Of medicine. Chap. 71.
TO giue couenable and true medicine against diuerse sicknesse and perils,* a good Phisition needeth to looke well a∣bout, and be full ware and full wel adui∣sed: For nothing letteth more health of sick men, then vncunning and negligence of Phisitions. On the Phisitions side, it néedeth, that he forget nothing yt belong∣eth to the euill. Also that he be diligent & busie in things that belong to the crafte of medicine: and hée must be ware & ad∣uised in all things. Also to heale & saue effectually: him néedeth to know & vnder∣stand the complections of men, composi∣tions, mixtions, & medlings, both of the humours and of the members, & to vn∣derstand and knowe the dispositions of times, the conditions of male & female, and age. For one manner medicine née∣deth in winter, & another in Summer: And one manner in the beginning of the euill, and another in the full, and another in the passing thereof: One in childhood, & in youth, another in full age, another in olde age: one in the males, another in fe∣males. And him nedeth to know causes & occasions of euills, & tokens, signes, and accidents of all manner euils. For medi∣cine may neuer be sikerly taken,* if the cause of the euill is vnknowne. Also him néedeth to know complections, vertue & working of medicinable things: For but he knew what medicine is simple, what compowned, what cold, & what hot, what worketh and amendeth the bodie, what kéepeth heale, and healeth sicknesses: What hardneth and constraineth, and Page 117 softneth and laxeth: Hée may neuer safe∣ly passe forth and worke in medicine. Also therefore it néedeth to knowe the qualities of hearbes, and of other medi∣cinable things, and diuersitie of degrées, what is hot and drie, what is colde and moist, in what degrée, if he will not erre in his office. And therefore him néedeth to knowe the during contrarinesse, sim∣plenesse, quantytie and qualitie of ye pa∣tient, & his vertue and strength, and fée∣blenesse. For a chaunging euill, that is long induring, néedeth stronger medi∣cine, then an euill that is new, and hath not long •indured. Also a simple euill shall be healed with a simple medicine, and an euill that is compowned of con∣traryes, shal be healed with compowned medicines. For selde a simple medicine heleth a sicknes that is compouned. Also against an hot cause néedeth a colde me∣dicine: and against a colde néedeth an hot medicine: and against a medled cause néedeth a medled medicine. And therefore a Leach and Phisition that is wise and ware, and knoweth the euill, tempereth the qualitie, as the quantitie and quali∣tie of the euil asketh. Also when he séeth that the euill commeth of repletion, hée helpeth it by voiding of the matter, and by scarce dyet. And if it commeth of ab∣stinence, he healeth it with repletion. Al∣so the office of a good Phisition standeth in inquisition and searching of the cau∣ses and circumstaunces of the euill. For he searcheth and séeketh the cause, by light, by handeling, and groping, by v∣rine, and by the pulse: When the cause is knowne, if the matter be hidde déepe within, thē he vseth drawing medicines. And if the matter bée in the fore parts, and without, he laboureth to drawe the matter to the stomacke, that he may the •asilyer bring it thence. And if the mat∣ter be hard and sad, he giueth medicines that dealeth and distributeth, and all to kitteth, that the matter may be soft, and made ready and easie to voydaunce. Also when the matter is defied and drawne, he vseth the third time laxatiue medy∣cines, that the matter that is defied & dra∣wen; may be lead out by a couenable re∣gion, by spuing, or by shiting, or by swea∣ting. And when the matter is couenably voided, he vseth the fourth time certeine medicines to comfort kinde that is wery and féeble by violence and strength of medicine. And when kinde is comfor∣ted, he vseth certeine medicines resump∣tiue and restoratiue to that, that is lost by strength of the euill, or of medicines. And the restoring shall be made and gi∣uen little and lyttle, and not sodeinlye, by couenable and temporate dyet. For in them, which are so purged and clean∣sed, often kinde desireth much, and so many times the patient taketh more thē he can digest, without he bée restrained, in gouernance of diet by a phisition, ware and wise. At the last when kinde is resto∣red and brought into the former state, he teacheth to vse certeine medicines, pre∣seruatiues, least he that is healed and re∣couered, fall into a worse sicknesse. For such things be couenable, bathes, bloud∣lettings, electuaryes & moderate trauell. For such things awaketh kinde heate, and discharge kinde of superfluitye of humoures, and helpe and comfort dige∣stion. And if the matter bée fléeting or softe, or thinne, then hée vseth constrai∣ning and dryeng medicines, and reper∣cussiues. And when the matter is restrai∣ned and with-helde, a wise Phisition v∣seth to giue couenable laxatiue medy∣cines, to bring out humours that be dis∣solued before, and now constrained: least they abiding still there, eyther fléeting to some other parte, doe putrifie, and so bréed a Feauer, or else ingender another disease: and restraining is wont to be made little and little, least the matter be smitten sodeinlye and fall to some noble mēber, & bréed a more gréeuous sicknes: also purgation is wont to be made then: and then, that it be not sodeinlye done. Then medicine is wont to bée made in thrée manner wise, eyther dissoluing and vnbinding, constrayning and bin∣ding, or restoring. For other bodyes which bée full, bée dissolued, or those that bée vnbounde, bée constrayned, or that which is lost in the bodye is re∣stored: With laxatiue medicines we •at• and vnbinde, as with Scamonie: With binding medicines wée binde, as Page [unnumbered] with Achacia: and with medicine which stoppeth, wée restore, as with meate and drinke that nourisheth and feedeth, and with Electuaryes arrayed there∣fore.*
¶Then consider thou shortly héere∣off, that a Phisition visiteth ofte the houses and countreies of sicke men: And séeketh and searcheth the causes and circumstaunces of the sicknesse: and arraieth and bringeth with him diuers and contrarye medicines: And he refuseth not to grope and handle, and to wipe and cleanse priuie mem∣bers and woundes of sicke men. And hée behoteth to all men hope and trust of re∣couering of heale: And saith that he will softly burne that which shall bée burnt, and kitte that which shall bee kitte: And least the whole part should bée corrupt,* he spareth not to burne and to kit of the part that is rotted: and if a part in the right side aketh, he spareth not to smite in the lefte side.. A good Leach leaueth not kitting or burning for wéeping of the patient. And he hideth and couereth the bitternesse of the medicine with foure manner of swéetnesse.
He drinketh and taasteth of the me∣dicine, ••though it be bitter: that if be not against the sicke mans heart: and refraineth the sicke man of meat and of drinke: And letteth him haue his owne will, of whose health is neither hope nor trust of recouering. He doth away rotted & dead flesh, that is disposed to corrupti∣on, and with bitter and fretting medi∣cines, and cleanseth running scabs with drieng medicines. And after medicines that slay and burne, he swageth the ach of wounds with comfortable and liking medicines: and when a wound is clensed he heateth the place thereof. And for in∣ward euills gréeue more then outward, a wise Leach taketh héed to cure & expel first inward aking, and cureth the mat∣ter that is harde and corrupte within, with medicines of digestion, as with Oximell, and with sowre strop: And first he dealeth it, and kitteth it, and maketh good to digest, and maketh it readye to the outpassing and voidaunce. For as it is said in principie Aphor. It néedeth by medicine to put off that thing that is defied, and not that thing that is rawe. For when the matter is digested and defied, and made able to voidance, dra∣wing medicine draweth the matter so defied, out of the inner and further parts to the vtter partes. And héereto hel∣peth some bitter things, as Irapigra, and Ieralogodion, and other that smac∣keth of Aloe. For such bitter thinges pearce & come more sooner to the further partes, and cleanse more the vtter parts then other medicines. The third time couenable medicine voydeth and putteth out matter that is so voided and thro∣wen, but that is done warily, least there be too great auoidance: for it grieueth the body, that it is féebled therewith. And sometime is more voided of good hu∣mours then of euill, according to that Hippocrates sayth: it is enimye to kinde and deceiuable, to voide and to put out much sodeinlye, or to heate or to coole. A good Phisition taketh heed to the mat∣ter of the euill, and of the place of the matter: and also of the might and of the strength of the patient: and thereby hée varieth his medicine: for if the master or humour that is in default be voided, it helpeth much the sicke man: and if it help not, the sicke man is more gréeued, as I∣pocrates saith.
Medicines doth consist of two things,*in Theorike which is specula∣tion, and in practise, how to frame the medicine to cure and has•en health, and to turne the complections into theyr kindly order and operation, the science is honourable so the Phisition be ho∣nest, and such a one as will not dis∣dayue the poore in theyr necessi∣tie.
