Fr I be.4, 
The Theater of Ttants. 
Chap. 16 . 
449 
Stvc l J creepier re Anglorum Polygonum StfiucUes. 
Paifly pertjor Paifly bieakcftone. 
falke, and being as broad as the naiie of A mans finger or 
tliumbe, is very much jagged on the edges, making it feeme 
;fomewhat like unto a Pai flye leafe, whereof came the name, 
) but of an overworne or dusky greene colour: from among 
i which rifeth up weake and (lender llalkes abont three or foure 
' fingers long, let full of the like leaves but fmaller up to the 
toppes, thatalmoll no partofthe llalkes canbefeene, and all 
i for the mod part Handing dole thereunto, few of them having 
any footedalke at all, or very fhort: among thefe leaves come 
I'forth very fmall greenifh yellow flowers, fcarfe to be dif- 
cerned,where afterwards groweththefeede, as fmall as any 
1 ofthe former. 
The Tlace. 
Thisgroweth naturally in mod countriesof this land, if it 
he obferved by any that have skill, butelpccially in Inch bar¬ 
ren and fandy grounds asdoenotwant moifture, for it j’oyeth 
much more in the wet places then in the dry, I found it upon 
Hamfjlecd Heath by the foote pathes, where being a dry 
ground, and in a dry time, it wasvery Imall, which elfe in 
1 a moiller time, and in a moider place upon the fame Heath, 
was milch greater, as alfo neareunto the meeredones by Lam- 
beth t which divide the liberties of London from Surrey. 
The Time. 
It is to be found all times of the Somtner, Spring, and Har- 
vefl, even from Aprill unto the end of Oflober, in leverall pla¬ 
ces,for in the open and Sunny places it will be withercd.when , 
in the fhadowy and moilt it will continue. 
The Thames, 
This plant(being of long continuance in our land and know¬ 
ledge to us,by the properties, for it hath not beene mentioned, 
by any the molt curious fearchers and writers of herbs beyond 
fca, as being onely peculiar l thinke to our Country,before 
Label came to us, who called it P creep er Anglorum and Lug- 
elrinenjis from him) hath received no Latine name at all, and therefore I have transferred the name Polygonum Se- 
linoiaes hereunto,as more proper unto it, then Gerards Knawell i6 unto itjfor it may molt fitly be reckoned a Poly, 
gomtm , by the manner of the growing, and the name Selinoides may molt fitly agree unto it from the forme of 
the leaves, being derived from the Greeke word Selinonf or Knawel hath no likenefle with Selinum Patfly. In the 
former Chapter,I fhewed you Gerardhis errours herein.now let me fhew you mine alfo (if peradventure I fpeake 
not per Antipbrajimjconcerning thefe names of Tercepier or Torch pier , as fome call it,and Partly pert, or Parfly 
breakeftone,astheyare ufually called in Enghjb- I fhewed you before that the word Parfly pert, was but a cor¬ 
ruption of time in the vulgar fort, and P creepier alfo, derived from the french word P ereepierre, which as I (aid 
before, fignifieth as much as Lithontribon in Greeke, Saxifraga , P etrifwdula an old outworne word, and calculum 
fmngens in Latine, pierce (tone, or breakdfone in Englijb- fome call it Parfly pert and derive it from petra.• 
but the more proper Englifh is Parfly brtakedone. Now concerning this and Label his Saxifraga Anglicana.both 
ofthetn are affirmed by Lobel to grow in the Well Country, and both are ufed for one purpole, (yet Lobel fee- 
meth to referre the Verccpier unto the Cerefalium, Scandix five Peften f'encris, or partaking of both of them, 
but mod unproperly in my minde, which hath caufed Eauhinw in hi, P inax, following his opinion to make it a 
fpecies of Cerefol.um, calling it Charophyllononnihil fimi/iiplant*, and Tabermontmtis thereupon calleth it Scand.x 
minor ; and Columua was alfo much deceived in thinking this to be an Alchymilla t calling it minima montana . 
The Venues. 
This herte hath properly with the vulgar fotr, both men and women leeches, who have had moll practice 
of it, not found any other operation then to helpe to provoke urine, and breake the tfone in thofe that are trou¬ 
bled therewith, for which pnrpofes it is moft availeable; for they ufe to eate it familiarly as a Sailer herbe,and 
pickle it up as a Sumpire to eate in winter, but is ufed alfo more Phyfically.either by it lelfe or with other things, 
andeither in powderor in j'uice,decoi 5 iionorwater diddled from itjwhofe feverall wayes, that I may declare 
them a little more amply are thefe. Take of the j'uiccofthe herbe about three ounces, put this with fo much 
white wine, as is fit to make a polfet, take hereof every morning and evening a draught, or ye may adde hereto 
Wild Time, or Mother of Time, and fome Camomill: You may alfo boyle thefe herbes aforefaid, in white 
wine, or in water if wine be not at hand, and drinke it when it isflrayned in the fame manner, the powder 
alfo of the dryed herbe, co the quantity ofadrammeor lefle, in white wine, or in ocher drinke where wine is 
wanting, for divers dayes firft and lad, and the diddled water of the herbe taken with a little Sugar in the fame 
manner, is found to be a lingular remedy to provoke urine, when it is Hopped wholly,or paflerhaway by drops 
with paine, or unfenfiblv without paine, expedeth Hore of graved in thofe that breede it, and the Hone aifo in 
thereines or kidneyes, in waffling icdowne by the aboundant paflage of the urine, and helpeth alfo toexpulfe it 
out of the bladder, if it be not growne too great for the paflages; otherwife it is held very probable, that the a- 
boundanceofurinebroughtdowne into the bladderby the vertue of the medicine, and there abiding, worketh 
fo much upon the Hone, ‘therein confirmed and growne great, that it waHeth it by degrees, avoyding it in gra¬ 
ved with the urine. If you will have the receipt of the Country Empeticki given to Mr. Bredmll, a Chirurgion 
of London , who praftifed phyficke in London where he dwelc,as wed as in ad cbe Countries where he travelled.it 
isthis. Take of the dryed herbes of Parfly pert, and Moufeare, Bayberries, Turmericke, and Cloves, the feeds 
of the Butre Docks, the feede in the heppe or Bryer berries, and the feedes of Fenugreeke of each one ounce; 
CLq 3 
