He emptied bumper after bumper and clinked glasses at least a dozen times
with Frau Vorkel, who was immensely tickled with the unwonted honour.

After that he drew his chair closer to hers that he might better impress
upon her what she was to say to Melchior. He began by telling her that
she could never understand the full meaning of what had happened but that
she must take his word for it, he had discovered an elixir whose effect
was most wonderful and would change the whole course of events. From now
onwards, lying would be impossible, the reign of truth was at hand and
deceit had been routed from its last stronghold.

As she, however, shrank back from him, still somewhat fearful, he
demanded loftily if she ever would have dared to announce to him, her old
master, so candidly what she thought of him, as she had done an hour ago,
if she had not inhaled the contents of the phial. And Frau Vorkel had to
admit that she had been forced by some occult power to utter those
disrespectful speeches. She looked with awed wonder, first at her
master, then at the little bottle, and suddenly broke out with: "My! My
What will be left for the judges to do when everyone can be forced to
speak out boldly and disclose his smallest sin. My! My! But then we
shall hear pretty tales! From the Burgomaster down, everyone in Leipsic
will have to get a new pair of ears, for what one hears will be as
outrageous and unseemly as among the savages."

These observations showed the Court apothecary that Frau Vorkel had,
despite her want of intelligence, grasped to a certain extent the
importance of his discovery; while this pleased him in a way, it also
made him uneasy, therefore he made her swear on the crucifix that so long
as she lived she would never impart to any living soul, his son excepted,