200 OUR ROCK-GARDEN 



which is onely Lorde of Sagitarie, which governes 

 the hucklebone, and of Pisces, whiche chalengeth 

 the feete." The old author, Thomas Lupton, 

 claims for this quaint little black-letter quarto 

 much of value, declaring of those notable things 

 that he gathered in, that " some are wonderfull, 

 some strange, some pleasant, divers necessary, a 

 great sort profitable, and many very precious." 

 This is a very considerable claim to make, but 

 so far as his book goes, and it goes of course no 

 further than the knowledge of his day would 

 allow, we find ourselves able to admit much of what 

 he claims for it, for its contents are distinctly 

 wonderful, while their strangeness is undoubtedly a 

 strong feature. Many of his recipes are now super- 

 seded by others yet more profitable and precious ; 

 we do not nowadays, for instance, anoint our temples 

 with " the gall of a Partriche " to strengthen the 

 memory. 



Two of Lupton's hints, which he would no 

 doubt classify amongst the matters profitable, again 

 concern the henbane. Would we catch hares and 

 that we know from the old cookery book to be the 

 first step towards their appearance in the menu we 

 are told to take "the iuyce of Henbane mixt with 

 the bloud of a Hare, and sodde within the skynne 

 of a Hare." This we proceed to bury, and then 

 bide our time, since "all the Hares wyll gather 

 together which be within that tract where it is 



