Of a Place in England, Where, without Petrifying Water, Wood is Turned into Stone

tians, were invited to look upon an ox, that had for two or three days almost continually held his Neck straight up, and was dead of a Disease, the Owner could not conjecture at; whereupon, the parts belonging to the Neck and Throat, being open'd, they found, to their wonder, the Aspera Arteria in its very Trunk all stuff'd with Grass, as if it had been thrust there by main force: which gives a just cause of marvelling and inquiring, both how such a quantity of Grass should get in there; and how, being there, such an Animal could live with it so long. Of a place in England, where, without petrifying Water, Wood is turned into Stone. The same Searcher of Nature, that was alledged in the immediately precedent Observations, did impart also the following, in another Letter from Oxford, where he saith: I was a while since visited by a Gentleman, who tells me, That he met with a Place in these parts of England, where, though there be no petrefying Springs (for that I particularly asked) Wood is turned into Stone in the Sandy Earth it self, after a better manner then by any Water I have yet seen: For I had the Curiosity to go to look upon pieces of Wood, he brought thence, and hope for the opportunity of making some tryals to examine the matter a little further, then I have yet been able to do. Thus far that Letter. Since which time, He was pleased to give this further Information of the same matter, with a Manifessa of some other Particulars, belonging to this Subject, in these Words. I was lately making some Tryals with the petrified Wood I told you off, which I finde to be a very odd substance, wonderfully hard and fixed: If I had opportunity to Re-print the History of Fluidity and Firmness, I could adde divers things about Stones, that perhaps would not be disliked; and I hope, if God vouchsafe me a little leisure, to insert several of them in fit places of that History, against the next Edition. Here is a certain Stone, that is thought to be petrefyed Bone, being shap'd like a Bone, with the Marrow taken out; but with a fit Menstruum, I found that I could easily dissolve it, like other soft Stones: and possi- bly it may prove as fit as Osteocolla, for the same Medicinal Uses. Of the nature of a certain Stone, found in the In- dies, in the head of a Serpent. There was, some while ago, sent by Sir Phileberto Vernatti from Java major, where he resides, to Sir Robert Moray, for the Repository of the Royal Society, a certain Stone, affirm- ed by the Presenter to be found in the Head of a Snake, which laid upon any Wound, made by any venomous Cre- ature, is said to stick to it, and so draws away all Poison: and then, being put in Milk, to void its Poison therein, and to make the Milk turn blew; in which manner it must be used, till the Wound be cleansed. The like Relations having been made, by several others, of such a Stone, and some also in this City affirming, to have made the Experiment with success, it was thought worth while, to inquire further into the truth of this Matter: since which time, nothing hath been met with but an Informa- tion delivered by that Ingenious Parisian, Monsieur Thevenot, in his second Tome, of the Relations of divers considerable Voyages, whereof he lately presented some Exemplars to his Friends in England. The Book being in French, and not common, 'tis conceived it will not be amiss to insert here the said Information, which is to this effect: In the East Indies, and in the Kingdom of Quamsy in China, there is found a Stone in the Head of certain Serpents (which they call by a name signifying Hairy Serpents) which heals the bitings of the same Serpent, that else would kill in 24 hours. This Stone is round, white in the middle, and about the edges