At the request of the Sultan he produced a piece of his own composing, sang it, and accompanied it with great force and spirit to the delight of all his hearers.

The air was so sprightly that even the gravest philosopher could not resist dancing, but by another tune he as easily melted them to tears, and then by a soft unobtrusive melody he lulled the whole company to sleep." The most remarkable of the alchemists was he who is generally known as _Paracelsus_.

He was born about 1493, and died about 1540.

It is probable that the place of his birth was Einsiedeln, near Zurich.

He claimed relationship with the noble family of Bombast von Hohenheim; but some of his biographers doubt whether he really was connected with that family.