Book IIII*

Lt 9»
A cruel Bali* fisk>
Gior&. 5,
power to do mifchief from venemous nutriment ; and they have done this the more acurately, becaufe he is fo dangerous by his fiaht, breath, luffing, and lo kills men; whereas other Serpents cannot kill but they muftbe near to fling or bite, and fo is their poyfon difperfed into the body. Lucan dcfcribing many kinds of Sc rpents, fees down alfo the nature of the Bafilisk thus.
The Bafilisk doth reign alone ,
By his hi fling he is known^
Beficles himfelf will fuffer none , c/idmits no ve time but his own ;
Hurts at a difiance -
Whereby he (lie ws that he doth mifehiefby feeing any man., and kills by nis venom’d breath, before the poyfon comes to touch the body. Yet I believe it is an old wives tale, which the vulgar thinks to be real truth, that in our country fo pernicious and hurt- full a creature can be bred by the hatching of a Toad, and thac fometimes in Caves and dens under the ground, Bafilisks lye that kill men if they chance to come into thofe places, whereas it is the venemous vapours that (link, and arife from foul nafty places* that flop mens breath and kill them, and no man need to doubt but that fometimes poyfonous creatures that lurk in thofe places do deftroy men. Some learned writers teftify, that in Saxony there is a cruel kind of Bafilisk feen, that hath a lharp pointed head* and is of a yellow colour; nine inches long, that is three hands breadth, wonderfull thick, with a fpotted belly, and marked with many white points, the back of it is blew, the tail is like a turban and crooked, his jaws are wide and vaft according to the proportion of his body ; I know not certainly to fay whether he fhould be reckoned amongft Bafilisks, or Serpents, for the huf- bandmen could not meet them and fight with them without dan¬ ger, who never fear to fet upon them with prongs, or clubs, or forks, and find no hurt thereby, nor are they infected by their breath. Yet there arc fome kinds of Serpents that pollute ibeep coats, and flails, and poyfon cattle, astheHydra, Afpe, Viper* Snake, Adder, that are next kin to the Bafilisk for malice* and fierceneffe. VYhich Virgil elegantly expreffed thus,
Under old Hedges , the Viper doth ly ,
And fears for to come forth to fee the Sky ,
Or elfe the wood-Snake who doth love the /bade,
A plague to Oxen is his venome made.
Alfo that Snake that's in Calabrian Groves ,
That twifi's it's Scaly hack under its hrefly and roves , with fpotted belly , into hanks and lakesy And fils its gut with all the fifb it takes ,
And croking frogs^yet when the lakes are dry , tAnd earth isparched> he doth [uddenly.
Com
Chap.i i.
Of Bafilisk s and other ferce creatures.
261 )
Come forth on dry land , and doth look mojl fierce >
With faming eyes that very deep can pierce ,
Thirjl makes him cruel , and the Sun that burns,
•d ft rights him , ##» which himfelf be turns ,
He (Fines, and out of’s mouth his tongue appears ,
That is three forked, all as (harp as Spears.
I think that Germany hath this and many more kinds of Ser¬ pents, andfomekind ot Baiilisks, but they are not endued with iuch ftrong and violent poyfon, as thofe are that breed in Africa, 1 y* and the torrid Countries. From the cruelty of thefe creatures, the holy Prophets formerly drew many apt funilitudcs $ For Efaiac cha feems to relate to the Vipers bringing forth of its young ones, when
he faith, They conceived wickednejse, and b» ought forth iniquity, they have hatched the Cockatrice Eggs, and fpun the fpiders web, he that eats of their Eggs (hall dye, and that which ts fofiered (hall break forth into a Bafilisk. Whereby he intimates that they {hall labour hard in Z^cebf. a matter that is nothing worth, and whatfoever they go about is hurtfull and mifchicvous : and that their doarine is full of viru¬ lence, and by its (linking favour it deUroycs the hearers of it ;
Moreover whatfoever proceeds or comes from them, is venemous
and deadly, as that is which comes from a Bafilisk and venemous
beafts. Alio Solomon compares intemperance in wine, that makes Prov.13.
mens minds mad, andispoylon to them, to deadly and dangerous
Serpents. Look not faith he on the wine when it looks red, and when.
the colour of it fhines in the Glajje m, it goes down pleafantly, but in the
end it will bite like an Adder, and as a Bafilisk will it fend its Poyfon
forth. And as a Woolf takes away the voice of thofe he meets, or
clfe makes them hoarfe by the filthy venemous vapours that pro- takes diva.) ike
ceed from him, fo the Bafilisk by his breath and biffing, doth V0lce'
wound people afar off as if he (hot an arrow at them -, and he is
not onely hurtfull to man and other living creatures, but he pol¬ lutes the Corn and Plants with but touching them. And there is no living creature that can ftand againft the poylon of this Serpent but the Wcefil, the Dutch call it Wefel, which is fo fenced and ^weeptisa armed by eating of Rue, that he will fet on the Bafilisk boldly and will pull him forth of his lurking holes, and kill him, and it Pttny.LAc.zi theiA'eeiil when the Bafilisk is dead do not prefcntly run away, and eat of Rue again to refrefh himfelf, he would be choakcdby 7hevemeof the contagion of "the Ayre. Wherefore they do wifely, who m Kuc. planting their Gardens, affignthe principal place unto this hearb, becaufe^ it hath a prefent vettue to refift poylbns, and no kind of Serpent will hide it felf under the fhadowofit; So if any man take Mandragora , Hemlock, Henbane, Oerufle, Opium, and
manv more things that ftupHy by theur immoderate cold quality,
he is helped with the juice of Hue, of the deco&iorcof it in Wines which will difeufle the malice of it. Alfo Hemlock wherewith as we read Socrates was put to death, or if there be any other
TA.i: hearbs
270
Of the Hearh Rue and the Jewel , AleBoria. Book HU.
Hearbs, that are of a cold dupefying nature, as Poppy, Lettice, Purflane, will rebate the force of Rue, and overcome lr, if it be taken in great quantity • for Rue being of a hot and burning qua¬ lity, it it be taken too largely will hurt rhe body. So I obferved
that when any popular difeaie did fpread.it felf, and in the time
ofche Plague, as many as now and then put Rue to their nofes dipt in Vinegar, that they might drive away the contagion of the Ayre,had puthes above and beneath their lip 5 for this doth exul- cerate appiyed outwardly, and rubbed on any part it will raife zutburnsbmg blitters. Wherefore for Carbuncles and Bubo’s, and other tu- M tot c 9 moursthat put forth in the Plague it is fitly appiyed, for it draws forth the venome, and will not let the venemous vapours flye iq- a pimjter for wardly. So I bid men make a plaifter with Rue bruifed with p ctnientbu. fhar p fait leaven, Figs, Cantharidcs, Onions, and Squils rolled, mom‘ Quicklime, French-Soap, Ammoniacum, and a little Theriac,which being timely laid to the part affixed, will foon break through the fecret and lurking humours , but inwardly mud be given Anti¬ dotes char may drive the fuliginous vapours from the heart and difcufle them, amongd which are Theriac and Mithridate for prefent remedies, given a drachm, or a drachm and half for a
wm teethe do fe5 as the a§e and torccs wil1 bear ^ in wine or the decoaion heart fromiil of Marigold-flowers, which the Dutch from the Golden colour vapours. call Goudt linemen. But fince the mondrous birth of the Cock,
from whofe Egg the common people think a Bafilisk is bred, doth not a little fright and amaze all men, fo the Cock-done called AleBorm , is defired by all, and all men are in love with it ; For if chis be worn about us’ 1C wi!1 augment mens forces, and will make
do, a man both drong and confident to attempt any bufineffe. It is taken forth of the gizard of a Capon, Or gelded Cock, included in a thin membrane, or skin, four years after that his dones were cue
out, this Jewel is of a tranfparent colour, like to Cryftal, and as
hmdslTL grcac as a Bcan- 1 think this congeals of a leminal excreraenr, pn. ‘ and is heaped together by the help of natural heat. For fince na¬ ture ceafeth not to elaborate feed in this creature, though it be in- efrt&ual and invalid, and forces want to cad forth the moyflure concoded, yet iccondenfeth into a done.
Milk grow So milk when it is not drawn forth grows hard as a done in the intheBrelil brcafts5 and in the collections of Impodumes, a hard dony con¬ cretion is fometimes taken forth. The Jewel AleBoria procures favouf5 and makes them gratious amongd women s laTUy in man, in putting forth their man-hood, which is required in the Mar¬ riage bed, when they get children, it will make them drong and what force the Iuity. So the Jewel called found in an Eagles ned, that
feweimtes rings with little dones within it, makes women that are flippery able to conceive, being bound to the bread of the left arm, by which from the heart toward the ring-finger, next to the little finger an artery runs ^ and if all the time the woman is great with child, this Jewel be worn on thofe parts, it drengthens the child, and there is no fear of abortion, or mifearrying. On the contrary,
being
Chap. 1 2.
Tv at Plants are of both Sexes.
271 ~
being a pplyed to the thigh of one that is in labour, it makes a fpcedy and eafy delivery , without any difficulty almoft or dreight in bringing forth. Which thing 1 have found true by experiment ; for when a Noblewoman wore this at her neck all the time fhe went with child, and was in very good health, and when fhe was in labour forgat to take off this Jewel from her bread, line found prelentiy a difficulty in her labour, and that the child was (low to come forth; Wherefore taking off the Eagledlone from her neck, and applying it to her thigh, upon the inward part not far from the privities , fhe had an eify and quick delivery. Wherefore 1 fhewed to Matrons, that treuk-of that Jewell was very good for them, when it was fit to apply it to their breads, or to their thighs. If any man fhouldask, By what vertue it doth this, and is de- firous to learn ; I believe it doth it by an attractive vertue, as the Loaddonc draws Iron 5 Jet, and Amber, draw draws and chad.
Which mud feem abfurd to no man, dnee the Matrix hath an exquifite fenfe of feeling, and is fo affected with fweet fmeils, that if they be put totheNofe, it will drive to come upward, fo that women and maids not married will be in danger to be choaked, unlefle they be prefently taken away, and applyed to the nethermod and fecrct parts , for then it will make hade to run downwards. Wherefore women with child require the fweeteft fmeils to fmell to, whereby their fpirits are recreated, and the child tends upwards; but fuch as Jud after men , mud have dinking things applyed to their nodrills, and fweet things to their Secrets and Thighs, tfpecially when they are troubled with the drangling of the Mother. -
Buc if the Matrix fend downwards, and fall low; dinking things mud be bound to the nether parts , and fweet things to the upper parts; which by their pleafing vapours may recreate the fpirits decayed. But if thefe things be ufed otherwife, and prepoderoufly ; it falls out that the difeafe is exafperated, and women are grievoufly affcdfced , if they do not copulate with men, fo that beddes the great pains they endure, they Taint and fwound away.
An experiment in a Matron of. the Jewel Eli¬
tes.
V J
, J (%
• - J ' \ A l .
The Nature of the Matrix.
To what parts we muft apply finking and what J weet fmeils. ^