S4 THE ENGLISH PHYSICIAN ENLARGED. 



forcibl}'; llicy are very efl"c61ual against the biting of 

 serpents, and tlurcfore arc put as an ingredient both into 

 Mithridate and V^cnice treacle. The leaves and roots 

 being boiled in lye, and (he iicad often wa.siied therewith 

 ■while it was warm, comfortcth the head and brain that in 

 ill afl'eCtcd by taking cold, and helpeth the memory. 



1 shall desire ignorant people to forbear the use of the 

 leaves; the roots purge more gently, and may prove 

 beneficial in such as have cancers, or old putrified ulcers, 

 or fistulas upon their bodies, to take a dram of them in 

 powder in a quarter of a pint of white wine in the morn- 

 ing. The truth is, 1 fancy jiurging and vomiting medi- 

 cines as little as any man breathing doth, lor (hey weaken 

 nature, nor shall ever advise them to be used, unless upon 

 urgent necessity. If a physician be nature's servant, it 

 is his duty to strengthen his mistress as much as he can, 

 and weaken her as little as may be. 



Asparagus or Spaiagus.. (temp.) 



This is also called Prickly Asparagus, and Spcrage. 

 It isdistinguiblieu into Garden, and Wild. The roots of 

 the wild are of more use in Mcidicine, but its shoots have 

 not that fine fleshy si.bslance. 



Descript.'] It riseth up at first with divers white and 

 green scaly heads, very brittle or easy to break while they 

 are young, which afterwards rise up in very long and 

 slender green stalks, of the bigness of an ordinary riding 

 wand, at the bottom of most, or bigger or lesser, as the 

 roots are of growth; on which are set divers branches of 

 green leaves, shorter and smaller than fennel to the top ; 

 a.t the joints whereof come forth small yellowish floM ers, 

 Avhich run into round berries, green at first, and of an 

 excellent red colour when they are ripe, shewing like bead 

 or coral, wherein are contained exceeding hard black 

 seeds, the roots are dispersed from a spongeons head into 

 many long, thick, and round strings, wherein is sucked 

 much nourishment out of thegroundj and iucreaseth plen- 

 tifully thereby. 



