C 425 I! 
XXII. Supplementary Report on the best Method of propor- 
tioning the Excise upon Spirituous Liquors. By Charles 
Blagden, M.D. S.R.S. 
Read June 28, 1792. 
The Report to which this paper is intended as a Supplement, 
was drawn up, and published, when our experiments on the 
specific gravities of the spirituous liquors had been continued 
only to equal quantities of alcohol and water by weight. It 
was foreseen that a further set of experiments, on more dilute 
liquors, would be wanted : but as these must necessarily take 
up a considerable time, the persons concerned thought it best 
to submit those already made to the public ; that if any errors 
or inaccuracies should be discovered they might be avoided, 
and if any person should suggest a better method it might be 
adopted, in the subsequent proceedings. Want of ice, and some 
other hinderances, prevented the experiments on what may be 
called watery mixtures from being entered upon earlier than 
the beginning of last winter. Fresh spirit was distilled for 
the purpose by Mr. Schmeisser, who brought some of it to 
the specific gravity of ,817; but it had a smell somewhat dif- 
ferent from that employed in the former experiments, and 
more approaching to the odour of ether. On inquiry we 
found, that, whereas Dr. Dollfuss had drawn the former 
spirit off vegetable alkali, Mr. Schmeisser used .Glauber’s salt 
