If now those good men cannot accomplish such operations which are word for word faithfully described unto them: how would they be able then to arrive by speculations and various trials to the knowledge of any thing, as I my self have done? I do therefore attest here too, that we are able most easily to prepare not barely 10 or 20, but even 30, 40, 50 pounds and more every day with one only Furnace.
Nay more, if men did more accurately ruminate upon this business, they would find, that out of one pound of Salt may be made in a Glass cucurbite in sand, one pound of the best, most grateful Spirit of Salt needing no rectification, and that in one hours space: And by the benefit of a Furnace scarce a span wide, and with a very few Char-coal, scarce exceeding three pound weight. Verily if there be any artificial destillation this is it: And now let the Find-faults look about them and see if they can understand these things we have spoken; we can at all times demonstrate the truth hereof. It is altogether inconvenient to shew such an artificial destillation unto swinish Men, it is only due to the Lovers of the truth, of which sort there are to be found but a very few in this present age.
And that this is true, viz. that a most grateful Spirit of Salt may most easily be prepared in vast quantity, doth even hencefrom most evidently appear, in that there are some in these places who having followed my information, do, because of their making it in great plenty and without any great Labour, sell a pound thereof for an imperial. For my own particular affairs do not permit me to take on me that Labour, yet notwithstanding, I have bestowed the artifice on such Men as now know it as well as I my self do, and who likewise do make that Spirit in such quantity as may supply all Europe. But forasmuch as I did not heretofore find out so far, as to see it excel Aqua-regia in the extraction of Gold out of such Stones, Sand, and Clay as contain Gold in them, and which are every where obvious. I could not omit the commending of it in this place, most highly unto all Men; for that Spirit hath an especial delight in ☉, not only in that which is fixt, but also with that which is volatile, whereby it extracts it and renders it fixt. There are some Minerals, Stones, Sand, Earths, which have in them abundance of volatile Gold, which is not in the least durable (or fixt,) but is carried up (or forced away) in the form of a vapour and vanisheth into the air, and so consequently not at all to be accounted for true ☉, seeing it cannot brook the force of the melting Fire. Besides this, there do oft-times occur moil precious Treasures of no profit to any man, which may be brought to most eminent uses (or benefit) by the Extraction, Precipitation, Cheese-making, and Liquefaction delivered by me. For such Metals as the Spirit of Salt do not tie and make fixt in the extractions, ☽ or ♄ makes them such, with which we have taken or fisht the Sol out of the Aqua-regia or Spirit of Salt; to the obtaining of which this is also of much conducement. If the Cheese now made be altogether fixt by the help of an artificial Cement, and the gradatory fluxing matter be especially reduced in such a Vessel, out of which not so much as the least volatile part can evaporate: by which it comes to pass, that not only the volatile Gold you have caught is made fixt, but even a part of the net of ☽ or ♄ is by graduation made aureous: For every volatile Gold doth exercise its operations in the Fire upon other Metals, and makes them aureous, so that the Sol ariseth thence to be of a greater quantity, than that was which by the help of the silvery or leaden Dart was taken out of the extract. Heed these things and proceed on in a legitimate course, and you shall find such things as you cannot as yet conceive of. The Fishing is clearly enough described in this place, and so is the Cementation and Reduction of the Cheese clearly proposed, and may be most easily perfected.
But God (if thou becomest acceptable unto him) can yet shew unto thee a much more compendious way of perfecting this work with less labour, and of obtaining greater things.
Be content for this time with what hath been at present taught, give God the thanks and forget not the Poor, and He will then shew unto thee more and more compendious ways, of cheerfully managing the work (here) described, to his Honour, and the Comfort of the Poor, and without any wronging thine own Conscience, or hurting of thy Neighbour.
You need not be much sollicitous about such kind of Earths, Stones or Sand, from which you may extract the Gold, for every land is every where stored with such, nor need we spend much time in searching after them. Likewise it will be a most easie thing for thee by my writings to make Salt-petre, of Salt-petre to make Aqua-fortis and Aqua-regia: One bare pound of Aqua-fortis may be sufficient for thee to begin the operation withal, for there is not much of it lost in the work it self; and what of it is wasted may easily be repaired by an addition of common Salt: And as for the extracting both the fixt and volatile Gold and Luna out of the Earth, and of perfecting it, thou hast no reason to hope of finding a more compendious way than that is which I have here exhibited unto thee.
You may leave such Metals (or Ores) as have in them plenty of Sol and Luna, unto others; and take only the scoria as ’twere, and thencefrom extract your part, and none will forbid you that. But if so be thou canst be but a partaker of an aureous Earth (or Ore) then will all things fadge the better.
NB. The ☉ and ☽ that is in the Extractions may be precipitated by the help of ☿, but much more chargeably and more difficultly than by ☽ or ♄, because the ☿ used in this operation cannot be used a second time.
NB. The ☉ and ☽ may be also extracted from the water without precipitation; by abstracting the Aqua-regia from the ☉ and the Aqua-fortis from the ☽: but besides this kind of proceeding being full of Labour, we should receive but little fixt Metal, and scarce the one half of what is gotten by the aforementioned way: For the ☽ and ☉ do retain with them some part of the Aqua-fortis and Aqua-regia, and thereby become sharp or sour which is a thing contrary (or an Enemy) to all Fluxes, and which also does not only cause an evaporation of such Volatile Gold and Silver as is therein, (but withal some part of that which is fixt too,) in the melting. But now in this Fishing trade that I have described, being caught it is either edulcorated, or the corrosive power is extinguisht by the addition of a fixt Salt; so that hereby the ☽ or ♄ holds with it self as well the volatile as fixt Gold and ☽.
NB. He that shall institute this operation aright, will find that the volatile Gold will (in the secret Reduction) yet farther transmute part of the ☽ and ♄ into ☉ by Graduation, and so will reap a double (portion of) ☉ for which God is deserved to be thanked.