A History of Inventions, Discoveries, and Origins, Volume 2 (of 2)Beckmann, Johann
History
A History of Inventions, Discoveries, and Origins, Volume 2 (of 2)
Beckmann, Johann
Inventions -- History
The first person who purposely procured this metal from calamine, by
the addition of some inflammable substance, was undoubtedly Henkel, who
gave an account of his success in the year 1741, though he concealed
the whole process[105]. After him, Dr. Isaac Lawson, a Scotsman, seems
to have made experiments which proved the possibility of obtaining
zinc in this manner on a large scale; and in 1737 Henkel heard that it
was then manufactured in England with great advantage. Of this Lawson
I know nothing more than what is related by Dr. Watson[106]. Anthony
von Swab, member of the Swedish council of mines, procured this metal
afterwards from calamine by distillation, in 1742; as did Marggraf in
1746, who appears however not to have been acquainted with the Swedish
experiment. In the year 1743, one Champion established zinc works at
Bristol, which were continued by his successor James Emerson, who
established works of the like kind at Henham, in the neighbourhood.
The manner in which the metal was procured, has been described by Dr.
Watson in his Chemical Essays.
The greater part of this metal, used in Europe, was undoubtedly brought
from the East Indies. The Commercial Company in the Netherlands,
between the years 1775 and 1779, caused to be sold, on their account,
above 943,081 pounds of it[107]. In the year 1780, the chamber of
Rotterdam alone sold 28,000 pounds; and I find, by printed catalogues,
that the other chambers, at that period, had not any of it in their
possession. If the account given by Raynal be true, the Dutch East
India Company purchased annually, at Palimbang, a million and a half
of pounds[108]. In 1781, the Danish Company at Copenhagen purchased
153,953 pounds of tutenage, which had been carried thither in two
vessels, at the rate of from four and one-eighth to four and a quarter
schillings Lubec per pound. It is probable that the English and Swedes
import this article also. It would be of some consequence if one could
learn in what part of India, when, and in what manner this metal was
first procured, and in what year it was first carried thence to Europe.
According to the scanty information which we have on the subject, it
comes from China, Bengal, Malacca[109], and the Malabar coast, from
which copper and tin are also imported. In the oldest bills of lading
of ships belonging to the Netherlands I find no mention of zinc; but it
is possible that it may be comprehended under the name of Indian tin;
for so it was at first called. Savot, who died about the year 1640,
relates, on the authority of a contemporary writer[110], that some
years before the Dutch had taken from the Portuguese a ship laden with
this metal, which was sold under the name of _speautre_. It is probable
therefore that it was brought to Europe so early as the beginning of
the seventeenth century. Indian tin is mentioned by Boyle.
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