Workdiary 23 ('A Continuation of C[hemical] Notes')

Take of good vitrioll calcined to yellowness what quantity you please, and wett it throughly with strong spirit of <vinegar i>, and abstract the liquor which will be very flegmatique, ad siccitatem. Then without takeing the <matter> out of the retort poure on as much <fresh> Spirit as before which <in> distillation will come over flegmatique almost as at the first.

This doe in all about four times, and at last press the matter left dry after the last operation, with a strong fire in a sand furnace, and Reserve carefully the Spirit, <which will be of {vitriol} & very sulphureous.>

Fill halfe a dozen barrells with <W: (or other fermented> lyquor) soe that one third may remaine empty and each of the Barrells may have a pretty large hole to stand still open in the upper <parte>, these vessells being kept in a [stove], or some such warme place for some dayes, a pretty quantity of liquor is by the tapp to be taken out of the first and without stiring the vessells to be putt into the second, and some out of that into the third, and soe onwards, this must bee done from time to time with some intervall, for the space of about sixe weekes, within which time the operation may be compleated.

Remember that Crystalls may be obtained in great plenty from the <liquid> <Lees of Wine.>

There was taken a dramm, of Zahab which being mixt with four partes of the other ingredient was afterwards by the fire freed from it, and then was very well mixt with about three times its weight of <Orpiment>, from which being alsoe freed there remained a dramm and a halfe of fine powder which being putt per se in a crucible under a muffle and kept in a strong heat for two houres instead of looseing in weight encreased a full <Drachm>, (though nothing fell into the crucible) for when it was taken out it weighed <twoo> dramms and a halfe.

Haveing digested one part of <{gold}> amalgam'd with <4 of> {mercury} for about a fortnight, (perhaps the longer the better) if you afterwards drive away the {mercury} and melt downe the remaineing calxe into a body, the mettall will bee much palear then before, nor will easily recover its colour <by {antimony}, or> otherwise then by the addition of a little, (and there needs but a very little) rose Copper.

Take two parts of <good> sugar and one of Camphire, powder them and mix them together as well as you can then distillill them over in Balneo, haveing a care to preserve very well stopt the liquor that comes over, <which often, (tho not alwayes) will be an Oile.>

Take one parte of oyle <of Albada,> and two of pure {spirit of wine} and without digesting them cohobate them five or sixe times at least, distilling onely ad melaginem or very little beyond it; but drawing it somewhat dryer at the last distillation. then dissolve the almost dry Caput mortuum, in aqua Regis, filtre it and reduce it to a thicker consistence, and by some subsequent filtrations and coagulations ad melaginem bring it to bee very pure <&> high colour'd.

Take of good <Miniere de Banasis> one pound, and imbibe it at two or three times with two pound of oyle of Tartar per deliquium, keeping it each time stirring in an earthen platter till it bee dry. Then take one pound of Crystalls of Tartar and mix them very well together, and distill them for eighteen or twenty houres by degrees of fire (makeing it strong at the last) into a receiver halfe filld with water, to receive the runing mercury, which will be very pure and genuine.

Take the Caput mortuum of our <Ens {copper}> and haveing suffer'd it to run per deliquium, and coagulated the salt drive it over with a strong fire, and then takeing out the Caput mortuum, suffer that also to run per deliquium into a liquor < of a deep lovely greene>

Take good Spirit of Salt and putt to it a little good oyle of vitrioll unite by cohobations, and by the same way bring over with this mixture the <Butyr. {antimony}>

Dr Faustus's disciple assur'd me that by the helpe of the Engine to which belong the accumilated receivers, he had drawne in 18 houres [BP 25, p. 73] from quick coales fourscore pound of flegmatick spirit of salt which by rectification afforded him halfe the weight of good and strong spirit, but which would not worke upon crude gold.

Take vitrioll calcined to whiteness 2 lb decripitated salt lb i {half}, Nitre (very dry) lb i{half} ; reduce all to a fine powder and haveing mixt it exactly with lb ii of Antimony proceed to your distillation <of Butyr {antimony}ii without sublimate>

Take Brandy two quarts, good Sea Salt lb ii oyle lb i distill them together <To clarify oyles & make it swimme over {spirit of wine}>

I found that putting the same Ingredients in the same proportion of them, whereof I obtaind a Past greene like an Emerald, I could not by the Addition of a Reasonable proportion of zaphora obtaine a zaphinine color, but a greene, which seem'd to be ascribable to the color of the Lead &c

(The yellowish greene grasse, called Turtle grows at the Canana Islands, & near Jamaica & thither the Turtles resort)

{Recipe} 5 handfulls of the Inner Barke of Elder or of the <greene> Leaves, & boyle it in 5 pints of water boyle them away till a 5th be consumd then take a peice of Castle soape {ounce} ii, & stir it about in the Liquor till the Lather as water dos with a wash Ball, in this Liquor wet a cloth throughly & wring it out againe, & lay it warme upon the part for [ab{superscript t}] 1/2 an hower twice a day. Tis an often approvd Remedy against the Erisipilas

A lb i{half} of Salt of {tartar} to a Gallon of Brandy & proceede <to rectify it>

{Recipe} 2 parts of the Menstruum Siccum, & one of the Body to be dissolvd <(viz. cheefly Talc> let the first be reducd to finer parts by farr then the second, which <ought> to be < be beaten or pounded> but negligently, more solito & when the first begins to boyle then put in the second by degrees, & as soone as you have left putting all) in, have a care to stirr it about very nimbly & througly, to make an Exact mixture, which being cold, must be taken, & powdred & dissolvd in the Italian menstruum validum <viz {aqua fortis}>.

{Recipe} Magnesia Philosophica well calcind among quick coals, & dissolve it in {aqua regia} or <rather in our Polyra of Albada> The Blood-red solution evaporate ad siccitatem dissolve it in our [sp{superscript t}.] of Bread rectyfyd, evaporate that ad siccitatem, & dissolve 15 gr. or a {scruple} i of the Powder in {ounce} iiii of our aq. sicca, & let them be decocted together <with> a good fire, for about 4 or 5 howers <(q an non Dayes)>

Dr. S. affirm'd to me that Barnet water sent to my Lady G. stunck & recovering againe retaind[re] its <Minerall> Tast      the drink with successe.

{Recipe} <our Dersinum>, & haveing heated it red hot quench it in a strong Lixivium of Potashes, then pouring off the Liquor dry the remaining powder, heat it againe, quench it as before, this repeat 30 times the oftner the better then grinding the minerall upon a Porphyry to an impalpable powder, which then will not be difficult it will be fit <to be easily melted>.

The same minerall being alchoalizd upon a Porphire, & mixt with twice its weight of fine Potashes <may be> thereby brought to fusion .

Calcine <{gold}> with {sulphur} & {mercury}, dissolve it in [sp{superscript t}] of manna of Calabria, 3 or 4 times rectifyd 'tis <happily> administred in malignant Feavers. < This Sp. of Manna a French Dr that comm to me he saw bring the Calx {gold} over the helme>.

To obtaine a Regulus [antimonii] simplex wee tooke 2 pound of {antimony}, Nitre & Tartar {ana} lb i, <&> Charcoale {ounce} ii <ad {ounce} ix{half} of good Reg.>

To obtaine the red [sulphur] of {antimony}, we tooke {antimony} lb ii nitre three pound, sea salt {ounce} vi, & one Ounce & a halfe of charcoale, these were exactly mixed by parcells & put in about 1 spoonefull <at a> time, & after kept in a strong fire, for about one hower & a halfe. The red [sulphur] is usually in the middle, & sometimes also a small Reg[ulus] < This {sulphur} is gently vomitive &, if rightly made, an excellent >

{Recipe} [aqua] sicca <i.e. vitri contusi)> {ounce} viii, plumbi {ounce} v, nitri {ounce} iii misce < This keep it a (short) while in fusion till it looke like an Amethist This is an almost universal matter for gems>

one of the best & most Esteemd Surgions of London, affirmd to me that he & others had cured as many as had yet come to their hands of the falling sicknes, if they were such that their fit sensibly began at any certaine place, as at the Toe [?e], by makeing ([p{superscript r}missis] præmittendis) an Issue in the next convenient place.

Calcine {gold} by amalgamating it with 6 parts of mercury, & driveing the {mercury}      away[a] & sprinkle this præcipitate upon the      tis in fusion.

The Glasse Master informd[ infor] me that ordinarily [he] mingled <about> 60 weight [of] good Borellia (for the      loe 10 pound more with 100 pound of sand      weight[wei] of glasse. <And he usually reckons the 100 in the operation.>

{Recipe} [Caput Mortuum] of {aqua fortis} & crude {nitre} ana, flux them together, pour out the Mixture, dissolve it in faire {water}, & then expose it to <to the light & twilhow changeable Colors almost like the Lign. Nephrit.> &c. Frequently dissolve {sal ammoniac} in {water}, filtrate it & coagulate it againe.

{Recipe} minium, pumice-stone {nitre} ana <& they will quickly> melt together. To <harden> glass adde to 3 parts of it, one of the Madagascar stone. {Recipe} Potashes 2 parts, the Madag. stone calcin'd 1 part <& the flux will melt it.>

{Recipe} i pound of the Republican salt, & 4 times it weight of Tilma distill of the Liquor from the other Ingredients at medietatem or a litle beyond, then pour back the abstracted Liquor upon the remaining one & when they are reconjoynd againe about 1/2 as formerly, this doe in all 6 or 7 times, then draw off what what come with a moderate fire & keepe it by itselfe, & if the two remaining Liquors that will swime above one another seperate by a Funnell the Supernatant, whereof make a soft past by imbodying it with powderd Brick, & haveing with a good fire gradually administred brought it over into a red Liquor proceede there with according to the authors directions. The Dose is from 20 to about 30 drops. By the same operation you'l find, that the [sp{superscript t}] that first came over & is colourlesse, is much of the same nature with the insipid Tirsus of <Dr Pelagius> & by the same you will also find the filtrated salt to be much purifyd.

Take salt of {tartar} & calcind pebbles {ana} {ounce} i, of salt of {antimony} gr. 10. & this salt which alone will yeild in good {spirit of wine} a red Tincture that is only a sudorifick, without purging other way. This salt I say in this mixture gives a lovely & intense greene.

Mr H. answerd me that he manifestly found the fritta that is kept till be 3 or 4 months old to worke better as they call it: ie: to melt more easily & make more clearer glasse then the Fr[itta that] is recently made

     Lump of Valla, & in a very large vessell      Charcoale make a Cavity cap      of re      t, then covering this Cavity with      [co]ale & the great charcoale with other coal      Kindle them at the furthe      the fire comes near the      [re]duce the Coals into      what was put into     

Tis only to give the Patient Cawdles made of Rye meale.

{Recipe} Albana, & with a strong & pure Lixivium præcipitate out of it as much as you can, which you must then dulcify by Ablutions, & calcine, sublime the Calcinatum with an æquall part of pure sal Armoniack, &      need be dissolve the Sublimate in Alchool of wine

An Ingenious Friend of mine has a myne o      extent under ground, which invited me to ask his      son (an Inquisitive young Gentleman) whether he did observe some subterraneall springs. that is, some that so run under ground as not to be taken notice of to appear above ground, to which he Answerd affirmatively

Both he & his Father also apart inform'd me that they had observ'd in their owne mine that a subterraneall Spring did usually grow turpid upon a westerly wind & run very clear upon an easterly;

They also both of them informd that they had lately opend a mine wherein as soone as the Diggers began to worke, the steames of the Oar or stone that their instruments stricke upon, doe in a short time make them so sick, as to force them (for a while) out of the mine, workeing [vi]olently with them both upwards & downwards.

{Recipe} of the Calx <of Valla> of the Republican salt      of each one part, of sal Armoniack two parts of      parts[pa], mingle the 3 first of these Bodys very well      moderately in a glasse at the fire      times thus hot, put to it the fourth      them in a Retort in a Sand Furnace

{Recipe} Zaphora & Tabdala, or else Tacola about æquall parts melt them together well, & then cast them upon plumbum Philosophicum, which will be thereby made more hard & compact.

Take Tin fil'd to a very fine powder, & mingle it with an æquall weight of Barachide also reducd into very minute Parts mix these powders together, & melt them downe into a Masse which you may use with Vitrum Saturni.

Sir W. S. told me that in his Tin mines he found the Tin oar of difficulter fusion in his Furnace then Iron oar      for

Both he & his son likewise answerd me that the Ashes of the fuell they use sometimes runs by the force of the fire into a black glasse; of which they promisd [me] a sample.

With powderd & crude Tin make an æquall mixture with the Powder of Quatrum, made by Calcination or otherwise, & mix one part of each of these with 2 parts of Adarum, melt them very well together & the masse will be exceeding black.

{Recipe} pibble stones & haveing reducd them to powder, mix them with an æquall weight of finely pulverizd [sulphur] then burne the [sulphur] quite [away] & mix the remaining Calx with an æquall weight of fresh sulphur, which burne away againe as before this doe in all 4 times, giveing the last time a smart fire at the end of the operation & then reserve the remaining powder for use

Remember the proportion of a dram to a pound &      depends upon it

Remember also the shortning of the 3 days cal[cination] by the help of charcoale in an op[en]     

The [Cacovian]      sulphur as form[ed]      were      wardly & in     

{Recipe} good Venereall Vitrioll & haveing dissolvd it in faire water & filtrated it, præcipitate what you can with a strong & clear Lixivium. This præcipitate you must filter, but not dulcifie, & when 'tis very dry, & very finely powderd, elevate as much as you can with the sweet sublimate <(I suppose Barâca)>, & then digesting it with Alchool of wine abstract the Liquor & if need be the sweet sublimate from the remaining substance.

The Christalline Calx <I suppose that of English Valla> will last long, & not be impair'd but rather Advantagd by some sorts of open Aire, three days & night will make it very good, but the longer t'is kept in the fire the more saline & strongly Alchalizate it grows, & yeilds a Cremor almost like Tartar, & by often putting water on it, & after Digestion & Decantation renewing it, it will dissolve & wash almost all away.

{Recipe} vitriol calcin'd ad flavedinem, & have in readynes, a well heated mortar & Pestle to receive it as soone as so calcind, & haveing in this mortar reducd it to very fine Powder put that hot as it is into a Bolt head, & presently pour upon it a sufficient quantity of Alchool of wine Digest them together for 12 or 24 howers: <& you will have a red (or reddish) Tinct. of Vitriol, Anodyne, & of great vertu.>

For the supression of Urine give about as      time of Mustard seed Bruisd in any convenient vehicle.[convenient ve]

         le Retort you may put 2 po[unds]      <for to make Ens {copper}is>     cture, & have near a lb.      done with a ver[y]     

{Recipe} good Lead oar finely powderd, & haveing well mixd it with thrice its weight of Common sublimate distill it in a Retort, & observe what proportion of the oar will be elevated, & what changes will be producd therein.

{Recipe} [Caput] mortuum of Vertdigres, & haveing abstracted from it some common sublimate leave the remainng matter very finely powderd to run in a Celler per deliquium, which you may cast upon afterwards Japan Copper actually in fusion.

For the makeing of the Sylver Pills the proportion is {drachm} v{half} of flower to {ounce} i {scruple} ii{half} of the Salt of Lune. If the Pills be dexterously made of these Ingredients two of them about the bignes of Peas will weigh about 9 or 10 graines.

([Memorandum] That N N's famous medicine for coughs & colds is nothing but hyssop water sweetned with Hony)

Take salt of [tartar] salt petre & calcind Christalline Talk {ana}, mix them exquisitely & proceede according to Art.

The Bohemian Garnets as strongly as they resist the fire; yet if they be brought to fusion & united into one Masse, they loose their Native colour.

Mix minium Antimony, glasse & Talk in a certaine propo[rtion]      by fusion reduce them into a Regul[us]      ards easy, to proceede;

Take the saline      <of {nitre}> with[wit] raine water, & haveing      [ti]ll dren[ch]d      <ung>      bd it

     not so      the      [BP 25, p. 93] the Dung a <Beane (or other Seed)> to which apply a moderate heat, & then observe the Event.

An Ingenious Person of my Acquaintance assurd me that he & a Friend of his did by meanes of a certaine Imbibition & other helps obteine from one graine of      4 stalkes, & some of them had Ears.

Remember the <Bâcalis> imbued by Copper & Lapis Calaminaris, remember also the Result of one part of Talk two parts of <Adarum> & a proportion of salt petre to facilitate their intimate Union: < for hereby the Talk may be brought to fusion & made dissoluble in {aqua fortis}>

(Onobrichys is that which in France they call <La> Lucerne & grows well in poore & sandy grounds, wherein it shoots its root very deepe, but it ought to be renewd within 10 or 12 year, because the stalkes <doe at last> grow too stiffe & woody for the Cattle to feed [on] with appetite, But what the french call Cinfoine & preferre before the Lalucerne is the Trifolium calld in Latin fænum Burgundiacum, which will continue 15 or 20 years in the same ground, but requires richer & fatter soyle then the other)

Remember the sp mundi: as also the history of spittle & the production of a good medicine <for the Stone> out of it.

Dr Morrison being askd by me what he thought      Plants assignd by Bauhinus in     [BP 25, p. 94] by an Ingenious Friend to make some Tryalls, & that these [marets] haveing been before sowne in a very leane & sandy soyle being by the Dr. made to grow in a rich soyle, & very plentifully dungd became 10 or 15 times bigger then his Friends [Marets], in so much that when the Dr showd him them, he would not believe them to be of the same kind.

{Recipe} æq. parts of Lead & Tin, & putting them together into a strong Crucible give them a vehement fire, & observe what will follow

Remember the Ianian parting water made of salt of {tartar}, sal Armoniack, & one or two Ingredients more reducd to a Viscous Liquor

Take of Venice <glass & pumice-Stone> æq. parts (or else 2 of the latter to one of the former) & keepe them 2 or 3 days in a glasse house fire, till they be colliquated into an Opacous masse.

{Recipe} æq. parts of calcin'd Tin & Minium, & melt them together by various Degrees of fire. <To to exhibit variety of Colors. Tis applicable to other Metals employing A calcind metall employd first & then the same Metall crude lively variss colors.>

Dr Morrison told me he had by some Industry & watching a right season, been able both to gather the seeds of divers Plants that some call Turgifoetæ (as [Fer]     & some other Plants of      &c that are      ceed, & also     

     < turne into a red præcipitate, of this red powder take 2 parts, of sacc. {lead}ni the Inflammable substance divided by Gum well mixd into a Bolthead, & that into a sand Furnace, where giveing them such a heat as well serve to make infusion for 8 or 10 days.>

{Recipe} sylver & Tin reduc'd to fine powder, (but without Calcination) mix equall pa[rts]      which you may afterwards imploy in the Art of Dyeing.

{Recipe} 2 parts of      with one part of nitre, & put into this mixture one part of <Valla> very finely powde[red]      about 3 days, & minerall will dissolve in the menstruum, & tinge      with a faint but pleasant blew.

    ium of {tartar} & {nitre} to be well purifyd, & that divers Operations of Alcalys especially[especia] that of the [rake]) & varying the     

Remember the Addition of {ounce} i of Magnesia to the other Ingred[ients]      the swift Flux powder.