15. Let the upper glass be wine, and the lower water; there followeth no motion at all. Let the upper glass be water pure, the lower water coloured, or contrariwise, there followeth no motion at all. But it hath been tried, that though the mixture of wine and water, in the lower glass, be three parts water and but one wine, yet it doth not dead the motion. This separation of water and wine appeareth to be made by weight; for it must be of bodies of unequal weight, or else it worketh not; and the heavier body must ever be in the upper glass. But then note withal, that the water being made pensile, and there being a great weight of water in the belly of the glass, sustained by a small pillar of water in the neck of the glass, it is that which setteth the motion on work: for water and wine in one glass, with long standing, will hardly sever. 16. This experiment would be extended from mixtures of several liquors, to simple bodies which consist of several similar parts: try it therefore with brine or salt-water, and fresh water: placing the salt-water, which is the heavier, in the upper glass; and see whether the fresh will come above. Try it also with water thick sugared, and pure water; and see whether the water, which cometh above, will lose its sweetness: for which purpose it were good there were a little cock made in the belly of the upper glass. must of wine, or wort of beer, while it worketh, before it be tunned, the burrage stay a small time, and be often changed with fresh; it will make a sovereign drink for melancholy passions. And the like I conceive of orange flowers. 19. Rhubarb hath manifestly in it parts of contrary operations: parts that purge; and parts that bind the body; and the first lie looser, and the latter lie deeper: so that if you infuse rhubarb for an hour, and crush it well, it will purge better, and bind the body less after the purging than if it had stood twenty-four hours; this is tried; but I conceive likewise, that by repeating the infusion of rhubarb several times, as was said of violets, letting each stay in but a small time, you may make it as strong a purging medicine as scammony. And it is not a small thing won in physic, if you can make rhubarb, and other medicines that are benedict, as strong purgers as those that are not without some malignity. 20. Purging medicines, for the most part, have their purgative virtue in a fine spirit; as appeareth by that they endure not boiling without much loss of virtue. And therefore it is of good use in physic, if you can retain the purging virtue, and take away the unpleasant taste of the purger; which it is like you may do, by this course of infusing oft, with little stay, for it is probable that the horrible and odious taste is in the grosser part. 21. Generally, the working by infusions is gross and blind, except you first try the issuing of the several parts of the body, which of them issue more speedily, and which more slowly; and so by apportioning the time, can take and Experiments in consort, touching judicious and accurate infusions, both in liquors and air. 17. In bodies containing fine spirits, which do easily dissipate, when you make infusions, the rule is, a short stay of the body in the liquor re-leave that quality which you desire. This to ceiveth the spirit; and a longer stay confoundeth it; because it draweth forth the earthy part withal, which embaseth the finer. And therefore it is an error in physicians, to rest simply upon the length of stay for increasing the virtue. But if you will have the infusion strong, in those kinds of bodies which have fine spirits, your way is not to give longer time, but to repeat the infusion of the body oftener. Take violets, and infuse a good pugil of them in a quart of vinegar; let them stay three quarters of an hour, and take them forth, and refresh the infusion with like quantity of new violets seven times; and it will make a vinegar so fresh of the flower, as if, a twelvemonth after, it be brought you in a saucer, you shall smell it before it come at you. Note, that it smelleth more perfectly of the flower a good while after than at first. 18. This rule, which we have given, is of singular use for the preparations of medicines, and other infusions. As for example: the leaf of burrage hath an excellent spirit to repress the fuliginous vapour of dusky melancholy, and so to cure madness: but nevertheless if the leaf be infused long it yieldeth forth but a raw substance, of no virtue: therefore I suppose, that if in the VOL. II.-2 know there be two ways; the one to try what long stay, and what short stay worketh as hath been said; the other to try in order the succeeding infusions of one and the same body, successively, in several liquors. As, for example; take orange pills, or rosemary, or cinnamon, or what you will; and let them infuse half an hour in water; then take them out, and infuse them again in other water; and so the third time: and then taste and consider the first water, the second, and the third; and you will find them differing, not only in strength and weakness, but otherwise in taste or odour; for it may be the first water will have more of the scent, as more fragrant; and the second more of the taste, as more bitter or biting, &c. 22. Infusions in air, for so we may well call odours, have the same diversities with infusions in water; in that the several odours, which are in one flower, or other body, issue at several times; some earlier, some later: so we find that violets, woodbines, strawberries, yield a pleasing scent, that cometh forth first; but soon after an ill scent quite differing from the former. Which is caused, not so much by mellowing, as by the late issuing of the grosser spirit. 23. As we may desire to extract the finest of a good length, three or four foot deep within spirits in some cases; so we may desire also to discharge them, as hurtful, in some other. So wine burnt, by reason of the evaporating of the finer spirit, inflameth less, and is best in agues: opium loseth some of its poisonous quality, if it be vapoured out, mingled with spirits of wine, or the like: sena loseth somewhat of its windiness by decocting; and generally, subtile or windy spirits are taken off by incension, or evaporation. And even in infusions in things that are of too high a spirit, you were better pour off the first infusion, after a small time, and use the latter. the same ground; with one end upon the high ground, the other upon the low. Cover the trough with brakes a good thickness, and cast sand upon the top of the brakes: you shall see, saith he, that after some showers are past, the lower end of the trough will run like a spring of water: which is no marvel, if it hold while the rainwater lasteth; but he said it would continue long time after the rain is past: as if the water did multiply itself upon the air, by the help of the coldness and condensation of the earth, and the consort of the first water. Experiment solitary touching the appetite of con- | Experiment solitary touching the venomous quality tinuation in liquids. of man's flesh. 26. The French, which put off the name of the French disease unto the name of the disease of Naples, do report, that at the siege of Naples, there were certain wicked merchants that barrelled up man's flesh, of some that had been lately slain in Barbary, and sold it for tunney; and that upon that foul and high nourishment was the original of that disease. Which may well be, for that it is certain that the cannibals in the West Indies eat man's flesh: and the West Indies were full of the pox when they were first discovered and at this day the mortalest poisons, practised by the West Indians, have some mixture of the and sorceresses, as well amongst the heathen, as amongst the Christians, have fed upon man's flesh, to aid, as it seemeth, their imagination, with high and foul vapours. 24. Bubbles are in the form of a hemisphere; air within, and a little skin of water without: and it seemeth somewhat strange, that the air should rise so swiftly while it is in the water; and when it cometh to the top, should be stayed by so weak a cover as that of the bubble is. But as for the swift ascent of the air, while it is under the water, that is a motion of percussion from the water; which itself descending driveth up the air; and no motion of levity in the air. And this Democritus called "motus plaga." In this common experiment, the cause of the inclosure of the bubble is, for that the appetite to resist separation, or discontinuance, which in solid | blood, or fat, or flesh of man: and divers witches bodies is strong, is also in liquors, though fainter and weaker; as we see in this of the bubble: we see it also in little glasses of spittle that children make of rushes; and in castles of bubbles, which they make by blowing into water, having obtained a little degree of tenacity by mixture of soap: we see it also in the stillicides of water, which if there be water enough to follow, will draw themselves into a small thread, because they will not discontinue; but if there be no remedy, then they cast themselves into round drops; which is the figure that saveth the body most from discontinuance: the same reason is of the roundness of the bubble, as well for the skin of water, as for the air within: for the air likewise avoideth discontinuance; and therefore casteth itself into a rough figure. And for the stop and arrest of the air a little while, it showeth that the air of itself hath little or no appetite of ascending. Experiment solitary touching the version and trans mutation of air into water. 27. It seemeth that there be these ways, in likelihood, of version of vapours of air into water and moisture. The first is cold; which doth manifestly condense; as we see in the contracting of the air in the weather-glass; whereby it is a degree nearer to water. We see it also in the generation of springs, which the ancients thought, very probably, to be made by the version of air into water, holpen by the rest, which the air hath in those parts; whereby it cannot dissipate. And by the coldness of rocks; for there springs are chiefly generated. We see it also in the effects of the cold of the middle region, as they call it, of the air; which produceth dews Experiment solitary touching the making of artifi- and rains. And the experiment of turning water cial springs. 25. The rejection, which I continually use, of experiments, though it appeareth not, is infinite: but yet if an experiment be probable in the work, and of great use, I receive it, but deliver it as doubtful. It was reported by a sober man, that an artificial spring may be made thus: Find out a hanging ground, where there is a good quick fall of rain-water. Lay a half trough of stone, into ice, by snow, nitre, and salt, whereof we shall speak hereafter, would be transferred to the turning of air into water. The second way is by compression; as in stillatories, where the vapour is turned back upon itself, by the encounter of the sides of the stillatory; and in the dew upon the covers of boiling pots; and in the dew towards rain, upon marble and wainscot. But this is like to do no great effect; except it be upon vapours, and gross air, that are already very near in degree to water. The third is that, which may be searched into, but doth not yet appear; which is, by mingling of moist vapours with air; and trying if they will not bring a return of more water than the water was at first: for if so, that increase is a version of the air: therefore put water in the bottom of a stillatory, with the neb stopped; weigh the water first; hang in the middle of the stillatory a large spunge; and see what quantity of water you can crush out of it; and what it is more or less compared with the water spent; for you must understand, that if any version can be wrought, it will be easiliest done in small pores: and that is the reason why we prescribe a spunge. The fourth way is probable also, though not appearing; which is, by receiving the air into the small pores of bodies: for, as hath been said, every thing in small quantity is more easy for version; and tangible bodies have no pleasure in the consort of air, but endeavour to subact it into a more dense body; but in entire bodies it is checked; because if the air should condense, there is nothing to succeed: therefore it must be in loose bodies, as sand, and powder; which we see, if they lie close, of themselves gather moisture. 29. Onions, as they hang, will many of them shoot forth; and so will penny-royal; and so will an herb called orpin; with which they use in the country to trim their houses, binding it to a lath or stick, and setting it against a wall. We see it likewise more especially in the greater semper-vive, which will put out branches, two or three years: but it is true, that commonly they wrap the root in a cloth besmeared with oil, and renew it once in half a year. The like is reported, by some of the ancients, of the stalks of lilies. The cause is; for that these plants have a strong, dense, and succulent moisture, which is not apt to exhale; and so is able, from the old store, without drawing help from the earth, to suffice the sprouting of the plant: and this sprouting is chiefly in the late spring or early summer; which are the times of putting forth. We see also, that stumps of trees lying out of the ground, will put forth sprouts for a time. But it is a noble trial, and of very great consequence, to try whether these things, in the sprouting, do increase weight; which must be tried, by weighing them before they be hanged up; and afterwards again, when they are sprouted. For if they increase not in Experiment solitary touching helps towards the weight, then it is no more but this; that what beauty and good features of persons. 28. It is reported by some of the ancients; that whelps, or other creatures, if they be put young into such a cage or box, as they cannot rise to their stature, but may increase in breadth or length, will grow accordingly as they can get room; which if it be true and feasible, and that the young creature so pressed and straitened, doth not thereupon die, it is a means to produce dwarf creatures, and in a very strange figure. This is certain, and noted long since, that the pressure or forming of parts of creatures, when they are very young, doth alter the shape not a little as the stroking of the heads of infants, between the hands, was noted of old, to make "Macrocephali ;" which shape of the head, at that time, was esteemed. And the raising gently of the bridge of the nose, doth prevent the deformity of a saddle nose. Which observation well weighed, may teach a means to make the persons of men and women, in many kinds, more comely and better featured than otherwise they would be; by the forming and shaping of them in their infancy: as by stroking up the calves of the legs, to keep them from falling down too low; and by stroking up the forehead, to keep them from being low-foreheaded. And it is a common practice to swathe infants, that they may grow more straight, and better shaped: and we see young women, by wearing strait bodice, keep themselves from being gross and corpulent. they send forth in the sprout, they lose in some other part: for if they gather weight, then it is "magnale naturæ;" for it it showeth that air may be made so to be condensed as to be converted into a dense body; whereas the race and period of all things, here above the earth, is to extenuate and turn things to be more pneumatical and rare; and not to be retrograde, from pneumatical to that which is dense. It showeth also, that air can nourish; which is another great matter of consequence. Note, that to try this, the experiment of the semper-vive must be made without oiling the cloth; for else, it may be, the plant receiveth nourishment from the oil. Experiment solitary touching the commixture of flame and air, and the great force thereof. 30. Flame and air do not mingle, except it be in an instant; or in the vital spirits of vegetables and living creatures. In gunpowder, the force of it hath been ascribed to rarefaction of the earthy substance into flame; and thus far it is true: and then, forsooth, it is become another element; the form whereof occupieth more place; and so of necessity, followeth a dilatation; and therefore, lest two bodies should be in one place, there must needs also follow an expulsion of the pellet; or blowing up of the mine. But these are crude and ignorant speculations. For flame, if there were nothing else, except it were in very great quantity, will be suffocate with any hard body, such as a pellet is; or the barrel of a gun; It appeareth also, that the form of a pyramis in flame, which we usually see, is merely by accident, and that the air about, by quenching the sides of the flame, crusheth it, and extenuateth it into that form; for of itself it would be round; and therefore smoke is in the figure of a pyramis reversed; for the air quencheth the flame, and receiveth the smoke. Note also, that the flame so as the flame would not expel the hard body; but the hard body would kill the flame, and not suffer it to kindle or spread. But the cause of this so potent a motion, is the nitre, which we call otherwise saltpetre, which having in it a notable crude and windy spirit, first by the heat of the fire suddenly dilateth itself; and we know that simple air, being preternaturally attenuated by heat, will make itself room, and break and of the candle, within the flame of the spirit of blow up that which resisteth it; and secondly, wine, is troubled; and doth not only open and when the nitre hath dilated itself, it bloweth move upwards, but moveth waving, and to and abroad the flame, as an inward bellows. And fro; as if flame of its own nature, if it were not therefore we see that brimstone, pitch, camphire, quenched, would roll and turn, as well as move wild-fire, and divers other inflammable matters, upwards. By all which it should seem, that the though they burn cruelly, and are hard to quench, celestial bodies, most of them, are true fires or yet they make no such fiery wind as gunpowder flames, as the Stoics held; more fine, perhaps, doth; and on the other side, we see that quick-and rarified than our flame is. For they are all silver, which is a most crude and watery body, globular and determinate; they have rotation; heated, and pent in, hath the like force with gun- and they have the colour and splendour of flame: powder. As for living creatures, it is certain, so that flame above is durable, and consistent, and their vital spirits are a substance compounded of in its natural place; but with us it is a stranger, an airy and flamy matter; and though air and and momentary, and impure: like Vulcan that flame being free, will not well mingle; yet bound halted with his fall. in by a body that hath some fixing, they will. For that you may best see in those two bodies, which are their aliments, water and oil; for they likewise will not well mingle of themselves; but in the bodies of plants, and living creatures, they will. It is no marvel therefore, that a small quantity of spirits, in the cells of the brain, and canals of the sinews, are able to move the whole body, which is of so great mass, both with so great force, as in wrestling, leaping; and with so great swiftness, as in playing division upon the lute. Such is the force of these two natures, air and flame, when they incorporate. Experiment solitary touching the different force of flame in the midst and on the sides. 32. Take an arrow, and hold it in flame for the space of ten pulses, and when it cometh forth, you shall find those parts of the arrow which were on the outsides of the flame more burned, blacked, and turned almost into a coal, whereas that in the midst of the flame will be as if the fire had scarce touched it. This is an instance of great consequence for the discovery of the nature of flame; and showeth manifestly, that flame burneth more violently towards the sides than in the midst: and which is more, that heat Experiment solitary touching the secret nature of or fire is not violent or furious, but where it is flame. 31. Take a small wax candle, and put it in a socket of brass or iron; then set it upright in a porringer full of spirit of wine heated: then set both the candle and spirit of wine on fire, and you shall see the flame of the candle open itself, and become four or five times bigger than otherwise it would have been; and appear in figure globuJar, and not in pyramis. You shall see also, that the inward flame of the candle keepeth colour, and doth not wax any whit blue towards the colour of the outward flame of the spirit of wine. This is a noble instance; wherein two things are most remarkable: the one, that one flame within another quencheth not; but is a fixed body, and continueth as air or water do. And therefore flame would still ascend upwards in one greatness, if it were not quenched on the sides: and the greater the flame is at the bottom, the higher is the rise. The other, that flame doth not mingle with flame, as air doth with air, or water with water, but only remaineth contiguous; as it cometh to pass betwixt consisting bodies. checked and pent. And therefore the Peripate- Experiment solitary touching the decrease of the Experiment solitary touching the contraction of bodies in bulk, by the mixture of the more liquid body with the more solid. bodies with the earth, in respect of the distance, the medicine, or by the quantity. The qualities is more dull: the latter, because the body hath are three; extreme bitter, as in aloes, coloquintiin part attained its nature when it is in some da, &c. loathsome and of horrible taste, as in depth in the earth. For as for the moving to a agaric, black hellebore, &c. and of secret maligpoint or place, which was the opinion of the an- nity, and disagreement towards man's body, many cients, it is a mere vanity. times not appearing much in the taste, as in scammony, mechoachan, antimony, &c. And note well, that if there be any medicine that purgeth, and hath neither of the first two manifest qualities, it is to be held suspected as a kind of poison; for that it worketh either by corrosion, or by a secret malignity, and enmity to nature; and therefore such medicines are warily to be prepared and used. The quantity of that which is taken doth also cause purging; as we see in a great quantity of new milk from the cow; yea and a great quantity of meat; for surfeits many times turn to purges, both upwards and downwards. Therefore we see generally, that the working of purging medicines cometh two or three hours after the medicines taken: for that the stomach first maketh a proof whether it can concoct them. And the like happeneth after surfeits, or milk in too great quantity. 34. It is strange how the ancients took up experiments upon credit, and yet did build great matters upon them. The observation of some of the best of them, delivered confidently, is, that a vessel filled with ashes will receive the like quantity of water that it would have done if it had been empty. But this is utterly untrue, for the water will not go in by a fifth part. And I suppose, that that fifth part is the difference of the lying close, or open, of the ashes; as we see that ashes alone, if they be hard pressed, will lie in less room and so the ashes with air between, lie looser; and with water closer. For I have not yet found certainly, that the water itself, by mixture of ashes or dust, will shrink or draw into less room. Experiment solitary touching the making vines more fruitful. 37. A second cause is mordication of the orifices of the parts; especially of the mesentery veins; as it is seen, that salt, or any such thing that is sharp and biting, put in the fundament, doth provoke the part to expel; and mustard provoketh sneezing: and any sharp thing to the eyes provoketh tears. And therefore we see that almost all purgers have a kind of twitching and vellication, besides the griping which cometh of wind. And if this mordication be in an over-high degree, it is little better than the corrosion of poison; and it cometh to pass sometimes in antimony, especially if it be given to bodies not replete with humours; for where humours abound, the hu 35. It is reported of credit, that if you lay good store of kernels of grapes about the root of a vine, it will make the vine come earlier and prosper better. It may be tried with other kernels laid about the root of a plant of the same kind; as figs, kernels of apples, &c. The cause may be, for that the kernels draw out of the earth juice fit to nourish the tree, as those that would be trees of themselves, though there were no root; but the root being of greater strength rob-mours save the parts. beth and devoureth the nourishment, when they have drawn it: as great fishes devour little. 38. The third cause is attraction: for I do not deny, but that purging medicines have in them a direct force of attraction: as drawing plaisters Experiments in consort touching purging medi- have in surgery: and we see sage or betony cines. bruised, sneezing powder, and other powders, or liquors, which the physicians call "errhines," put into the nose, draw phlegm and water from the head; and so it is in apophlegmatisms and gargarisms, that draw the rheum down by the palate. And by this virtue, no doubt, some pur 36. The operation of purging medicines and the causes thereof, have been thought to be a great secret; and so according to the slothful manner of men, it is referred to a hidden propriety, a specifical virtue, and a fourth quality, and the like shifts of ignorance. The causes of purg-gers draw more one humour, and some another, ing are divers: all plain and perspicuous, and thoroughly maintained by experience. The first is, that whatsoever cannot be overcome and digested by the stomach, is by the stomach either put up by vomit, or put down to the guts; and by that motion of expulsion in the stomach and guts, other parts of the body, as the orifices of the veins, and the like, are moved to expel by consent. For nothing is more frequent than motion of consent in the body of man. This surcharge of the stomach is caused either by the quality of according to the opinion received: as rhubarb draweth choler; sena melancholy; agaric phlegm, &c. but yet, more or less, they draw promiscuously. And note also, that besides sympathy between the purger and the humour, there is also another cause why some medicines draw some humour more than another. And it is, for that some medicines work quicker than others: and they that draw quick, draw only the lighter and more fluid humours; and they that draw slow, work upon the more tough and viscous humours. B |