THE ENGLISH PHYSICIAN ENLARGED. 249 



and malignant ulcers and sores of all sorts, but healeth and 

 soldcrcth up the lips of green wounds in any part also. 

 I^et women forbear if tlicy be with child, for it works 

 violently upon the feminine part. 



Plsntain. ?. (c. d, 2.) 



This groweth usually in meadows and fields, and hf 

 path-sides, and is so well known that it needeth no 

 description. 



Time.'] It is in beauty about June, and the seed ripeneth 

 shortly alter. 



Guvernment and Virtues.'] It is true, Mizaldus and 

 others, yea, almost all astrological physicians, hold this to 

 be an herb of ]\Iars, because it cureth the diseases of the 

 head and privities, which are under the houses of Mars, 

 Aries, and Scorpio; the truth is, it is under the command 

 of Venus, and cures the head by antipathy to ]\Iars, and 

 the privities by sympathy to Venus ; neither is therehardly 

 a martial disease but it cares. 



The juice of Plantain clarified and drank for divers 

 days together, either of itself, or in other drink, prevail- 

 eth wonderfully against all torments or excoriation in 

 the guts or bowels, helpcth the distillatious of rheum 

 from the head, and stayeth all manner of fluxes, even 

 ■women's courses, when they flow too abundantly. Jt is 

 good to stay spitting of blood and other bleedings at 

 the mouth, or the making of foul and bloody water, by- 

 reason of any ulcer in the reins or bladder, and also 

 stayeth the too free bleeding wf wounds. It is held an 

 especial remedy for those that are troubled with the 

 phthisic, or consumption of the lungs, or ulcers of the 

 I'ings, or coughs that come of heat. The decoction or 

 powder of the roots or seeds is much more binding fop 

 ail the purposes aforesaid than the leaves. Dioscorides 

 saith, that three roots boiled in wine and taken, helpetb 

 the tertian ague, and for the quartan ague, (but letting 

 the number pass as fabulous) 1 conceive the decoctioa 

 of divers roots may be eflectual. The herb (but especi- 

 ally the seed) is held to be profitable against the dropsy 

 the faUiog sickuessj the yellow jauudiccj and stoppings' 



M 5 



