A compendious body of chymistry, which will serve as a guide and introduction both for understanding the authors which have treated of the theory of this science in general: and for making the way plain and easie to perform, according to art and method, all operations, which teach the practise of this art, upon animals, vegetables, and minerals, without losing any of the essential vertues contained in them. By N. le Fèbure apothecary in ordinary, and chymical distiller to the King of France, and at present to his Majesty of Great-Britain.

The distillation of Common Salt.

ALthough many Artists have spent their Philosophy and me∣ditation upon the distillation of Common salt, and that Glauber amongst the rest, hath taught a way to extract a great quantity of it in a short time, yet have I found no surer nor quicker way, or lesse intricate and more easie to put in practice, then that which I shall now teach. But before we come to the description of it, let us make some necessary Notes: for is it not first a very strange thing, that the most part of those which describe this Operation, will have the salt to be decrepitated? but as we have said above, that violent Exsiccation, not to say Calcination, se∣parates and takes away from the salt its volatile spirit, phlegm, and almost alwayes the best part of its acid spirit, which ought not to be done, since the volatile spirit and phlegm have also their uses in Physick, and it is not fit the Artist should want of skil and knowledge, and lose that which he may easie preserve without any way endangering his Operation, provided he observes well the degrees of fire. The Artist must also note in the second place, that some do mix salt with the heterogeneous matters, pretend∣ing thereby to facilitate the distillation thereof; as for example, burnt Allom and Colchotar of Vitriol; but they do not consider, that by this meanes they alter and change the vertue of the spirit of Salt. Some other do mix ordinary Clay, taking no no∣tice that oftentimes this earth is impregnated with some mix∣ture of metallick or mineral seed, as it is evident by the smell of the smoak, phlegm of Kills where Bricks or Tiles are ordina∣rily back't, and likewise of Potters Furnaces; so that all things well considered, the Artist must choose such kind of Earth or Clay

which may be of a most fix nature, and contribute the least of its quality to the spirit of salt; Now amongst all the several kinds, that which is called Sigillated or fine Bolus, are of a nature which cannot at all bring any alteration to the salt, unlesse to the bet∣ter: wherefore we would have either of these two used for the distillation of this Spirit, which is made as we will now declare, so as to hinder the fusion or melting of the salt.