Of the tongue. Cap. 21.

THe tongue is called Lingua in latin,* and hath that name of Lingere, to lyeke: for it liketh meate. Or by the tongue, the sounde of speaking bindeth words: for as a weast te•preth strings, so the tongue smiteth the euery, as saith Isidore. The tongue is the instrument of taast and of speaking, as saith const. and is made and composed of soft flesh, full of hoales lyke a spounge. It is sin∣newie, for feelyng and moouing: it is ful of holes, that the sauyour: may pearce and come the rasilyer to the sinnewes, that make the taast, to the which •ome ma∣ny veynce full of bloud, therefore it is red in colour. All this worketh it by the same skinnes that close the space of the mouth and •oofe a•cue: and on the ouer side the tongue is all seene, on the nether side it is seene to the strings, by y^e which it is fastened to the chinne, and so the rootes and mores of the tongue, and the subtill sinewes by the which it laketh feelyng and mouing of the spirites, be hid and vnseene. As Const. saith, in some the tongue is constrayned more than it needeth; insomuch that it maye not moue into diuers parts, therefore it nee∣deth to •at the strings to haue the larg∣er mouing be all the space within the mouth. The tongue is subiect to haue many passiers and grieses, as in the sub∣stance therof, & in the sinewes, that c•me, theet & therefore in Viatico Cons.saith, The tongue of a beast is seth quiet mo∣uing, & the vse of speking, the cause ther∣of commeth of defalt of 〈…〉 of ma∣ni•• y^e braine by stap∣ping of y^e••wires, by y^e which, y^e vertue of feeling passeth: somtime of a postume, either of vlains y^e rise on y^e tongue: som∣time by ye•per defaults in y^e substance of y^e tongue, as euill cōplection; by y^e which y^e feeling 〈…〉 st•pered by too gret heat or colde, or monsture, or drinesse, or a po∣stume, or •wolting, and such other. And if the tongue be grieuouslye swollon, it betokeneth encosse of heate: and if it be white, it betokecneth coldness; & if it be soft, it betokeneth moysture: and if it be drie & rough, it betokeneth drinesse. And all such things, let the vse of the tongue, Page  46 or take away all the vse or part therof. If the tongue seemeth whole and with∣out wemme, and the speach fayleth: the default commeth of the braine, or of the sinewes of feeling stopped. Some∣time loosing of speach commeth by loosing of wit, as in phrensie and Litargi.* Hi∣therto speaketh Constantine in viatico. In Pantegni, Constantine assigneth other defaults of the tongue, where hée sayth, That there ryse broad blaines spread into the vtter skinne of the tongue, as it faceth in children that suck euill milke: And these blaines be some∣time white, and sometime blacke. And sometime happeneth a Postume in the tongue, that maketh it greatly swollen, and passeth out of the mouth: and that Postume is called, outlawing of the tongue is called. And another Postume of the tongue Rana, a Frogge. For be∣cause it is bread as a Frogge vnder the tongue, and taketh awaye and benim∣meth the vsage of the tongue. And so it is called a dumbe Frogge, for the effects and déed Also there is an other postume of the tongue, full of bloud, whereby all the tongue is gréeued, and the speath and tast is le•. By gleamie humours, that haue maistery in y^e tongue, y^e sence of tast is corrupted and chaunged so that sweet things séeme bitter and wearis•e: and contrariwise as sayth Galen. Also Ga∣len sayth, that sometime it happeneth, that the tongue stuffeth and flamereth by too much moisture when the stringes of the tongue may not stretch and spread into the utter parts thereof for too much moysture, as it fareth in dronken men, that stamer when they bée soe much in moisture in the braine. Therefore Ga∣len sayth, that kindlye stamering men, ••• through too much moisture of the braine, or else through too much moi∣sting of the tongue, or for both. Also that superfluitie of moysture is the cause why that some men maye not readilye pronounce all letters: but sometime sowne it for I, other C, for L, as it fa∣reth in children that spel and corrupt ma∣ny letters, and cannot pronounce them, All this sayth (Galen•••er Aphoris. lpod.〈…〉. Ratteling men moyste: for too much moysture of such men, which is cause of ratteling, commeth to the stomacke, and maketh oft the bow∣ells slipper, and bréedeth Diarrian,* that is the flire of the wombe, as sayth Ga∣len. Also in Paotegi•, Constantine saith, that in the sides of the stringes of the tongue be some veines that serue the tongue of spittle, and these veines spring out of the beginning of the tongue. And of these veines come a flumatike moy∣sture, that is called spittle, and so Phisi∣tions call them the veines of spittle, and the hours of spittle. The beginning of the tongue, wherof the veines come and spring, is white kirnell flesh, and brée∣deth spittle, that moysteth the tongue, and tempereth drinesse of mea•••d in∣treaseth the iuyce thereof, as it shall bée sayd after. Aristotle. b. 6. saith, that some sheep haue white vaines vnder: y^e tongue, and they haue white lambes: and some haue blacke vaines, and they haue black lambes. Then galyer briefly of that is said, that the tongue is a substance ••• bloudie, and holow, and receiueth the in∣fluence of spirit, and is hot and moist in complection, and slender and euerlong, in disposition shapen as a swoorde in the formost part, redde in coulour, set in a holow & moist place, to moue easily, to fore the speach And voice, to know sa∣uiours, to moist the month by emission of spittle, & to tell the mouing of thoughtes of the soule. And it is closed with y^e téeth and lips, as with double wal, and in ma∣ny beasts concerning the forme, it hath a diuers shape. For in some beasts it is short & great, & in some contrary wise. They that haue great tongues heuie ho∣low or sad voice, and contrariwise: and some beasts haue tongues meltineable & healthful, which commeth either of the goodilesse of kinde & of some other hidden prope•••, as the tongue of a hounde, as sayth Cassioderus: and some Hane slai∣eng tongues & venemons, threnath mal∣lise & woodnesse of the humour hath mastery therin, as y^e tongues of serpents, adders, dragōs, & of a wood hound, whose biting is most venemous, his tongue hā•eth alway without y^e mouth, & droppeth veill, corrupteth & inketeth y^e water, in Page  [unnumbered] which it falleth in, and who that drink∣eth of that water shall become mad, as sayth Auicen and Constantine in trac∣tu de venenesis animalibus & venenis. And Aristotle sayth, that the tongues of Adders be blacke, wan, or reddish, speck∣led, sharpe, and in moouing most swifte. And that happeneth through the mad & venemous humour, the which so swiftly moueth the tongue, that one tongue sée∣meth forked and twisted. And though the tongue of an Adder, that is called Aspis in Latine, is full of deadly venim while it liueth in the bodie of the Adder:* yet when it is taken from the bodie of the Adder and dried, it looseth the venim: and by it is knowne when venim is present. Therefore in the presence of ve∣nim such a tongue vseth to sweat. Ther∣fore such a tongue is néedfull and profi∣table, and is accounted precious among treasures of kings, though it were vene∣mous, &c.