AND ENGLISH PHYSICIAN ENLARGED. 
389 
lient, are both of them hot and moist. 
To that, thus: stretching and loosening 
are ascribed to the moveable parts of the 
body, as to the muscles and their tendons, 
to the ligaments and Membrane; but soft- 
ness and hardness to such parts of the body 
as may be felt with the hand: I shall make 
clear by a similitude, Wax is softened, be- 
ing hard, but Fiddle-strings are loosened be- 
ing stretched. And if you say that the dif- 
ference lying only in the parts of the body 
is no true difference, then take notice, that 
such medicines which loosen, are less hot, 
and more moistening, than such as soften, 
for they operate most by heat, these by 
moisture. 
The truth is, I am of opinion the dif- 
ference is not much, nay, scarce sensible, 
between emolient and loosening medicines ; 
only I quoted this in a chapter by itself, 
not so much because some authors do, as 
because it conduceth to the increase of 
knowledge in physic, for want of which, 
this poor nation is almost spoiled. 
The chief use of loosening medicines is 
in convulsions and cramps, and such like 
infirmities which cause distention or 
stretching. 
They are known by the very same marks 
and tokens that emolient medicines are. 
__————— 
CHAPTER IV. 
Of drawing Medicines. 
The opinion of physicians is, concerning 
these, as it is concerning other medicines, 
viz. Some draw by a manifest quality, some 
by a hidden, and so (quoth they) they draw 
to themselves both humours and thorns, or 
splinters that are gotten into the flesh ; how- 
ever this is certain, they are all of them hot, 
and of thin parts; hot because the nature 
of heat is to draw off thin parts that so they 
may penetrate to the humours that are to 
to be drawn out. ea 
Their use is various, viz. 
Use 1. That the bowels may be disbur- 
dened of corrupt humours. 
2. Outwardly used, by them the offend- 
ing humour (I should have said the peccant 
humour, had I written only to scholars,) is 
called from the internal parts of the body 
to the superfices. 
8. By them the crisis of a disease is 
much helped forward. 
4. They are exceedingly profitable to 
draw forth poison out of the body. 
5. Parts of the body over cooled are 
cured by these medicines, viz. by applying 
them outwardly to the place, not only be- 
cause they heat, but also because they draw 
the spirits by which life and heat are cher- 
ished, to the part of the body which is 
destitute of them: you cannot but know 
that many times parts of the body fall away 
in flesh, and their strength decays, as in 
some persons arms or legs, or the like, the 
usual reason is, because the vital spirit 
decays in those parts, to which use such 
plaisters or ointments as are attractive 
(which is the physical term for drawing 
medicines) for they do not only cherish the 
parts by their own proper heat, but draw 
the vital and natural spirits thither, where- 
by they are both quickened and nourished. 
They are known almost by the same 
tokens that attenuating medicines are, see- 
ing heat; and thinness of parts is in them 
both, they differ only in respect of quantity, 
thinness of parts being most proper to at- 
tenuating medicines, but attractive medi- 
cines are hotter. 
CHAPTER V. 
Of discussive Medicines. 
The nature of discussing (or sweating) 
medicines is almost the same with attrac : 
tive, for there are no discussive medicines — 
but are attractive, nor scarce any attractive oe 
