These considerations premis’d, will, I suppose, make way for the more easie reception of this following Explication of the Phaenomena of hardned and temper’d Steel.  That Steel is a substance made out of Iron, by means of a certain proportionate Vitrification of several parts, which are so curiously and proportionately mixt with the more tough and unalter’d parts of the Iron, that when by the great heat of the fire this vitrify’d substance is melted, and consequently rarify’d, and thereby the pores of the Iron are more open, if then by means of dipping it in cold water it be suddenly cold, and the parts hardned, that is, stay’d in that same degree of Expansion they were in when hot, the parts become very hard and brittle, and that upon the same account almost as small parcels of glass quenched in water grow brittle, which we have already explicated.  If after this the piece of Steel be held in some convenient heat, till by degrees certain colours appear upon the surface of the brightned metal, the very hard and brittle tone of the metal, by degrees relaxes and becomes much more tough and soft; namely, the action of the heat does by degrees loosen the parts of the Steel that were before streached or set atilt as it were, and stayed open by each other, whereby they become relaxed and set at liberty, whence some of the more brittle interjacent parts are thrust out and melted into a thin skin on the surface of the Steel, which from no colour increases to a deep Purple, and so onward by these gradations or consecutions, White, Yellow, Orange, Minium, Scarlet, Purple, Blew, Watchet, &c. and the parts within are more conveniently, and proportionately mixt; and so they gradually subside into a texture which is much better proportion’d and closer joyn’d, whence that rigidnesse of parts ceases, and the parts begin to acquire their former ductilness.

Now, that ’tis nothing but the vitrify’d metal that sticks upon the surface of the colour’d body, is evident from this, that if by any means it be scraped and rubb’d off, the metal underneath it is white and clear; and if it be kept longer in the fire, so as to increase to a considerable thickness, it may, by blows, be beaten off in flakes.  This is further confirm’d by this observable, that that Iron or Steel will keep longer from rusting which is covered with this vitrify’d case:  Thus also Lead will, by degrees, be all turn’d into a litharge; for that colour which covers the top being scum’d or shov’d aside, appears to be nothing else but a litharge or vitrify’d Lead.

This is observable also in some sort, on Brass, Copper, Silver, Gold, Tin, but is most conspicuous in Lead:  all those Colours that cover the surface of the Metal being nothing else, but a very thin vitrifi’d part of the heated Metal.