of Plintes Naturall Fiftorie, 243 
A. he defired (as he was a man otherwife of a prompt wit and quicke fpirit) he refolved to give over 
the law, and fodainly applied himfelfero anew courfeof Phyficke. This man having no skillat 
all,and aslitele practife, confidering he neither was well ftudied.in the Theoricke part of this {ci- 
ence, norfurnithed with knowledge of remedies which required continuall infpection and ufe 
of fimples, wrought {o with his fmooth and flowing tongue and by his daily premeditat orati- 
ons gained fo much, that hee withdrew mens minds fromthe opinion they had. of former pra- 
&tife, and overthrew all. In which difcourfes of his, reducing all Phyficke to the firftand primi- 
tive caufes, he madeit a meere conjectural] Art; bearing men in-hand, that there were but-fivé 
ptincipall remedies which ferved indifferently for all difeafessto wit,In dict,Abflinencein meat, 
Forbearing wine otherwhiles,Rubbing of the bodie,and the*Exercile of geftations, In fumme; | 7. Riding on 
B fofarhe prevailed with hiseloquent{peech, that every man was willing to giveeare & applaufe coryine in 
unto his words: for being readie enough to beleeve thofe things for true,which were moffeafie; ‘coach, ier, 
and feeing withall, that whatfoever he commended unto them, was.in each mans power to per- barge,&¢, 
forme, he had the generall voice of them : fo as by this new dodtrine of his,he drew allthe world. 
into a fingular admiration of him, as ofa man {ent and defcended from heaven above, to cure 
their griefsand maladies. Moreover, a wonderfull dexteritie and artificiall gracehe had tofol- 
Jow mens humors and content their appetits in promifing and allowing the ficke to drinkewine, 
in giving them eftfoons cold water when he faw his time, and all to pratifie his Panents, Now for: 
that Herophyivs before him had the honour of beeing the firft Phyfician who fearched into the, 
caufesof maladies: and becaule Cleophantus hadithe name among the auncients, for bringing 
C wine into requeft and fetting out the vertues theteof :this man for his part alfo, deftrous to grow 
into credit and reputation by fomenewinvention of his owne, brought up firlt the allowing of, 
cold water beforefaid,to ficke perfons ;.and (as @.Varro doth report) tooke pleafure tobe called 
the Cold-water Phyfician, He had befides other pretie devifes to flatter and pleafe his Patients, 
one while caufing them to have hanging litters or beds like cradles,by the mooving and rocking 
whereof too andtro, heemighteither bring them afleepe, or eafe the pains of their fickneffe ; 
otherwhiles ordaining the ufe of bains,a thing that he knew folke were molt defirous of: befides 
many other fine conceits very plaufible in hearing, andagreeable to mans nature. Andtothe 
end thatno man might thinke this o great alteration andchaunge in the pradtife of Phyfick, to 
have been a blind courfeand amatter of {mall confequence, one thing above the reft that woon 
D_ himfelfe a great fame, and gave noleffe credit and authoritie to his profeffion, was this, Thar 
meting upon a time by chaunce with one he knew not, caried forth as a deadcorfe ina biere 
forto be burned, he canfed the bodie to be carried home irom the funerall fice, and reftored the 
man to health againe, Certes this onething, we that ace Romans may be well afhamed of and 
take in great indignation, That fuchan old tellow as he,comming out of Greece (the vainelt na- 
tion under the funne) and beginning as he did of nothing, fhould onely (for to enrich himfelfe), 
Jead the whole worldin a ftring, and on a fuddaine fet downe rules and orders forthe health of 
mankind, notwithftanding many thatcame after him, repealed as itwere and annulled thofe 
laws of his. Aad verely, many helpshad 4/c/epiades, which much favoured his opinion and new 
Phyficke, namely,the manner of curing difeafesin thofe daies, which was exceeding rude,trou- 
E blefome, and painfull;fuch adoe there was in lapping and covering the ficke with a deale of 
cloaths, and caufing them to{weatby all means poffible: fuch a worke they made fometime in 
chafing and frying their bodies againit a good fire, but every foot in bringing them abroad into 
the hot fun, which hardly could be found withina fhadie and clofe cittie as Rome was, In lieu 
whereof, not onely there but throughourall Italy (which now commaunded the whole world 
and might have wharit lift) hee followed mens humors in approoving the artificiall baines and 
vaulted ftouves and hote-houfes, which then were newly come up and ufed exceffively in everie 
place by his approbation. Moreover, he found means to alter the painfull curing of {ome ma- 
ladies,and namely of the fquinancie ; in the healing whereof, other Phyficians betore him went 
to worke with acertaine inftcument which they thruft downe into the throat.Hecondemned allo 
F (and worthily) that dog-phyficke which was in thofe daies{o ordinarie,thatif one ailed never fo 
litcle,by and by he muft caft and vomit.He blamedalfo the ule of purgative potions, as contrary 
__ and offeafive to the ftomacke ; wherein hee had great reafon and truth on his fide :forto fpeake 
truly,fuch drinks are by moft Phyficians forbidden, confidering our chiefe care and drift is in all 
the courfe of our phyfick,to ule thofe means which be comfortable & holefome for the ftomack. 
‘ 4S SAINI 00 NORA ee ieee a “E'S 
