every direction, -such as the plates in the neighbourhood of the marrow, -the reservoir of which increases during a part of -the time that the animal continues to grow, the red -colour marks equally the progress of their ossification -by coloured points more or less extended.</p> - -<p>This opinion was attacked by Haller, and defended -by M. Fougeroux, nephew of M. Duhamel; but it is -not our business here to inquire how far correct.</p> - -<p>One of the most important of M. Duhamel’s papers, -which will secure his name a proud station in the -annals of chemistry, is that which was inserted in -the Memoirs of the Academy for 1737, in which he -shows that the base of common salt is a true fixed -alkali, different in some respects from the alkali extracted -from land plants, and known by the name of -<i>potash</i>, but similar to that obtained by the incineration -of marine plants. We are surprised that a fact -so simple and elementary was disputed by the French -chemists, and rather indicated than proved by Stahl -and his followers. The conclusions of Duhamel were -disputed by Pott; but finally confirmed by Margraaf. -M. Duhamel carried his researches further, he wished to -know if the difference between potash and soda depends -on the plants that produce them, or on the nature of -the soil in which they grow. He sowed kali at Denainvilliers, -and continued his experiments during a great -number of years. M. Cadet, at his request, examined -the salts contained in the ashes of the kali of Denainvilliers. -He found that during the first year soda predominated -in these ashes. During the successive -years the potash increased rapidly, and at last the -soda almost entirely disappeared. It was obvious from -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_293">293</span> -this, that the alkalies in plants are drawn at least -chiefly from the soil in which they vegetate.</p> - -<p>The memoirs of M. Duhamel on ether, at that time -almost unknown, on soluble tartars, and on lime, contain -many facts both curious and accurately stated; -though our present knowledge of these bodies is so -much greater than his—the new facts ascertained respecting -them are so numerous and important, that the -contributions of this early experimenter, which probably -had a considerable share in the success of subsequent -investigations, are now almost forgotten. Nor -would many readers bear patiently with an attempt -to enumerate them.</p> - -<p>There is a curious paper of his in the Memoirs of -the Academy for 1757. In this he gives the details -of a spontaneous combustion of large pieces of -cloth soaked in oil and strongly pressed. Cloth thus -prepared had often produced similar accidents. Those -who were fortunate enough to prevent them, took care -to conceal the facts, partly from ignorance of the real -cause of the combustion, and partly from a fear that if -they were to state what they saw, their testimony would -not gain credit. If the combustion had not been prevented, -then the public voice would have charged those -who had the care of the cloths with culpable negligence, -or even with criminal conduct. The observation of -M. Duhamel, therefore, was useful, in order to prevent -such unjust suspicions from hindering those concerned -from taking the requisite precautions. Yet, twenty -years after the publication of his paper, two accidental -spontaneous combustions, in Russia, were ascribed to -treason. The empress Catharine II. alone suspected -that the combustion was spontaneous, and experiments -made by her orders fully confirmed the evidence -previously advanced by the French philosopher.</p> - -<p>One man alone would have been insufficient for all -the labours undertaken by M. Duhamel; but he had -a brother who lived upon his estate at Denainvilliers -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_294">294</span> -(the name of which he bore), and divided his time between -the performance of benevolent actions and -studying the operations of nature. M. Denainvilliers -prosecuted in his retreat the observations and experiments -intrusted by his brother to his charge. Thus -in fact the memoirs of Duhamel exhibit the assiduous -labours of two individuals, one of whom contentedly -remained unknown to the world, satisfied -with the good which he did, and the favours which he -conferred upon his country and the human race.</p> - -<p>The works of M. Duhamel are very voluminous, -and are all written with the utmost plainness. Every -thing is elementary, no previous knowledge is taken -for granted. His writings are not addressed to philosophers, -but to all those who are in quest of practical -knowledge. He has been accused of diffuseness of -style, and of want of correctness; but his style is -simple and clear; and as his object was to inform, not -philosophers, but the common people, greater conciseness -would have been highly injudicious.</p> - -<p>Neither he nor his brother ever married, but thought -it better to devote their undivided attention to study. -Both were assiduous in no ordinary degree, but the -ardour of Duhamel himself continued nearly undiminished -till within a year of his death; when, though -he still attended the meetings of the academy, he no -longer took the same interest in its proceedings. On -the 22d of July, 1781, just after leaving the academy, -he was struck with apoplexy, and died after lingering -twenty-two days in a state of coma.</p> - -<p>He was without doubt one of the most eminent men -of the age in which he lived; but his merits as a chemist -will chiefly be remembered in consequence of his -being the first person who demonstrated by satisfactory -evidence the peculiar nature of soda, which had -been previously confounded with potash. His merits -as a vegetable physiologist and agriculturist were of a -very high order. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_295">295</span></p> - -<p>Peter Joseph Macquer was born at Paris, in 1718. -His father, Joseph Macquer, was descended from a -noble Scottish family, which had sacrificed its property -and its country, out of attachment to the family of -the Stuarts.<a id="FNanchor_183" href="#Footnote_183" class="fnanchor">183</a> Young Macquer made choice of medicine -as a profession, and devoted himself chiefly to -chemistry, for which he showed early a decided taste. -He was admitted a member of the Academy of -Sciences in the year 1745, when he was twenty-seven -years of age. Original researches in chemistry, the -composition of chemical elementary works, and the -study of the arts connected with chemistry, occupied -the whole remainder of his life.</p> - -<p>His first paper treated of the effect produced by -heating a mixture of saltpetre and white arsenic. It was -previously known, that when such a mixture is distilled -nitric acid comes over tinged with a blue colour; but -nobody had thought of examining the residue of this -distillation. Macquer found it soluble in water and -capable of crystallizing into a neutral salt composed -of potash (the base of saltpetre), and an acid into -which the arsenic was changed by the nitric acid communicating -oxygen to it.</p> - -<p>Macquer found that a similar salt might be obtained -with soda or ammonia for its base. Thus he was the -first person who pointed out the existence of arsenic -acid, and ascertained the properties of some of the -salts which it forms. But he made no attempt to obtain -arsenic acid in a separate state, or to determine its -properties. That very important step was reserved -for Scheele, for Macquer seems to have had no suspicion -of the true nature of the salt which he had -formed. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_296">296</span></p> - -<p>His next set of experiments was on Prussian blue. -He made the first step towards the discovery of the nature -of the principle to which that pigment owes its -colour. Prussian blue had been accidentally discovered -by Diesbach, an operative chemist of Berlin, -in 1710, but the mode of producing it was kept secret -till it was published in 1724, by Dr. Woodward in the -Philosophical Transactions. It consisted in mixing -potash and blood together, and heating the mixture in -a covered crucible, having a small hole in the lid, till -it ceased to give out smoke. The solution of this mixture -in water, when mixed with a solution of sulphate -of iron, threw down a green powder, which became -blue when treated with muriatic acid: this blue matter -was <i>Prussian blue</i>. Macquer ascertained that -when Prussian blue is exposed to a red heat its blue -colour disappears, and it is converted into common -peroxide of iron. Hence he concluded that Prussian -blue is a compound of oxide of iron, and of something -which is destroyed or driven off by a red heat. -He showed that this something possessed the characters -of an acid; for when Prussian blue is boiled with -caustic potash it loses its blue colour, and if the potash -be boiled with successive portions of Prussian blue, -as long as it is capable of discolouring them, it loses -the characters of an acid and assumes those of a neutral -salt, and at the same time acquires the property -of precipitating iron from the solutions of the sulphate -at once of a blue colour. Macquer ascribed -the green colour thrown down, by mixing the blood-lie -and sulphate of iron to the potash in the blood-lie, -not being saturated with the colouring matter of Prussian -blue. Hence a portion of the iron is thrown -down in the state of Prussian blue, and another portion -in that of yellow oxide of iron: these two being -mixed form a green. The muriatic acid dissolves the -yellow oxide and leaves the Prussian blue untouched. -Macquer, however, did not succeed in determining the -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_297">297</span> -nature of the colouring matter; a task reserved for -Scheele, whose lot it was to take up the half-finished -investigations of Macquer, and throw upon them a -new and brilliant light. Macquer thought that this -colouring matter was <i>phlogiston</i>. On that account the -potash saturated with it, which was employed by chemists -to detect the presence of iron by forming with -it Prussian blue, was called <i>phlogisticated alkali</i>.</p> - -<p>Macquer, conjointly with Baumé, subjected the -grains of crude platinum, to which the attention of -chemists had been newly drawn, to experiment. Their -principle object was to examine its fusibility and ductility. -They succeeded in fusing it imperfectly, by -means of a burning mirror, and found that the grains -thus treated were not destitute of ductility. But upon -the whole the experiments of these chemists threw -but little light upon the subject. Many years elapsed -before chemists were able to work this refractory metal, -and to make it into vessels fitted for the uses of the -laboratory. For this important improvement, which -constitutes an era in chemistry, the chemical world -was chiefly indebted to Dr. Wollaston.</p> - -<p>In the year 1750 M. Macquer was charged with a -commission by the court. There existed at that time -in Brittany a man, the Count de la Garaie, who, -yielding to a passion for benevolence, had for forty -years devoted himself to the service of suffering humanity. -He had built an hospital by the side of a -chemical laboratory: he took care of the patients in -the hospital himself; and treated them with medicines -prepared in his laboratory. Some of these were new, -and, in his opinion, excellent medicines; and he -offered to sell them to government for the service of -his hospital. Macquer was charged by government -with the examination of these medicines. The project -of the Count de la Garaie was to extract the salutary -parts of minerals, by a long maceration with neutral -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_298">298</span> -salts. Among other things he had prepared a mercurial -tincture, by a process which lasted several -months: but this tincture was merely a solution of -corrosive sublimate in spirit of wine. Such is the -history of most of those boasted secrets; sometimes -they are chimerical, and sometimes known to all the -world, except to those who purchase them.</p> - -<p>M. Macquer had the fortune to live at a time when -chemistry began to be freed from the reveries of alchymists; -but methodical arrangement was a merit -still unknown to the elementary chemical books, especially -in France, where a residue of Cartesianism -added to the natural obscurity of the science, by surcharging -it with pretended mechanical explanations. -Macquer was the first French chemist who gave to an -elementary treatise the same clearness, simplicity, and -method, which is to be found in the other branches of -science. This was no small merit, and undoubtedly -contributed considerably to the rapid improvement of -the science which so speedily followed. His elements -of chemistry were translated into different languages, -especially into English; and long constituted the textbook -employed in the different European universities. -Dr. Black recommended it for many years in the University -of Edinburgh. Indeed, it was only superseded -in consequence of the new views introduced into chemistry -by Lavoisier, which, requiring a new language -to render them intelligible, naturally superseded all -the elementary chemical books which had preceded -the introduction of that language.</p> - -<p>Macquer, during a number of years, delivered regular -courses of chemical lectures, conjointly with -Baumé. In these courses he preferred that arrangement -which appeared to him to require the least preliminary -knowledge of chemistry. He described the -experiments, stated the facts with clearness and precision, -and explained them in the way which appeared -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_299">299</span> -to him most plausible, according to the opinions generally -received; but without placing much confidence -in the accuracy of these explanations. He thought it -necessary to theorize a little, to enable his pupils the -better to connect the facts and to remember them; -and to put an end to that painful state of uncertainty -which always results from a collection of facts without -any theoretical links to bind them together. When -the discoveries of Lavoisier began to shake the foundation -of the Stahlian theory, Macquer was old; and -it appears from a letter of his, published by Delametherie -in the Journal de Physique, that he was -alarmed at the prophetic announcements of Lavoisier -in the academy that the reign of Phlogiston was -drawing towards an end. M. Condorcet assures us -that his attachment to theory, by which he means -phlogiston, was by no means strong;<a id="FNanchor_184" href="#Footnote_184" class="fnanchor">184</a> but his own -letter to Delametherie rather shows that this statement -was not quite correct. How, indeed, could he -fail to experience an attachment to opinions which it -had been the business of his whole life to inculcate?</p> - -<p>Macquer also published a dictionary of chemistry, -which was very successful, and which was translated -into most of the European languages. This mode of -treating chemistry was well suited to a science still in -its infancy, and which did not yet constitute a complete -whole. It enabled him to discuss the different -topics in succession, and independent of each other: -and thus to introduce much important matter which -could not easily have been introduced into a systematic -work on chemistry. The second edition of this dictionary -was published just at the time when the gases -began to attract the attention of scientific men; when -facts began to multiply with prodigious rapidity, and to -shake the confidence of chemists in all received theories. -He acquitted himself of the difficult task of -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_300">300</span> -collecting and stating these new facts with considerable -success; and doubtless communicated much new -information to his countrymen: for the discoveries -connected with the gases originated, and were chiefly -made, in England, from which, on account of the revolutionary -American war, there was some difficulty -of obtaining early information.</p> - -<p>M. Hellot, who was commissioner of the counsel -for dyeing, and chemist to the porcelain manufacture, -requested to have M. Macquer for an associate. This -request did much honour to Hellot, as he was conscious -that the reputation of Macquer as a chemist was superior -to his own. Macquer endeavoured, in the first -place, to lay down the true principles of the art of -dyeing, as the best method of dissipating the obscurity -which still hung over it. A great part of his treatise -on the art of dyeing silk, published in the collection -of the Academy of Sciences, has these principles for -its object. He gave processes also for dyeing silk -with Prussian blue, and for giving to silk, by means -of cochineal, as brilliant a scarlet colour as can be -given to woollen cloth by the same dye-stuff. He -published nothing on the porcelain manufacture, -though he attended particularly to the processes, and -introduced several ameliorations. The beautiful porcelain -earth at present used at Sevre, was discovered in -consequence of a premium which he offered to any -person who could point out a clay in every respect -proper for making porcelain.</p> - -<p>Macquer passed a great part of his life with a brother, -whom he affectionately loved: after his death -he devoted himself entirely to his wife and two children, -whose education he superintended. He was -rather averse to society, but conducted himself while -in it with much sweetness and affability. He was -fond of tranquillity and independence. Though his -health had been injured a good many years before his -death, the calmness and serenity of his temper prevented -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_301">301</span> -strangers from being aware that he was afflicted -with any malady. He himself was sensible that his -strength was gradually sinking; he predicted his approaching -end to his wife, whom he thanked for the -happiness which she had spread over his life. He left -orders that his body should be opened after his decease, -that the cause of his death might be discovered. -He died on the 15th of February, 1784. An ossification -of the aorta, and several calculous concretions -found in the cavities of the heart, had been the cause -of the disease under which he had suffered for several -years before his death.</p> - -<p>These four chemists, of whose lives a sketch has -just been given, were the most eminent that France -ever produced belonging to the Stahlian school of chemistry. -Baron, Malouin, Rouelle senior, Tillet, -Cadet, Baumé, Sage, and several others whose names -I purposely omit, likewise cultivated chemistry, during -that period, with assiduity and success; and were each -of them the authors of papers which deserve attention, -but which it would be impossible to particularize -without swelling this work into a size greatly beyond -its proper limits.</p> - -<p>Hilaire-Marin Rouelle, who was born at Caen in -1718, was, however, too eminent a chemist to be -passed over in silence. His elder brother, William -Francis, was a member of the Academy of Sciences, -and demonstrator to Macquer, who gave lectures in the -Jardin du Roi. At the death of Macquer, in 1770, -Hilaire-Marin Rouelle succeeded him. He devoted the -whole of his time and money to this situation, and quite -altered the nature of the experimental course of chemistry -given in the Jardin du Roi. He was in some -measure the author of the chemistry of animal bodies, -at least in France. When he published his experiments -on the salts of urine, and of blood, he had -scarcely any model; and though he committed some -considerable mistakes, he ascertained several essential -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_302">302</span> -and important facts, which have been since fully confirmed -by more modern experimenters. He died on the -7th of April, 1779, aged sixty-one years. His temper -was peculiar, and he was too honest and too open for -the situation in which he was placed, and for a state -of society in which every thing was carried by intrigue -and finesse. This is the reason why, in France, his -reputation was lower than it ought to have been. It -accounts, too, for his never becoming a member of the -Academy of Sciences, nor of any of the other numerous -academies which at that time swarmed in France. -Nothing is more common than to find these unjust -decisions raise or depress men of science far above -or far below their true standard. Romé de Lisle, the -first person who commenced the study of crystals, and -placed that study in a proper point of view, was a man -of the same stamp with the younger Rouelle, and -never on that account, became a member of any academy, -or acquired that reputation during his lifetime, -to which his laborious career justly entitled him. It -would be an easy, though an invidious task, to point -out various individuals, especially in France, whose -reputation, in consequence of accidental and adventitious -circumstances, rose just as much above their -deserts, as those of Rouelle, and Romé de Lisle were -sunk below. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_303">303</span></p> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<h2 id="CHAPTER_IX">CHAPTER IX.<br /> - -<span class="large">OF THE FOUNDATION AND PROGRESS OF SCIENTIFIC -CHEMISTRY IN GREAT BRITAIN.</span></h2> - -<p>The spirit which Newton had infused for the mathematical -science was so great, that during many years -they drew within their vortex almost all the scientific -men in Great Britain. Dr. Stephen Hales is almost the -only remarkable exception, during the early part of the -eighteenth century. His vegetable statics constituted -a most ingenious and valuable contribution to vegetable -physiology. His hæmastatics was a no less valuable -contribution to iatro-mathematics, at that time -the fashionable medical theory in Great Britain. While -his <i>analysis of air</i>, and experiments on the animal -calculus constituted, in all probability, the foundation-stone -of the whole discoveries respecting the gases to -which the great subsequent progress of chemistry is -chiefly owing.</p> - -<p>Dr. William Cullen, to whom medicine lies under -deep obligations, and who afterwards raised the -medical celebrity of the College of Edinburgh to so -high a pitch, had the merit of first perceiving the -importance of scientific chemistry, and the reputation -which that man was likely to earn, who should -devote himself to the cultivation of it. Hitherto chemistry -in Great Britain, and on the continent also, -was considered as a mere appendage to medicine, and -useful only so far as it contributed to the formation of -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_304">304</span> -new and useful remedies. This was the reason why it -came to constitute an essential part of the education -of every medical man, and why a physician was considered -as unfit for practice unless he was also a -chemist. But Dr. Cullen viewed the science as far -more important; as capable of throwing light on the -constitution of bodies, and of improving and amending -of those arts and manufactures that are most useful -to man. He resolved to devote himself to its cultivation -and improvement; and he would undoubtedly -have derived celebrity from this science, had not his -fate led rather to the cultivation of medicine. But -Dr. Cullen, as the true commencer of the study of -scientific chemistry in Great Britain, claims a conspicuous -place in this historical sketch.</p> - -<p>William Cullen was born in Lanarkshire, in Scotland, -in the year 1712, on the 11th of December. His -father, though chief magistrate of Hamilton, was not -in circumstances to lay out much money on his son. -William, therefore, after serving an apprenticeship to -a surgeon in Glasgow, went several voyages to the -West Indies, as surgeon, in a trading-vessel from -London; but tiring of this, he settled, when very -young, in the parish of Shotts; and after residing -for a short time among the farmers and country people, -he went to Hamilton, with a view of practising as a -physician.</p> - -<p>While he resided near Shotts, it happened that -Archibald, Duke of Argyle, who at that time bore the -chief political sway in Scotland, paid a visit to a -gentleman of rank in that neighbourhood. The duke -was fond of science, and was at that time engaged in -some chemical researches which required to be elucidated -by experiment. Eager in these pursuits, while -on his visit he found himself at a loss for some piece -of chemical apparatus which his landlord could not -furnish; but he mentioned young Cullen to the duke -as a person fond of chemistry, and likely therefore to -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_305">305</span> -possess the required apparatus. He was accordingly -invited to dine, and introduced to his Grace. The -duke was so pleased with his knowledge, politeness, -and address, that an acquaintance commenced, which -laid the foundation of all Cullen’s future advancement.</p> - -<p>His residence in Hamilton naturally made his name -known to the Duke of Hamilton, whose palace is -situated in the immediate vicinity of that town. His -Grace being taken with a sudden illness, sent for -Cullen, and was highly delighted with the sprightly -character, and ingenious conversation of the young -physician. He found no difficulty, especially as young -Cullen was already known to the Duke of Argyle, in -getting him appointed to a place in the University of -Glasgow, where his singular talents as a teacher soon -became very conspicuous.</p> - -<p>It was while Dr. Cullen was a practitioner in Shotts -that he formed a connexion with William, afterwards -Doctor Hunter, the famous lecturer on anatomy in -London, who was a native of the same part of the -country as Cullen. These two young men, stimulated -by genius, though thwarted by the narrowness of their -circumstances, entered into a copartnery business, as -surgeons and apothecaries, in the country. The chief -object of their contract was to furnish the parties with -the means of carrying on their medical studies, which -they were not able to do separately. It was stipulated -that one of them, alternately, should be allowed to study -in whatever college he preferred, during the winter, -while the other carried on the common business in his -absence. In consequence of this agreement, Cullen -was first allowed to study in the University of Edinburgh, -for a winter. When it came to Hunter’s turn -next winter, he rather chose to go to London. There -his singular neatness in dissecting, and uncommon -dexterity in making anatomical preparations, his assiduity -in study, his mild manners, and easy temper, -drew upon him the attention of Dr. Douglas, who at -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_306">306</span> -that time read lectures on anatomy and midwifery in -the capital. He engaged him as his assistant, and -he afterwards succeeded him in the same department -with much honour to himself, and advantage to the -public. Thus was dissolved a copartnership of perhaps -as singular a kind as any that occurs in the -annals of science. Cullen was not disposed to let any -engagement with him prove a bar to his partner’s -advancement in the world. The articles were abandoned, -and Cullen and Hunter kept up ever after a -friendly correspondence; though there is reason to -believe that they never afterwards met.</p> - -<p>It was while a country practitioner that young Cullen -married a Miss Johnston, daughter of a neighbouring -clergyman. The connexion was fortunate and lasting. -She brought her husband a numerous family, and -continued his faithful companion through all the alterations -of his fortune. She died in the summer of 1786.</p> - -<p>In the year 1746 Cullen, who had now taken the degree -of doctor of medicine, was appointed lecturer on -chemistry in the University of Glasgow; and in the -month of October began a course on that science. -His singular talent for arrangement, his distinctness -of enunciation, his vivacity of manner, and his knowledge -of the science which he taught, rendered his -lectures interesting to a degree which had been till -then unknown in that university: he was adored -by the students. The former professors were eclipsed -by the brilliancy of his reputation, and he had to -encounter all those little rubs and insults that disappointed -envy naturally threw in his way. But he -proceeded in his career regardless of these petty mortifications; -and supported by the public, he was more -than consoled for the contumely heaped upon him by -the ill nature and pitiful malignity of his colleagues. -His practice as a physician increased every day, and a -vacancy occurring in the chair in 1751, he was appointed -by the crown professor of medicine, which put -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_307">307</span> -him on a footing of equality with his colleagues in the -university. This new appointment called forth powers -which he was not before known to possess, and thus -served still further to increase his reputation.</p> - -<p>At that time the patrons of the University of Edinburgh -were eagerly bent on raising the reputation of -their medical school, and were in consequence on the -look out for men of abilities and reputation to fill their -respective chairs. Their attention was soon drawn -towards Cullen, and on the death of Dr. Plummer, in -1756, he was unanimously invited to fill the vacant -<i>chemical chair</i>. He accepted the invitation, and began -his academical career in the College of Edinburgh -in October of that year, and here he continued during -the remainder of his life.</p> - -<p>The appearance of Dr. Cullen in the College of -Edinburgh constitutes a memorable era in the progress -of that celebrated school. Hitherto chemistry being -reckoned of little importance, had been attended by -very few students; when Cullen began to lecture it -became a favourite study, almost all the students -flocking to hear him, and the chemical class becoming -immediately more numerous than any other in the -college, anatomy alone excepted. The students in -general spoke of the new professor with that rapturous -ardour so natural to young men when highly pleased. -These eulogiums were doubtless extravagant, and -proved disgusting to his colleagues. A party was -formed to oppose this new favourite of the public. -His opinions were misrepresented, it was affirmed -that he taught doctrines which excited the alarm -of some of the most moderate and conscientious -of his colleagues. Thus a violent ferment was excited, -and some time elapsed before the malignant -arts by which this flame had been blown up were discovered.</p> - -<p>During this time of public ferment Cullen went -steadily forward; he never gave an ear to the gossip -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_308">308</span> -brought him respecting the conduct of his colleagues, -nor did he take any notice of the doctrines which they -taught. Some of their unguarded strictures on himself -might occasionally have come to his ears; but if -it was so, he took no notice of them whatever; they -seemed to have made no impression on him.</p> - -<p>This futile attempt to lower his character being thus -baffled, his fame as a professor, and his reputation as -a physician, increased daily: nor could it be otherwise; -his professional knowledge was always great, -and his manner of lecturing singularly clear and intelligible, -lively, and entertaining. To his patients his -conduct was so pleasing, his address so affable and -engaging, and his manner so open, so kind, and so -little regulated by pecuniary considerations, that those -who once applied to him for medical assistance could -never afterwards dispense with it: he became the friend -and companion of every family he visited, and his future -acquaintance could not be dispensed with.</p> - -<p>His private conduct to his students was admirable, -and deservedly endeared him to every one of them. -He was so uniformly attentive to them, and took so -much interest in the concerns of those who applied -to him for advice; was so cordial and so warm, -that it was impossible for any one, who had a heart -susceptible of generous emotions, not to be delighted -with a conduct so uncommon and so kind. It was -this which served more than any thing else to extend -his reputation over every civilized quarter of the globe. -Among ingenuous youth gratitude easily degenerates -into rapture; hence the popularity which he enjoyed, -and which to those who do not well weigh the causes -which operated on the students must appear excessive.</p> - -<p>The general conduct of Cullen to his students was -this: with all such as he observed to be attentive -and diligent he formed an early acquaintance, by inviting -them by twos, by threes, and by fours at a time -to sup with him; conversing with them at such times -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_309">309</span> -with the most engaging ease, entering freely with them -into the subject of their studies, their amusements, -their difficulties, their hopes and future prospects. In -this way he usually invited the whole of his numerous -class till he made himself acquainted with their private -character, their abilities, and their objects of pursuit. -Those of whom he formed the highest opinion -were of course invited most frequently, till an intimacy -was gradually formed which proved highly beneficial -to them. To their doubts and difficulties he listened -with the most obliging condescension, and he solved -them to the utmost of his power. His library was at -all times open for their accommodation: in short, he -treated them as if they had been all his relatives and -friends. Few men of distinction left the University of -Edinburgh, in his time, with whom he did not keep up -a correspondence till they were fairly established in -business. This enabled him gradually to form an accurate -knowledge of the state of medicine in every -country, and the knowledge thus acquired put it in -his power to direct students in the choice of places -where they might have an opportunity of engaging in -business with a reasonable prospect of success.</p> - -<p>Nor was it in this way alone that he befriended the -students in the University of Edinburgh. Remembering -the difficulties with which he had himself to struggle -in his younger days, he was at all times singularly -attentive to the pecuniary wants of the students. From -the general intimacy which he contracted with them he -found no difficulty in discovering those whose circumstances -were contracted, or who laboured under any -pecuniary embarrassment, without being under the -necessity of hurting their feelings by a direct inquiry. -To such persons, when their habits of study admitted -it, he was peculiarly attentive: they were more frequently -invited to his house than others, they were -treated with unusual kindness and familiarity, they -were conducted to his library and encouraged by the -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_310">310</span> -most delicate address to borrow from it freely whatever -books he thought they had occasion for; and as persons -under such circumstances are often extremely shy, -books were sometimes pressed upon them as a sort -of task, the doctor insisting upon knowing their opinion -of such and such passages which they had not read, -and desiring them to carry the book home for that purpose: -in short, he behaved to them as if he had courted -their company. He thus raised them in the opinion -of their acquaintances, which, to persons in their circumstances, -was of no little consequence. They were -inspired at the same time with a secret sense of dignity, -which elevated their minds, and excited an uncommon -ardour, instead of that desponding inactivity so natural -to depressed circumstances. Nor was he less delicate -in the manner of supplying their wants: he often -found out some polite excuse for refusing to take -money for a first course, and never was at a loss for -one to an after course. Sometimes (as his lectures -were never written) he would request the favour of a -sight of their notes, if he knew that they were taken -with care, in order to refresh his memory. Sometimes -he would express a wish to have their opinion of a particular -part of his course, and presented them with a ticket -for the purpose. By such delicate pieces of address, -in which he greatly excelled, he took care to anticipate -their wants. Thus he not only gave them the benefit -of his own lectures, but by refusing to take money -enabled them to attend such others as were necessary -for completing their course of medical study.</p> - -<p>He introduced another general rule into the university -dictated by the same spirit of disinterested benevolence. -Before he came to Edinburgh, it was the -custom of the medical professors to accept of fees for -their medical attendance when wanted, even from -medical students themselves, though they were perhaps -attending the professor’s lectures at the time. -But Dr. Cullen never would take a fee from any student -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_311">311</span> -of the university, though he attended them, when -called on as a physician, with the same assiduity and -care as if they had been persons of the first rank who -paid him most liberally. This gradually led others to -follow his example; and it has now become a general -rule for medical professors to decline taking any fees -when their assistance is necessary to a student. For -this useful reform, as well as for many others, the students -in the University of Edinburgh are entirely indebted -to Dr. Cullen.</p> - -<p>The first lectures which Dr. Cullen delivered in -Edinburgh were on chemistry; and for many years he -also gave lectures on the cases that occurred in the -infirmary. In the month of February, 1763, Dr. Alston -died, after having begun his usual course of lectures -on the materia medica. The magistrates of Edinburgh, -who are the patrons of the university, appointed -Dr. Cullen to that chair, requesting that he would -finish the course of lectures that had been begun by -his predecessor. This he agreed to do, and, though he -had only a few days to prepare himself, he never once -thought of reading the lectures of his predecessor, but -resolved to deliver a new course, which should be entirely -his own. Some idea may be formed of the popularity -of Cullen, by the increase of students to a class -nearly half finished: Dr. Alston had been lecturing -to ten; as soon as Dr. Cullen began, a hundred new -students enrolled themselves.</p> - -<p>Some years after, on the death of Dr. Whytt, professor -of the theory of medicine, Dr. Cullen was appointed -to give lectures in his stead. It was then that -he thought it requisite to resign the chemical chair in -favour of Dr. Black, his former pupil, whose talents -in that department of science were well known. Soon -after, on the death of Dr. Rutherford, professor of the -practice of medicine, Dr. John Gregory having become -a candidate for this place, along with Dr. Cullen, -a sort of compromise took place between them, by -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_312">312</span> -which they agreed to give lectures alternately, on the -theory and practice of medicine, during their joint -lives, the longest survivor being allowed to hold either -of the classes he should incline. Unluckily this arrangement -was soon destroyed, by the sudden and -unexpected death of Dr. Gregory, in the flower of his -age. Dr. Cullen thenceforth continued to give lectures -on the practice of medicine till within a few -months of his death, which happened on the 5th of -February, 1790, when he was in the seventy-seventh -year of his age.</p> - -<p>It is not our business to follow Dr. Cullen’s medical -career, nor to point out the great benefits which he -conferred on nosology and the practice of medicine. -He taught four different classes in the University of -Edinburgh, which we are not aware to have happened -to any other individual, except to professor Dugald -Stewart.</p> - -<p>Notwithstanding the important impulse which he -gave to chemistry, he published nothing upon that -science, except a short paper on the cold produced by -the evaporation of ether, which made its appearance -in one of the volumes of the Edinburgh Physical and -Literary Essays. Dr. Cullen employed Dr. Dobson -of Liverpool, at that time his pupil, to make experiments -on the heat and cold produced by mixing -liquids and solids with each other. Dr. Dobson, in -making these experiments, observed that the thermometer, -when lifted out of many of the liquids, and -suspended a short time in the air beside them, fell to a -lower degree than indicated by another thermometer -which had undergone no such process. After varying -his observations on this phenomenon, he found -reason to conclude that it was occasioned by the evaporation -of the last drop of liquid which adhered to the -bulb of the thermometer; the sinking of the thermometer -being always greatest when this instrument was -taken out of the most volatile liquids. Dr. Cullen had -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_313">313</span> -the curiosity to try whether the same phenomenon -would appear on repeating these experiments under -the exhausted receiver of an air-pump. To satisfy -himself, he put on the plate of the air-pump a glass -goblet containing water; and in the goblet he placed a -wide-mouthed phial containing sulphuric ether. The -whole was covered with an air-pump receiver, having -at the upper end a collar of leathers in a brass socket, -through which a thick smooth wire could be moved; -and from the lower end of this wire, projecting into -the receiver, was suspended a thermometer. By -pushing down the wire, the thermometer could be dipped -into the ether; by drawing it up it could be taken -out, and suspended over the phial.</p> - -<p>The apparatus being thus adjusted, the air-pump -was worked to extract the air. An unexpected phenomenon -immediately appeared, which prevented the -experiment from being made in the way intended. -The ether was thrown into a violent agitation, which -Dr. Cullen ascribed to the extrication of a great -quantity of air: in reality, however, it was boiling -violently. What was still more remarkable, the ether, -by this boiling or rapid evaporation, became all of a -sudden so cold, as to freeze the water in the goblet -around it; though the temperature of the air and of all -the materials were at the fifty-fourth degree of Fahrenheit -at the beginning of the experiment.</p> - -<p>I have been particular in giving an account of this -curious phenomenon, as it was the only direct contribution -to the science of chemistry which Dr. Cullen -communicated to the public. The nature of the phenomenon -was afterwards explained by Dr. Black; in -addition to Dr. Cullen, a philosopher, whom the grand -stimulus which his lectures gave to the cultivation of -scientific chemistry in this country, had the important -merit of bringing forward.</p> - -<p>Joseph Black was born in France, on the banks of -the Garonne, in the year 1728: his father, Mr. John -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_314">314</span> -Black, was a native of Belfast, but of a Scottish family -which had been for some time settled there. Mr. Black -resided for the most part at Bordeaux, where he was -engaged in the wine trade. He married a daughter of -Mr. Robert Gordon, of the family of Hillhead, in Aberdeenshire, -who was also engaged in the same trade at -Bordeaux. Mr. Black was a gentleman of most -amiable manners, candid and liberal in his sentiments, -and of no common information. These qualities, together -with the warmth of his heart, appear very conspicuous -in a series of letters to his son, which that -son preserved with the nicest care. His good qualities -did not escape the discerning eye of the great Montesquieu, -one of the presidents of the court of justice in -that province. This illustrious and excellent man -honoured Mr. Black with a friendship and intimacy -altogether rare; of which his descendants were justly -proud.</p> - -<p>Long before Mr. Black retired from business, his -son Joseph was sent home to Belfast, that he might -have the education of a British subject. This was in -the year 1740, when he was twelve years of age. After -the ordinary instruction at the grammar-school, he was -sent, in 1746, to continue his education in the University -of Glasgow. Here he studied with much assiduity -and success: physical science, however, chiefly -engrossed his attention. He was a favourite pupil of -Dr. Robert Dick, professor of natural philosophy, and -the intimate companion of his son and successor. This -young professor was of a character peculiarly suited to -Dr. Black’s taste, having the clearest conception, and -soundest judgment, accompanied by a modesty that -was very uncommon. When he succeeded his father, in -1751, he became the delight of the students. He was -carried off by a fever in 1757.</p> - -<p>Young Black being required by his father to make -choice of a profession, he preferred that of medicine -as the most suitable to the general habits of his studies. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_315">315</span> -Fortunately Dr. Cullen had just begun his great -career in the College of Glasgow, and having made -choice of the field of philosophical chemistry which -lay as yet unoccupied before him. Hitherto chemistry -had been treated as a curious and useful art; but Cullen -saw in it a vast department of the science of nature, -depending on principles as immutable as the laws of -mechanism, and capable of being formed into a system -as comprehensive and as complete as astronomy itself. -He conceived the resolution of attempting himself to -explore this magnificent field, and expected much reputation -from accomplishing his object. Nor was he -altogether disappointed. He quickly took the science -out of the hands of artists, and exhibited it as a study -fit for a gentleman. Dr. Black attended his chemical -lectures, and, from the character which has already -been given of him, it is needless to say that he soon -discovered the uncommon value of his pupil, and attached -him to himself, rather as a co-operator and a -friend, than a pupil. He was considered as his assistant -in all his operations, and his experiments were frequently -adduced in the lecture as good authority.</p> - -<p>Young Black laid down a very comprehensive and -serious plan of study. This appears from a number -of note-books found among his papers. There are -some in which he seems to have inserted every thing -as it took his fancy, in medicine, chemistry, jurisprudence, -or matters of taste. Into others, the same -things are transferred, but distributed according to -their scientific connexions. In short, he kept a -journal and ledger of his studies, and has posted his -books like a merchant. What particularly strikes one -in looking over these books, is the steadiness with -which he advanced in any path of knowledge. Things -are inserted for the first time from some present impression -of their singularity or importance, but without -any allusion to their connexions. When a thing -of the same kind is mentioned again, there is generally -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_316">316</span> -a reference back to its fellow; and thus the most -isolated facts often acquired a connexion which gave -them importance.</p> - -<p>He went to Edinburgh to finish his medical studies -in 1750 or 1751, where he lived with his cousin german, -Mr. James Russel, professor of natural philosophy in -that university.</p> - -<p>It was the good fortune of chemical science, that -at this very time the opinions of professors were divided -concerning the manner in which certain lithontriptic -medicines, particularly lime-water, acted in -alleviating the excruciating pains of the stone and -gravel. The students usually partake of such differences -of opinion: they are thereby animated to more -serious study, and science gains by their emulation. -This was a subject quite to the taste of young Mr. -Black, one of Dr. Cullen’s most zealous and intelligent -chemical pupils. It was, indeed, a most interesting -subject, both to the chemist and the physician.</p> - -<p>All the medicines which were then in vogue as solvents -of urinary calculi had a greater or less resemblance -to caustic potash or soda; substances so acrid, -when in a concentrated state, that in a short time they -reduce the fleshy parts of the animal body to a mere -pulp. Thus, though they might possess lithontriptic -properties, their exhibition was dangerous, if in unskilful -hands. They all seemed to derive their efficacy -from quicklime, which again derives its power -from the fire. It was therefore very natural for them -to ascribe its power to igneous matter imbibed from -the fire, retained by the lime, and communicated by -it to alkalies, which it renders powerfully acrid. Hence, -undoubtedly, the term <i>caustic</i> applied to the alkalies -in that state, and hence also the <i>acidum pingue</i> of -Mayer, which was a peculiar state of fire. It appears -from Dr. Black’s note-books, that he originally entertained -the opinion, that caustic alkalies acquired -igneous matter from quicklime. In one of them he -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_317">317</span> -hints at some way of catching this matter as it escapes -from lime, while it becomes mild by exposure to the -air; but on the opposite blank page is written, “Nothing -escapes—the cup rises considerably by absorbing -air.” A few pages further on, he compares the -loss of weight sustained by an ounce of chalk when -calcined, with its loss while dissolved in muriatic acid. -Immediately after this, a medical case is mentioned, -which occurred in November, 1752. Hence it would -appear, that he had before that time suspected the real -cause of the difference between limestone and burnt -lime. He had prosecuted his inquiry with vigour; for the -experiments with magnesia are soon after mentioned.</p> - -<p>These experiments laid open the whole mystery, as -appears by another memorandum. “When I precipitate -lime by a common alkali there is no effervescence: -the air quits the alkali for the lime; but it is -lime no longer, but C. C. C.: it now effervesces, which -good lime will not.” What a multitude of important -consequences naturally flowed from this discovery! He -now knew to what the causticity of alkalies is owing, -and how to induce it or remove it at pleasure. The -common notion was entirely reversed. Lime imparts -nothing to the alkalies; it only removes from them -a peculiar kind of air (<i>carbonic acid gas</i>) with which -they were combined, and which prevented their natural -caustic properties from being developed. All the -former mysteries disappear, and the greatest simplicity -appears in those operations of nature which before -appeared so intricate and obscure.</p> - -<p>Dr. Black had fixed upon this subject for his inaugural -dissertation, and was induced, in consequence, -to defer applying for his degree till he had succeeded -in establishing his doctrine beyond the possibility of -contradiction. The inaugural essay was delivered at -a moment peculiarly favourable to the advancement -of science. Dr. Cullen had been just removed to -Edinburgh, and there was a vacancy in the chemical -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_318">318</span> -chair in Glasgow: it could not be bestowed better -than on such an <i>alumnus</i> of the university—on one -who had distinguished himself both as a chemist and -an excellent reasoner; for few finer models of inductive -investigation exist than are displayed in Black’s -essay on quicklime and magnesia. He was appointed -professor of anatomy and lecturer on chemistry in the -University of Glasgow in 1756. It was a fortunate -circumstance both for himself and for the public, that -a situation thus presented itself, just at the time when -he was under the necessity of settling in the world—a -situation which allowed him to dedicate his talents -chiefly to the cultivation of chemistry, his favourite -science.</p> - -<p>When Dr. Black took his degree in medicine, he -sent some copies of his essay to his father at Bordeaux. -A copy was given by the old gentleman to -his friend, the President Montesquieu, who, after a -few days called on Mr. Black, and said to him, -“Mr. Black, my very good friend, I rejoice with -you; your son will be the honour of your name and -family.” This anecdote was told Professor John Robison -by the brother of Dr. Black.</p> - -<p>Thus Dr. Black, while in Glasgow, taught at one -and the same time two different classes. He did not -consider himself very well qualified to teach anatomy, -but determined to do his utmost; but he soon afterwards -made arrangements with the professor of medicine, -who, with the concurrence of the university, -exchanged his own chair for that of Dr. Black.</p> - -<p>Black’s medical lectures constituted his chief task -while in Glasgow. They gave the greatest satisfaction -by their perspicuity and simplicity, and by -the cautious moderation of all his general doctrines: -and, indeed, all his perspicuity, and all his neatness -of manner in exhibiting simple truths, were necessary -to create a relish for moderation and caution, after the -brilliant prospects of systematic knowledge to which -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_319">319</span> -the students had been accustomed by Dr. Cullen, his -celebrated predecessor. But Dr. Black had no wish -to form a medical school, distinguished by some all-comprehending -doctrine: he satisfied himself with a -clear account of as much of physiology as he thought -founded on good principles, and a short sketch of such -general doctrines as were maintained by the most eminent -authors, though perhaps on a less firm foundation. -He then endeavoured to deduce a few canons -of medical practice, and concluded with certain rules -founded on successful practice only, but not deducible -from the principles of physiology previously laid -down. With his medical lectures he does not appear -to have been himself entirely satisfied: he did not -encourage conversation on the different topics, and -no remains of these lectures were to be found among -his papers. The preceding account of them was given -to Professor Robison by a surgeon in Glasgow, who -attended the two last medical courses which Dr. Black -ever delivered.</p> - -<p>Dr. Black’s reception at Glasgow by the university -was in the highest degree encouraging. His former -conduct as a student had not only done him credit in -his classes, but had conciliated the affection of the -professors to a very high degree. He became immediately -connected in the strictest friendship with the -celebrated Dr. Adam Smith—a friendship which continued -intimate and confidential through the whole of -their lives. Both were remarkable for a certain simplicity -of character and the most incorruptible integrity. -Dr. Smith used to say, that no one had less -nonsense in his head than Dr. Black; and he often -acknowledged himself obliged to him for setting him -right in his judgment of character, confessing that he -himself was too apt to form his opinion from a single -feature.</p> - -<p>It was during his residence in Glasgow, between -the years 1759 and 1763, that he brought to maturity -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_320">320</span> -those speculations concerning the combination of <i>heat</i> -with <i>matter</i>, which had frequently occupied a portion -of his thoughts. It had long been known that ice -has the property of continuing always at the temperature -of 32° till it be melted. This happens equally though -it be placed in contact with the warm hand or surrounded -with bodies many degrees hotter than itself. -The hotter the bodies are that surround it, the sooner -is it melted; but its temperature during the whole -process of melting, continues uniformly the same. Yet, -during the whole process of melting, it is constantly -robbing the surrounding bodies of heat; for it makes -them colder, without acquiring itself any sensible heat.</p> - -<p>Dr. Black had some vague notion that the heat so -received by the ice, during its conversion into water, -was not lost, but was contained in the water. This -opinion was founded chiefly on a curious observation -of Fahrenheit, recorded by Boerhaave; namely, that -water might in some cases be made considerably colder -than melting snow, without freezing. In such cases, -when disturbed it would freeze in a moment, and in -the act of freezing always gave out a quantity of heat. -This opinion was confirmed by observing the slowness -with which water is converted into ice, and ice into -water. A fine winter-day of sunshine is never sufficient -to clear the hills of snow; nor is one frosty -night capable of covering the ponds with a thick coating -of ice. The phenomena satisfied him that much -heat was absorbed and fixed in the water which trickles -from wreaths of snow, and that much heat emerged -from it while water was slowly converted into ice; -for during a thaw the melting snow is always colder -than the air, and must, therefore, be always receiving -heat from it; while, during a frost, the air is always -colder than the freezing water, and must therefore be -always receiving heat from it. These observations, -and many others which it is needless to state, satisfied -Dr. Black that when ice is converted into water it -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_321">321</span> -unites with a quantity of heat, without increasing in -temperature; and that when water is frozen into ice -it gives out a quantity of heat without diminishing in -temperature. The heat thus combined is the cause -of the fluidity of the water. As it is not sensible to -the thermometer, Dr. Black called it <i>latent heat</i>. He -made an experiment to determine the quantity of heat -necessary to convert ice into water. This he estimated -by the length of time necessary to melt a given weight -of ice, measuring how much heat entered into the -same weight of water, reduced as nearly to the temperature -of ice as possible during the first half-hour -that the experiment lasted. As the ice continued -during the whole of its melting at the same temperature -as at first, he concluded that it would absorb, -every half-hour that the process lasted, as much heat -as the water did during the first half hour. The result -of this experiment was, that the latent heat of -water amounts to 140°; or, in other words, that this -heat, if thrown into a quantity of water, equal in -weight to that of the ice melted, would raise its temperature -140°.</p> - -<p>Dr. Black, having established this discovery in -the most incontrovertible manner by simple and -decisive experiments, drew up an account of the -whole investigation, and the doctrine which he founded -upon it, and read it to a literary society which met -every Friday in the faculty-room of the college, consisting -of the members of the university and several -gentlemen of the city, who had a relish for science -and literature. This paper was read on the 23d of -April, as appears by the registers of the society.</p> - -<p>Dr. Black quickly perceived the vast importance of -this discovery, and took a pleasure in laying before -his students a view of the beneficial effects of this habitude -of heat in the economy of nature. During the -summer season a vast magazine of heat was accumulated -in the water, which, by gradually emerging -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_322">322</span> -during congelation, serves to temper the cold of winter. -Were it not for this accumulation of heat in water and -other bodies, the sun would no sooner go a few degrees -to the south of the equator, than we should feel all -the horrors of winter. He did not confine his views -to the congelation of water alone, but extended them -to every case of congelation and liquefaction which -he has ascribed equally to the evolution or fixation -of latent heat. Even those bodies which change from -solid to fluid, not all at once, but by slow degrees, as -butter, tallow, resins, owe, he found, their gradual -softening to the same absorption of heat, and the same -combination of it with the substance undergoing liquefaction.</p> - -<p>Another subject that engaged his attention at this -time, was an examination of the scale of the thermometer, -to learn whether equal differences of expansion -corresponded to equal additions or abstractions of -heat. His mode was to mix together equal weights of -water of different temperatures, and to measure the -temperature of the mixture by a thermometer. It is -obvious that the temperature must be the exact mean -of that of the two portions of water; and that if the -expansion or contraction of the mercury in the thermometer -be an exact measure of the difference of -temperature, a thermometer, so placed, will indicate -the exact mean. Suppose one pound of water at 100° -to be mixed with one pound of water at 200°, and the -whole heat still to remain in the mixture, it is obvious -that it would divide itself equally between the two -portions of water. The water of 100° would become -hotter, and the water of 200° would become colder: -and the increase of temperature in the colder portion -would be just as much as the diminution of temperature -in the hotter portion. The colder portion would become -hotter by 50°, while the hotter portion would -become colder by 50°. Hence the real temperature, -after mixture, would be 150°; and a thermometer -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_323">323</span> -plunged into such a mixture, if a true measurer of -heat, would indicate 150°. The result of his experiments -was, that as high up as he could try by mixing -water of different temperatures, the mercurial thermometer -is an accurate measurer of the alterations of -temperature.</p> - -<p>An account of his experiments on this subject was -drawn up by him, and read to the literary society of -the College of Glasgow, on the 28th of March, 1760. -Dr. Black, at the time he made these experiments, did -not know that he had been already anticipated in -them by Dr. Brooke Taylor, the celebrated mathematician, -who had obtained similar results, and had consigned -his experiments to the Royal Society, in whose -Transactions for 1723 they were published. It has -been since found by Coulomb and Petit, that at higher -temperatures than 212° the rate of the expansion of -mercury begins to increase. Hence it happens that -at high temperatures the expansion of mercury is no -longer an accurate measurer of temperature. Fortunately, -the expansion of glass very nearly equals the -increment of that of mercury. The consequence is, -that in a common glass-thermometer mercury measures -the true increments of temperature very nearly -up to its boiling point; for the boiling point of mercury -measured by an air-thermometer is 662°: and if -a glass mercurial thermometer be plunged into boiling -mercury, it will indicate 660°, a difference of only 2° -from the true point.</p> - -<p>There is such an analogy between the cessation of -thermometric expansion during the liquefaction of ice, -and during the conversion of water into steam, that -there could be no hesitation about explaining both in -the same way. Dr. Black immediately concluded -that as water is ice united to a certain quantity of <i>latent -heat</i>, so steam is water united to a still greater quantity. -The slow conversion of water into steam, notwithstanding -the great quantity of heat constantly -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_324">324</span> -flowing into it from the fire, left no reasonable doubt -about the accuracy of this conclusion. In short, all -the phenomena are precisely similar to those of the -conversion of ice into water; and so, of course, must -the explanation be. So much was he convinced of -this, that he taught the doctrine in his lectures in -1761, before he had made a single experiment on the -subject; and he explained, with great felicity of argument, -many phenomena of nature, which result -from this vaporific combination of heat. From notes -taken in his class during this session, it appears that -nothing more was wanting to complete his views on -this subject, than a set of experiments to determine the -exact quantity of heat which was combined in steam -in a state not indicated by the thermometer, and therefore -<i>latent</i>, in the same sense that the heat of liquefaction -in water is <i>latent</i>.</p> - -<p>The requisite experiments were first attempted by -Dr. Black, in 1764. They consisted merely in measuring -the time requisite to convert a certain weight -of water of a given temperature into steam. The -water was put into a tin-plate wide-mouthed vessel, -and laid upon a red-hot plate of iron, the initial temperature -of the water was marked, and the time necessary -to heat it from that point to the boiling point -noted, and then the time requisite to boil the whole to -dryness. It was taken for granted that as much heat -would enter into the water during every minute that -the experiment lasted, as did during the first minute. -From this it was concluded that the latent heat of -steam is not less than 810 degrees.</p> - -<p>Mr. James Watt afterwards repeated these experiments -with a better apparatus and very great care, -and calculated from his results that the latent heat of -steam is not under 950 degrees. Lavoisier and Laplace -afterwards made experiments in a different way, and -deduced 1000° as the result of their experiments. -The subsequent experiments of Count Rumford, made -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_325">325</span> -in a very ingenious manner, so as to obviate most of -the sources of error, to which such researches are -liable, come very nearly to those of Lavoisier. 1000° -therefore, is usually now-a-days adopted as the number -which denotes the true latent heat of steam.</p> - -<p>Dr. Black continued in the University of Glasgow -from 1756 to 1766, much esteemed as an eminent -professor, much employed as an able and attentive -physician, and much beloved as an amiable and accomplished -man, happy in the enjoyment of a small -but select society of friends. Meanwhile his reputation -as a chemical philosopher was every day increasing, -and pupils from foreign countries carried home with -them the peculiar doctrines of his courses—so that -<i>fixed air</i> and <i>latent heat</i> began to be spoken of -among the naturalists of the continent. In 1766 Dr. -Cullen, at that time professor of chemistry in Edinburgh, -was appointed professor of medicine, and thus -a vacancy was made in the chemical chair of that -university. There was but one wish with regard to a -successor. Indeed, when the vacancy happened in -1756, on the death of Dr. Plummer, the reputation of -Dr. Black, who had just taken his degree, was so high, -both as a chemist and an accurate thinker and reasoner, -that, had the choice depended on the university, -he would have been the new professor of chemistry. -He had now, in 1766, greatly added to his claim of -merit by his important discovery of latent heat; and -he had acquired the esteem of all by the singular moderation -and scrupulous caution which marked all his -researches.</p> - -<p>Dr. Black was appointed to the chemical chair in -Edinburgh in 1766, to the general satisfaction of -the public, but the University of Glasgow suffered an -irreparable loss. In this new situation his talents were -more conspicuous and more extensively useful. He -saw that the case was so, and while he could not but -be gratified by the number of students whom the high -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_326">326</span> -reputation of Edinburgh, as a medical school, brought -together, his mind was forcibly struck by the importance -of his duties as a teacher. This led him to form -the resolution of devoting the whole of his study to the -improvement of his pupils in the elementary knowledge -of chemistry. Many of them came to his class with -a very scanty stock of previous knowledge. Many -from the workshop of the manufacturer had little or none. -He was conscious that the number of this kind of pupils -must increase with the increasing activity and prosperity -of the country; and they appeared to him by no -means the least important part of his auditory. To engage -the attention of such pupils, and to be perfectly -understood by the most illiterate of his audience, Dr. -Black considered as a sacred duty: he resolved, -therefore, that plain doctrines taught in the plainest -manner, should henceforth employ his chief study. To -render his lectures perfectly intelligible they were illustrated -by suitable experiments, by the exhibition of -specimens, and by the repetition of chemical processes.</p> - -<p>To this method of lecturing Dr. Black rigidly adhered, -endeavouring every year to make his courses more plain -and familiar, and illustrating them by a greater variety -of examples in the way of experiment. No man could -perform these more neatly or successfully; they were -always ingeniously and judiciously contrived, clearly -establishing the point in view, and were never more -complicated than was sufficient for the purpose. Nothing -that had the least appearance of quackery; nothing -calculated to surprise and astonish his audience; -nothing savouring of a showman or sleight-of-hand -man was ever permitted in his lecture-room. Every -thing was simple, neat, and elegant, calculated equally -to please and to inform: indeed simplicity and neatness -stamped his character. It was this that constituted -the charm of his lectures, and rendered them so delightful -to his pupils. I can speak of them from experience, -for I was fortunate enough to hear the last -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_327">327</span> -course of lectures which he ever delivered. I can -say with perfect truth that I never listened to any -lectures with so much pleasure as to his: and it was -the elegant simplicity of his manner, the perfect clearness -of his statements, and the vast quantity of information -which he contrived in this way to communicate, -that delighted me. I was all at once transported into -a new world—my views were suddenly enlarged, and -I looked down from a height which I had never before -reached; and all this knowledge was communicated -without any apparent effort either on the part of the -professor or his pupils. His illustrations were just sufficient -to answer completely the object in view, and -nothing more. No quackery, no trickery, no love of -mere dazzle and glitter, ever had the least influence -upon his conduct. He constituted the most complete -model of a perfect chemical lecturer that I have ever -had an opportunity of witnessing.</p> - -<p>The discovery which Dr. Black had made that -marble is a combination of lime and a peculiar substance, -to which he gave the name of <i>fixed air</i>, began -gradually to attract the attention of chemists in -other parts of the world. It was natural in the first -place to examine the nature and properties of this -fixed air, and the circumstances under which it is generated. -It may seem strange and unaccountable that -Dr. Black did not enter with ardour into this new -career which he had himself opened, and that he -allowed others to reap the corn after having himself -sown the grain. Yet he did take some steps towards -ascertaining the properties of <i>fixed air</i>; though I -am not certain what progress he made. He knew that -a candle would not burn in it, and that it is destructive -to life, when any living animal attempts to breathe -it. He knew that it was formed in the lungs during -the breathing of animals, and that it is generated -during the fermentation of wine and beer. Whether -he was aware that it possesses the properties of an -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_328">328</span> -acid I do not know; though with the knowledge which -he possessed that it combines with alkalies and alkaline -earths, and neutralizes them, or at least blunts and diminishes -their alkaline properties, the conclusion that -it partook of alkaline properties was scarcely avoidable. -All these, and probably some other properties of <i>fixed -air</i> he was in the constant habit of stating in his lectures -from the very commencement of his academical career; -though, as he never published anything on the subject -himself, it is not possible to know exactly how far his -knowledge of the properties of <i>fixed air</i> extended. The -oldest manuscript copy of his lectures that I have seen -was taken down in writing in the year 1773; and -before that time Mr. Cavendish had published his -paper on <i>fixed air</i> and <i>hydrogen gas</i>, and had detailed -the properties of each. It was impossible from the -manuscript of Dr. Black’s lectures to know which of the -properties of <i>fixed air</i> stated by him were discovered -by himself, and which were taken from Mr. Cavendish.</p> - -<p>This languor and listlessness, on the part of Dr. -Black, is chiefly to be ascribed to the delicate state of -his health, which precluded much exertion, and was -particularly inconsistent with any attempt at putting -his thoughts down upon paper. Hence, probably, that -carelessness about posthumous fame, and that regardlessness -of reputation, which, however it may be accounted -for from bodily ailment, must still be considered -as a blemish. How differently did Paschal act in -a similar state of health! With what energy did he -exert himself in spite of bodily ailment! But the tone -of his mind was quite different from that of Dr. Black. -Gentleness, diffidence, and perhaps even slowness -of apprehension, were the characteristic features by -which the latter was distinguished.</p> - -<p>There is an anecdote of Black which I was told by -the late Mr. Benjamin Bell, of Edinburgh, author of -a well-known system of surgery, and he assured me -that he had it from the late Sir George Clarke, of -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_329">329</span> -Pennicuik, who was a witness of the circumstance -related. Soon after the appearance of Mr. Cavendish’s -paper on hydrogen gas, in which he made an -approximation to the specific gravity of that body, -showing that it was at least ten times lighter than -common air, Dr. Black invited a party of his friends -to supper, informing them that he had a curiosity to -show them. Dr. Hutton, Mr. Clarke of Elden, and Sir -George Clarke of Pennicuik, were of the number. -When the company invited had assembled, he took -them into a room. He had the allentois of a calf -filled with hydrogen gas, and upon setting it at liberty, -it immediately ascended, and adhered to the ceiling. -The phenomenon was easily accounted for: it was -taken for granted that a small black thread had been -attached to the allentois, that this thread passed through -the ceiling, and that some one in the apartment above, -by pulling the thread, elevated it to the ceiling, and -kept it in this position. This explanation was so probable, -that it was acceded to by the whole company; -though, like many other plausible theories, it turned -out wholly unfounded; for when the allentois was -brought down no thread whatever was found attached -to it. Dr. Black explained the cause of the ascent to -his admiring friends; but such was his carelessness of -his own reputation, and of the information of the public, -that he never gave the least account of this curious -experiment even to his class; and more than twelve -years elapsed before this obvious property of hydrogen -gas was applied to the elevation of air-balloons, by -M. Charles, in Paris.</p> - -<p>The constitution of Dr. Black had always been exceedingly -delicate. The slightest cold, the most -trifling approach to repletion, immediately affected -his chest, occasioned feverishness, and if the disorder -continued for two or three days, brought on a spitting -of blood. In this situation, nothing restored him -to ease, but relaxation of thought, and gentle exercise. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_330">330</span> -The sedentary life to which study confined him, was -manifestly hurtful; and he never allowed himself to -indulge in any investigation that required intense -thought, without finding these complaints increased.</p> - -<p>Thus situated, Dr. Black was obliged to be a contented -spectator of the rapid progress which chemistry -was making, without venturing himself to engage in -any of the numerous investigations which presented -themselves on every side. Such indeed was the eagerness -with which chemistry was at that time prosecuted, -and such the passion for discovery, that there was -some risk that his undoubted claim to originality -and priority in his own great discoveries, might be -called in question, and even rendered doubtful. His -friends at least were afraid of this, and often urged -him to do justice to himself, by publishing an account -of his own discoveries. He more than once began -the task; but was so nice in his notions of the manner -in which it should be executed, that the pains he took -in forming a plan of the work never failed to affect -his health, and oblige him to desist. It is known that -he felt hurt at the publication of several of Lavoisier’s -papers, in the Mémoires de l’Académie, without any -allusion whatever to what he himself had previously -done on the same subject. How far Lavoisier was -really culpable, and whether he did not intend to do -full justice to all the claims of his predecessors, cannot -now be known; as he was cut off in the midst of his -career, while so many of his scientific projects remained -unexecuted. From the posthumous works of -Lavoisier, there is some reason for believing that if -he had lived, he would have done justice to all parties; -but there is no doubt that Dr. Black, in the mean -time, thought himself aggrieved, and that he formed -the intention of doing himself justice, by publishing -an account of his own discoveries; however this intention -was thwarted and prevented by bad health.</p> - -<p>No one contributed more largely to establish, to support, -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_331">331</span> -and to increase, the high character of the medical -school in the University of Edinburgh than Dr. Black. -His talent for communicating knowledge was not less -eminent than his faculty of observation. He soon became -one of the principal ornaments of the university; -and his lectures were attended by an audience which -continued increasing from year to year for more than -thirty years. His personal appearance and manners -were those of a gentleman, and peculiarly pleasing: -his voice, in lecturing, was low, but fine; and his articulation -so distinct, that he was perfectly well heard -by an audience consisting of several hundreds. While -in Glasgow, he had practised extensively as a physician; -but in Edinburgh he declined general practice, -and confined his attendance to a few families of intimate -and respected friends. He was, however, a physician -of good repute in a place where the character of -a physician implied no common degree of liberality, -propriety, and dignity of manners, as well as of learning -and skill.</p> - -<p>Such was Dr. Black as a public man. While young, -his countenance was comely and interesting; and as he -advanced in years, it continued to preserve that pleasing -expression of inward satisfaction which, by giving -ease to the beholder, never fails to please. His manners -were simple, unaffected, and graceful; he was of -the most easy approach, affable, and readily entered -into conversation, whether serious or trivial: for he -was not merely a man of science, but was well acquainted -with the elegant accomplishments. He had -an accurate musical ear, and a voice which would obey -it in the most perfect manner; he sang and performed -on the flute with great taste and feeling; and -could sing a plain air at sight, which many instrumental -performers cannot do. Music was his amusement -in Glasgow; after his removal to Edinburgh he -gave it up entirely. Without having studied drawing -he had acquired a considerable power of expression -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_332">332</span> -with his pencil, both in figures and in landscape. He -was peculiarly happy in expressing the passions, and -seemed in this respect to have the talents of a historical -painter. Figure indeed, of every kind, attracted his -attention; in architecture, furniture, ornament of every -sort, it was never a matter of indifference to him. Even -a retort, or a crucible, was to his eye an example of -beauty, or deformity. These are not indifferent things; -they are features of an elegant mind, and they account -for some part of that satisfaction and pleasure which -persons of different habits and pursuits felt in Dr. -Black’s company and conversation.</p> - -<p>Those circumstances of form, and in which Dr. -Black perceived or sought for beauty, were suitableness -or propriety: something that rendered them well -adapted for the purposes for which they were intended. -This love of propriety constituted the leading feature -in Dr. Black’s mind; it was the standard to which he -constantly appealed, and which he endeavoured to -make the directing principle of his conduct.</p> - -<p>Dr. Black was fond of society, and felt himself -beloved in it. His chief companions, in the earlier -part of his residence in Edinburgh, were Dr. Adam -Smith, Mr. David Hume, Dr. Adam Ferguson, Mr. -John Home, Dr. Alexander Carlisle, and a few others. -Mr. Clarke of Elden, and his brother Sir George, Dr. -Roebuck, and Dr. James Hutton, particularly the latter, -were affectionately attached to him, and in their -society he could indulge in his professional studies. -Dr. Hutton was the only person near him to whom -Dr. Black imparted every speculation in chemical -science, and who knew all his literary labours: seldom -were the two friends asunder for two days together.</p> - -<p>Towards the close of the eighteenth century, the infirmities -of advanced life began to bear more heavily on his -feeble constitution. Those hours of walking and gentle -exercise, which had hitherto been necessary for his -ease, were gradually curtailed. Company and conversation -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_333">333</span> -began to fatigue: he went less abroad, and -was visited only by his intimate friends. His duty at -college became too heavy for him, and he got an -assistant, who took a share of the lectures, and relieved -him from the fatigue of the experiments. The -last course of lectures which he delivered was in the -winter of 1796-7. After this, even lecturing was too -much for his diminished strength, and he was obliged -to absent himself from the class altogether; but he -still retained his usual affability of temper, and his -habitual cheerfulness, and even to the very last was -accustomed to walk out and take occasional exercise. -As his strength declined, his constitution became more -and more delicate. Every cold he caught occasioned -some degree of spitting of blood; yet he seemed to -have this unfortunate disposition of body almost under -command, so that he never allowed it to proceed far, -or to occasion any distressing illness. He spun his -thread of life to the very last fibre. He guarded -against illness by restricting himself to an abstemious -diet; and he met his increasing infirmities with a -proportional increase of attention and care, regulating -his food and exercise by the measure of his strength. -Thus he made the most of a feeble constitution, by -preventing the access of disease from abroad. And -enjoyed a state of health which was feeble, indeed, but -scarcely interrupted; as well as a mind undisturbed in -the calm and cheerful use of its faculties. His only -apprehension was that of a long-continued sick-bed—from -the humane consideration of the trouble and -distress that he might thus occasion to attending -friends; and never was such generous wish more completely -gratified than in his case.</p> - -<p>On the 10th of November, 1799, in the seventy-first -year of his age, he expired without any convulsion, -shock, or stupor, to announce or retard the approach -of death. Being at table with his usual fare, some -bread, a few prunes, and a measured quantity of milk, -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_334">334</span> -diluted with water, and having the cup in his hand -when the last stroke of his pulse was to be given, he -set it down on his knees, which were joined together, -and kept it steady with his hand in the manner of a -person perfectly at ease; and in this attitude expired -without spilling a drop, and without a writhe in his -countenance; as if an experiment had been required -to show to his friends the facility with which -he departed. His servant opened the door to tell him -that some one had left his name; but getting no answer, -stepped about halfway to him; and seeing him -sitting in that easy posture, supporting his basin of -milk with one hand, he thought that he had dropped -asleep, which was sometimes wont to happen after -meals. He went back and shut the door; but before -he got down stairs some anxiety, which he could not -account for, made him return and look again at his -master. Even then he was satisfied, after coming -pretty near him, and turned to go away; but he again -returned, and coming close up to him, he found him -without life. His very near neighbour, Mr. Benjamin -Bell, the surgeon, was immediately sent for; but nothing -whatever could be done.<a id="FNanchor_185" href="#Footnote_185" class="fnanchor">185</a></p> - -<p>Dr. Black’s writings are exceedingly few, consisting -altogether of no more than three papers. The first, -entitled “Experiments upon Magnesia alba, Quicklime, -and other Alkaline Substances,” constituted the -subject of his inaugural dissertation. It afterwards -appeared in an English dress in one of the volumes of -The Edinburgh Physical and Literary Essays, in the -year 1755. Mr. Creech, the bookseller, published it -in a separate pamphlet, together with Dr. Cullen’s -little essay on the “cold produced by evaporating -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_335">335</span> -fluids,” in the year 1796. This essay exhibits one of the -very finest examples of inductive reasoning to be found -in the English language. The author shows that magnesia -is a peculiar earthy body, possessed of properties -very different from lime. He gives the properties of -lime in a pure state, and proves that it differs from limestone -merely by the absence of the carbonic acid, which -is a constituent of limestone. Limestone is a <i>carbonate -of lime</i>; quicklime is the pure uncombined earth. He -shows that magnesia has also the property of combining -with carbonic acid; that caustic potash, or soda, is -merely these bodies in a pure or isolated state; while -the mild alkalies are combinations of these bodies with -carbonic acid. The reason why quicklime converts -mild into caustic alkali is, that the lime has a stronger -affinity for the carbonic acid than the alkali; hence -the lime is converted into carbonate of lime, and the -alkali, deprived of its carbonic acid, becomes caustic. -Mild potash is a carbonate of potash; caustic potash, -is potash freed from carbonic acid.—The publication -of this essay occasioned a controversy in Germany, -which was finally settled by Jacquin and Lavoisier, -who repeated Dr. Black’s experiments and showed -them to be correct.</p> - -<p>Dr. Black’s second paper was published in the -Philosophical Transactions for 1775. It is entitled -“The supposed Effect of boiling on Water, in disposing -it to freeze more readily, ascertained by Experiments.” -He shows, that when water that has been recently boiled -is exposed to cold air, it begins to freeze as soon as -it reaches the freezing point; while water that has not -been boiled may be cooled some degrees below the -freezing point before it begins to congeal. But if the -unboiled water be constantly stirred during the whole -time of its exposure, it begins to freeze when cooled -down to the freezing point as well as the other. He -shows that the difference between the two waters consists -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_336">336</span> -in this, that the boiled water is constantly absorbing -air, which disturbs it, whereas the other water remains -in a state of rest.</p> - -<p>His last paper was “An Analysis of the Water of -some boiling Springs in Iceland,” published in the -Transactions of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. This -was the water of the Geyser spring, brought from Iceland -by Sir J. Stanley. Dr. Black found it to contain -a great deal of silica, held in solution in the water -by caustic soda.</p> - -<p>The tempting career which Dr. Black opened, and -which he was unable to prosecute for want of health, -soon attracted the attention of one of the ablest men -that Great Britain has produced—I mean Mr. Cavendish.</p> - -<p>The Honourable Henry Cavendish was born in London -on the 10th of October, 1731: his father was -Lord Charles Cavendish, a cadet of the house of -Devonshire, one of the oldest families in England. -During his father’s lifetime he was kept in rather narrow -circumstances, being allowed an annuity of £500 -only; while his apartments were a set of stables, -fitted up for his accommodation. It was during this -period that he acquired those habits of economy, -and those singular oddities of character, which he exhibited -ever after in so striking a manner. At his father’s -death he was left a very considerable fortune; -and an aunt who died at a later period bequeathed -him a very handsome addition to it; but, in consequence -of the habits of economy which he had acquired, it was -not in his power to spend the greater part of his annual -income. This occasioned a yearly increase to his -capital, till at last it accumulated so much, without any -care on his part, that at the period of his death he left -behind him nearly £1,300,000; and he was at that -time the greatest proprietor of stock in the Bank of -England.</p> - -<p>On one occasion, the money in the hands of his bankers -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_337">337</span> -had accumulated to the amount of £70,000. These -gentlemen thinking it improper to keep so large a sum -in their hands, sent one of the partners to wait upon -him, in order to learn how he desired it disposed of. -This gentleman was admitted; and, after employing -the necessary precautions to a man of Mr. Cavendish’s -peculiar disposition, stated the circumstance, and begged -to know whether it would not be proper to lay out -the money at interest. Mr. Cavendish dryly answered, -“You may lay it out if you please,” and left the room.</p> - -<p>He hardly ever went into any other society than that -of his scientific friends: he never was absent from the -weekly dinner of the Royal Society club at the Crown -and Anchor Tavern in the Strand. At these dinners, -when he happened to be seated near those that he -liked, he often conversed a great deal; though at other -times he was very silent. He was likewise a constant -attendant at Sir Joseph Banks’s Sunday evening meetings. -He had a house in London, which he only -visited once or twice a-week at stated times, and without -ever speaking to the servants: it contained an -excellent library, to which he gave all literary men the -freest and most unrestrained access. But he lived in -a house on Clapham Common, where he scarcely ever -received any visitors. His relation, Lord George Cavendish, -to whom he left by will the greatest part of his -fortune, visited him only once a-year, and the visit -hardly ever exceeded ten or twelve minutes.</p> - -<p>He was shy and bashful to a degree bordering on -disease; he could not bear to have any person introduced -to him, or to be pointed out in any way as a -remarkable man. One Sunday evening he was -standing at Sir Joseph Banks’s in a crowded room, -conversing with Mr. Hatchett, when Dr. Ingenhousz, -who had a good deal of pomposity of manner, came -up with an Austrian gentleman in his hand, and introduced -him formally to Mr. Cavendish. He mentioned -the titles and qualifications of his friend at great -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_338">338</span> -length, and said that he had been peculiarly anxious -to be introduced to a philosopher so profound and so -universally known and celebrated as Mr. Cavendish. -As soon as Dr. Ingenhousz had finished, the Austrian -gentleman began, and assured Mr. Cavendish that his -principal reason for coming to London was to see and -converse with one of the greatest ornaments of the -age, and one of the most illustrious philosophers that -ever existed. To all these high-flown speeches Mr. -Cavendish answered not a word, but stood with his -eyes cast down quite abashed and confounded. At -last, spying an opening in the crowd, he darted through -it with all the speed of which he was master; nor did -he stop till he reached his carriage, which drove him -directly home.</p> - -<p>Of a man, whose habits were so retired, and whose -intercourse with society was so small, there is nothing -else to relate except his scientific labours: the current -of his life passed on with the utmost regularity; -the description of a single day would convey a correct -idea of his whole existence. At one time he was in -the habit of keeping an individual to assist him in his -experiments. This place was for some time filled by -Sir Charles Blagden; but they did not agree well together, -and after some time Sir Charles left him. -Mr. Cavendish died on the 4th of February, 1810, -aged seventy-eight years, four months, and six days. -When he found himself dying, he gave directions to -his servant to leave him alone, and not to return till a -certain time which he specified, and by which period -he expected to be no longer alive. The servant, however, -who was aware of the state of his master, and was -anxious about him, opened the door of the room before -the time specified, and approached the bed to take a -look at the dying man. Mr. Cavendish, who was still -sensible, was offended at the intrusion, and ordered -him out of the room with a voice of displeasure, commanding -him not by any means to return till the time -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_339">339</span> -specified. When he did come back at that time, he -found his master dead. What a contrast between the -characters of Mr. Cavendish and Dr. Black!</p> - -<p>The appearance of Mr. Cavendish did not much -prepossess strangers in his favour; he was somewhat -above the middle size, his body rather thick, and his -neck rather short. He stuttered a little in his speech, -which gave him an air of awkwardness: his countenance -was not strongly marked, so as to indicate the -profound abilities which he possessed. This was probably -owing to the total absence of all the violent passions. -His education seems to have been very complete; -he was an excellent mathematician, a profound -electrician, and a most acute and ingenious chemist. -He never ventured to give an opinion on any subject, -unless he had studied it to the bottom. He appeared -before the world first as a chemist, and afterwards as -an electrician. The whole of his literary labours consist -of eighteen papers, published in the Philosophical -Transactions, which, though they occupy only a few -pages, are full of the most important discoveries and the -most profound investigations. Of these papers, there are -ten which treat of chemical subjects, two treat of electricity, -two of meteorology, three are connected with -astronomy, and there is one, the last which he wrote, -which gives his method of dividing astronomical instruments. -Of the papers in question, those alone -which treat of Chemistry can be analyzed in a work -like this.</p> - -<p>1. His first paper, entitled, “Experiments on fictitious -Air,” was published in the year 1766, when Mr. Cavendish -was thirty-five years of age. Dr. Hales had demonstrated -(as had previously been done by Van Helmont -and Glauber) that <i>air</i> is given out by a vast -number of bodies in peculiar circumstances. But he -never suspected that any of the <i>airs</i> which he obtained -differed from common air. Indeed common air had -always been considered as an elementary substance to -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_340">340</span> -which every elastic fluid was referred. Dr. Black had -shown that the mild alkalies and limestone, and carbonate -of magnesia, were combinations of these bodies -with a gaseous substance, to which he had given the -name of <i>fixed air</i>; and he had pointed out various -methods of collecting this fixed air; though he himself -had not made much progress in investigating its -properties. This paper of Mr. Cavendish may be considered -as a continuation of the investigations begun -by Dr. Black. He shows that there exist two species of -air quite different in their properties from common air: -and he calls them <i>inflammable air</i> and <i>fixed air</i>.</p> - -<p>Inflammable air (hydrogen gas) is evolved when -iron, zinc, or tin, are dissolved in dilute sulphuric or -muriatic acid. Iron yielded about 1-22d part of its -weight, of inflammable air, zinc about 1-23d or -1-24th of its weight, and tin about 1-44th of its -weight. The properties of the inflammable air were -the same, whichever of the three metals was used -to procure it, and whether they were dissolved in sulphuric -or muriatic acids. When the sulphuric acid was -concentrated, iron and zinc dissolved in it with difficulty -and only by the assistance of heat. The air given -out was not inflammable, but consisted of sulphurous -acid. These facts induced Mr. Cavendish to conclude -that the inflammable air evolved in the first case was -the unaltered <i>phlogiston</i> of the metals, while the sulphurous -acid evolved in the second case, was a compound -of the same phlogiston and a portion of the -acid, which deprived it of its inflammability. This -opinion was very different from that of Stahl, who considered -combustible bodies as compounds of phlogiston -with acids or calces.</p> - -<p>Cavendish found the specific gravity of his inflammable -air about eleven times less than that of common air. -This determination is under the truth; but the error is, at -least in part, owing to the quantity of water held in -solution by the air, and which, as Mr. Cavendish showed, -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_341">341</span> -amounted to about 1-9th of the weight of the air. -He tried the combustibility of the inflammable air, -when mixed with various proportions of common air, -and found that it exploded with the greatest violence when -mixed with rather more than its bulk of common air.</p> - -<p>Copper he found, when dissolved in muriatic acid by -the assistance of heat, yielded no inflammable air, but -an air which lost its elasticity when it came in contact -with water. This <i>air</i>, the nature of which Mr. Cavendish -did not examine, was <i>muriatic acid gas</i>, the properties -of which were afterwards investigated by Dr. -Priestley.</p> - -<p>The <i>fixed air</i> (<i>carbonic acid gas</i>) on which Mr. Cavendish -made his experiments was obtained by dissolving -marble in muriatic acid. He found that it -might be kept over mercury for any length of time -without undergoing any alteration; that it was gradually -absorbed by cold water; and that 100 measures -of water of the temperature 55° absorbed 103·8 measures -of fixed air. The whole of the air thus absorbed -was separated again by exposing the water to a -boiling heat, or by leaving it for sometime in an open -vessel. Alcohol (the specific gravity not mentioned) -absorbed 2¼ times its bulk of this air, and olive-oil -about 1-3d of its bulk.</p> - -<p>The specific gravity of fixed air he found 1·57, that -of common air being 1.<a id="FNanchor_186" href="#Footnote_186" class="fnanchor">186</a> Fixed air is incapable of -supporting combustion, and common air, when mixed -with it, supports combustion a much shorter time than -when pure. A small wax taper burnt eighty seconds in a -receiver which held 180 ounce measures, when filled -with common air only. The same taper burnt fifty-one -seconds in the same receiver when filled with a -mixture of one volume fixed air, and nineteen volumes -of common air. When the fixed air was 3-40ths of -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_342">342</span> -the whole volume the taper burnt twenty-three seconds. -When the fixed air was 1-10th, the taper burnt -eleven seconds. When it was 6-55ths or 1-9·16 of -the whole mixture, the taper would not burn at all.</p> - -<p>Mr. Cavendish was of opinion that more than one -kind of fixed air was given out by marble; in other words, -that the elastic fluid emitted, consisted of two different -airs, one more absorbable by water than the other. -He drew his conclusion from the circumstance that -after a solution of potash had been exposed to a -quantity of fixed air for some time, it ceased to absorb -any more; yet, if the residual portion of air were thrown -away and new fixed air substituted in its place, it began -to absorb again; but Mr. Dalton has since given -a satisfactory explanation of this seeming anomaly by -showing that the absorbability of fixed air in water is -proportional to its purity, and that when mixed with a -great quantity of common air or any other gas not -soluble in water, it ceases to be sensibly absorbed.</p> - -<p>Mr. Cavendish ascertained the quantity of fixed -air contained in marble, carbonate of ammonia, common -pearlashes, and carbonate of potash: but notwithstanding -the care with which these experiments -were made they are of little value; because the proper -precautions could not be taken, in that infant state of -chemical science, to have these salts in a state of -purity. The following were the results obtained by -Mr. Cavendish: - -<span class="table"> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell">1000</span> - <span class="tcell">grains</span> - <span class="tcell">of marble contained</span> - <span class="tcell">408</span> - <span class="tcell">grs. fixed air.</span> - </span> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell">1000</span> - <span class="tcell tdc">—</span> - <span class="tcell">carb. of ammonia</span> - <span class="tcell">533</span> - <span class="tcell tdc">—</span> - </span> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell">1000</span> - <span class="tcell tdc">—</span> - <span class="tcell">pearlashes</span> - <span class="tcell">284</span> - <span class="tcell tdc">—</span> - </span> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell">1000</span> - <span class="tcell tdc">—</span> - <span class="tcell">carb. of potash</span> - <span class="tcell">423</span> - <span class="tcell tdc">—</span> - </span> -</span></p> - -<p>Supposing the marble, carbonate of ammonia, and -carbonate of potash, to have been pure anhydrous -simple salts, their composition would be - -<span class="table"> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell">1000</span> - <span class="tcell">grains</span> - <span class="tcell">of marble contain</span> - <span class="tcell">440</span> - <span class="tcell">grs. fixed air.</span> - </span> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell">1000</span> - <span class="tcell tdc">—</span> - <span class="tcell">carb. of ammonia</span> - <span class="tcell">709·6</span> - <span class="tcell tdc">—</span> - </span> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell">1000</span> - <span class="tcell tdc">—</span> - <span class="tcell">carb. of potash</span> - <span class="tcell">314·2</span> - <span class="tcell tdc">—</span> - </span> -</span> -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_343">343</span></p> - -<p>Bicarbonate of potash was first obtained by Dr. -Black. Mr. Cavendish formed the salt by dissolving -pearlashes in water, and passing a current of carbonic -acid gas through the solution till it deposited crystals. -These crystals were not altered by exposure to the air, -did not deliquesce, and were soluble in about four -times their weight of cold water.</p> - -<p>Dr. M’Bride had already ascertained that vegetable -and animal substances yield fixed air by putrefaction -and fermentation. Mr. Cavendish found by experiment -that sugar when dissolved in water and fermented, -gives out 57-100ths of its weight of fixed air, possessing -exactly the properties of fixed air from marble. -During the fermentation no air was absorbed, nor was -any change induced on the common air, at the surface -of the fermenting liquor. Apple-juice fermented much -faster than sugar; but the phenomena were the same, -and the fixed air emitted amounted to 381/1000 of the -weight of the solid extract of apples. Gravy and -raw meat yielded inflammable air during their putrefaction, -the former in much greater quantity than the -latter. This air, as far as Mr. Cavendish’s experiments -went, he found the same as the inflammable air -from zinc by dilute sulphuric acid; but its specific -gravity was a little higher.</p> - -<p>This paper of Mr. Cavendish was the first attempt -by chemists to collect the different kinds of air, and -endeavour to ascertain their nature. Hence all his -processes were in some measure new: they served as a -model to future experimenters, and were gradually -brought to their present state of simplicity and perfection. -He was the first person who attempted to determine -the specific gravity of airs, by comparing their -weight with that of the same bulk of common air; -and though his apparatus was defective, yet the principle -was good, and is the very same which is still employed -to accomplish the same object. Mr. Cavendish -then first began the true investigation of gases, -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_344">344</span> -and in his first paper he determined the peculiar nature -of two very remarkable gases, <i>carbonic</i> and <i>hydrogen</i>.</p> - -<p>2. Mineral waters have at all times attracted the -attention of the faculty in consequence of their -peculiar properties and medical virtues. Some faint -steps towards their investigation were taken by Boyle. -Du Clos attempted a chemical analysis of the mineral -waters in France; and Hierne made a similar investigation -of the mineral waters of Sweden. Though these -experiments were rude and inaccurate, they led to the -knowledge of several facts respecting mineral waters -which chemists were unable to explain. One of these -was the existence of a considerable quantity of <i>calcareous -earth</i> in some mineral waters, which was precipitated -by boiling. Nobody could conceive in what way -this insoluble substance (<i>carbonate of lime</i>) was held -in solution, nor why it was thrown down when the water -was raised to a boiling heat. It was to determine -this point that Mr. Cavendish made his experiments on -Rathbone-place water, which were published in the -year 1767, and which may be considered as the first -analysis of a mineral water that possessed tolerable -accuracy. Rathbone-place water was raised by a -pump, and supplied the portion of London in its immediate -neighbourhood. Mr. Cavendish found that when -boiled, it deposited a quantity of earthy matter, consisting -chiefly of lime, but containing also a little -magnesia. This he showed was held in solution by -fixed air; and he proved experimentally, that when an -excess of this gas is present, it has the property of -holding lime and magnesia in solution.<a id="FNanchor_187" href="#Footnote_187" class="fnanchor">187</a> Besides these -earthy carbonates, the water was found to contain a -little ammonia, some sulphate of lime, and some common -salt. Mr. Cavendish examined, likewise, some -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_345">345</span> -other pump-water in London, and showed that it contained -lime, held in solution by carbonic acid.</p> - -<p>3. Dr. Priestley, at a pretty early period of his -chemical career, had discovered that when nitrous gas -is mixed with common air over water, a diminution of -bulk takes place; that there is a still greater diminution -of bulk when oxygen gas is employed instead of -common air; and that the diminution is always proportional -to the quantity of oxygen gas present in the -gas mixed with the nitrous gas. This discovery induced -him to employ nitrous gas as a test of the -quantity of oxygen present in common air; and various -instruments were contrived to facilitate the mixture of -the gases, and the measurement of the diminution of -volume which took place. As the goodness of air, or -its fitness to support combustion, and maintain animal -life, was conceived to depend upon the proportion of -oxygen gas which it contained, these instruments were -distinguished by the name of <i>eudiometers</i>; the simplest -of them was contrived by Fontana, and is usually -distinguished by the name of the <i>eudiometer of Fontana</i>. -Philosophers, in examining air by means of -this instrument, at various seasons, and in various -places, had found considerable differences in the diminution -of bulk: hence they inferred that the proportion -of oxygen varies in different places; and to this -variation they ascribed the healthiness or noxiousness -of particular situations. For example, Dr. Ingenhousz -had found a greater proportion of oxygen in the air -above the sea, and on the sea-coast; and to this he -ascribed the healthiness of maritime situations. Mr. -Cavendish examined this important point with his -usual patient industry and acute discernment, and -published the result in the Philosophical Transactions -for 1783. He ascertained that the apparent variations -were owing to inaccuracies in making the experiment; -and that when the requisite precautions are taken, the -proportion of oxygen in air is found constant in all -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_346">346</span> -places, and at all seasons. This conclusion has since -been confirmed by numerous observations in every -part of the globe. Mr. Cavendish also analyzed -common air, and found it to consist of - -<span class="table"> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell tdr">79·16</span> - <span class="tcell">volumes azotic gas,</span> - </span> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell tdr">20·84</span> - <span class="tcell">volumes oxygen gas.</span> - </span> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell tdr bt">100·00</span> - <span class="tcell"> </span> - </span> -</span></p> - -<p>4. For many years it was the opinion of chemists -that mercury is essentially liquid, and that no degree -of cold is capable of congealing it. Professor Braun’s -accidental discovery that it may be frozen by cold, -like other liquids, was at first doubted; and when it -was finally established by the most conclusive experiments, -it was inferred from the observations of Braun -that the freezing point of mercury is several hundred -degrees below zero on Fahrenheit’s scale. It became -an object of great importance to determine the exact -point of the congelation of this metal by accurate experiments. -This was done at Hudson’s Bay, by Mr. -Hutchins, who followed a set of directions given him -by Mr. Cavendish, and from his experiments Mr. Cavendish, -in a paper inserted in the Philosophical -Transactions for 1783, deduced that the freezing point -of mercury is 38·66 degrees below the zero of Fahrenheit’s -thermometer.</p> - -<p>5. These experiments naturally drew the attention -of Mr. Cavendish to the phenomena of freezing, to -the action of freezing mixtures, and the congelation of -acids. He employed Mr. M’Nab, who was settled in -the neighbourhood of Hudson’s Bay, to make the requisite -experiments; and he published two very curious -and important papers on these subjects in the Philosophical -Transactions for 1786 and 1788. He explained -the phenomena of congelation exactly according -to the theory of Dr. Black, but rejecting the -hypothesis that heat is a <i>substance</i> sui generis, and -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_347">347</span> -thinking it more probable, with Sir Isaac Newton, that -it is owing to the rapid internal motion of the particles -of the hot body. The latent heat of water, he found -to be 150°. The observations on the congelation of -nitric and sulphuric acids are highly interesting: he -showed that their freezing points vary considerably, -according to the strength of each; and drew up tables -indicating the freezing points of acids, of various degrees -of strength.</p> - -<p>6. But the most splendid and valuable of Mr. Cavendish’s -chemical experiments were published in two -papers, entitled, “Experiments on Air,” in the Transactions -of the Royal Society for 1784 and 1785. The -object of these experiments was to determine what -happened during the <i>phlogistication of air</i>, as it was -at that time termed; that is, the change which air -underwent when metals were calcined in contact with -it, when sulphur or phosphorus was burnt in it, and -in several similar processes. He showed, in the first -place, that there was no reason for supposing that -carbonic acid was formed, except when some animal -or vegetable substance was present; that when <i>hydrogen -gas</i> was burnt in contact with air or oxygen gas, -it <i>combined</i> with that gas, and formed <i>water</i>; that -<i>nitrous gas</i>, by combining with the oxygen of the atmosphere, -formed <i>nitrous acid</i>; and that when <i>oxygen</i> -and <i>azotic</i> gas are mixed in the requisite proportions, -and electric sparks passed through the mixture, they -<i>combine</i>, and form <i>nitric</i> acid.</p> - -<p>The first of these opinions occasioned a controversy -between Mr. Cavendish, and Mr. Kirwan, who maintained -that carbonic acid is always produced when air -is phlogisticated. Two papers on this subject by -Kirwan, and one by Cavendish, are inserted in the -Philosophical Transactions for 1784, each remarkable -examples of the peculiar manner of the respective -writers. All the arguments of Kirwan are founded -on the experiments of others. He displays great reading, -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_348">348</span> -and a strong memory; but does not discriminate -between the merits of the chemists on whose authority -he founds his opinions. Mr. Cavendish, on the other -hand, never advances a single opinion, which he has -not put to the test of experiment; and never suffers -himself to go any further than his experiment will -warrant. Whatever is not accurately determined by -unexceptionable trials, is merely stated as a conjecture -on which little stress is laid.</p> - -<p>In the first of these celebrated papers, Mr. Cavendish -has drawn a comparison between the phlogistic -and antiphlogistic theories of chemistry; he has shown -that each of them is capable of explaining the phenomena -in a satisfactory manner; though it is impossible -to demonstrate the truth of either; and he has given -the reasons which induced him to prefer the phlogistic -theory—reasons which the French chemists were unable -to refute, and which they were wise enough not to -notice. There cannot be a more striking proof of the -influence of fashion, even in science, and of the unwarrantable -precipitation with which opinions are -rejected or embraced by philosophers, than the total -inattention paid by the chemical world to this admirable -dissertation. Had Mr. Kirwan adopted the opinions -of Mr. Cavendish, when he undertook the defence -of phlogiston, instead of trusting to the vague experiments -of inaccurate chemists, he would not have -been obliged to yield to his French antagonists, and -the antiphlogistic theory would not so speedily have -gained ground.</p> - -<p>Such is an epitome of the chemical papers of Mr. -Cavendish. They contain five notable discoveries; -namely, 1. The nature and properties of hydrogen gas. -2. The solubility of bicarbonates of lime and magnesia -in water. 3. The exact proportion of the constituents -of common air. 4. The composition of water. 5. The -composition of nitric acid. It is to him also that we -are indebted for our knowledge of the freezing point -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_349">349</span> -of mercury; and he was likewise the first person who -showed that potash has a stronger affinity for acids -than soda has. His experiments on the subject are to -be found in a paper on Mineral Waters, published -in the Philosophical Transactions, by Dr. Donald -Monro.</p> - -<h3>END OF VOL. I.</h3> - -<p class="caption">C. WHITING, BEAUFORT HOUSE, STRAND.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_xii">xii</span></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_xiii">xiii</span></p> - -<hr class="chap" /> -<h2 id="ANCIENT_HISTORIANS_POETS_c">ANCIENT HISTORIANS, POETS, &c.</h2> - -<p class="hang"><i>Now in course of Publication, in Monthly volumes (containing -on the average 350 pages of letter-press), price -only 4s. 6d. each, neatly bound, and embellished with -Engravings on steel by the first Artists</i>,</p> - -<p><span class="large">THE FAMILY CLASSICAL LIBRARY;</span><br /> -or, <span class="smcap">English Translations</span> of the most valuable <span class="smcap">Greek -and Latin Historians, Poets and Orators</span>. With -<span class="smcap">Biographical Sketches</span> of <span class="smcap">each Author</span>, and <span class="smcap">copious -illustrative Notes</span>. Edited by A. J. VALPY, -M. A.</p> - -<p><span class="smcap">Cicero</span> remarks, that not to know what has been transacted -in former times, is to continue always a child. If no -use be made of the labours of past ages, the world must -remain always in the infancy of knowledge: and the -learned Dr. Parr says, “If you desire your son, though no -great scholar, to read and reflect, it is your duty <i>to place</i> -in his hands the best <i>Translations</i> of the best <i>Classical</i> -Authors.”</p> - -<p>To those, therefore, who are desirous of obtaining a -knowledge of the most esteemed authors of Greece and -Rome, but possess not the means or leisure for pursuing a -regular course of study, the present undertaking must -prove a valuable acquisition. The following are the contents -of the volumes already published.</p> - -<p>No. I.—DEMOSTHENES (translated by Dr. Leland), -comprising a sketch of the Life of Demosthenes: his Orations -against Philip, King of Macedon; and those pronounced -on occasions of public deliberation.</p> - -<p>No. II.—DEMOSTHENES, concluded, and SALLUST -complete: (the latter translated by William Rose, M. A.) -comprising the Orations of Dinarchus against Demosthenes, -and Account of the Exile and Death of Demosthenes, -and the Orations of Æschines and Demosthenes -on the Crown: a Biographical Sketch of <span class="smcap">Sallust</span>: his -History of Catiline’s conspiracy; and History of the -Roman War against Jugurtha, King of Numidia.</p> - -<p>No. III.—XENOPHON, Vol. I. (translated by E. Spelman, -Esq.), comprising a Biographical Sketch of the Historian; -and his Anabasis, or Expedition of Cyrus into -Persia, and retreat of the 10,000 Greeks. -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_xiv">xiv</span></p> - -<p>No. IV.—XENOPHON, vol. II. (translated by the Hon. -Maurice Ashley Cooper), comprising the Cyropædia, or -the Education, Life and Manners, Government, Wars, and -Achievements of Cyrus, King of Persia.</p> - -<p>No. V.—HERODOTUS, vol. I. (translated by the Rev. -W. Beloe), comprising a Biographical Sketch of the Historian; -and the first two Books of his History, containing -a Narrative of the Acquisition of the Kingdom of Lydia -by Crœsus, and the subsequent overthrow of the Lydian -Empire by Cyrus; the early History of the Republics of -Athens and Lacedæmon; with an account of Egypt, its -Customs, Manners, and Governments.</p> - -<p>No. VI.—HERODOTUS, vol II., comprising, in the -3d, 4th, and 5th Books, the Exploits of Cambyses, with -the subjugation of the whole of Egypt; the elevation of -Darius Hystaspes to the Persian throne; the disastrous -Expeditions of the Persians against the Scythians during -his reign; the progress of the Republics of Athens, Lacedæmon -and Corinth, and their state during the time of -the Persian Emperor Darius.</p> - -<p>No. VII.—HERODOTUS, vol. III., comprising, in the -6th to the 9th Book, the Origin of the Lacedæmonian -Kings; the first Invasion of Greece by the Persians; the -Battle of Marathon; the memorable Expedition of Xerxes -into Greece; the Battle of Thermopylæ; the Capture and -Burning of Athens by the Persians; the Sea-fight of Salamis; -the Battles of Platæa and of the Promontory of Mycale; -and the overthrow of the Persian power in Greece.</p> - -<p>No. VIII.—VIRGIL, vol. I., comprising a Biographical -Sketch of the Poet; his <i>Eclogues</i>, or Pastoral Poems, -translated by Archdeacon Wrangham; the <i>Georgics</i>, or -Poems on Husbandry, translated by William Sotheby, -Esq.; and the first two Books of the <i>Æneid</i>, translated by -Dryden, and prefaced with his celebrated Dedication.</p> - -<p>No. IX.—VIRGIL, vol. II., comprising the remainder of -Dryden’s translation of the <i>Æneid</i>, namely, from the -third to the twelfth Book.</p> - -<p>No. X.—PINDAR (translated by the Rev. C. A. Wheelwright, -Prebendary of Lincoln); and ANACREON, by -Mr. Thomas Bourne.</p> - -<h3> -LONDON:<br /> -<br /> -PRINTED FOR H. COLBURN AND R. BENTLEY,<br /> -<br /> -NEW BURLINGTON-STREET;<br /> -<br /> -And sold by every Bookseller throughout the Kingdom.<br /> -</h3> - -<hr /> - -<div class="footnotes"> - -<h3>FOOTNOTES:</h3> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_1" href="#FNanchor_1" class="label">1</a> -The word χημεια is said to occur in several Greek manuscripts -of a much earlier date. But of this, as I have never had -an opportunity of seeing them, I cannot pretend to judge. So -much fiction has been introduced into the history of Alchymy, -and so many ancient names have been treacherously dragged -into the service, that we may be allowed to hesitate when no -evidence is presented sufficient to satisfy a reasonable man.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_2" href="#FNanchor_2" class="label">2</a> -Χημεια, ἡ του αργυρου και χρυσου κατασκευη· ἡς τα βιβλια -διερευνησαμενος ὁ Διοκλητιανος εκαυσε, δια τα νεωτερισθεντα -αιγυπτιοις Διοκλητιανω· τουτοις ανημερως και φονικως εχρησατο -ὁτεδη και τα περι χημειας χρυσου και αργυρου τοις παλαιοις -γεγραμμενα βιβλια διερευνησαμενος εκαυσε, προς το μηκετι πλουτον -αιγυπτιοις εκ της τοιαυτης προσγινεσθαι τεχνης, μηδε χρηματων -αυτοις θαρῥονιτας περιουσια του λοιπου ῥωμαιοις ανταιρειν.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_3" href="#FNanchor_3" class="label">3</a> -Δερας, το χρυσομαλλον δερας, ὁπερ ὁ Ιασων δια της ποντικης -θαλασσης συν τοις αργοναυταις εις την κολχιδα παραγενομενοι -ελαβον, και την Μηδειαν την Αιητου του βασιλεως θυγατερα. -Τουτο δε ουκ ὡς ποιητικως φερεται· αλλα βιβλιον ην εν δερμασι -γεγραμενον περισχον ὁπως δειγινεσθαι δια χημειας χρυσον· εικοτως -ουν ὁι τοτε χρουσουν ωνομαζον αυτο δερας δια την ενεργειαν την -εξ αυτου.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_4" href="#FNanchor_4" class="label">4</a> -De Ortu et Progressu Chemiæ, p. 12.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_5" href="#FNanchor_5" class="label">5</a> -Σωσιμου του παναπολιτου γνησια γραφη, περι της ἱερας, και -θειας τεχνης του χρυσου και αργυριου ποιησιος. Παναπολις -was a city in Egypt.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_6" href="#FNanchor_6" class="label">6</a> -Shaw’s Translation of Boerhaave’s Chemistry, i. 20.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_7" href="#FNanchor_7" class="label">7</a> -Genesis iv. 22.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_8" href="#FNanchor_8" class="label">8</a> -De Iside and Osiride, c. 5.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_9" href="#FNanchor_9" class="label">9</a> -There are two Latin translations of these tables (unless we -are rather to consider them as originals, for no Phœnician nor -Greek original exists). I shall insert them both here.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<h3>I.—<span class="smcap">Verba secretorum Hermetis Trismegisti.</span></h3> - -<p>1. Verum sine mendacio certum et verissimum.</p> - -<p>2. Quod est inferius, est sicut quod est superius, et quod est -superius est sicut quod est inferius ad perpetranda miracula rei unius.</p> - -<p>3. Et sicut omnes res fuerant ab uno meditatione unius: sic -omnes res natæ fuerunt ab hac una re adaptatione.</p> - -<p>4. Pater ejus est Sol, mater ejus Luna, portavit illud ventus -in ventre suo, nutrix ejus terra est.</p> - -<p>5. Pater omnis thelesmi totius mundi est hic.</p> - -<p>6. Vis ejus integra est, si versa fuerit in terram.</p> - -<p>7. Separabis terram ab igne, subtile a spisso suaviter cum -magno ingenio.</p> - -<p>8. Ascendit a terra in cœlum, iterumque descendit in terram, -et recipit vim superiorum et inferiorum, sic habebis gloriam -totius mundi. Ideo fugiat a te omnis obscuritas.</p> - -<p>9. Hic est totius fortitudinis fortitudo fortis; quia vincit -omnem rem subtilem, omnemque solidam penetrabit.</p> - -<p>10. Sic mundus creatus est.</p> - -<p>11. Hinc adaptationes erunt mirabiles, quarum modus est -hic.</p> - -<p>12. Itaque vocatus sum Hermes Trismegistus, habens tres -partes philosophiæ totius mundi.</p> - -<p>13. Completum est quod dixi de operatione solis.</p> - -<h3>II.—<span class="smcap">Descriptio Arcanorum Hermetis Trismegisti.</span></h3> - -<p>1. Vere non ficte, certo verissime aio.</p> - -<p>2. Inferiora hæc cum superioribus illis, istaque cum iis vicissim -vires sociant, ut producant rem unam omnium mirificissimam.</p> - -<p>3. Ac quemadmodum cuncta educta ex uno fuere verbo Dei -unius: sic omnes quoque res perpetuo ex hac una re generantur -dispositione Naturæ.</p> - -<p>4. Patrem ea habet Solem, matrem Lunam: ab aëre in utero -quasi gestatur, nutritur a terra.</p> - -<p>5. Causa omnis perfectionis rerum ea est per univerum hoc.</p> - -<p>6. Ad summam ipsa perfectionem virium pervenit si redierit -in humum.</p> - -<p>7. In partes tribuite humum ignem passam, attenuans densitatem -ejus re omnium suavissima.</p> - -<p>8. Summa ascende ingenii sagacitate a terra in cœlum, indeque -rursum in terram descende, ac vires superiorum inferiorumque -coge in unum: sic potiere gloria totius mundi atque ita abjectæ -sortis homo amplius non habere.</p> - -<p>9. Isthæc jam res ipsa fortitudine fortior existet; corpora -quippe tam tenuia quam solida penetrando subige.</p> - -<p>10. Atque sic quidem quæcunque mundus continet creata fuere.</p> - -<p>11. Hinc admiranda evadunt opera, quæ ad eundum modum instituantur.</p> - -<p>12. Mihi vero ideo nomen Hermetis Trismegisti impositum -fuit, quod trium mundi sapientiæ partium doctor deprehensus -sum.</p> - -<p>13. Hæc sunt quæ de chemicæ artis prestantissimo opere -consignanda esse duxi.</p></blockquote> -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_10" href="#FNanchor_10" class="label">10</a> -“Accipe de humore unciam unam et mediam, et de rubore -meridionali, id est anima solis, quartam partem, id est, unciam -mediam, et de Seyre citrino, similiter unciam mediam, -et de auripigmenti dimidium, quæ sunt octo, id est unciæ tres. -Scitote quod vitis sapientum in tribus extrahitur, ejusque vinum -in fine triginta peragitur.”</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_11" href="#FNanchor_11" class="label">11</a> -Preface to Mangetus’s Bibliotheca Chemica Curiosa.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_12" href="#FNanchor_12" class="label">12</a> -Ibid.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_13" href="#FNanchor_13" class="label">13</a> -Bergmann, Opusc. iv. 121.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_14" href="#FNanchor_14" class="label">14</a> -I allude to his <i>Manuale sive de Lapide Philosophico Medicinali</i>. -Opera Paracelsi, ii. 133. Folio edition. Geneva, 1658.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_15" href="#FNanchor_15" class="label">15</a> -Wilson’s Chemistry, p. 375.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_16" href="#FNanchor_16" class="label">16</a> -Ibid., p. 379.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_17" href="#FNanchor_17" class="label">17</a> -Probably corrosive sublimate.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_18" href="#FNanchor_18" class="label">18</a> -Probably calomel.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_19" href="#FNanchor_19" class="label">19</a> -Mangeti Bibliothecæ Chemicæ Præfatio.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_20" href="#FNanchor_20" class="label">20</a> -Whoever wishes to enter more particularly into the processes -for making the philosopher’s stone contrived by the alchymists, -will find a good deal of information on the subject in -Stahl’s Fundamenta Chemiæ, vol. i. p. 219, in his chapter <i>De -lapide philosophorum</i>: and Junker’s Conspectus Chemiæ, vol. -i. p. 604, in his tabula 28, <i>De transmutatione metallorum universali</i>: -and tabula 29, <i>De transmutatione metallorum particulari</i>.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_21" href="#FNanchor_21" class="label">21</a> -Kircher, in his Mundus Subterraneus, has an article on the -philosopher’s stone, in which he examines the processes of the -alchymists, points out their absurdity, and proves by irrefragable -arguments that no such substance had ever been obtained. -Those who are curious about alchymistical processes may consult -that work.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_22" href="#FNanchor_22" class="label">22</a> -Mem. Paris, 1722, p. 61.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_23" href="#FNanchor_23" class="label">23</a> -The original author, whom all who have given any account -of the alchymists have followed, is Olaus Borrichius, in his -Conspectus Scriptorum Chemicorum Celebriorum. He does not -inform us from what sources his information was derived.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_24" href="#FNanchor_24" class="label">24</a> -Sprengel’s History of Medicine, iv. 368.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_25" href="#FNanchor_25" class="label">25</a> -It is curious that Olaus Borrichius omits Albertus Magnus -in the list of alchymistical writers that he has given.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_26" href="#FNanchor_26" class="label">26</a> -This tract and the next, which is of considerable length, -will be found in Mangetus’s Bibliotheca Chemica Curiosa, i. 613.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_27" href="#FNanchor_27" class="label">27</a> -Gmelin’s Geschitte der Chemie, i. 74.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_28" href="#FNanchor_28" class="label">28</a> -Exodus xi. 2—xxv. 11, 12, 13, 17, 18, 24, 25, 26—xxviii. -8—xxxii. 2, &c.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_29" href="#FNanchor_29" class="label">29</a> -Genesis xlvii. 14.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_30" href="#FNanchor_30" class="label">30</a> -For example, Exodus xi. 2—xxvi. 19, 21—xxvii. 10, 11, -17, &c.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_31" href="#FNanchor_31" class="label">31</a> -Genesis iv. 22.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_32" href="#FNanchor_32" class="label">32</a> -For example, Exodus xxvii. 2, 3, 4, 6, 10, 11, 17, 18, 19—xxx. -18, &c. Numbers xxi. 9.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_33" href="#FNanchor_33" class="label">33</a> -Deut. viii. 9.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_34" href="#FNanchor_34" class="label">34</a> -Beitrage, vi. 81.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_35" href="#FNanchor_35" class="label">35</a> -Plinii Hist. Nat. xxxiv. 1.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_36" href="#FNanchor_36" class="label">36</a> -Plinii Hist. Nat. xxxiv. 2.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_37" href="#FNanchor_37" class="label">37</a> -Pliny’s phrase is <i>plumbum argentorium</i>. But that the addition -was tin, and consequently that plumbum argentorium -meant tin, we have the evidence of Klaproth, who analyzed -several of these bronze statues, and found them composed of -copper, lead, and tin.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_38" href="#FNanchor_38" class="label">38</a> -Beitrage, vi. 89.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_39" href="#FNanchor_39" class="label">39</a> -Beitrage, vi. 118. The statue in question was known by the -name of “The Statue of Püstrichs,” at Sondershausen.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_40" href="#FNanchor_40" class="label">40</a> -Ibid., p. 127.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_41" href="#FNanchor_41" class="label">41</a> -Ibid., p. 132.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_42" href="#FNanchor_42" class="label">42</a> -Ibid., p. 134.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_43" href="#FNanchor_43" class="label">43</a> -Plinii Hist. Nat. xxxiv. 11.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_44" href="#FNanchor_44" class="label">44</a> -Lib. v. c. 117.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_45" href="#FNanchor_45" class="label">45</a> -See Plinii Hist. Nat. xxxiv. 13.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_46" href="#FNanchor_46" class="label">46</a> -Genesis iv. 22.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_47" href="#FNanchor_47" class="label">47</a> -Deut. iv. 20.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_48" href="#FNanchor_48" class="label">48</a> -Deut. viii. 9.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_49" href="#FNanchor_49" class="label">49</a> -Numbers xxxv. 16.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_50" href="#FNanchor_50" class="label">50</a> -Levit. i. 17.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_51" href="#FNanchor_51" class="label">51</a> -Deut. xviii. 5.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_52" href="#FNanchor_52" class="label">52</a> -Deut. xxvii. 5.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_53" href="#FNanchor_53" class="label">53</a> -Iliad, lib. xxiii. l. 826.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_54" href="#FNanchor_54" class="label">54</a> -Xenophon’s Anabasis, v. 5.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_55" href="#FNanchor_55" class="label">55</a> -Plinii Hist. Nat. xxxiv. 14.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_56" href="#FNanchor_56" class="label">56</a> -Numbers xxxi. 22.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_57" href="#FNanchor_57" class="label">57</a> -Iliad xi. 25.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_58" href="#FNanchor_58" class="label">58</a> -Lib. xxxiv. c. 17.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_59" href="#FNanchor_59" class="label">59</a> -Numbers xxxi. 22.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_60" href="#FNanchor_60" class="label">60</a> -Dioscorides, lib. v. c. 110.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_61" href="#FNanchor_61" class="label">61</a> -Lib. v. c. 110.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_62" href="#FNanchor_62" class="label">62</a> -The ancients were in the habit of extracting mercury from -cinnabar, by a kind of imperfect distillation. The native mercury -they called <i>argentum vivum</i>, that from cinnabar <i>hydrargyrus</i>. -See Plinii Hist. Nat. xxxiii. 8.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_63" href="#FNanchor_63" class="label">63</a> -Lib. v. c. 99.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_64" href="#FNanchor_64" class="label">64</a> -Lib. xxxiii. c. 6.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_65" href="#FNanchor_65" class="label">65</a> -2 Kings ix. 30.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_66" href="#FNanchor_66" class="label">66</a> -Chap. 23. v. 40, the Vulgate has it εστιβιζω τους οφθαλμους -σουo.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_67" href="#FNanchor_67" class="label">67</a> -Hartmanni Praxis Chemiatrica, p. 598.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_68" href="#FNanchor_68" class="label">68</a> -Plinii Hist. Nat. xxxiii. 6.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_69" href="#FNanchor_69" class="label">69</a> -Περι των λιθων, c. 71.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_70" href="#FNanchor_70" class="label">70</a> -Bucol. iv. 1. 45.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_71" href="#FNanchor_71" class="label">71</a> -Plinii Hist. Nat. xxxv. 6.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_72" href="#FNanchor_72" class="label">72</a> -Phil. Trans. 1814, p. 97.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_73" href="#FNanchor_73" class="label">73</a> -Job xxviii. 17.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_74" href="#FNanchor_74" class="label">74</a> -Plinii Hist. Nat. xxxvi. 26.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_75" href="#FNanchor_75" class="label">75</a> -Beitrage, vi. 140.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_76" href="#FNanchor_76" class="label">76</a> -Ibid., p. 142.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_77" href="#FNanchor_77" class="label">77</a> -Beitrage, p. 144.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_78" href="#FNanchor_78" class="label">78</a> -Phil. Trans. 1815, p. 108.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_79" href="#FNanchor_79" class="label">79</a> -Plinii Hist. Nat. xxxvii. 2.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_80" href="#FNanchor_80" class="label">80</a> -Plinii Hist. Nat. xxxvii. 2.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_81" href="#FNanchor_81" class="label">81</a> -This opinion was first formed by Baron Born, and stated -in his Catalogue of Minerals in M. E. Raab’s collection, i. 356. -But the evidences in favour of it have been brought forward -with great clearness and force by M. Roziere. See Jour. de -Min. xxxvi. 193.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_82" href="#FNanchor_82" class="label">82</a> -Plinii Hist. Nat. ix. 38.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_83" href="#FNanchor_83" class="label">83</a> -Ibid., ix. 36.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_84" href="#FNanchor_84" class="label">84</a> -Plinii Hist. Nat. ix. c. 38.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_85" href="#FNanchor_85" class="label">85</a> -Exodus xxv. 4.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_86" href="#FNanchor_86" class="label">86</a> -See Bancroft on Permanent Colours, i. 79.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_87" href="#FNanchor_87" class="label">87</a> -Plinii Hist. Nat. xxxv. 11.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_88" href="#FNanchor_88" class="label">88</a> -Plinii Hist. Nat. xxviii. 12. The passage of Pliny is as -follows: “Prodest et sapo; Gallorum hoc inventum rutilandis -capillis ex sevo et cinere. Optimus fagino et caprino, duobus -modis, spissus et liquidus: uterque apud Germanos majore in -usu viris quam feminis.”</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_89" href="#FNanchor_89" class="label">89</a> -Hist. of Inventions, iii. 239.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_90" href="#FNanchor_90" class="label">90</a> -Genesis ix. 20.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_91" href="#FNanchor_91" class="label">91</a> -“Oinô d’ ek kritheôn pepoiêmenô diachreontai; ou gar sphi eisi -en tê chôrê ampeloi.” Euterpe chap. 77.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_92" href="#FNanchor_92" class="label">92</a> -De Moribus Germanorum, c. 23. “Potui humor ex hordeo -aut frumento in quandam similitudinem vini corruptus.”</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_93" href="#FNanchor_93" class="label">93</a> -Plinii Hist. Nat. xxxv. 12.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_94" href="#FNanchor_94" class="label">94</a> -The word topazo is said by Pliny to signify, in the language -of the Troglodytes, <i>to seek</i>.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_95" href="#FNanchor_95" class="label">95</a> -Plinii Hist. Nat. ii. 63.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_96" href="#FNanchor_96" class="label">96</a> -Beitrage, iii. 104.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_97" href="#FNanchor_97" class="label">97</a> -“Quoniam inficiendis claro colore lanis candidum liquidumque -utilissimum est, contraque fuscis et obscuris nigrum.”—<i>Plinii</i>, -xxxv. 15.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_98" href="#FNanchor_98" class="label">98</a> -See Dioscorides, lib. v. c. 123. Plinii Hist. Nat. xxxv. 18.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_99" href="#FNanchor_99" class="label">99</a> -Matthew v. 13.—“Ὑμεις εστε το ἁλας της γης· εαν δε το -ἁλας μωρανθη, εν τινι ἁλισθησεται· εις ουδεν ισχωει ετι ει μη -βληθηναι εξω, και καταπατεισθαι ὑπο των ανθρωπων.”</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_100" href="#FNanchor_100" class="label">100</a> -Proverbs xxv. 20.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_101" href="#FNanchor_101" class="label">101</a> -“Cujus asperitas visque in tabem margeritas resolvit.”</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_102" href="#FNanchor_102" class="label">102</a> -Plinii Hist. Nat. ix. 35.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_103" href="#FNanchor_103" class="label">103</a> -For a fuller account of the progress of science among the -Arabians than would be consistent with this work, the reader is -referred to Mortucla’s Hist. des Mathématiques, i. 351; Sprengel’s -Hist. de la Médecine, ii. 246.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_104" href="#FNanchor_104" class="label">104</a> -Boerhaave’s Chemistry (Shaw’s translation), i. 26. <i>Note.</i></p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_105" href="#FNanchor_105" class="label">105</a> -Golius was not, however, the first translator of Geber. -A translation of the longest and most important of his tracts -into Latin appeared in Strasburg, in 1529. There was another -translation published in Italy, from a manuscript in the Vatican. -There probably might be other translations. I have -compared four different copies of Geber’s works, and found -some differences, though not very material. I have followed -Russel’s English translation most commonly, as upon the whole -the most accurate that I have seen.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_106" href="#FNanchor_106" class="label">106</a> -Of course I exclude the writings of the Greek ecclesiastics -mentioned in a previous part of this work, which still continue -in manuscript; because, I am ignorant of what they -contain.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_107" href="#FNanchor_107" class="label">107</a> -Sum of Perfection, book ii. part i. chap. 5.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_108" href="#FNanchor_108" class="label">108</a> -Ibid.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_109" href="#FNanchor_109" class="label">109</a> -Ibid., chap. 6.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_110" href="#FNanchor_110" class="label">110</a> -Sum of Perfection, book ii. part i. chap. 7.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_111" href="#FNanchor_111" class="label">111</a> -Ibid.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_112" href="#FNanchor_112" class="label">112</a> -Ibid., chap. 8.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_113" href="#FNanchor_113" class="label">113</a> -Ibid.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_114" href="#FNanchor_114" class="label">114</a> -Ibid., chap. 9.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_115" href="#FNanchor_115" class="label">115</a> -Sum of Perfection, book ii. part i. chap. 9.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_116" href="#FNanchor_116" class="label">116</a> -Ibid.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_117" href="#FNanchor_117" class="label">117</a> -Ibid., chap. 10.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_118" href="#FNanchor_118" class="label">118</a> -Investigation and Search of Perfection, chap. 3.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_119" href="#FNanchor_119" class="label">119</a> -Invention of Verity, chap. 4.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_120" href="#FNanchor_120" class="label">120</a> -Search of Perfection, chap. 3.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_121" href="#FNanchor_121" class="label">121</a> -De Investigatione Perfect. chap. 4.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_122" href="#FNanchor_122" class="label">122</a> -Invention of Verity, chap. 23.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_123" href="#FNanchor_123" class="label">123</a> -Ibid., chap. 21.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_124" href="#FNanchor_124" class="label">124</a> -Ibid., chap. 23.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_125" href="#FNanchor_125" class="label">125</a> -Invention of Verity, chap. 8.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_126" href="#FNanchor_126" class="label">126</a> -Sum of Perfection, book i. part iii. chap. 4.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_127" href="#FNanchor_127" class="label">127</a> -Ibid., chap. 6.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_128" href="#FNanchor_128" class="label">128</a> -Ibid.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_129" href="#FNanchor_129" class="label">129</a> -Sum of Perfection, book i. part iv. chap. 16.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_130" href="#FNanchor_130" class="label">130</a> -Invention of Verity, chap. 10.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_131" href="#FNanchor_131" class="label">131</a> -Sum of Perfection, book i. part iii. chap. 4.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_132" href="#FNanchor_132" class="label">132</a> -Ibid.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_133" href="#FNanchor_133" class="label">133</a> -Invention of Verity, chap. 6.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_134" href="#FNanchor_134" class="label">134</a> -Invention of Verity, chap. 7.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_135" href="#FNanchor_135" class="label">135</a> -Sum of Perfection, book ii. part. ii. chap. 11.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_136" href="#FNanchor_136" class="label">136</a> -Invention of Verity, chap. 14.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_137" href="#FNanchor_137" class="label">137</a> -Ibid., chap. 4 and 12.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_138" href="#FNanchor_138" class="label">138</a> -Sum of Perfection, book ii. part iii. chap. 10.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_139" href="#FNanchor_139" class="label">139</a> -Invention of Verity, chap. 4.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_140" href="#FNanchor_140" class="label">140</a> -Sum of Perfection, book i. part iii. chap. 8.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_141" href="#FNanchor_141" class="label">141</a> -Ibid., book i. part iii. chap. 8.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_142" href="#FNanchor_142" class="label">142</a> -Investigation of Perfections, chap. 11.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_143" href="#FNanchor_143" class="label">143</a> -See Testamentum Paracelsi, passim.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_144" href="#FNanchor_144" class="label">144</a> -“Hispania, Portugallia, Anglia, Borussia, Lithuania, Polonia, -Pannonia, Valachia, Transylvania, Croatia, Illyrico, immo omnibus -totius Europæ nationibus peragratis, undeque non solum -apud medicos, sed et chirurgos, tonsores, aniculas, magos, chymistas, -nobiles ac ignobiles, optima, selectiora ac secretiora, -quæ uspiam extarent remedia, inquisivi acriter.”—<i>Præfatio -Chirurgiæ Magnæ.</i> Opera Paracelsi, tom. iii.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_145" href="#FNanchor_145" class="label">145</a> -See the dedication to his treatise <i>De Gradibus et Compositionibus -Receptorum et Naturalium</i>. Opera Paracelsi, vol. ii. -p. 144. I always refer to the folio edition of Paracelsus’s works, -in three volumes, published at Geneva in 1658, by M. de Tournes, -which is the edition in my possession.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_146" href="#FNanchor_146" class="label">146</a> -Opera Paracelsi, i. 485.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_147" href="#FNanchor_147" class="label">147</a> -There were two laudanums of Paracelsus; one was <i>red -oxide of mercury</i>, the other consisted of the following substances: -Chloride of antimony, 1 ounce; hepatic aloes, 1 ounce; -rose-water, ½ ounce; saffron, 3 ounces; ambergris, 2 drams. -All these well mixed.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_148" href="#FNanchor_148" class="label">148</a> -Opera Paracelsi, iii, 101.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_149" href="#FNanchor_149" class="label">149</a> -Opera Paracelsi, i. 243.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_150" href="#FNanchor_150" class="label">150</a> -Ibid., ii. 84.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_151" href="#FNanchor_151" class="label">151</a> -Opera Paracelsi, i. 328.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_152" href="#FNanchor_152" class="label">152</a> -“Qui elegantiorem optat, ille eum condat.”—<i>Ibid.</i></p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_153" href="#FNanchor_153" class="label">153</a> -Archidoxorum, lib. i. Opera Paracelsi, ii. 4.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_154" href="#FNanchor_154" class="label">154</a> -De longa Vita. Opera Paracelsi, ii. 46.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_155" href="#FNanchor_155" class="label">155</a> -Archidoxorum, lib. viii. Opera Paracelsi, ii. 29. In this -book he gives the method of preparing the elixir of life. It seems -to have been nothing else than a solution of <i>common salt</i> in water; -for the quintessence of gold, with which this solution was to be -mixed, was doubtless an imaginary substance.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_156" href="#FNanchor_156" class="label">156</a> -Modus Pharmacandi. Opera Paracelsi, i. 811.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_157" href="#FNanchor_157" class="label">157</a> -Liber de Nymphis, Sylphis, Pygmæis, et Salamandris, et de -ceteris Spiritibus. Opera Paracelsi, ii. 388. If the reader can -understand this singular book, his sagacity will be greater than -mine.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_158" href="#FNanchor_158" class="label">158</a> -Paragrani Alterius, tract. ii. Opera Paracelsi, i. 235. The -reader who has the curiosity to consult this tract, will find -abundance of similar stuff, which I did not think worth translating.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_159" href="#FNanchor_159" class="label">159</a> -Philosophiæ, tract. iv. De Mineralibus. Opera Paracelsi, ii. -282. “Quando ergo hoc modo metalla fiunt et producuntur, -dum scilicet verus metallicus fluxus et ductilitas aufertur et -in septem metalla distribuitur; residentia quædam manet in -Ares, instar fœtûm trium primorum. Ex hac nescitur zinetum, -quod et metallum est et non est. Sic et bisemutum et huic -similia alia partim fluida, partim ductilia sunt—Zinetum -maxima ex parte spuria soboles est ex cupro et bisemutum de -stanno. Ex hisce duobus omnium plurimæ fæces et remanentiæ -in Ares fiunt.”</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_160" href="#FNanchor_160" class="label">160</a> -It was as follows: “Collegium medicorum in Academia Parisiensi -legitime congregatum, audita renunciatione sensorum, -quibus demandata erat provincia examinandi apologiam sub -nomine Mayerni Turqueti editam, ipsam unanimi consensu -damnat, tanquam famosum libellum, mendacibus conviciis et -impudentibus calumniis refertum, quæ nonnisi ab homine -imperito, impudenti, temulento et furioso profiteri potuerunt. -Ipsum Turquetum indignum judicat, qui usquam medicinam -faciat, propter temeritatem, impudentiam et veræ medicinæ -ignorantiam. Omnes vero medicos, qui ubique gentium et -locorum medicinam exercent, hortatur ut ipsum Turquetum -similiaque hominum et opinionum portenta, a se suisque finibus -arceant et in Hippocratis ac Galeni doctrina constantes permaneant: -et prohibuit ne quis ex hoc medicorum Parisiensium -ordine cum Turqueto eique similibus medica consilia ineat. -Qui secus fecerit, scholæ ornamentis et academiæ privilegiis -privabitur, et de regentium numero expungetur.—Datum Lutetiæ -in scholis superioribus, die 5 Decembris, anno salutis, 1603.”</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_161" href="#FNanchor_161" class="label">161</a> -J. B. Van Helmont, Opera Omnia, p. 100. The edition which -I quote from was printed at Frankfort, in 1682, at the expense of -John Justus Erythropilus, in a very thick quarto volume.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_162" href="#FNanchor_162" class="label">162</a> -Van Helmont, Opera Omnia, p. 104.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_163" href="#FNanchor_163" class="label">163</a> -Ibid., p. 105.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_164" href="#FNanchor_164" class="label">164</a> -De Flatibus, sect. 49. Opera Van Helmont, p. 405.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_165" href="#FNanchor_165" class="label">165</a> -Ibid., p. 408.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_166" href="#FNanchor_166" class="label">166</a> -Ibid., p. 409.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_167" href="#FNanchor_167" class="label">167</a> -In his Magnum Oportet, sect. 39, p. 151, he gives an -account of the origin of metals in the earth, and in that section -there is a description of <i>bur</i>, which those who are anxious to -understand the ideas of the author on this subject may consult.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_168" href="#FNanchor_168" class="label">168</a> -As an example of the prescriptions of Sylvius, we give the -following for malignant fever: - -<span class="table"> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell"><i>R.</i></span> - <span class="tcell">Theriac. veter. ᴣij</span> - </span> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell"> </span> - <span class="tcell">Antim. diaphor. ᴣj</span> - </span> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell"> </span> - <span class="tcell">Syrup. Card. Benedic. ℥ij</span> - </span> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell"> </span> - <span class="tcell">Aq. prophylact. ℥j</span> - </span> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell"> </span> - <span class="tcell">— Cinnam. ℥ss</span> - </span> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell"> </span> - <span class="tcell">— Scabios. ℥ij</span> - </span> - <span class="trow"> - <span class="tcell"> </span> - <span class="tcell tdr">M. D.</span> - </span> -</span></p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_169" href="#FNanchor_169" class="label">169</a> -Shaw’s Boyle, iii, 424.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_170" href="#FNanchor_170" class="label">170</a> -De Ortu et Progressu Chemiæ. <i>Hafniæ</i>, 1674.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_171" href="#FNanchor_171" class="label">171</a> -While travelling in a tract-boat, one of his fellow-travellers -more orthodox than well informed, attacked the system of Spinoza -with so little spirit, that Boerhaave was tempted to ask him if -he had ever read Spinoza. The polemic was obliged to confess -that he had not; but he was so much provoked at this public exposure -of his ignorance, that he propagated the report of Boerhaave’s -attachment to Spinozism, and thus blasted his intention -of becoming a clergyman.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_172" href="#FNanchor_172" class="label">172</a> -Mem. Paris, 1734, p. 539.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_173" href="#FNanchor_173" class="label">173</a> -Phil. Trans. 1733. No. 430, p. 145.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_174" href="#FNanchor_174" class="label">174</a> -It is entitled, “El Arte de los Metales, en que se ensena -el verdadero beneficio de los de oro y plata por azoque,” &c.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_175" href="#FNanchor_175" class="label">175</a> -Born’s New Process of Amalgamation, translated by -Raspe, p. 11.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_176" href="#FNanchor_176" class="label">176</a> -I have never seen a copy of this last work; it must have -been valuable, as it was the book from which Scheele derived -the first rudiments of his knowledge.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_177" href="#FNanchor_177" class="label">177</a> -For 1711, p. 238.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_178" href="#FNanchor_178" class="label">178</a> -Mem. Paris, 1718, p. 202; and 1720, p. 20.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_179" href="#FNanchor_179" class="label">179</a> -In the sixth chemical thesis, in the second supplement to -the Physica Subterranea (page 791, Stahl’s Edition. Lipsiæ, -1703), he says, “ubi etiam, continuato igne, ipsum sal volatile -acquires, quod eadem methodo cum vitriolo seu spiritu aut oleo -vitrioli, et oleo tartari, vel <i>borace</i> succedit.”</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_180" href="#FNanchor_180" class="label">180</a> -“Primus in his facem prætulit Beccherus; eumque magno -cum artis progressu sequentem videmus in ostendenda corporum -analysi et synthesi chymica versatissimum et acutissimum—<i>Stahlium</i>.”</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_181" href="#FNanchor_181" class="label">181</a> -There is a French translation of this work, entitled “Litheognosie, -ou Examen Chymique des Pierres et des Terres en -général, et du Talc de la Topaz, et de la Steatite en particulier; -avec une Dissertation sur le Feu et sur la Lumière.” Paris, 1753. -With a continuation, constituting a second volume, in which all -the experiments in the first volume are exhibited in the form of -tables.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_182" href="#FNanchor_182" class="label">182</a> -1763, p. 235.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_183" href="#FNanchor_183" class="label">183</a> -I do not know what the true name was of which Macquer -is a corruption. Ker is a Scottish name belonging to two noble -families, the Duke of Roxburgh and the Marquis of Lothian; -but I am not aware of M’Ker being a Scottish name: besides, -neither of these families was attached to the house of Stuart.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_184" href="#FNanchor_184" class="label">184</a> -Hist. de l’Acad. R. des Sciences, 1784, p. 24.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_185" href="#FNanchor_185" class="label">185</a> -The preceding character of Dr. Black is from Professor -Robison, who knew him intimately; and from Dr. Adam Ferguson, -who was his next relation. See the preface to Dr. Black’s -lectures. The portrait of Dr. Black prefixed to these lectures -is an excellent likeness.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_186" href="#FNanchor_186" class="label">186</a> -This I apprehend to be a little above the truth, the true -specific gravity of carbonic acid gas being 1·5277, that of air -being unity.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_187" href="#FNanchor_187" class="label">187</a> -The salts held in solution are in the state of bicarbonates -of lime and magnesia. Boiling drives off half the carbonic acid, -and the simple carbonates being insoluble are precipitated.</p></div></div> - -<div class="transnote"> -<h3>Transcriber’s Note:</h3> - -<p>Inconsistent spelling and hyphenation are as in the original.</p> - -<p>Page 51: “zeb” changed to read “zahav”.</p> - -<p>Page 53: “kemep” changed to read “keseph”.</p> - -<p>Page 54: “necheshet” changed to read “nechooshat”.</p> - -<p>Page 63: “berezel” changed to read “barzel”.</p> - -<p>Page 63: “ber” changed to read “bar”.</p> - -<p>Page 63: “nezel” changed to read “nazal”.</p> - -<p>Page 76: “arrenichon” changed to read “arrhenichon”.</p> - -<p>Page 81: “chuanos” changed to read “kyanos”.</p> -</div> - - - - - - - - -<pre> - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The History of Chemistry, Volume 1 (of -2), by Thomas Thomson - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HISTORY OF CHEMISTRY, VOL 1 *** - -***** This file should be named 50565-h.htm or 50565-h.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/5/0/5/6/50565/ - -Produced by MWS, Wayne Hammond and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was -produced from images generously made available by The -Internet Archive) - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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