lack state of the mysterious matter. It isaccomplished by water which does not wet the hand. There is the separationof the subtle and the gross, which is to be performed by means of heat. Inthe conjunction which follows, the elements are duly and scrupulouslycombined. Putrefaction afterwards takes place. `Without which pole no seed may multiply.' "Then, in the subsequent congelation the white colour appears, which isone of the signs of success. It becomes more pronounced in cibation. Insublimation the body is spiritualised, the spirit made corporeal, and againa more glittering whiteness is apparent. Fermentation afterwards fixestogether the alchemical earth and water, and causes the mystic medicines toflow like wax. The matter is then augmented with the alchemical spirit oflife, and the exaltation of the philosophic earth is accomplished by thenatural rectification of its elements. When these processes have beensuccessfully completed, the mystic stone will have passed through the chiefstages characterized by different colours, black, white and red, afterwhich it is capable of infinite multication, and when projected on mercury,it will absolutely transmute it, the resulting gold bearing every test. Thebase metals made use of must be purified to insure the success of theoperation. The process for the manufacture of silver is essentiallysimilar, but the resources of the matter are not carried to so high adegree. "According to the "Commentary on the Ancient War of the Knights" thetransmutations performed by the perfect stone are so absolute that no traceremains of the original metal. It cannot, however, destroy gold, nor exaltit into a more perfect metallic substance; it, therefore, transmutes itinto a medicine a thousand times superior to any virtues which can beextracted from its vulgar state. This medicine becomes a most potent agentin the exaltation of base metals." There are not wanting authorities who deny tha...
