ro^. Natural Magick. Doo-^y.

remove the Loadilone a little farther ess,the last ring will fall; and if yet yon removeit farther, the next wiil fast, until they all fall off: whence it is clear,that withouttouching, it can impart its venue to the iron.

Chap. XXVII.

How the Loadfione cum hung ftp iron in the air, "'

I Have a long time endeavoured much to make iron hang in the air, and not touchthe Loadstone, nor yet tied beneath : and now I think it almost impossible to bedone. ?,inj faith it: Dtnocrates the Architect began to vault the Temple ok Arsinoewith Loadstone, that therein her Image of iron might seem to hang in the air: bothhe and Ptolomy died, who commanded this to be made for his lister ; so that whathe began,he did not finish. The Greeks fay, that in the Temple of Serapis , that isvaulted at Alexandria, there was a Load-stone set, that held a statue of brass in theair; for it had a piece of iron in the head of it. Buc that is false,that Makomets chesthangs by the roof of the Temple. Petrttt PelUgrimtt ( aith, he shewed in anotherwork how that might be done: but that work is not to be found. Why I think itextream hard, I shall fay afterwards. But I lay it may be done , because I have nowdone it, to hold it fast by an invisible band, to hang in the air; onely so, that it bebound with a small thread beneath, that it may not rise higher: and then striving tocatch hold of the stone above, it will hang in the air, and tremble and wag it seif.

Chap. XXVIII.

The forces of the Leadjlone tannot behindredy by a wall or table coming between,

A S I said before of the Loadstone , the venue of thit and iron, can be hiedredby no body coming between ; but it will do its office. For whilst the Load-stone i« moved under a Table of wood, stone, or'any metal, except iron; the needlein the Miriners Compass will move above , as if there were no body between them.St . tAtiguJl neLib.de civitate Dei, knew this experiment. But that is much morewonderful that I have heard: that if one bold a Loadstone under a piece of silver, andput a piece of iron above the silver, as he moves his hand underneath that holds thestone , so will the iron move above ; and the silver being in the middle , and suffer-ing nothing, running so swiftly up and down, that the stone was pull'd from the handof the man, and took hold of the iron.

Chap. XX'X.

How a man of wood may row a little Boat ; and some other merry conceits.

T He fraud here is notable-, for women shall fee a man of wood rowing a littleboat well waxed, in a large vessel full of water, and they can counterfeit here-by. as imp stors do divination bv water. The fraud is thus began: the vessel is fil-led with water, a little ship of Wax is put into it, or else os wood; in the middle sitsa little man of wood, fastned through the middle with a hogs-bristle , so equail ba-lanced, that with every light motion he may easily stir himself: let him have oars inhis hands and under his feet a piece of iron. Let the Alphabet be made on the brimof the vessel, round about: wherefore a woman coming to erquire of some doubtfulmatter, the little man os wood, as if he would give a true answer, will row to thoseletters that may (ignifie the answer: for he that holds the Loadstone in his hand, uir-der the Table, can draw the boat which way he will, and so will answer by joyningthese letters together. Or put a boy of cork into a glass viol, with abroad mouth,that rums himself about the needle equally balanced; and about the glass vessel,makethe Alphabet, that the man turning round about may give answers. But I midemyfriends wonder exceedingly to fee

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