ears of the king—Charles the Sixth. He
sent M. Cramoisi, maitre des réquêtes, to
inquire into the matter. This magistrate
went to Flamel's house, where he found them
at dinner. A wooden platter of boiled greens
was placed upon a stool: Perrouelle sat upon
one side and Flamel upon the other—this
did not look like unlimited riches. M. Cramoisi
reported to the king that he believed
them absolutely in indigence, and they were
left in peace. Flamel died about March in
the year fourteen hundred and nineteen.
The most remarkable part of their history
remains to be told, though it can of course
be only a legend. Paul Lucas, who travelled
in the East by the order of Louis the Fourteenth
—to whom his book is dedicated—gives
the following account of a curious adventure
which befel him. I was at Broussa, in
Natolia, and going to take the air with a
person of distinction, we came to a little
mosque which was adorned with fountains
and gardens for a public promenade. We
were introduced into the cloisters, and there
we found four dervishes, who received us
with civility. They were, we were told, all
persons of the greatest worth and learning:
one of them, a man of extraordinary learning,
seemed in appearance to be about thirty
years old, but, from his discourse, I am
convinced he must have lived a century. He
told me he was one of seven, friends who
travelled to perfect their studies, and every
twenty years met together in a place
previously agreed upon. Broussa was the place
of their present meeting, and four of them
were already arrived. We discoursed upon
many things; at length we fell upon
chemistry, alchemy, and the cabala. I told him
that all these, especially the philosopher's
stone, were regarded by all men of sense as
a fiction. "The sage," replied he,  hears
the ignorant without being shocked. When I
speak of a sage I mean one who sees all things
die and revive without concern: he has more
riches in his power than the greatest kings;
but he lives temperately above the power
of events." "With all these fine maxims,"
said I, interrupting him, "the sage dies
like other men." "You are ignorant of the
sublime science," replied he. "Such a one as
I describe dies indeed, for death is inevitable,
but he does not die before the utmost limits
of mortal existence. The sage, by the use of
the true medicine, can ward off whatever
may hinder or impair life for a thousand
years."  Would you persuade me," said I,
"that all who possessed the philosopher's stone
have lived a thousand years." He replied
gravely: "Without doubt, every one might:
it depends upon themselves." I named
Flamel, who was said to possess the
philosopher's stone, but who was dead. He smiled
and said: "Do you really believe this? No,
my friend; neither Flamel nor his wife is
dead. It is not three years since I left them
in the Indies: he is one of my best friends.

When Charles the Sixth sent M. Cramoisi
to him to inquire the origin of his riches, he
saw the danger he was in. He soon after
spread the report of his wife's death, and sent
her away to Switzerland to wait for him.
He celebrated her funeral, and a few years
after ordered his own coffin to be interred.
Since that time they have lived a philosophic
life, sometimes in one country and sometimes
in another."

Cela seut la Patchouli is very different
from the truthful simplicity of Flamel
himself; but no one can be responsible
for what is said of them by others. This
legend may, however, be found in the first
volume of Lucas's Travels, page seventy-
nine. Flamel gave a quantity of his powder
to Perronelle's nephew, M. Perrier; from
him it descended to Dr. Perrier; and some
of it was found by his grandson Dubois, who
was destitute of his grandfather's prudence
and moderation, and exhibited the sacred
miracle to improper persons. He was brought
before Louis the Thirteenth, and transmuted
a quantity of base metal. He pretended he
could make the powder, but he failed of
course, being vainglorious and ignorant. The
king suspected him of wilfully withholding
the secret, and he was hanged for his pains;
leaving a warning to all, to manage their
secrets with discretion.

Count Bernard of Treviso, with whom we
shall close our specimens of this curious body
of learned men, was born at Padua, in four-
teen-hundred and six, and died in fourteen
hundred and ninety, although the adepts
declare that he lived for four hundred years.
He has left a very naïve account of his
tribulations in search of the great secret, which
might well discourage less courageous adepts.
The first author, says he, who fell into my
hands was Rhases, when I was about fourteen
years of age. I employed four years of my
life, and spent better than eight hundred
crowns in proving it. Then I took up Geber,
who cost me again two thousand crowns and
upwards; besides which numbers of people
came about me, who pretended to be adepts,
to lure me on. The book of Archelaus
occupied me for three years. Whilst engaged
upon it I met with a monk, and we both
worked together for the space of three years.
We followed the instructions of Rupecissa,
and worked with alcohol, which we rectified
more than thirty times, until no glass that
we could find was strong enough to hold it.
We spent in this work three hundred crowns.
After living thus twelve or fifteen years,
finding nothing, after making experiments to
dissolve, congeal, and sublime common salt,
sal-ammoniac, all kinds of alum and copperas,
marchasites (all stones containing metal of
any kind were called thus), blood, hair, all
species of animal or vegetable secretion. I
proceeded by every means distillation,
sublimation, circulation, by separation of the
elements both by alembic and athanor (this