OF MASTER JOHANNES HARTMANN.

HARTMANN, whose work we have at hand, thus begins with Digestives Medicines intended to "cook" or prepare bodily humors for expulsion., specifically those strictly so-called, which are to be administered for dissolving phlegm original: "pituita" before the matter is purged. He limits the number of these to only two medicines, and those "hermaphroditic" in nature—that is, of a mixed nature according to the proportion of the humor they are joined with—which are both helpful and sufficient.

In other respects, all Cephalic head-related, Thoracic chest-related, Stomachic, and especially Splenetic spleen-related, Uterine, and Diuretic remedies belong to the Digestives; these are commonly known by the name of "warming medicines."

Vitriolated Tartar Potassium sulfate does not have a very pleasant flavor because of the Oil of Tartar; this is corrected if a well-flavored water or cinnamon water is drawn off from it, or if a few drops of oil of cinnamon are added. See the notes to Croll on Digestives.

Cream of Tartar is wrongly confused by pharmacists and others for the sake of profit with "Crystals of Tartar," whereas "Cream" is properly collected from the surface after evaporation like a thin skin, and is therefore of a more volatile nature; by contrast, "Crystals" settle more firmly at the bottom.

Spirit of Tartar also provides an excellent digestive, and in chronic diseases, it exerts its powers strongly by resolving phlegm when given in doses from 1 scruple to half a drachm. See Croll.

But the True Tincture of Tartar excels above all others—not the common variety, which is produced only by the reaction of spirit of wine, where little or nothing of the Salt of Tartar is released into the tincture (which can be seen from the fact that the weight of the Salt of Tartar does not decrease). Our author provides the preparation in his notes to Croll, where he rightly advises that it must be made using a "homogeneous spirit" A solvent of the same nature as the substance being dissolved. However, he remains silent here regarding the necessary manual technique original: "encheiresis" by which, once the homogeneous spirit is poured on, the Tartar is totally dissolved. The solvent is then partially drawn off, and what remains, when placed in "digestion" gentle heat, shows various color phenomena; finally, after a space of about six months, it turns into the desired tincture. If you do not know that manual technique, you will achieve nothing.

Nor does the Spirit of Sal Ammoniac Ammonium chloride and its "flowers" sublimated powder deserve the lowest place; you shall distill the spirit in the following way: Take Sal Ammoniac and Salt of Tartar, equal parts of each as much as you wish. Mix them exactly in a warm mortar, then put the mixture into a retort. Having attached a large receiver, distill it from a sand bath with the fire increased by degrees. Soon a volatile Spirit will come forth like a liquid, and a volatile salt will be sublimated, clear like Camphor. Dissolve this in the volatile spirit and keep it for use in a well-sealed vessel. The dose is from 15 to 30 drops. From the remains at the bottom of the gourd the bottom of the distillation vessel after the distillation of the spirit, you can wash out a "fixed salt" with common water that is not to be despised; its dose is from 1 scruple to half a drachm. It is well known that Sal Ammoniac is composed of a more fixed common salt and a more volatile urine salt, yet the flavor is of neither, but rather a third and entirely different flavor acquired from the internal reaction. If, therefore, such a spirit could be distilled from it without the admixture of anything else—obtaining the powers of both the common salt and the volatile urine salt together and "hermaphroditically"—anyone can easily conclude it would be a most effective medicine. But since a volatile spirit cannot distill without an additive to hold back the body of the acid salt, and an acid spirit cannot distill without the separation of the volatile spirit, science has not yet reached that point. Therefore, until a more fortunate hand shows the way, we must be content with the "flowers," which some drive upward from molten salt and others from iron dross; the dose of these is from half a scruple to 1 scruple.

I add the much-celebrated Liquor of the Most Famous Sylvius Franciscus Sylvius (1614–1672), a Dutch physician known for his iatrochemical theories, of which various descriptions are given; this is the one I have at hand:
Take: May Dew water, 8 ounces,
Volatile Salt of Hartshorn, 1 drachm,
Spirit of Hartshorn, 2 drachms,
Sal Ammoniac, half a drachm.
Mix to make a Liquor.

For my own use, I am accustomed to prepare it thus: I pour May Dew over aromatic seeds or roots which I have chosen

to select; I place them in "digestion" for several days, about 14, and then distill:
Take: Distilled water from the herbs above, 8 ounces,
Volatile Salt of Hartshorn, 1 drachm,
Volatile Salt of Amber, 2 drachms,
Spirit of Hartshorn, 2 drachms,
Sal Ammoniac, 1 drachm.
Mix to make a Liquor by digestion. Dose is from 20 to 30 drops.

VOMITS (EMETICS).

I. Among the Emetics, the first place is held by Blessed Water original: "aqua Benedicta", so named by Martin Rulandus.
(Its use is remarkable in "Hungarian Fever" Likely typhus: also in pleurisy, especially at the beginning while strength is firm; or, if necessity urges, even on the fourth or fifth day when no sign of a favorable crisis appears. See the preparation below.)

II. There is Syrup of Blessed Water, concerning which see the notes to Croll.

White Salt.

III. White Salt: use of this is rarer; from half a drachm to 1 drachm dissolved in mint or barley water moves the stomach to vomit. It is White Vitriol Zinc sulfate; if you desire it purer, dissolve it in water of lesser centaury, filter the solution, coagulate it, and again dissolve, filter, and coagulate; do this a third time. Finally, dissolve it in rose water, filter the solution, and digest it in warm ashes for 6 days. Separate the dregs that fall to the bottom, and evaporate the clear part to dryness. Dose: 2 scruples, with conserve of Roses, wine, mead, or barley water, adding syrup of vinegar or oxymel as desired.

IV. Gilla of Paracelsus Vomitive salt of vitriol, as it appears in Croll.

Plater's Vomitory.

V. Plater’s Vomitory made from green walnuts, Radish, and wine vinegar.
Take: walnuts collected around the feast of St. John [Midsummer],
Radish root, 2 parts of each.
Distilled wine vinegar, 2 parts.
Once the walnuts and Radish are crushed, let them digest in gentle heat for 5 or 6 days, then distill through an Alembic in a Water Bath. Dose: 2 drachms to half an ounce. It is strengthened with a half-dose of Blessed Water, or even a 3rd or 4th part.

Conradine Vomitory.

VI. Conradine Vomitory, concerning which see Croll.

Nail parings.

VII. Nail parings, in wine or another liquor. (Also burnt ox horn (or that of another animal) extinguished in water.)
Note: In cases of dropsy edema/fluid retention, if parings of the finger and toe nails are placed on the patient's navel, they say it miraculously expels the water. Master C. H. of Basel.

Coagulum of Asarum.

VIII. Coagulum of Asarum, from the whole Asarabacca plant. That is, a tincture is extracted from the root and leaves with spirit of wine, which is joined with the purified salt of the same plant; after digestion in a Water Bath with gentle heat, the spirit of wine is drawn off in the bath until it reaches the consistency of a "coagulum" a thick mass.

Another preparation.

MORE CLEARLY: In the month of May on a Thursday original: "♃" (the symbol for Jupiter/Thursday), take a sufficient quantity of Asarum roots with the leaves. Let them be carefully dried in the shade and 4 parts of them crushed; afterward, let rectified spirit of wine be poured over them in a vial so that it stands 4 fingers above. Let the vial be very well sealed and placed in a warm spot so that the spirit of wine is tinged with a greenish-yellow color. The tinted spirit is poured off from the dregs and kept in a closed vessel. From the remaining three parts burned to ashes, extract the Salt with hot water; this salt, once dried, is melted in a crucible over an open fire. Once removed from the fire and still flowing, it is dissolved in hot water, digested, and dried again. Over this salt, the tincture prepared above (on the previous page), having first been filtered through blotting paper, is poured; and in a gourd, the spirit of wine is drawn off slowly until it has the consistency of honey. 1 to 2 scruples or 1 drachm of this is administered in barley broth, mead, or watery oil in diseases where emetics are needed. Others simply macerate 4 leaves of Asarum in wine for 6 or 8 hours and administer the wine after the leaves have been gently pressed; they vomit without distress.
Asarum leaves.

Oil of Antimony with Barberries.

IX. Take: Antimony, 1 pound; barberry juice, 6 pounds. Let them stand in the sun or a warm place for one month. Afterward, pour off the juice, and extract the water until it has the consistency of a syrup; keep this for drying out ulcers. 20 drops at most of the remaining Oil move the stomach to vomit without violence: this is frequently used by Wertenberger in Basel.