.

After she had explained her anxiety about the doctor and its
consequences, she continued that the apparition which the doctor had
invoked was the Spirit of Truth. Whether it had been obedient to
the call she could not say, but, at any rate it had been no demon of
hell-God be praised--bringing a reek of the pit, and besides Satan was
the Prince of Lies and would consider himself insulted if he were called
the Spirit of Truth, moreover the spirit who had appeared to the doctor
had behaved in the most exemplary manner.

The master, too, had confessed with true Christian humility and self
reproach that he had sinned against the Spirit of Truth, to whom none
the less he had dedicated his body and soul, inasmuch as, influenced by
his great love for his wife, he had devoted himself to finding a remedy
which would cure her, and had thus become a traitor to the object of his
life.

After this he had sprung up and held aloft his hand with the forefinger
extended and sworn to the spirit that nothing here after would seduce
him from the pursuit of the elixir which was to render Truth triumphant
in the world.

Fran Schimmel described how the doctor's eyes had glowed at these words,
and how he had looked as if an invisible hand had written "Truth" in
large letters upon his forehead. He would be as certain to reach his
goal as she would be to pray the holy saints for a peaceful death.

After a long silence and much consideration the only thing that Herr
Schimmel found to say in answer to these important revelations was: "It
is all the same to me," to which his dear wife, with like brevity, and
sincere disgust replied: "You fool!"

The next morning the doctor began work afresh and with redoubled zeal.

Every drug that had been reserved from the laboratory of the late Court
apothecary was brought, mixed with the elixir and fused; and he tried
each new mixture on himself, for Frau Schimmel was not to be persuaded
to smell any more elixirs.

She, however, was more studious than ever of the necessities of the
household, and of the material comfort of the doctor and his child, and
when she noticed that her master began to cough as his dead wife had
done, she entreated him to take better care of himself, and not to
leave his son an orphan she also instigated Herr Winckler to beg him to
consider his own welfare and that of the child.

There was yet another thing that made her unhappy.

Her whole heart was wrapped up in little Z