III. That these dissolvents are prepared Jrom any sort of

Mailer.

We have demonstrated that the dissolvents aforesaid are made
of divers oleosities, aridities, and acidities of the three kingdoms.
You have observed the simple vegetable dissolvents to be made
of things neither tinging nor acid ; compounded vegetable dis-
solvents of things tinging, not acid ; simple mineral dissolvents
made of things acid, and not tinging; the compounded, of
things both acid and tinging. Wherefore being now better assured
of your dissolving matter hitherto so anxiously sought lor, you
may take crude mercury, or vitriol, nitre, common salt, salt of
tartar, or urine, rain-water, may-dew, or any other matter also
which you have made choice of before the rest, for the true and
universal matter of a dissolvent, in which choice ycu will not err;
for it is much at one, whether you make it of gold or mercury ;
whether of pearls or arsenic ; vegetable or mineral salt, provided
you proceed according to this or that kind of dissolvents, with
consideration also of what use you would have the dissolvent, lest
you prepare an essence instead of a magistery, or a poison for an
antidote: on the contrary, take pure honey so applauded by Pa-
risinus, or the salt of tartar, commended by Ripley ; or common
salt, esteemed by Paracelsus, as the matrix of metals ; or vitriol
abounding with the tincture of gold, extolled by Basilius, or ar-
gent vive magnified by most of the adepts, as the open metal. —
Take, I say, which of them you please, but you must know it
cannot in the least answer your expectation, except it be joined,
that is, corrected, exalted and graduated with the spirit of philo-
sophical wine.