78 NATURAL HISTORY. 



so great flames, while the one impelleth the other, 

 give a bellowing sound. 



120. There is a conceit runneth abroad, that 

 there should be a white powder, which will discharge 

 a piece without noise ; which is a dangerous expe 

 riment if it should be true : for it may cause secret 

 murders. But it seemeth to me impossible ; for if 

 the air pent be driven forth and strike the air open, 

 it will certainly make a noise. As for the white 

 powder, if any such thing be, that may extinguish 

 or dead the noise, it is like to be a mixture of petre 

 and sulphur, without coal. For petre alone will 

 not take fire. And if any man think, that the sound 

 may be extinguished or deaded by discharging the 

 pent air, before it cometh to the mouth of the piece 

 and to the open air, that is not probable ; for it will 

 make more divided sounds : as if you should make a 

 cross-barrel hollow through the barrel of a piece, it 

 may be it would give several sounds, both at the 

 nose and at the sides. But I conceive, that if it were 

 possible to bring to pass, that there should be no air 

 pent at the mouth of the piece, the bullet might fly 

 with small or no noise. For first it is certain, there 

 is no noise in the percussion of the flame upon the 

 bullet. Next the bullet, in piercing through the 

 air, maketh no noise as hath been said. And then, 

 if there be no pent air that striketh upon open air, 

 there is no cause of noise ; and yet the flying of the 

 bullet will not be stayed. For that motion, as hath 

 been oft said, is in the parts of the bullet, and not in 



