362 A Jhort Accomit of the Mammoth, 



coniparifon, many of whofe dil'criminations of firength being, 

 as I had rcafon to believe, merely conjeftiiral. 



Beibre I proceed to explain Mr. Gilpin's tables, and the 

 columns added to them, it becomes neceflary to define what 

 is meant by the [cnn pure fpirit, and to inquire whether the 

 fpirit which fir Charles defcribes can with propriety be called 

 iuch. 



" The firft ftep (fays he, in the Report made on this fub- 

 jeft in 1790) towards a right performance of the experiments, 

 was to procure the two fubftances with which they were to 

 be made, as pure as poffible. Diftillcd water is in all cafes 

 fo nearly alike, that no difficulty occurred witli regard to it ; 

 but the fpecific gravity of pure fpirit, or alcohol, has been 

 given fo very difl'erently by the authors who have treated of 

 it, that a particular fet of experiments appeared neceflary for 

 determining to what degree of llrength reftified fpirit could 

 conveniently be brought. The pcrfon engaged to make thefe 

 experiments was Dr. Dollfufs, an ingenious Swifs gentleman, 

 then in London, who had diftinguifhed himfelf by feveral 

 publications on chemical fubjefts. Dr. Dollfufs, having been 

 furnidied by government with fpirit for the purpofe, re£lified 

 it, by repeated and flow diftillations, till its fpecific gravity 

 became llationary -in this manner of operating : he then 

 added dry cauftic alkali to it, let it ftand for a few days, 

 poured olV tite li(]uor, and dKiilled it with a fmall addition of 

 burnt alum, placing the receiver in ice. By this method he 

 obtained a fpirit whofe fpecific gravity was 8188, at 60 of 

 heat. Perceiving, however, that he could not conveniently 

 get the quantity of fpirit he wanted lighter than 82527, at 

 60, he fixed upon that ftrength as a ftandard. 



Several highly relpeftable authorities might be produced 

 to prove this I'pecilic gravity to be a proper ftandard for pure 

 fpirit. 



[Tcr be continued.] 



XXVI. A port Account of the Mavimoth. By Mr. Rem- 

 brandt Pealh *. 



J- HE mammoth is fo called from the Ruffian name, fup- 

 pofed to have been derived from the Hebrew Behemoth, 

 Job, chap. xl. It is properly continued, both words being 

 exprellive of a large and extraordinary animal. 



For a number of years paft many large and extraordinary 



■ * Communicated by the Author. 



bones 



