The History of the Royal Society of London/Part 2/Section 33
When my Reader shall behold this large of Relations; perhaps he will think, that too many of them seem to be incredible Stories, and that if the Royal Society shall much busy themselves, about such wonderful and uncertain Events, they will fall into that Mistake, of which I have already accus'd some of the Antients, of framing Romances, instead of solid Histories of Nature. But here, though I shall first confirm what I said before, that it is an unprofitable, and unsound Way of Natural Philosophy, to regard nothing else, but the prodigious and extraordinary Causes and Effects; yet I will also add, that it is not an unfit Employment for the most judicious Experimenter, to examine and record the most unusual and monstrous Forces, and Motions of Matter. It is certain that many things, which now seem miraculous, would not be so, if once we come to be fully acquainted with their Compositions and Operations. And it is also as true, that there are many Qualities, and Figures, and Powers of things, that break the common Laws, and transgress the standing Rules of Nature. It is not therefore an Extravagance, to observe such Productions, as are indeed admirable in themselves, if at the same time we do not strive to make those appear to be admirable, that are groundless and false. In this there is a near Resemblance between Natural and Civil History. In the Civil, that way of Romance is to be exploded, which heightens all the Characters and Actions of Men, beyond all Shadow of Probability; yet this does not hinder, but the great and eminent Virtues of extraordinary Men of all Ages, may be related and propos'd to our Example. The same is to be affirm'd of Natural History. To make that only to consist of strange and delightful Tales, is to render it nothing else but vain and ridiculous Knight-Errantry. Yet we may avoid that Extreme, and still leave room to consider the singular and irregular Effects, and to imitate the unexpected and monstrous Excesses, which Nature does sometimes practise in her Works. The first may be only compared to the Fables of Amadis, and the Seven Champions; the other to the teal Histories of Alexander, Hannibal, Scipio, or Cæsar: in which though many of their Actions, may at first surprize us; yet there is nothing that exceeds the Truth of Life, and that may not serve for our Instruction, or Imitation.
Sect. XXXIII. The Experiments they have try'd.If this Way of general receiving all credible Accounts of Natural, and Artificial Productions, shall seem expos'd to overmuch Hazard and Uncertainty: that Danger, is remov'd by the Royal Society's reducing such Matters of Hear-say and Information, into real and impartial Trials, performed by their own Hands: Of the Exactness, Variation and accurate Repetition of their Experiments, I have already discours'd: I will now go on to lay down in short Compass those Parts of the visible World, about which they have chiefly bestow'd their Pains.
Of Fire.The first Kind that I shall mention, is of Experiments about Fire, and Flame, of these many were made in order to the Examination of a Theory propounded to them, that there is no such thing, as an elementary Fire of the Peripatetics; nor fiery Atoms of the Epicureans: but that Fire is only the Act of the Dissolution of heated sulphureous Bodies, by the Air as a Menstruum, much after the same manner as Aqua Fortis, or other sharp Menstruums do work on dissoluble Bodies, as Iron, Tin, Copper: that Heat and Lidit are two inseparable Effects of this Dissolution, as Heat and Ebullition are of those Dissolutions of Tin, and Copper: that Flame is a Dissolution of Smoak, which consists of combustible Particles, carried upward by the Heat of rarified Air: and that Ashes are a Part of the Body not dissoluble by the Air.
Of this Sort, they have made Experiments, to find the lasting of the burning of a Candle, Lamp, or Coals, in a cubic Foot of common, rarified, and condens'd Air: to exhibit the sudden Extinction of Candles, Lamps, and lighted Coals, when they arc put into satiated Air: to shew the speedy Extinction of kindled Charcoals, by blowing on them with Bellows, that Air which had before been satiated with burning: to shew that the greatest and most lasting Heat, without a Supply of fresh Air, is unable to burn Wood, Sulphur, and most other combustible Matters: to find the comparative Heat of all Kinds of Fires, and Flames of several Materials, as of Sulphur, Camphire, Spirit of Wine, Oyl, Wood, Coal, Seacoal, Iron: to find at what Degree of Heat, Lead, Tin, Silver, Brass, Copper, Gold will melt.
Experiments of the Transparency, and Refractedness of Flames: of discerning the Strength of several Kinds of Gunpowder, Pulvis Fulminans, Aurum Fulminans: of Gunpowder in the exhausting Engine: of bending Springs by the Help of Gunpowder: of melting Copper immediately, by the Help of a Flux-powder: of the recoyling of Guns.
Experiments of Candles, and Coals, extinguish'd by the Damps of a deep Well: of the burning of Lamps under Water: of burning Spirit of Wine and Camphire together, and the Diversity of their Flames: of reducing Copper to a very combustible Substance: of heating the Air, by blowing it through a red-hot earthen Pipe, so as to burn Wood: of the Brightness of the Flame of Niter and Sulphur: of the burning and flaming of Tin Filings by the help of Niter: of kindling Bodies, in common rarified and condens'd Air, by the help of a Burning-glass: of the comparative Heat cast by a Burning-glass, in the Morning, and at Noon: of burning with a Lens made of Ice: of calcining Antimony in the Sun with Loss: to find whether Aurum Fulminans or Putris Fulminans do flame upon Explosion: of hatching Eggs with a Lamp Furnace.
Of Air. Their second Sort of Experiments is of those that have been made in order to find out the Nature, Properties, and uses of Air. Such as these.
Experiments for determining the Height of the Atmosphere, for finding the Pressure of the Atmosphere: on the Tops of Mountains, on the surface of the Earth, and at the Bottoms of very deep Pits and Mines, by the Help of Quick-silver, and other Contrivances: for finding the Pressure of the Atmosphere, both in the same Place, and Places very far remov'd.
Experiments to determine the possible Bounds of Expansion and Condensation of the Air, by Heat and Cold, by exhausting and compressing: to determine the Strength of Air under the several Degrees of Rarefaction and Condensation: of the Force of condens'd Air in Wind-Guns, to state the comparative Gravity of the Air to other fluid and solid Bodies: to discover the refractive Power of the Air, under the several Degrees of Rarefaction and Condensation: to manifest the inflective Veins of the Air: to produce a Kind of Opacity of the Air: of the falling of Smoak in rarified Air: to make Glass-bubbles swim in Air very much condens'd: of Glass-balls rising in a heavy, or condens'd Air, and falling in a lighter and more rarified.
Experiments of the Propagation of Sounds through common rarified and condens'd Air: of the Congruity or Incongruity of Air, and its Capacity to penetrate some Bodies, and not others: of generating Air by corrosive Menstruums out of fermenting Liquors, out of Water, and other Liquors, by heat, and by exhaustion: of the returning of such Air into the Water again: of the vanishing of Air into Water exhausted of Air: of the maintaining, and increasing a Fire by such Airs: of the Fitness and Unfitness of such Air for Respiration: of the use of Air in breathing.
Experiments of keeping Creatures many hours alive, by blowing into the Lungs with Bellows, after that all the Thorax, and Abdomen were open'd and cut away, and all the Entrails save the Heart, and Lungs remov'd: of reviving Chickens, after they have been strangled, by blowing into their Lungs: to try how long a Man can live, by expiring and inspiring again the same Air: to try whether the Air so respired, might not by several Means be purified, or renew'd: to prove that it is not the Heat nor the Cold of this respired Air, that choaks.
Experiments of the respiring of Animals, in Air much rarified, and the fatal Effects: of the long Continuance of several Animals very well in Air as much condens'd, as it will be under Water, at two hundred Fathoms deep, that is about eight times: of the Quantity of fresh Air requisite for the Life of a respiring Animal, for a certain : of making Air unfit for Respiration, by satiating it, by suffering Candles or Coals to burn in it, till they extinguish themselves.
Experiments of including living Animals, and kindled Coals, and Candles, in a large Glass, to observe which of them will be first extinguish'd: of a Man's living half an Hour, without any Inconvenience, in a Leaden Bell, at diverse Fathoms under Water: of the Quantity of Air respir'd at once by a Man: of the Strength a Man has to raise Weights by his Breath.
Experiments of the swelling of an Arm put into the rarifying Engine, by taking off the Pressure of the Ambient Air: of the swelling of Vipers and Frogs, upon taking off the Pressure of the Ambient Air: of the Life, and free Motion of Fishes in Water, under the pressure of Air eight Times condens'd: of Insects not being able to move in exhausted Air: of the resistance of Air to Bodies mov'd through it: of the not growing of Seeds for want of Air: of the growing of Plants hung in the Air, and of the Decrease of their Weight: of the living of a Cameleon, Snakes, Toads, and diverse Insects, in a free Air, without Food: of conveying Air under Water to any Depth: of condensing Air by Water, and by the Expansion of freezing Water: of the swelling of Lungs in the rarifying Engine: of the Velocity and Strength of several Winds.
Of Water.The third kind are those which have been made about the substance and properties of Water: Such are,
Experiments about the Comparative Gravity of salt Water, and fresh, and of several Medicinal Springs found in this Nation: of the different Weight of the Sea-water, in several Climates, and at several Seasons: of the Weight of Distill'd-water, Snow-water, May-dew, Rain-water, Spring-water: of augmenting the weight of Liquor, by dissolving Salts: of the greater thickness of such Water at the Bottom than at the Top: of weighing ascending and descending Bodies in Water; of the pressure of the Water at several Depths under its Surface.
Experiments of the heat and cold of the Water, at several depths of the Sea: of propagating sounds through the Water: of sounding the Depth of the Sea without a Line: of fetching up Water from the Bottom of the Sea: of fetching up Earth, Sand, Plants, from the Bottom of the Sea.
Experiments of the Resistance of Water to Bodies mov'd on its Surface, of several Figures, and by several Degrees of Force: of the Resistance of Water to Bodies mov'd through its Substance, ascending and descending: of the Expansion and Condensation of Water by Heat and Cold: of the Condensation of Water by several Ways of Pressure: of converting Water into a vapourous Air, lasting some time in that Form: the Torricellian Experiment try'd with Water in a Glass-Cane thirty six and forty Foot high, in a leaden Tube, also with a Glass at the Top: the same try'd with Oil, and other Liquors.
Experiments of the rising of Water in small Tubes, and many others about its Congruity: of Filtration, or of the rising of Water to a great Height in Sand, &c. of the swimming of Fishes: of Waters being able to penetrate through those Pores, where Air will not: of opening Bellows at a Depth under Water, and blowing up Bladders, to find the Pressure of the Water: of Water not subsiding in a high Glass-Cane upon removing the ambient Pressure, after it had been well exhausted of the Air-bubbles that lurk'd in it: of forcing Water out of a Vessel by its own Vapours.
Experiments of the different Weight and Refraction of warm Water and cold: of the passing of Water through the coats of a Man's Stomach: of the living of Fish in Water, the Air being exhausted: of closing up a Fish in a Glass of Water; of the dying of Fishes in Water, upon taking off the Pressure of the Air, in the rarifying Engine: of Hydrostaticks, and making a Body sink by pouring more Water upon it; of raising Water above its Standard by sucking: of the subsiding of Water in the Stem, upon putting the Bolt-head into warm Water; of the shrinking of Water upon cooling.
Of Metals and Stones.The fourth Kind are about Mines, Metals, Oars, Stones, &c. Such as
Experiments of Coppelling made at the Tower; of dissolving many Salts in one Liquor; of the Oculus Mundi; of Rusma; of the Tenacity of several Metals examin'd by Weights; of the rarefaction and condensation of Glass; of the volatising Salt of Tartar, with burnt Alom, with Vinegar and Spirit of Wine; on the Bononian Stone; on Diamonds, of their shining by rubbing; on Copper-oar; of the Distillation of Coal; of refining several Kinds of Lead-oar; of extracting a much greater Quantity of Silver out of that Oar, than is commonly done; of several Ways of reducing Letharges into Lead; of changing Gold into Silver.
Experiments Magnetical, of the best Form of capping Loadstones; of the best Forms of Needles, of several Lengths and Bignesses: of various Ways of touching Needles on the Loadstone; of making the same Pole of the Loadstone, both attract and chase the same end of the Needle, without touching it; to find the variation of the Loadstone here at London.
Experiments with the dipping Needle; of the extraordinary Strength in Proportion to its Bulk of a small Loadstone; to measure the strength of the Magnetical attractive Power, at several Distances from the Stone: to examine the Force of the attractive Power, through several Mediums, as Water, Air, Wood, Lead, and Stone; to divert the attractive Power, by interposing Iron; to find the directive Virtue of the Loadstone under water.
Experiments to manifest by the Help of Steel-dust, the Lines of the directive Virtue of the Loadstone to be oval, in a contrary Position to what Des Cartes's Theory makes them: to manifest those Lines of Direction by the Help of Needles; to discover those Lines of Direction, when the Influence of many Loadstones is compounded; to find what those Lines are incompassing a Sphærical Loadstone, what about a Square, and what about a regular Figure; to bore through the Axis of a Loadstone, and fill it up with a Cylindrical Steel: Experiments on Loadstones having many Poles, and yet the Stones seeming uniform.
Of Vegetables.The fifth Kind is of the Growth of Vegetables in several Kinds of Water; as River-water, Rain-water, Distill'd Water, May-Dew; of hindring the Growth of Seed-Corn in the Earth, by extracting the Air, and furthering their Growth, by admitting it; of steeping Seeds of several Kinds; of inverting the Positions of Roots and Plants set in the Ground, to find whether there are Valves in the Pores of the Wood, that only open one Way; of the Decrease of the Weight of Plants growing in Air; of Lignum Fossile; of the growing of some Branches of Rosemary, by only sprinkling the leaves with Water; of Camphire Wood; of Wood brought from the Canaries; of a stinking Wood brought out of the East-Indies; of the Re-union of the Bark of Trees after it had been separated from the Body.
Medicinal and Anatomical.The sixth are Experiments Medicinal and Anatomical; as of cutting out the Spleen of a Dog; of the Effects of Vipers biting Dogs; of a Camæleon, and its Dissection; of preserving Animals in Spirit of Wine, Oil of Turpentine, and other Liquors; of injecting various Liquors, and other Substances into the Veins of several Creatures.
Experiments of destroying Mites by several Fumes; of the equivocal Generation of Insects; of feeding a Carp in the Air; of making Insects with Cheese, and Sack; of killing Water-Newts, Toads, and Sloworms with several Salts; of killing Frogs, by touching their Skin with Vinegar, Pitch, or Mercury; of a Spider's not being inchanted by a Circle of Unicorn's Horn, or Irish Earth, laid round about it.
Experiments with a poison'd Indian Dagger on several Animals; with the Maccassar Poison; with Florentine Poison, and several Antidotes against it; of making Flesh grow on, after it has been once cut off; of the grafting a Spur on the Head of a Cock, and its growing; of the living of Creatures by factitious Air; of the reviving of Animals strangled, by blowing into their Lungs; of Flesh not breeding Worms, when secur'd from Fly-blowing; of the Suffocation of Animals upon piercing the Thorax; of hatching Silk-Worm's Eggs in rarified Air; of transfusing the Blood of one Animal into another.
Of sensible Qualities.The seventh Sort are about those which are call'd sensible Qualities; as of Freezing; of Cold, and Heat; of freezing Water freed from Air; of the Time and Manner of the Contraction in freezing luke-warm Water; of the Temperature of several Places, by seal'd Thermometers; as of several Countries; of the Bottoms of deep Mines, Wells, Vaults, on the Tops of Hills, at the Bottom of the Sea.
Experiments on the Contraction of Oil of Vitriol; and diverse other Oils by freezing; of freezing bitter Tinctures; of freezing several ting'd Liquors, and driving all the Tincture inward to the Center; of shewing Ice to be capable of various Degrees of Cold, greater than is requisite to keep it Ice; of producing Cold by the Dissolution of several Salts; of freezing Water without Blebs; of a membranous Substance separable from the Blood by freezing; of a Thermometer in rarified and condens'd Air; of very easy freezing of Oil of Aniseeds; of making a Standard of Cold by freezing distill'd Water.
Of other Qualities.The eighth are of Rarity, Density, Gravity, Pressure, Levity, Fluidity, Firmness, Congruity, &c. as of the Nature of Gravity; of the Cohæsion of two flat Marbles; of compressing the Air with Mercury to find its Spring; of the Weights of Bodies, solid and fluid; of Rarefaction and Condensation by the Help of Mercury; of the Tenacity of several Bodies; of the turning of two very fluid Liquors into one solid Mass, by mingling them together.
Experiments for examining, whether the Gravity of Bodies alter, according as they are carried a good Way above or below the Surface of the Earth; of the standing of Mercury well exhausted, many Inches, nay many Feet, above its usual standing; of a Wheel-Barometer, of the Expansion, and Contraction of Glass and Metals by Heat and Cold; of Spirit of Wine, and several ting'd Liquors, by the Help of a Glass Tube; the Examination of Monsieur Paschal's Experiment by many others.
Of Light, Sound, &c.The ninth are Experiments of Light, Sound, Colours, Taste, Smell; as of two transparent Liquors producing an opacous one: of Echoes and reflected Sounds; of musical Sounds and Harmonies; of Colours; of the greater Refraction of Water than of Ice; of Refraction in a new Engine; of the Refraction of Glass of various Shapes under Water; of destroying the shining of Fish by Oil of Vitriol; of making a great Light by rubbing two Chrystals hard one against the other; of making a deaf and dumb Man to speak.
Of Motion.The tenth are Experiments of Motion: as of Glass Drops several Ways order'd and broken; of the Velocity of the Descent of several Bodies of diverse Fashions through several Liquors; of determining the Velocity of Bodies falling through the Air, tried by many Ways; of the swift Motion of Sounds; of the irregular Motion of the Oil of Turpentine on Spirit of Wine; of the Strength of falling Bodies, according to the several Heights, from which they fall; of proportioning the Shapes of Bodies, so as to make them fall together in the same Time through differing Mediums.
Experiments of the Swiftness of a Bullet shot with extraordinary Powder; of the best Figure of the Weight of a Pendulum for Motion; of the Motion of pendulous Bodies of various Figures; to determine the Length of Pendulums, to find the Velocity of the Vibrations of a sounding String; to find the Velocity of Motion, propagated by a very long extended Wire; for explaining the Inflection of a strait Motion into a circular, by a supervening attractive Power towards the Center, in order to the explaining of the Motion of the Planets.
Experiments of the circular and complicated Motion of Pendulums, to explain the Hypothesis of the Moon's moving about the Earth; of comparing the Motions of a circular Pendulum, with the Motion of a strait one; of the Propagation of Motion from one Body to another; of the Reflection of Motion; of the vibrating Motion of Quicksilver in a crooked Pipe, imitating the Motion of a Pendulum; of communicating of the Strength of Powder for the bending of Springs; and thereby for making artificial Muscles, to command what Strength we desire.
Chymical and Mechanical. The eleventh are Experiments Chymical, Mechanical, Optical; as of reducing the Flesh of Animals into a Liquor like Blood, by dissolving it in a certain Menstruum; of a great Facility of raising Water in Pipes of a large Bore; of brewing Beer with Bread, Barley, Oats, Wheat, and without melting; of precipitating Tartar out Wine by several Expedients; of a chemical Extraction of a volatile Spirit, and Salt out of Spunges; of examining Aurum fulminans after Explosion; of the Dissolution of Manna in Water, and of a chrystallising it again out of it, by Evaporation.
Experiments of volatising Salt of Tartar many Ways; of examining the mucilaginous Matter call'd Star-Shoot; of examining our English Telescopes, and Microscopes, and comparing them with such as have been made at Rome; of making a volatile Salt with Oil of Turpentine, and Sea-salt; of the Quantity of Spirits in Cyder; of the Strength of several Springs, of examining a Pump made with Bellows; of dying Silk with several Jamaica Woods; of finding the Strength of Wood of several Kinds, for bearing; of finding the Flexibility of various Woods, and determining the utmost Extent of their yielding and bending.
Experiments about the Gravity of Bodies made on the Top of St. Paul's Steeple, Westminster Abby, and several other high Places; and in a Well of seventy Fathoms Depth; examined about the Virgula Divina wherein the common Assertions were found false; of the various Refractions of several Liquors, in a new refractive Engine of common Oil of Tobacco, made by Distillation in a Glass Retort; of making the Object Glass of a Microscope to bear as large an Aperture as is desir'd.
Of this their Way of Experimenting I will here produce these Examples.
