CENTURY IX. 99 



blows and bruises induce swellings is, for that the 

 spirits resorting to succour the part that laboureth, 

 draw also the humours with them ; for we see that it 

 is not the repulse and the return of the humour in the 

 part strucken that causeth it ; for that gouts and tooth 

 aches cause swelling, where there is no percussion 

 at all. 



Experiment solitary touching the orrice root. 



863. The nature of the orrice root is almost singu 

 lar ; for there are but few odoriferous roots ; and in 

 those that are in any degree sweet, it is but the same 

 sweetness with the wood or leaf: but the orrice is not 

 sweet in the leaf: neither is the flower anything so 

 sweet as the root. The root seemeth to have a tender 

 dainty heat ; which when it cometh above ground to 

 the sun and the air, vanisheth : for it is a great mol- 

 lifier : and hath a smell like a violet. 



Experiment solitary touching the compression of liquors. 



864. It hath been observed by the ancients that a 

 great vessel full, drawn into bottles, and then the liq 

 uor put again into the vessel, will not fill the vessel 

 again so full as it was, but that it may take in more 

 liquor : and that this holdeth more in wine than in 

 water. 1 The cause may be trivial ; namely, by the 

 expence of the liquor, in regard some may stick to 

 the sides of the bottles : but there may be a cause 

 more subtile ; which is, that the liquor in the vessel is 

 not so much compressed as in the bottle ; because in 

 the vessel the liquor meeteth with liquor chiefly ; but 



1 Arist. Prob. xxv. 8. For the statements in the next two paragraphs, 

 see the third and eighteenth problems in the same section. 



