the Niter, which the Nile is ftored with, is the caufe of all thefe 
ftrange effeflb, and of many others, by him alledged. For f 
faith be*) when the N itre is heated by the heat of the Sun, it fer- 
ments, and mingling with the water, troubles it, and fwells it, 
and makes it pafs beyond its banks 5 after the fame manner, as 
the Spirits in new Wine render it troubled, and make it boyle 
in the vefTel. And it feems not likely to him, that the Mud, 
found in the Nile , fhould come a far off, for then it would at 
Lilt fo raife the banks of this River, that it would not be able to 
overflow them any longer. W hereas flis more than 2000 years, 
that the banks thereof are not grown higher, there being now 
requiflte but 1 6. cubits for overflowing the Land, no more 
than there was in the time o i Herodotus. Which {hews, faith he> 
that this Mud is nothing bur a vo\iii\Niter 9 which exhaling, doth 
not increafethe Earth. As forth eAZgyptianDew 9 and the in- 
creafe of the weight of the Mud, he adfcribes them to the fame 
Caufe. For, the fpirits of Nitre abounding in the Nile^ when 
railed into the Air with the vapors, that exhale continually 
from this River, there is made out of their mixture, a Dew, 
that refreshes the Air, makes ficknefs to ceafe, and produces 
all thofe admirable effects, that make the M^yptiaxu wiflifor 
it fo paflionately. And the fame fpirits of Niter, being joyn- 
ed to thePafte, and to the Mud, raife the one, and augment 
the weight of the other. That, which Mr. Buratini obferves, 
that at the time of this inundation, the Niter-pits of the neigh- 
bouring places vomit out liquid Nirer, and chat one may fee 
iffue out of the Earth abundance of Chryftals of Nitre, is al- 
ledged to fortify this conje&aire ; Which is yet more confirm’d 
by the Fertility, communicated to the Earth by the Mud of this 
River. For, plants do grow there in fuch abundance, that 
they would choak one another, if it were not remedied by 
throwing Sand upon the Fields i infomuch that the ^Egyptians 
muft take as much pains to fpread Sandtolefien the fatnefs of 
their Land, as other Nations do, to fpread flung or other ma- 
nure upon theirs to increafe the fatnefs. 
In the fourth and Fifthy the Author undertakes to prove, that 
alhhofe ftrange efFetfts cannot be attributed to Rain or Snow, 
and 
