and chastity. They take no more either of meat or drink than men fhould venture to do, who know themfelves to lie under an obligation to worship God, even at midnight; and their converfation very trictly fuits itself to a perpetual and firm perfuafion, that God hears all that they fay. After wafaing their hands, when the candles or tapers are brought in, every one in order is defired to fing a fong of praise and honour to God, either out of the holy fcriptures, or of his own compofing. And this is a teft, whether he has been drinking more than he fhould do, or not. Laftly follows prayer or grace after meat, and fo they feparate."

In that glorious character which the historian Sozomen gives us of the great and good emperor Theodofius, there is a remarkable paffage: Explore, Tov synρain λοχισμού άλλαξας in paswon, &c. "Your imperial majefty, who have wedded temperance, and rejected luxury and indolence, may juftly, by yourself, as well as others, be deemed not only an emperor over your fubjects, but equally fuch over your own paffions and appetites. I am told, plain and fimple diet is what your majesty always chufes; and that, conftantly, with fending up bleffings to the Lord and giver of all things." It seems the perfons of the highest quality in thofe happier days, did not ufe at any time to forget their obligation to, and dependence upon, his providence, for every particle of meat which came to their tables.

Much more might be alledged and urged from antiquity, on the

fubject before us; but the above may abundantly fufice. It may be proper, however, just to observe, that even the vileft of the ancient heretics themfelves had, or at least pretended to have, a very ferious notion of the duty in queftion.

Having thus fully traced the antiquity of this cuftom, and fhewn how widely it had diffufed itself in the world, it now remains to improve the difquifition, by a few natural obfervations.

And, first, we remark, that the discharge of this duty puts us in mind of the fall of our first parents, and the unhappy confequences of it entailed upon us; and in particular of our common unworthiness of the benefits fo graciously conferred upon them, and in their perfons defigned to, and defcended upon us all. If we attend, we fhall find there is a manifeft antithefis in this particular between the firft and the fecond Adam. The firft, by eating, loft God's blefling upon the fruits of the ground; in oppofition to whom, the fecond takes the loaves in his hands, bleffes, and breaks, and commands his difciples to diftribute the pieces amongit the multitude. See Mat. xiv. 19.

2dly, Our folemn invocation of a blefling from heaven on the meat fet before us, may very naturally put us in remembrance of the hope and expectation we indulge of eating the fpiritual bread in the kingdom of heaven, Luke xiv. John vi.

3dly, Forms of devotions, before and after meat, when the family or neighbours are met to

L 4

gether

gether at the fame table, do not a little conduce to the duties and interefts of charity and friendship; for then we pray for a bleffing in common upon the whole company; which implies a good will in them one to another; a concord and harmony, as Chriftians joined to gether in the fame faith and communion. St. Chryfoftom, in the homily before cited, remarks very piously, that by fuch benediction Chriftians mutually excite in their fouls a generous and hearty charity and love.

4thly, As prayer and praise are acts which we know are well plea fing to God; fo it adds pleasure (a religious pleasure, which every good man finds to be moft grateful) to the meal or banquet, in which we participate. Piety communicates a rich relish to every repast. The immediate confcioufnefs of it doubles the comfort and hilarity of an entertainment, and keeps us at the fame time within due bounds.

5thly, And to conclude; though very far from giving credit to le

gendary tales refpecting miraculous benedictions or punishments; the former, as attending the ftrict obfervance; the latter, as a confequence of the neglect and contempt of this duty; which, therefore, are deemed unworthy of mention; yet reafon and revelation warrant the remark, that as we are to believe that prayer in general will bring down bleffings upon us from the hand of the Almighty; fo these acts of devotion, before and after our bodily refreshment, are moft likely to derive a fpecial wholesomeness and neutritive quality upon our meat and drink. *Pulfe and water, under the bleffing of God, may prove as falutary and fuftentatious as the most regal and luxurious dainties; and better, affuredly, is a dinner of herbs to the body, where the fincere love of God reigns in the heart, than a falled ox, or any the moft voluptuous fare, while unfanctified by gratitude, devotion, and praise to the beneficent donor of all we enjoy, Dan. i. 14-17. Prov. xv. 17.

USE

Of black paint with water, and of the valuable black called Indian ink.

ΑΝ

N opake deep black for water-colours is made by grinding ivory black with gum water, or with the liquid which fettles from whites of eggs, after they have been beaten up and fuffered to ftand a little. Some ufe gum water and the white of eggs together; and report, that a fmall addition of the latter makes the mixture flow more freely from the pencil, and improves its gloffinefs.

"It may be observed, that tho' ivory-black makes the deepest colour in water as well as in oil paint ing, yet it is not always, on this account, to be preferred, in either kind, to the other black pigments. A deep jet black colour is feldom wanted in painting: and in the lighter fhades, whether obtained by diluting the black with white bodies, or by applying it thin on a white ground, the particular beauty of ivory-black is in a great meafure loft: the fame intentions may be answered by pigments of lefs price, and more eafily procurable.

"A valuable black for water colours is brought from China and the Eaft Indies, fometimes in large

marked with Chinese characters. By dipping the end of one of the cakes in a little water, and rub bing it about on the bottom or fides of the veffel, a part of its fubftance is taken up by the water, which may thus be readily tinged to any fhade of black or grey, from fuch as will juft colour paper, to a full black. The compofition of this Indian ink has not hitherto, fo far as I can learn, been revealed; and I therefore made fome experiments with a view to disco

ver it.

"Though the Indian ink is readily diffufed through water, it is not truly diffolved: when the liquid is fuffered to stand for fome time, the black matter fettles to the bottom in a muddy form, leav. ing the water on the top colourless; in the fame manner as the common black pigments settle from diluted gum-water. The ink, kept moist, in warm weather, becomes in a few days putrid, like the fluid or foft parts of animals; as does likewise the clear water after the black matter has fettled and feparated from it. The Indian ink appears therefore to contain an animal fubftance foluble in water; and to confift of a black powder mixed with fome animal glue. For the greater certainty, in regard to this conglutinating ingredient, I boiled one of the China cakes in several fresh portions of water, that all its foluble parts might be extract

ed,

ed, and having filtered the liquors through paper, fet them to evaporate in a tone bafon; they fmelt like glue, and left a very confiderable quantity of a tenacious fubftance, which could not be perceived to differ in any refpect from common glue.

"Being thus convinced of the compofition of the mafs, I tried to mitate it, by mixing fome of the amp-black, which I had myself prepared from oil, with as much melted glue as gave it fufficient tenacity for being formed into cakes. The cakes, when dry, anfwered fully as well as the genuine Indian ink, in regard both to the colour, and the freedom and fmoothness of working. Ivory black, and other charcoal blacks, levigated to a great degree of finenets, which requires no fmall pains, had the fame effect with the lamp-black; but in the flate in which ivory-black is commonly fold, it proved much too gritty, and feparated too halily

from the water."

The conclufions from thefe experiments we find contrmed by Du Halde, in his hiftory of China. He gives three receip's for the preparation of Indian ink, two from Chinese books, and the third communicated by a native to one of the miffionaries. The colouring matter in all these receipts is lampblack, and in one of them there is added a quantity of horfe chefaut, burnt till the finoak ceafes; the conglutinating ingredient, in one, is a thin fize of neat's leather; in another, a folution of gum tragacanth; and in the third, a mixture of fize with a decoction of certain vegetables to us unknown.

In the appendix to this volume, Dr. Lewis obferves, that the gum

tragacanth here mentioned, is not the conglutinating matter in any of the famples of Indian ink which he has examined; that the vegetable decoctions can be of no use where fize is employed, unless to fcent the compofition; and that the receipt of lamp-black and a thin fize of neat's leather, is the very compofition pointed out by his experiments.

Of compofitions for marking sheep.

Gually made unferviceable by

Reat quantities of wool are an

the pitch and tar with which the farmer marks his sheep: thele, as they confiderably increase the weight of the fleece at a trifling expence, are not laid on with a fparing hand. It is a matter of importance therefore to the woollen manufactory, and was warmly recommended to our author by the late Dr. Hales, to go through a fet of experiments in order to difcover an innocent compofition for this purpose. The requifite qualities of tuch a compofition are, that it be cheap, and that the colour be ftrong and 1fting, fo as to bear the changes of weather, and other injuries for a due length of time, and not to damage the wool.The ill qualities of pitch and tar may be corrected by mixing with them foap, or fize; refins, likewife oils or fats, may be joined with the colouring matters, for this ufe, and may, by the fame ad iitions, be corrected. On thefe principles many trials were made, but with little fuccels; for the unctuous and refinous materials, with the advantage which they received from foap or fize, of being easily washed out from the wool, receiv

ed