George Ripley, The Compound of Alchymie, part 4 of 4

OF SUBLIMATION. The eight Gate.

HEre of our Sublimacion a word or two,
I have to speke, whych the eyghth Gate ys
Folys do Sublyme, but Sublyme thou not so,
For we Sublyme not lyke as they do I wys;
To Sublyme trewly therfore thou shall not mys:
If thou can make thy Bodys first spirituall,
And then thy Spyryts as I have tought the corporall.

Som do Mercury from Vitriall and Salt sublyme,
And other spryts fro Scales of Yern or Steele,
Fro Eggshells calcynyd and quyk lyme,
And on theyer manner hyt they Sublyme ryght well,
But such Sublymyng accordyth never adele
To our entent, for we Sublyme not so,
To trewe Sublymyng therfore now wyll I go.

In Sublymacyon fyrst beware of one thyng,
That thou Sublyme not to the top of thy Vessell,
For without vyolence thou shalt yt not downe bryng
Ageyne, but there yt wyll abyde and dwell;
So hyt rejoysyth wyth refrygeracion I the tell:
Kepe hyt therfore wyth temperat hete adowne
Full forty dayes, tyll hyt wex black abowen.

For then the Sowle begynnyth for to com owte,
Fro hys owne vaynys; for all that subtyll ys,
Wyll wyth the Spryts assend withouten dowte:
Bere in thy mynde therfore and thynke on thys,
How here eclypsyd byn thy Bodys:
As they do Putrify Sublymyng more and more,
Into the Water tyll they be all up bore.

And thus ther venom when they have spowtyd out
Into the water, than Black yt doth appeare,
And become spirituall every dele withoute dowte,
Sublymyng esyly on our manner
Into the water which doth hym bere:
For in the Ayre one Chyld thus must be bore
Of the Water ageyne as I have seyd before.

But when these to Sublymacyon continuall
Be laboryd so, wyth hete both moyst and temperate,
That all ys Whyte and purely made spirituall;
Than Hevyn uppon Erth must be reitterate,
Unto the Sowle wyth the Body be reincorporate:
That Erth becom all that afore was Hevyn,
Whych wyll be done in Sublymacyons sevyn.

And Sublymacyon we make for causys thre,
The fyrst cause ys to make the Body Spirituall;
The second that the Spryt may Corporall be,
And becom fyx wyth hyt and substancyall:
The Thyrd cause ys that fro hys fylth orygynall
He may be clensyd, and hys fatnys sulphuryose
Be mynyshyd in hym whych ys infectuose.

Then when they thus togeder depuryd be,
They wyll Sublyme up whyter then Snow;
That syght wyll gretly comfort the;
For than anon parfytly shalt thou know
Thy Sprytts shall so be a downe I throw:
That thys Gate to the shalbe unlockyd,
Out of thys Gate many one be shyt and mockyd.

OF FERMENTATION. The ninth Gate.

TRew Fermentacyon few Workers do understond,
That secrett therfore I wyll expounde to the,
I travelyd trewly thorow many a Lond:
Or ever I myght fynde any that cold tell hyt me;
Yet as God wolde, (evermore blessed he be,)
At the last I cum to knowledge therof parfyt,
Take heede therfore, therof what I do wryte.

Fermentyng in dyvers maners ys don,
By whych our Medcyns must be perpetuate,
Into a clere Water, som lesyth Son and Mone;
And wyth ther Medcyns makyth them to be Congelate;
Whych in the Fyer what tyme they be examynate,
May not abyde nor alter wyth Complement,
For such Ferments ys not to our intent.

But yet more kyndly som other men don
Fermentyng theyer Medcynes in thys wyse,
In Mercury dyssolvyng both Son and Mone,
Up wyth the Spryts tyll tyme wyll aryse,
Sublymyng them together twyse or thryse:
Then Fermentacyon therof they make,
That ys a way, but yet we hyt forsake.

Som other ther be whych hath more hap
To touch the trothe in parte of Fermentyng;
They Amalgam ther Bodys wyth Mercury lyke papp;
Then theruppon ther Medcyns relentyng,
These of our Secretts have som hentyng:
But not the trewth wyth parfyt Complement,
Because they nether Putrefy nor alter ther Ferment.

That poynt therfore I wyll dysclose to thee,
Looke how thou dydyst wyth thy unparfyt Body,
And do so wyth thy parfyt Bodys in every degre;
That ys to sey fyrst thou them Putrefye
Her prymary qualytes destroying utterly:
For thys ys wholey to our entent,
That fyrst thou alter before thou Ferment.

To thy Compound make Ferment the fowerth parte,
Whych Ferments be only of Son and Mone;
If thou therfore be Master of thys Arte,
Thy Fermentacion lat thys be done,
Fyx Water and Erth together sone:
And when the Medcyn as wax doth flowe,
Than uppon Malgams loke thou hyt throw.

And when all that together ys myxyd
Above thy Glasse well closyd make thy fyre,
And so contenew hyt tyll all be fyxid,
And well Fermented to desyre;
Than make Projeccyon after thy pleasure:
For that ys Medcyn than ech dele parfyt,
Thus must you Ferment both Red and Whyte.

For lyke as flower of Whete made into Past,
Requyreth Ferment whych Leven we call
Of Bred that yt may have the kyndly tast,
And becom Fode to Man and Woman most cordyall;
Ryght so thy Medcyn Ferment thou shall,
That yt may tast wyth the Ferment pure,
And all assays evermore endure.

And understond that ther be Ferments three,
Two be of Bodys in nature clene,
Whych must be altryd as I have told thee;
The thyrd most secret of whych I mene,
Ys the fyrst Erth to hys owne Water grene:
And therfore when the Lyon doth thurst,
Make hym drynke tyll hys Belly burst.

Of thys a Questyon yf I shold meve,
And aske of Workers what ys thys thyng,
Anon therby I sholde them preve;
Yf they had knowledge of our Fermentyng,
For many man spekyth wyth wondreng:
Of Robyn Hode, and of his Bow,
Whych never shot therin I trow.

But Fermentacion trew as I the tell
Ys of the Sowle wyth the Bodys incorporacyon,
Restoryng to hyt the kyndly smell;
Wyth tast and color by naturall conspysacyon
Of thyngs dysseveryd, a dew redyntegracyon:
Wherby the Body of the Spryte takyth impression,
That eyther other may helpe to have ingression.

For lyke as the Bodys in ther compaccyon corporall
May not show out ther qualytes effectually
Untyll the tyme that they becom spyrituall:
No more may Spryts abyde wyth the Bodys stedfastly,
But they wyth them be fyrst confyxat proportionably:
For then the Body techyth the Spryt to suffer Fyer,
And the Spryt the Body to endure to thy desyre.

Therfore thy Gold wyth Gold thou must Ferment,
Wyth hys owne Water thyne Erth clensyd I mene
Not ells to say but Element wyth Element;
The Spryts of Lyfe only goyng betweene,
For lyke as an Adamand as thow hast sene:
Yern to hym draw, so doth our Erth by kynde
Draw downe to hym hys Sowle borne up wyth Wynd.

Wyth mynd therfore thy Sowle lede out and in,
Meng Gold wyth Gold, that is to say
Make Elements wyth Elements together ryn;
To tyme all Fyre they suffer may,
For Erth ys Ferment wythouten nay
To Water, and Water the Erth unto;
Our Fermentacion in thys wyse must be do.

Erth ys Gold, so ys the Sowle also,
Not Comyn but Owers thus Elementate,
And yet the Son therto must go,
That by our Whele yt may be alterate,
For so to Ferment yt must be preparat:
That hyt profoundly may joynyd be
Wyth other natures as I seyd to thee.

And whatsoever I have here seyd of Gold,
The same of Sylver I wyll thou understond,
That thou them Putrefye and alter as I have told;
Ere thou thy Medcyn to Ferment take in hond,
Forsowth I cowde never fynde hym wythin Englond:
whych on thys wyse to Ferment cowde me teche
Wythout errour, by practyse or by speche.

Now of thys Chapter me nedyth to trete no more,
Syth I intend prolixite to eschew;
Remember well my words therfore,
Whych thou shalt preve by practys trew,
And Son and Mone loke thou renew:
That they may hold of the fyfth nature,
Then shall theyr Tynctures ever endure.

And yet a way there ys most excellent,
Belongyng unto another workyng,
A Water we make most redolent:
All Bodys to Oyle wherwyth we bryng,
Wyth whych our Medcyn we make floyng:
A Quyntessens thys Water we call
In man, whych helyth Dysesys all.

But wyth thy Bace after my Doctryne preperat,
Whych ys our Calx, thys must be don;
For when our Bodys be so Calcenat,
That Water wyll to Oyle dyssolve them sone;
Make therfore Oyle of Son and Mone
Which ys Ferment most fragrant for to smell,
And so the 9th Gate ys Conquered of thys Castell.

OF EXALTATION. The tenth Gate.

PRocede we now to the Chapter of Exaltacion,
Of whych truly thou must have knowledge pure,
Full lyttyll yt ys dyfferent from Sublymacyon,
Yf thou conceve hym ryght I thee ensure:
Herto accordyth the holy Scrypture:
Chryste seyng thus, Yf I exalted be,
Then shall I draw all thyngs unto me.

Ower Medycyn yf we Exalt ryght so,
Hyt shall therby be Nobylyzate,
That must be done in manners two;
Fro tyme the parts be dysponsate,
Whych must be Crusyfyed and examynat:
And then contumulate both Man and Wyfe,
And after revyvyd by the Spyryts of Lyfe.

Than up to Hevyn they must Exaltyd be,
Ther to be in Body and Sowle gloryfycate;
For thou must bryng them to such subtylyte,
That they assend together to be intronyzate,
In Clowds of clerenesse, to Angells consociate:
Then shall they draw as thou shalt se
All other Bodys to ther owne dygnyte.

Yf thou therfore thy Bodys wyll Exaltat,
Fyrst wyth the Spryts of Lyfe thou them augment,
Tyll tyme thy Erth be well subtylyate,
By naturall rectyfyyng of eche Element;
Hym up exaltyng into the Fyrmament:
Than much more presyose shall they be than Gold,
Because they of the Quyntessence do hold.

For when the Cold hath overcum the Hete,
Then into Water the Ayre shall turnyd be;
And so two contrarys together shall mete,
Tyll ether wyth other ryght well agre,
So into Ayre thy Water as I tell the;
When Hete of Cold hath gott domynacyon,
Shalbe convertyd by craft of Cyrculacyon.

And of the Fyer then Ayer have thou shall,
By losyng Putrefyyng and Sublymyng;
And Fyer thou hast of the Erth materyall:
Thyne Elements by craft thus dysseveryng,
Most specyally the Erth well Calcenyng:
And when they be eche on made pure,
Then do they hold all of the fyfth nature.

On thys wyse therfore make them to be Cyrcular,
Ech unto other exaltyng by and by,
And in one Glas do all thys surely sygylate,
Not wyth thy honds, but as I teche the naturally,
Fyer into Water then turne fyrst hardely;
For Fyer ys in Ayer wych ys in Water exystent,
And thys Conversyon accordyth to our entent.

Than ferthermore turne on thy Whele,
That into Erth thy Ayre convertyd be,
Whych wylbe don also ryght well:
For Ayre ys in Water beyng in the Erth trust me,
Then Water into Fyre contraryose in ther qualyte:
Sone turne thou may, for Water in Erth ys,
Whych ys in Fyer conversyon, true ys thys.

Thy Whele ys now nygh turnyd abowte,
Into Ayre turne Erth, whych ys the proper nest
Of other Elements ther ys no dowte,
For Erth in Fyre ys, whych in Ayre takyth rest,
Thys Cyrculacyon thou begyn must in the West:
Then forth into the Sowth tyll they exaltyd be,
Procede dewly as in the Fygure I have towght the.

In whych proces thou may clerly se,
From an extreame how to another thou may not go.
But by a mene, syth they in qualyte contraryose be;
And reson wyll forsoth that hyt be so,
As hete into cold wyth other contraryose mo:
Wythout theyr menys as moyst to hete and cold,
Examples suffycyent afore thys have I told.

Thus have I tawght the how for to make,
Of all thy Elements a parfyt Cyrculacyon,
And at thy Fygure example for to take,
How thou shalt make thys foresayd Exaltacyon,
And of thy Medcyn in the Elements trew graduacyon:
Tyll hyt be brought to a quynaryte temperat,
And then thou hast conqueryd the Tenth Gate.

OF MULTIPLICATION. The eleventh Gate.

MUltyplycacyon now to declare I procede,
Whych ys by Phylosophers in thys wyse dyfynyd,
Augmentacyon yt ys of that Elixer indede,
In goodnes, in quantyte, both for Whyt and Rede,
Multyplycacyon ys therfore as they have seyd:
That thyng that doth Augment the Medcyns in ech degre,
In Color, in Odor, in Vertue, and also in Quantyte.

And why thou may thy Medcyn multeply,
Infynytly the cause forsoth ys thys.
For yt ys Fyer whych tyned wyll never dye:
Dwellyng wyth the as Fyer doth in housys,
Of whych one sparke may make more Fyers I wys;
As musk in Pygments, and other spycys mo,
In vertue multyplyeth and our Medcyn ryght so.

So he ys ryche the whych Fyer hath les or more,
Because he may so gretly Multeply;
And ryght so ryche ys he whych any parte hath in store
Of our Elixers whych be augmentable infynytly:
One way yf thou dyssolve our Powders dry,
And oft tymes of them make Congelacyon,
Of hyt in goodnes thou makyst then Augmentacyon.

The second way both in goodnes and in quantyte,
Hyt Multyplyeth by Iterat Fermentacion,
As in that Chapter I showyd playnly unto the,
By dyvers manners of naturall Operacyon,
And also in the Chapter of our Cybacyon:
Where thou may know how thou shalt Multeply
Thy Medycyn wyth Mercury Infynytly.

But and thou bothe wyll Loose and also Ferment,
Both more in quantyte and better wyll hyt be;
And in such wyse thou may that so augment,
That in thy Glas yt wyll grow lyke a Tre,
The Tre of Hermes namyd, seemly to se:
Of whych one Pepyn a thowsand wyll Multyply,
Yf thou can make thy Projeccyon wyttyly.

And lyke as Saffron when yt ys pulveryzate,
By lyttyll and lyttyll yf hyt in Lycour be
Temperyd, and then wyth mykyll more Lycour dylate;
Tyngyth much more of Lycour in quantyte,
Than beyng hole in hys owne grose nature: so shall thou se
That our Elixers the more they be made thyn,
The farther in Tyncture sothfastly wyll renne.

Kepe in thy Fyer therfore both evyn and morow,
Fro house to house that thou nede not to renne
Amonge thy Neyghbors, thy Fyer to sech or borow,
The more thou kepyst the more good shall thou wyn,
Multyplyyng ey more and morethy Glas wy thin:
By fedyng wyth Mercury to thy lyvys end,
So shall thou have more than thou nedyst to spend.

Thys mater ys playne, I wyll no more
Wryte now therof, lat Reson the guyde;
Be never the bolder to Syn therfore,
But serve thy God the better at ech tyde;
And whylls that thou shall in thys lyfe abyde,
Bere thys in mynde, forget not I the pray,
As thou shalt apere before thy God at domys day.

Hys owne gret Gyfts thefore and hys Tresure,
Dyspose thou vertuosely, helpyng the poore at nede,
That in thys World to the thou may procure
Mercy and Grace with Hevenly blys to mede,
And pray devoutly to God that he the lede
In at thys eleventh Gate as he can best,
Sone after then thou shalt end thy conquest.

OF PROJECTION. The twelfth Gate.

IN Projeccyon hyt shalbe provyd yf our practise be profytable
Of wch yt behovyth me the secrets here to meve;
Therfore yf thy Tyncture be sure and not vaiyable,
By a lyttyll of thy Medcyn thus shall thou preve
Wyth Mettall or wyth Mercury as Pyche yt wyll cleve:
And Tynct in Projeccyon all Fyers to abyde,
And sone yt wyll enter and spred hym full wyde.

But many for Ignorans doth mar that they made,
When on Mettalls unclensyd Projeccyon they make,
For be cause of corrupcyon theyr Tynctures must vade;
Whych they wold not awey fyrst fro the Bodys take,
Whych after Projeccyon be bryttyl, bloe, and blacke:
That thy Tyncture therfore may evermore last,
Uppon Ferment thy Medcyn loke fyrst that thou cast.

Then brottyl wyll thy Ferment as any glas be,
Uppon Bodys clensyd and made very pure,
Cast thy brottyll substance and sone shall thou se,
That they shalbe curyosely coleryd wyth Tyncture,
Whych at all assays for ever shall endure:
But at the Psalmys of the Sawter example thou take
Profytable Projeccyon parfytly to make.

On Fundamenta cast fyrst thys Psalme Nunc Dimittis,
Uppon Verba mea then cast Fundamenta blyve;
Than Verba mea uppon Diligam, conseve me wyth thy wytts;
And Diligam on Attende yf thou lyst to thryve:
Thus make thou Projeccyons thre fowre or fyve,
Tyll the Tyncture of thy Medcyn begyn to decrese,
And then yt ys tyme of Projeccyon to cese.

By thys mysty talkyng I mene nothyng ells,
But that thou must cast fyrst the lesse on the more,
Incresyng ever the Number as wyse men the tells,
And kepe thou thys Secrett to thy selfe in store,
Be covetuose of connyng yt ys no burden sore:
For who that joyneth not the Elixers wyth Bodys made clene,
He wot not what sykerly Projeccyon doth mene.

Ten yf thou Multyply fyrst into ten,
One hundreth, that number wyll make sykerly;
Yf one hundreth into an hundreth be Multyplyed then,
Ten thousand ys that number counte hyt wyttyly,
Then into as much more ten thousand multyply:
That ys a thousand thousand, whych multyplyeth I wys,
Into as much more as a hundred myllyons ys.

That hundred myllyons beyng multyplyed lykewys,
Into ten thousand myllyons, that ys for to sey,
Makyth so grete a number I wote not what yt ys,
Thy number in Projeccyon thus Multyply alwey:
Now Chyld of thy curtesy for me thou pray;
Syth that I have told the our secretts all and some,
To whych I beseche God by Grace thou may com.

Now thow hast conqueryd the twelve Gates,
And all the Castell thou holdyst at wyll,
Kepe thy Secretts in store unto thy selve;
And the comaundements of God looke thou fulfull:
In fyer conteinue thy glas styll,
And Multeply thy Medcyns ay more and more,
For wyse men done sey store ys no sore.

The end of the Twelve Gates.

THE RECAPITULATION.

FOr to bryng thys Tretys to a fynall end,
And brevely here for to conclude these Secretts all,
Dylygently loke thou, and to thy Fygure attend:
Whych doth in hyt conteyne these secrets grete & small,
And yf thou conceve both Theorycall and Practycall:
By Fygures, and by Colors, and by Scrypture playne,
Whych wyttely consevyd thou mayst not work in vayn.

Consyder fyrst the Latytude of thy Precyous Stone,
Begynnyng in the fyrst syde notyd in the West,
Where the Red Man and the Whyte Woman be made one,
Spowsyd wyth the Spryts of lyfe to lyve in love and rest,
Erth and Water equaly proportyond that ys best;
And one of the Erth ys good and of the Spryts thre,
Whych twelve to fowre also of the Erth may be.

Thre of the Wyfe and one of the Man then must thou take,
And the lesse of the Spryts there be in thys dysponsation,
The rather thy Calcynatyon for certeyne shall thou make,
Then forth into the North procede by obscuratyon;
Of the Red Man and hys Whyte Wyfe callyd Eclypsation:
Losyng them and alteryng betyxt Wynter and Vere,
Into Water turnyng Erth darke and nothyng clere.

Fro thens by colors many one into the Est assends,
There shall the Mone be full apperyng by day lyght;
Then ys she passyd her Purgatory and course at an end;
There ys the upry syng of the Son apperyng whyt and bryght,
There ys Somer after Vere, and day after nyght:
Than Erth and Water whych were so black be turnyd into Ayre;
Than clouds of darknes be overblowyn & all aperyth faire.

And lyke as the West begynnyng was of the Practyse,
And the North the parfyt mene of profound Alteratyon,
So the Est after them the begynnyng of Speculacyon ys;
But of thys course up in the Sowth the Son makyth Consumation
Ther be thy Elements into Fyre turnyd by Cyrculacyon:
Then to wyn to thy desyre thou needst not be in dowte,
For the Whele of our Phylosophy thou hast turnyd abowte.

But yet ageyne turne abowte two tymys thy Whele,
In whych be comprehendyd all the Secretts of our Phylosophy,
In Chapters 12 made playne to the if thou conseve them well;
And all the Secretts by and by of our lower Astonomye,
How thou Calcin thy Bodys, parfit, dissolve, devide & putrefie:
Wyth parfyt knowledge of all the polys whych in our Hevyn ben
Shynyng with colors inexplycable never were gayer sene.

And thys one Secrett conclusyonal know thou wythouten fayle,
Our Red Man teyneth not tyll he teynyd be;
Therfore yf thou lyst thy selfe by thy craft to avayle,
The Altytude of thy Bodys hyde & show out theyr profundyte,
In every of thy Materyalls dystroyyng the fyrst qualyte:
And secundary qualytes more gloryose repare in them anon
And in one Glas wyth one governaunce 4 Naturs turne into one.

Pale, and Black, wyth falce Citryne, unparfyt Whyte & Red,
Pekoks fethers in color gay, the Raynbow whych shall overgoe
The Spottyd Panther wyth the Lyon greene, the Crowys byll bloe as lede;
These shall appere before the parfyt Whyte, & many other moe
Colors, and after the parfyt Whyt, Grey, and falce Citrine also:
And after all thys shall appere the blod Red invaryable,
Then hast thou a Medcyn of the thyrd order of hys owne kynde Multyplycable.

Thow must devyde thy Elixer whyte into partyes two,
After thou rubify and into Glassys let hym be don,
If thou wylt have the Elixers both for Son and Mone do so;
Wyth Mercury then hem Multeply unto gret quantyte sone:
Yf thow at the begynnyng had not as much as wold into aspone:
Yet moght thou them so Multeply both the Whyte & Red,
That yf thou levyd a thousand yere they shold the stond in stede.

Have thou recourse to thy Whele I councell the unto,
And stody tyll thou understond eche Chapter by and by,
Medyll with no falce Fantesys, Mul[…]plyers, let them go,
Which wyll the flatter & falcely sey they are connyng in Phylosophye,
Do as I byd the and then dyssolve these foreseyd Baces wyttely;
And turne hym into parfyt Oylys with our trew water ardent,
By Cyrculacion that must be don accordyng to our entent.

These Oylys wyll fyx crude Mercury and convert Bodys all,
Into parfyt Sol and Lune when thou shalt make Projeecyon,
That Oylysh substance pure and fyx Raymond Lully dyd call
Hys Basylyske, of whych he made never so playne deteccyon,
Pray for me to God that I may be of hys eleccyon:
And that he wyll for one of hys on Domys Day me kene,
And graunt me in hys blys to reygne for ever wyth hym, Amen.

Gloria tibi Domine.

An Admonition, wherein the Author declareth his Erronious experiments.

AFter all thys I wyll thou understonde,
For thy savegarde what I have done,
Many Experyments I have had in hond;
As I found wryten for Son and Mone,
Whych I wyll tell the rehersyng sone:
Begynnyng wyth Vermylion whych provyd nought,
And Mercury sublymyd whych I dere bought.

I made Solucyons full many a one,
Of Spyrytts, Ferments, Salts, Yerne and Steele;
Wenyng so to make the Phylosophers Stone:
But fynally I lost eche dele,
After my Boks yet wrought I well;
Whych evermore untrew I provyd,
That made me oft full sore agrevyd.

Waters corrosyve and waters Ardent,
With which I wrought in divers wyse,
Many one I made but all was shent;
Eggs shells I calcenyd twise or thryse,
Oylys fro Calcys I made up-ryse;
And every Element fro other I did twyne,
But profyt found I ryght none therein.

Also I wrought in Sulphur and in Vitriall,
Whych folys doe call the Grene Lyon,
In Arsenike, in Orpement, fowle mot them fall;
In debili principio was myne Incepcyon:
Therefore was frawde in fyne the Conclusyon;
And I blew my thryft at the Cole,
My Clothys were bawdy, my Stomache was never hole.

Sal Armonyake and Sandever,
Sal Alkaly, sal Alembroke, sal Attinckarr,
Sal Tarter, sal Comyn, sal Geme most clere;
Sal Peter, sal Sode, of these beware;
Fro the odor of Quycksylver kepe the fare:
Medyll not wyth Mercury precipitate,
Nether wyth imparfyt Bodys rubyfycate.

I provyd Uryns, Eggs, Here, and Blod,
The Scalys of Yern whych Smethys do of smyte,
Aes Ust, and Crokefer whych dyd me never good:
The sowle of Saturne and also Marchasyte,
Lythage and Antemony not worth a myte:
Of whych gey Tyntures I made to shew,
Both Red and Whyte whych were untrew.

Oyle of Lune and water wyth labour grett,
I made Calcynyng yt with salt precipytate,
And by hyt selfe with vyolent hett
Gryndyng with Vynegar tyll I was fatygate:
And also with a quantyte of Spyces acuate;
Uppon a Marble whych stode me oft in cost,
And Oyles with Corrosyves I made; but all was lost.

Many Amalgame dyd I make,
Wenyng to fix these to grett avayle,
And thereto Sulphur dyd I take;
Tarter Egges whyts, and the Oyle of the Snayle,
But ever of my purpose dyd I fayle:
For what for the more and what for the lesse,
Evermore somethyng wantyng there was.

Wyne, Mylke, Oyles, and Runnett,
The Slyme of Sterrs that falleth to the grownde,
Celydony and Secundynes wyth many moe yett,
In these I practysyd as in my books I found,
I wan ryght nought, but lost many a pownde;
Of Mercury and Mettalls I made Chrystall stones,
Wenyng that hyt had ben a worke for the nonys.

Thus I rostyd and boylyd as one of Gebers Cooks,
And oft tymes my wynnyng in the Asks I sought;
For I was dyscevyd wyth many falce Books
Wherby untrue thus truly I wrought:
But all such Experyments avaylyd me nought;
But brought me in danger and in combraunce,
By losse of my goods and other gravaunce.

For the love of our Lady such lewdnes eschue,
Medyll wyth no falshood whych never prevyd well;
Assay when thow wylt and thow shalt fynde me treue;
Wynn shalt thou nought but lose every dele,
Pence in thy Pauwkner fewe shalt thou feele:
In smokes and smells thow shalt have myckle wo,
That unnethe for syknes on Erth shalt thow go.

I never saw true worke treuly but one,
Of whych in thys tretys the trewth I have told.
Stody only therfore to make our Stone:
For therby may thow wyn both Sylver and Gold,
Uppon my wrytynge therfore to ground the be bold:
So shalt thow lose nought yf God be thy gyde,
Trust to my Doctryne and therby abyde.

Remember how Man ys most noble Creature,
In erths Composycyon that ever God wrought,
In whom are the fowre Elements proportyonyd by nature:
A naturall Mercuryalyte whych cost ryght nought,
Out of hys myner by Arte yt must be brought;
For our Mettalls be nought ells but myners too,
Of our Soon and our Moone, wyse Reymond seyd so.

The clerenes of the Moone and of the Soone, bryght,
Into these two Myners desendyth secretly,
Howbeyt the cleernes be hyd fro thy syght:
By craft thou shalt make ytt to appere openly,
Thys hyd Stone, thys one thyng therfore putrefye:
Wash hym wyth hys owne broth tyll whyte he becoom,
Then Ferment hym wyttely, nowe here ys all and soom.

Now to God Almyghty I thee Recommend,
Whych graunte the by Grace to knowe thys one thing,
For now ys thys Treatys brought to an end:
And God of hys Mercy to hys blysse us bryng,
Sanctus, Sanctus, Sanctus, where Angells do syng:
Praysyng without ceasynge hys gloriose Magestye,
Whych he in hys Kyngdome graunte us for to see.

AN. DOM. 1471.

Explicit Alchimiae Tractatus Philosophiae,
Cujus Rypla George, Canonicus, Auctor erat;
Mille, quadringentis septuaginta uno q;
Annis qui scriptus compositus q; fuit.
Auctori lector praebe praece, quaeso Iuvamen,
Illi purgamen leve post vitam ut sit Amen.

Englished.

Thus heere the Tract of Alchimy doth end,
Whych (Tract) was by George Ripley Chanon pen'd;
It was Composed, Writt, and Sign'd his owne,
In Anno twice Seav'n hundred seav'nty one:
Reader! Assist him, make it thy desire,
That after Lyfe he may have gentle Fire.

Amen.