to beggary in the hopes of growing rich.

He was born at either Treves or Padua, in the year 1406. His
father is said by some to have been a physician in the latter city;
and by others, to have been Count of the Marches of Treves, and one of
the most wealthy nobles of his country. At all events, whether noble
or physician, he was a rich man, and left his son a magnificent
estate. At the age of fourteen he first became enamoured of the
science of alchymy, and read the Arabian authors in their own
language. He himself has left a most interesting record of his labours
and wanderings, from which the following particulars are chiefly
extracted: -- The first book which fell into his hands, was that of the
Arabian philosopher, Rhazes, from the reading of which he imagined
that he had discovered the means of augmenting gold a hundred fold.
For four years he worked in his laboratory, with the book of Rhazes
continually before him. At the end of that time, he found that he had
spent no less than eight hundred crowns upon his experiment, and had
got nothing but fire and smoke for his pains. He now began to lose
confidence in Rhazes, and turned to the works of Geber. He studied him
assiduously for two years; and, being young, rich, and credulous, was
beset by all the chymists of the town, who kindly assisted him in
spending his money. He did not lose his faith in Geber, or patience
with his hungry assistants, until he had lost two thousand crowns - a
very considerable sum in those days.

Among all the crowd of pretended men of science who surrounded
him, there was but one as enthusiastic and as disinterested as
himself. With this man, who was a monk of the order of St. Francis, he
contracted an intimate friendship, and spent nearly all his time. Some
obscure treatises of Rupecissa and Sacrobosco having fallen into their