Art no bodily mishap will befall him. During this time of probation he
must will himself to dream, at night, of all the deeds he had it in
his mind to do, during the day; when he will know, by his visions, to
what extent he is progressing. At the end of the week he must apply
the tests to see if he is in a ripe state to proceed.
"The tests--
"No. 1. At midnight, when the moon is full, place a mirror, set in
a wooden frame, in a tub of water, so that it will float on the
surface with its face uppermost. Put in the water fifteen grains
of bicarbonate of potash, and sprinkle it with three drops of
blood, not necessarily human If the reflection of the moon in the
mirror then appear crimson, the test is satisfactorily
accomplished.
"No. 2. At midnight, when the moon is full, take a black cat, place
it where the moonbeams are thickest, sprinkle it with three drops
of blood, not necessarily human, and rub its coat with the palm of
the hand. Sparks will then be given out, and if those sparks
appear crimson the test is satisfactorily done.
"No. 3. Take a human skull--preferably that of some person who has
met with an unnatural end, pour on it a single drop of fresh,
human blood--place it on a couch, and go to sleep with the back
part of the head resting on it. If you are awakened, at the second
hour after midnight, by hearing a great commotion close at hand,
and the room is then discovered to be full of crimson light, the
test is satisfactorily fulfilled.
"No. 4. Take half a score of the berries of enchanter's
nightshade,[15] two ounces of hemlock leaves in powder, and one
ounce of red sorrel leaves. Heat them in an oven for two hours,
pound them together, in a mortar, and at midnight boil them in
water. As soon as the contents begin to bubble, remove them from
the fire and stand them in a dark place; and if the experiment is
to prove satisfactory, three bubbles of luminous green light will
rise simultaneously from the water and burst.
"No. 5. In the above preparation after the test described, soak a
hazel twig, fashioned in the shape of a fork. On meeting a child
hold the fork with the V downwards in front of its face, and if
the child exhibits violence and signs of terror, and falls down,
the experiment is successful.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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