95 A Difconrfe of Forcll-Trees. 



Signor Stdluti (^An It ali an )h&s publifh'd a whole Treatife expre^- 

 ly todefcribethis^ieat curiojity : But, whiles others have Vhil&' 

 J^/>/j7z,V according to their manner upon thefe extraordinary Ctf«- 

 chttonsi, fee what the mofl induftrious, and knowing M.Hook^^ 

 Curator of this Royal Society^ has with no lefs Reafon, but more 

 fuccinftnefs, obferv'd from a late Microfcopical Examen of another 

 piece of petrifi'd-wood •■, the Defcription, and Ingenuity whereof 

 cannot but gratifie the Curious^ who will by this InJiaKce, not on- 

 V ly be inftrufted how to make Inquiries upon the like occafiotts 5 

 N but fee alfo with what accuratevejf the Society conftantly pro- 

 ceeds in all their Indagations^ and Experiments ; and with what 

 Candor they relate, and communicate them. 

 / 1 2. " It refembl'd Wood^ in that 



" Firft, all the parts of the petripd fubftance feem'd not at all 



"diflocatedj or alter'd from their natural pofition whiles they 



^ " were rvood ^ but the whole piece retain'd the exaft (hape of 



" Tfood, having many of the confpicuous pores of wood ftill re- 



l " tna'imngpores^ and (hewing a manifefk difference vifible enough 



^^ " between the^r4z«of the tvood and that of the Barl^-j efpecially, 



, " when any fide of it was cut fmooth and polite ; for then it ap- 



/ " pear'd to have a very lovely grain, like that of fome curious 



■ ^'^ c\o(e wood. 



" Next (it refembled wood) in that all the fmaller and (if fb I 

 " may call thofe which are only to be feen by a good glafs) «/z- 

 " crofcopical pores of it, appear (both when the fubftance is cut and 

 " polilh'd tranfverjly, and parallel to the pores) perfedly like the 

 *' Microfcopical pores of feveral kinds of wood, retaining both the 

 " fhape, and pofition of fuch pores. 

 " It was differing from wood. 



" Firft, in weighty being to common water, as 3? to i. where- 

 " as there are few of our Englifi woods that, when dry, are found 

 " to be full as heavy as water. 



" Secondly , in hardnefs , being very neer as hard as a 

 " Flint, and in fbme places of it alfo refcmbling the grain of a 

 '^'^ Flint : it would very readily cut G/^/, and would not without 

 " difficulty (efpecially in fome parts of it) be fcratch'd by a black 

 " hard Flint : it would alfo as readily (inke fire againft a Steel, as 

 " alfo againft a Flint. 



" Thirdly, In the clofenefs of it , for, though all the micro- 

 " fiopical pores of thcB'tftf^^were very confpicuous in one pofition, 

 " yet by altering that pofition of the polifh'd furface to the light, 

 '' it alfo was manifeft that thofe pores appear'd darker then the 

 " reft of the body, only becaufe they were fill'd up with a more 

 " dufky fubftance, and not becaufe they were hollow. 



" Fourthly, in that it would not hum in the Fire ^ nay, though 

 " I kept it a good while red-hot in the flame of a Lamp, very in- 

 " tenfly caft on it by a hlaji through a fmaWpipe'^ yet it feem'd 

 not at all to have diminiib'd its cxtenfion ; but only I found it 

 " to have chang'd its colour, and to have put on a more dark, and 

 " dufky brown hue. ■ Nor could I perceive that thofe parts which 



" feem'4 



