. : 5 
P 
: 
PI Eee eee SS ee ee 
Aim jai) aR Oe 
81 
19. Topsyturvy. Topside-horway. Spencer writes topside- 
turvy, but the Anglo-Saxon horvec, horwet, &c., sufficiently 
accounts for the last two syllables, as meaning dirty road 
(dirt-way, which is the middle of the road) ;. the entire being 
conceived with the idea of a person on horseback tumbling 
headlong into the mud. See Garlick, Ghastly, and Hoary. 
20. Yeliowhammer. Omit the h, and take ammer as the 
German, related to our ember, and descriptive of the colour 
of that bird, the more specific Goldammer. 
Mr.: Donovan read the first part of a paper on the early al- 
chemical and chemical physicians. 
The principal subjects treated of in Mr. Donovan’s paper 
were as follow :—Professions of the alchemists ; origin of al- 
chemy ; its effects on chemistry ; alchemical books burned by 
Diocletian ; alchemy amongst the Romans; first works on al- 
chemy ; treatises of Jamblicus, Heliodorus, and Synesius ; 
Geber the first alchemistic physician; effect of alchemy on 
his opinions ; the universal medicine of Geber anticipated by 
Empedocles ; Albertus Magnus the most celebrated of the al- 
chemistic physicians, and a bishop; his learning; his brazen 
figure which spoke ; Pope John XXII. first practised and 
then proscribed alchemy ; Raymond Lully; bis character and 
acquirements; made gold in England for Edward I., which 
was coined at the mint ; Arnold Villanova ; his learning ; made 
gold at Rome which stood the test; his knowledge of medi- 
cine ; proclamation of Edward III. for the services of alche- 
mists; Pietro d’Apono; his high character as a physician and 
enormous fees; alchemy and chemistry of King Charles ILI. ; 
his extreme poverty ; Act of Parliament of Henry IV. against, 
yet patents granted for its practice by Henry VL., in order to 
pay off crown debts, contrarily to the Act; fifteenth century 
teemed with alchemists ; 4000 writers on the art ; state alche- 
mist and state physician in every court of Europe; Basil 
VOL. V. G 
