CENTURY X, 53 I 



because they came in a short time, and might go 

 away in a short time again : but the going away of 

 that which had stayed so long doth yet stick witji 

 me. They say the like is done by the rubbing of 

 warts with a green elder stick, and then burying 

 the stick to rot in muck. It would be tried with 

 corns and wens, and such other excrescences. I 

 would have it also tried with some parts of living 

 creatures that are nearest the nature of excrescences; 

 as the combs of cocks, the spurs of cocks, the horns 

 of beasts, &c. And I would have it tried both ways ; 

 both by rubbing those parts with lard, or elder, as 

 before, and by cutting off some piece of those parts, 

 and laying it to consume : to see whether it will 

 work any effect towards the consumption of that part 

 which was once joined with it. 



998. It is constantly received and avouched, that 

 the anointing of the weapon that maketh the wound, 

 will heal the wound itself. In this experiment, upon 

 the relation of men of credit, though myself, as yet, 

 am not fully inclined to believe it, you shall note the 

 points following : first, the ointment wherewith this 

 is done is made of divers ingredients ; whereof the 

 strangest and hardest to come by, are the moss upon 

 the skull of a dead man unburied, and the fats of a 

 boar and a bear killed in the act of generation. These 

 two last I could easily suspect to be prescribed as a 

 starting-hole : that if the experiment proved not, it 

 might be pretended that the beasts were not killed 

 in the due time ; for as for the moss, it is certain 

 there is great quantity of it in Ireland, upon slain 



