3 i 6 Analyfis of the Air. 
tion of the fame principles, in fuel and the 
ambient air, that common culinary fires are 
produced and maintained. 
Tho’ the force of its elafticity Is fo great 
as to be able to bear a prodigious preffure, 
without lofing that elafticity, yet we have 
from the foregoing Experiments evident 
proof, that its elafticity is eafily, and in great 
abundance deftroyed 5 and is thereby reduced 
to a fixt ftate, by the ftrong attra&ion of the 
acid fulphurcous particles, which arife either 
from fire or from fermentation : And there- 
fore elafticity is not an ejfential immutable 
property of air particles 5 but they are, we 
fee, eafily changed from an elaftick to a fixt 
ftate, by the ftrong attra&ion of the acid, ful- 
phureous and faline particles which abound 
in the air. Whence it is reafonable to con- 
clude, that our atmofphere is a Chaos , con. 
fifting not only of elaftick, but alfo of un~ 
elaftick air particles, which in great plenty 
float in it, as well as the fulphureous, fa- 
line, watry and earthy particles, which are 
no ways capable of being thrown off into a 
permanently elaftick ftate, like thofe parti- 
cles which conftitute true permanent air. 
Since then air is found fo manifeftly to 
abound in almoft all natural bodies 5 fince we 
find 
