Every one who is at all acquainted with old legends is fully aware that the Father of Evil is extremely simple, and has allowed himself, many times, to be outwitted by man. Once, especially, he was so guileless as to put trust in a Steinbach man, who cajoled him into entering an old beech tree, and there he was imprisoned until the tree was cut down. His first step, on regaining his freedom, was to revisit his own particular dominion, which, to his horror, he found empty!
This, naturally, would not do, and he set about re-peopling hell without delay. He thought the quickest plan would be to start a distillery; so he hurried off at once to Nordhausen, where his manufacture of Brandy (his own invention) became so famous that people from all parts came to him to learn the new art, and to become distillers. From that time his Satanic Majesty has never had to complain of paucity of subjects.
It seems fairly established that the famous chemist Geber, who lived in the 7th or 8th century, was acquainted with distillation, and we know that it was practised by the Arabian and Saracenic alchemists, but have no knowledge whether they made any practical use of the alcohol they produced. They, at all events, gave us the word by which we now know the spirit, or ethereal part, of wine.
Alcohol, distilled from wine, is first reliably mentioned by a celebrated French alchemist and physician, Arnaud de Villeneuve, who died in 1313, who gave it the name of aqua vitæ, or water of life,[51] and regarded it as a valuable adjunct in physic, and as a boon to humanity. Raymond Lully, the famous alchemist, who is said to have been his pupil, declared it to be “an emanation from the Deity,” and on its introduction it was supposed to be the elixir of life, capable of rejuvenating those who partook of it, and, as such, was only purchasable at an extremely high price.
We may see, by a book[52] written 200 years after the death of Arnaud de Villeneuve, the esteem in which Aqua Vitæ was held even after so great a lapse of time.
Aqua Vite is comonly called the mastresse of al medycynes, for it easeth the dysseases comynge of colde. It gyveth also yonge corage in a person, and cawseth hym to have a good memorye and remembraunce. It puryfyeth the fyve wittes of melancolye and of unclenes whan it is dronke by reason and measure. That is to understande fyve or syx droppes in the mornynge lastyng with a sponefull of wyne, usynge the same in the maner aforsayde the evyl humours can not hurte the body, for it withdryveth them oute of the vaynes.
¶ It conforteth the harte, and causeth a body to be mery.
¶ It heleth all olde and newe sores on the hede comynge of colde, whan the hede is enoynted therwyth and a lytell of the same water holden in the mouthe, and dronke of the same.
¶ It causeth a good colour in a parson whan it is dronke and the hede enoynted therwyth the space of xx dayes; it heleth Alopicia, or whan it is dronke lastyng with a lytell tryacle. It causeth the here well to growe, and kylleth the lyce and flees.