Men, that distill'd Vitriolate Spirits are not necessary to the
obtaining of such a Sulphur as we have been considering, I did by the
bare distillation of only Spirit of Nitre, from its weight of crude
Antimony separate, in a short time, a yellow and very inflamable
Sulphur, which, for ought I know, deserves as much the name of an
Element, as any thing that Chymists are wont to separate from any
Mineral by the Fire. I could perhaps tell you of other Operations upon
Antimony, whereby That may be extracted from it, which cannot be
forc'd out of it by the Fire; but I shall reserve them for a fitter
Opportunity, and only annex at present this sleight, but not
impertinent Experiment. That whereas I lately observed to you, that
the Urinous and common Salts whereof _Sal Armoniack_ consists,
remain'd unsever'd by the Fire in many successive Sublimations, they
may be easily separated, and partly without any Fire at all, by
pouring upon the Concrete finely powder'd, a Solution of Salt of
Tartar, or of the Salt of Wood-Ashes; for upon your diligently mixing
of these you will finde your Nose invaded with a very strong smell of
Urine, and perhaps too your Eyes forc'd to water by the same subtle
and piercing Body that produces the stink; both these effects
proceeding from hence, that by the Alcalizate Salt, the Sea Salt that
enter'd the composition of the _Sal Armoniack_ is mortify'd and made
more fixt, and thereby a divorce is made between it and the volatile
Urinous Salt, which being at once set at liberty, and put into motion,
begins presently to fly away, and to offend the Nostrils and Eyes it
meets with by the way. And if the operation of these Salts be in
convenient Glasses promoted by warmth, though but by that of a Bath,
the ascending Steams may easily be caught and reduc'd into a penetrant
Spirit, abounding with a Salt, which I have sometimes found to be
separable in a Crystalline Form. I might add to these Instances, that
whereas Sublimate, consisting, as you know, of Salts & Quicksilver
combin'd and carried up together by Heat, may be Sublim'd, I know not
how often, by a like degree of Fire, without suffering any divorce of
the component Bodies, the Mercury may be easily sever'd from the
adhering Salts, if the Sublimate be distill'd from Salt of Tartar,
Quick Lime, or such Alcalizate Bodies. But I will rather observe to
you, _Eleutherius_, what divers ingenious men have thought somewhat
strange; that by such an Additament that seems but only to promote the
Separation, there may be easily obtain'd from a Concrete that by the
Fire alone is easily divisible into all the Elements that Vegetables
are suppos'd to consist of, such a similar Substance as differs in
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