Mercury Vindicated from the Alchemists at Court · chunk 2 of 5

And in her all the fruits of blessing plant. Sing then some charme, made from his present lookes, That may assure thy former prophecies, And firme the hopes of these obedient spirits, Whose loue no lesse, then dutie hath cald forth Their willing powers: who if they had much more, Would doe their All, and thinke they could not moue Enough to honour that, which he doth loue. BOw both your heads at once, and hearts: Obedience doth not well in parts. It is but standing in his eye, You'll feele your selues chang'd by and by, Few liue, that know, how quick a spring Workes in the presence of a king: Tis done by this; your slough let fall, And come forth new-borne creatures all. SO breakes the sunne earths rugged chaines, Wherein rude winter bound her vaines; So growes both streame and source of price, That lately fetterd were with ice. So naked trees get crisped heads, And cullord coates the roughest meads, And all get vigour, youth, and spright, That are but look'd on by his light. SOft, subtile fire, thou soule of art, Now doe thy part On weaker Nature, that through age is lamed. Take but thy time, now she is old, And the Sunne her friend growne cold, She will no more, in strife with thee be named. Looke, but how few confesse her now, In cheeke or browe! From euery head, almost, how she is frighted. The very age abhorres her so, That it learnes to speake and goe As if by art alone it could be righted. STay, see! our Mercury is comming forth; Art and all the Elements assist. Call forth our Philosophers. He will bee gon, he will euaporate. Deare Mercury! helpe. He flies. He is scap'd. Precious golden Mercury, be fixt; be not so volatile. Will none of the Sonnes of Art appeare? NOw the place and goodnesse of it protect me. One tender-hearted creature, or other, saue Mercury, and free him. Ne're an olde Gentlewoman i'the house, that has a wrinckle about her, to hide mee in? I could run into a Seruing-womans pocket now; her gloue, any little hole. Some mercifull vardingale among so many, be bounteous, and vndertake me: I will stand, close, vp, any where, to escape this polt-footed Philosopher, old Smug here of Lemnos, and his smoaky familie. Has he giuen mee time to breathe? Ô the variety of torment, that I haue endur'd in the reigne of the Cyclops, beyond the most exquisite wit of Tyrannes. The whole houshold of 'hem are become Alchymists (since their trade of armour-making fail'd them) onely to keepe themselues in fire, for this winter; for the mischiefe of Secret, that they know, aboue the consuming of coales and drawing of Vskabah. Howsoeuer they may pretend vnder the specious names of Geber, Arnold, Lully, Bombast of Hohenhein, to commit miracles in art and treason again' nature. And, as if the title of Philosopher, that creature of glory, were to be fetch'd out of a furnace, abuse the curious and credulous Nation of metall-men through the world, and make Mercury their instrument. I am their Crude, and their Sublimate; their Praecipitate, and their vnctuous; their male and their female; Sometimes their Hermaphrodite; what they list to stile me. It is I, that am corroded, and exalted, and sublim'd, and reduc'd, and fetch'd ouer, and filtred, and wash'd, and wip'd; what betweene their salts and their sulphures;