262 Of the Principles 



glutinous fubftance, arifing from earth and water; 

 which by vegetables is drank up in the way or 

 a vapour : and the fame matter, in order to fcryc 

 to the growth of ores, muft have both its firft rile 

 and propagation vapour-wife. 



Crude, unburnt limeftone feems alfo fubjecl: to 

 weathering or refolution, and in the fame manner : 

 the ftalattitesi dropftone^ ox ft one /inter of Friberg y 

 to-which the iron-blooms are alfo referable, is afore 

 pf Jime-ftone. This limy fubftance is derived from 

 a tender earth, fuftained and carried along by pure 

 water, from which it feparates in proper time and 

 place, and falling down collects gradually, and 

 turns to the hardnefs of a ftone. Now, as the wa- 

 ter lets it fall, it is plain, it is fomething incidental 

 to it, and fomething that it muft have licked up 

 fomewhere \x\ its pafTage. A like inftance, not a 

 little confirming this opinion, we obferve fometimes 

 on walls, plaiftered over with lime, as in large aque- 

 ducts; for inftance, that called the balfebrucke at 

 Friberg, and in thofe arches built in mines for 

 ftrengthening^/fj and levels ; where it evidently 

 appears, that the finter % hanging down from thefe 

 walls, comes from the lime ; or rather, that the 

 lime, even after being burnt, flacked, and no longer 

 quick and capable of conception, is, notwithstand- 

 ing, ftill fitted for refolution, and capable of being 

 abforbed by the water in the tendereft manner ; only 

 with this difference, that this wall/inter is not near 

 fo firm and hard, but remains always very fpongy 

 and flaky. Now, here we cannot fo very exprefly 

 aver, that fuch earth is loofened by a weatherings 

 and afterwards incorporated with the water ; but 

 that this rather happens, as we muft at leaft allow 

 pf wall-finter, by means of a foft flooding -, tho* 

 in regard to the genuine groove-drop-ftone, from 

 its particles being fq intimately mixed with the wa- 



ter a 



