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which many medicinal virtues have been afcribed. It enters 

 alfo into the compofition of pills, named alfo from Starkey- 

 As fixed alkalies are very difficultly made to unite with ef- 

 fential oils, Starkey found no other expedient for the prepara- 

 tion of his foap, than time and patience. His method confitts 

 in putting dry alkali into a matrafs, and pouring upon it 

 eflential oil of turpentine to a height equal to the breadth of 

 two or three fingers : in five or fix months part of the alkali 

 and oil will be thus combined together, and form a foap, 

 which muft be feparated from the mixture, and more of it 

 will be afterwards formed in the fame manner. The moll 

 commodious method, fays Dr. Lewis, of obtaining the com- 

 bination, is by throwing the fait, red-hot, into a heated 

 mortar, immediately reducing it to powder ; then pouring 

 on it, whillf hot, by little at a time, an equal quantity, or' 

 more, of the oil, and continuing to grind them together, fo 

 as to form a fmooth foft mafs. Stahl, Rouelle, Beaumc, 

 &c. have publithed proceil'es for this combination. Mr. 

 Beaum6 fays, that it may be made in a few hours by tri- 

 turating, during a long time, alkahne fait upon a porphyry, 

 and adding to this fait, during the trituration, oil of tur- 

 pentine. This medicine, which has an acrid alkaline talte, 

 and is vei-y apt to deliquiate on being expoled to air, was 

 formerly celebrated, under the denomination of foap of 

 tartar, univerfal correftor, &c. as a diuretic in nephritic 

 complaints, and as a correftor of certain vegetables, parti- 

 cularly of opium : its virtues have not been tuUy determined 

 by experience, nor does the prefent praftice pay any regard 

 to it. 



Soap, Volatile, is of three kinds, -viz. one corapofed of 

 fixed alkalies and volatile oils ; another of volatile alkalies and 

 oils of the grofler or more fixed kind ; and the third, in 

 which both the alkali and the oil are volatile. Of the firil 

 kind is Starkey 's foap : thofe of the fecond fort are obtained 

 more readily. (See Linimentum Volatile, and Epithem 

 Volatile.) Combinations of the latter kind, in a liquid 

 form, have been defcribed under Salts ; and compofitions 

 of the fame kinds may be obtained in a folid fiate, by mixii.g 

 the fait with the oil, and fubliming them together. 



Soap, Laivs relating to. By 17 Geo. III. c. 52. no 

 perfon, within the limits of the head office of excife i,i Lon- 

 don, fhall be permitted to make any foap, unlefs he occupy 

 a tenement of 10/. a year, and be aflelled to, and pay the 

 parifli rates ; or elfewiiere, unlefs he be adelled to, and pay 

 to church and poor. By 24 Geo. III. c. 41. and 43 

 Geo. III. c. 69. every foap-maker fhall annaally take cut 

 a licence, for which he (hall pay 2/. By 43 Geo. III. 

 e. 68. fched. (A), certain duties are laid on foap imported, 

 as therein ttated ; and upon the exportation of foap made 

 in Great Britain, and which hath paid the duties, the fanre 

 ftiall be drawn back, by 43 Geo. III. c. 69. lehed. (C): 

 but no drawback fhall be allowed on the exportation of 

 foreign foap imported. (27 Geo. II. c. 21.) By 43 

 Geo. III. c. 69. fched. (A), certain duties are impofed 

 on foap made in Great Britain ; and certain allowances fhall 

 be made for foap ufed in the manufadlures of Great Britain, 

 fched. (C). Places of making are to be entered on pain 

 of 200/. (10 Ann. c. 19. 47 Geo. III. feff. 2. c. 30.) ; 

 and covers and locks to be provided under a forfeiture of 

 100/. (5 Geo. III. c. 43. ' 12 Geo. III. c. 40.) The 

 furnace-door of every utenfil ufed in the manufafture of 

 foap fnall be locked by the excife officer, as foon as the fiie 

 is damped or drawn out, and faftenings provided ; and 

 opening or damaging fuch fattening incurs a penalty of 10c/. 

 (17 Geo. III. c. 52. 24 Geo. III. c. 48. fell. 2.) Of- 

 ficers are required to enter and furvey at all times, Ijy day 

 or night, and the penalty of obftrufting is jo/. ; and they 



may unlock and examine every copper, &c. between the 

 hours of five in the morning and eleven in the evening, and 

 the penalty of obflrufting is 100/. No foap-maker fhall 

 have any private pipe or conveyance, on pain of 200/. ; and 

 the penalty of obdrucling an officer who fearches for it is 

 loc/. No maker fhall have more than one moveable pump, 

 on penalty of 5C0/. Every maker of foap, before he be- 

 gins any making, if within the bills of mortality, fhall give 

 twelve hours, if elfewhere, twenty-four hours' notice, in 

 writing, to the officer, of the time when he uitends to begin, 

 on pain of 100/. No maker fliall remove any foap unlur- 

 veyed, on pain of 20/., without giving proper notice of his 

 intention. And if any maker fliall conceal any foap or ma- 

 terials, he fliall forfeit the fame, and alfo 500/. (i Geo. III. 

 ilat. 2. c. 36.) And the penalty of privately making foap 

 is forfeiture of the foap and materials, and loo/. (5Geo. III. 

 c. 43.) Perfons allilling in making foap privately fhall for- 

 feit, for the firll offence, 20/. ; for the fecond, 40/. or be 

 liable to four months' imprilonraent till it be paid. 

 (47 Geo. III. feff. 2. c. 30.) Owners or renters of houfes 

 where foap fliall be privately made forfeit 200/. Every 

 barrel of foap fhall contain 256 lbs. avoirdupois, half-barrel 

 128 lbs., firkin 64 lbs., half-firkin 32 lbs., befides the 

 weight or tare of each caflc ; and all foap, excepting hard 

 cake foap and ball foap, fhall be put into fuch calks and no 

 other, on pain of forfeiture and 5/. (10 Ann. c. 19. 

 12 Ann. ft. 2. c. 9. ) The maker fhall weekly enter in 

 writing at the next office the foap made by him in each 

 week, with the weight and quantity at each boiling, on pain 

 of 5c/. ; and within one week after entry clear off the duties, 

 on pain of double duty. (17 Geo. III. c. 52.) Cockets 

 granted for fliipping foap to be conveyed to any other part 

 of the kingdom, fhall exprefs thi; quality, quantity, and 

 weight, the m.ark of the package, by whom made and fold, 

 and where configned, under penalty of forfeiture and feizure 

 of the fame and package. (23 Geo. II. c. 21,) No foap 

 fhall be imported, otherwife than in fomc package, con- 

 taining at leaft 224 pounds of hard foap, on pain of feizure 

 and forfeiture, and alfo package ; and the mafter of the 

 veilel fhall forfeit 50/. If any perfon (hall knowingly har- 

 bour or conceal any foap, unlawfully imported, or relanded 

 after fliipping for exportation upon debenture, he fhall 

 forfeit 50/. for every hundred weight, together with the 

 goods and package. The maker fhall keep jult fcales and 

 weights, where he makes his foap, and permit and aflill the 

 officer to ufe them, on pain of lo/. ( 10 Ann. c. 19.) 

 And by 10 Geo. III. c. 44. for infufficient fcales and 

 weights, he fhall forfeit 100/. 



S)OAv-y}Jhes, in Agriculture, the refufe of foap-boilers, 

 fometimes termed foapers' afhes. See Ashes. 



Soap Refufe, the compounds of oil, tallow, and other 

 fubftances, with lime and pot-afh, which are often met with 

 and ufed as manures. Moft forts of foapy mixtures are 

 found to have much effeft in promoting vegetation. 



Soap-fuds, or the wafhings of this fort which are left 

 and thrown away from large mills and manufaftories, fuch 

 as thofe of the filk and other fimilar kinds, are found highly 

 beneficial as manures themfelves, or for being mixed and 

 blended up with other matters in this intention. The 

 farmers, in fome places, collect them by the hogfhead, at 

 the rate of from 6d. to is-, and mix them up with earthy 

 materials, fo as to form rich compofls, in confequence of 

 their containing portions of animal matter, gum, and alkali, 

 efpecially when taken from filk works. And the common 

 foap-fuds, which are generally wafted and thrown away, are 

 faid to have been found of great utility in cold moift mea- 

 dows ; and would probably be more fo, if employed in com- 

 bination 



