A Dialogue Between The Alchemist And an Old Man

Once upon a time, Alchymists gathered together to hold a council on how they should make & prepare the Philosophers stone.

They concluded that every one should declare his opinion with a vow.

That meeting was in the open air in a meadow on a fair clear day.

Many agreed that Mercury was the first matter thereof, others that Sulphur was, and others other things.

But the chiefest opinion was of Mercury, and that especially because of the sayings of Philosophers, because they hold, that Mercury is the first true matter of the Stone, also of metals.*

They contended amongst themselves for diverse the operations, with every one gladly expecting a conclusion.

But then came a very great storm with showers of rain and wind. This dispersed that assembly into divers Provinces, every one apart without a conclusion.

Yet every one of them imagined what the conclusion should have been.

Every one therefore set upon his work as before seeking the Philosophers Stone – some thinking that it should be sought after in Mercury.

Alchemist

No conclusion was made. But I will still work with Mercury.

He began to read the books of Philosophers and fell upon a book of Alanus, which treats of Mercury.

And so that Alchymist is made a Philosopher, but without any conclusion.

Taking Mercury, he began to work.

• He put it into a glass, and put fire to it
• The Mercury as it is wont to do, vapoured away.

The poor silly Alchymist not knowing the nature of it, beat his wife, saying:

Alchemist

Nobody could come here besides you. You took the Mercury out of the glass.

Wife

[Crying] you wilt make a sir-reverence of these.

The Alchymist poured Mercury again into his vessel, and watched it lest his wife should take it away.

But the Mercury vapoured away again.

The Alchymist remembered that the first matter of the Philosophers Stone must be volatile. He rejoiced, persuading himself that he could not now be deceived, having the first matter.

He learned afterwards to sublime it, and to calcine it in diverse ways, as with Salt, Sulphur, and metals, Minerals, Blood, Haire, Corrosive waters, Herbs, Urine, Vineger.

But he could find nothing for his purpose. He left nothing unassayed in the whole world, with which he did not work on good Mercury withall.

But when he could do no good at all with this, he fell upon this saying——that it is found in the dung-hill.

So he began to work on Mercury with divers sorts of dung. When he was weary, he fell into asleep, full of thoughts.

In his sleep there appeared to him a vision: there came to him an old man, who saluted him, and said:

Old-man

Friend, Why are you sad?

Alchemist

I want to make the Philosophers Stone.

Old-man

Friend, you will make the Philosophers Stone out of what?

Alchemist

Of Mercury, Sir.

Old-man

What kind of Mercury?

Alchemist

There is but one Mercury.

Old-man

Yes. But it can be altered variously, according to the variety of places; one is purer then another.

Alchemist

O Sir, I know how to purifie it very well with vineger and salt, with nitre and vitriall.

Old-man

That is not the true purifying of it, neither is this, thus purifyed, the true Mercury: Wise men have another Mercury, and another manner of purifying of it, and so he vanished away.

The Alchymist being raised from sleep thought with himself what vision this should be, as also what this Mercury of Philosophers should be: he could bethinke himself of no other but the vulgar Mercury.

But yet he desired much that he might have had a longer discourse with the old man: but yet he worked continually, sometimes in the dung of living creatures, as boyes dung, and sometimes in his own.

Every day, he went to the place where he saw the vision so that he could speak with the old man again.

But when he would not come he thought he was afraid of him.

When he was in that strong imagination, there appeared to him in his sleep a false vision, in the likeness of the old man, and said to him:

Old-man

Do not despair, your Mercury is good. If it will not obey you, conjure it, that it be not volatile. Serpents are used to be conjured, and then why not Mercury?

Then the old man would leave him.