96 THE OLD ENGLISH HERBALS 



years later van der Loe's widow sold them to Christophe Plantin 

 for 420 florins. 



All the commendatory verses at the beginning of Lyte's 

 herbal are in Latin, except some lines in which William Clowes 

 speaks of writing about herbs as "a fit occupation for gentle- 

 men and wights of worthy fame," and recalls the great men 

 who have immortalised themselves thereby, notably Gentius, 

 Lysimachus, Mythridates and Dioscorides. Then, after giving 

 due praise to Dodoens, " Whose learned skill hath offered first 

 this worthy worke to vewe," Clowes ends with four lines in 

 which he plays upon the name of the translator : 



" And Lyte, whose toyle hath not bene light to dye it in this grayne, 

 Deserves no light regarde of us : but thankes and thankes agayne. 

 And sure I am all English hartes that lyke of Physickes lore 

 Will also lyke this gentleman : and thanke hym muche therefore." 



The herbal is dedicated to Queen Elizabeth " as the best token 

 of love and diligence that I am at this time able to shew. . . . 

 And doubtless if my skill in the translation were answerable to 

 the worthynesse eyther of the Historic itselfe or of the Authours 

 thereof I doubt not but I should be thought to haue honoured 

 your Maiestie with an acceptable present." The preface is 

 dated from " my poore house at Lytes carie within your Maiesties 

 Countie of Somerset the first day of Januarie MDLXXVIII." 



In 1606 there appeared the book commonly known as Ram's 

 little Dodoen. It purported to be an epitome of Lyte's Dodoens, 

 but, though some of its matter has been abridged from Dodoens's 

 work, it is in reality a compilation of recipes unworthy of the 

 great name it bears. In his preface the author tells us : "I 

 have bestowed some tyme in reducing the most exquisit new 

 herball or history of plants (first set forth in Dutch and Almayne 

 tongue by the learned and worthy man of famous memory 

 Dr. Rembert Dodeon (sic) Phisician to the Emperor, and trans- 

 lated into English by Master Henry Lyte Esq.), with a brief 

 and short epitome ... so as where the great booke at large is 

 not to be had but at a great price, which cannot be procured 



