86 FROM AN EASY CHAIR 



sixty times its own weight of mercury into gold. The 

 preparation of these powders was a secret, and it was 

 the discovery of them for which Price claimed attention. 

 The experiments were made. In seven successive trials 

 the powders were mixed in a crucible with mercury, 

 first four crucibles, with weighed quantities of the white 

 powder, and then three other crucibles with weighed 

 quantities of the red powder. Silver and gold appeared 

 in the crucibles after heating in a furnace, as predicted 

 by Price. The precious metal produced was examined 

 by assayers and pronounced genuine. Specimens of the 

 gold were exhibited to his Majesty King George III., 

 and Price published a pamphlet entitled " An Account 

 of Some Experiments, &c.," in which he repudiated the 

 doctrine of the philosopher's stone, but claimed that he 

 had, by laborious experiment, discovered how to prepare 

 these composite powders, which were the practical 

 realisation of that long-sought marvel. He did not, 

 however, reveal the secret of their preparation. The 

 greatest excitement was caused by this publication 

 appearing under the name of James Price, M.D. (Oxon.), 

 F.R.S. It was translated into foreign languages, and 

 caused a tremendous commotion in the scientific world. 

 Some of the older Fellows of the Royal Society, 

 friends of Price, now urged him privately to make known 

 his mode of preparing the powders, and pointed out the 

 propriety of his bringing his discovery before the society. 

 But this Price refused to do. To one of his friends he 

 wrote that he feared he might have been deceived by 

 the dealers who had sold mercury to him, and that 

 apparently it already contained gold. He was urged by 

 two leading Fellows of the society to repeat his experi- 

 ments in their presence, and he thereupon wrote that the 

 powders were exhausted, and that the expense of making 

 more was too great for him to bear, whilst the labour 

 involved had already affected his health, and he feared 

 to submit it to a further strain. The Royal Society 



