For inftance; if the Vapour creates a Rotation of Intellects, it will produce a deal of Speculation upon Circles, and the Squaring of the Comets, the Courses of Heavenly Bodies, Vortex's, the Longitude, the perpetual Motion, new Worlds, and Syftems of the Univerfe. If the Dance of it happens to be Triangular, it will appear in Difquifitions upon the Fry, attempts to take the Heights and Distances of the Stars, and other Effects in Trigonometry, It takes the Figure of Eight, the Refult will be Operations in Algebra, Plans for Comprehenfion, reforming the Church, writing Plays, disturbing Apollo and Boccalini with new Advices from Parnaffus.

If it turns chiefly on Sixes and Sevens, it will be followed by a Difcourfe of Free-thinking, or on the Spirit of Ecclefiafticks of all Ages: Tory Schemes of Government or Politicks, and a Profufion of other Devices, as ferviceable and edifying. If the Spirits happen to be imprifoned too close, by a particular Density of Skull (a frequent Phenomenon in a Free-thinker) the Perfon will maintain an abfolute Plenum; but if there be a Delicacy in the Pia Mater, approaching the Texture of Paper, and a Privation of Brain; he will affert a Vacuum in the Make of the World, or move it however in his own Writings and Understanding.

By this Scantling you may judge, what is the Source of all our new Contrivances in Church and State, in Religion, Learning, and Policy. But I fhall leave the Reader the Pleafure of proceeding upon it, and the Merit of raifing further Hypothefes, in order to folve any other Appearances that may arise among the feveral Ranks of Virtuofi, facred or profane. Only hinting, that all this Show, when expreffed on Paper, ftill betrays its Original

to

to be meer Flatus, Air, Wind, and Vapour. It tends indeed, much to the Confumption of that Manufacture, and to fupply a Waste-Quantity for feveral Emergencies of Life.

I hope that you Gentlemen, in the Universities of this Land, go on to contribute your Part for the fame Purposes ;, it will be, I own, the utmost Satisfaction to me to ferve the Publick in the fame Manner, and following the fhining Steps of fuch illuftrious Patterns.

IT

I am,

Gentlemen,

Your most humble

Admirer, and Well-wisher,

J. ST.

An Effay upon an Apothecary.

T is manifeft, that all Ranks and Profeffions of Men are very complaifant to the Devil: But the Apothecary goes fomething beyond the Fashion; he enters into a folemn League and Covenant with his Infernal Majefty, to dispatch his Patients with the utmoft Expedition, before they have Leisure to repent; to make a speedy Conveyance of them to the Dominions of Satan, and by that Means to counterplot the Parfon.

Agreeably to this Scheme, he employs a Set of Engines for it, that appear by their very Names to come from Hell; fuch as Tetrachymagogon, Taccamabecca, Fumigations, Scarifications, and fublimated Effence of Sulphur; which laft is owned to be a Noftrum of his diabolical Highness himself, the reput

reputed Father of all that Work by Fire, especially Smiths, Chymifts, and Apothecaries.

This Difcovery has let me into the Secret of that old Proverb, He talks like an Apothecary; because, this ingenious Artift dealing so much in Nitre, Sulphur, and Mercury, his Conftitution is rais'd to a Pitch, extremely volatile, that betrays itself in many irregular Flashes of Thought, and Starts of Expreffion. The Spirit rifes too faft into the Head of his natural Limbeck, and fo diftils too plentifully from his Mouth. The Maggots likewife, that are agreed by all Authors to inhabit his Cranium, and are of a different Species from the Afcarides, Lumbrici, &c. caufe fome Disorders in the upper Region, that give Rife to the Proverb. For fince all Worms arife from Putrefaction, a Corruption of Intellects, which is fo remarkable in the Perfon we fpeak of, and is call'd by the feveral Names of Vertigo, Delirium; Nonfenfe and Madnefs muft neceffarily breed a Neft of Maggots, and give Birth to the Effect above-mention'd.

The Academy del Cimento has made fome Progrefs towards the Chymical Analyfis of an Apothecary, and have deferv'd very well of the learned World in that Particular. For as (Dr. Bt observes in his Travels) it is a Cuftom in Italy, to prevent the being over-run with them, and to fave the Life of the Subject, to allow Yearly fo many Apothecaries to the feveral Academies in Italy, to be anatomiz'd, diftill'd, or the like, for the Improvement of natural Knowledge. There being no Part of Mankind, that affords a greater Va riety of uncommon Appearances, than the Knights of the Peftle.

We find in the Memoirs of the learned Society aforcfaid, an Operation upon two of them, whofe Characters in Life had been very remarkable.

They

They fignalized themfelves by a brisk Humour of curing more Distempers, than ever flew from the Box of Pandora, from the Plague to the ToothAch. They recovered feveral Lords, &c. before they faw them; baffled a Thousand regular Phyficians; and traversed their Prescription; went thro' feveral Courfes of Botany, without being perfect Mafters of a cold Salad; were Chymifts meerly by their natural Fire, and Anatomists without being able to carve a Pudding: Scholars without Learning, and Doctors without Education. Their grand Secret (fays my Author) was a Lignum Tantaralla, conveyed in a Tincture of Brafs.

They drefs'd all their Difcourfe in the Language of the Faculty.

At Meals, they diftributed their Wine with a little Lymphe, diffected a Widgeon, coholated their Peafe-porridge, and amalgamated a Custard. A Morfel of Beef was a Bolus; a Grillard was fcarify'd; Eating was Maftication and Deglutition; a Difh of Stakes was a Compound of many powerful Ingredients; and a Plate of Soup was a very exalted Preparation.

In Drefs, a Suit of Cloaths was a Syftem, a Loophole, a Valve, and a Surtout an Integument. Cloth was a Texture of Fibres fpread into a Drab or a Kerfey; a fmall Rent in it was cutaneous; a Thread was a Filament; and the Waistband of the Breeches the Peritoneum.

The rest of their Converfation had much the fame Tincture: After they were begg'd of the Government, and dispatch'd as ufual, they were convey'd to the Publick Laboratory and made ready for the Operation.

The first Part they began upon, was the Head ; they found the Skull fo very compact to prevent

the

the Understanding (which is the Spirit of the Brain) from flying off, that they broke three Inftruments before they could break the Shell; the Kernel indeed was extremely moderate, and did not afford them much to examine. The Veffels of the Cerebellum were short, but not mighty pithy: The Medulla of them was a perfect Alkeli, and opened the Secret; why the Gentleman when alive, talked fo much of it, and had so small a Seasoning of the true Acid in his Difcourfe.

Having thus pafs'd the Fortifications of the Head, and a small Avenue of Communication between that and the Tongue, he arrived at the Seat of his Soul (according to Des Certes) in the Glandula Pincalis; it appeared to have been only a small Bag of Vapour. In the North Side of the Head, he dif covered fome Mercury, and in the South Region, a Quantity of Lead; the Biafs lay apparently on this Side; and the Lead effectually difappointed all the little Effects, and pert Motions of the Mercury in the oppofite Quarter.

After this Procefs by way of Anatomy, the next Step was to refolve it by a Chymical Analyfis. To draw this into a narrower Compass, fince it was a Caput Mortuum already, the little Brain was taken out with a Marrow Spoon, and the two reigning Principles were found, on the Result, to be Phlegm and Terra Damnata, which laft is a damn'd Sort of Earth, fit for no Purpose at all. The Mercury that I told you was lodged apart from the Brain, had yet eaten into Part of it, and fhow'd them, why the Perfon, when alive, had more Mercury than Understanding.

There was neither Sulphur nor Salt in it: The Want of the Former left upon the Mind, an Itch of being Impertinent; and the Defect of Salt caus'd that Corruption of Intellects, which pro

H

duced