DURING THE MIDDLE AGE; 



'philofophcr's flone, and, on making the cxpc- 

 .riment alone in his clofet, procure a quantity of 

 gold heavier than the weight of the (lone; will 

 jr. not be difficult to explain .in what manner he 

 was liable to be deceived. Something iimilar 

 to this fcems to have happened to Dr. Ilclvc- 

 tius at the Hague. He was a conflant oppofer 

 of the great my fiery that was to cure all difea- 

 fcs ; and declared his opinion of it in a work he 

 .publiihcd again ft the fympathetic powder of 

 Digby. On the 27th December, j666, a flran- . 

 ;gcr paid him aviiit; who after difcourfmg fomc 

 time on the nature of an univerfal .medicine, 

 produced the philofophcr's Hone, of the colour 

 offulphur, and live pieces of gold; dcfcribing 

 the manner in which they had been prepared. 

 Helvetius carneftly petitioned for a fmull piece 

 of the (lone in remembrance of him; or clfe 

 that he would difplay its virtues in the fire. The 

 ilranger rcfufed both rcqucils, but promifed to 

 return in three weeks. Accordingly, he kept 

 his word ; but it was with 4 grcat diiiiculty that 

 he would part with a bit of the (lone not larger 

 than a grain of rape-feed : And Helvetius doubt- 

 ing, whether fo fmall a quantity was fufiicicnt 

 to change four grains of lead into gold, the 

 ilrangcr c:ut oil' more than the half of it, aflur- 

 ing him the remainder would be more than wa* 

 neccllary. At their firft meeting, Helvetius had 

 f<:rnped oil* with his nail, unknown to the tfran- 

 i 4 5 C1 4 



