Mr. Majfey on Saltpetre. 1S5 
been long made in very confiderable quantities 
in almoft every part of Europe, our knowledge 
cf this fait is ftill very imperfedt. 
This induced the author of the following pages, 
many years ago, to turn his attention to this 
fubjedt, and he flatters himfelf, that, by long 
obfervation, and a pradlice which, though not 
very extenfive, may have been fufficient for this 
purpofe, he has made fuch difcoveries, as may 
render the bufinefs of faltpetre-making no lefs 
eafy and familiar to his countrymen, than it has 
long been to our neighbours upon the continent. 
He never, indeed, could be brought to believe, 
that it was owing to any defedl in our climate, or 
to the want of materials, that we have io often 
failed in our attempts this way, but merely to our 
inattention to fome particular points in the prac¬ 
tical part, upon which our fuccefs, in a great 
meafure, depended. Thefe, therefore, he has prin¬ 
cipally laboured to explore, and to let them in fo 
ftrong a light, that they can no longer efcape 
our obfervation. 
It is the cuftom of the faltpetre makers abroad, 
to wait till the earths they have procured, or pre¬ 
pared for this purpofe, are found fit to anfwer 
their end j a pradtice, which we have reafon to 
think has rarely been followed by our country¬ 
men, who, finding the earths they have employed, 
imperfedt upon the firft trial, have feldom af¬ 
forded them a lVcond, and thus have rejedled 
