The mansion of Dragons is in caverns of the earth, but the residence
of men above the earth in the iḿediateimmediate aireair; which two Elements
are contrary, and appointed by the Philosophers to be joyndjoined together,
that one may act upon the other: But by the woman others meanemean, as
BasillBasil in Key 2d. saythsays: For it is not convenient or coḿodiouscommodious for an -
Eagle to place her nest upon the Alps, because her chickens would dyedie
through the coldnessecoldness of the Snow at the top of the mountains: But
if you add to the Eagle a cold Dragon, which hathhas had his habitation
a long time in the rocks, and crept out of the caves of the earth, -
and put them both into an infernallinfernal sellcell, then will Pluto blow a -
blast, and draw a volatile fiery spirit out of the cold dragon, which
with its great heat will burneburn the Eagles feathers, and excite such a
sudorifickesudorific bath, as to melt the Snow at the top of the mountains, -
and turn it into water; from which a miserable bath may be well -
præparedprepared, contributing fortune and health to the King. Admirable in=
deed it is, that a cold dragon should yeildyield a fiery Spirit; yet experience -
declares it to be true in burned serpents, which doedo send forth a venomous -
flame poysoningpoisoning the standers by: Nor in vaynevain are the keepers of the Chy=
micallChymical treasures called flammivomous dragons, as the keepers of the golden
fleece, the Hesperian gardens, Cadmus, and the like. But this dragon lives
in streightstraight places of subterranean rocks, which you must there take, and
joynejoin to the Eagle or woman, to her, in the grave, to the other, if you -
had rather, in the nest: For the nature of a dragon is sometimes to lyelie in
waitewait for the Eagles eggs, and wage mortallmortal warrewar with the Eagle: Some
there are of the GræcianGrecian writers who affirmeaffirm that a dragon in times past -
fell in love with a maydmaid and lay with her. What wonder therefore, if
the Philosophers would have their dragon shuttshut up in a cavernecavern with a -
woman? Greverus joynesjoins red and blackeblack dragons together in the deep -
gulfegulf of the mountainemountain, and burnesburns them with fire, and the blackeblack pe=
rishing, heehe saythsays that the keeper of the mountainemountain searchethsearchs for them
every where, and brings them to the mountainemountain. Merlin in his vision (if it
be not suppositious) makes mention of a white and red dragon; These
Dragons, whatsoever they be, whether one be a woman, or a female -
dragon, doedo act one with the other, till they both dyedie, and emittemit blood
from their wounds, wherewith they are embruedimbrued. But here the element
of earth and fire is understood by the dragon, and by the woman the
element of aireair and water; whereupon saythsays Clangor buccinæ: The Dragon
is the matter remaining in the bottomebottom

after the water be distillddistilled from
it: And according to Hermes: The water of aireair being between heaven and
earth is the life of every thing, for that water dissolves a body into a -
spirit, and vivifyesvivifies a dead thing, and makes matrimony between man and wo=
man: For it conferrsconfers the whole benefittbenefit of the art: Of the earth allsoalso heehe thus
speaks. And moreover understand, that the particular earth, which weewe tread
upon, is not the true element, yeayes is elemented with its true fifth element: Nor
dothdoes the fifth elementallelemental substance recede from its elemented body, of which
the earth is formed. And a little after. But the Virgin and true element, -
which fire cannot burneburn, is in the center of the earth: This is the dragon,
whereof weewe speakespeak, insinuating itselfeitself even into the center of the earth,
where the heat being great, it conceives within itselfeitself a flaming heat, where=
with it burnesburns the woman or eagle. The woman or eagle is indeed an airy -
water, which some call the white or cœlestiallcelestial eagle, and will have it made
of coḿoncommon Mercury, or sublimed Salts, following therein the sense of some cer=
tainecertain men blind in this art, faigningfeigning themselves to be quicksighted; But -
saythsays Count Bernhard in his Epistle, I tell you truelytruly, that noeno water dissolves
a metallickemetallic species by naturallnatural reduction, except that which continues with -
it in matter and formeform, and which the metallsmetals themselves can recongealerecongeal: -
And a little after: Nor dothdoes that water appertaineappertain to bodyesbodies in solutions, which
remains not with them in congelations: And a little after: I tell you truelytruly,
that the oyleoil which naturally incerates and joynsjoins natures together, and natu=
rally introducethintroduces a Medicine for the tinging of other bodyesbodies, is not compounded
of any other extraneous thing, but onelyonly of the bowellsbowels of the body which is
to be dissolved: This therefore being apprehended, the eagle and woman, as
allsoalso the Dragon with the secrets of allmostalmost the whole art are understood, -
which perhaps weewe have thus farrefar too openly explained and declared to
the SonnsSons of learning, that God may hereby be glorifyedglorified . . . . .