water, for al rains, snowes, and other such impressions participate much of the slime; from thence it comes that the snow doth smoak and fatten the earth, and the water of raine, is more connaturall to trees, herbes, and seeds, chiefly those which fall by stormes and thunders, then those of wels and rivers: whereof _Plutarch_ forceth himselfe to bring forth many reasons in naturall causes, which have no great apparence: There is yet more to say, for that they are better baked and accompanied with more subtle and hot slime, and are of lighter concoction and nourishment then plants; as of meate in the stomach of _Animals_, some more then others, where the waters here below are more raw and indigested: we insist a little in water, because salt is nothing else, but water mingled and setled with dry and burned earth, of the nature of fire which makes it bitter and salt. So that before we passe from this subject of fresh water, we will here touch upon an experiment of more rare things from whence come many fair & secret considerations. Sweet water is a body so homogeneal, that it would seem to the sight so cleare, transparent, and liquid, in all its parts, resembling to it selfe, that there is in it but one only substance: since that by distillations shee passeth all. But yet there is another sound substance, solid, and compact, in the forme of earth, mingled with its liquid homogeneity, which it separates by Artifice, and it is that which _Aristotle_ saith in the swarme of Philosophers. The earth is concreat by the grossenesse of the water. And this may be seene with water agitated and beaten and after redistilled many times, alwayes separating the fift or sixth part which shall passe the first. You must then take a good quantity of wel water, or the same of fountaine, river or rain water, and let it settle twenty or thirty houres untill there be some ordure or slime, it separates it selfe. [Sidenote: Abundance of fluxes of blood.]