Explanation of these aforesaid Talks. 375 



Mr. Culpeper in his Herbal told you to make use of 

 the Planetary hour, but he never told you how, nor where 

 to find it. I have now given you these useful tables ac- 

 cording unto my promise in page 350 in this book, but 

 I must now fell you how to use them, otherwise you will 

 still remain in the dark. Therefore let it be observed 

 that Astrological hours are always regulated by the 

 motion of the Sun, both in Summer and Winter, and the 

 space of time which is contained from Sun-rise to Sun-set 

 is divided into twelve equal parts, whereef the one half 

 contains the hours before Noon, the other the hours after 

 noon. So also the space of time from sun-set to sun-rise 

 is divided into twelve parts ; these hours are unequal, 

 consisting of more or less than sixty minutes, as the Sun 

 recedes from T to £!: as will be seen by example by the 

 foregoing table. 



The seven Planets are attributed by the learned ancient 

 wise men to preside over the seven days of the Week, 

 and each of them rules over the first hour of each day, 

 as may be seen by the Table. The first planetary hour 

 of Sunday is the Sun, the second is Venus, and so on. 

 The first planetary hour of Monday is the Moon, the 

 second is Saturn ; and the same is to be observed of the 

 other days. The use of these tables will appear by bare 

 inspeftion, as they require no sort of calculation ; but a 

 person of the meanest capacity will be able to understand 

 them. The reason of their being placed in this manner, 

 in the form of tables, is, because no Herbals which speak 

 of the force and power of planetary influx, and the 

 necessity of gathering herbs for medical use under the 

 planet which principally governs them, have laid dowa 

 any rule whereby any herbalist may know when these 

 said planetary hours are, and consequently could not 

 know the proper and fit time to gather them. This 

 deficiency has not only^ occasioned much uneasiness in 

 the minds of mariy medical gentlemen, but has also 

 much prevented the progress of cures, and many diseases 

 have been deemed incurable from not making use of the 

 precision which is absolutely necessary for the perfedlioa 

 of the same. These tables are so calculated, as by bare 

 inspection to point out those beautiful times, ivhen a 



