146 Of the Sulphur 



Sulphur, by way of damp, in a metal form, is as 

 difficult to reconcile with experience. 



Pyritce refolve themfelves into their prefent con- 

 flituent parts, and forfake their proper mixtion, 

 as ffiail be fhewn in the chap, on vitriol •, but thefe 

 parts thus forfaken, do not therefore remove from 

 each other, nay, do not feparate from each other, 

 even for a fingle moment -, but in the courfe of 

 that motion which brings about the difTolution of 

 the fyrites, the fulphur-acid fwallows up the iron- 

 earth, and becomes conjoined again in a dif- 

 fferent manner : what remains feparated from 

 this new vitriol-production, may well be deemed no 

 other but the metal- earth ; and as to the fulphur, 

 there is little or nothing faved, but generally all 

 of it is deftroyed ; yet as there is certainly much. 

 fulphur acid requifite to the production of vitriol ; 

 nay, from the very fmall metal-yield of the ful- 

 phur, and fo much metal- earth or ochre refidue, 

 we muft conclude, that were there more fulphur in 

 the pyrites, more vitriol would have been gene- 

 rated, and thus more fulphur become incorporated 

 with the iron in the vitriol. 



Thirdly, there are other ores that may happen 

 to be fomewhat fulphur eous, and difToluble, and 

 by their difTolution yield fulphur, and form ful- 

 phureous damps, or weatherings, and yet be lefs a- 

 dapted to the production of matters, or damps 

 fitted for pyritification -, wherein the parts of the 

 pyrites, efpecially the metallic, fhall (if we allow 

 it to contain the fulphureous parts) formally exift ; 

 feeing all other fulphur-orts, that are not pyrites, 

 afford no iron, as the latter do. 



Fourthly, 



