Century I. 



Put therefore Wood,ox Clay ,into Smiths water, or other Metalline water | And 

 trie whether it will not harden in fome reafonable time. But I underftand it, 

 of Metalline Waters, that come by Waffling, or Quenching ; And not of 

 Strong Waters that come by diiTolution ; for they are too Corrofive to 

 confoHdate. 



It is already found, that there are fome Naturall Spring- waters, that will 

 Inlapidate FT<?^ So as you (hall fee one peice of Wood, whereof the Part 

 above the Water ihall continue Wood -, And the Part under the Water mail be 

 turned into a kind of Gravelly Stone. It is likely thofe Waters are of fome 

 Metalline Mixture ; But there would be more particular Inquiry made of 

 them. It is certain,that an Egg was found, having lien many y cares in the 

 bottomeof a Moat, where the Earth had fomewhat overgrown it: And 

 this Egg was come to the Hardnefs of a Stone - 7 And had the Colours of 

 the White and Yolk perfect •• And the Shell mining in fmall graines like 

 Sugar,or Alablafter. 



Another Experience there is of Induration by Cold, which is already 

 found which is, that Met alls themfelves are hardened by often Heating 

 and Jjhienching in Cold water : For Cold ever worketh moft potently upon 

 Beat precedent. 



For Indurationby Heat, itmuftbe confidered, that Heat, by the Exha- 

 ling of the Moifter Parts, doth either harden the Bodie ; As in Bricks, Tiles, 

 Ac. Or if the Heat be more fierce, maketh the grofler Part it felf,Run and 

 Melt-, As in the making of ordinary Glaf-, And in the Vitrification of 

 of Earth, (as we fee in the Inner Parts of Fornaces) And in the Vitrification 

 of Brick •„ And of Metals, And in the former of thefe, which is the Harden- 

 ing by baking, without Melting, the Heat hath thefe degrees % Fir ft, it 

 IrJarateth ; and then maketh Fragile ; And laftly, it doth Incinerate, and 

 Calcinate. 



But if you deiire to make an Induration with Toughnefi, and lefs Fragili- 

 ty A middle way would be taken Which is that which Ariflotle hath 

 well notedi but would be throughly verified. It is,to decod Bodies in Wa- 

 ter, for two or three daies But they muft be fuch bodies, into which the 

 Water will not enter -, As Stone\ and Metall. For if they be Bodies into 

 which the Water will enter, then long Seething^ will rather Soften than In- 

 durate them-, As hath been tried in Eggs, &c. Therefore, Softer Bodies 

 muft be put into Bottles And the Bottles hung into Water teething, with 

 the mouths open,above the Water : that no Water may get in 5 For by this 

 Meanes,the virtuall Heat of the Water will enter ; And fuch a Heat, as will 

 not make the Body aduft, or fragile But the Subftance of the Water will 

 be (hut out. This Experiment we made - and it forted thus-, It was tried with 

 a piece of Free-fi one, and with Pewter, put into the Water at large-, The Free- 

 fone we found received in fome Water ; For it was fofter andeafier to fcrape, 

 than a piece of the lame Stone kept drie. But the Pewter into which no Water 

 could enter^ became more white, and liker to Silver, and lefs flexible, by 

 much. There were alfo put into an Earthen Bottle, placed as before, a good 

 Pellet of Clay, a Piece of Cheefe, a Piece of Chalk, and a Piece of Free-fione. 

 The day came forth almoft of the Hardnefs of Stone • The Cheefe likewife 

 very hard, and not well to be cut : The Chalk and the Free-flone much har- 

 der than they were. The Colour of the clay inclined not a whit to the Co? 

 lour of Brick, but rather to white, as in ordinary Drying by the Sun. Note, 

 that all the former Trials were made by a Boyling upon a good hot Fire, 

 renewing the Water as it confumed, with other hot Water But the Boyling 



was 



