Take of Salt Peter one part, and of Antimony four parts, reduce them into a black Glass, by melting them. This Glass being powdered and commixt with a wild or raw and not fusile Gold and so molten, precipitates the Regulus of the Gold to the bottom, and brings the Iron into Scoria’s.
XXII. The separation of the Antimony from the Gold.
Such golden Regulus’s do not admit of separation in the Cupel, like as those do which the Glass of Lead is used to. Therefore Salt Peter is to be used in the melting Pots or Crucibles, to make the separation of them.
Put this Antimonial Regulus in a melting Pot, melt it down in a Wind Furnace, and being molten cast in by little and little some dry Salt Peter, that so it may seize upon the Regulus and transmute it into Scoria’s. The Scoria flowing in the Pot like water, are a sign that the Gold is well cleaned, and that all the Antimony is reduced into Scoria’s. Then pour it forth into a Cone that it may cool, and the pure and malleable Gold will settle into a Regulus at the bottom. Now all the Salt Peter is rendred fixt in this operation, then if you put your Scoria’s again in the Crucible, and put into it some Coals and melt your Scoria down, almost all the Antimony being freed from the Salt Peter will gather into a Regulus, and will again serve for reducing of more Gold; for it will as readily reduce your extracted Gold unto its former body, as the [aforesaid] Glass it self will. But this labour requires a diligent Operator who knows how to handle it with singular skill, though it be easie, and requireth not any great Artifice, but onely an accurate diligence, which use onely makes a Man skilled in.
The Salt Peter used about this labour, gets the nature of an Alkali Salt, and being put on the live Coals doth no more burn, but being dissolved in Water yields a sharp Lixivium, very proper for many operations, and serving instead of a Lye made with Wood-ashes. But the chiefest use thereof is this, viz. seeing it is the true root of Salt Peter, it may be added to other Salts, out of which in process of time, it will be notably augmented and produce new burning Salt Peter. He that has a desire gainfully to augment this fixt Salt Peter with common Kitchin Salt, and again to transmute it into inflamable Salt peter, may accomplish his desire if he makes use of the following operation.
XXIII. The way of making most excellent and inflamable Salt Peter in plenty, and with profit out of common Kitchin Salt and the Lixivium of Salt Peter that has been used.
There is so small a difference betwixt common Kitchin Salt, and Salt Peter, that the Salt may easily be turned into Salt Peter, and that by several operations, as well by the Seed of Salt Peter as by sharp spirits, as we have taught above, or even by fixt niter which operation we will here shew.
We will use for an example, the baking of Bread, and the brewing of Ale. If when the Meal is with Water brought into Dough, there be added unto it but a few grounds of Ale or Leven, the whole mass begins to heave it self up, and becoming thin [or light] is rendred fit to be baked into Bread, the which hath altogether the same property as those few Ale Grounds, or that little Leven had. And so that very self same Dough is likewise fit to make other Meal ferment, even to infinity. The same is likewise observable in the brewing of Ale, so that he who hath but once onely so much Ale Grounds [or Yest,] or levened Dough as served his turn once, may brew Ale and bake Bread even to infinity. So likewise is the same evidently manifest by the encrease of Vegetables, which may be infinitely multiplied by the Alkalizated Salt of the Earth, if you have but once their Seeds and Roots. In like manner may the same propagation be performed by another way, viz. by ingrafting of that which you would propagate into another of the same kind. For example, I have in my Garden excellent Apples, Pears, Cherries, or such like Tree-fruits, and I have a mind to see more of them in my Garden; therefore do I cut off some branch, or perhaps even the Tree it self to the trunk or body; of some wild, or at least not so noble a Fruit-bearing Pear Tree or Apple Tree, and therein, viz. in that branch or stock, do I ingraft according to Art some little boughs or cions of some other Tree that bears excellent Fruit, and which I desire to encrease, the which Tree now doth no more produce the wild and degenerate or bad Fruits, it did according to its kind, but such Fruits as the Tree whence the cion was taken, bears.
By these kind of similitudes may any one that hath understanding easily see, that it is possible by Art, to transmute one nature into another, if, viz. the Seeds and Roots of things are applied to this transmutation. But now if any one should plant a stalk or leaf in the digged earth, and would thereby encrease or propagate it, he will never see any success of his labour; for the stalks and leaves would rot and so no new Herb would again bud out from them as is wont to be out of the Seed and Roots.
Even on this wise is it with Salt Peter, which if it be mixed with common Salt it would not verily produce any encrease, as ’tis wont to do out of its Seed and Root, as we have already laid open.