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Pharmacopoeia officinalis et extemporanea : or a compleat English dispensatory in four parts
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Sect. 4.

Of Fermentation.

either ; the Celerities of their Defcentswill be compounded oj their Gravi-ties and Dimeticons together.

The fame Laws, by which theièBodies defend, hold good in xhcAf-cent of fuch as arc fpecifV a \y lighterthan the Fluid : in all hetera ;eneousFluids therefore, the con "titaentParis of which arc not fitted to al-ienate and cohere, ib as to formwhat we can call anunifoin homo-geneous Fluid, the heavier may be ac-counted as ibiid Bodies immcrfed ina Fluid lpecifically lighter, and thelighter Paits as fach Bo-dies in a Fluidipecifkally heavier ; as it has been al-ready demoníbated, that the compo-nent Pans all Fluids, icparateiyconfider'd, are ¿olid.

This Liqua? therefore, cÄiuWbrt,er a Decoction of Halt, may be con-fider'd as fach an heterogeneousFluid, whofc Parrs cannot but be in-terchanging in their Poaiions, untileach has obtain'd fuch an Elcvatipnas corresponds to its proper Gravi-ty ; but left th'.s alone fi.ould tail ofthe Intention, by not being lufficientto break thole Molécula and Viici-dities which entangle the fpirituousParts, and likewife to prevent theirflying oft" at the Surface, iome Por-tion of an already fermented Sub"fiance is mix'd with it.

This Subftance, tcrm'd Barm orTeafl, confifts of a great quantity offubtile fpirituous Particles, wrappedup in iùch as are viicid ; now whenthis is mix'd with iuch a Liquor, itcannot but much contribute to thatinteftine Motion, which is occaiion'dby the Intercourfe and Occunionsof Particles of different Gravities, asthe fpirituous Parts will be continu-ally ftriving to get up to the Surface,and the vifcid ones continually re-tai dmg fuch Aicent, and preventingtjieir tïcape: fo that by theiè two

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concurring Caufes, the Particles ex-tracted from the Grain will by fre-quent Occu; lions be ib comminuted,as continually to incrcafe the morafubtile and fpirituous Parts, until allthat can be made ib by Attrition,are fet looib iiom their former vif-cid Confinements : and tin's appealsby- the Warmth of the Liquor, andthe Froth drove to the top ; ¡ufi atwhich time, if it be thrown into theStill, it affords fome quantity of 3.high inflammable Spirit.

Moderate Warmth much hail ensthis Operation, becaufe it afflfts inopening the Vifcidities in whichfbme fpirituous Parts may be entan-gled , and unbends the Spring ofthe included Air, which car.net butmuch contribute to the RarifacTfoaand Comminution of the whole.The viicid Parts, which are railedto the top, not only on account oftheir own Ligiitnefs, but by thecontinual Efforts and Occurfions ofthe Spirit to get upper moll, fhewwhen the Ferment is at the higheft,and prevent the finer Spirits frommaking their Efcape : for if thisintef'ine Lucius be permitted tocontinue too long , a great dealwill get away, and the remainingpart grow flat and vapid , andyield little beiides Phlegm in théStill.

What has been faid of this Pro-cefs, may give fuffkient Light intoall that concerns fermenting Vege-tables, or other Subftances, in" or-der to diaw out their Medicinal Ef-ficacies; and hence likewife, fromthe natural Textures and Cohelionsof Bodies, we may know how to ma-nage them ; for thofe of a looferTexture will require the leaft open-ing by fuch means. But the greattftufe' this Theory will be, to infini ótus what Parts of the M.ueri.i Medico,are mod properly brought under this

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