philosopher's stone was to dissolve or neutralize all these
ingredients, by which iron, lead, copper, and all metals would be
transmuted into the original gold. Many learned and clever men wasted
their time, their health, and their energies, in this vain pursuit;
but for several centuries it took no great hold upon the imagination
of the people. The history of the delusion appears, in a manner, lost
from this time till the eighth century, when it appeared amongst the
Arabians. From this period it becomes easier to trace its progress. A
master then appeared, who was long looked upon as the father of the
science, and whose name is indissolubly connected with it.

GEBER.

Of this philosopher, who devoted his life to the study of alchymy,
but few particulars are known. He is thought to have lived in the year
730. His true name was Abou Moussah Djafar, to which was added Al
Soft, or "The Wise," and he was born at Hauran, in Mesopotamia.
["Biographie Universelle."] Some have thought he was a Greek, others a
Spaniard, and others, a prince of Hindostan: but, of all the mistakes
which have been made respecting him, the most ludicrous was that made
by the French translator of Sprenger's "History of Medicine," who
thought, from the sound of his name, that he was a German, and
rendered it as the "Donnateur," or Giver. No details of his life are
known; but it is asserted, that he wrote more than five hundred works
upon the philosopher's stone and the water of life. He was a great
enthusiast in his art, and compared the incredulous to little children
shut up in a narrow room, without windows or aperture, who, because
they saw nothing beyond, denied the existence of the great globe
itself. He thought that a preparation of gold would cure all maladies,
not only in man, but in the inferior animals and plants. He also