culpbfxb's complxtx hxsbau 41 



origanum, and eaphorbium, with some honey, and the 

 head bathed therewith, doth wonderfully help distillationg 

 and rheums, and settleth the palate of the mouth into its 

 place. The oil made of the berries is very comfortable in 

 all cold griefs of the joints, nerves, arteries, stomach, 

 belly, or womb ; and helpeth palsies, convulsions, cramp, 

 aches, trembling, and numbness in any part, weariness 

 also, and pains that come by sore travailing. All griefs 

 and pains proceeding from wind, either in the nead, 

 stomach, back, belly, or womb, by anointing the parts 

 affected therewith ; and pains of the ears are also cured 

 by dropping in some of the oil, or bv receiving into the 

 ears the fume of the decoction of the berries through a 

 funnel. The oil takes away the marks of the skin and 

 flesh by bruises, falls, &c. and dissolveth the congealed 

 blood in them. It helpeth also the itch, scabs, and weals 

 in the skin. 



BEANS,-^ Vieia Faba.) 



Both the garden and field beans are so well known, that 

 it saveth me the labour of writing a description of them. 

 Their virtues follow. 



OovemmerU and Virtues. — They are plants of Venus, 

 and the distilled water of the flower of garden beans is 

 good to clean the face and skin from spots and wrinkles ; 

 and the meal or flower of them, or the small beans, doth 

 the same. The water distilled from the green husks, is 

 held to be very efi'ectual against the stone, and to provoke 

 urine. Bean flour is used in poultices to assuage inflam- 

 mations rising upon wounds, and the swelling of women's 

 breasts caused by curding of their milk, and represseth 

 their milk. Flour of b^ns and fenugreek mixed with 

 honey, and applied to felons, biles, bruises, or blue marks 

 by blows, or the imposthumes in the kernels of the ears, 

 helpeth them all, and with rose leaves, frankincense, and 

 the white of an eft^gy being applied to the eyes, helpeth 

 them that are swollen or do water, or have received any 

 blows upon them, if used in wine. If a bean be parted in 

 two, the skin being taken away, and laid on the place 

 where the leech hath been set that bleedeth too much, it 

 stayeth the bleeding. Bean flour boiled to a poultice with 

 wine and vinegar, and some oil put thereto, eafleth both 

 pains and swelling of the testicles. The husks boiled in 

 water to the consumption of a third pai-t thereof, stayeth 



