&66 OF THE PROLONGATION 



" being thus in immediate poffeffion ofimmenfe riches, 

 * c they caufed various large public edifices to be con- 

 " ftructed, and enriched feveral perfons. At length, 

 " this attracted univerfal attention. Flamel forefaw, 

 " that as foon as it was fuppofed that he was in poiTef- 

 " lion of the philosopher's Hone, his perfon would in- 

 " fallibly be arretted and fecured ; and it was not to-be 

 " expected, but that, -after the regard his great dona- 

 u tions had drawn upon him, he mould fhortly be fuf- 

 " peeled of this art. Accordingly, as a true philofo- 

 " pher, to whom it is perfectly equal, whether he be 

 " alive or dead in the opinion of mankind, he found a 

 " means of efcaping, by propagating a report among 

 " the populace, that both he and his wife were 



Here the dervife proceeds to relate, in a handfome 

 romantic way, how Flamel contrived to put this defign 

 in execution, with all the circumttances, which the 

 reader may recollect from the article tranfmitted by 

 tmr anonymous correfpondent, and inferted p. 220. 

 And this, continues he, is Flamel' s real hiftory, and 

 not that which you believe to be fo, nor that which is 

 foolifhly thought to be it at Paris, where there are but 

 few perfons who have any knowledge of the true 

 wifdom *. 



On comparing this account given by the dervife, 

 with that which the anonymus, in the piece above mr 

 ferredto, p. 220. adduces from Flamel's own confeffion, 

 we find, that it not only contradicts the latter in a 

 number of eflential particulars, but likewife that it is 



* Therefore, however, fome, 



compofed 



1 



