CONTENTS.

CHAP.
I.	THE EXPLANATION OF MATERIAL CHANGES GIVEN BY GREEK THINKERS	[9]
II.	A SKETCH OF ALCHEMICAL THEORY	[21]
III.	THE ALCHEMICAL NOTION OF THE UNITY AND SIMPLICITY OF NATURE	[37]
IV.	THE ALCHEMICAL ELEMENTS AND PRINCIPLES	[45]
V.	THE ALCHEMICAL ESSENCE	[58]
VI.	ALCHEMY AS AN EXPERIMENTAL ART	[79]
VII.	THE LANGUAGE OF ALCHEMY	[96]
VIII.	THE DEGENERACY OF ALCHEMY	[105]
IX.	PARACELSUS, AND SOME OTHER ALCHEMISTS	[115]
X.	SUMMARY OF THE ALCHEMICAL DOCTRINE—THE REPLACEMENT OF THE THREE PRINCIPLES OF THE ALCHEMISTS BY THE SINGLE PRINCIPLE OF PHLOGISTON	[122]
XI.	THE EXAMINATION OF THE PHENOMENA OF COMBUSTION	[140]
XII.	THE RECOGNITION OF CHEMICAL CHANGES AS THE INTERACTIONS OF DEFINITE SUBSTANCES	[157]
XIII.	THE CHEMICAL ELEMENTS CONTRASTED WITH THE ALCHEMICAL PRINCIPLES	[165]
XIV.	THE MODERN FORM OF THE ALCHEMICAL QUEST OF THE ONE THING	[179]
	INDEX	[205]

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

FIG.		PAGE
	AN ALCHEMICAL LABORATORY	[Frontispiece]
1.	THE MORTIFICATION OF METALS PRESENTED BY THE IMAGE OF A KING DEVOURING HIS SON	[66]
2 and 3.	THE MORTIFICATION OF METALS PRESENTED BY IMAGES OF DEATH AND BURIAL	[67],[68]
4 and 5.	TWO MUST BE CONJOINED TO PRODUCE ONE	[70],[71]
6.	HERMETICALLY SEALING THE NECK OF A GLASS VESSEL	[80]
7.	SEALING BY MEANS OF A MERCURY TRAP	[81]
8.	AN ALCHEMICAL COMMON COLD STILL	[82]
9.	A BALNEUM MARIÆ	[84]
10.	ALCHEMICAL DISTILLING APPARATUS	[85]
11.	A PELICAN	[88]
12.	AN ALCHEMIST WITH A RETORT	[89]
13.	AN ALCHEMIST PREPARING OIL OF VITRIOL	[92]
14.	ALCHEMICAL APPARATUS FOR RECTIFYING SPIRITS	[93]
15.	PURIFYING GOLD PRESENTED BY THE IMAGE OF A SALAMANDER IN THE FIRE	[104]
16.	PRIESTLEY'S APPARATUS FOR WORKING WITH GASES	[145]
17.	APPARATUS USED BY LAVOISIER IN HIS EXPERIMENTS ON BURNING MERCURY IN AIR	[156]