Read Ebook: The Mysteryes of Nature and Art Conteined in foure severall Tretises The first of water workes The second of Fyer workes The third of Drawing Colouring Painting and Engraving The fourth of divers Experiments as wel serviceable as delightful: partly Collec by Bate John

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Take mother of Pearle 2 pound, small red Corall di. pound, Antimony crude 4 ounces, and make a grosse powder of them.

Prepare two glasses after the fashion of the figure A, B, and C, D: let the glasse A, B, haue a small pinhole at or about the top of all, and let the glasse C, D, haue besides the hole at the top, another hole at the bottom with a short pipe. Prouide such a frame for this as you did before for the other; then put the glasses into it, fasten the bottom glasse to the bottom of the frame, hauing a hole at the bottom, thorow which the pipe of the glasse C, D, may passe, fit a cork unto it: then lute the two glasses together, so that no ayre may passe between the joyning; divide then the shank into so many degrees as you please, and figure it as before I taught you, then with the heat of a candle, rarifie the ayre in the glasse C, D, and fill it a third part full of water, and then put the cork fast in. Note that if the first heating of the glasse rayse not the water unto your content, you must repeat it over and over, untill it doe: when it is sufficient, then stop the cork in very firm, that no water may come out, and it is made.

Prepare two glasses like unto the figure marked with the letters A, B, the one of them must have a small hole in or about the head thereof. Prepare likewise for the bottom a vessell of the fashion of the figure G, H, having two mouthes, at each end one, also a cocke in the middle, as K: divide then the shank of the glasse without the hole in the top, into equall parts, and set figures upon it: next lute them both fast into the necks of the bottom vessell. when the cement is dry turn the cock of the bottom vessell, and rarify the ayre in the glasse that hath no hole at the top; then set the bottom vessell a little way into a vessell filled with water, and it will suck up the water as it cooleth, when the bottom vessell is full, also the water mounted in that top glasse without a vent, up to a fitting degree; then depresse the glasses into the vessell of water, untill the water be come up into the glasse with the vent at the top sufficiently, that is, so that in both the glasses may bee contained so much water as will fill the shank of one, and about 2 or 3 degrees of the other; then turne the cock, and take away the vessell of water from under them, let them down, and fasten the bottom vessell unto the bottom of the frame, and make a rock about it, or else what other works you please, that the art may not be discerned. Lastly, set figures upon both, but first upon that without the vent, beginning from the bottom, and proceeding upwards, then lay your hand upon the head of it, which will depresse the water, which when it commeth equall to the degrees, paste the same degree on the place of the water in the other glasse with the vent, and it is done.

After the same manner is the treble glasse made: but whereas in the double glasse there was but one glasse that had a vent at the top, there is two in this, both whose shanks must contain the iust quantity of water that the glasse without the vent will containe. If you do well obserue the form of the subsequent figure, you cannot goe amisse.

First prepare the glasse A, B, fill it almost top-full of water, provide also the glasse K, L, having a loop at the top of it: divide it into so many equall parts as you would haue degrees, and on the mouth thereof fasten a thin board, that will easily slip in and out of the bottom glasse, make then a waight of lead or brasse somewhat heavier than both the glasse and board fastned thereto; and then tie a little rope to the loop of the glasse A, B, and the waight at the other end thereof. Rarify the ayre contained in the glasse L, and reverse it into the glasse A, B, filled with water, and hang the plummet over two little pulleys fastned in a frame made for the purpose, and as the glasse K, L, cooleth, the water will ascend the same, and so by the change of the outward both the glasse and water will move accordingly.

Albeit the formes of Weather-glasses are divers, according to the fancy of the Artist, yet the use of all is one and the same: to wit, to demonstrate the state, and temper of the season, whether hot or cold; as also to foreshew the change and alteration thereof.

The single perpendicular with a vent, moveth upwards with cold, and downwards with heat, and is quite contrary in quality to the former, only that it moveth uncertainly in fickle and uncertaine weather, and keepeth a constant place in stayed weather.

These rules are all certaine and true: now you may according to your owne observation frame other rules, whereby you may foretell the change of the weather the water being at any one degree whatsoeuer.

Let there be provided a deepe vessell of earth, or any thing else, that will hold water, as A, B, C, D, provide also a glasse made after the fashion of the figure marked with the letters E, F, G. It must bee open at the bottom, and haue also a small hole at the top, thorow which if you can but put the point of a needle, it is sufficient. This glasse must not bee so long as the vessell is deepe, by about two inches. Then take a iust measure of the length of the glasse E, F, G, and set it on the inside of the vessell A, B, C, D, from the bottom towards the top, and then make a rase round about the vessell; there must bee fitted unto this earthen vessell, a pipe reaching from the top of the outside thereof, and going to the bottom, where it entreth the same, and againe extendeth it selfe almost unto the circle or mark rased on the vessell A, B, C, D. Fill then the vessell with fayre water up to the rase, or circle, and turne the cock, and put the glasse into the water, and you shall see that the glasse by reason of its heavinesse, will tend toward the bottom of the vessell, but very slowly, by reason that the ayre contained therein hath so small a vent: turne an houre-glasse, and at the end of each houre make a mark upon the glasse equall with the water, and it is done. When the glasse is quite sunke to the bottom of the water, turn the cock, and with one blast of your mouth at the pipe, it will ascend againe.

Prepare a vessell, as A, B, C, D, having a very small cock unto it, whose passage ought to bee so small, as that the water might issue out but by drops. Prepare likewise a vessell, as E, F, G, H, having at one end of it a piller of a foot and a halfe, or two foot high: let there be fitted unto this vessell a board, so that it may freely without stay, slip up and down: towards one side of this board, there must be a good big hole, which must bee placed under the cock of the other vessell. Then fasten unto the top of this board, the image of Time or Death, and pointing with a dart upon the piller aforesaid: turn then an houre glasse, and at the end of every houre make a figure on the place of the piller that the image with his dart pointeth at, and it is made. For note, the dropping of the water out of the cock thorow the hole of the board whereon the image standeth, causeth the same to ascend by little and little. Mark the figures.

First prepare a cestern, as A, B, C, D, partition in the middle, let there bee made two pipes, the one whereof must reach out of the upper cestern, and descend almost to the bottom of the lowest cestern, as I, K; the other must be a short one, and haue a very small hole, that the water may thereby issue out of the upper cestern but by drops; also at the side nigh the bottom of the upper cestern, let a small pipe enter. To the upper cestern fit a board, so that it may easily slip up and downe in it; this board must haue a loop to fasten a rope unto, and you must so poyse the said board, that it being hung up by a line, may hang even, and levell. Then prepare a box to put ouer the cestern, which ought to stand about six inches aboue the cestern. In the top of this box let there be fastned a long pulley with a creuice to put a small rope ouer, in this creuice it were fitting to fasten small pins, to the end that the rope might turn the sayd wheele as the water faleth from under the board: let the spindle of this pulley come out at one side of the box whereon there is a Dyall drawn, contayning so many houres as you would haue it go for; unto this end of the spindle let there bee fitted a needle, or director, to shew the houre, then put a small cord ouer the pulley in the box, fasten one end thereof to the loop of the board, and at the other end let there bee tied a waight not quite so heauy as the board, then fill the upper cestern with water, and the board will presse it out into the lower vessell, at the pipe O, drop by drop, and as the board sinketh lower, it will by meanes of the rope upon the pulley, turne the index fastned unto the spindle of the pulley about the dyall; you may set it by an houre-glasse or Watch: when it is quite downe, if you doe with your mouth blow into the pipe at the side of the cestern, the water will all mount up againe into the upper cestern.

Let A, B, be a tub hauing in the bottom a brasse barrell, with a hole open quite through one side of it: let D, E, F, be a wheele, whose spindle must bee also hollow, and haue a hole through one side of it, so that being put into the hollow barrell, both the holes may be equall together. Note then, that so long as these holes are equall together, the water will run out at the spindle of the tub, but if you turne the wheele to another side, it will not run.

Let there bee prouided a barrell of brasse, of what length and widenesse you please, let it bee exactly smooth within, and very tight at bottom; unto this barrell fit a plug of wood leathered about, and let there bee made diuers small holes quite through it, wherein fasten diuers formes and shapes of birds, beasts, or fishes, hauing very small pin-holes through them, for the water to spin out at: you shall do well to make this plug very heavy, either by pouring molten lead into certaine holes made for the purpose, or else by fastning some waight unto the top: fill the barrell with water, and put the plug into it, which lying so heavy upon the water, it will make it spin out at the pin-holes of the images placed thereupon.

First prepare a table, whereupon erect a strong frame, and round about the frame make a moat with a leaden cestern to be filled with water; let the leaden moat somewhat undermine as it were the frame, which ought to be built in three stories, one aboue another, and euery one lesser than another. Within the middle story fasten a very strong Iack that goeth with a waight, or a strong spring, the ending of whose spindles ought to be crooked, thus Z, whereby diuers sweeps for pumps may bee moued to and againe, whose pumps must go down into the moat, and haue small succurs unto them, and convayances towards their tops, whereat the water may be mounted into diuers cesterns, out of some wherof there may be made convayances in their bottoms, by small pipes running down into the riuer or moat again, and there breaking out in the fashions and formes of Dragons, Swans, Whales, Flowers, and such like pretty conceits: out of others the water may fall upon wheeles, out of whose spindles, the water turning round, may bee made to run. In the uppermost story of all, let there bee made the forcer by ayre, as I taught before, or else a presser, hauing at the top, Neptune riding on a Whale, out of whose nostrils, as also out of Neptunes Trident, the water may be made to spin through small pin-holes; you may also make diuers motions about this work, but for that the multitude of figures would rather confound than instruct the Reader, I haue of purpose omitted them.

THE SECOND BOOKE,

Teaching most plainly, and withall most exactly, the composing of all manner of Fire-works for Triumph and Recreation.

To the Reader.

Of Fire-workes.

I haue euer found that the summe and chiefest end of all hath been, to know the reasons and causes of those things they were desirous to be informed in. Wherefore I thought good, before I came to the matter it selfe, to set down some few Praecognita or Principles whereby such as are ingenious, upon occasion, may informe themselues, if they stand in doubt of the cause of any thing that is heereafter taught.

As for the instruments they are these; Morters and Pestles, Serces, also seuerall sorts of Formers, Paper, Parchment, Canuas, Whipcord, strong binding thread, Glew, Rosin, Pitch, with diuers vessells meet to contayne and mingle your compositions in. The ingredients likewise are chiefly these, Saltpeter, Rochpeter, Sulpher, Charcoale, good Gunpowder, Filings of steele, oyle of Peter, and Spirit of wine.

Saltpeter is very good, if that being layd upon a board, and fire put to, it rise with a flamed ventosous exhalation, raysing no scum, nor leauing no pearle, but onely a blacke specke burnt into the boord.

The best brimstone, is quick brimstone, or liue sulphur, and that sort is best that breaketh whitest; if this cannot be gotten, take of the whitest yellow brimstone.

The best Coales for use are the sallow, willow, hazel and beech; onely see they be well burnt. Euery of these ingredients must be powdred finely and searsed.

All kindes of gunpowder are made of these ingredients imposed, or incorporated with vineger, or aquauitae, and afterward grayned by art. The Saltpeter is the Soul, the Sulphur the Life, and the Coales the Body of it. The best sort of powder may be distinguished from others, by these signes:

If so be you haue at any time diuers sorts of Gunpowder, and it is your desire to know which of them is the strongest, then you must prepare a box, as A, B, being foure inches high, and about two inches wide, hauing a lid ioynted unto it. The box ought to be made of iron, brasse, or copper, and to bee fastned unto a good thick plank, and to haue a touch-hole at the bottom, as O, and that end of the box where the hinge of the lid is, there must stand up from the box a peece of iron or brasse, in length answerable unto the lid of the box: this peece of iron must haue a hole quite through it, towards the top, and a spring, as, A, G, must bee screwed or riueted, so that the one end may couer the sayd hole. On the top of all this iron, or brasse that standeth up from the box, there must bee ioynted a peece of iron the hinder part of which is bent downward, and entreth the hole that the spring couereth; the other part resteth upon the lid of the box. Open this box lid, and put in a quantity of powder, and then shut the lid down, and put fire to the touch hole at the bottom, and the powder in the box being fired, will blow the box lid up the notches more or lesse, according as the strength of the powder is: so by firing the same quantity of diuers kindes of powders at seuerall times, you may know which is the strongest. Now perhaps it will bee expected that I should speak of the making of Saltpeter, Gunpowder, Coales, with the refining of Sulphur: but because they are so commonly to bee had, and to bee bought at better rates than I know they can bee made by any that intend it for their priuate use, I haue forborne it: There are diuers I am sure that would willingly bee in action: I haue thought fitting therefore to set downe the collection of naturall Saltpeter, which is a kinde of white excrescence growing upon stone-wals, and in the arches of stone-bridges. First therefore gather this white excrescence, and adde unto it Quick-lyme, and Ashes, mingle them, and put them into a halfe-tub that hath a hole to draw the liquor out at; then put into this halfe-tub warm water, and let it stand untill all the peter be dissolued; let it then drain out at the hole by little and little, and if the liquor be not cleere, double a brown paper, and put it within a tunnell, and straine the liquor through it. Then boyle it and scum it untill it bee ready to congeale, neither too hard, nor yet too tender: then take it from the fire, and put it into shallow vessels, either of earth or brasse; set them in a cold place two or three dayes, and it will shoot into isicles, and this is called Rochpeter. Thus much for the ingredients. Now I am come unto the Formers, the number whereof I cannot certainly determine, because it dependeth upon the variety of each particular persons inuention. Now that I may formally proceed, I will first make some distinction of each kinde in generall; and then I will speak of euery particular contained in each generall. Fire-works are of 3 sorts.

Part of either of the three kindes are simple, and part are compounded; part also are fixed, and part moueable. First I will treat of the diuers compositions, and then of the Formers, Coffins, and manner of composing euery of them.

First of the compositions of fire workes, for the ayre; and therein first I will speake of the compositions for rockets, because that all moueable fireworkes haue their motion from the force of them accordingly applied.

Take of gunpowder, saltpeter and charcoale, of each one ounce and a halfe, mingle them together, and it is done. Note heere, as I told you before, that all your ingredients ought to be first powdred by themselues, and afterwards mixed very well together.

Take of gunpowder fowre ounces and a halfe, saltpeter one ounce, mixe them together.

Take of gunpowder fowre pounds, saltpeter one pound, charcoale fowre ounces, mingle them together.

Take of gunpowder fowre poundes, saltpeter one pound, charcoale fowre ounces, brimstone halfe an ounce, mingle them together.

Take of gunpowder one pound, two ounces of charcoales; mingle them.

Take of gunpowder two pound fiue ounces, of saltpeter halfe a pound, of charcoale six ounces, of brimstone and yron scales, of each two ounces, mingle them.

Take of gunpowder one pound and one ounce, saltpeter fowre ounces, brimstone three ounces and a halfe, charcoale one ounce, mingle them.

Take of saltpeter twelue ounces, gunpowder twenty ounces, and charcoale three ounces, quicke brimstone and scales of yron, of each one ounce, mingle them.

Take saltpeter eight pounds, charcoale two pounds twelue ounces, brimstone one pound fowre ounces. Note that no practitioner ought to relie upon a receipt, but first to trie one rocket, and if that be too weake adde more gunpowder, if it be too strong let him adde more charcoale untill hee finde them flie according unto his desire. Note that the charcoale is only to mitigate the violence of the powder, and to make the tayle of the rocket appeare more beautifull. Note also that the smaller the rockets be, they need the quicker receipts, and that in great rockets, there needeth not any gunpowder at all.

Take saltpeter one pound, brimstone halfe a pound, gunpowder fowre ounces, this must be bound up in paper or little ragges, and afterwards primed.

Take of saltpeter one pound, gunpowder and brimston of each halfe a pound; these must be mixed together, and of them make a paste, with a sufficient quantity of oile of peter, or else of fayre water; of this paste you shall make little balles, and roll them in drie gunpowder dust; then drie them, and keepe them for your occasions.

Take saltpeter one pound, brimstone halfe a pound, gunpowder three pound, charcoale halfe a pound; when you have mingled and stirred them well together, mixe them well with the aforesayd jelly, and then make it into little balles, or into what fashion else you please, then cool them in gunpowder dust, and keepe them for use.

For Rockets there needeth onely gunpowder finely beaten and searced.

Likewise for all the other sorts, searced gunpowder will serue, which may be abated, or alayed with charcoal dust at your pleasure.

Compositions for fireworkes that burne upon, or in the water.

Take of saltpeter one pound, brimstone halfe a pound, gunpowder halfe a pound, charcoales two ounces. This composition will make the Rockets appeare with a great fiery tayle. If you desire to have it burne cleare, then take of saltpeter one pound, three ounces of gunnepowder, brimstone halfe a pound.

Take masticke halfe a pound, white Frankincense, gum sandrake, quickelime, brimstone, bitumen, camphire, and gunpowder, of each one pound and a halfe, rosin one pound, saltpeter fowre pounds and a halfe, mixe them all together.

Take brimstone one pound, gunpowder nine ounces, refined saltpeter one pound and a halfe, camphire beaten with Sulphur, and Quicksilver; mixe them well together with oyle of peter, or linseed oyle boyled, untill it will scald a feather. Fill a canvas ball with this composition, arme it, and ballast it with lead at the bottome, make the vent at the top, fire it well and cast it into the water, and it will fume and boyle up slowly.

Take of oyle of Tile one pound, Linseed oyle three pounds, oyle of the yelks of egges one pound, new quick lime eight pounds, brimstone two pounds, camphire fowr ounces, bitumen two ounces; mingle all together.

Take of Roch peter one pound, flowre of brimstone nine ounces, coales of rotten wood six ounces, camphire one ounce and a halfe, oyle of egges, and oyle of Tile enough to make the mixture into a paste.

Or take callamita one pound, sal niter and asphaltum, of each fowre ounces, quicke brimstone three ounces, liquid varnish sixe ounces; make them all into a paste. Put eyther of these compositions into a pot wherein is quick lime, so that the lime come round about the past; then lute it fast, binde it close with wires, and set it in a limekiln a whole baking time, and it will become a stone that any moysture will kindle.

If you make a little hole in the top of an egge, and let out all the meat, and fill the shell with the following powder, and stop the hole with wax, and cast it into a running water, it will break out into a fire.

Take of salt-niter, brimstone, and quick-lyme, of each a like quantity, mix them.

Take cotten-week, such as the Chandlers use for candles, double it six or seuen times double, and wet it throughly in saltpeter water, or aqua vitae, wherein some camphire hath been dissolued, or, for want of either, in faire water; cut it into diuers peeces, rowle it in mealed gunpowder, or powder and sulphur; then dry them in the Sun, and reserue them in a box where they may lie straight, to prime Starres, Rockets, or any other fire-works.

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