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For not only in acid Menstruums as Aqua Fortis and Spirit of Vinegar, it gives a Blewish green solution, but if it be almost any way corroded, it appears of one of those two colours, as may be observ'd in Verdigreese made several wayes, in that odd preparation of Venus, which we elsewhere teach you to make with Sublimate, and in the common Vitriols of Venus deliver'd by Chymists; and so constant is the disposition of Copper, notwithstanding the disguise Artists put upon it, to disclose the colour we have been mentioning, that we have by forcing it up with Sal Armoniack obtain'd a Sublimate of a Blewish Colour.
Secondly, That this Experiment, though not made with the same Menstruums, nor producing the same Colour is yet much of Kin to that other to be mentioned in this Tract among our other Experiments of Colours, about turning a Solution of Præcipitate into an Orange-colour, and the Chymical Reason being much alike in both, the annexing it to one of them may suffice FOR both.
Having then observ'd, that Mercury being dissolv'd in Some Menstruums, would yield a dark Yellow Precipitate, and supposing that, as to this, common Water, and the Salts that stick to the Mercury would be equivalent to those Acid Menstruums, which work upon the Quick-silver, upon the account of their Saline particles, I substituted a Solution of Sublimate in fair Water, instead of a Solution of Mercury in Aqua-fortis, or Spirit of Nitre, that simple Solution being both clearer and free from that very offensive Smell, which accompanies the Solutions of Mercury made with those other corrosive Liquors; then I consider'd, that That, which makes the Yellow Colour, is indeed but a Precipitate made by the means of the Oyl of Tartar, which we drop in, and which, as Chymists know, does generally precipitate Metalline Bodies corroded by Acid Salts; so that the Colour in our case results from the Coalition of the Mercurial particles with the Saline ones, wherewith they were formerly associated, and with the Alcalizate particles of the Salt of Tartar that swim up and down in the Oyl.
But though I have from Minerals obtain'd with several Menstruums very differing Colours, and some such as perhaps you would be surpriz'd to see drawn from such Bodies: yet I must now pass by the particulars, being desirous to put an End to this Treatise, before I put an end to your Patience and my own. Annotation III.
But to consider Gum no more, what some kind of Præcipitation may have to do in the producing and destroying of Inks without it, I have elsewhere given you some occasion and assistance to enquire; But I must not now stay to do so my self, only I shall take notice to you, that though it be taken for granted that bodies will not be Præcipitated by Alcalizat Salts, that have not first been dissolved in some Acid Menstruums, yet I have found upon tryals, which my conjectures lead me to make on purpose, That divers Vegetables barely infus'd, or, but slightly decocted in common water, would, upon the affusion of a Strong and Cleer Lixivium of Potashes, and much more of some other Præcipitating liquors that I sometimes employ, afford good store of a Crudled matter, such as I have had in the Præcipitations of Vegetable substances, by the intervention of Acid things, and that this matter was easily separable from the rest of the liquor, being left behind by it in the Filtre; and in making the first Ink mention'd in this Experiment, I found that I could by Filtration separate pretty store of a very Black pulverable substance, that remain'd in the Filtre, and when the Ink was made Cleer again by the Oyl of Vitriol, the affusion of dissolv'd Sal Tartari seem'd but to Præcipitate, and thereby to Unite and render Conspicuous the particles of the Black mixture that had before been dispers'd into very Minute and singly Invisible particles by the Incisive and resolving power of the highly Corrosive Oyl of Vitriol.
Wherefore considering also, that very many of the effects of Lixiviate Liquors, upon the Solutions of other Bodies, may be destroy'd by Acid Menstruums, as I elsewhere more particularly declare, I concluded, that if I chose a very potently Acid Liquor, which by its Incisive power might undo the work of the Oyl of Tartar, and disperse again those Particles, which the other had by Precipitation associated, into such minute Corpuscles as were before singly Inconspicuous, they would become Inconspicuous again, and consequently leave the Liquor as Colourless as before the Precipitation was made.
And that also such Liquors, as we have been speaking of, may greatly Discompose the Textures of many Bodies, and thereby alter the Disposition of their Superficial parts, the great Commotion made in Metalls, and several other Bodies by Aqua-fortis, Oyl of Vitriol, and other Saline Menstruums, may easily perswade us, and what such Vary'd Situations of Parts may do towards the Diversifying of the manner of their Reflecting the Light, may be Guess'd in some Measure by the Beating of Transparent Glass into a White Powder, but farr better by the Experiments lately Pointed at, and hereafter Deliver'd, as the Producing and Destroying Colours by the means of subtil Saline Liquors, by whose Affusion the Parts of other Liquors are manifestly both Agitated, and likewise Dispos'd after another manner than they were before such Affusion.
But when I purposely prepar'd a Menstruum that would dissolve it as Aqua-fortis dissolves Silver, and not barely Corrode it, and quickly let it fall again, I remember not that I took notice of any particular Colour in the Solution, as if the more Whitish Metalls did not much Tinge their Menstruums, though the conspicuously Colour'd Metalls as Gold, and Copper, do.
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