404. _ Thethirtieth Booke | 
T heopompeas wriceth, That neare to Scotufafin Macedonie]ihereis a lake,the water whereofisfu- G 
veraigne forthe healing of wounds.Moreover,king Jaa hath left in wri ting, Thain the Troglo- 
dites countrey thereis a lake, for the hurtfull water chat it beareth, calledthe Mad-lake, which 
thrice a day becommeth bitter and fale: and as many times for it turneth to bee frefh and {weer: 
which courle ickeepeth alfo in the night feafon,breeding otherwife white ferpentstwentie cubits 
Jong, of which it is crawling full The fame prince(inine Author)reporteth, That in Arabia there 
is a {pring boiling out of the ground with {uch a force, that it{corneth and checketh anie thing 
thatis throwne intoit,and cannot be kept downe with any weight whatfoever.Theophrafite ma- 
cay keth mention of the fountaine Marfyas in Phrygia,neare unto the towne Celenz, which cafterh | 
be “i up great ftones, And not farre from it bee two other fprings *Clzonand Gelonfocalledby the 
iRify. Forthe Gteekes for the contrarie effects which they worke, Ar Cyzicum there isa fountaine of Cupid, 
onecaufeth and whofoever drinke of the water thereof, fhall lay afide and forgetall affe@ion oflove,as Muti. 
oh, paveth 42% dooth both report and beleeve.At Cranon there isa hote {pring,and yet not fo boiling as. 
rglaughcer, Many others be: the water thereof, if itbe put intoa bottle or faggon of wine,wil! maintain the 
heat thereof for three dates together, that itfhall drinkehote. In Germanie beyond theriver : 
Rhene,there be waters fo hote,that whofoever drinketh thereof, fhall fenfibiy find the heat in his 4 
bodie three daies after: The {prings that yeeld this water be called Mattiaci. [his peculiar proper- 
tie befides hath this water,that about the edges and brims thereof there engender pumifh ftones. 
Now if any man fuppofefome of thefe ftraunge reportsto be incredible, let him learn & know, 
that in no part of the world Nature hath fhewed more admirable workes than in this element of | 1 
Water. Andalben in the beginning of this mine hyftorie I have written in amplemanner of -[ 
many a wonder obferved in the waters, yet fomewhat remaineth ftill tobee related. For Crefias 
faith, That the Indians havea lake or poole, wherein nothing will {wim, butall finkes to the bot- 
tome.And Celivs alfo our countreyman avoucheth, That the leaves which fall into thelake A- 
vernus will fettle downeward and norflote above. And /arroavoucheth moreover, That what 
birds foever fle over it,or approch the aire and breath thereof,they will die prefently. Conttari. 
wife,in Apufcidamus a lake of Affticke, nothing goes downe,but all{wims aloft. The ike dooth 
Apion report of Phinthia,a fountaine in Sicilie : as alfo of a lake in Media, and namely the pitor 
well of Saturne, The fountaine Linyra is wont ordinarily to chaunge his feat, andto pafie into 
places adjoining but never for nought,prefaging alwaics thereby fomie ftraunge accidentto en- . 
fue. And wonderfull it is,that the fifhestherein fhould followand doe the like. Nowwhenthis x .— 
water is thus remooved, the inhabitants of the countrey, defirousto knowtheiffue of thingsto 
come, tepaire thither as to an Oracle,and {eeke to be refolved by the forefaid fifhes,and.sherwith 
offer unto them iome meat: if they come unto itand {wim away withall,it is a good token, & this 
they take for an affirmative anfwere,as if they faid, Yea,to their demaunds : but in cafe they refufe y 
the meat and Aurtit away with their cailes,they colleét the contrary,& this is their flat Nay. There- 
is ariver in Bithynia called Olachas, running clofe unto Briazus (whichisthename both of a 
temple,and alfo of the god therein honoured) the water whercof will difcover and detect a per- 
jured perfon : for if he that drinketh thereof, feele(as it were) a burning fire within his bodie,take 
® him for a falfe forfworne villaine.Furthermore,in Cantabria or Bifcay the fountains of theriver 
Tamaricus, are endued with a fecret vertue to prefage and foretell future events: andthreeheads 
orfources there be of them,eight foot diftant one from another: they meetall at length in one 
channell,and maintain that great and mightic river Tamaricus, Howbeit,twelve timesevery day, 
yea,and ocherwhiles twentie times they are drie, and have no fhewat all or apparence of waters 
notwithftanding there be another fountaine orwell neare unto them, that yeeldeth plenty of wa- 
ter,and never giveth overrunning. And this is heldfor an ominous and fearefull prefage,if wnen 
foike are defirous to fee them, they feeme not torun atall : as it was feene of late daiesby Lartzms 
Littnius, fometinie lord Pretour and afterwards Lieutenant Generall under the Confuls. For 
within afeven-night after a great misfortune happened unto him. In larie there isa river which 
“ every Sabboth day is drie. Thus much of waters medicinable and miraculons,andyetnotfim-  — 
ply hurtfull.C ontrariwife,there be others of as wonderfull anature,but daungeroustheyareand M 
deadly withall. 2 hd 
Crefias writeth That there is 2 fountaine in Armenia,breeding and bringing forth blacke Fi- 
fhes: wherewpon,as many as feed, are fure to die for it immediatly, I have heard the likereported 
of fuch daungerousfithes about the head of the river Danubius, untill’aman cometo afoun- 
. taine - 
re he oe nn Se ae 
= 
iia 
Sic 
