Preface.

befall man than
health, without which
long life is more a daily dying
than a living; what can
man accomplish if he is
overburdened with illnesses?
How much time and effort,
how great an expense is
bestowed upon a mine original: "bergwerck"; mining and metallurgy were the primary industries of the era and were often compared to alchemical labor,
which after all only serves
the nourishment of the body?
How much more should we
be diligent to preserve
health, which is above
all silver and gold?
May Your Princely Grace original: "E. f. G." for Euer fürstlichen Gnaden
most graciously consider
this, and receive this little book
in grace, and protect and
shield it against its despisers,
so that the study of the ancient philosophers original: "alten Philosophorum studium"
might once again come to
light. For they sought
nothing more and more diligently