Agricola, Georgius, De re metallica, 1912/1950

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    <archimedes>
      <text>
        <body>
          <chap>
            <p type="main">
              <s>
                <pb pagenum="xxix"/>
              whole towns with gold and silver. </s>
              <s>Even their books proclaim their vanity, for
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              they inscribe in them the names of Plato and Aristotle and other philosophers,
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              in order that such high-sounding inscriptions may impose upon simple people
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              and pass for learning. </s>
              <s>There is another class of alchemists who do not
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              change the substance of base metals, but colour them to represent gold or silver,
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              so that they appear to be that which they are not, and when this appearance
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              is taken from them by the fire, as if it were a garment foreign to them, they
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              return to their own character. </s>
              <s>These alchemists, since they deceive people,
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              are not only held in the greatest odium, but their frauds are a capital offence.
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              </s>
              <s>No less a fraud, warranting capital punishment, is committed by a third sort
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              of alchemists; these throw into a crucible a small piece of gold or silver
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              hidden in a coal, and after mixing therewith fluxes which have the power of
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              extracting it, pretend to be making gold from orpiment, or silver from tin and
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              like substances. </s>
              <s>But concerning the art of alchemy, if it be an art, I will
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              speak further elsewhere. </s>
              <s>I will now return to the art of mining.</s>
            </p>
            <p type="main">
              <s>Since no authors have written of this art in its entirety, and since
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              foreign nations and races do not understand our tongue, and, if they did
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              understand it, would be able to learn only a small part of the art through the
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              works of those authors whom we do possess, I have written these twelve books
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                <emph type="italics"/>
              De Re Metallica.
                <emph.end type="italics"/>
              </s>
              <s> Of these, the first book contains the arguments which may
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              be used against this art, and against metals and the mines, and what can be
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              said in their favour. </s>
              <s>The second book describes the miner, and branches into </s>
            </p>
          </chap>
        </body>
      </text>
    </archimedes>
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