The

Tor
ch

of

Nat
ural
Phi
l
osophy

andofi
tsef
fect
s

i
nthef
orm of

t
heexpl
i
cat
ionofav
isi
on

or

occul
trev
eri
e

by

P.
N.R.
T.
al
soknownas

t
heOwl

or

Scr
eechOwl

1652

t
ransl
atedi
ntoEngl
i
sh

BY

MI
KEDI
CKMAN

FOREWORD

Iwell
wott
hatthegr
eaterpartoft
hosewhoexami nethi
smyl
it
tl
ebook,
whichmightbestbe
ter
medanabri
dgementordigestoft
heri
chestsecret
sandwor
ksofnat
ureshal
lnotfai
ltosay
thati nt ruth' t
waswr i
tofapl easure,andbywayofdi vert
issement ,
inasmuchassev eralamong
them dov auntthemselv est hatt heypossest heknowl edge, andthetruesecretoft hisuniv ersal
medi cine, butofwhichunt ilnowt heyhaveseennoef f
ect,beingunableli
keunt omanyanot her,
tobel i
ev enori maginet hatsuchbewi thinthepowerofmen, t
oatleastpermitt hem topal pabl y
toucht het r
uthofthesubj ectandofi t
soper ations,thewhi chwoul dtakeupt oomucht i
me,
fi
ndi ngf ewt herethi
nkev ent of alli
nwithsuchr esolution,forthi
ssciencebenothadbutby
study ,labourandhar dwor k, manyl ongy earshav i
ngpassedbef oreoneacqui rethperf ect
knowl edge, al
beitf
rom t hef irstIhadinpossessi ont hetrueandonl ymateri
a, knowl edgeoft he
principal operati
on,greati ntelli
genceandf acil
i
t yinther eadingofthebooksbyt hebestaut hors
oft hissci ence.'
Tiswhyf ormyownpar t,
Ipr ef
ermucht oleav et
hem totheiropi ni
on, forthis
secr eti ssonobl ei
tmi ghtf indexpr essionent i
rei nlessthansi xt
ywor ds[1]
.

'
Twouldbet omeaneasymattert
oshowtoyouhownatur
eoperat
ethinal
lthi
ngs,
tobri
ngto
l
ightheref
fect
s,andt
ocreat
eashort
cutoft
hatwhi
chthebestaut
horsall
egethemostl
ovel
y
t
hingofall
.

Butknowi ngthistobebutusel esspr oli

xity,fortheyhav espokenoft hissciencemostsagel y
andclearlythatnoneneeddoubtofi t,hav etheynott heireyesst oppedup, Ishallcontent
my sel
fwi t
hexecut ingt hepl anIhav eunder taken,ani tbenott oohar dyami dstt he
pertur
bationsoft hi
st ime[ 2],andt odeclaret hemostsucci nctlythatImay , wit
houtobscur at
ion
ofv ai
ndiscourse; t
hewhi cht endmor et ov eilt
hisscience,thanbr ingi ttothel ightofday ,
for
thedesir
eIhav ethatcur i
ousmi ndsmaydr awf rom itandtakesomepr ofit
.Nonet hel
essshallI
,
bywayofwar ning,sayi npassingt hatast hoset hingsthataremostbeaut eousandr areare
commonl ymostf acil
ei nt heiroperati
ons, andt hatoftenthosev erymi ndst hatconsi der
themselvessubt l
e, wisht omakedearandcar r
yofsomet hingoft heirowni nventi
on, i
tisoft
en
thecaset hattheer rf
r om t hepat handar ef r
ustratedintheirhopes, asar et hosewhor at
her
thanempl oytheirstudi estot heknowl edgeoft heef f
ectsoft hingsbot hsolidandper manent
restcontentwithdistract i
ngt hem insear chofaf ewsi mples, whichf rom onedayt othenext
mayl oset hei
rvir
tuesandqual it
ies.

Bywayofconcl
usi
on,thi
nkingtolaybareanddisclosedtot hei
rvi
ewallthatdependsont heAr
t,
Iwi
sh,i
nthefor
m ofadiscourse,
simpleenought hatthosewhohav etheslight
estknowledge
oft
hesethi
ngsmightunderst
and,tofr
amet othem asucci nctwordortwoast othetrue
mater
iaanditsoper
ati
on;
myi nt
enti
onbeingnottotur
nthem fr
om thedi
rectpat
h,butt
olead
t
hem ther
euponasbestImight,
that
,car
ryingof
fthepri
zeofthefl
eecetheycometoowet ome
acert
ainobl
igat
ion.

ASUMMARYOFTHEPHI
LOSOPHI
CALWORK

Itwoul dbebestatfirst,
andbeforetocommencesomeot herthing,thatIdoreasonper
ti
nently
ast othatwhi chweseekandcl aimtodo,thati
stoknowthemat eriaandprinci
plet
hewhi ch
risethfrom themetall
icroot
,orderedf
orthegener
ati
onofmet al
s[ 3],f
oreachandeverything
bei tvegetableormineral
,hathit
sseedthewhichmightmult
iply
.

Wor
msseekoutt
heear
th,

Fi
shwat
er,
bir
dst
heai
r,

Beest
hef
low’
rthatt
osweet
esthoneydot
hgi
vebi
rt
h,

AndAr
tnat
ure’
str
easur
eri
chestandmostf
air

Whi
chi
stosayt
hemedi
cineuni
ver
sal
whi
cht
heyseek.

I
fcur
iousmi
ndst
osuchapoi
ntwoul
dreach

Lett
hem t
hent
onat
ure’
shi
ghwayst
rai
tl
ykeep.

Onetakethfi
rstamet alpur
eandclean,t
hespir
itofwhi
chli
vet
hsecret
lyi
nthebowelsoft
he
ear
th,whichfreedfrom i
tsbondsbytheworkofhewhoknowethhow,str
ivet
omountt ot
he
mountainpeak[ 4]
,andasmuchaswast hismetalhar
d,i
sitr
ender
edsoftbyArti
nimit
ati
onof
nat
ure[5].

Thi
smi
schi
evousel
ementofourf
ecundsea[
6]i
stor
ch–bear
eroft
hisgol
denf
leece,
't
ishewho
holdst hekeytot hi
sr i
cht r
easuretrovef orlackofwhi chnotaf ewhavestumbledi nthewaves.
Amer cury,
ferment i
ngf r
eelyofit
self,ofanot hermer cury,
asul phurofanothersulphur,
which
drawbyal embi c,mixbyaccur atewei ght;andcauset ocoagulatebyheatcontinualwhich
mul t
ipli
edandf erment edmaypr oducet hatwesear ch.Thisaccessspokeunt ot hoseashave
goodlyear sjoi
nedt omyDr eam theyshal lamplydeducet hatwhi chisrequi
redandnecessary
tothear tandpar ti
cularl
yuntothepr imeoper at
ionconcerningt hewhichbutfewaut horshave
spoken, butont hecont r
ary,hi
dden, untotheirabil
it
y, andlacki
ngt hewhichmaynonecomet o
thi
sar t.

THEAUTHOR’
SDREAM

Uponacer t
aindayi nthemonthofMaywhereinIhadoccupiedmymi ndatvari
oustasks,
desi
ri
ngdistract
ionsuchasoneseekethattheSpri
ngti
de,Ididpassbyplacesmostdelicious
andagreeabl
et ot hesi
ght
,wherei
nhavingl
ongadmiredthi
sgr eatworkofnat
ure,
layi
ngmy sel
f
downupont hegr eenswar
d,Iwaso’er
comebyapr of
oundsleepandt hisf
oll
owedbyadr eam.

Byt hewhi chitcamet omet hatIwasupont heheightsofamount ainofmostdi f

fi
cultaccess
[7]
,wher eonagoodl yFatherhermit,asoulmostl earnedinallSciences[ 8]hadl ongtimemade
hisabodeandhabi tati
on,andhavingapproachedmy selft
oi t
,Ididper ceivethisvenerablesage,
whost eppedout ,
whoi nthati
nstantdidmy selfespy;myhav ingofferedsal utati
on,he
proceededt oenquir
ebywhatr outeIhadcomehi ther,i
tbeingwel l
–nighi naccessible,sayi
ng
thatt hehelpfulGodhadledmet here[9],consideri
ngthefactt hat,
bycauseoft hedanger s
i
nv olved,ri
ghtfewhadappr oachedhi mthroughoutmany ’
sthel ongyear ,t
houghnotaf ewhad
setf ort
ht odoso.

Andhavi
nganswered,t
hatallst
emmedf rom di
vi
nebount
y,hepr
ovedmostfav
ourabl
etowar
d
me,andunder
taki
ng,andthatnoper
ilhadhadthepowertodi
ver
tme,f
orthegoodlyt
oil
Ihad
madeasregar
dshisdoctr
ineandhisperson.

Thewhi
chl
aidhi
m underobl
i
gat
iont
orecei
vememostf
avour
abl
yandexpl
ainunt
ome
manif
oldsubjectsamongt hewhichthatwhichhadmov edhi mt otakeupthatextraordinar
y
abode[10],t
hewhichwasnoot herthingbutthatsamecur iosi
tyIhadmy selfhad,
wher e
remai
nedhi m onl
y,orsev
eni nt
hatplaceandi nother
scircumjacent,t
hewhi chdespisingall
worl
dlygoodsandf ort
unehadpassedt her
el ongyears,
ev enuntotwocent uri
esentir
ei nheal
th
mostperfect.

ButinthatIwasr ightwear i
edoft hedi stanceIhadt r
aveled,visi
ti
ngt hisplaceandassai ledby
anextraordinaryhungerandt hir
st,andwhi chbef armor econsi deringthatinthatplacewasno
waywher ebymi ghtbepr oducedv ictuals[11],andt hati
nt hisIsawnomannerwher ebyImi ght
makesomeseeml yr et
reatinthi
sext remi tybutwoul dincursomemeasur eofdi sgrace, coupl
ed
wit
ht hediffi
cultyoft heroute,andt het i
meIwoul dneedt oarriv
eatasmal lhamletwhi ch
nestl
edatt hefootoft hatmount ain,inhabitedbyt woort hreeper sonsandofacondi t
ionso
mercenaryt hattheyabandoned, notonl ytheirhealth,buttheirli
ves, i
nthelabourt hey
perf
ormed, inthatpl ace[12].

Iknewnott owhichsai ntIshoul dcommendmy selfforthef earIhadt hatIwoul dtheremake

mycemet ery,t
hatwhi chthegoodanci entappr i
sed, whospokeunt omeasf ollows: "
Myson, be
withoutf earforallgoodnessst i
rsmet ogi v
et heeal lthati swithinmypower ,andt houshal tfi
nd
heret hatwi t
hwhi cht oassuaget hycur iosit
ywhi chdi dst i
rtheet ounder takesohi ghan
enterprise,andIshal ll
eadt heet oseet hingswor thyofgr eatadmi r
ation;whi chwor dsseemed
mesosweetandagr eeable, thatIthoughtnomor eonhungerandt hi
rstsoev er,sowel lt
hat
havingent eredinhi schamber sIbegant odescr yasi ter i
ghtdar ksomeandunpl easantwhich
knewnoot herdaybutt hroughasky l
ight ,whichIespi edi nthemi dstoft hev aul t
,thewhich
obligedonet ohav ealwayst ohandabr ightlamp, bycauseoft henumer ousdet oursdisposed
forent rance,wit
hint hewhi chwer et obef oundaquant ityofladdersmeett ot hatend, t
hust o
avoidt hedisgraceonemi ghti ncurther e[13].Itsf urni
shi ngallwer erudemadeoft hings
met all
ic,whichglistenedtot hesi ghtlikesmal lstars.Thepl acewher einhet ookr epose,wascut
i
ntot her ockandmosti mpr essivef orachi l
dofSat urn[ 14]hadt heret akenbi rth.

Howeverthesethings,di
dnotprev
entint hel
eastthememor ywhichretur
nedt omeofsogr eat
anhungerandthirst[15]
,somuchsot hatthegoodFat herHermitrecogni
singit,
kneltdown,
makinghi
spr ayers,t
hewhichnosoonercompl eted,butIespiedabird[16farexceedingal
l
ot
hersinsizeenterattheskyl
i
ght,beari
ngstrongresembl ancetoaneagle,whichheldinit
s
beak,t
hatwhichwouldsuffice,notonl yfori
tsownf ood,butmor et
hansuffi
cienttosustai
nus,
whichbir
dhenamedhi sprovider,whichsincehissolit
arysojour
nhadeveraidedhimf orall
thi
ngsinwhichhemi ghthaveneed[ 17];Whil
etakingourrefecti
on,
hespokewi thmeofgr eat
matter
s,amongstotherstheef fectsofnature,whereonhesai dhehadpassedt hegreat
erpart
ofhisst
udy[18],
thatinthi
spl acewast hefi
rstabodeofHer mesTrismegi
stus,Fatherof
Phil
osopher
sinwhom wast hesour ceofhi smosthi ddensecret
s.

Hisdi scour seandspeech, wassodi verti

ngt hatt het i
mehungnotonmyhands, j
oinedt owhi ch
thereci talhemadeunt omeofgent l
enessandr ari
tyoft heabodesoft hosewhom cr ueldeat h
hadr aptf rom hi m whom her egrettedrightst r
ong, sucht hatt hedinnerbei ngov er,curi
oust o
viewt hese, Irequest edt hatheaccor dmet hat ,andf orthwi th,hecausedmet oent er[19],unto
thefirstabode, int hemi dstofwhi chwasdescr iedapi llarofbr onze, whereinwer egardeda
nichewher euponwasr epresentedinscul pture,thef igureofananci ent[20],
largeasl ife,robed
i
nbl ack, holdingi nhi srighthandascy t
he, andwi ththeot herat abletwithebonyf rame,
wher eonwaspai nt edacor pseupont hewhi chwer er angeddi versv esselsdisposedf ort otake
earthi napl acet hatseemedt omer i
ghtmonst r
ous, andal lcompassedaboutbyt hissea, to
enterunt othewhi ch,therewer ethreegr eatar ches[ 21]beneat hwhi ch,onemustneedspass, of
mostdi ffi
cultappr oach, fashionedofdi versor ders,itwaswel ltoknow, i
nasmuchast heoneof
thesewasf avour abletonav i
gati
on, t
heot hergr eatlydi stancingt hev oyagerfrom hi sstraight
road; andt heot hersoper il
ous, t
hatnonemi ghtappr oachi twithmi shapandwr eck,thi
ssea
produci ngabl acksand[ 22].

Inthesecondabode, thedayappearedrightst
rongandpleasant[
23]
,andt herewast her
e
representedamanr obedinred,hol
dinginhisri
ghthandaswor dandintheot herasquare
tabl
ett hecol
ourofcinnabar
,uponthewhi chwasdepictedaGoldenFleece,thattheGood
FatherHer mi
tsai
dcoul dnotbehadbutwi t
hgreatpai
ns,l
abourandindustry;t
hef l
oorofthi
s
abodewascov er
edo’erofasandswar thyincolour[
24].

Inthet
hir
dwasr epr
esent
edthefi
gureofawomani nr
eli
ef,r
obedi nagownofgr een[
25],
it
seemedtomet hegoddessofSpri
ng[26]
,hol
dingi
nherhandat abletofopalcol
our,wher
eon
wasdepict
edanhermaphrodi
te;t
hefl
oorofthi
sabodewascov eredo’erwithsandofa
changi
ngcolour
.
I
nt hefourthwasf i
guredanamphi t
heatr
eupont hewhichwasseat edt hefi
gureofaman, robed
i
nal ongmant leofclothofgoldlinedwither mine,
holdinginhisri
ghthandascept re[27],above
hisheadwasadi scfi
lledwithsmal l
suns, andatthehighestpointofthisamphitheatre,agreat
tabl
etframedinbur ni
shedgol dupont hewhi chwasdepi ct
edthemostbeaut eousfiguresand
ri
chinventi
onsofPhi lostr
ates;t
hef l
ooroft hi
sabodewascov eredo'erwit
hasandi nnowi se
yell
owish,butseemingbr i
ll
iantl
ikeuntoflecksofgold.

Inthefi
f t
habode,andi nthepri
nci
plepartt
hereofwasr epr
esentedathroneuponthewhichwas
seateday ounggirlr
obedi nawhit
egown, holdi
nginherhandacr escent[28]
,andattheli
mit
s
ofthisthronether
ewasat abl
etwit
hsilv
erframewher euponalsowasdepi ct
edagreatfount
ain
whichcast et
htwol i
quors,oneofwhit
eandt heotherofred,wi
thinthedepthsofwhich
appearedar edcolouredsand[29]
.

Inthesi xthabodewasasi t
emostext r
aordi
narythewhi chmeseemedl i
tbyaquant it
yof
torchesaboutwhi cht ur
nedandwhi rl
edaconcour seofmot hsf i
nallytoimmol atet hemsel ves,
i
nt hemi dstofwhi chuponasmal l
pilasterwasay outhrobedi ntaffet
asofchangi ngcol our,
holdi ngi nhandacaduceus[ 30],andal laboutthisabodewer edi verstableauxf ramedi nv ar
ious
colour s, upont hewhi chwer erepresent edprocessionsandot herfiguresordev otions[ 31],
whi chseemedt omet obeinimi tati
onoft hoseIhadf ormer l
yseenatt hecemet eryoft heHol y
Innocent si nParis,thewhichobl i
gedmet omakemypr ayer,themor esoi nthatt hisplaceme
seemedr i
ghtdev ot i
onal,
but,asitseemedt othegoodFat herHermi tsomewhatov erlongand
unint eresting,hei nformedmet hat'twasunnecessar ythatItarrylonger,themor esoi nasmuch
asi nt hef inalabode, hehopedt or eveal t
omeal lthatmycur iosit
ymi ghtwi shf or,andt o
expl aint omet hatwhi chIhadher eseen.

Socuri
ouswasItolearn,al
beitmyspiri
twasf arf
rom penetr
ati
ng,
wewer ebesideasmall
mountai
ncloseenoughtothisplace,t
heent
ranceuntowhi chwasagat eennobledwitha
mult
it
udeofpreci
ousstonesandt hewhich,
rightfewbesideshim,
mi ghtopen,hadtheynott
he
tr
uekey,andabovewhichwasasl atecol
ouredmar bl
e,whereonwerewr i
tthesewords.*

Andhavinglai
dopent hi
slast
,weent
er edi
nuntoacomelyandagreeableabode,wit
hinwhi
ch
weresetdiver
stabl
eauxthewhichhesaidwerethecreat
ionofApul
eus,Cunrath,
the
Cosmopolit
e,Pol
iphi
lusandother
s,f
il
ledwitht
hingswort
hyofadmirat
ion[32],
andhemade
unt
omeampl
edi
scour
seast
othei
rsi
gni
fi
cat
ion.

I
nt hemidstoft hi
sabode,wasar ockwhencecamef orthtwoser pent
s,theonewingedandthe
othernot,
andupont hisrockwasanher maphrodi
te[33]holdi
ngagl obewhi chf
ell
int
ofour
parts,
thewhi chweretosigni
fythefour[34]el
ement
s,andj oi
ningtogetheragai
n,r
ender
ed
them confusedandmi xedtoget
her,whichcouldt
henagainbesetapar t.

Aboutt hisabodewer erepresentedthefi

guresIhadbef or
eseen,whi
chwer einscul
ptures
l
ife–si
ze, thewhi chbytheirmov ementfr
om theart
istandindust
ryfr
om theGoodlyFather
Hermit[ 35],seemeddisposedf ortodanceaball
et,thewhichIest
eemedt obetheDanceoft he
Gods; Attachedt othi
srockwasacol umnri
ghthigh,aboutwhichwereengrav
edinlett
ersof
goldthesewor ds—empt yift
hat—andbel owinletter
sofsilv
erwhatfol
lowsast ot
heor derof
thechar actersintheball
et[36]
.

Sat
urn,
fir
sti
nvi
ri
li
ty,
shal
li
naugur
atet
hedance,

Jupi
terf
oll
owsaf
terf
ort
oimi
tat
ehi
spr
ance,

Mar
s,bot
hgr
eatandbel
l
icose,
wil
lgi
vet
oitcadence,

TheSuni
nduestor
dershal
lhav
ehi
swal
konpar
t,

Venus,
finer
obed,
whof
rom danci
ngcannotkeepher
sel
fapar
t,

Thi
sst
rangeMer
cur
ywoul
ddet
est
,

Wer
eitnott
hatsoonaf
tert
heMoonappear
ethnext
,

Causi
ngt
h'ent
ir
ebal
l
eti
tsmov
ementt
opossess.

andpausi ngtoreadandconsi derthesewr iti

ngs,forthatImi ghtcompr ehendtheirsense, I
espiedont heinstantthatthet woser pentswereappr oachi
ngme, oneoft hem shootingforth
fl
amesoff i
re,
byi tsmaw, andtheot heraliquorsof oulandst inki
ng,thatIwasconst r
ainedto
quittheplaceforthwit
h, buttheGoodFat herHermi t,
foll
owingmecl osef ortobidmeadi eu,as
mar kofhisgoodwi l
lgav emepr esentofasmal lvolumeofhi sowncomposi ti
on,from whenceI
havedr awnandext ractedal l
thisdiscourseandt hatwhichf ollows,andwhi chexplainedf r
om
wor dtowor dthatwhichhehadcausedmet osee, andofasmal l
containerinthewhi chhe
professedwasapowderbey ondall pri
ce.
Wi shingt ot hankhi mf orsuchbount y,Ifoundmy selft hatver yinstantdepr iv
edofhi scompany ,
sucht hatbei ngingr eaterdi ff
icult
ythanev er,inthatIknewnoti nwhi chplaceIwas, Ihad
recour set opr ayerthewhi chbei nggranted,Idiscov eredt hatt hi
spl acewasatnof arremove
from myor dinarydwel l
ing, ofwhi chIwasmuchr ejoiced.Suchj oyhowev erwast obeofbut
shor tdur at
ion, inthatshor tlyafter,
Ifoundmy selfi
nv est edbysev eralpersonslay ingcl ai
mt o
beinggr andphi losopher st hatwet ermint heseday ssouf fl
eur sorpuf fers,whom Ibel i
eved
disposedt or aptf r
om met hegiftwhichhadbeengi venme, especi allyinasmuchast hey
conv ersedr i
ghtf amili
aront hewhol eofnat uralphilosophyandi tsoper ati
ons,argui ngmost
diverselyconcer ningit,who, t
akingmy selftobeoneoft hei
rCabal from thewhi chIwasr ight
distanced, hav inghel dev ertheirpropositi
onsi nhor ror,beggedmet ogivemyopi nionupont hei
r
i
deas, fr
om whi chhav ingexcusedmy selfsuchaswaspossi ble,nonet hel
essbyt hei r
i
mpor tunity, imaginingt hemsel vesatmydi scourseexper tint hisscience, Iwasconst rai
nedto
speakmymi nd,thewhi chobl igedmet omaket hem t hef ol
lowi ngdi scourse.

Albei
tthephil
osophersofol dhavewellenoughsett owrit
ingtheadmirabl
esecr etofthepower
ofbothArtandNature, br
ingi
ngtoli
ghtt hisrichFleeceorUniver
salMedicine,andthatmany
havesetaboutsearchingitout,t
hegreaterpar tofthesehavefoundbutlit
tlefrui
t,t
herebeing
fewamongt hem whomi ghtsay,wi
thtruth,thattheywellhaveunderst
oodt heiri
ntenti
ons,even
l
esst hei
rsubj
ectandoper ati
ons,whichsur passthecommonmi nd,
havingbeenwr i
tonlyf
or
thosewhohav ethetrueandper f
ectunder standi
ng, wi
thouttheaidofwhichdiffi
culti
sitto
comeatt hi
sArt.

Nonet hel
essthatwhichIspokeuntothem wasnotbydesi gntodivertthem,northeircur
iosit
y
thewhi chIcheri
shedmosthighl
y ,
buttopr ev
entt hewasteofti
meandgoodst heymi ghtthere
boot l
essconsume, r
ecognisi
ngbytheircontr
arinessthatt
heywererightfarfr
om thegoal of
theiri
ntenti
ons,addedtowhichthefactthattheyhereundert
ookaffair
sbot hgreatanddiffi
cult
,
withouttheleastpri
nci
ple.

Thi
sdi scour
seended, cer
tai
ngleanedthebett
erpar
tofthi
sadv i
ce,andthankedme; others
cur
sedmecl ai
mi ngIhadremovedfrom t
hem all
hope,r
egret
ti
ngt hegreatexpensetheyhad
i
ncurredthere,andamongt her
estandSaturni
nefel
low,whoclai
medhi mselfagr eat
phi
losopheranddoct orofmedi
cineofthethi
rddegr
ee,whonotcont entwit
ht hemaledict
ions
hehadaddr essedmecal l
ingmeawi lydr
eamermadeawi shthatIfalli
ntoadr eam t
hatshould
proveasi
rr
it
ati
ngtome,ifnotmoreso,thanmydiscour
sehadpr
ovedt
othem,
whi
chwi
shno
soonermadethanwasaccompli
shed,andIfor
thwit
hcommencedtodr
eam.

If oundmy selfagai
ninl andunknown, wher ewer emount ains, t
houghnotsohi ghast hose
afor ementioned,andent eri
ngfortuitouslywi thinoneoft hewhi ch,i
tseemedmet hatIdi d
per ceiv
eitsent r
ail
sbeingsear chedandbur r
owedi nt o,notindeedwi t
houtgr eatappr ehensi on,
consi deri
ngt hedepthandobscur i
tyoft hepl acefil
ledwi thdiv erspathsst reami ngwi thwat eri
n
mostobnoxi ousamanneranddi fficulttohol dto,hadi tnotbeenbygoodf ortune, thatIcame
acrossamanwhoof f
eredt oserveasgui de,andar medwi thagoodl ylampandt henecessar y
equi pmentf ortopenetratesuchpl aces, whi chhepai ntedtomer i
ghtdanger ous, andwhose
companymeseemedmostf av
our able,inasmuchashecl aimedof t
ent ot hef requentt heplace,
wher eheshowedt omewhowasl itt
lecont entofi t
, hav i
nghear dt
elltheper ilthatwasi ni
t,
someper sonswhowi thmi ghtyblowsoft hehammerr ightcut ti
ngseemedf aint ogr aduallybeat
thismount ai
ndown, knocki ngfr
om i tchi psingr eatnumber ,thewhi chwer eaf terward
transpor t
edbyahol ewhi chseemedt omedi sposedt ojustthisendi nt hecent reoft hesummi t
.

Andhav i
ngdescendedintothi
sandbeggedt heguidetoshowunt omet heremainderofthi
s
place,heansweredthatmycur i
osit
yshouldbeassuaged,inasmuchaswewer enowatadept h
horrendousandincredi
bletomany ,andt
hatitwasnothisintenti
ontogof ur
ther
:inwhichwe
wer esoonafteri
mpededbymeansofav apourorexhal
ati
on, whi
chhav i
ngsadlybutstar
ted
forthrender
edussenselessofallandmov el
ess,al
beitwecamet ooursensesagainalit
tl
e
after.

Ihear dt henmygui delamenti

ngandmaki nggr eatclamourf orthathi
slamponf al
li
nghadgone
out,andhebey ondal l
hopeofev erfi
ndingorreli
ghtingit
,holdingthatmytoogreatcuri
osi
ty
woul dbet hecauseofourlossthewhi chwasinev i
table,
andwi shi
nginsomewisetoconsole
him, albeitmyt er
rorwasgreaterthanhisown,Iconj ur
edt hatheshouldhaver
ecour set
othat
helpful deity
,whowasourt rueguide,pray
inghimt hathecomet oourai
dandsav eusfr
om that
extremi ty.

Ther
efel
lthenuponourear
sav
oice,
whosewor
dswer
ethef
oll
owi
ng:
"
Iam Heofwhom y
eseekai
d."

andi nthati nstantther eappear edal umi nositymostef fulgentwhi chItookf orthelightningbolt
hurledbyJupi terinpuni shmentofmyt oogr eatcur iosi
ty,bymeansofwhi chmygui dehav ing
recov eredhi sl ampandt hatwhi chheneededwhi chi nhisfalli
nghadf ortuit
ouslyslidintoav ein
oft hismount ainnott oof ardi stantf
rom us, thewhi chwasr i
ghtbril
li
ant,hebegant ost r
ikehis
fl
intandt or elightit
, givi
ngt hanksunt oGod, forsuchgoodf or t
une:wemadet heprompt est
retur npossi ble,somuchsot hatquitoft hatpl aceandr eturnedi nt
osafehar bour,Imade
prot estati
onnev ertor et
ur nther emor e,butf atiguedoft helongr oadandt het ri
alsendur ed
there, wer est edour selvescl osebyaf ount ainnear by,t
hewhi chwasenv ironedi nallpartsbya
stonecl earascr ystal[37],int hedepthsofwhi chwast obeseenagr avel mostdel i
cate,brown
i
ncol our ,
,andi tseemedmesomehotv apor s,issuingf r
om t heear t
h,orsomesubt er r
aneanf i
re
didcausei ttodi sti
lrightmi ldly,andnotoft heor derofot herdiffer
entfountains,atwhi chIwas
great lyastoni shed,andabov ei twasadome–l ikef orm whichdi dreceiv
ecer tainoft hevapors,
whi cht ransf ormedi nt oawat ermostcl earandbr ight,carri
edbyasmal lchannel t
oasi teclose
by.

Whi chfount ain,myguidei nf or

medmewasofr ightgreatvirt
ueandpr opert omanyt hings, and
enquiri
ngofhi m, i
fthatwat erremai nedcont inuallywheret hechannel didbr ingi t,
heanswer ed
meno, butthati twascar riedthenceandcastbackupont hepl acef rom whi chi twast akenand
thi
sr ei
teratedbysev eralanddi verst imes, andt hatinfi
net hisfount ainhadt hepowert o
produceandbr i
ngtol i
ghtofdayaseedbey ondal lpri
ce[38],li
nkbymar velousl inks,whi chdid
accumul ateal laboutthatdome; andt hei nhabi t
ant softhepl acehel dt hati
tpr oceededf rom the
forgesofVul can[39]whicht heybel i
ev edwer ebeneat hthisf ountain, f
rom whencecamef ortha
constantf i
rewhi chadmi ni ster
edi tselfnowwi thamoder atef i
reinimi tati
onofNat ur
e[ 40],now
withav ehementheatl ongcont i
nuingwhi chappear edtowi sht otransf ormt hef ount
ainent ir
e
i
ntof ir
e,whi chitsel
fhadt hepowert otransf ormi tsel
fintoaf urnace, inthewhi chappear ed
severalopeni ngswher einwer ecol l
ocat edsev eralvessel
sofgl ass[41] ,t
hewhi chendur edright
readil
yther igorsoft hefi
r e,inwhi chwer ev ariousconcoct ionsunknownt ome.

Andwi shingtoknowwhatwaswi thi

n,Ibegantosmellanodourri
ghtst
rong,andappl
yingmy
tonguefort otast
eabitterhumourwhi cht
heguidei
nformedmest emmedf r
om theheat
conti
nual andaHer cul
eanlabourwhichcausedmetodeem thattheSmithGodwouldhav e
needoff ait
hfulcompanyandofl onglabourt
oundert
aketheburdenofsuchwor k[
42].
Mor eover,Isawt her easeedwhi ch,atf irstrighthardandsol id,becomet hhumi d[43] ,
thewhi ch
onemi ghtf reel
ydi sposei nthedept hsofav essel r
ightnarrow[ 44] ,thatt heheatpenet rat
ingit
maybecar riedthroughout ,tothewhi chbeaddedaquant i
tyoft hewat eroft hatfount ainthe
whichwasr i
ghtscr upulouslyguarded[ 45],mor esoi nasmuchasi tof tdisti
ll
ednev ersowel l
as
whent wov esselswer ejoi
nedmout h–t o–mout h,placingthem abov eanoakenhol l
ow[ 46]
wit
hi nachi mney edf urnace[47],beneat hwhi chissetaconst antandcont i
nualfire,thewhi ch
maket happearv arietyofcolourswhi chaf terfortydays'space, changeal li
ntoacol ourblack
anddar k[48] ,f
oll
owednextbywhi te, thenf urtherir
isorr ai
nbow, sightr ightfai
rt osee, bycause
ofthedi v
er sit
yofi tscolours.Iwasadv isedbyt hegui dethatt heoccul theatwasnev erallowed
toceasewhent hatt heseedwasi nt hev essel,butthat,onthecont rary, wit
hgr eatlabourwas
thi
scont i
nuousf ir
eat tended,andt hatt husf rom dayt odayt hecol ourswer eseen, lit
tl
ebyl it
tle,
todiminish, andtodi sposet hemsel vest otakeagai nthecol ourwhi t
e, thisbymeansofsuch
heatofsi mi l
artothatwher ebythehenhat chet hforthherchi cks[ 49] .

Andal beitsucht hi
ngsmeseemedt omysi ghtr i
ghtpl easantandagr eeable,t
heymi ghtwel l
hav ebecomeanennui t
ome, bycauseoft hel ongspaceoft i
meIhadpassedi nregar di
ngt hem,
thewhi chwasappr oachingnoway ear ,
hadi tnotbeent hathavingseent hatwhitenessst artto
appear ,Ibecamecur i
ousast ot heend, thewhi chhav i
ngcome, i
tbroughtmef ort
hapowderof
themostext raor
dinarywhi t
e: andbr eakingthi sv essel f
ortoascer t
ainifi
tbenotacol our
feigned,Irecognisedt hatno,thetruthmygoodl yFat herHermithadt old,
andcar efullytaking
thewhi ch,Imadepr esentofasmal lpar tofitunt ot hegodMer cury[
50]whor eceiveditright
willi
ngly,andwho, enrapturedofi t
spl easantsmel l,
didst r
aight
wayst arttotasteofi tafter
(strangehappenst ance!)havingf i
rstexpel l
edf rom hi sbodydi versvapours,anddi sposedashe
wasassumedanat uresoheav yandsol i
dthathecoul dnol ongerstir
,ashadhedone
theretofore[51],
ofwhi chhewasgr eatlywrot h,pr otesti
nghewoul dvengehi mselfonmet he
disgracehehadr eceivedofthi ssogr ievouspr esent .

Andcommenci ngt osinkintothegreatnoisehemade, thatImightfl

ee,int
hef aceofhiswrath,
Iwasr est
rainedfrom thi
sbyt hatguide,whotol
dmeIshoul dnotfearhimforhewasr ightwell
stoppedandcoul dnol ongermov eashehadher etof or
e,andthatIwasinerrorextr
eme, f
orthat
Ihadsosoont akenoutt hi
spowder ,invi
ewoft hef actthathehadwi shedt
oshowmeat hing
mor eexcel
lentbyf ar
,andt hatitwerenecessar
yt ol eaveiti
nplacefr
om whencei thadbeen
taken, andbymeansoff ire,toleadi ttothecolourofaredmostper f
ect[ 52],
takingcaret o
mai ntaintheheatappl i
edt hereunt ocont i
nuall
y,wit
houtdiminution[53]; butont hecontrar
yt o
cont i
nuouslyaugmenti twi thdiscretionandi nsuchmannert hatt hehandmi ghteasilysufferi
t,
andt hatthenshoul dwi tnesst hiswhi tenesstakethecolourofsaf fr
ont hewhi chwoul dchange
i
nt odiv er
sotherhuesconcl udi
ngwi ththecolourredli
keuntohy acinth,andf inall
yofa
permanentpur plishruby ,thent i
tledEl i
xir
,andservedfordiversthings,thewhi chhewoul dnot
express, wereitnotthati tkeptal lpersonsi nperf
ecthealt
ht hroughoutl ongy ears,wereone
from timet oti
met ot akeagr ain'
swor thinweightinali
ttl
ewi neorot herl i
quor .

ThatIshould,furt
hermor e,bearinmi nd,t
hatjustasIhadseent heentr
ailsoftheear th
moistenedbyawat ertri
ckli
ngthr oughthi
smount ain[54]
,si
milarl
ydidthisseedseekt obe
moistenedofthewat erofthatfountainwheni twereknownthatitneededthis,andt hat,I
complainedthatthet i
meIhadpassedatt hi
swor k,hadproducedformebutanegl igible
quanti
tyofthisElixi
r[55],mygui deinfor
medmei tcouldbeeasil
yaugment edatwi ll
,bymeans
ofthefir
stwateroft hatfountai
n, andofasor tmostcommonhav ingonlytorefreshi tdiv
ers
ti
mes, t
hatthef i
rewasconduct orofthisworkingthewhichwasachi evedinbutlitt
let i
me.

Andf i
nishinghisdiscour se,commendi ngmet oGod, inv oicet hunder
ous, Ibegant oari
sefrom
myr everieandthepr ofoundsl eepinwhichIwashel d, sucht hatsmi l
ingt omyselfofso
pleasantadr eam andopeni ngmyey es,i
tseemedt omeIwasi nanewwor ld,andthatthe
premi sesofmydwel l
ingwer epai nt
edandenrichedingol dandsi lver
,andsogr eat
lysati
sfi
edof
thatIr emember edhav i
ngwi tnessedindream rev
erie,Iresolv edtov i
sitmyf ri
endsand
compani onsandspendt her estofmyday swiththem, untowhom whenIhadmader ecitat
ion
ofwhathadpassed, obl i
gedmet ocomposet hisli
tt
ledi scour setoshar eitwithdreamersand
visionariessuchasmy self,
andt osuchaswoul dsett hemsel v estoexplicat
esogent leav i
sion
bringcont ent
mentofmi ndanddr awfrom i
tsuchfruitast heydesi re

t
hei
rmosthumbl
eser
vant

Not
esandObser
vat
ionsi
ntheOr
igi
nal
Tex
t

1.I
nlesst
han60wor
dsmi
ghtt
heent
ir
eoper
ati
onoft
hest
onebewhol
l
yandent
ir
elyexpr
essed.

2.Thetr
oubl
esofthi
sper
iodar
ethecausewher
efor
ethesagephi
l
osopher
sdohi
de
themsel
vesaway
.
3.Thet
ruemat
eri
aisext
ract
edf
rom t
hemet
all
i
crootor
der
edf
ort
hegener
ati
onofmet
als.

4.Pr
epar
ati
onoft
hemat
eri
a.

5.Reduct
iont
owat
erorsol
uti
on

6.Thati
stosay
,ai
r.

7.Thel
ode.

8.ThePhi
l
osopherwhoi
nst
ruct
s

9.Thati
stosaybydi
vi
nei
nspi
rat
ion.

10.Thati
stosay
,tot
eacht
hissci
ence.

11.I
tisadv
isabl
ethatonet
akewi
thonev
ict
ual
swhengoi
ngt
her
e.

12.Thesebei
ngt
hosewhowor
kthemi
nes.

13.Thi
sdescr
ibest
hemi
ne.

14.Jupi
ter
.

15.Thati
s:t
olear
n.

16.Phi
l
osophi
cmer
cur
ythewhi
chi
sHer
mes'
bir
d.

17.Thesecr
etandt
hesci
enceoft
hest
one

18.Thati
stosayhewor
kedupont
hissubj
ectormat
eri
al.

19.Av
isi
ttot
hemi
ne.

20.Sat
urncont
aini
ngt
hef
ourel
ement
s.

21.Thef
urnace,
ret
ortandr
eci
pient
.

22.Thedeadhead.

23.Thegl
assr
etor
t.

24.Soot
.

25.Venuswhi
chmaket
hthecol
ourgr
een.

26.Spr
ingi
stheseasoni
nwhi
chone'
swor
kshoul
dst
art
.

27.Jupi
ter
28.Luna

29.Col
our
soft
heSt
one,
cont
ainedwi
thi
nLuna

30.Mer
cur
ius

31.Subl
i
mat
ionsorci
rcul
ati
ons.

* Noci
tat
ionf
oll
owsi
ntheor
igi
nal
text[
Transl
ator
'snot
e]

32.Thesear
ethebooksoft
hephi
l
osopher
s.

33.Ther
ocki
sthef
urnace,
theser
pent
sthef
ixedandt
hev
olat
il
e,mal
eandf
emal
e

34.Thesepar
ati
onsar
ebr
oughtaboutbyt
hedegr
eesoft
hef
ir
e.

35.Thephi
l
osopherorar
ti
st.

36.Thepl
anet
scor
respondt
othemet
als.

37.Ther
etor
tdi
sti
l
li
ngi
ntoar
eci
pient
.

38.Thi
sist
het
err
est
ri
albody
.

39.Fi
re

40.Gr
aduat
edf
ir
e.

41.Ret
ort
s.

42.Lett
her
ebet
woofy
out
oshar
ethel
onghour
sofwor
k

43.Thesol
uti
onoft
hest
onei
ntophi
l
osophi
cmer
cur
y

44.ThePhi
l
osophi
cEgg.

45.Thepl
ateoft
hef
urnace.

46.Ashes.

47.Theaper
tur
eint
heapexoft
hedome.

48.Thebl
ackappear
saf
tert
hespaceof40day
s.

49.Heatoft
hebr
oodi
nghen.

50.Thepr
oject
ionuponMer
cur
y.

51.Fi
xat
ion.
52.Thati
s,t
opushi
ttor
edness.

53.Onemai
ntai
nst
heheatoft
hewhi
tet
hati
tmaypasst
other
ed.

54.Mul
ti
pli
cat
ionbyPhi
l
osophi
cal
Mer
cur
y.

55.Onedr
awsbutl
i
ttl
epowder
.