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mass of humours more obstinate.

And the like may be said of wormwood, which is so much magnified. 39. The fourth cause is flatuosity; for wind stirred

; moveth to expel : and we find that in effect all purgers have in them a raw spirit or wind; which is the principal cause of tortion in the stomach and belly. And therefore purgers lose, most of them, the virtue, by decoction upon the fire; and for that cause are given chiefly in infusion, juice, or powder.

40. The fifth cause is compression or crushing : as when water is crushed out of a spunge : so we see that taking cold moveth looseness by contraction of the skin and outward parts; and so doth cold likewise cause rheums, and defluxions from the head; and some astringent plaisters crush out purulent matter. This kind of operation is not found in many medicines; myrobalanes have it, and it may be the barks of peaches; for this virtue requireth an astriction; but such an astriction as is not grateful to the body; for a pleasing astriction doth rather bind in the humours than expel them : and therefore, such astriction is found in things of a harsh taste.

41. The sixth cause is lubrefaction and relaxation. As we see in medicines emollient; such as are milk, honey, mallows, lettice, mercurial, pellitory of the wall, and others. There is also a secret virtue of relaxation in cold : for the heat of the body bindeth the parts and humours together, which cold relaxeth : as it is seen in urine, blood, pottage, or the like; which, if they be cold, break and dissolve. And by this kind of relaxation, fear looseneth the belly; because the heat retiring inwards towards the heart, the guts, and other parts are relaxed; in the same manner as fear also causeth trembling in the sinews. And of this kind of purgers are some medicines made of mercury.

42. The seventh cause is abstersion ; which is plainly a scouring off, or incision of the more viscous humours, and making the humours more fluid; and cutting between them and the part; as is found in

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nitrous water, which scoureth linen cloth speedily from the foulness. But this incision must be by a sharpness, without astriction : which we find in salt, wormwood, oxymel, and the like.

43. THERE be medicines that move stools, and not urine; some other, urine, and not stools. Those that purge by stool, are such as enter not at all, or little, into the mesentery veins; but either at the first are not digestible by the stomach, and therefore move immediately downwards to the guts; or else are afterwards rejected by the mesentery veins, and so turn likewise downwards to the guts; and of these two kinds are most purgers. But those that move urine, are such as are well digested of the stomach, and well received also of the mesentery veins; so they come as far as the liver, which sendeth urine to the bladder, as the whey of blood : and those medicines being opening and piercing, do fortify the operation of the liver, in sending down the wheyey part of the blood to the reins. For medicines urinative do not work by rejection and indigestion, as solutive do.

44. THERE be divers medicines, which in greater quantity move stool, and in smaller urine: and so contrariwise, some that in greater quantity move urine, and in smaller stool. Of the former sort is rhubarb, and some others. The cause is, for that rhubarb is a medicine which the stomach in a small quantity doth digest and overcome, being not flatuous nor lothsome, and so sendeth it to the mesentery veins; and so being opening, it helpeth down urine: but in a greater quantity, the stomach cannot overcome it, and so it goeth to the guts. Pepper by some of the ancients is noted to be of the second sort ; which being in small quantity, moveth wind in the stomach and guts, and so expelleth by stool ; but being in greater quantity, dissipateth the wind; and itself getteth to the mesentery veins, and so to the liver and reins; where, by heating and opening, it sendeth down urine more plentifully

Experiments in consort touching meats and drinks

that are most nourishing. 45 We have spoken of evacuating of the body; we will now speak something of the filling of it by restoratives in consumptions and emaciating diseases. In vegetables, there is one part that is more nourishing than another; as grains and roots nourish more than the leaves ; insomuch as the order of the Foliatanes was put down by the pope, as finding leaves unable to nourish man's body. Whether there be that difference in the flesh of living creatures, is not well inquired: as whether livers, and other entrails, be not more nourishing than the outward flesh. We find that amongst the Romans, a goose's liver was a great delicacy; insomuch as they had artificial means to make it fair and great; but whether it were more nourishing appeareth not. It is certain, that marrow is more nourishing than fat. And I conceive that some decoction of bones and sinews, stamped and well strained, would be a very nourishing broth : we find also that Scotch skinck, which is a pottage of strong nourishment, is made with the knees and sinews of beef, but long boiled: jelly also, which they use for a restorative, is chiefly made of knuckles of veal. The pulp that is within the crawfish or crab, which they spice and butter, is more nourishing than the flesh of the crab or crawfish. The yolks of eggs are clearly more nourishing than the whites. So

that it should seem, that the parts of living creatures that lie more inwards, nourish more than the outward flesh; except it be the brain : which the spirits prey too much upon, to leave it any great virtue of nourishment. It seemeth for the nourishing of aged men, or men in consumptions, some such thing should be devised, as should be half chylus,

before it be put into the stomach. 46. Take two large capons; parboil them upon a soft fire, by the space of an hour or more, till in effect all the blood be gone. Add in the decoction the pill of a sweet lemon, or a good part of the pill of a citron, and a little mace. Cut off the shanks, and throw them away. Then with a good strong chopping-knife mince the two capons, bones and all, as small as ordinary minced meat; put them into a large neat boulter ; then take a kilderkin, sweet and well seasoned, of four gallons of beer, of 8s. strength, new as it cometh from the tunning; make in the kilderkin a great bung-hole of purpose: then thrust into it the boulter, in which the capons are, drawn out in length; let it steep in it three days and three nights, the bung-hole open, to work; then close the bunghole, and so let it continue a day and a half; then draw it into bottles, and you may drink it well after three days bottling; and it will last six weeks : approved. It drinketh fresh, flowereth and mantleth exceedingly; it drinketh not newish at all; it is an excellent drink for a consumption, to be drunk either alone, or carded with some other beer. It quencheth thirst, and hath no whit of windiness. Note, that it is not possible, that meat and bread, either in broths, or taken with drink, as is used, should get forth into the veins and outwards parts, so finely and easily, as when it is thus incorporate, and made almost a chylus aforehand.

47. TRIAL would be made of the like brew with potatoe roots, or burr roots, or the pith of artichokes, which are nourishing meats: it may be tried also with other flesh; as pheasant, partridge, young pork, pig, venison, especially of young deer, etc.

48. A MORTRESS made with the brawn of capons, stamped, and strained, and mingled, after it is made, with like quantity, at the least, of almond butter, is an excellent meat to nourish those that are weak; better than blackmanger, or jelly: and so is the cullice of cocks, boiled thick with the like mixture of almond butter; for the mortress or cullice, of itself, is more savoury and strong, and not so fit for nourishing of weak bodies; but the almonds, that are not of so high a taste as flesh, do excellently qualify it.

49. INDIAN maiz hath, of certain, an excellent spirit of nourishment; but it must be throughly boiled, and made into a maiz-cream like a barley-cream. I judge the same of rice, made into a cream; for rice is in

Turkey, and other countries of the east, most fed upon; but it must be throughly boiled in respect of the hardness of it, and also because otherwise it bindeth the body too much.

50. PISTACHOES, so they be good, and not musty, joined with almonds in almond milk; or made into a milk of themselves, like unto almond milk, but more green, are an excellent nourisher: but you shall do well, to add a little ginger, scraped, because they are not without some subtile windiness.

51. MILK warm from the cow, is found to be a great nourisher, and a good remedy in consumptions: but then you must put into it, when you milk the cow, two little bags; the one of powder of mint, the other of powder of red roses; for they keep the milk somewhat from turning or curdling in the stomach; and put in sugar also, for the same cause, and partly for the taste's sake; but you must drink a good draught, that it may stay less time in the stomach, lest it curdle: and let the cup into which you milk the cow, be set in a greater cup of hot water, that you may take it warm. And cow milk thus prepared, I judge to be better for a consumption, than ass milk, which, it is true, turneth not so easily, but it is a little harsh; marry it is more proper for sharpness of urine, and exulceration of the bladder, and all manner of lenifyings. Woman's milk likewise is prescribed, when all fail; but I commend it not, as being a little too near the juice of man's body, to be a good nourisher; except it be in infants, to whom it is natural.

52. OIL of sweet almonds, newly drawn, with sugar, and a little spice, spread upon bread toasted, is an excellent nourisher: but then to keep the oil from frying in the stomach, you must drink a good draught of mild beer after it; and to keep it from relaxing the stomach too much, you must put in a little powder of cinnamon.

53. THE yolks of eggs are of themselves so well prepared by nature for nourishment, as, so they be poached, or rare boiled, they need no other preparation or mixture; yet they may be taken also raw,

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