51 Natural Magick, < BooJ { i >

they may the better bring forth every one his like in his own kind. Ucob was wellacquainted with this force of imagination, as the Scriptures witntfie: for en-deavouring

To bring forth party-coloured Sheepy

he took that course which I would wish every man to take, that attempts any suchenterprise. He took certain Rods and Poles of Popler, and Almond-tree , andsuch as might be easily barked; and cot off half the tine, pilling them by whitesirakes, so that the Rods were white and black in several circles, like a Snakes co-lour. Then he put the Rods which he had pilled, into the gutters and watering-troughs, when the Sheep came to drink, and were in heat of conception, that theymight look upon the Rods. And the Sheep conceived before the Rods,and broughtforth young of party-colours, and with small and great spots. A delightful sight itwas. Now afterward, Iacob parted these Lambes by themselves, and turned the facesof the other Sheep towards these party-coloured ones, about the time of concep-tion: whereby it came to passe, that the other Sheep in their hear, beholdingthose that were party-coloured, brought forth Lambs of the like colour. And suchexperiments might be practised upon all living Creatures that bear wool; andwould take place in all kinds of beasts; for this course will prevail even in

generating party-coloured Horses j

A matter which Horse-keepers, and Horse-breeders do practise much; for they arewont to hang and adorn with tapestry and painted clothes of sundry colour;, thehouses and rooms where they put their Mares to take Horse} whereby they procureColts of a bright Bay colour, or of a dapple Gray, or of any one colour, or of sun-dry colours together. And Abfyrtus teacheth the fame in effect; counselling us tocover the Marcs body with some stuff of that colour, which we would have the Coltto be of: for look what colour she is set forth in, the lame will be derived into theColt j for the horse that covers her, will be much affected with the sight of such co-lours, as in the heat of his lust helooketh on} and will beget a Colt of the famehue as the example then before his eyes doth present unto him. Oppianus in his firstbook of Hunting, writes the fame argument. Such is,faith he, the industry and pra-ctisednefl'eof mans wit, that they can alter the colour of the young ones from themother, and even in the wombe of their Dam procure them to be of divers colours:for the Horse breeder doth paint the Mares back with sundry colours, (even such asthey would procure to be in the Colt,)against the time that both (he desires horse, 9cthe Stallion is admitted to cover her. So the Stallion, when he cometh and sees suchgoodly preparation as it were for his wedding,presently begins to some ac the mouth,and to~neigh after her, and is possessed with the fire of raging lust throughout hiswhole body, raving and taking on, that he cannot forthwith fatisfie himself uponhis bride. At length the Horse-breeder takes off their fetters,and lets them loose to-gether; and the Mare admits him, and afterward brings forth a Colt of as manycolours as she beheld in the time of her copulation; for as she conceives the Colt,so withal she conceives those colours which she then looks upon.

How to procure white Pea-cocks.

In former times, white Pea-cocks were such a rare sight in Colen , that every oneadmired them as a most strange thing: but afterward they became more common,by reason that merchants brought many of them out of Norway: for whereasblack or else party-coloured Peacocks were carried into that Country to be seen,presently as they came thither, they waxed white ; for there the old ones sit upontheir eggs inthe air, upon the tops of very high mountaines, full of snow; and bycontinual sitting there, k causeth some alteration in their own colour; but the you»gwhich they hatch, are white all over, And no doubt but some such courses will