The Fourth Part.

so wildly differ in Nature. And hence also, by the bye, you may perceive that ’tis not unreasonable to distrust the Chymists way of Argumentation, when being unable to shew us that such a Liquor is (for Example) purely saline, they prove, that at least salt is much the predominant principle, because that the propos’d substance is strongly tasted, and all Tast proceeds from salt; whereas those Spirits, such as spirit of Tartar, spirit of Harts-horn, and the like, which are reckoned to be the Mercuries of the Bodies that afford them, have manifestly a strong and piercing tast, and so has (according to what I formerly noted) the spirit of Box &c. even after the acid Liquor that concurr’d to compose it has been separated from it. And indeed, if sapidness belong not to the spirit or Mercurial Principle of Vegitables and Animals: I scarce know how it will be discriminated from their phlegm, since by the absence of Inflamability it must be distinguish’d from their sulphur, which affords me another Example, to prove how unacurate the Chymical Doctrine is in our present Case; since not only the spirits of Vegitables and Animals, but their Oyles are very strongly tasted, as he that shall but wet his tongue with Chymical Oyle of Cinnamon, or of Cloves, or even of Turpentine, may quickly find, to his smart. And not only I never try’d any Chymical Oyles whose tast was not very manifest and strong; but a skilful and inquisitive person who made it his business by elaborate operations to depurate Chymical Oyles, and reduce them to an Elementary simplicity, Informes us, that he never was able to make them at all Tastless; whence I might inferr, that the proof Chymists confidently give us of a bodies being saline, is so far from demonstrating the Predominancy, that it does not clearly Evince so much as the presence of the saline Principle in it. But I will not (pursues Carneades) remind you, that the Volatile salt of Harts-horn, Amber, Blood, &c. are exceeding strongly scented, notwithstanding that most Chymists deduce Odours from Sulphur, and from them argue the Predominancy of that Principle in the Odorous body, because I must not so much as add any new Examples of the incompetency of this sort of Chymical arguments; since having already detain’d