A DISCOVRSE OF HOVSEBANDRIE No lesse profitable then delectable declaryng how by the Housebandrie or rather Housewiferie of Hennes for fiue hundreth Franks or Frenche poundes making in Englishe money iv li. xj sÌ„ j.d. once emploied one maie gaine in the yere fower thousande and fiue hundreth Frankes whiche in Englishe money maketh fiue hundreth pouÌ„des of honest profits All costes and charges deducted Written in the Frenche tongue by Maister Prudent Choselas And lately translated into Englishe by R. E. ¶ Jmprinted at London by Jhon Kyngston for Myles Jenynges dvvellyng in Paules Churche-yarde at the signe of the Bible 1577. A Souse is xij Frenche pence Xij. Souse maked a Frenche Teston whiche is fower grotes Englishe Three Souses make a grote A Franke or Frenche pounde is twentie Souses xviij Souses makes it sÌ„ after ix Sousesto a shillyng So remaineth of the Franke twoo Soules to make vp the Franke of twentie Souses ix Frenche pence make one Englishe penie ix Souses one shillyng ix Frankes one Englishe pounde nyne hundreth one hundrethinyne thousande one thousande To the right honourable the Countee of Rochefort Knight of the order of the Kyng and Capitaine of fiue hundreth menne of Armes of his ordinaunces MY Lorde hauyng from my youthe in memore the precepte of Apelles moste excellent Painter of his tyme who commaunded his Prentices not to passe one daie without drawyng of a line to the ende to keepe theim in breath and continuance as doeth the Hunter his Greyhounde he seemeth by that precepte to shewe howe greately idlenesse is to bee auoided and howe greate is the losse of tyme to leaue the exercise of trauaile And therefore not to transgresse this precepte in these tumuliuous and turbulente tymes coposed of more then ciuile warres in the bowells of France I haue addressed my self for the auoidyng of Idlenesse to drawe my line vpon an humble and lowe subiect to make a discourse of domesticall Housbandry to shewe how a diligent man maie of one little summe drawe greate games by honeste meâ—nes Which doyng I greately recreate my Spirites emong my bookes and forget a greate parte of my soron full thoughtes of these troublous tymes And forasmuche as I knowe that after long practise of armes and the greate trauaile which you haue had therein the trauaile of letters shal be greatly delectable vnto to you when with equall pase you ioyne wisedome with magnanimitie I haue taken vppon me the boldnesse to present vnto you this my little labour by the readyng whereof you maie take one hower of recreation I haue addressed this little Housbandrie in suche order that the practise beyng therein well instructed in buiyng and conseruatioÌ„ of thynges bought with discreete distribution of the same maie assure hym self to lacke no marchantes This little discourse is of the time of the troubles of the yere M.D.LXVII before that the Winde Caecias drewe the cloude of troubles into the countries of Poictu and Lodunoys where I appoincted the Marchaunte to make his emploit as shall bee sene in the readyng Yours moste obeisant Prudent Choyselat The Aucthor to his frende afflicted vvith the troubles of the ciuile VVarres in Fraunce in the yere of our Lorde M.D.LXVII THe calamities and encombraunces the miseries and sorrowes whiche proceede of he insolencie into the whiche the people of this tyme is plonged in this age of Iron Of Iron I maie saie hardened to misfortune hath well witnessed to vs how true is the aunciente Prouerbe whiche saith That Iupiter is slowe to visite the skinne of the Gote Yet that in fine he permitteth not an euill facte vnpunished Wee haue seen with our eyes and felte by effecte in oure Fraunce at the risyng of these laste troubles fallyng vpon vs like teÌ„pest of a Haile vnlooked for The whiche as commyng out of the Boxe of Pandora or out of a broken infected Prison was so spredde emong menne and hath made suche ouerture of vice and mischief that all sortes of euill are sette at libertie Mars the Executour of the wrathe of the Goddes hath so vomited his Choler without measure that the burnyng thereof hath chafed theim not onely to sociall Warres but to all Deuelishe attemptes more then Megarique to Robberies and Murthers and as saieth Cicero to Phalarismes and moste cruell inhumanites Vulcan leauyng his proper Region hath folowed these miseries and searched newe habitations to exercise these operations In suche sorte that it is easie to iudge that these mishappes are fallen emong menne to putte theim in memorie of their synnes founde in the saied Gotes skinne of the whiche you haue paied your lotte as I haue knowen by the complaintes whiche you haue made for your greate losses of money and menage speiled and destroied by sackcage and pillage also of your Nobles In the whiche I lamente your fortune as a common Shipwracke But pacience mâ—â—te surmount And to helpe you I haue none other meane then by aduise and counsaile you knowe that all my life I haue spente little tyme in hourdyng of richesse and thynges caduke And that rather I tooke pleasure to content my Spirites in readyng and searchyng of suche thynges as fewe menne haue founde Yet not to refuse the helpe a freende in necessitie and vnderstandyng that there yet remaineth vnto you fiue or sixe hundreth Frankes whiche you haue hidden foreseyng so greate a mischaunce it seemeth vnto me to the ende that you in nothyng diminishe your state of liuyng so to redresse the same that you maye easely in shorte tyme reenter into as greate and ample reuenewes as you had before the saied troubles Your reuenewe doubtlesse consisteth in Housebandrie of all sortes of cattaile as Beeues Kyne Mares Sheepe Foule and suche other thynges as reioyseth theim whiche are giuen to the Countrie life I can bee a witnesse how your Table was euer readie for your familiar freendes And your wife and daughter were of worshipfull estimation and of carefull prouision for you famelie entertained by honest sparyng and frugalitie requisite in due tyme and season At whiche tyme also you were well estemed for your liberalitie toward your neighbours and freendes But seeyng that Fortune hath tourned her visage as she is accustomed to doe when the tyme agreeth with her you muste needes retire and not suffer her to remaine with you in like regarde as before And therefore you muste forgette those losses and thinke of a Baine to come To the whiche you shall attaine easely with this little summe remainyng if you will emploie it as I will aduertise you And this without spotte of villanie or filthie and excessiue gaines Furthermore your Housebandrie shall florishe and your name shall bee more knowen in Fraunce then was emong the Greekes the name of hym that burnte the Temple of Diana in Ephesus And to make no longer discourse aduise your self to be stowe your summe of money in buiyng of Hennes not Meleagrides the whiche Bellomus in his Peregrination affirmeth to be our Hennes of the Indies beyng the true
granieres of Dtes but common Hennes of our Countrie and Housebande or employe them in suche sort as I will shewe hereafter And bee not impacient to attende the conclusion Firste of all it is necessarie to haue them neare vnto the Citée of Paris famous and of greate renoume throughout all the worlde to bee the marte and seate of all good Artes and Sciences and populous of all sortes of menne if there bee any other vnder the Sunne There consider the situation of some commodious place well builded hauyng good roomes and Stables with a Courte or yarde inclosed of twoo Acres of grounde more or lesse and walled of sufficiente height With also twoo other Acres inclosed for an other purpose whereof wee will speake hereafter Of these are enowe to bee founde in the olde rurall buildynges about the Citie of Paris So then can you not saie that you are staightly lodged For Quintus Cincinnatus Citezine of Roome so named for wearyng his haire combed and breaded possessed no more when he was called to the dignitie of Dictator as writeth Valerius Maximus in his fowerth booke The aforesaied Mannour place or Ferme with Yarde or Courte inclosed you shall take by Lease for certaine yeres paiyng yerely rent for the dwellyng of you and your famelie You shall dispose your stables commodiouslie for your Hennes and Chickins with the viewe or prospecte towarde the Winter Drient that the Sunne maie giue the good morrowe to your Hennes whiche greately delite at the Mornyng Sunne as noteth Columella in his ix booke of Housebandrie also â—arre in his third booke The Henne houses shall bée commodious and profitable if thei bee alone or solitarie and the Plankes well couered with claye because the Hennes delite to pruine and toumble them selues in duste and to bee kept warme And therefore boordes or plaister are not conuenient to this purpose The Lathers or Perches muste bee from the grounde twoo foote high Also flatte and not rounde because the Hennes doe not bende or crooke their clawes or Talantes as doe other graspelyng foules The saied Henne houses also in the daie tyme muste bee open that thei maie be euented with Winde and Aire And that the Night aire maie more easely transpire and breath out that it maie cause no disease by close ayre whiche in shorte tyme causeth putrefaction and diseases thereof proceadyng Vnder the Henne houses and all aboute the Stables shall bee hanged many Panyers of conueniente bignesse stufte with Haye to receiue the Hennes when thei laye For Haye in this case is muche better then Strawe because it is softer and warmer and is not so apte to engeÌ„der Lice or Woormes I dooe not meane that it should bee so deare as was that whiche was solde for fower Attiques the handfull for menne to eate at the tyme of the greate Famin in Ierusalem as writeth Iosephus in his seuenth booke of the warre of the Iewes the fower Attiques amountyng to fowertene Frenche Soules after three Souses and sixe Frenche Pence for a Souse as muche as the Romaine peuie as writeth learned Budaeus in his booke De Asse When you haue thus disposed your Henne houses and made theim sure and saufe against all hurtfull beastes and Vermine that maie enter by Daie or Night and haue well placed the Paniers to receiue and harbour theim you shall bestowe the summe of three hundreth Frankes in buiyng of good Hennes whiche maie cost you after the rate of fiue Souses whiche is vj. d. and twoo-thirdes the peece by reason of the dearthe whiche is now by occasion of Warres Whiche shall bee twelue hundreth Hennes after xxv Frankes the hundred The Countries of Angeou Touraine and Lodunois haue been the Countries with Britaigne lesse troubled with the saied Ciuile warres And therefore Hennes are there better cheape Also verie good strong well membered and of the beste race to make your emploite You shall choose the youngeste whiche are apter to laye then the olde and the common more then thei of kynde or the Blacke Redde and Taunie whiche are more fruitefull then the Graie or White as Aristotle affirmeth in his Historie of Beastes in the firste booke the firste Chapiter And also thei whiche haue their creste or combe double and vpright as witnesseth Plinie in his naturall Historie Also Palladius and Petrus Crescensis in his Booke of Housebandrie Likewise Carolus Stephanus a man of our tyme a diligent gatherer of thinges Economike parteinyng to Housholde and Housebandrie Thei of meane bignesse are the beste hauyng their brest large their bodie well fleshed not with long Spurres like vnto Cockes for thei commoÌ„ly breake their Egges Take héede also that thei bee not to fatte Witnesse the good wife whiche beyng in loue with her Henne fedde her so well and made her so fatte that she lefte laiyng as rehearseth Esope in his Fables You ought to thinke that the good Woman loued her Henne no lesse then the Emperour Honorius sonne of Theo dosius loued his named Rome Who vnderstanding that Alaricus Kyng of the Gothes had taken Rome whiche was the aunciente Citee of Rome was verie sadde supposyng that Alaricus had takeÌ„ his Henne whiche he so muche loued as Zonar the Greke Historiographer hath written in the life of Honorius I saie the aunciente Rome because the Emperours of the East partes called Constantinople newe Rome In like maner you shall buye Cockes to sorte or matche them Sixe score Cockes shall suffice for the twelue hundreth Hennes For one Cocke maie suffice for tenne Hennes Thei maie coste you tenne Souses the peece ouer and aboue the price of the Hennes which amounteth to fourtie and eight Frankes Thei of the age from a yere and a halfe vnto twoo yeres are the beste To knowe them well you shall consider the Plumage or Feathers The Blacke Redde and Taunie are the beste Also thei that haue their Combe or Crest vpright and double or diuided Their eyes Redde and glisteryng Their becke shorte and hooked well suprred their goyng hautie and proude Their voice strong and soundyng And suche as crowe muche representyng suche a maiestie as did the Cocke of the Persians whiche emong them was reuerenred and honoured for a Kyng as reciteth Aristophanes At the least that thei shewe a certain hardinesse as thei whiche the Carians people of the lesse Asia bore vpon their Morion or Helmet goyng to battaile As Alexander de Alexandro hath written in the xx Chapiter of his firste booke And if you will take pleasure in Diuination of thynges to come by Cockes whiche Dinination is named Alectoromantia as did Iamblicus maister of Proclus as Libanius his compaignion greate and learned Philosophers in the tyme of the Emperour Valens you maie make experiment of suche predictions and therewith dooe pleasure to your freendes And to the ende that you shall not bee ignoraunte in the Theorike or speculation of the saied Diuination I will shewe you a certaine practise and Prognostication thereof Certaine greate lordes were curious
Emong the whiche wée meane not suche as with pure conscience exercise them selues in their vowe of contemplation of Diuine thynges in whose soules contemplation taketh perfection as saieth the Diuines For in all sortes of men the beste ought to bée respected and the worst noted Neither yet do I meane that you should bée so sparyng for the meate of your seruaūtes as was the Abbot of Poson in Hungarie who was wont to saie that of all the woorkes of his Seruauntes the mouyng of their Iawes gréeued him moste he was so filthely coueteous that he disdained to sée his seruauntes eate as writeth AEneas Syluius in the xlij Chapiter of his Historie of Boheme For the charges of the twoo Asses although Thistles growe euery where aboundantly wée will allowe v. Souses daie amountyng to fower score and twelue Frankes and fiue Souses in the yere And for the Asse kéeper whom you maie also applie to other seruice after that he hath brought his Egges to the place appointed who can haue no lesse then one maide to accōpanie hym whose allowance beyng after the rate of fiue Souses the daie commeth to fower score and twelue Franks and fiue Souses the yere Whō you shall aduertise that he ouercharge not his Asses least thei murmure as doe the Monkes vnreformed The Emperour Augustus Caesar after the victorie Actiū against Antonius iniured by the loue of Cleopatra Queene of Egipte goyng to sée the Shippes captiue found sodainly an Asse keper and asked hym what was his name Who aunswered that his name was Fortunatus and the names of his Asses Victorious Thereby gratulating the victorie of the Emperor You maie féele the profite of your Asses with like congratulatiō and hope of good Fortune and victorie against thē that would haue throwē you into miserable pouertie if you folowe your businesse with requisite diligence as did the saied Emperor Augustus his warres Auoidyng suche delices pleasures as Antonius vsed with Cleopatra For meate or féedyng for the Hennes shall suffice for the daie twoo quarters of Paris measure as well in Barly as in Otes Fitches or Tares and in Winter bearde or horned Wheate whiche in Champaigne is called Sarasine Wheate after xxv Souses the Septier or quarter which by the daie amounteth to L. Souses and in the yere seuen hundreth fower score and seuen Frankes and tenne Souses whiche is fower score and vij li. x. s̄ As touchyng the Phisitians some of theim selues shall haue néede of your marchandice as thei that haue a Famely and many little children whom you must visite wéekely with certain quarterons of newe laied Egges brought on Thursdaie for Fridaie Saterdaie At Easter also with certaine Red Egges to present to their neighhours as the reuenue of their practike But suche as haue no familie and seke for wife and house followyng the precepte of Xenophon in his Oeconomiques you may to gratifie then shewe them the increase of your Housebandry and recite vnto them the pleasure whiche you receiue therein to hasten them to caste theim selues into the nette of happie Mishap and yet in the meane tyme honour them with some pretie Presentes And if you haue the meanes to recouer Pullettes or Chikens of the race of he Hēne whiche engendered them perfectly formed scrapyng and pepyng and followyng the Henne as sone as thei bee out of the Egge as rehearseth Apuleius in his booke of the golden Asse you maie thereby giue argument of high Philosophie of noueltées vpon the doubte whiche thei make if the round Egges bryng forthe Cockes and the long Egges Hennes Wherein Albertus Magnus the Ape of Aristotle doeth contrary his Maister in the sixth booke of Beastes But in the resolution of this question you shall finde thē no lesse trouble then in this whiche is why there are moe Shéepe then Wolues Seyng that one Shéepe commonly engendereth not but one or seldome tymes twoo whereas the Wolfe bryngeth forthe eight or nyne Againe in cōsideration that for one Wolfe that is killed a thousande or twoo thousande Shéepe goe to the slaughter For the reason whiche Herodotus bryngeth in his thirde booke of his Muse of Thalia where he saieth that Nature hath made fierce and cruell Beastes more fruitfull speakyng of the multitude of Serpentes and Vipers whiche in Arabia kéepe the Trees of Frankensence can not bée applied to Wolues whiche are fierce and rauenyng But to retourne to our charges For the entertainemente of the saied Phisitians I giue you estate of two hundred and thrée score Frankes by the yere So shall your Phisitians haue no occasion to complaine that thei haue the pension of Pulters Of other fidelitie neuerthelesse that he that is founde culpable of false reporte shall abide the Iudgement of the Senatour Papirius at the siege of Aquilon a Toune of the Samnites of the whiche Valerius Maximus maketh mētion in his vij booke To the Gainsellers you shall giue fiue Souses for a hūdred Giuing thē charge that thei sell not in your name any Egges but yours Whiche insumme shal be by the weeke seuen Frankes and by the yere three hundred three score and fiue Frankes In the whiche you shall doe nothyng cōtrarie to the opinion of Socrates who blamed theim that bought Marchaundize by grosse to sell theim againe to others by retaile as hurtfull to the common wealthe Then the supputation or compte beyng made vppon xx Frankes of the sale of your Egges by the daie amounting to seuen thousande and thrée hundred Frankes by the yere wee muste rebate the summe of twoo thousande seuen hundreth and three Frankes and fiue Souses Tournois of currante money for the expenses here before compted So remaineth vnto you the profite by the yere the summe of fower thousande fiue hundreth fower score and xvj Frankes and fiue Souses whiche is fiue hundreth and xj li. xxij s̄ x. d. and ij thirdes And when your laiyng Hennes shal be no more then sixe hundreth a daie leauyng the other sixe hundreth in reste to abide their season yet shall remaine vnto you xv Frankes by the daie and by the yere thre thousande fower hundreth fourtie and seuen Frankes three Souses and nyne pence all charges deducted whiche amounteth to three hundreth fower score and three li. v. d. Whiche séemeth to me an honest gaine and profite vpon the emploiyng of so little a summe and that without all filthie Vsurie By the meanes also whereof you maie feaste your fréendes and leade a ioyfull life I saie not prodigall as of AEsope the Tragike with his platter of small Birdes whereof Plinie maketh mention in the tenth booke of his Naturall Historie Neither so daintie or gluttonous as of Apitius that was in the tyme of the Emperour Tiberius Neither yet so sumptuous magnificent as that of Lucullus noted of Plutarche in his booke of the liues of famous men for the Bankett whiche he made vpon the sodaine for Pompeius and Cicero the expense whereof was no lesse then
xij hundreth and fiftie Crounes commyng to L. Sesternes Romaine Or that of Pomponius Atticus Againe on the other parte I meane not that your liuyng shal be so streight in frugalitie or sparyng as was that of Curius Dentatus who liued with Radishe rootes Or of Pertinax who would be serued tenne times with one salet Neither so vile or sparyng as was Epaminondas a greate Lorde of Thebes who kepte his chamber while his apparell was amendyng because he would haue no chaunge But temperate and modeste as that of the kynges of Egipte who before thei fell to their meate disputed of modestie and sobrietie takyng pleasure in bankettes more ioyefull then sumptuous or exquisite And so shall you not faule into the penaltie of the Lawe Numerall of Iulius who prefined a Taxe to be paied of the charges made in greate feastes and bankettes And for as muche as it maie seme a thyng vndecent that a man should make profession of an Art or trafique of marchaundize whereof he hath no knowledge beyng ignorant of the natures and temperatures of the thynges whiche he hath in hande I will not faile to aduertise you of the diseases whiche come to Hēnes and Cockes and of their remedies and when it shalbée néedefull to chaunge them and put others in their places to th' ende that your number doe not diminishe as you knowe that by surrogation the kyndes of all thynges are preserued in their beyng and so remaine perpetually as Diuine Diotimus taught Socrates in the seconde booke of the feast of Plato Their common disease is the Pippe whiche is a disease of the tongue the ende whereof is thereby hardened in maner of a gristle And thereby also the Henne loseth her taste bothe in eatyng and drinkyng and infecteth the other Hennes specially within the house and place of their feding This disease proceedeth either of beeyng long without drinkyng of cleane and freashe water or by drinkyng of foule and stinkyng water And to heale it you muste take the Henne and take awaie the superfluitie which groweth on the tongue hardened at the ende And then washe the tongue and beake with Oile in the whiche shall bée tempered a hedde of Garlike And putte emong their meate Staphisacre and to rubbe the tongue wel with spettle or Vineger first tempered in the mouthe of the seruaunt An other disease is the Catarre or Rheume whiche is a fluxion of colde Humours in the hedde of the Hennes makyng them to hang their winges and their crestes or combes The remedie is to trauerse or ouerthwart ther nosethrilles with a Feather put through them to open the Fluxiō or Rheume that is stopped and maketh them blinde It shall also bée good to warme their drinke in Winter Because suche diseases procéede of cold or drinkyng of Frosen water or liyng vnder that Moone the mother of al moistnesse Against the Lice and vermine whiche make them leane féeble and vnfruitfull I haue shewed you the remedie But when the disease is now come the remedie is to bathe them with a little Wine or drinke in the whiche shall bée sodden some Comin or Staphisacre commonly called the death of Lice appliyng it to the heddes of little children with oyntmentes If you doubt how I knowe this not alledgyng any Authour for the proofe you shall vnderstande that I haue learned it by practize of the common people in like maner as the wise men emong the Hebrues named Cabalistae and the like emong the Gaules named Druydes learned their Seiences by tradition from mouthe to mouthe and from hand to hande without Letters Whereby is come to passe that in our Feaunce the gouernmente is more by customes not written then by written lawes As Iulius Caesar hath written in his Commeutaries of the conquest of the Gaules or Frenchemen in his sixte Booke The auncientes haue written certain remedies to kepe the Hennes from the Foxe as Palladius in his Booke of Housebandrie teacheth how to rubbe the walles of the Hen house with the gaule of a Foxe and to cutte in little peeces the fleshe of a Foxe and to mingle it with the Hennes meat to cause the Foxe to abhorre to come neare it by feelyng the death of his proper kynde whiche nature can not abide as writeth Plinie in the xxix booke of his Naturall Historie But the moste soueraigne remedie is to kéepe faste and close the doores and windowes in the Night And that in the Daie you seruauntes often tymes come and goe in all places and corners of your close And that neare vnto it or the Henne house bée no heapes of woodde bushes or stones where suche beastes maie bée hidde or harboured For the beastes whiche liue by rapte haue euer a certaine feare ioyned with their craftinesse and desire of rauenyng Aboute the tyme of Autumne you shall euery yere draw a hundred or twoo hundred of the eldest of your Hēnes and suche as haue their clawes longest and grossest In place of the whiche you shall put yonger of suche sorte or qualitie as I haue before described If peraduenture you be of opinion to kepe your Egges of one season for an other you must laye them in order vpon sheaues or strawe verie freshe with the sharpe ende vpward or to laye them in Paniers in like maner And that thei bée well couered with strawe that thei bee not tourned by too muche heate or cold And if you wil chose the beste for your fréendes take Candida Longa Noua that is White Long and New folowyng the opinion of the Schoole of Salerne The other twoo Acres whiche remaine aboute youre yarde courte or place inclosed shall be commodious to sow Barly whiche is a graine verie proper for the noriture of Hēnes And if you can recouer Barly of the sede of AEthiope whereas dwell the Iewes of the ligue of Dan Nephthalin Gad Asser neare to the riuer of Sabbatique whiche Moises affirmeth to bee the Riuer in the holie scripture called Gozan it shall bee singuler good because one graine thereof bryngeth forthe an hundred as Eldad Damus the Hebrewe hath written in his brief Historie of the Empire of the Iewes inclosed in AEthiope I will write vnto you more amplie of the other profites whiche concerne the noriture of Hennes and of what properties thei are and what one maie drawe of their substances But my ende hath been none other then to giue aduise how for a little summe of money little trauaile you maie gette greate profite to the ende that you maie the more easely forgette your losses and accustome your self to the noise and cluckyng of your Hennes and not to seeme more delicate then was the good Philosopher Socrates who bore it easely because thei laied hym Egges as he bore paciently the murmuryng and scoldyng of his wife Xantippe because she bore hym children You maie euery daie see your menage or Housebandrie And as did the Peripatetici walke aboute the closes and other places and consider the endeuour of your seruauntes Whom also by
this meanes you shall make more carefull and diligente and your HeÌ„nes better intreated accordyng to the Apophthegme whiche saieth That the eye of the maister maketh the seruaunt prompter and the horse fatter as also Aristotle maketh mention in his firste booke of Oeconomikes But how so euer it bee directe your Housebandrie in suche order that bones bee not giuen to Asses and Thistles to Dogges The Maide seruaunte or Chamberlaine of Prometheus named Experience who serued hym after that he hadde brought from Heauen the liberall Sciences and to whom when he drewe neare to death he gaue them by Testament maie in short tyme assure you either to continew this marchandize and trafique or to leaue it For she Experience I meane is one of the chief Seruauntes whiche you muste haue with other diligence compaignie You ought not to take it gréeuously to leaue your dwellyng place and accustomed pleasaunte ayre or your neighbours cousins or frendes For you knowe well the incommodities whiche ciuill warre bringeth the whiche as writeth Cicero to Marcus Marcellus in the fowerth booke of his familer Epistles is no lesse lamentable then the victorie gotten by sheadyng of domesticall bloud And therefore not without reason saieth the Prouerbe That warre is pleasaunte to suche as hath no experience thereof The whiche saiyng Erasmus a rare man in all kinde of learnyng hath in his Chiliades dilated by many examples As you maie also easely iude at this present You knowe also that the Marchaunt to flie pouertie hazardeth hym self by lande and sea and leaueth his natiue Ayre and Countrie And for the doubte that you maie haue not to bee assured in peaceable possession of your inclosed ground against the violence of Théeues or Souldiers I would wishe you for the garde thereof either the wakyng Serpente whiche kept the Gardens of Hesperides famous for the golden aples slaine by Hercules of Thebes or the furious Bulles whche kepte the Golden Fléese in the I le of Colchos vnder kyng AEâ—â—tas the Father of Medea whiche were ouercome and tamed by Iason of Thessalia at the voiage of the Argonau tae Haue recourse to the Metamorphoses of Ouid in the fowerth and seueÌ„th booke But better then all this shall serue for your securitie a Tablet of three flower de Liees the Kynges Seale autorised by the kyng whiche shall bee of greater efficacie then any other saucgarde that you can desire For finall counsail I praie you continue in the loue and feare of GOD obeisaunce to your Prince and his Magistrates reuerence to all superious with pacience of your losses to occupie your trade without fraude and you shall finde multiplication of all your goodes And then as saith Iuuenal in his thirde Satyre you maie say that your are the sonne of a white Henne But when you shall bee knowen to doe seruice to so excellent a common wealthe as is the Citée of Paris whiche surmounteth all those that haue been Famous emong the Greekes and that you haue giuen the firste entrie and as saieth the Prouerbe broken the Ise to others I suppose your enemies shall bee repulsed as were thei of Furius Cressinus Citezin of Roome enuied of his neighbours because that of a little he raised more Gaine then thei d. d of muche Tillage For the whiche thei imputed vnto him that he vsed Witcherafre and Inchauntmente Who bringyng forthe his Instrumentes of Housebandrie his diligent seruauntes and also his owne Daughter moste skilfull in menage was discharged of all suche suspicious and of all men greately commended as writeth Titus Liuius And furthermore your felicitie and prosperitie shal be a passion to your enemies as chaunceth to all enuious persones I knowe other experiences verie prompte But of no greater gaine then sixe Frankes the daie all charges deducted Therefore if my firste instructions seme not agreable vnto your nature aduertise me thereof that I maie directe vnto you an other waie more easie and no lesse delectable though of lesse profite Peraduenture some will thinke this Counsaill verie straunge and ridiculous and perhaps of difficult executioÌ„ To thinke it straunge there is no greate reason coÌ„sidering that nourishyng of Hennes for honest gaines is no newe or straunge thing if we beleue that whiche Celius Rhodoginus a worthie Autor hath written in his 14. booke of Antiquities That in the I le of Delos otherwise called Ortygia for the abundance of Qualies beyng one of the moste famous of the Cyclades in the sea Aegaeum were founde many that made estate and trafique of the nourishement of Hennes for gaine and profite Who were so well exercised herein and in the knowledge of their HeÌ„nes that onely vpon the sight of an Egge thei could easily iudge what Hen it came from Therefore that sellyng of Egges hath euer been a thyng commonly vsed haue recoursed to the Impost which was in the tyme of the Emperour Honorius as is saied heretofore As touchyng mockers no man can establishe any thing so good or well ordered that the Mocker shall not bite when Enuie hath made impression in his foolishe Braine and hath there taken vp his sodâ—yng to torment his Hoste And to resolue you of suche difficulties let vs take holde of the saiyng of Agathon a yong gentleman in the Oration whiche he made of Loue in the feaste of Plato saiyng That we ought more to feare the iudgement of a fewe wise men then of many ignorauÌ„t fooles and mockers For Wisemen slowlie giue the loose bridle to their congues but vse their wordes with iudgemente as also writeth Cicero in his Oration for Plancius saiyng That the iudgemente of tenne wise and graue men in one Citée importeth more then the iudgemente of all the common people who for the moste parte iudge without counsaill or reason If any maune shall saie that the inuention of this counsaile is old I confesse vnto you that I am not the firste reacher hereof as was Carbilius of the firste letters at Rome or the firste Schoolemaister yet hath it not been practised in our tyme And as writeth the Poet Horatius Many thinges are renewed whiche tyme hath deuoured and buried as deade the whiche againe in tyme shall bee drouned in the riuer of Obliuion and shall againe retourne to their estate by course as doe in maner all worldly thinges as wise Salomon also witnesseth Assure your self my deare fréede that Magnifico Megret or any other Alchimiste haue not with their Fornaces and Alembikes drawne more profite by the Philosophers Stone then you shall drawe out of the bealie of your Hennes if you will ioyne pleasure with paine And so shall you bée out of the daunger into whiche suche Alchimistes fall who oftentymes consume their Patrimonie and blowe it awaie with Bellowes But euer beware the Foxe In the meane tyme you shall receiue of your fréende this little gift suche as it is in hope hereafter to recouer of hym some better thyng when occasion doeth serue whiche occasion you must take by the haire before that it scape not from you Now therefore for the ende of this accompte you must arme your self with pacience when affliction is sent and auoide pouertie the enemie of all good maners by exercise of honeste and profitable frugalitie in vsyng the thynges whiche you haue gotten by your labour and therewith also a reputation not bulgare whiche shall bée bruted through all Fraunce for the noueltie of your enterprise Whereof some will take suche pleasure as maie moue the seuere Catoes to laughyng and raise the Melancholike Milte of wéepyng Democrites And finally you shall herewith receiue the contentation of your louyng fréende with this pleasaunte present to mitigate the sorrowes of these Cloudie tymes and to put you in good comforte of better hope in tyme to come Hatchyng of Egges without Hennes as writeth Ioannes Porta in his seconde Booke of Magike Naturall TAke the dounge of Pigeons or Hennes beaten into pouder and finely Sifted Then laye the Egges in suche sort that one touche not an other for breaking And sée thei bée well couered with the saied dounge bothe vnder and aboue in close Panniers or Coopes commodious for the purpose so that the rouÌ„der or bigger ende of the Egges bée dounwarde But firste you muste laie a bedde of Hennes feathers and thereon the dounge and likewise an other ranke or bedde of feathers vppon the dounge that couereth the Egges This doen you shall euery xxiiij houres tourne the Egges that thei maie equally receiue the heate Thei must thus bée kept in a place of temperate heate And when twentie daies are paste if you shall perceiue that the chickins strike the shell with their billes harken if thei péepe For often it chaunceth that for the thicknesse of the skinne or filme thei can not breake foorth Then helpe theÌ„ with takyng of the shell And immediatly bryng the Henne vnto theÌ„ The like maie be doen in a warme Ouen tempered to the measure and proportion of Natural heate Likewise also in hotte horse dounge with like diligence of measuryng and conseruyng the heate with adding of newe and pure dounge euery seuenth daie Cardanns in his xij booke De Subtilitate writeth muche in like maner But saieth that you muste firste make twoo Cusshions or Pillowes filled with Hennes dounge beaten into fine pouder and sifted Then by sowyng or other meanes fastenyng on the Pillowes HeÌ„nes fethers bothe great and small of good thickenesse and laye the Egges betwene theim in a warme place c. as before He writeth that in the greate Citie of Alkair or Babilonia Noua in Egipte thei vse thus to hatche Egges in greate multitude Finis xviij d. and ij thirdes xxv FraÌ„kes iv sÌ„ vj. d. ij thirdes of j. d. v. pi vi sÌ„ viij d. Alectoromantia Theod. ob and one thirde L. Souses is v. s. vi d. and ii third partes of a peny xliiii s. v.d. ii thirdes ii s. ii d. and ii thirdes xl lib. xi s. i. d. i. third vi d. and ij thirdes x. lib. v. s. Septier is the Quarter of Partis v. s. vi d. and ij thirdes xxviii Iib. xvij s. ix d. one third vi d. and. ij thirdes xv s. vi d. ij thirdes xl li. xi s. i. d. and i. thirde x. li. iiii s. v. d one thirde viii hundred xi li. ii s. ij d. two thirdes xxxiii s. iii. d xiii s. iiii d.