as Pliny and Agricola relate of Cyprus, Caramania, and an island in the Red Sea. It hath been also found in the veins of minerals, sometimes agglutinated unto lead,2 sometimes in rocks, opacous stones, and the marble face of Octavius, duke of Parma.* It hath also constant veins: as, besides others, that of mount Salvino, about the territory of Bergamo, from whence, if part be taken, in no long tract of time, out of the same place, as from its mineral matrix, others are observed to arise. Which made the learned Cerautus to conclude, videant hi an sit glacies, an verò corpus fossile. It is also found sometimes in common earth. But as for ice, it will not readily concrete but in the approachment of the air, as we have made trial in glasses of water, covered an inch with oil, which will not easily freeze in the hardest frosts of our climate. For water commonly concreteth first in its surface, and so conglaciates downward; and so will it do, although it be exposed in the coldest metal of lead, which well accordeth with that expression of Job, "the waters are hid as with a stone, and the face of the deep is frozen." But whether water which hath been boiled or heated doth sooner receive this congelation, as commonly is delivered, we rest in the experiment of Cabeus,3 who hath rejected the same in his excellent discourse of meteors.

They have contrary qualities elemental, and uses medicinal; for ice is cold and moist, of the quality of water; but crystal is cold and dry, according to the condition of earth. The use of ice is condemned by most physicians, that of crystal commended by many. For, although Dioscorides and Galen have left no mention thereof, yet hath Matthiolus, Agricola, and many, commended it in dysenteries and fluxes; all, for the increase of milk, most chemists, for the stone, and some, as Brassavolus and Boëtius, as an antidote against poison. Which occult and specifical operations are not expectable from ice; for, being but water congealed, it can never make

* Wherein the sculptor found a piece of pure crystal.

Chap. 38.

2 sometimes agglutinated, &c.] This, and the two following sentences were added in the 3rd edition.

3 Cabeus.] Nicol. Cabeus, In libros Meteorologicorum Aristotelis Commentaria et Quæstiones, 4 tom. fol. Romæ, 1646. This passage was added in Ed. 1650.

good such qualities, nor will it reasonably admit of secret proprieties, which are the affections of forms and compositions at distance from their elements.

4

Having thus declared what crystal is not, it may afford some satisfaction to manifest what it is. To deliver, therefore, what, with the judgment of approved authors and best reason consisteth.-It is a mineral body, in the difference of stones, and reduced by some unto that subdivision which comprehendeth gems; transparent, and resembling glass or ice, made of a lentous percolation of earth, drawn from the most pure and limpid juice thereof, owing unto the coldness of the earth some concurrence or coadjuvancy, but not immediate determination and efficiency, which are wrought by the hand of its concretive spirit, the seeds of petrification and Gorgon of itself. As sensible philosophers conceive of the generation of diamonds, iris,7 beryls; not making them of frozen icicles, or from mere aqueous and glaciable substances, condensing them by frosts into solidities, vainly to be expected even from polary congelations, but from thin and finest earths, so well contempered and resolved, that transparency is not hindered, and containing lapidifical spirits, able to make good their solidities against the opposition and activity of outward contraries; and so leave a sensible difference between the bonds of glaciation, which, in the mountains of ice about the northern seas, are easily dissolved by ordinary heat of the sun, and between the finer ligatures of petrification whereby not only the harder concretions of diamonds and saphires, but the softer veins of crystal remain indis

In the difference of stones.] That is, "in the class or division of stones."

a lentous percolation.] Dr. Johnson explains the word lentous (for which he cites no other authority than Browne) as meaning viscous and tenacious; but it is evidently used here to express "a gradual filtration or straining."

as sensible philosophers.] Instead of the remainder of this paragraph (so altered in 3rd edition), Ed. 1646 has the following passage: "as we may conceive in stones and gems; as diamonds, beryls, saphires and the like, whose generation we cannot with satisfaction confine unto the remote activity of the sun, or the common operation of coldness in the earth, but may more safely refer it unto a lapidificall siccity and congelitive principle, which determines prepared materials unto special concretions."

7 iris.] Perhaps he refers to opal, or irisated quartz.

solvable in scorching territories, and the negro land of Congo.

And, therefore, I fears we commonly consider subterraneities not in contemplations sufficiently respective unto the creation. For, though Moses have left no mention of minerals, nor made any other description than suits unto the apparent and visible creation, yet is there, unquestionably, a very large class of creatures in the earth, far above the condition of elementarity. And, although not in a distinct and indisputable way of vivency, or answering in all points the properties or affections of plants, yet in inferior and descending constitutions they do, like these, contain specifical distinctions, and are determined by seminalities, that is, created and defined seeds committed unto the earth from the beginning. Wherein, although they attain not the indubitable requisites of animation, yet have they a near affinity thereto. And, though we want a proper name and expressive appellation, yet are they not to be closed up in the general name of concretions, or lightly passed over, as only elementary and subterraneous

mixtions.

The principal and most gemmary affection is its tralucency:9 as for irradianey or sparkling, which is found in many gems, it is not discoverable in this, for it cometh short of their compactness and durity; and, therefore, requireth not the emery, as the saphire, granite, and topaz, but will receive impression from steel, in a manner like the turquoise. As for its diaphanity or perspicuity, it enjoyeth that most eminently; and the reason thereof is its continuity, as having its earthy and salinous parts so exactly resolved, that its body is left imporous, and not discreted by atomical terminations. For that continuity of parts is the cause of perspicuity,1 is made perspicuous by two ways of

And, therefore, I fear.] This paragraph gives an excellent and very accurate view of the nature of the beings composing the mineral kingdom,-if by "seeds" we understand formative principles.--Br.

9 tralucency.] For "translucency." Johnson gives tralucent, citing Davies and B. Jonson-but not tralucency.

1

continuity of parts is the cause of perspicuity.] The explanation of the cause of transparency in this paragraph is quite accurate, so far as it goes; but to make it satisfactory, it must be added, that continuity of parts is necessary to transparency, because, in that case, the refrac

experiment. That is, either in effecting transparency in those bodies which were not so before, or at least far short of the additional degree: so snow becomes transparent upon liquation; so horns and bodies resolvable into continued parts or jelly; the like is observable in oiled paper, wherein, the interstitial divisions being continuated by the accession of oil, it becometh more transparent, and admits the visible rays with less umbrosity. Or else the same is effected by rendering those bodies opacous which were before pellucid and perspicuous: so glass, which was before diaphanous, being by powder reduced into multiplicity of superficies, becomes an opacous body, and will not transmit the light: so it is in crystal powdered, and so it is also before, for if it be made hot in a crucible, and presently projected upon water, it will grow dim, and abate its diaphanity: for the water, entering the body, begets a division of parts, and a termination of atoms united before unto continuity.2

The ground of this opinions might be, first, the conclusions of some men from experience; for as much as crystal is found sometimes in rocks, and in some places not much unlike the stirious or stillicidious dependencies of ice. Which,

tive effect upon the rays of light is uniform throughout the body, so that the rays (however those which do not fall upon the surface in a direction perpendicular to it may be diverted from their original course,) come unbroken to the eye; whereas, when the continuity is broken, as in the case of powdered glass, the interstices of which are filled with air, which has a different refractive power from the particles of glass, the rays are again and again broken, and turned from their course, so that they cannot reach the eye through the substance, so as to present images of the bodies on the other side.-Br.

2

for if it be made hot, &c.] This statement also is generally true, but the cause of the opacity produced is not the entering of the water into the crystal, but its being filled with cracks arising from the sudden cooling, and these, whether filled with water or with air, having a different refractive power from the crystal itself, an effect takes place corresponding to that explained above.

It may be observed, upon the whole, that there is much excellent reasoning and much real science in this chapter, but mingled, of course, with occasional fallacies, and with some now antiquated prejudices. -Br.

3 The ground of this opinion.] Namely, "that crystal is ice congealed beyond liquation."

the stirious or stillicidious, &c.] Stirious, like icicles: stillicidious, falling in drops.

notwithstanding, may happen, either in places which have been forsaken or left bare by the earth, or may be petrifications, or mineral indurations, like other gems, proceeding from percolations of the earth disposed unto such concretions.

The second and most common ground is from the name crystallus, whereby in Greek both ice and crystal are expressed; which many not duly considering, have, from their community of name, conceived a community of nature, and what was ascribed unto the one, not unfitly appliable unto the other. But this is a fallacy of equivocation, from a society in name inferring an identity in nature. By this fallacy was he deceived that drank aqua fortis for strong water: by this are they deluded who conceive spermaceti, which is found about the head, to be the spawn of the whale ; or take sanguis draconis, which is the gum of a tree, to be the blood of a dragon. By the same logic we may infer the crystalline humour of the eye, or rather the crystalline heaven above, to be of the substance of crystal here below; or that God sendeth down crystal, because it is delivered in the vulgate translation, Ps. 47: mittit crystallum suum sicut buccellas. Which translation, although it literally express the septuagint, yet is there no more meant thereby than what our translation in plain English expresseth, that is, "he casteth forth his ice like morsels;" or what Tremellius and Junius as clearly deliver, dejicit gelu suum sicut frusta, coram frigore ejus quis consistet? which proper and Latin expressions, had they been observed in ancient translations, elder expositors had not been misguided by the synonymy: nor had they afforded occasion unto Austin, the Gloss, Lyranus, and many others, to have taken up the common conceit, and spoken of this text conformably unto the opinion rejected.

5

aqua fortis, &c.] An Englishman gave occasion to this error; who, translating that tract (of the French Ld. ****) of Salt and Fire, renders it so, out of a gross pernicious ignorance, which I wisht might be corrected. Wr.

the Gloss.] Referring probably to the annotations of Walafridus Strabo, who flourished in the ninth century. They were called glossa ordinaria, and for many years were received as the only authorized interpretation of the Bible. The best edition of the Gloss of Strabo, as well of the Postilla, or expositions of Nicolas de Lyra, or Lyranus, was published in folio, at Antwerp, in 1684.