The sand therefore retains the salt, and the salt, the rain water for the nutrition of the bud: but every salt is not convenient for this business; for although Christ saith, _Luk. Chap. 14_, Verse the last, that earth without salt is barren; yet any common salt is not to be understood thereby: [_See more de Natura Salium._] for some salts, as common salt, salt of Vitriol, Allome, _&c._ do not only not do good, but do hurt to Vegetables, hindering by reason of their dryness their growth and increase. Now lixivial salts promote them, that which Country-men do better understand, than our supposed Philosophers: for they know how to help their barren ground with the excrements of Animals; which are nothing else but a lixivial salt mixed with Sulphur, making the earth fat and fertile. And by this means a _vehiculum_ (rather a bond) is administred to the rain water, that it may the less be consumed by the heat of the Sun. Moreover, all seed (consisting in a lixivial salt and sulphur) loves its like, from whence it borrows its Nutriment, which is observed but by a few Learned or Unlearned. Husband-Men may well be excused of their ignorance, because they work only out of Use and Custome. But others that bear the Title of Learning not so; whose Duty it is to Render a reason of Germination, who may deservedly be Ashamed of their Ignorance, being less knowing than Husband-Men. It is manifest, that Dung makes the Earth Fruitful; but how, and for what reason, not so; but if it did want nitrous salt, it would neither make it Fertile, nor promote Germination: for it is not unknown, that Nitre is made out of the excrements of Animals. The goodness therefore of the dung consists only in the lixivial salt contained in it, and not in the straw. But you will ask perhaps, why doth not any other salt help Germination? Why is the salt of dung required to Germination, and no other? We have already answered that, like are helped with like; and contraries are destroyed by contraries: For experience doth testify, that every seed consists in a lixivial salt and sulphur, and not in any acid salt; wherefore also it doth desire and embrace its like. Let him therefore, that will not believe it, make tryal of the distillation of the seed of any vegetable; of which, let him force over a pound by a retort; and he shall see by experience, that not an acid spirit, but a flegm together with plenty of oyl, and volatile salt whitening the whole Receiver, comes over; being that which no root or stalk can do: for the chiefest vertue, odour, and tast of vegetables, animals, and minerals is found in the seed, in which thing provident Nature hath done very well, whilest she attributes the chiefest faculties to the seed, being more obnoxious to injuries then the rest, which is also preserved, nourished; and cherished by its like.