The third book of the works of Mr. Francis Rabelais, Doctor in Physick containing the heroick deeds of Pantagruel the son of Gargantua / now faithfully translated into English by the unimitable pen of Sir Thomas Urwhart.

CHAP. XLV. How Panurge taketh Advice of Tri∣boulet. (Book 45)

ON the sixth Day thereafter Pantagruel was returned home, at the very same hour that Triboulet was by Water come from Blois. Panurge at his Arrival gave him a Hogs Bladder, puffed up with Wind, and resounding, because of the hard Pease that were within it: More∣over he did present him with a guilt Wooden Sword, a hollow Budget made of a Tortoise shell, an Osier Watled Wick∣er-Bottle full of Briton Wine, and Five and Twenty Apples of the Orchard of Blanduco.

If he be such a Fool (quoth Carpalin) as to be won with Apples, there is no more Wit in his Pate than in the Head of an ordinary Cabbage. Triboulet girded the Sword and Scrip to his side, took the Bladder in his Hand, ate some few of the Apples, and drunk up all the Wine▪ Pa∣nurge very wistly and heedfully looking upon him, said, I never yet saw a Fool,

(and I have seen ten thousand Franks worth of that kind of Cattle) who did not love to drink heartily, and by good long Draughts. When Triboulet had done with his Drinking, Panurge laid out be∣fore him, and exposed the Sum of the bu∣siness, wherein he was to require his Ad∣vice in eloquent and choicely-sorted Terms, adorned with Flourishes of Rhe∣torick. But before he had altogether done, Triboulet with his Fist gave him a bouncing Whirret between the Shoulders, rendred back into his Hand again the em∣pty Bottle, filipped and fli••ted him on the Nose with the Hogs Bladder; and lastly, for a final resolution, shaking and wag∣ging his Head strongly and disorderly, he answered nothing else but this, By God, God; mad Fool, beware the Monk: Buzan∣say, Hornepipe. These Words thus finished, he slipped himself out of the Company, went aside, and ratling the Bladder, took a huge Delight in the Melody of the rickling, crackling noise of the Pease; after which time it lay not in the power of them all to draw out of his Chaps the Articulate Sound of one Syllable; inso∣much that when Panurge went about to interrogate him further, Triboulet drew his Wooden Sword, and would have stuck him therewith. I have fished fair now,

(quoth Panurge) and brought my Pigs to a fine Market. Have I not got a brave Determination of all my Doubts, and a Responce in all things agreeable to the Oracle that gave it? He is a great Fool that is not to be denied; yet is he a great∣er Fool who brought him hither to me. That Bolt, quoth Carpalin, levels point blank at me; but of the three I am the greatest Fool, who did impart the Secret of my Thoughts to such an Idiot Ass and Native Ninny.

Without putting our selves to any stir or trouble in the least, (quoth Pantagruel) let us maturely and seriously consider and perpend the Gestures and Speech which he hath made and uttered: In them veri∣tably (quoth he) have I remarked and observed some excellent and notable My∣steries; yea, of such important and worth and weight, that I shall never henceforth be astonished, nor think strange, why the Turks with a great deal of Worship and Reverence, Honour and Respect Natural Fools, equally with their Primest Doctors, Mufties, Divines and Prophets. Did not you take heed (quoth he) a little before he opened his Mouth to speak, what a shog∣ging, shaking and wagging his Head did keep? By the approved Doctrine of the ancient Philosophers, the customary Ce∣remonies

of the most expert Magici∣ans, and the received Opinions of the learnedest Lawyers, such a brangling A∣gitation and Moving should by us all be judged to proceed from, and be quickned and suscitated by the coming and Inspira∣tion of the Prophetizing and Fatielical Spirit, which entring briskly, and on a sudden, into a shallow Receptacle of a debil Substance (for as you know, and as the Proverb shews it, a little Head containeth not much Brains) was the cause of that Commotion. This is conform to what is avouched by the most skilful Physicians, when they affirm, that Shakings and Trem∣blings fall upon the Members of a Hu∣mane Body, partly because of the Heavi∣ness and violent Impetuosity of the Bur∣then and Load that is carried, and other part, by reason of the Weakness and Imbe∣cillity that is in the vertue of the bearing Organ: A manifest Example whereof ap∣peareth in those, who fasting, are not a∣ble to carry to their Head a great Goblet∣full of Wine without a trembling and a shaking in the Hand that holds it. This of old was accounted a Prefiguration and mystical pointing out of the Pythian Di∣vineress, who used always before the ut∣tering of a Responce from the Oracle, to shake a Branch of her Domestick Lawrel.

Lampridius also testifieth, that the Empe∣ror Heliogabulus, to acquire unto himself the Reputation of a Sooth-sayer, did, on several Holy Days of prime Solemnity, in the Presence of the Fanatick Rabble, make the Head of his Idol, by some slight within the Body thereof, publickly to shake. Plautus, in his Asserie, declareth likeways, that Saurius, whithersoever he walked like one quite distracted of his Wits, keepeth such a furious lolling and mad-like shaking of his Head, that he commonly affrighted those who casually met with him in his Way. The said Au∣thor in another place shewing a Reason why Charmides shook and brangled his Head, assevered that he was transported, and in an Extasie. Catullus after the same manner maketh mention in his Berecyn∣thia and Atys, of the place wherein the Menades, Bacchical Women, She-Priests of the Lyaean God, and demented Prophe∣tesses, carrying Ivy Boughs in their hands, did shake their Heads. As in the like case amongst the Gauls, the guelded Priests of Cybele were wont to do in the celebrating of some Festivals, which according to the sense of the ancient Theologues, have from thence had their Denomination; for 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 signifieth to turn round, whirl

about, shake the Head, and play the part of one that is wry-necked.

Semblably Titus Livius writeth, that in the Solemnization time of the Bacchana∣lian Fobedayes at Rome, both Men and Women seemed to Prophetize and Va∣ticinate, because of an affected kind of wagging of the Head, shrugging of the Shoulders, and Jectigation of the whole Body, which they used then most pun∣ctually. For the common Voice of the Philosophers, together with the Opinion of the People, asserteth for an irrefraga∣ble Truth, that Vaticination is seldom by the Heavens bestowed on any, without the Concomitancy of a little Phrensie, and a Head shaking, not only when the said presaging Vertue is infused, but when the Person also therewith inspired declareth and manifesteth it unto others. The Learned Lawyer Iulien, being asked on a time, if that Slave might be truly esteem∣ed to be healthful and in a good plight, who had not only convers'd with some fu∣rious, maniack and enraged People, but in their Company had also prophesied, yet without a Noddle-shaking Concussion, answered, That seeing there was no Head∣wagging at the time of his Predictions, he might be held for sound and compotent enough. Is it not daily seen how School∣masters,

Teachers, Tutors and Instructors of Children, shake the Heads of their Dis∣ciples, (as one would do a Pot in holding it by the Lugs) that by this Erection, Vellication, stretching and pulling their Ears, (which according to the Doctrine of the sage Egyptians, is a Member consecra∣ted to the Memory) they may stir them up to recollect their scatter'd Thoughts, bring home those Fancies of theirs, which per∣haps have been extravagantly roaming abroad upon strange and uncouth Ob∣jects, and totally range their Judgments, which possibly by disordinate Affections have been made wild, to the Rule and Pat∣tean of a wise, discreet, vertuous and Philosophical Discipline: All which Vir∣gil acknowledgeth to be true, in the bran∣glement of Apollo Cynthius.