of Plinies Naturall Hiftorie. | 131 
A blacke,butyet fweet.Evatoffhenes commendeth it as a principal dith for a poore mans table:aid 
itis faid that it hath a fpeciall vertue to proveke urine : and with vinegre if itbe applied, to ctre 
the fouletettars called Lichenes,and the leprofie, Alfo,by theteftimonie of Hefiedusand Alca- 
#s,if itbe taken in wine, itinciteth to wantonnefle and flefhly pleafures. Thefe Poets doe write, 
That when this hearbedoth flourifhvand is atthe beft,then grafhoppers chant loudettand fing 
moft thrill: andas women at fuch atime be moftdefirous of mens companie and hoteft inluft, 
fo conttariwife men are moft loth to turne unto them,and leaft ableto content their appetite:as 
if Nature to fatisit the pleafure of thefe good wives, had provided againft thar faint feafon the 
. help ofthe Artichoke, as a viand moft powerfull at this time tofet their husbands in a hear,and 
to enable them to that buffnefle. Moreover,an ounceef the rootcleanfed from the pith fodden 
B. totherliirds in three hemines of the beft Falerne wine,andeither taken in drinke upon an emp- 
tie ftomack,prefently after that one hath fweat,and is newcomeforth of the Baine :ar elsto the 
quantitie of one cyath immediatly afterevery meale, doth correct and take away the ftinkeand. 
ranke {mell ofthe arme-pits.And aftrange thing itis,that Xenocrates affirmeth upon his own exe 
perience, and promifgth, Thatthis decoction is of fuch efficacie, that itcaufeth thefaidftrong’ | 
fenttopafle away bytheurine, iby & ot 
Moreover ,the*Sowthiftle isan hearbe for to be eaten: for weread in the Poet Calli machwsjxsonchus, 
That the poore oldwoman Hecale, at what times prince Thefew: fortuned upon neceffitie to 
take his repaft in her fimple cottage, made him a teaft, and ferbefore him aprincipall difhof 
Sowthiftles. Two kinds there bee of them,the white,and the blacke:both,likeunto Leétuce,but 
C thatthey are full of prickes. Theyrun up intoa ftalke ofa cubite in height,the fame is cornered: 
and hollow within; but breake it, and you fhall fee itrun out with milke plentifully. The white, 
‘which hath that bright colour of the milke within it, isthoughttobee as good as Leétuces,for 
thofe that be f{treightwinded & cannot take their breath but upright.Er4/i//retw fheweth plaine- 
ly, Thatif it bee eaten, ic expelleth gravell by.urine :and chewed onely, it correcteth the ftinking 
favor of the mouth,and caufeth oneto have a {weet breath. The juice thereof drawn to the mea- 
fure of three cyaths,made hot in white wine and oile,and fo taken,helpeth womenin labor, that 
they may bee foone delivered : but prefently after they have drunke it,they ought to ftir their bo- 
dies and walke tip and downe their chamber. Alfo it is ufedto be fodden in broth, and fo fupped 
__ up. The very ftalke thereof being boiled maketh milch iourcesto have good {tore of milke, and 
D thechildren at their breaft to be better coloured.Bur moft excellenrit is for {uch nources as feele 
their milke to cruddle in their breafts. The juice therof dropped into the eares,doth them much 
ood:and a meafure of one cyath drunke hote,is as good for the ftrangurie, Burinthe fretting 
and gnawing of the ftomacke, it would be taken with Cucumber feed and Pine-nut kernils, Ap- 
plied in forme ofa liniment,it cureth the apoftemations inthe fundament.A drink is made ther- 
of which is a countrevoy(on againft ferpents and {corpions : but then therootalfo muftbe laid 
outwardly unto the fore place, The fame roor boiled with oile within the pill of a pomgranat,is 
_agood remedie forthe paines and maladies of the eares, Note, that all thefe vertues muft be un- 
derftood of the white Sowthiftle. And C /eempor1es doth accord hereunto as touching the white: 
buthe alloweth in no wifeto eat of the blacke,for he is of opinion,thatit breedeth difeafes..4za - 
thocles alfo prefcribeth the juice of the white Sowthiftle to them who have drunk Buls bloud,and 
fulpe&t themfelves poyfoned therewith. Howbeir,they bee all agreed, that the black is refrigera- 
tive: in which regard itought to be applied ouraey with Barley groats.Zenon declareth, That 
the root of the white Sowthiftle,cureth the {trangurie. a) 
Asfor *Chondrillon or Chondrille, it hath leaves like unto Endive or Cichorie leaves gna- *Gum suce 
wed or eaten round about:a ftem not afoothigh, and the fame full of a bitter juice:a root like chorie 
unto *a Beane,and otherwhile there be many of them together, This hearbe puttethforth clofe spies, yuor 
to the ground acertainekind of gum like Mafticke,fwelling out to the bigneffe of a Bean; which j.fall and freth: 
being applied to the naturall parts of women, is faid to drawdowne their monthly courfes, The ie eee 
F fame heaibe being ftamped root and all together and digefted intotrofches, isthoughttobee itu 
fingular good againft(erpents. Anda probable reafon hereofis collected,becaufethe field mice 
and rats when they are {tung by ferpents,ltave recourfe to this hearbe,and eat thereof. The juice 
drawne out of this hearbe after itis fodden in wine, bindeth the bellie. The fame is fingular good 
to rectifie,couch and Jay even the diforderly haires of the eye-lids,as effetually as the belt gum 
inthe world. Dorothews the Poet hath delivered in his verfes, That it isgood for the ftomack,and 
| ‘helpeth 
