An Hermetic Work.

shall have no rest nor sleep all this night ; but I Avisht her to have patience till next morning to expect this Elias , saying , perhaps he will return again to shew us the right maniier . Iu the meantime ( she being so earnest ) I commanded a fire to be made , thinking , alas ! now is this man ( though so divine in discourse ) found guilty of falsehood . And Secondly attributing the error of my projecting the grand theft of his powder in the dirt of my Nail to his charge , because it transmuted not the Lead that time ; And lastly , because he gave me too small a proportion of his said Medicine ( as I

thought ) to work upon so great a quantity of Lead as he pretended and appointed for it , Saying further to myself , I fear , I fear indeed this man hath deluded me ; Nevertheless my wife wrapped the said matter in Wax , and I cut halfe an Ounce , or six Drams of old Lead , and put into a Crucible in the fire , which being melted , my Avife put in the said Medicine made up into a small Pill or Button , ivkich presently made such a hissing and bubling in its perfect operationthat within a quarter of an hour all the masse of

, Lead was totally transmuted into the best and finest Gold , which made us ail amazed as Planets struck . And indeed ( had I lived in Ovids Age ) there could not haA'e been a rarer Metamorphosis then this , by the Art of Alkemy . Yea , coidd I have enjoyed Argus ' s Eyes , AA'ith a hundred more , I could not sufficiently gaze upon this so admirable and almost miraculous a work of nature ; for this melted Lead ( after projection ) shevA'ed us on the fire the rarest and most beautiful Colours imaginable ; yea , and the greenest

Colour , which tis soon as I poured forth into an Ingot , it got the lively fresh Colour of Blood : and being Cold shined as the purest and most refined transplendent Gold . Truly I , and all standing about me , AA'ere exceedingly startled , and did rtin AAuth this Aurified lead ( being yet hot ) unto the Goldsmith , who Avondred at the fineness , and after a short trial of Touch , judged it the most excellent Gold in the whole Avorld , and offered to g ive most willingly fifty Florens for every Ounce of it .

The next day a rumour AA'ent about the Hague , and spread abroad ; so that many illustrious Persons and Students gave me their friendly visits for its sake : Amongst the rest the general Sa 3 ' -master , or Examiner of the Coynes of this Province of Holland , Mr . Porelius , who with others earnestly beseeched me to pass some part of it through all their Customary trials , ivhich I did , the rather to gratifie my own Curiosity . Thereupon we went to Mr . Brectel , a Silver-Smith , Avho first tried it per Quartam , viz ., he mixt

three or four parts of Silver Avith one part of the said Gold , and laminated , filed , or gramdated it , and put a sufficient quantity of Aqua . Fort thereto , AA'hich presently dissoh'ed the Silver , and suffered the said Gold to precipitate to the bottom ; AA'hich being decanted off , and the Calx or PoAvder of Gold dulcified Avith AA'ater , and then reduced aud melted into a body , became excellent Gold : And Avhereas Ave feared loss , Ave found that eacli Dram of the said first Gold Avas yet increased , and had transmuted a Scruple of the said Silver into Gold , by reason of its great and excellent abounding Tincture .

But IIOAV doubting further Avhether the Sflver Avas sufficiently separated from the said Gold , Ave instantly mingled it AA'ith seA'en parts of Antimony , Avhich we melted and poured into a Cone , and bio wed off the Begulus on a Test , AA'here Ave missed eight Grains of our Gold , but after Ave blo \ A'ed aAA'ay the rest of the Antimony , or superfluous Scoria , we found nine . Grains of Gold more for our ei ght Grains missing , yet this Avas some-Avhat pale and Silver-like , AA'hich easily recovered its full Colour afterAA'ards ; So that in

the best proof of fire we lost nothing at all of this Gold ; but gained as aforesaid . The which proof again I repeated thrice , and found it still alike , and the said remaining Sih'er out of the Aqua Fortis , was of the A'ery best flexible Silver that coidd be ; So that in the total , the said Medicine ( or Elixir ) had transmuted six Drams and two Scruples of the Lead and Sih'er , into most pure Gold . Behold I have now related the full History , from the Philosophical Eggs to the

Golden A pples ( as the Proverb goes ) , and thougli I haA'e the Gold , yet where the Philosopher and Elias is I know not ; but wheresover he is the Almighty God ( protector of all Creatures ) shelter him from all danger under his wings ; and bring him to Eternal bliss and happiness in his heavenly Kingdom , after the end of his full pilgrimage in this life , for the succour and relief of Christendome , and the Avhole Ai'orld , Amen . 6