fire and brightness, lamps, burning coals of fire, and flashes of lightening. In a vision of Daniel the throne of God appeared like a fiery flame, and his wheels like burning fire. Also a fiery flame iffued and came forth from before him. 187. At the transfiguration, the apostles faw our Saviour's face fhining as the fun, and his raiment white as light, alfo a lucid cloud or body of light, out of which the voice came; which vifible light and fplendor was, not many centuries ago, maintained by the Greek church, to have been divine, and uncreated, and the very glory of God: as may be feen in the history wrote by the emperor John Cantacuzene. And of late years bishop Patrick gives it as his opinion, that in the beginning of the world, the Shecinah or divine presence, which was then frequent and ordinary, appeared by light or fire. In commenting on that paffage, where Cain is faid to have gone out from the prefence of the Lord, the bifhop obferves, that if Cain after this turned a downright idolater, as many think, it is very likely he introduced the worship of the fun, as the best refemblance he could find of the glory of the Lord, which was wont to appear in a flaming light. It. would be endless to enumerate all the paffages of holy fcripture, which confirm and illuftrate this notion, or represent the Deity as appearing and operating by fire. The mifconftruction of which might poffibly have mifled the Gnoftics, Bafilidians, and other ancient heretics into an opinion, that Jefus Chrift was the visible corporeal fun. 188. We have feen, that in the moft remote ages and countries, the vulgar as well as the learned, the inftitutions of lawgivers as well as the reafonings of philofophers, have ever confidered the the element of fire in a peculiar light, and treated: it with more than common regard, as if it were fomething of a very fingular and extraordinary nature. Nor are there wanting authors of principal account among the moderns, who entertain like notions concerning fire, efpecially among those who are most converfant in that element, and fhould feem beft acquainted with it. 189. Mr. Homberg the famous modern chemift, who brought that art to fo great perfection, holds the substance of light or fire to be the true chemic principal fulphur (a), and to extend it felf throughout the whole univerfe. It is his opinion that this is the only active principle. That mixed with various things it formeth feveral forts of natural productions, with falts making oyl, with earth bitumen, with mercury metal. That this principle of fulphur, fire, or the fubftance of light, is in it felf imperceptible, and only becomes fenfible as it is joined with fome other principle, which ferves as a vehicle for it. That, although it be the most active of all things, yet it is at the fame time the most firm bond and cement to combine and hold the principles together, and give form to the mixed bodies. And, that in the analysis of bodies it is always loft, efcaping the fkill of the artift, and paffing through the clofeft veffels. 190. Boerhaave, Niewenty't, and divers other moderns are in the fame way of thinking. They with the ancients diftinguifh a pure, elementary, invifible fire from the culinary, or that which appears in ignited bodies (b). This laft they will not allow to be pure fire. The pure fire is to be dif cerned by it's effects alone; fuch as heat, dilatation of all folid bodies, and rarefaction of fluids, (b) 163, 166. (a) 129. the the fegregating heterogeneous bodies, and congregating thofe that are homogeneous. That therefore which fmoakes and flames is not pure fire, but that which is collected in the focus of a mirrour or burning glass. This fire seems the fource. of all the operations in nature: without it nothing either vegetates, or putrefies, lives or moves or ferments, is diffolved or compounded or altered, throughout this whole natural world in which we fubfift. Were it not for this, the whole wou'd be one great ftupid inanimate mafs. But this active element is fuppofed to be every where, and always prefent, imparting different degrees of life, heat, and motion, to the various animals, vegetables, and other natural productions, as well as to the elements themselves, wherein they are produced and nourished. 191. As water acts upon falt, or aqua fortis upon iron, fo fire diffolves all other bodies. Fire, air, and water are all three menftruums: but the two last seem to derive all their force and activity from the first (a). And indeed there feems to be, originally or ultimately, but one menftruum in nature, to which all other menftruums, may be reduced. Acid falts are a menftruum, but their force and diftinct powers are from fulphur. Confidered as pure, or in themselves, they are all of the fame nature. But, as obtained by diftillation, they are conftantly joined with fome fulphur, which characterizeth and cannot be feparated from them. This is the doctrine of monfieur Homberg. But what is it that charecterizeth or differenceth the fulphurs themselves? If fulphur be the fubftance of light, as that author will have it, whence is it that animal, vege table, and metallic fulphurs impart different qualities to the fame acid falt? Can this be explained upon Homberg's principles? And are we not obliged to fuppofe, that light feparated by the attracting and repelling powers in the ftrainers, ducts, and pores of those bodies, forms feveral diftinct kinds of fulphur, all which, before fuch feparation, were loft and blended together, in one common mafs of light or fire feemingly homoge neous. 192. In the analysis of inflammable bodies, the fire or fulphur is loft, and the diminution of weight fheweth the lofs (a). Oil is refolved into water, earth, and salt, none of which is inflammable. But the fire or vinculum which connected thofe things, and gave the form of oil, escapes from the artift. It difappears, but is not deftroyed. Light or fire imprisoned made part of the compound, gave union to the other parts, and form to the whole. But having escaped, it mingles with the general ocean of æther, till being again parted and attracted, it enters and fpecificates fome new fubject, of the animal, vegetable, or mineral kingdom. Fire therefore in the fenfe of philofophers is alfo fire, though not always flame. 193. Solar fire or light, in calcining certain bodies, is obferved to add to their weight. There is therefore no doubt but light can be fixed, and enter the compofition of a body. And though it fhould lye latent for a long time, yet, being fet free from its prifon, it fhall ftill fhew itfelf to be fire. Lead, tin, or regulus of antimony, being exposed to the fire of a burning glafs, though they lofe much in fmoak and fteam, are nevertheless found to be confiderably increased in weight, which proves the introduction of light or fire in (a) 169.. to to their pores. It is alfo obferved, that urine produceth no phosphorus, unless it be long expofed to the folar light. From all which it may be concluded, that bodies attract and fix the light; whence it fhould feem, as fome have obferved, that fire without burning is an ingredient in many things, as water without wetting. 194. Of this there cannot be a better proof, than the experiment of Monfieur Homberg, who made gold of mercury, by introducing light into its pores, but at fuch trouble and expence, that I fuppofe no body will try the experiment for profit. By this junction of light and mercury, both bodies became fixed, and produced a third different from either, to wit, real gold. For the truth of which fact, I refer to the memoirs of the French academy of Sciences. From the foregoing experiment it appears, that gold is only a mais of mercury penetrated and cemented by the fubftance of light, the particles of those bodies attracting and fixing each other. This feems to have been not altogether unknown to former philofophers; Marfilius Ficinus the Platonift, in his commentary on the first book of the second Ennead of Plotinus, and others likewife before him, regard ing mercury as the mother, and fulphur as the father of metals; and Plato himfelf in his Timæus defcribing gold, to be a denfe fluid with a fhining yellow light, which well fuits a compofition of light and mercury. 195. Fire or light mixeth with all bodies (a), even with water; witness the flashing lights in the fea, whose waves feem frequently all on fire. Its operations are various according to its kind, quantity, and degree of vehemence. One degree |