Tribe, The Theater of 'Plants, Chap. 65. 601 
mention ofit here with it, not onely to fhew yon what it is,and how made,but to incite home of our nation to 
1 to be as indullrious therein as they have beene with the former Woade, feeing no doubt but it would bee more 
profitable. Camcrarhu and Claftus have both had the feede of a plant lent them under the name of Nil or Anil 
as they fay, but having growne with them they have judged it rather to.be another plant, then that whereof it 
5 bore the name; for Chifim faith, that his plant was like unto a (mail Celtic ta, which he afterwards as hce faith 
a found to be Alpinist his Egyptian Sefban(md fure he ghelfed fomewhatneare it,for if it be rot the fame it is yery 
like it, as you (hall heare by and by) and Canter arnn faith his plant had leaves like unto Barba Iobit fttitex, but 
j larger; which companion may hold a fit correfpondence lkewife; yet Lmfcetlmh the true hath leaves like 
{ Rofemarie. But I fhall here give you the defeription of the plant by two feverall meigthe one is Francis Ximenes 
as he is fet downc in loanncs de Laet his defeription of America , or the Weft Indies, in pag. 3 5 o. and 331. who 
I faith it is a fhrubbe, producing many round fmooth wooddy llemmes from the roote, about fix palmes or fpans 
1 high, about the bignefl'eofones little finger, of anafh colour, with leaves thereon like unto Cicers, having 
I fmall whitilh red flowers, and afterwards many long Cods growing together, and hanging ’downe- 
i wards like unto the wormes called Afcarides which we call Arfewormer,yetfornewhat thicke and full ofblacke 
> feede (de Laet addeth in a Parenthefis, Some fry the feedc is like unto Fenugreeks, flat at both ends as if it had 
ibeenecutuf.) For the manner of making whereof hee faith, They caff the leave s into a braffc veflell.pouring 
! thereon fealdinghot water, or rather lukewarme(yetfome allow of cold water as befl) birring them very well 
t. that the water may draw out the tinfture, which they pottre out into another veflell that hath an hole therein 
a fomewhat high, whereout the cleare water may palfe, the thicke coloured Jubilance remaining bchinde, which 
jafeerwardstheyftraine through a cloth or bag, fecting the thicke fubftance intheSunne, and make it into cakes 
1 which is then dryed and hardened in pans at the fire; Thus farre de Laet. The other defeription is by Mb Wil- 
1 /iamFinch a London Merchant, as it is fet downe by M 1 . Purchas, in his fourth Booke of Pilgrims, the 4 Chap, 
Ipag.4t9.lt is a fhtub faith he, not above a yard high, andasbiggeas a mans thumbeat thebiggell; the branches' 
l are wooddy like unto Broome, having many leaves fet together on a flport footclialke, in forme like Lives 
(mifprinted for Cicers) or Ciche peafe, or like thofe of drier, but fhorter and broader : the flower (faith he) is 
| like unto an Hearts eale; the feede is inclofed in a fmall round cod about an inch long refembling Fence-reek 
feedc, but more blunt at both ends(fuch very feedes for colour alfo we have often had lent for Indicr, feede, yet” 
I never any fprang’wjth us but once, and that but one plant, and over haflily plucked up before it had any forme 
' tobedifeerned, yet the fmall threddy roote was of a pale blew colour, which 1 doe keepe by me to fliewithe 
1 jfeede alfo while it is frefh being fteepedin water gave a blewifh colour.) Thcfe deferiptions lo like in mod 
things and fo nearely alfo refembling Alpir,w his Scftban, but that it hath a yellow flower,perfwadeth me that Sep. 
1 ban being undoubtedly a kind of Glattx Legumhofa, Sc fo may Indies be alfo but differing in the Dye. The manner 
I of making as M 1 ' Finch faith is thus(beiug varioufly deferibed by others. )Thcy gather the leaves ( when they have 
cut the branches, in Attguji and September after the raines.the feede being ripe in November) and caff them into a 
long Cell erne powring water thereon, and preffe them downe with Hones that they may be overcovered, fo abi¬ 
ding for certaine dayes, that the fubftance of the berbe may be drawnc out into the water, which they let forth 
into another round Ceflerne, in the minlt whereof is another fmall Ceflerne, or Center (the meaning whereof 
I doc not underdand) and labour it with great ftaves, like batter or white Starch, feumming of the cleare water 
after it is fetled ; then labour it afrefh, and draw off the cleare water againe being fetled, doing thus fo often 
untill nothing but a thicke fnbflancc remaine, which they dry in the Sunne being fpreadupon cloth, and after ic 
is a little hardned, they make it into fmall balls with their hands, laying them to dry on the iand, for any other 
thing would drinke up the colour, as alfo ifit take raine in the drying it will lofe his colour and gloffe. After 
it isjowenitendureth three yeares: that Indies of the firft yeare while the plant is tender, is weighty and reddifli 
called Notee .-that of the fecondyeare is rich, being very light and of a perfeft violet colour fwimming on the 
water.and is caUedCyeree : that of the third yeare when the plant is declining (and peradventurc but "fabulous 
traditions) is a weighty blackifh Nil the word of the three, and called Catteld. The bed is made faith hce 
about Barry neere 20. miles beyond Fetipore in the Ado gel: country in the Eaft Indies. And Ximenes aforefaid as 
de Laet hath it, faith, the Indians of the Wed call the Plant Xihuiqailitl pitzahuac and the Mexicans call the 
tindlure made thereof c Mohaitli and Tlccohttitli, but the other Barbarians Tlacckoylinuhuitl, and therewith co¬ 
lour their haire blacke. I have not heard that good Indice is one of the Merchandifes of the Wed, but of 
the Ealt Indies onely. De Laet having given the figure of a branch of Indice, I doe here like wife exhibits 
the fame. 
They lace. 
The wildekindegrowethin fundry untilled places and fields in Germany; as it isfayd,butthe manured is fowers 
as well in Germany, France., and Spaine as in Italy alfo,in Vmbriancite unto Nccera, as Matthielus faith, where 
there is a towns called quads, of the Woade that grew there abundantly ; and in the Hands of Terceras belong¬ 
ing to Spaine: Some have fowen it in our owne land, but they have found it to be the caufe of the deftrmdion of 
their Bees; for it hath beene obfervei, that they have dyed as it were of a Flix that have tailed thereof: it js’fayd 
that in fome places they fow their Woade upon the fame ground, that afterwards they fowedtheic Corne, 
which crop of Woade is three times cut in a yeare, and that thefe rootes that are not turned up with the Plough 
will beare feede among the Corne. The Plant whereof the Nil or Indies is made, groweth in divers places of 
the E-eft Indies, but efpecially in Gntcttrate ,i\\d the bed in and about Bianie in the dMogols countrey, 
TheTime. 
Woade fiowreth in I-une, but the feede is late ripe. 
The Names. 
It is called in Greekel ““'w^and Ifatis in Latine, Glaftum Mo and Guadam of fome, after the Italian word 
Guade, whereby they call W oade. Cefar in his fird booke, de Bello Galike, maketh mention of qiaftum, where¬ 
with the ancient Brittaines did colour themfclves to feeme the more terrible to their enemies in battaile as it is 
thought ; or that they did thenasffie Savages of the Wed Indies doe now delight in fuchacolour,to paint their 
naked skinnes therewith. Pliny alfo fpeaketh of theBrittaines ufing of Glaftum in his aj. Booke and fird Chap, 
bid divers doe dimfly imagine from whence the word Glaftum fhould be derived; fome have imagined,that 
Fff in 
