— es. 
4 ‘ ~ 
‘ 
of Plinies Naturall Hiftorie. 
_ A though their eyes were plucked outof their head, as fomeare of opinion. Of this hearbe there 
betwo kinds:The greater,which pucteth forth many {tems and thofe full of braunches,beareth 
leaves like unto the wild *Parfenep,but that they be larger. The hearbe it felfe groweth up to the 
height of wo cubits, The leaves bee whitith or hoarie,like as the whole plant ic felte,all fave the 
flower,which is yellow. The whole hearb yeeldeth a biting and fretting jutce,of the colour of Saf- 
fron: andit bringeth forth feed refembling that of Poppie. The lefic *Celendineis feene with 
Ieaves fafhioned much after the Ivie,but that they be rounder. Both Celendines doe flower. in 
the Spring about the time that the Swallowes come abroad and {hew themfelves unto us, and 
thofe flowers begin to fade again upon the departure of that birdftom us. The only time to dtaw 
or preffe their juice from them, is whiles they bee in the flower: Which if it bee putintoa brafen 
_ pan,and feeth gently upon hote embers or afheés onely,together with the beft Atticke honey, is 
a fingular medicine to difcuffe and {cater the cloudie filmes that dim the eyefight. The faid juice 
alone without any other preparations,goeth tothe making of many collyriesor eyefalves,which 
be called Chelidonia,by reafon of that ingredient. : | 
Touching the dogs graffe Canaria,ittook that name in Latin, becavfe dogs ufe therwith to dif- 
charge their gorge & whet their ftomacks when their appetite to meat is gone.A ftrange thing of 
thefe dogs; we fee them chew this hearbe in our fight ordinarily every day,yet {o,as we nevercan 
223 
*Peflinces (r= 
ratice. Some 
read Rantnculi, 
i.Crowfoot, 
out of Diof{ca. 
* Scvophulariag 
i.Pilewort or 
Figwort. This 
floureth {cos 
ner,[o wit.ja 
Februarie. 
tell which *hearbe it is that they have bitten: for we may perceiveit onely when it is earen down, *With us they 
Butno marvell if this creature be fo fpighttull as toconceale from us a purgative hearbe, con 
dering a greater malice that he fheweth in another: For itis {aid that if a dog bee bitten by a fer- 
pent,he hath recourfe by and by to a certaine hearbe that cureth him prefently, buthee will bee 
furethat no man fhall fee him when he croppeth that hearbe. 
Yerthe poore hinds(fimple and harmelefle creatures they) are not fo coy and dainty of their 
knowledge,fox they have fhewed us the plant * Elaphobofcon, whercof I have already written 
dike as the hearbe*Sefeli alfo,which prefently after they have calved,they feed upon in our fighr, 
and make it not ftraunge, Nay,they have nor thought much to impart unto us the vertue of the 
hearbe Dictamnus(as I have partly declared heretotore)for we may evidentlyfee them afier they 
be fhot or wounded,to go forthwith unto this hearbe,and nofooner have they eat of it, but im- 
mediatly the arrows or darts wherewith they were hurt and {ticking in them, fall out of their bo- 
dies, This plant is found growing nowhere but in the Ifland Candie. The braunches bee excee- 
ding fine and {lender :It refemblesh in fome fort Penyroiall! At the congues end hot it is and bi- 
ting.And the leaves onely are in ufe : for “neither flower nor {eed it hath,ne yet any {tem or ftalk. 
As forthe root,as it isfmall and little, fo isit*needlefle for any gapdit doth in Phyficke . A rare 
plant this DiGamnus is, for even in Candie(the natural place therofyit groweth not every where, 
but within fome {mall compafle of ground within that Ifle: and there Goats have a wonderfull 
defire to be feeding upon it. Mary in lieu of thistrue DiGtamnus,thereis a baftard kind found in 
many countries, called Pfeudodictamnum:ln leafe it refembleth the other,the branches be leffe: 
and fome there be who name it Chondris. Thatit is of weaker operation,and nothing fo effectu- 
all asthe former,a man fhall foone find by the taft : for take never fo little of the right Dictam- 
num into the mouth, itfetteth it prefently oma fire. They that ufe to gather tele Dictamnes, be- 
ftow them clofe wrapped within the ftems of Ferula or reeds, and then bind them fatt together, 
for feare that their vertue and {trengcth fhould exhale and vanith away. Writers there be who at- 
firme, That both the one and the other Didamnumm doe grow in many countries : butthe worft 
é 
& 
i- 
doe eat the 
common | 
Quich-graffe. 
¥ Gratia cei. 
* Which the 
o!ld Romances 
Called Si: 
whereof Festus 
thinkech that | 
Silwsit(..a break 
faft) rooke the 
name: becaule 
they ufed be- 
fore dinner or 
noon refectid, 
to dnnke a 
dratght of 
wine alomati- 
zed with this 
bearbe, 
"In Diofcorides, 
whorn ‘Piinie 
jeemeth here 
totranflate, ic 
fhould be read 
thus, 874 dor, 
¥Te Ngprroe OUfe 
249, NOU géper, 
thatis, Neither 
oure nor feed 
1s medicinable: 
is that which commeth up in rich and fat grounds, Therfore they that would meet with the right for,thacichath 
Di@amnum, matt feeke 1 in rough places, for no where els it loveth to grow. A third kind there 
isof Di@amnum, and fo called : but neither in fhape anfwerable, norin effect comparable to 
the other.In leafe it refembleth water Mints,bur thatthe braunches be greater. Moreover, this 
fetled and deepe perfuafion men have of Candie,that what Simples foever grow there, they be in- 
finitly better thanall others of the fame kind whatfoever. Next unto which Ifland there goeth a 
greatname and opinion of the mountaine Pernaflus, for excellent hearbs : howfoever orherwife 
mount Pelius in Theflalie,the hill Telechrius in Eubcea: and generally,all Arcadia, & the coun- 
trey of Laconica throughout,be renowned much for plentie of good Simples. And yet the Ar- 
cadiansverely ufe no other Phyficke but milke onely,and that aboutthe Spring, at what time all 
hearbs there,be in their beft verdure and fulleft of fap ; foas the udders of beaits be their Phyfi- 
*. cians, yeelding them medicines out of the paftures:But above all, they ufe to drinke Cowmilke, 
¢ Or 
oures, sppea- 
reth by Margit 
12 AEneid- in 
thele verfes: 
DiGamium ges 
nitrix Creted 
carpit ab Fda, 
Paberibus cate 
lems folyjs, op 
flore comenztemp, 
Purpureo, ore, 
*Yet Dicfcorides 
faith,thac ir 
helpeth womé 
to {peedie 
childbirth, 
