The Sceptical Chymist | Page 3

indeed it were to be wish'd, that now that those begin to quote
Chymical Experiments that are not themselves Acquainted with
Chymical Operations, men would Leave off that Indefinite Way of
Vouching the Chymists say this, or the Chymists affirme that, and
would rather for each Experiment they alledge name the Author or
Authors, upon whose credit they relate it; For, by this means they
would secure themselves from the suspition of falshood (to which the
other Practice Exposes them) and they would Leave the Reader to
Judge of what is fit for him to Believe of what is Deliver'd, whilst they
employ not their own great names to Countenance doubtfull Relations;
and they will also do Justice to the Inventors or Publishers of true
Experiments, as well as upon the Obtruders of false ones. Whereas by
that general Way of quoting the Chymists, the candid Writer is
Defrauded of the particular Praise, and the Impostor escapes the
Personal Disgrace that is due to him.
The remaining Part of this Præface must be imploy'd in saying
something for Carneades, and something for my Self.
And first, Carneades hopes that he will be thought to have disputed
civilly and Modestly enough for one that was to play the Antagonist
and the Sceptick. And if he any where seem to sleight his Adversaries
Tenents and Arguments, he is willing to have it look'd upon as what he
was induc'd to, not so much by his Opinion of them, as the Examples of
Themistius and Philoponus, and the custom of such kind of Disputes.
Next, In case that some of his Arguments shall not be thought of the
most Cogent sort that may be, he hopes it will be consider'd that it
ought not to be Expected, that they should be So. For, his Part being

chiefly but to propose Doubts and Scruples, he does enough, if he
shews that his Adversaries Arguments are not strongly Concluding,
though his own be not so neither. And if there should appear any
disagreement betwixt the things he delivers in divers passages, he
hopes it will be consider'd, that it is not necessary that all the things a
Sceptick Proposes, should be consonant; since it being his work to
Suggest doubts against the Opinion he questions, it is allowable for him
to propose two or more severall Hypotheses about the same thing: And
to say that it may be accounted for this way, or that way, or the other
Way, though these wayes be perhaps inconsistent among Themselves.
Because it is enough for him, if either of the proposed Hypotheses be
but as probable as that he calls a question. And if he proposes many
that are Each of them probable, he does the more satisfie his doubts, by
making it appear the more difficult to be sure, that that which they
alwayes differ from is the true. And our Carneades by holding the
Negative, he has this Advantage, that if among all the Instances he
brings to invalidate all the Vulgar Doctrine of those he Disputes with,
any one be Irrefragable, that alone is sufficient to overthrow a
Doctrine which Universally asserts what he opposes. For, it cannot be
true, that all Bodies whatsoever that are reckon'd among the Perfectly
mixt Ones, are Compounded of such a Determinate Number of such or
such Ingredients, in case any one such Body can be produc'd, that is
not so compounded; and he hopes too, that Accurateness will be the
less expected from him, because his undertaking obliges him to
maintain such Opinions in Chymistry, and that chiefly by Chymical
Arguments, as are Contrary to the very Principles of the Chymists;
From whose writings it is not Therefore like he should receive any
intentionall Assistance, except from some Passages of the Bold and
Ingenious Helmont, with whom he yet disagrees in many things (which
reduce him to explicate Divers Chymical Phænomena, according to
other Notions;) And of whose Ratiocinations, not only some seem very
Extravagant, but even the Rest are not wont to be as considerable as
his Experiments. And though it be True indeed, that some Aristotelians
have occasionally written against the Chymical Doctrine he Oppugnes,
yet since they have done it according to their Principles, And since our
Carneades must as well oppose their Hypothesis as that of the
Spagyrist, he was fain to fight his Adversaries with their own Weapons,

Those of the Peripatetick being Improper, if not hurtfull for a Person of
his Tenents; besides that those Aristotelians, (at Least, those he met
with,) that have written against the Chymists, seem to have had so little
Experimental Knowledge in Chymical Matters, that by their frequent
Mistakes and unskilfull Way of Oppugning, they have too often expos'd
Themselves to the Derision of their Adversaries, for writing so