NAT 
595 
NAT 
NAT'TA (Marcantonio), a celebrated Italian jurift, 
was defcended from an ancient and noble family of Cafal 
in Montferrat, which produced feveral eminent men of 
the fame profefllon^ Marcantonio was born at Afti, and 
fludied the law at Pavia in the early part of the fixteenth 
century, under Corti, Maino, and Decio. The acquili- 
tion of knowledge was his only paffion ; and the progrefs 
he made was fuch, that he was admitted among the jurif- 
confults before the age of twenty-three, and was made a 
fenator at Cafal. The wars drove him thence to Pavia, 
where he opened afchool of law. He received invitations 
from feveral princes to fettle in their dominions, and exer- 
cifed various honourable offices, one of which was that 
of a magiifrate in Genoa. He publiffied Legal Confulta- 
tions, which were in great efteem ; and likewife wrote 
works on Theology and Philofophy. Paulo Manuzio 
greatly praifes a metaphylkal work of his “ De Puichro,” 
and addreffes to him many letters m his colledfion. Be- 
fides the work juft mentioned, he publiffied a treatife 
<c De Deo,” in fifteen books, which is a typographical 
rarity ; De Immortalitate Animi ; De Paffione Domini; 
&c. Gen. Hi off. 
NAT PAL', a town of the ifland of Sumatra, where 
the Engliih have a faftory. Lat. o. 39. N. Ion. 98. 24. E. 
NATTAM', a town and fortrefs of Hindooftan, in the 
country of Madura : forty-five miles fouth-fouth-weft of 
Trichinopoly, and eighteen north of Madura. Lat. 10. 
10. N. Ion. 78. 18. E. 
NATTAM', a town of Hindooftan, in the Carnatic: 
twenty-eight miles weft-north-weft of Trichinopoly. 
NAT'TENAT, an Indian town or village in Nootka 
Sound. 
NAT'TER JACK'. See Rana rubeta. 
NATTO'RE, a town of Bengal, capital of the circar 
of Bettooriah : 115 miles north-north-eaft of Calcutta, 
and ninety north-weft of Dacca. Lat.24.25.N. Ion.89.7 E. 
NAT'TROW, a town of the kingdom of Burmah : 
ten miles north weft of Ava. 
NA'TRUM, f. Natron; in mineralogy, genus of falts. 
Generic Characters—Of a cauftic tafte, effervefcing with 
acids, with oil forming foap, changing blue vegetable 
juices green, rendering acid folutions of earths and me¬ 
tals turbid. There are four fpecies. 
1. Natrum antiquorum, mineral alkali, or carbonat of 
foda : inodorous, dry, nearly pure. Found in China, 
Bengal, Perfia, Syria, Egypt, South America, Den¬ 
mark, Swifierland,' and Hungary, generally during the 
fpring and fummer, in a ftafe of whitiffi efflorefcent 
pow'der, and moft ufually combined with a greater or lefs 
portion of earth, common fait, acid, and various fub- 
ftances; it is totally foluble in water, and, after evapora¬ 
tion, runs into four fided prilfnatic cryftals terminating 
each fide in a needle-point, which, on expofure to the air, 
foon moulder into a fnowy impalpable powder: with 
quicklime and oil it forms foap ; it eafily melts in the fire, 
and with filex forms glafs. 
To the weft of the Delta of Egypt are feveral lakes, fome 
of which contain common fait, or muriat of foda, in lb- 
lution ; others, natron, or carbonat of foda. In fome of 
thefe lakes both thefe fubitances are contained, and are de- 
pofited alternately on the fides of the lake in confequence 
ofthe evaporation of the ,water that held them in folution ; 
this alternate depofition depending on the different de¬ 
grees of folubility of thefe falts : the common fait, being 
the leaft foluble, is firft cryftallized ; and, when that has 
been feparated to fuch an extent as to leave a confiderable 
excefs of carbonat of foda, or natron, in folution, then, 
according to the law obferved by Berthollet, and alluded 
to by Mr. Watt in his experiments on ferriiite, this latter 
fubftance begins to cryftallize. Berthollet, who atten¬ 
tively examined the fituation of thefe lakes, and the na¬ 
ture of the furrounding country, found that the foil of 
the neighbourhood was ftrongly impregnated, partly with 
carbonat and partly with muriat of foda. He fuppofes 
that the natron, or carbonat of foda, is the refult of the 
decompofition of the common fait by means of carbonat 
of lime ; during which procefs the lime combines with 
the muriatic acid of the common fait, forming with it 
muriat of lime ; while the carbonic acid, thus dilengaged 
from the lime, combines with the foda, and thus forms 
the natron. 
The terms natron and nitrum, which are ufed indiferi- 
minately in the works of the early natural hiltorians, are 
moft commonly applicable to the fubftance at prefent un¬ 
der confideration ; but they are lometimes applicable to 
faltpetre, the nitre of the prefent day ; and fometimes to 
fal ammoniac, as it is ufually called, which js a chemical 
faline combination of ammonia, or hartffiorn, and mu¬ 
riatic acid. But carbonat of loda may be diftinguiffied 
from other mineral faline fubftances by its eifervefcence 
upon the addition of any ftrong acid; by its alkaline tafte ; 
and by the property which it polfeftes of changing vege¬ 
table blue colours to green. 
This fubftance is procured from the natron-lakes of 
Egypt principally in the month of Auguft , but is found 
likewife, in fmaller quantity, during the reft of the year. 
It is difengaged from the ground by iron inftruments, and 
carried on the backs of camels as far as Terane, where it 
is (hipped on the Nile to be conveyed to Cairo, or to the 
ftore-houfes at Rofetta. The quantity annually collected 
amounts to near 25,000 quintals, and a great deal more 
might be obtained : it is uf ually fold at from 15 to 18 me- 
dir.es the quintal, delivered in either of thefe two towns. 
Natron is feldom to be met with perfectly pure, inde¬ 
pendently of the earthy fubftances with which it is almoft 
conftantly mixed; it is not an alkali entirely unadul¬ 
terated; it is generally blended with marine fait, with 
Glauber’s fait, and in fome degree with vitriolic tartar. 
In the ftore-houfes at Rofetta, there are two forts; viz. 
the common and the J'ultanie, or royai. This latter is 
whiter, better cryftallized, and purer, than the common 
fort: it is confequently ftronger,and, when ufed, a fmaller 
quantity is diffident. 
This mineral alkali poflefies the fame properties as ve¬ 
getable alkali, or foda; but it is fnid to poflefs them in a 
higher degree of ftrength. Its principal ufe is the bleach¬ 
ing of cloth and thread. The method purfued at Rofetta 
is as follows: The (keins of thread are arranged in a large 
copper, let in malbn-work ; above them is put a layer of 
natron ; and then a fufficient quantity of cold water is 
poured in to foak both the thread and the natron. The 
whole is left in this fituation for three days ; at the end of 
which, the thread is taken out and hung upon (licks 
placed over the copper. When it has drained, a fire is 
lighted under the copper, and the water, in which the 
thread was foaked, with the natron, is made to boil, after 
having received an addition of fome lime. The thread is 
deeped and ftirred about in this hot lye, and waffied in it 
feveral times, without being left there. It is immediately 
taken to the Nile, in which it is waffied and beaten ; it is 
then fpread out to dry. When the (keins are very dry, 
they are again walked in the whey which runs from cheeles, 
and which, in Arabic, is called mefch. This is a fort of 
ftiffening that improves the cloth ; and, when the Egyptians 
handle a loft cloth, they fay that it wants melch. To 
bleach 2oolbs. of thread, it generally requires ioolbs. of 
natron, and from 60 to Solbs. of lime; obferving, how¬ 
ever, that the J'ultanie natron, that is, the purer fort, 
being ftronger than the common, a fmaller quantity mull 
be ufed ; without this precaution, the thread, or linen, 
would be liable to be burnt. The natron-trade, though 
pretty brilk with Turkey, and even with the date of 
Venice, where this alkali, mixed with fandy (lone, makes 
the beautiful blown glafs of Murano, was ablolutely at 
an end, with regard to France; though in the year 1777 
it appeared likely to be revived. It is not l'olely to the 
bleaching of cloths and thread that the ufe of natron is 
confined in the country where it is formed. It is alfo 
ufed in dyeing, in the preparation of leather, in making 
glafs, in bleaching liaen, in dough inftead of leaven, for 
3 prelerving 
