V. An Account of the Brine Springs at Droitwicbj 

 By Leonakd Horner^ F.R.S. M.G.S. 



§ 1. np ^ . . . . 



JL HE town of Droltvvich is situated nearly In the centre 

 of Worcestershire, about six miles from Worcester, on the road to 

 Birmingham. For a very long time* the manufacture of salt has 

 been carried on to a great extent in this place, and as I am not aware 

 of the existence of any detailed account of the natural and chemi- 

 cal history of the brine springs from which it is procured, I take the 

 liberty" of laying before the Society some observations which I made 

 on the spot in October, 1810, together with the results of some 

 experiments I have since made, with the view of determining the 

 chemical composition of the brine.f 



* In 816, Kcnulph, King of the Mercians, gave Ilumilton and ten liouscs in Wide, 

 ii:ith salt furnaces^ to the church of Worcester. 



" At (he time of Domesday Survey," \\hich Avas finished in 10S7, " tlic only fuel 

 used for boiling the brine was wood, and the demand for it much greater than the neigh, 

 bourhood of Droitwich could supply, especially as the brine was of a weaker quality in 

 those days, and required to be boiled longer than it does at present." — Nash's History 

 of Worcestershire. 



+ In the Philosophical Transactions for 1G78, there is a short account of the salt- 

 works of Droitwich by Dr. Thomas Rastel. At that time there were tlirce pits made 

 use of, the greatest of which was thirty feet deep. He found that the brine yielded 

 above one-fourth of its weight of salt. 



