N. B. When they are broken in a Mortar the better parts may easily be separated from the baser: for while they are finely powdered, always the best part goes into red powder first, the worser part thicker and harder, containing little or nothing, being left; And if they be coursly powdered and sifted through a fine sieve the more subtle part like red powder goes through the sieve, the unuseful part being left in the sieve like white dust, which may be cast away: and if yet some redness appears, it must again be powdered in a Mortar, and the better part shall go into a red powder, the baser part being left in the sieve hard and white which is to be cast away, but you must observe that not all and every of these flints are thus separable by powdering; for some being beaten do every where retain the same colour, without any separation of the better parts, which you must finely powder and extract in the whole substance, But they (_viz._ those separable) are more easily extracted, because all the gold contained in one pound for the most part may be gathered out of three or four ounces finely powdered and separated in the aforesaid manner; so that it is not needful to extract the whole stone, nor to spend so much spirit of salt. But sand and clay need not such a preparation, but without a preparation being made before, are extracted by the affusion of the spirit of salt. ℞ then of the flints as aforesaid prepared and separated two, three, four, six pound, to which being put into a cucurbit of glass whole (undivided) pour of the spirit of Salt to the depth of three or four fingers breadth, and place it in hot sand or _Balneo_, that there the spirit of salt may be hot, and may extract the Gold, and so let it continue for five, six or more hours space, until the spirit tinged with a deep redness, can extract no more. And perchance at the first time (though seldom) it may not be tinged with so great a redness, then must you decant that same imperfectly tinged spirit, and pour to other flints after the manner expressed, prepared in another cucurbit, and place it with the flints in a moderate heat for to extract the gold; which done pour it off again, and pour it to fresh flints, and do so often until it hath drawn to it a sufficient quantity of gold; which afterward thou must keep, until thou hast gotten a greater quantity, and all the Gold may be separated at one time from it, as afterward shall be said.