Whereby is to be observed, that the Philosophers have said true; they concealed its Name for the ignorants sake, who are not their Children, to keep them still in their Ignorance. Thus, my Child, the Ancients took care to conceal the name of the Stone; now let us return to our purpose.
You have now _Saturn_ wash'd and cleansed from all its impurity, and made as white as Snow, fusible as Wax, but is it not fix'd yet; we will make it fix the _Mercury_ and Sulphur with its Earth.
Take a Glass-Vial, put half of your purified _Saturn_ into it, reserve the other half till you have occasion to use it; lay a polish'd Glass upon the mouth of the Glass, set it in a Cuple with sifted Ashes upon a Furnace; or set it on the _Tripos_ of Secrets, or in the Furnace wherein you calcine Spirits; give it Fire so hot as the heat of the Sun at _Midsummer_, and no hotter, either a very little hotter, or a very little cooler, as you can best hit it. But if you give it a greater heat, such as you may keep Lead in flux, then your Matter would melt as if it were Oil; and having stood so, ten or twelve days, its Sulphur would fly away, and your Matter would all be spoiled, for the Sulphur which is in your Matter is not yet fix'd, but is in the external. Wherefore the Matter melts presently, and though it be clean, yet it is not fix'd; wherefore give so gentle a fire to it, that it may not flux; so keep it six weeks, then take out a little of it, lay it on a glowing hot Plate, if it immediately melts and fumes, it is not yet fixed, but if the Matter remain unmelted, the Sulphur is then fix'd which is therein; then strengthen the Fire notably, till the Matter in the Glass begins to look yellow, and continually more and more yellow, like to powdered Saffron, then augment the fire yet stronger, till the Matter begin to be red, then prosecute your Fire from one degree to another, even as the Powder becomes redder and redder by degrees, so hold on your Fire, till the Matter be red as a Ruby, then augment the Fire yet more, that the Matter may be glowing hot, then is it fixt, and ready to pour the curious Water of Paradise upon it.
My Child must know, that there are two ways of pouring on the Water of Paradise; I will teach you to make and prepare both, then may you take which you will; for the one is half as good again as the other.