VOL. XXVIII.] PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS. ^3 



alkalisate nature, so well agree with these mineral waters, it W'ill appear by the 

 following experiment that acids very much disagree. 1. I put one drop of oil 

 of vitriol to a large glass full of strong spa-waters, which before the addition 

 of this acid gave a deep purple to the solution of galls; but now would not 

 give the least tincture, though I put in 4 times as much of the galls. From 

 hence I conclude, that the virtues of the chalybeate ingredients, which I take 

 to be the life and soul of these waters, were so far destroyed, as to have lost 

 their cordial or corroborating faculty; and that the bile or gall, in the human 

 bowels, could not be able to separate the chalybeate (which are the only 

 medical) particles, and mix them with the chyle, in order to answer any end in 

 physic. This should be a caution to those that design to make these waters 

 pass better by urine, that they do not make use of any acids ; it being a 

 common practice to use spirit of vitriol, spiritus nitri dulcis, &c. as a diuretic: 

 unless it should so happen that they have a design to take off, and divest them 

 ot their warm cordial or altering power, and so to bring them near to common 

 water; which I must confess we are forced to do, especially in the use of Bath 

 waters, in some hot inflammatory cases. 2. I shall conclude with one short 

 experiment in favour of our alkalis ; viz. that if you put any alkali salt, volatile 

 or fixed, such as volatile salt of hartshorn, or of sal ammoniac, or fixed salt of 

 tartar, of wormwood, or any other true alkali, you will then destroy the above- 

 named acid spirit, recover the virtue of the waters, and dispose them to give 

 their tincture, as they used to do in their natural state. 



An Account of several Urns and Sepulchral Monuments lately found in Ireland, 

 By Francis Nevill, Esq. N° 337, art. 27, p. 252. 



Within a mile of Castle-doe, an urn was found in a small island, surrounded 

 with bogs. The island was very dry, light, sandy ground, situated on an isth- 

 mus, about half a mile over, between the bay of Dunfannaghan and Lough 

 Kinnevier. In taking up a flat stone there was found a cavity under it, which 

 may be called a sepulchre, or tomb, containing an urn, which was broke by 

 the person who found it, because, it contained nothing but bones and ashes. 

 In the same tomb there were some bones of one about 10 or 12 years of age. 

 The tomb stood east and west: the urn was found in the west end; it was the 

 smallest urn I have seen, but the cavity wherein it lay was near 5 feet long, 

 1\ broad, and about the same depth: it was made up of six coarse flag stones, 

 viz. one on each side, one at the head, another at the foot, one above and one 

 below : the bones were much wasted, and but few of them remained. While 

 I staid there, we opened three more, which the man quickly found out, because 

 he had made his marks by the plough. These three were much larger than the 



