172 
THE COMPLETE HERBAL 
SOPEWORT, OR BRUISEWORT. 
Descript.|| Tue roots creeps under 
ground far and near, with many joints 
therein, of a brown colour on the outside 
and yellowish within, shooting forth in 
divers places weak round stalks, full of 
joints, set with two leaves a-piece at every 
one of them on a contrary side, which are 
ribbed somewhat like unto plantain, and 
fashioned like the common field white cam- 
pion leaves, seldom having any branches 
from the sides of the stalks, but set with 
flowers at the top, standing in long husks 
like the wild campions, made of five leaves 
a-piece, round at the ends, and dented in 
the middle, of a rose colour, almost white, 
sometimes deeper, sometimes paler; of a 
reasonable scent. 
Place.| It grows wild in many low and 
wet grounds of this land, by brooks and the 
sides of running waters. 
Time.| It flowers usually in July, and 
so continues all August, and part of Sep- 
tember, before they be quite spent. 
Government and virtues.] Venus owns 
it. The country people in divers places do 
use to bruise the leaves of Sopewort, and lay 
it to their fingers, hands or legs, when they 
are cut, to heal them up again. Some make 
great boast thereof, that it is diuretical to 
provoke urine, and thereby to expel gravel 
and the stone in the reins or kidneys, and 
do also account it singularly good to void 
hydropical waters: and they no less extol 
it to perform an absolute cure in the French 
pox, more than either sarsaparilla, guiacum, 
or China can do; which, how true it ig. I 
leave others to judge. 
SORREL. 
Our ordinary Sorrel, which grows in 
gardens, and also wild in the fields, is so 
Government and virtues.| It is under the 
dominion of Venus. Sorrel is prevalent in 
all hot diseases, to cool any inflammation 
and heat of blood in agues, pestilential or 
choleric, or sickness and fainting, arising 
from heat, and to refresh the overspent 
spirits with the violence of furious or fiery 
fits of ague; to quench thirst, and procure 
an appetite in fainting or decaying 
stomachs: For it resists the putrefaction of 
the blood, kills worms, and is a cordial to 
the heart, which the seed doth more effec- 
tually, being more drying and binding, and 
thereby stays the hot fluxes of women’s 
courses, or of humours in the bloody flux, or 
flux of the stomach. The root also in a de- 
coction, or in powder, is effectual for all 
the said purposes. Both roots and seeds, as 
well as the herb, are held powerful to resist 
the poison of the scorpion. The decoction 
of the roots is taken to help the jaundice, 
and to expel the gravel and the stone in the 
reins or kidneys. The decoction of the flow- 
ers made with wine and drank, helps the 
black jaundice, as also the inward ulcers of 
the body and bowels. A syrup made with the 
juice of Sorrel and fumitory, is a sovereign 
help to kill those sharp humours that cause ~ 
the itch. The juice thereof, with a little 
vinegar, serves well to be used outwardly 
for the same cause, and is also profitable 
for tetters, ringworms, &c. It helps also to 
discuss the kernels in the throat; and the 
juice gargled in the mouth, helps the sores 
therein. The leaves wrapt in a colewort 
leaf and roasted in the embers, and applied 
to a hard imposthume, botch, boil, or plague 
sore, doth both ripen and break it. The 
distilled water of the herb is of much good 
use for all the purposes aforesaid. 
WOOD SORREL. 
Descript.] Tus grows upon the ground, 
having a number of leaves coming from 
| the root made of three leaves, like a trefoil, , 
