CULPEPER'S 



ORIGINAL EPISTLE TO THE READER. 



Notice, That in this Edition I have made very many Additions to every sheet in the 

 J- book : and, also, that those books of mine that are printed of that Letter the small Bibles 

 are printed with, are very falsely . printed : there being twenty or thirty gross mistakes in every 

 sheet, many of them such as are exceedingly dangerous to such as shall venture to use them : And 

 therefore I do warn the Public of them : I can do no more at present ; only take notice of these 

 Directions by which you shall be sure to know the True one from the False. 



The first Direction. The true one hath this Title over the head of every Book, THE COM- 

 PLETE HERBAL AND ENGLISH PHYSICIAN ENLARGED. The small Counterfeit ones have only thip 

 Title, THE ENGLISH PHYSICIAN. 



The second Direction. The true one hath these words, GOVERNMENT AND VIRTUES, following 

 the time of the Plants flowering, &c. The counterfeit small ones have these words, VIRTUES AND 

 USE, following the time of the Plants flowering. 



The third Direction. The true one is of a larger Letter than the counterfeit ones, which are 

 in Twelves, &c., of the Letter small Bibles used to be printed on. 1 shall now speak something 

 of the book itself. 



All other Authors that have written of the nature of Herbs, give not a bit of reason why such 

 an Herb was appropriated to such a part of the body, nor why it cured such a disease. Truly my 

 own body being sickly, brought me easily into a capacity, to know that health was the greatest of 

 all earthly blessings, and truly he was never sick that doth not believe it. Then I considered 

 that all medicines were compounded of Herbs, Roots, Flowers, Seeds, &<:., and this first set me 

 to work in studying the nature of simples, most of which I knew by sight before ; and indeed 

 all the Authors I could read gave me but little satisfaction in this particular, or none at all. 1 

 cannot build my faith upon Authors' words, nor believe a thing because they say it, and could wish 

 every body were of my mind in this, to labour to be able to give a reason for every thing they 

 say or do. They say Reason makes a man diner from a Beast ; if that be true, pray what are 

 they that, instead of reason for their judgment, quote old Authors'? Perhaps their authors knew 

 a reason for what they wrote, perhaps they did not; what is that to us? Do we know it? Truly 

 in writing this work first, to satisfy myself, I drew out all the virtues of the vulgar or common 



