I know some Sophisters of the Heptarchie, I mean those, whose Learning is all Noyse, in which Sense even Py-annets, and Paraquitoes are Philosophicall, will conclude this, all Bayt and Poetrie, that wee are Pleasing not Positive, and cheat even the Readers Discretion. To prevent such impotent Calumnies, and to spend a little more of our secret Light upon the welldisposed Student, I shall in this place produce the Testimonies of some able Philosophers concerning the first Matter it self, as it is naturally found, before any alteration by Art; and here verily the Reader may discover the Mark, it is most easily done, if he will but eye

the Flights of my Verse, or follow the more grave pace of their Prose. The first I shall cite is Arnoldus de Villâ novâ, an absolute perfect Master of the Art, hee describes the Philosophicall Chaos, in these plain termes. Lapis est, & non lapis, Spiritus, Anima, & Corpus; Quem si dissolvis, dissolvitur, & si coagules, coagulatur, & si volare facis, volat; Est enim Volatilis, albus ut lacryma oculi: postea efficitur citrinus, salsus, pilis carens: quem nemo suâ linguâ tangere potest. Ecce ipsum jam suâ demonstravi descriptione, non tamen nominavi. Modo volo ipsum nominare, & dico, quod si dixeris eum Aquam esse, verum dicis; & si dixeris eum Aquam non esse, mentiris. Ne igitur decipiaris pluribus descriptionibus, & operationibus, unum enim quid est, cui nihil alieni infertur. It is (saith hee) a stone and no stone Spirit, Soule, and Bodie; which if thou dissolvest, it will bee dissolved, and if thou doest coagulat it, it will be coagulated, and if thou doest make it fly, it will fly; for it is Volatil, or flying, and cleare as a teare; afterwards it is made citrine then saltish, but without shoots. or Chrystals, and no man may touch it with his Tongue. Behold I have described it truly to thee, but I have not named it. Now I will name it, and I say, that if thou sayest it is Water, thou doest say the Truth, and if thou sayest it is not water, thou

doest lie. Bee not therefore deceived with manifold Descriptions and Operations, for it is but one Thing, to which nothing Extraneous may be added. Thus Arnoldus; and he borrowed this from the Turba. Let us now heare his Disciple Raymund Lullie, who speaking very enviously and obscurely of Seven Metallic Principles, describes the Third wherein foure of the seven are included in these words; Tertium (saith hee) est Aqua clara Composita, & illa est res Argento vivo magis propingua, quae quidem reperitur supra Terram currens & fluens. Et istud argentum vivum in omni Corpore Elementato à materia aeris est proprie generatum, & ideo ipsius humiditas est valde ponderosa. That is: The third Principle, is a Cleare Compounded water, and it is the next substance in Complexion to Quick-Silver, it is found running, and flowing upon the Earth. This Quicksilver is generated in every Compound out of the Substance of the Aire, and therefore the moysture of it is extreme heavy. To these I will adde Albertus Magnus, whose Suffrage in this kind of Learning is like the Stylanx to Gold, for hee had thoroughly search'd it, and knew very well what part of it would abide the Test. Mercurius Sapientum (saith hee) est Elementum Aqueum frigidum, & humidum, Aqua permanens, spiritus Corporis, vapor

unctuosus, Aqua Benedicta, Aqua virtuosa, Aqua Sapientum, Acetum Philosophorum, Aqua Mineralis, Ros coelestis gratiae, Lac Virginis, Mercurius Corporalis, & aliis infinitis Nominibus in Philosophorum libris nominatur, quae quidem Nomina quamvis varia sunt, semper tamen unam & eandem rem significant, utpote Solum Mercurium sapientum. Ex ipso solo elicitur omnis virtus Artis Alckimiae, & suo modo Tinctura alba & rubea. In plain English thus; The Mercurie of the Wisemen is a waterie Element, Cold and moyst. This is their Permanent water, the spirit of the Bodie, the unctuous vapour, the Blessed water, the virtuous water, the water of the Wisemen, the Philosophers Vinacre, the Mineral Water the Dew of heavenly Grace the Virgins Milk. the Bodily Mercurie and with other numberlesse names is it named in the Bookes of the Philosophers, which names truly though they are divers notwithstanding alwayes signifie one and the same thing, namely the Mercurie of the Wisemen. Out of this Mercurie alone all the Virtue of the Art is extracted and according to its Nature the Tincture both Red and White. To this agrees Rachaidibi the Persian; Sperma Lapidis (saith hee) est frigidum & humidum in Manifesto, & in Occulto calidum & siccum. The Sperme, or first matter of the stone is outwardly

cold and moyst but inwardly Hot and Drie. All which is confirmed by Rhodian, another Instructor (it seemes) of Kanid King of Persia; his words are these; Sperma est album & liquidum, postea rubeum. Sperma istud est lapis fugitivus & est Aereum & Volatile, & est frigidum & humidum, & calidum & siccum. The Sperm (saith hee) is white and Liquid, afterwards red. This Sperm is the flying stone, and it is aereal, and volatil, cold and moyst, hot and drie. To these subscribes the Author of that excellent Tract intituled Liber trium Verborum. Hic est Liber (saith hee) Trium verborum, Liber Lapidis preciosi, qui est Corpus aereum & volatile, frigidum & humidum, aquosum & adustivum, & in eo est Caliditas & siccitas, frigiditas & humiditas, alia virtus in occulto, alia in Manifesto. This is the Book of Three words, meaning thereby Three Principles, The Book of the Precious stone, which is a Body aereal and volatil cold and moyst, watrie and adustive, and in it is Heat and Drought, Coldnesse and Moysture, one virtue inwardly, the other outwardly. Belus the Philosopher in that famous and most Classic Synod of Arisleus, inverts the order, to conceale the practice, but if rightly understood, he speaks to the purpose. Excelsum (sayth hee) est hoc apud Philosophos magnos Lapidem non

esse lapidem, apud Idiotas vile & Incredibile. Quis enim credet Lapidem Aquam, & Aquam Lapidem fieri, cum nihil sit diversius? Attamen revera ita est. Lapis enim est haec ipsa permanens Aqua, & dum Aqua est lapis non est. Amongst all great Philosophers it is Magisterial that our stone is no stone, but amongst Ignorants it is ridiculous and incredible. For who will believe that water can be made a stone, and a stone water, nothing being more different than these two? And yet in very truth it is so. For this very permanent water is the stone, but whiles it is water, it is no stone. But in this sense the Ancient Hermes abounds, and almost discovers too much. Scitote Filii Sapientum, quod priscorum Philosophorum aquae est Divisio, quae dividit ipsam in Alia quatuor. Know (saith hee) you that are the Children of the wise, the Separation of the ancient Philosophers was performed upon water, which Separation divides the water into other foure Substances. There is extant a very learned Author, who hath written something to this purpose, and that more openly than any, whom we have formerly cited. Sicuti Mundus Originem debet Aquae, cui Spiritus Domini incubabat, rebus tàm Coelestibus, quàm Terrestribus omnibus indè prodeuntibus; ita Limbus hic emergit ex Aquâ non vulgari, ne que ex Rore Coelesti, aut ex aere

Condensato in Cavernis Terrae, vel in Recipiente ipso, non ex Abysso Maris, fontibus, puteis, fluminibusvè hausto, sed ex Aquâ quadam perpessâ, omnibus obviâ, paucissimis cognitâ, Quae in se habet, quaecun que , ad totius operis Complementum sunt necessaria, omni amoto Extrinsico. As the world (saith hee) was generated out of that Water, upon which the Spirit of God did move, all things proceeding thence, both Coelestiall and Terrestriall So this Chaos is generated out of a certain Water that is not common, not out of Dew, nor Ayre condensed in the Caverns of the Earth, or Artificially in the Receiver; not out of water drawn out of the Sea, Fountains, Pitts, or Rivers, but out of a certain tortured water, that hath suffered some Alteration, obvious it is to All, but known to very few. This water hath all in it, that is necessarie to the perfection of the work, without any Extrinsecal Addition. I could produce a Thousand Authors more, but that were tedious; I shall conclude with one of the Rosie Brothers, whose Testimonie is AEquivalent to the Best of These but his Instruction far more Excellent. His Discourse of the first Matter is somewhat large, and to avoyd prolixitie, I shall forbeare the Latin, but I will give thee his Sense in punctuall plaine English.