surdities, the spirits revealed in broken sentences a future for 

 Laski that delighted and fascinated him ; they prophesied 

 that he should become the fortunate possessor of the Elixir 

 of Life, and that he would succeed to the throne of Poland, 

 becoming rich, illustrious and victorious over the enemies of 

 that kingdom : all of which could only be accomplished by 

 the cooperation of Dee, the Skryer and the shew-stone. 



This bold scheme of the Englishmen met with great suc- 

 cess, and having aroused the impatient ambition of the 

 credulous Pole, he invited them to visit him at his estate 

 near Cracow. Dee being involved in debt, and threatened 

 with civil processes, gladly consented, and in September, 

 1583, the Count, accompanied by the Doctor and his family, 

 Kelley with his wife and his brother, as well as a whole 

 retinue of servants, embarked for the continent. They 

 travelled in great style, by the way of Liibeck and Hamburg, 

 and after four months reached the princely estate in Poland. 

 Meanwhile the "angellical stone" was not allowed to gather 

 moss, being brought out at each of the resting places of the 

 travellers, and consulted for the enlightenment and mystifi- 

 cation of their noble host. 



Arrived at Cracow the Englishmen established themselves 

 leisurely in luxurious quarters, and month after month passed 

 without their showing any disposition to labor at trans- 

 mutation; the Count urged action, but the needed materials 

 and apparatus were difficult to procure, the proper con- 

 junction of the planets had not taken place, and certain 

 operations once begun required seven times seven weeks for 



( their accomplishment. To satisfy the impatient Pole, how- 

 ever, Kelley arranged a demonstration, and in the presence 



.'! of their host, with the aid of a double-bottomed crucible, 

 lined with wax in which gold-filings were concealed, the adept 

 in trickery performed the feat of transmuting quicksilver into 



