“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.

“No. 6.  Take a couple of handfuls of fine soil from over the spot where some four-footed animal has recently been buried.  Put it in a tin vessel, mix with it three ounces of assafoetida and one drachm of quassia chips, to which add a death’s-head moth (Acherontia atropos).  Heat the vessel over a wood fire for three hours.  Then remove it and place it on the hearth, rake out the fire and make the room absolutely dark.  Keep watch beside the vessel, and if, at the second hour after midnight, any strange phenomena occur, the test will be known to have been satisfactorily executed.

“(Addendum) If any of these tests fail the candidate must wait for six months before giving them a further trial, and he must occupy the interim by training his thoughts in the manner already prescribed.  But if, on the other hand, the tests have been successfully performed, he can proceed with the rites appertaining to