Healths improvement: or, Rules comprizing and discovering the nature, method, and manner of preparing all sorts of food used in this nation. Written by that ever famous Thomas Muffett, Doctor in Physick: corrected and enlarged by Christopher Bennet, Doctor in Physick, and fellow of the Colledg of Physitians in London.

Cancri marini.

Crabs of the Sea, be of divers sorts; some smooth∣crusted, and some rough-casted as it were, and full of prickles, called Echinometrae: The first sort hath the two formost clawes very big and long, the other wanteth them; wherefore as they go side wi••e, so these move not themselves but round about like a spiral line: the first sort are also very big, or never growing to be of any rea∣sonable sise. The great ones are called Paguri, where∣of some weigh 10 l. weight; furthermore one sort of the great ones (which is the best of all) goeth so fast up∣on the shore, that the Grecians have termed them Hip∣peis, or light horsemen. The little sort of Crabs is softer shelld (called Pinnotheres) whose weakness is defended with abundance of wit; for whilst he is little, he hides himself in a little Oister, and when he groweth bigger

(yet is he never so bigg as our common crabb) he con∣veyeth himself into a bigger Oister; of all sea-crabbs this is the lightest and wholesomest, next unto them are our ordinary crabs, but somewhat harder of digesti∣on; both of them nourish much, and are highly com∣mended, in consumptions of lungs and spittings up of blood, not onely by Dioscorides, Pliny, and Avicen, but also by all writers, especially if Asses milk be drunk with them.

As for their manner of preparation, their vents are first to be stopped with a sticks end, and then they are to be sodden in water for such as are costiff, or in wine for them which are loose bellied; some seeth them in vinegar, water, and salt; but Galen saith that then they are best, when they are sod in that water out of which they were taken; the fuller of eggs the better they are, for the female is preferred. Our great sea-crabbs (either of the smooth or rough kind) full of a yellowish red and strong pulp, lushish in taste, and bought deerly, are of a very hard digestion, except they light upon a very strong stomach. They also over-heat and enflame the body, whereas contrariwise the lesser sort do cool and moisten it. The broth of all of them consume the stone, and cureth Quartains being drunk every morning fasting they are best in season in the spring and fall, as also at the full of the moon.

Notes

• Gal 9. comp. sec. loc.