1 96 Natural Magick. < Boo(j.

whole Loadstone to it. Also Cardantu falfly affirms that one Loadstone will notdraw another; but it will draw it, because the iron is concealed in it that it had firstdrank in. In brief, the poles that arc unlike, will jpin together, by reason of thesimilitude of their substance, and likeness of inclination ; but the poies that are thefame, by a contrary inclination are at enmity : that is, the North point seeks theSouth point,and the South the North point; so shall the South and North points re-ject South and North points. Yet we must tell you by the way,that when we try thestones, let them not be both great and vast stones, that being hindered by theirweights cannot perform their office : but let one be great, and the other knall;or both small, that they may be mutually repulsed or drawn on. The trial is easie,if they be hanged by a thread, or put into their boats, or if they play equallybalanced upon the needle.

Chap. IX.

i A sport of the Loadstone.

1 Will not pass by a merry conceit of the Loadstone, that I have oft-times riaademy friends sport with , for the good of those that are curious in the search of thereasons of things. How in a short time two kinds of sands mingled, and laid on aheap, may be parted one from the other very suddenly : for the [landers by, thatcannot found the reason of it will, think it impossible. The trick is this : Pown aLoadstone into very fine sand, and put some white sand, or some other sand togetherwith it, and mingle them, and make a heap of them .* for if you put a Loadstone toit, either uncovered, or covered with linen (that the slanders by may not know it)presently the sand of the Loadstone, as in league with it, will run like small hairsjoined together, and will stick fast to the stone; which you may brush off and lay afide, then come again, and what is behind will run to the stone, till you have drawnit all out z and it will cause no little wonder, that when the Loadstone comes tothe heap,the sands that were mingled should be parted asunder. Bat the more easilyto powder the Loadstone, do thus. Put the Loadstone into an iron tnorter, lay ablanket or some other soft thing upon it, for it will thus yield to hand-strokes, andpresently crumble ; if not, you must beat hard on the bottom of the morter, andbatter the pestle. Also the same thing befals us in a certain sand that is brought tous out of an iron Mine from Porchys, for it hath the colour and shining that ironhath; and by the proximation of the Loadstone,it is soon parted from the other, tothe admiration of those that are present. It may be this experiment was made,be-cause the antients report that the Loadstone will draw iron, sand, oyle, and allthings.

C H A P. X.

The greater the Loadstone the greater is the force of it.

A Nd you must know, that the bigger Loadstone will cast forth its force at a far-ther distance, and brandish it, and attract the opposite Loadstone with moreviolence, and draw it to it, and that in the same sort of stone ; as if a Loadstonebe a pound weight, and another Loadstone be a good distance from ic, it will pre-sently leap, and meet the other that draws it. If we cut off half that stone, theforce of it will decay, and be dull as if it were dead, and the vigor of it is takenaway by the proportion of the part taken from it. If any man will not believe it,,let a stone befetcht for trial; fora part being taken away, part of the venue is lostalso : join the part taken away as it was, and the force will be restored, and be-come more lively, and will be as powerful as formerly, that it will leap at a Load-stone that meets it at a great distance, and presently embrace it. This argumentconfirms it, that the greater the stone is, the greater force it hath, even in the famefort of stones: for I have seen divers Loadstones, brought from divers parts of the

world