parent, of science. Dr. Young has immortalized it by the following lines:

If glorious structures and immortal deeds Enlarge the thought, and set the souls on fire, My tongue hath been to cold in Egypt's praise: The queen of nations and the boast of times, Mother of science and the house of gods! Assyria, a large country of Asia, whose boundaries have been different in its flourishing times. The Assyrian empire is the most ancient in the world. The country is now called Curdistan. 729 With Naphtha.

There are springs of Naphtha at Baku, a seaport town on that part of the Caspian Sea which is included in the territory of Persia: it is strongly fortified; and enjoys considerable trade in rock salt, sulphur, naphtha, cotton and saffron, which are produced in the surrounding country, and are exchanged for wine and silk stuffs. The everlasting fire and the Naphtha springs, in the neighbourhood, have been subjects of wonder to credulous travellers; some of whom have detailed exaggerated accounts of these natural appearances. In a dry and rocky soil, ten miles from Baku, a snlphureous and bituminons vapour issues from the earth, and, when set fire to, continues to burn for a long time. The votaries of superstition have taken advantage of this phenomenon, and have erected temples, in which the Indians perform certain religious ceremonies. A hollow cane is fixed in the ground, near the altar, in one of the temples, and a blue flame, which, it is said, has burned since the flood, and will continue so to the end of the world, issues

from its upper extremity. The soil is described

The

as a mixture of coarse marl and sand. chemical reader will be at no loss to perceive that this imflammable gas is produced by the decomposition of certain substances, under the surface; and that it is probably the same with the carbonated hydrogen gas, which is obtained from coal, for the purpose of lighting streets and manufactures. The naphtha springs, in the neighbourhood of Baku, are a copious source of revenue to the khan. The naphtha, of which the the principal spring is in a small uninhabited island, is of various degrees of consistence: sometimes it is in a liquid form, when it boils over and runs in a continued stream; and sometimes solid and black, like pitch. If accidentally kindled, the whole course of the current, as it proceeds to a great distance into the sea, appears in a flame. The naphtha is collected in reservoirs, and it is drawn -off from one to another, for the purpose of purification; it is conveyed in vessels to different parts of Persia, and is employed, by the poorer inhabitants, for both light and heat. Springs of hot water are found in the same vicinity; and are employed, for both bathing and drinking, in the cure of various diseases. The naphtha, taken internally, or used as an external application, is also regarded as a sovereign remedy in a long list of disorders; though it may be doubted, whether it penetrates instantaneously into the blood, as has been asserted. Hanway's Travals.

729

and Asphaltus yielded light. Asphaltus, or Jew's pitch, an inflammable

parent, of science. Dr. Young has immortalized it by the following lines:

If glorious structures and immortal deeds Enlarge the thought, and set the souls on fire, My tongue hath been to cold in Egypt's praise: The queen of nations and the boast of times, Mother of science and the house of gods! Assyria, a large country of Asia, whose boundaries have been different in its flourishing times. The Assyrian empire is the most ancient in the world. The country is now called Curdistan. 729 With Naphtha.

There are springs of Naphtha at Baku, a seaport town on that part of the Caspian Sea which is included in the territory of Persia: it is strongly fortified; and enjoys considerable trade in rock salt, sulphur, naphtha, cotton and saffron, which are produced in the surrounding country, and are exchanged for wine and silk stuffs. The everlasting fire and the Naphtha springs, in the neighbourhood, have been subjects of wonder to credulous travellers; some of whom have detailed exaggerated accounts of these natural appearances. In a dry and rocky soil, ten miles from Baku, a snlphureous and bituminons vapour issues from the earth, and, when set fire to, continues to burn for a long time. The votaries of superstition have taken advantage of this phenomenon, and have erected temples, in which the Indians perform certain religious ceremonies. A hollow cane is fixed in the ground, near the altar, in one of the temples, and a blue flame, which, it is said, has burned since the flood, and will continue so to the end of the world, issues

729

from its upper extremity. The soil is described

The

as a mixture of coarse marl and sand. chemical reader will be at no loss to perceive that this imflammable gas is produced by the decomposition of certain substances, under the surface; and that it is probably the same with the carbonated hydrogen gas, which is obtained from coal, for the purpose of lighting streets and manufactures. The naphtha springs, in the neighbourhood of Baku, are a copious source of revenue to the khan. The naphtha, of which the the principal spring is in a small uninhabited island, is of various degrees of consistence: sometimes it is in a liquid form, when it boils over and runs in a continued stream; and sometimes solid and black, like pitch. If accidentally kindled, the whole course of the current, as it proceeds to a great distance into the sea, appears in a flame. The naphtha is collected in reservoirs, and it is drawn -off from one to another, for the purpose of purification; it is conveyed in vessels to different parts of Persia, and is employed, by the poorer inhabitants, for both light and heat. Springs of hot water are found in the same vicinity; and are employed, for both bathing and drinking, in the cure of various diseases. The naphtha, taken internally, or used as an external application, is also regarded as a sovereign remedy in a long list of disorders; though it may be doubted, whether it penetrates instantaneously into the blood, as has been asserted. Hanway's Travals.

and Asphaltus yielded light. Asphaltus, or Jew's pitch, an inflammable

parent, of science. Dr. Young has immortalized it by the following lines:

If glorious structures and immortal deeds Enlarge the thought, and set the souls on fire, My tongue hath been to cold in Egypt's praise: The queen of nations and the boast of times, Mother of science and the house of gods! Assyria, a large country of Asia, whose boundaries have been different in its flourishing times. The Assyrian empire is the most ancient in the world. The country is now called Curdistan. 729 With Naphtha.

There are springs of Naphtha at Baku, a seaport town on that part of the Caspian Sea which is included in the territory of Persia: it is strongly fortified; and enjoys considerable trade in rock salt, sulphur, naphtha, cotton and saffron, which are produced in the surrounding country, and are exchanged for wine and silk stuffs. The everlasting fire and the Naphtha springs, in the neighbourhood, have been subjects of wonder to credulous travellers; some of whom have detailed exaggerated accounts of these natural appearances. In a dry and rocky soil, ten miles from Baku, a snlphureous and bituminons vapour issues from the earth, and, when set fire to, continues to burn for a long time. The votaries of superstition have taken advantage of this phenomenon, and have erected temples, in which the Indians perform certain religious ceremonies. A hollow cane is fixed in the ground, near the altar, in one of the temples, and a blue flame, which, it is said, has burned since the flood, and will continue so to the end of the world, issues