CHE 
CHE'MTC, or Chemical, adj. [cbymicus, Lat.] Made, 
by chemiftry : 
I’m tir’d with waiting for this cbemic gold, 
Which fools us young, and beggars us when old. Diyd. 
Relating to chemiftry: 
With cbemic art exalts the min’ral pow’rs. 
And draws the aromatic fouls of flow’rs. Pope. 
CHE'MIC,/. A chemift. Obfolete. 
CHE'MICALLY, ad<v. In a chemical manner. 
CHE'MICE,/ The art of calling figures in metals. 
CHEMILLI'E, a town of France, in the department 
of the Mayne and Loire, and chief place of a canton, in 
the diftrift of Chollet, on the Ironne : three leagues and 
a half north-eaft of Chollet. 
CHE'MIN des RONDS, in fortification, the way of 
the rounds, or a lpace between the rampart and the low 
parapet under it, for the rounds to go about it. 
CHEMI'NON, a town of France, in the department of 
the Marne : ten miles eall of Vitry-le-Fran$ois. 
CHEMFSE,/ A fhirt or lhift, a lining, or a cafing. 
CHEMI'SE, in fortification, the wall with which a 
baftion, or any other bulwark, is lined, for its greater 
fupport and llrength: or it is the folidity of the wall 
from the talus to the ftone-row. Fire-chemife is a piece of 
linen cloth, lleeped in a compoiition of oil of petrol, cam¬ 
phor, and other combuftible matters, ufed at fea to let 
fire to an enemy’s vefiel. 
CHE'MIST, f. A profeffor of chemiftry; a pliilofo- 
pher by fire : * 
The ftarving chemijl, in his golden views 
Supremely bleft. Pope. 
CHEMISTRY',/ [ chetnia , Lat. from x v l / ‘ ia , 0 
Gr. n'nn, chemiab, from nan, cbemdh, to burn, Arabic; 
becaufe, in ancient chemiftry, the examination of all 
fubltances was by means of fire. Others make cbcmia fy- 
nonimous with occultare ; whence it would denote an in- 
veftigation of bidden or fecret things. In the epocha, 
when magic and alchemy occupied the attention of man¬ 
kind, the term chemia was made ufe of to fignify the Sci¬ 
ence of Nature, or rather Magic nocrruv rcov 
foe. (pvo-tios'tqyw) according to Zofimus Panopolita, quo¬ 
ted by Borrichius (De Ortu et Progr. Chemiae), and ef- 
pecially the art of making gold and filver (xnp^u n rov 
.agyvgov, y.ai xi vcr °v y.a,Ta.o-y.Ewi, according to Suidas). 
■Before the New-Platonics, this -word is never mentioned 
under fuch fignification, neither by the Greeks, nor by 
the Romans. Julius Maternus Firmicus, who lived in 
the age of Conltantine the Great, is the firll author by 
whom the term appears to have been uled.] It was an¬ 
ciently written chymiftry ; but the derivation more ftri&ly 
favouring the ufage of thofe who write chetnifry, this ortho¬ 
graphy is now univerfally adopted. Authors are not com¬ 
pletely agreed on the molt proper definition of the word. 
It is very evident, that originally, chemiftry was conlider- 
ed as a mere art; at prefent, however, it is juftly regarded 
as one of the molt fublime and important of the fciences. 
In its objeft it embraces the whole of natural phenome¬ 
na,_ there being few changes, comparatively fpeaking, 
which are not attended with fome effect that comes un¬ 
der the cognizance of chemiftry. We might define it 
negatively, by affirming that every effect which is not 
purely mechanical, is chemical; and in purfuance of this 
view of the fubjeCl, we fhould fay that chemiftry, as a 
fcience, teaches the methods of eftimating and account¬ 
ing for the changes produced in bodies, by motions of 
their parts amongft each other, which are too minute to 
affeft the fenfes individually; and as an art we fhould 
affirm that it confifts in the application of bodies to each 
other, in fuch fituaticns as are belt calculated to produce 
thofe changes. 
For the purpofe of exhibiting in a concife and metho- 
_VOL. IV. No. 185, 
CHE 145 
dical manner, the progrefs of the human mind in the 
ftudy of chemiftry, and the feveral advances made there¬ 
in from the earlieft times to the prefent, we lhall divide 
its hiftory into fix principal epochs or ages. The first 
epocha comprehends the origin of chemiftry among the 
Egyptians, and its progrefs among the Greeks. Its ori¬ 
gin, however, is not lei's obfcure than that of the other 
fciences and arts in general. The patriarch Tubal Cain, 
who lived before the deluge, is faid to be the firft che¬ 
mift; but his knowledge is not affirmed to have extended 
beyond the working of metals. This man feems to have 
been the fame, who is fpoken of in fabulous hiftory un¬ 
der the name of Vulcan. It is certainly among the Egyp ■ 
tians that we ought to place the true origin of this fci- 
ence. The firft of this nation, of whom mention is 
made as a chemift, is, according to Lenglet du Frefnoy, 
Thoth or Athotis, furnamed Hermes or Mercury. He 
was. the fon of Mezraim, or Ofiris, and grandlon of 
Cham. He became king of Thebes. The fecond king 
of Egypt, who was likewife a philofopher, was named 
Sephoas. He lived 800 years after Athotis, and 1900 
before Chrill. The Greeks have given him the iiirname 
of Hermes, or Hermes Trifmegiltus. He is the fecond 
Mercury, and is efteemed as the inventor of natural phi- 
lofophy. Several hiftorians have tranlmitted to us the 
titles of his works on philofophy, which confifted of for¬ 
ty-two books. It does not appear that any of them 
treated exprefsly of chemiftry, although the fcience has 
been called after him, the Hermetic Philofophy. 
Our information refpedling the cultivation of chemif¬ 
try in Egypt, is very uncertain. It feems, however, that 
this fcience made great progrefs in that country, fince 
the Egyptians were in pofl’effion of a great number of che¬ 
mical arts; and in particular, that of imitating precious 
Hones; of calling and working metals ; of painting on 
glafs, &c. but the chemiftry, as well as the other arts 
and fciences of this ancient people, are loft. Their 
priefts concealed them from the vulgar as myfteries, and 
only recorded them under the veil of hieroglyphics. The 
Alchemifts have perfuaded themfelves that fome traces of 
their pretended art is to be found among thefe; and that 
the temple, which the Egyptians confecrated to Vulcan, 
was in honour of Alchemy. The Ifraelites learned che¬ 
miftry from the Egyptians. Moles is placed in the num¬ 
ber of chemifts, becaufe of the knowledge by which he 
was enabled to diflolve the idol of gold that people ado¬ 
red. It has been thought, and Stahl has written a dif- 
fertation to prove it, that this folution of gold in water 
was performed by the help of liver of fulpliur; a procefs 
which fuppofes a knowdedge of chemiftry of confiderable 
extent. 
Democritus of Abdera, who lived about 500 years be¬ 
fore Chrift, travelled into Egypt, Chaldea, Perlia, &c.; 
and it is affirmed, that he became acquainted with che¬ 
mifts in the firft of thefe countries. Though the fon of 
a man fufficiently rich to receive and entertain Xerxes 
and all his attendants, he returned very poor to his own 
country, where he was received by his brother Damaf- 
fus. In his retirement in a garden, near the rvalls of 
Abdera, he employed himfelf in refearches into the na¬ 
ture of plants and precious llones. Cicero affirms, that 
in order that he might not be difturbed from his fpecu- 
lations by external objedls, he deftroyed his fight, by 
keeping his eyes for a time fixed on the bright reflection 
of the lolar rays, from a veflel of poliffied copper; a fadt 
which, however, is denied by Plutarch'. Pliny had fo 
great a degree, of efteem and veneration for the know 8 
ledge of Democritus, that he even thought it miraculous; 
There are fome authors who reckon Cleopatra among 
the chemifts, becaufe ffie knew how to diifolve pearls. 
They affirm, that the art of chemiftry, well known to all 
the Egyptian priefts, was conftantly pradliled by that 
people, till the time of Dioclefian, who, according to 
Suidas, thought fit to caufe their books to be ; burned,, 
that he might lubdue them with more facility, 
P P ' .The: 
