De morbo Gallico·

¶The causes of this dis∣ease. Capitu. ij. (Book 2)

THe phisitions haue not yet certenly dif¦fined the secret causes of this disease, although they haue long & peynfully w^t great variete serched therfore, but in this thing al do agre, which is very euident, that through som vnholsom blastes of the ayre, which were at y^• time / the lakes, foūtaines / flodes, & also the sees were corrupted, And therof the erth to receiue poison, The pastu¦res to be enfected, venem{us} vapors to come down frō the ayre, which liuinge creatures (in drawyng the breth) receyued. For this disese was foūd in other bestes like as ī mē. The astrologers fetch y^e cause of this īfirmi¦te from the sterres / saying, y^t it {pro}cedeth of y^e cōiūctions of Saturn & Mars, which was not long before, & of .ii. eclipsis of the son, & they do affirm, y^t by th••se signes they might perceyue many colerik, & fleumatike infirmi¦ties to folowe / which shuld long continue, & slowly depart, as Elyphācia / lepre, tetters, & al yl kynd of scabbes & boils, and what so euer euils deformeth & vnfasshioneth the bo¦dy, as the gout, palsey / sciatica / ioynt ache, & other lyke dāgers. And that these thinges shuld chāce rather in the north part by reson of this signe Aquarius, wherin fel the fyrst ecclypse: And in the west part by reason of this sygne Piscis / in the whiche felle the

last eclyps. But the phisitions affirme this syckenes to come of yll and habundant hu∣mours, as of coler blacke advst yelowe and fleume salt or advst, and that of one of these alone, or of certayn, or els of al these min∣gled, whose sharpnes streking out to the out¦ward partes of the body / burneth and dry∣eth the skynne, and fylleth it ful of scabbes, but that whiche cometh of rawe heuye and grosse humours / they say is driuen into the ioyntes, and causeth greatte peine in them, and to arise knobbes & swellinges, & knot∣tes to gether, and the skynne to ryuell. And moreouer the heed to ake, wherby y^e beauty of the body is clene altered & gone. Some breuely cōcluding say, that this infirmite co¦meth of corrupt, burnt, & enfect blode. And al these thynges were in doubtful disputatiō, y^e nature therof not yet knowen, but now it is knowē, they be also ap{pro}ued. for in myn opi¦niō this sicknes is no other thing / but a po∣stumatiō, & rotting of vnpure blode: the whi¦che after it beginneth to drie, it turneth into swelling & hard knobbes, the which thinge {pro}cedeth of the lyuer corrupt. ¶ To knowe more of the nature or qualities of this infir¦mitie shulde be very tedious & hard to iuge. For we se in our time, what diuers concer∣tatiōs / & opiniōs haue bē to boldly disputed:

and what peyne the phisitions haue taken therin, sens the begynnynge therof. The phisitions of Germaynie, for the space of ij. yeres, meddled with suche disputation, and yet whan I was but a chylde, they vn∣dertoke to heale me: but what profite cam therof, the ende hath shewed, not withston∣dynge they were bolde to medle with strāge dregges and spices, and to myngle and mi∣nystre many thynges / whiche they shulde not haue ministred. And I remembre / they forbode me to eate peasen. For in some pla∣ces there grow certeyn wormes in thē with wynges, of the whiche hoggeflesshe was thought to be in••ected, bicause that best spe∣cially was deceas••ed either with this, or els with an other nat moche vnlyke vnto this.