OF THE ORIGIN OF CHEMISTRY. $7 



arts and fcicnccs began to wear a more favour- 

 able afpcdt *. 



Nor 



* By way of fupplcmcnt, we fhail add here fomc few obfer- 

 rations on the preparations of medicine known to the ancients. 

 \5iracidcs,c.xxxviii. fays "Dominusnicdicarncntacieiccrc facit, 

 " tt ille, qui ungucntaprxparat, indc rnifcelas couficit." la 

 the Scptuagint vcrlion ointments arc called fc*i*u**i t vid. 

 i Kings, x. 1 5. Exod. xxx. 25. 35. xxxvii. 29. The word 

 /3oTiXr f fignific* properly, a man engaged in .ill kiud* of com- 

 merce, as alfo a perfumer. Among the ancient authors we 

 find mention made often of perfumers and dealers in ointments. 

 Thus, for example, Hcrmxus is fuid to be a Perfumer* 

 whofe rich widow was afterwards married to yEfchincs : HUB 

 of Thcfprotia in Kpirc, who refuted poifon to Ulyflcs which 

 lie afterwards obtained from King Anchilaus; was called an 

 Apothecary: Nicomachus the Siagyritc alfo was named a 

 O^uack : Ariftophilus a Quack of Platxa : Antonius is defcrib- 

 cd as a Quack by Galen ; and many others who we need not 

 mention. Ariflotle himfeif, if we can give credit to jfclianui 

 and Epicurus, had profcfled the trade of a pcifumcr before he 

 turned his mind to the iludy of philofophy. But, in general, 

 the practice of tins art was confidered as \cry rucan and con- 

 temptible ; and therefore Solon diovc all the perfumers out of 

 Athens, and Lycur^us was notlefs feveic to them at Sparta : 

 Under this idea too, Antony reproached Augullus that hii 

 great grand-father hat! kept a perfume (hop. Formerly thcpicpa- 

 rattonof nlrnod every medicine was in the hands of the perfum- 

 ers ; and it appears from Hippocrates that the ancient phyfi- 

 clans paid but little attention to pharmacy. It muft, however, 

 he acknowledged that chcmiilry is indebted for m*ny inven- 

 tions to the perfumers of old, and Greek phyficians, and ef- 

 prcially to thofe i/f a later period. In thu vicvr we may con* 

 iidcr the various compofitions of medicines, of which we mull 

 enimmcratc thofe only that were moil cUccrned. Diofcotide* 

 fakilbct tlf method of extracting the oil from pitch j that ir 

 F ui 



