"mal with it; it will raise a findging Noife;

66

produce a stench of burning; and confume "the Part, to the very Bone; nay, and the "Bone it felf: and if you apply it on a Piece " of dry Wood, it will be found to raise Sparks "of Fire, and even kindle a live Flame *."

THESE things we are to fuppofe calculated for the Meridian of Leyden, but will hardly go down at London. It might give us no advantageous Idea of our Profeffor's Pupils, whom, however, he frequently ftyles, Doctif fimi, Nobiliffimi, &c. to fuppofe 'em to need fuch Abecedarian Inftructions.-But, in effect, the Fault is not in them, nor yet in the Author, nor can any where be fairly laid, but on thofe officious Editors above mentioned; who have extorted the Book from him before it was matured. Elfe we had feen the Chapter of Fire as Laconic as that of Metals; and the whole Book of a piece with his incomparable Inftitutions and Aphorifms. This rehabilitates Dr. Boerhaave in his Name, and Honours; and we see failings in his Book, without lofing any thing of our Efteem for the Author.

WE may add, that the Work it self, with all its failings, is far fuperior to any thing of the kind extant; and tho' it may appear in fome refpects inferior to the former Edition, in others it has much the advantage of it. If the former ufually delivers things in a more full and explicit, as well as a more natural and agree

R 4

* Ferrum profecto Igne eductum, nondum candefcens, at Ignitioni prope interim accedens, ponito tu fiqui du-. bitas, in Atris Tenebris; Lucis emittet Nihil: Ubi vero Animal eo tetigeris cum fibilante Strepitu, atque Ambusti Nidore, ad Ofla ufque imo & Offa ipfa combures penitus: Vel Ligno impone arido Ignem; fcintillas excitabis, & yiyam flammam. Vol. I. p. 133,

c.

agreeable Manner; and contains a number of Inftances, Characters of Authors, Hints, Queries, and Paradoxes omitted in this: The latter is more Uniform, Confiftent, and Correct, and tho' much fhorter in moft parts, in fome others is incomparably fuller.

ON the whole, the Gentleman of Oxford who has undertaken a Translation, would do well, in the Course of his Work, to have an Eye to both: make the latter his Bafis; but in fome Parts, call in the former, by way of Comment, and Illuftration, and in others, without departing from the Laws of Tranflation, qualify the Redundancies of Style, and reduce it nearer to the English Standard. He will alfo find a multitude of Errors and Inaccuracies. to correct, fome of which the Author feems to have fallen into, by his Rhetorification. As when, after obferving that Bodies by expanding by Heat, become bigger in hot Climates than in cold, and confequently specifically lighter; he adds, "inafmuch as they contain less Matter under more Surface *." Which is evidently falfe, and feems only to have been here introduced by way of Antithet, for the fake of oppofing More to Lefs. And to the like Cause we may refer another Mistake in the following Paffage. "As Cold increases to a greater Degree, the Contraction of Bodies alfo increases; and their former Expansion alfo becomes lefs, in a lefs Degree of Cold +." Where what is called Expanfion, and stands in

re

Anti

Hinc reddi comparative leviora, dum fub fuperficie majore, minus habent Materiæ. Vol. I. p. 145.

Pro aucto frigore in gradum majorem, fimul quoque hæc Contractio augetur, decrefcitque prior in minore frigore Expanfio. Vol. 1. p. 146.

Antithefis to Contraction, fhould in juftnefs have been Contraction itself. Dr. Boerhaave, I own, if any Man, ought to be exempted from the Imputation of fuch Errors as these, which we ought to father on the Printer, Copist, the Corrector, or any Perfon rather than him; but that by figning the Book in fo much Form, with his own Hand, he has in fome measure made himself anfwerable for every thing in it. Befides, that there are plenty of Faults of another kind for the Printer to answer for; as well as for the Graver, who begins to blunder from the very firft Plate, the third Figure whereof he has, by this means, made utterly unintelligible.

THUS much for the Book in general; its Manner, Method, and Style. We come now to a nearer Survey of its Parts; and to indicate the Matters or Contents thereof.-The Author divides it into three Parts, viz. A Hiftory of Chemistry, containing 25 Pages; a Theory, containing 870 Pages; and a Practice, containing 538 Pages.

To the whole are prefixed a Dedication, Preface, Cuts, a Table of Contents to the Theory; a Table of Operations to the Practice and at the end of each Volume a copious well-digested Index.

THE Dedication to his Brother James Boerbaave, lets us into a piece of Litterary Hiftory, viz. That our Learned Author and his Brother have exchanged Profeffions; the first having fet out in the way of Divinity, and the latter, now a Minister at Utrecht, in that of Phyfic.

AT the end of the Preface, he gives us a Lift of his genuine Writings, which are but few, viz. his Inftitutions, Aphorifms, Index of Plants, and Book de Materia Medica; be

fides occafional Orations, and Prefaces to other Books.

Hiftory of

Name.

THE Cuts are done with great negligence, and tho' there be express Descriptions to each, on the oppofite Pages, which fwells 'em immoderately, there is fo ill an understanding between the Text, the Defcription, and the Figure, that they often puzzle and contradict, instead of explaining each other. Of which we have an Inftance in the very firft Plate, where in the third Figure we find Letters omitted, which are referred to, in the Description; and even in the Description the fame thing is referred to, fometimes by one Letter, fometimes by another *.

THE Hiftory of Chemistry begins with an Chemistry. Account of its Name, which in Greek is pia, or mura, the Antiquity of which the Author after Zozimus the Panopolitan, traces beyond the Etymon. Deluge. Its Etymon he derives, after Bochart, from the Arabic Chema, to hide; as denoting the fecrecy wherewith it was kept; or from the Egyptian Chemia, the black of the Eye, to denote the great Value put on it.

tion.

Significa- IN thofe early days, the Term was used, fometimes to fignify the Knowledge of natural things; and fometimes to denote a Book, containing the Rules of that Science, pretended to have been given by Angels to the antient Patriarchs . In after-times, the fame term was peculiarly applied to the Art of working Metals, as being a Capital Branch of Natural Science as then practifed; and in late days it has also been given to the Art of tranfmuting Synonym. Metals, and making Gold ||-The Author fubjoins feveral other Names, whereby Che

mistry

P. 140. + P. 7.

I p. 10.

mistry has been known in different Ages and Countries, as Chemi, Alkumia, Iuove, TOMTÉ, Spagiria, and the Hyffopic Art *.

1

FROM the Name he proceeds to the Thing itself; and enquires into the Origin, and Antiquity of it, particularly the Metallurgic Part, Metallurg. which he obferves to have been practised in the Orig. Antediluvian Age, by Tubal-cain, Son of Lamech, whom after Voffius he makes the Vulcan of the Antients, and argues him to have been thoroughly verfed in Chemistry, inasmuch as Scripture represents him as able to make Utenfils of Brafs and Iron; two Metals which our Author fhews, after Agricola and Ercker, are very difficult of Preparation; and require a thorough fkill in Metals to manage t.

9

He proceeds next to inquire into the Coun- Country. try where Chemistry had its rife; which he fhews, from the Inftance of Tubal-cain abovementioned, to have been the fame with that inhabited by the firft Men, viz, Mefopotamia: Mefopot. from whence Chemistry like other Arts was propagated into Egypt, which foon became its Egypt. chief Seat, and the place where it was cultivated with greatest fuccefs, Accordingly Mofes is alledged to have been a great Chemift; fince he was able to burn Gold, pulverize, and make it into a potable Liquor; a pitch of skill beyond what the modern Chemifts can pretend to. This proficiency of the antient Egyptians in the Chemical Art, Dr. Boerhaave farther confirms from this, that Egypt it self in the facred Language of the Country, was called Chemia, and Hermochemios, alfo Hephaiftia, and Vulcania; and. that there was a magnificent Temple at Memphis, erected to Vulcan the + p. 8. ·

* P. 7