"At the time of my first publication, I was not possessed of a burning lens of any considerable force; and for want of one, I could not possibly make many of the experiments that I had projected, and which, in theory, appeared very promising. I had, indeed, a mirror of force sufficient for my purpose. But the nature of this instrument is such, that it cannot be applied, with effect, except upon substances that are capable of being suspended, or resting on a very slender support. It cannot be directed at all upon any substance in the form of powder, nor hardly upon any thing that requires to be put into a vessel of quicksilver; which appears to me to be the most accurate method of extracting air from a great variety of substances..."
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Experiments and Observations on Different Kinds of Air
Experiments and Observations on Different Kinds of Air (1774–86) was a six-volume work published by 18th-century British polymath Joseph Priestley. Later editions were "in three volumes: being the former six volumes abridged and methodized, with many additions." The work reports a series of Priestleys experiments on "airs" or gases, most notably his contributions to the discovery of oxygen gas (which he named "dephlogisticated air") and its properties. The book is an original source for study in
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