The weight of those two contrary Salts, viz. of the fixt Salt of Tartar by which the Sulphur is extracted out of the Antimony, and of the common and acid Tartar dissolved in Water, and which precipitateth the Sulphur of the Antimony out of the Lixivium, cannot be certainly defined and limited. For according to the greater or lesser Quantity of the Lixivium, is required more or less of the Tartar water to be poured upon the Lixivium, that so being mortified it may let go that Sulphur of Antimony it holds up in it self. The Lixivium it self will shew you if you have not poured on Water enough of the Tartar by its being not yet freed of all the Sulphur, and that there is more Water of Tartar required to allay all its Acrimony that all the whole Sulphur may be turned out. A bigger Quantity of the Water of Tartar poured on the Lixivium [than just enough] doth not spoil it; it takes in as much of the dissolved Tartar as it can, and what is overplus remains an acid Tartar, and is not changed in its Nature. But whatever of it is dissolved in the Lixivium is no more Tartar, because it becomes a midling Salt of the two, neither acid nor sweet, but partaking of both Natures, and dissolves in cold Water, which the acid Tartar will not do.
This Salt therefore is able to perform great matters in medicine, and not onely in medicine but in Alchimy too, and in other Arts can it exhibit abundance of riches; concerning which thing, more shall be spoken in another place.
Thus finish I now this my second Century, wherein I have not onely abundantly supplied those things which by reason of the overmuch hast, I could not insert in the [Appendix to the fifth Part of the Prosperity of Germany], but have withall laid open some part of the Use of my Sal Mirabilis, as much as the shortness of my time would give me leave to do.
If by the Grace of God I have a yet longer Life vouchsafed me, I will about half a Year hence, bring so great a benefit not onely unto my own Countrey, but perhaps even to the whole Christian World, as ever they received from any man, in so much that the World shall seem as if ’twere new, and so for the present I rest and make an End.
The Third Century
OF
GLAUBER’S
Wealthy Store-house of Treasures.
Wherein many Profitable Chymical Secrets are discovered.
Faithfully translated out of the High-Dutch of the Authour.
Courteous Reader,
Having some Years since begun to communicate to the World my manifold profitable Inventions in Centuries, but of late been hindred by sickness and other impediments from continuing the same: yet now being sollicited thereto by many Lovers of Art, I could do no less than to endeavour to give them some satisfaction by the publishing of these; and withall assuring them, that, in case God be pleased to continue my Life (notwithstanding that because of great Age and Sickness I am fain to keep my bed) I intend to compleat the rest of my promised Centuries, desiring the kind Reader in the mean time to accept of these three, and to pardon the confused manner of writing them, having for want of leisure, set them down as I found them in my Notes, being chiefly the occasional discoveries and inventions during my Chymical Labours. Neither would I have the Reader offended that in some places I break off so abruptly, especially where I am speaking of the matter which Adam brought with him out of Paradise, for whatever may be wanting in this fifth Century shall God willing be supplied in the sixth: I also desire the Reader not to be moved by the Calumnies of any Envious ignorant Persons, to think that the things here set down (being most of them new and unheard of inventions) are mere Fables and invented matters, and no real experimented Truths, but rather remit the verification of them to time and his own Experience, which will not fail to satisfie him of the Truth of the Particulars herein contained. Farewel.