144 OBSERVATIONS on the 



profeflbr Woodhoufe and publiflied in the fecondvolume 

 of the New York Medical Repofitory. 



liy reafon of thefe foreign and adventitious matters, 

 it happened in Sir John Pringle's experiments, that the 

 common fait employed by him, inftead of preventing 

 the corruption of meat, when added in fmall quantity, 

 rather promoted its decay. (Paper III. Exp. 24.) His 

 trials he obferves were made with the white or boiled fait 

 kept here (in London 1 fuppofe he means) for domeftic 

 ufes. ( Appendix to Obfervations on Difeafes of the Army, 

 &c. p. 345, Note.). This kind of fait is known to 

 abound with the earthy falts with w^hich ocean w^ater is 

 charged. 



Dr. Percival's experiments on fea fait have a tendency 

 to fhew that the feptic quality afcribed by the learned 

 Baronet to fmall quantities of common fait is owing to 

 the mixture oi bitter fait with it. A quantity of this, he 

 obferves, adheres to all the common fait ul'ed for culinary 

 and dietetic purpofes, and as far as its influence goes, it 

 countera(3:s the wholefome and prefervative powers of 

 the clean and unmixed muriate of foda (i ElTays Medical, 

 &c. p. 344,) and that x\\\& feptic qualicy of the fea fait de- 

 pended upon the prefence of fome heterogeneous fub- 

 ftance was the opinion of Pringle himfelf. (ibid. p. 347.) 

 Such then being the compoiltion of ocean water, it is 

 eafy to explain wherefore it is not fit by itfctf for wafh- 

 ing garments and making them clean. It has a deficiency 

 of alkaline fait in it ; and alkaline falts are well known to 

 be the moil excellent and complete detergents. And it 

 is quite as eafy to affign a reafon why it will not anfwer 

 to employ yo<7/) with ocean water. The acids united to the 

 lime and magnefia being more ilrongly attracted by the 

 alkali of the foap, quit their connexion with thofe earths, 

 which fall to the bottom, while the lighter and deferted 

 oil rifes to the top. The activity of the alkali of the foap 



thus 



