ON MERCURIUS DULCIS 159 



place with the solution of mercury that is obtained in the 

 method above described. This contains the calx of mercury 

 and quicksilver, divided into its finest particles. If there be 

 now added marine acid, or, to save expense, common salt, 

 the marine acid will unite with the calx of mercury, by 

 which genuine mercurius corrosivus albus is produced ; and 

 as the solution contains quicksilver in its metallic form, it 

 immediately attracts as much of the corrosive salt as is 

 necessary to its saturation ; and thus is produced a real 

 mercurius dulcis, which, on account of its insolubility in 

 water, must be precipitated. 



SECTION III. 



Experiments prove that this precipitate is nothing else 

 than a good mercurius dulcis; as (1) it is entirely tasteless. 



(2) I have sublimed the precipitate, and examined what 

 ascended in the beginning of this process, which ought to be 

 corrosive, if the precipitate contained this salt in abundance, 

 because it is well known that corrosive sublimate rises 

 sooner than mercurius dulcis ; but this, as well as that 

 which was afterwards sublimed, was pure mercurius dulcis, 

 and entirely like to that obtained in the common manner. 



(3) I also mixed the precipitate with one-fourth part of quick- 

 silver (thinking that, if it had contained too much mercurius 

 corrosivus, it ought now to be able to unite with more quick- 

 silver), and sublimed it, when I found my quicksilver again 

 with its former weight undiminished. (4) It is known that 

 caustic alkalies and lime-water give mercurius dulcis a black 

 colour. The same thing appeared with mine. The black 

 colour is nothing else than quicksilver divided into very 

 minute particles. 



