LXXIX. The amending of venemous subjects, that are together purgative, sudorifick, diuretick, and somniferous, by our moist fires; insomuch that they do not onely become safe, but are the effecters of much good in medicine.
Amongst the number of such kind of subjects, are Stavesacre, or the seed of the louse-killing herb, Levant Berries, vomiting Nuts, and many others of such a like faculty, which are to be proceeded withall after the same manner, and by the same operations as the former.
By this or the like way may all venemous, and vehemently operative vegetables and animals be corrected, so as to be safely admitted to internal uses, and to be producers of such effects as are of great moment in Physick; whereas otherwise (though they have in them excellent virtues) they cannot by reason of their vehement operations be taken into the body without danger.
LXXX. Whether or no poisonous minerals may be corrected as well as the vegetables and animals, by our secret and moist fire of salt, and be turned into wholesome medicaments.
You are to know, that not onely venemous animals and vegetables but likewise all the minerals that abound with poison may be amended, and their most present or speedily operative poison be converted into most excellent medicines. For example.
LXXXI. How the venenate and volatile minerals are so to be inverted by our moist fires, that the volatile be rendred fix, and the poison be made a medicine.
Take of white or red Arsnick one part, pour thereto two or three parts of the con-centrated fire of niter, the which [niter-spirit] you shall distill thencefrom in a head and body in sand; then take the remaining matter out of the glass, and wash it with common water; which being done, you shall have the Arsnick, Diaphoretick, and such as may with safety be taken into the body; but yet in a small dose, because it doth sometimes provoke vomit, and principally when the nitrous fire is something of the weakest. But to prevent such vomiting, the said fire is to be twice or thrice drawn off from the Arsnick, by an Alembick; that so the poison may the better be slain, and the volatility transmuted into a fixity; and the same Arsnick may be afterwards molten and handled with the other metals without all danger of poison, which was impossible to be done afore. For the Arsnick whose poisonousness is not as yet removed from it, cannot be admitted into the body without great danger. Neither do we here insert the preparation of such medicaments out of Arsnick, and the like venemous minerals, for this cause that they should be introduced into medicine; no, for there are other safer medicaments to be had, our aim herein is onely this, to shew that even the most poisonous, and most fugacious or volatile minerals may be inverted or turned in and out by our moist fire, and dispoiled of their venenosity and rendred fixt.
LXXXII. The manner of transmuting the fugacious and easily fluxible minerals by the moist fires of salts, so as that being fixed they hardly admit of fusion or melting.
To exemplifie this, let us consider of Tin or Zink, which are reckoned amongst the metals of most easie melting, and are most volatile. For the vulgar know that Tin is molten with a very little fire, and doth thereby vanish in fume, if it be but kept in continual flux. But if it be calcined by continually stirring it into ashes, it becometh fix, nor doth it admit of reduction to its former body by any violence of fire, but is turned into glass.
So after the same manner do we roast or calcine Tin, Zink, and the other flying metals with our moist fires, and burn them into ashes, and they such ones too as do not return to their former body, and thus ’tis done; when we pour on them our fiery liquors, so as that they heat together, or do even by abstraction [or distillation,] again free the said metals from those liquors; for then these metals remain in the bottom like to dead ashes, nor do they suffer themselves to be by any means reduced to their former bodies.