Herbal Healing 204

4. Diseases that lie in the parts of the body remote from the stomach and bowels, itis in vain to think to carry away the cause at once, and therefore you had best do it bydegrees; pills, and such like medicines which are hard in the body, are fittest for sucha business, because they are longest before they digest.5. Use no strong medicines, if weak will serve the turn, you had better take one tooweak by half, than too strong in the least.6. Consider the natural temper of the part of the body afflicted, and maintain it inthat, else you extinguish nature, as the heart is hot, the brain cold, or at least thecoldest part of the body.7. Observe this general rule: That such medicines as are hot in the first degree aremost habitual to our bodies, because they are just of the heat of our blood.8. All opening medicines, and such as provoke urine or the menses, or break thestone, may most conveniently be given in white wine, because white wine of itself isof an opening nature, and cleanses the reins.9. Let all such medicines as are taken to stop fluxes or looseness, be taken beforemeat, about an hour before, more or less, that so they may strengthen the digestionand retentive faculty, before the food come into the stomach, but such as are subjectto vomit up their meat, let them take such medicines as stay vomiting presently aftermeat, at the conclusion of their meals, that so they may close up the mouth of thestomach; and that is the reason why usually men eat a bit of cheese after meat,because by its sourness and binding it closes the mouth of the stomach, therebystaying belching and vomiting.10. In taking purges be very careful, and that you may be so, observe these rules.(1) Consider what the humour offending is, and let the medicine be such as purgesthat humour, else you will weaken nature, not the disease.(2) Take notice, if the humour you would purge out be thin, then gentle medicineswill serve the turn, but if it be tough and viscous, then such medicines as are cuttingand opening, the night before you would take the purge.(3) In purging tough humours, forbear as much as may be such medicines as leave abinding quality behind them.(4) Have a care of taking purges when your body is astringent; your best way, isfirst to open it by a clyster.(5) In taking opening medicines, you may safely take them at night, eating but alittle supper three or four hours before, and the next morning drinking a draught ofwarm posset-drink, and you need not fear to go about your business. In this manneryou may take Lenitive Electuary, Diacatholicon, Pulp of Cassia, and the like gentleelectuaries, as also all pills that have neither Diagrydium nor Colocynthus, in them.But all violent purges require a due ordering of the body; such ought to be taken in themorning after you are up, and not to sleep after them before they are done working, atleast before night: two hours after you have taken them, drink a draught of warmposset-drink, or broth, and six hours after eat a bit of mutton, often walking about thechamber; let there be a good fire in the chamber, and stir not out of the chamber tillthe purge have done working, or not till next day.Lastly, take sweating medicines when you are in bed, covered warm, and in thetime of your sweating drink posset-drink as hot as you can. If you sweat for a fever,boil sorrel and red sage in your posset-drink, sweat an hour or longer if your strengthwill permit, then (the chamber being kept very warm) shift yourself all but your head,about which (the cap which you sweat in being still kept on) wrap a napkin very hot,to repel the vapours back.