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THE COMPLETE HERBAL
the Virtue Procreative; for natural regards \ Choler is made of meat more than per-not only the conversation of itself, but to ; fectly concocted; and it is the spume orbeget its like, and conserve in Species. \ froth of blood : it clarifies all the humours,
The seat of this is the Member of Gene- \ heats the body, nourishes the apprehension,ration, and is governed principally by the j as blood doth the judgment: It is in qualityinfluence of Venus. \ hot and dry ; fortifies the attractive faculty,
It is augmented and encreased by the j as blood doth the digestive; moves man tostrength of Venus, by her Herbs, Roots, 5 activity and valour: its receptacle is theTrees, Minerals, &c. j gall, and it is under the influence of Mars.
It is diminished and purged by those of \ Flegm is made of meat not perfectlyMars, and quite extinguished by those of | digested; it fortifies the virtue expulsive,Saturn. ! makes the body slippery, fit for ejection ;
Observe the hour and Medicines of i it fortifies the brain by its consimilitudeVenus, to fortify; of Mars; to cleanse this | with it; yet it spoils apprehension by itsvirtue ; of Saturn , to extinguish it. f antipathy to it: It qualifies choler, cools
Conservative.1 The Conservative virtue j and moistens the heart, thereby sustainingis, Vital, Natural, Animal. { it, and the Avhole body, from the fiery
Vital.] The Vital spirit hath its residence |-effects, which continual motion would pro-in the heart, and is dispersed from it by the \ duce. Its receptacle is the lungs, and isArteries; and is governed by the influence I governed by Venus , some say by the Moon ,of the Sun. And it is to the body, as the | perhaps it may be governed by them both,Sun is to the Creation; as the heart is in 1 it is cold and moist in quality,the Microcosm, so is the Sun in the Mega- j Melancholy, is the sediment of blood, coldcosm: for as the Sun gives life, light, and \ and dry in quality, fortifying the retentivemotion to the Creation, so doth the heart to j faculty, and memory; makes men sober,the body ; therefore it is called Sol Corporis, \ solid, and staid, fit for study; stays the un-as the Sun is called Cor Cedi, because their j bridled toys of lustful blood, stays theoperations are similar. j wandering thoughts, and reduces them
Inimical and destructive to this virtue, j home to the centre: its receptacle is in theare Saturn and Mars. \ spleen, and it is governed by Saturn .
The Herbs and Plants of Sol, wonder- j Of all these humours blood is the chief,fully fortify it. * all the rest are superfluities of blood; yet
NaturaV] . The natural faculty or virtue, * are they necessary superfluities, for withoutresides in the liver, and is generally governed j any of them, man cannot live,by Jupiter, Quasi Javans Pater; its office is \ Namely; choler is the fiery superfluities;to nourish the body, and is dispersed through \ Elegm, the Watery; Melancholy; thethe body by the veins. j Earthly.
From this are bred four particular 1 Animal .] The third principal virtue re-
humours, Blood , Choler , Flegm, and Melan- 5 mains, which is Animal ; its residence is inclioly. \ the brain, and Mercury is the general sig-
Blood is made of meat perfectly con- j nificator of it. Btolomy held the Moon sig-cocted, in quality hot and moist, governed \ nified the Animal virtue; and I am ofby Jupiter: It is by a third concoction \ opinion, both Mercury and the Moon dis-transinuted into flesh, the superfluily of it I pose it; and my reason is, 1 . Because bothinto seed, and its receptacle is the veins, by \ oftheminnativities,eitherfortify,orimpeditewhich it is dispersed through the body. ; it. 2 . Ill directions to either, or from either.