The works of the highly experienced and famous chymist, John Rudolph Glauber

by Johann Rudolf Glauber

In the same manner as was taught of Zinck, there may be out of lead also distilled a subtle spirit and a sweet oyl, and it is done thus: Pour strong vinegar upon Minium, or any other calx of lead, which is made per se, and not with sulphur, let it digest and dissolve in sand or warm ashes, so long till the vinegar be coloured yellow by the lead, and turned quite sweet. Then pour off the clear solution, and pour on other vinegar, and let this likewise dissolve, and this repeat so often, till the vinegar will dissolve no more, nor grow sweet; then take all these solutions, and evaporate all the moisture, and there will remain a thick sweet yellow liquor, like unto honey, if the vinegar was not distilled, but if it was distilled and made clear, then no liquor remaineth, but only a white sweet salt. This liquor or salt may be distilled after the same manner as was taught with the Zinck, and there will come over not only a penetrating subtle spirit, but also a yellow oyl, which will not be much, but very effectual, in all the same uses, as of the spirit, and oyl of the Zinck was taught.

N. B. This is to be observed, that for to make this spirit and oyl, you need no distilled spirit, but that it may be done as well with undistilled vinegar, and the undistilled yields more spirit than the distilled. But if you look for a white and clear salt, then the vineger must be distilled, else it doth not shoot into crystals, but remaineth a yellow liquor like unto honey, and it is also needless to make the solution in glasses, and by digestion continued for a long time, but it may as well be done in a glazed pot, viz. pouring the vinegar upon the Mineum in the pot, and boyling it on a coal fire; for you need not fear that any thing of the vinegar will evaporate, in regard that the lead keeps all the spirits, and lets only go an unsavory phlegm. You must also continually stir the lead about with a wooden spatulla, else it would turn to a hard stone, and would not dissolve: the same must be done also when the solution is done in glasses; and the solution after this way may be done in three or four hours: and when both kind of solutions are done, there will be no difference betwixt them, and I think it providently done not to spend a whole day about that which may be done in an hour.

And if you will have this spirit and oyl better and more effectual, you may mix ℥ i. of crude Tartar made into powder with ℔ j. of dissolved and purified lead, and so distil it after the same manner as you do distil it by it self, and you will get a much subtler spirit and a better oyl than if it were made alone by it self.

To distil a subtile spirit and oyl out of crude Tartar.

Many think it to be but a small matter to make the spirit of Tartar; for they suppose, that if they do but only put Tartar into a retort, and apply a receiver, and by a strong fire force over a water, they have obtained their desire: and they do not observe, that in stead of a pleasant subtle spirit, they get but a stinking vinegar or phlegm; the pleasant spirit being gone. Which some careful operators perceiving, they caused great receivers to be made, supposing by that means to get the spirit. Now when they after the distillation was done, weighed their spirits together with the remainder, they found, that they had suffered great loss, wherefore they supposed it to be an impossible thing, to get all the spirits, and to lose none, and indeed it is hardly possible to be done otherwise by a retort: for although you apply a great receiver to a small retort, and that there be also but a little Tartar in it, and the joynts being well luted, so that nothing can pass through, and though you make also the fire never so gentle, hoping to get the spirit by that way, yet for all that you cannot avoid danger and loss. For at last the retort beginning to be red hot, and the black oyl going, then and but then the subtlest spirits will come forth, which either steal through the joynts, or else do break the retort or receiver, because they come in abundance and with great force, and do not settle easily: wherefore I will set down my way of making this most profitable, and excellent spirit.

The preparation and use of the spirit of Tartar.

Take good and pure crude Tartar, whether it be red or white, it matters not, make it into fine powder, and when the distilling vessel is red hot, then cast in with a ladle half an ounce and no more at once, and so soon as the spirits are gone forth and setled, cast in another ℥ ss. and this continue, till you have spirit enough, then take out the remainder, which will look black, and calcine it well in a crucible, and put it in a glass retort, and pour the spirit that came over together with the black oyl, upon it, drive it in sand at first gently, and the subtlest spirits will come over, and after them phlegme, at last a sowre vinegar together with the oyl, whereof you must get each by it self. But if you desire to have the subtle spirit which came over first, more penetrating yet, then you must take the Caput Mortuum that staid in the retort, and make it red hot in a crucible, and abstract the spirit once more from it, and the calcined Tartar will keep the remaining moistness or phlegm, and only the subtlest spirit will come over, which is of a most penetrating quality, whereof from half a dram to an ounce taken in wine or any other liquor provoketh a quick and strong sweat, and it is a powerful medicine in all obstructions, and most approved and often tryed in the plague, malignant feavers, scurvy, Melancolia Hypochondriaca, collick, contracture, epilepsy and the like diseases. And not only these mentioned diseases, but also many others more, which proceed from corrupt blood under God may successfully be cured with it.

The phlegm is to be cast away, as unprofitable: the vinegar cleanseth wounds: the oyl allayeth swelling and pains, and doth cure scabs, and disperseth knobs that are risen upon the skin, as also other excrescencies of the same, if it be used timely, and the use thereof be continued.

N. B. If the black stinking oyl be rectified from the calcined Caput Mortuum, it will be clear and subtle, and it will not only asswage very speedily all pains of the gout, but also dissolve and expel the conglobated gravel in the reines, applyed as a plaister or unguent. In like manner it will dissolve and extract the coagulated Tartar in the hands, knees and feet, so that the place affected will be freed and made whole thereby: because in such a despicable oyl there lyes hid a volatile salt which is of great vertue. But if you desire experimentally to know whether it be so, then pour upon this black stinking oyl an acid spirit, as the spirit of common salt, or of vitriol or salt nitre, or only distilled vinegar, and the oyl will grow warm and make a noyse and rise, as if Aqua fortis had been powred upon salt of Tartar, and the acid spirit will be mortified thereby, and turn to salt. And this well purified oyl doth dissolve and extract the Tartar out of the joynts (unless it be grown to a hard stony substance) even as sope scowres the uncleanness out of cloths, or to compare it better, even as like receiveth its like, and is easily mixed with it, and doth love it; but on the contrary, nothing will mix it self with that wherewith it hath no affinity at all. As if you would take pitch out of cloth by washing it with water, which never will be done by reason of the contrary nature; for common water hath no affinity with pitch or other fat things, nor will it ever be taken out therewith without a mediator, partaking of both natures, viz. of the nature of pitch and that of the water, and such are sulphureous salts, and nitrous salts, whether they be fixed or volatile. As you may see at the soap boylers, who incorporate common water by the help of sulphureous salts with fat things, as tallow and oyl. But if you take warm oyl or any thin fat substance, and put it upon the pitch or rozin, then the oyl easily accepteth of and lays hold on its like, and so the pitch is dissolved and got out of the cloth, and the remaining fatness of the oyl may be fetcht out of the cloth with lye or sope and common water, and so the cloth recovereth its former beauty and pureness. And as it falleth out with sulphureous things, so it doth likewise with Mercurial. For example, if you would take the salt out of powdered flesh or pickled fish with a lixivium it would not succeed, because that the nitrous and acid salts are of contrary natures.

But if upon the powdered flesh or pickled fish you pour on water wherein some of the same salt (wherewithall the flesh was powdered) is dissolved, that salt water will extract the salt out of the flesh, as being its like, much more than common sweet water, wherein there is no salt.