Humor porro Oleaginosus aquam humiditate & fluiditate per se, accensus vero Ignem flamma prodit, fumo Aerem, fuligine, nidore & amurca terram. Salem denique ipse Beguinus siccum vocat & Terrestrem, qui tamen nec fusus Aquam, nec caustica vi ignem celare potest; ignis vero Violentia in halitus versus nec ab Aere se alienum esse demonstrat; Idem de Lacte, de Ovis, de semine Lini, de Garyophyllis, de Nitro, de sale Marino, denique de Antimonio, quod fuit de Ligno viridi Judicium; eadem de illorum partibus, quas_ Beguinus _adducit, sententia, quae de viridis ligni humore aquoso, quae de liquore ejusdem oleoso, quae de sale fuit._ [Footnote 24: _In Thessalo redivivo. Cap. 10. pag. 73. & 74._] This bold Discourse (resumes _Carneades_, putting up again his Paper,) I think it were not very difficult to confute, if his Arguments were as considerable as our time will probably prove short for the remaining and more necessary Part of my Discourse; wherefore referring You for an Answer to what was said concerning the Dissipated Parts of a burnt piece of green Wood, to what I told _Themistius_ on the like occasion, I might easily shew You, how sleightly and superficially our _Guntherus_ talks of the dividing the flame of Green Wood into his four Elements; _When_ he makes that vapour to be air, which being caught in Glasses and condens'd, presently discovers it self to have been but an Aggregate of innumerable very minute drops of Liquor; and _When_ he would prove the Phlegmes being compos'd of Fire by that Heat which is adventitious to the Liquor, and ceases upon the absence of what produc'd it (whether that be an Agitation proceeding from the motion of the External Fire, or the presence of a Multitude of igneous Atomes pervading the pores of the Vessel, and nimbly permeating the whole Body of the Water) I might, I say, urge these and divers other Weaknesses of His Discourse. But I will rather take Notice of what is more pertinent to the Occasion of this Digression, namely, that Taking it for Granted, that Fluidity (with which he unwarily seems to confound Humidity) must proceed from the Element of Water, he makes a Chymical Oyle to Consist of that Elementary Liquor; and yet in the very next Words proves, that it consists also of Fire, by its Inflamability; not remembring that exquisitely pure Spirit of Wine is both more Fluid then Water it self, and yet will Flame all away without leaving the Least Aqueous Moisture behind it; and without such an _Amurca_ and Soot as he would Deduce the presence of Earth from. So that the same Liquor may according to his Doctrine be concluded by its great Fluidity to be almost all Water; and by its burning all away to be all disguised Fire. And by the like way of Probation our Author would shew that the fixt salt of Wood is compounded of the four Elements. For (sayes he) being turn'd by the violence of the Fire into steames, it shews it self to be of kin to Air; whereas I doubt whether