Practica Plutarche the excellent phylosopher

¶A preseruacion of helth for all the partes of the body. and howe to ordre them.

IN this my great frende Plutarche gy¦ueth me coun¦cell to haue al¦way the han¦des warme, and that by no meanes he suf∣fer them to be colde. Also that an Ague or feuer, causeth the vtter partes of the body, custo∣mably to be colde, when he con¦strayneth heate all to fle inwar¦dely. Agayne yf those thynges whiche be outwarde, and stret∣che to the highest partes do brin¦ge and disperse matter through all the body, that then it is hol¦some. Moreouer yf we laboure with out handes, that then by

the mocion of that parte, heate is wyllyngly moued to be in all the partes of our body, but yf we do no suche thynge, then we muste prouyde that no colde ta¦ke the vpper partes. And this was one of the matters whiche he was displeased with. The other except I be deceyued was of meates to be mynistred to a pacyent, he doth cōmaūde that the pacyent shall tast and take his meate longe or he be taken bycause we beyng in helth may accustome ourselues therwith lest that when the syckenes is come we shulde abhorre & caste our mynde agaynst it, as chyl∣drī do, but let it be customably gyuen by lytell, lest that whan the fyt taketh vs we be greued with meates, as we be with me¦dycynes and lest that we maye

scarsely bere it, when we muste nedes take some meates that besod and vnsauery, wherfore somtyme it is not to be refused to take meat{is} with vnwasshed handes, neyther to drynke wa∣ter, neyther to drynke warme drynke in somer. But let these sophysticall crakes passe, as to abstayne from suche thynges, whiche appeare to be done vn∣der a pretense of temperaunce And let vs so vse our stomaske by lytel and lytel, that without grefe it may gyue place to that whiche is profytable, & let vs put out of our mynde y^e super∣stycious and scrupelous care of suche thynges in our disea∣ses lest that we repent with thē that fall from great and mery pleasures, in to a base & fylthy state of lyuynge, wherof this

was excellently spoken, Chose the beste state of lyfe.

¶Here foloweth Electua∣ryes to auoyde coloure.

HOwe wil I write of them that auoide colours, and fyrst of the electuary called Di¦aprunis, it is called so because it standeth moste by Prunes, & it voydeth colour fro the stomac¦ke. and fro the lyuer. Electua∣ry of the iuce of Roses, that is properly agaynst the hote gow¦te and purgeth the reed colour. And it is good for syckenes in the ioyntes of colour. Also for them that be right sycke in the Feuer tercian.

¶Howe thou shall knowe to gyue the quantyte of Medycyne.

MEdycynes before y^t they be compounded togither they be dyuers in the makynge as some of more, and some of lesse, as of Scamony and of o∣ther veymy moystynges and vy¦olent, as Turbyt Elebre, Agryt Ensorbie, Colo Bloe and of all other lyke these, so that the ta∣kynge of Irapigra shall be .iij. drāmes, the weyght of a drā∣me is two pens halfepenye.

¶Ieraphini but two drāmes, for that is more compounded with venymus medycynes, & vyolence than Irapigra, therfo¦re the lesse shalbe taken therof.

¶Also of Benedicta: maye be .iii. drammes.

¶Also blanca .iii. drammes.

¶Also of Pilularū, Archiarum shulde be taken .iii. drammes.

Also of Pilule Aure .iii. drāmes

¶Also of Pulularū de Eufor∣bie .iii. drammes.

¶Also of Pulularū Fetidum & of Stomaticum laxatiuum .ii. drammes,

¶Also of Electuarium dulce .ii drammes.

¶Also of Theodoricon anā car¦diū .iii. drāmes.

¶Nowe I haue shewed you of the gyuynge of quantyte of me¦dycynes, & the dyuersyte of thē howe they auoyde superfluyte of fleume or coloure.

¶Here begynneth the quan∣tytes to auoyde Me∣lancoly.

AS it is sayde of Ieraphy, ny so we shall say of Diace¦ne, and the gyuyuge of the quan¦tite shalbe an ounce. Hoc auice∣na.

Also of Trifera sarasenica the receyte of it is .iiij. drāmes.

¶Also of Theodoricon eupisti¦con .ii. drammes.

¶Also the receyte of Ieralodo¦dion .ii. drammes.

¶Also of Caterica imperiale one dramme.

¶Nowe it shall be sayde of the quantytes of Medycynes.

TO auoyde Coloure as of Diaprunis .ii. drāmmes.

¶Also the receyte of suc∣ca Rosarum be .iii. drammes. These be the moste gyuynge of medycynes compounded.

¶Nowe the medycynes that wyll auoyde colde humoures.

MEdicines that auoyde col¦de humours of the breest, and of his mēbrs, and veynes

the fyrste is pallynū that must be sharped with .iii. drammes of Agryl, repressed with a dram¦me of the iuce of Lycoryse.

¶Medycynes that shulde pur∣ge cold humours of the stomac¦ke, and of the lyuer, shulde be sharpened with two drammes of Turbit, and repressed with a dramme of the powder of pe∣per, or Mirabolanus Iudiis ••ebuly, as theyr quantytes be sayde before, or with Esule ope as is sayde before.

¶Howe hote humoures shulde be purged and sharped.

NOwe hote humours shul¦de be purged and & shar¦ped with Mirabolanus Cite∣mys, or with Rubarba, or with Cassia fistula asania, or with Tāmaridis, or Scamion, and

there be any dropsy of old tyme fastened on the lyuer, the medy¦cy may not be sharped with sca∣mony, for that wolde take of the skyn of y^e lyuer, therfore take Esula, or Rubarba, & do to the medicines, as is before written.

¶Here foloweth his Pow∣ders for dysseases.

A Powdre for delycate men for to comforte dygestion and to amende the syght, take Cānell; cardamoī, piperis, satu¦rei, maiorane, crucautes, cala∣mynte, of eche halfe an ounce, nutmuges pompatadyse foli•• of eche an ounce, that is to say, of eche .vi. peny weyght, salgē∣me half an vnce ferthynges wel tempered togyther make pow∣dre of these and vse them.

¶A powdre agaynst the quartane.

A Powdre agaynst the quar¦tane and vyce of the sple∣ne, take Coriandre, carin, seria combusti of eche of them a peny weyght Aneilanes yclensed.

¶Agaynst fluxe of blode.

A Powdre agaynst the flux of blode of the nosethryl∣les, take encense, mastyke, sau∣ge dragons nye of eche thre pe∣ny weyght, bren thē in a shel o∣uer the fyre & moue them tyll they wax blacke, & make ther∣of sotyl powdre and cast therin.

A powdre agaynst the Cardya¦cle, and agaynst to moche feble¦nes, take camphore, muske, of eche thre halfpeny weyte, sha∣uynges of yuery, of golde, and syluer of eche thre peny weyte.

¶Finis.