pursued by the vnchaste loue of Ladislaus kyng of Naples and Hungarie Suche auncient Phisicions will easely permitte the necessities of Nature and confirme the wholesome Edicte of the Emperour Claildius who as witnesseth Suetonius permitted in banquettes and compargnies freely and without shame to lette scape the winde of the bealie knowyng that certaine shamefatte persones subiecte to the Collicke haue died for holdyng the saied ventositie As also Cicero in the xxij booke of his Epistles saith that fartyng ought to be as free as belchyng after the opinion of the Stoikes You shall giue theim to vnderstande that you can daiely furnishe their Paciētes with new laied Egges euery mornyng without faile You shall also aduertise theim of theim that haue the sellyng and distribution of them You shall also take heede that you haue not to deale with suche Phisitiōs which haue nought els to doe thē to walke their Mules as thei were whiche were obserued by Maister Francis Rables Pentagruell to departe out of their lodgyng at sixe of the clocke in the mornyng and to returne at Noone without strikyng of stroke For suche are the verie paciences of impaciēce by the vnderstandyng of Epoptiques and Acromatiques of Aristotle and Alexander his Disciple whiche thei thought onely worthie to bee read as writeth Quintus Curtius In like maner you muste bee acquainted with xv or xx Gainsellers or Regraters suche as can chatte and babble beste and walke aboute all the streates the fower corners of the citée and the moste famous places of the same as the Burse the Pallaice the greate Haules the Portes and other places of greate resorte Assuryng theim to furnishe them daiely of a number of newe laied Egges whiche thei shall sell and distribute to your profite agreyng with theim for reasonable price and wages as shal be saied hereafter Hauyng kepte this order you shall bee carefull and diligent to cause your Egges daiely to bee caried to the Gainfellers or women that shall sell them again in the mornyng of the daie followyng You maie carie thē beste vpon Asses For whiche purpose that Beaste is verie proper because of his slowe goyng that he breake not the Egges But take héede that thei eate no Figges leaste you bruste for laughyng as did the Philosopher Chrysippus as writeth Diogenes Laertius in his booke of the liues of Philosophers The like also thaunced to Philomenes as writeth Valerius Maximus in his Chapiter of rare kyndes of Death Now it resteth to make you vnderstande the profite that shall come vnto you daiely of your summe all charges and expenses deducted the rente of your house paied the wages of your seruauntes the Gainsellers contented the charges of the Asse his kéeper compted and also the graine or corne wherwith your Hennes are sedde For of the sale of Egges is taken no custome or imposition as was in the tyme of Ihon Ducas Emperour of Comstantinople and successour of Theodosius Lascaris who was so excessiue that in a fewe daies the Croune of Irene the Empresse was thereby marueilousty enriched in precious stones and iewelles as Nephorius hath left in writyng in the third booke of the Historie Bizantine in the chapiter of the famine of the Turkes You shall fell or cause to be solde euery newe laied egge easely for sixe Frenche pence the péece For I assure you that within the Citée of Paris are a thonsande yea rather twoo thousande that will gladly giue a Carolus whiche is nyne Frenche penuce for euery newe laied Egge béeyng thereof assured wherein fee you faile not How many Gentlemenne and Gentlewomen are there whiche greatly desire in the Mornyng to eate a newe laied Egge How many are there of Citezins and their wiues touched with the like desire How many old folkes wearie of Fleshe could for their Dinner bée contente with a newe laied Egge or twoo For you must knowe that an Egge is naturally of good nourishemente wholsome delicate of easie digestion and maketh good bloud as writeth Alexander Aphrodiseus in his seconde booke and xxviij question of his Problemes Likewise Albertus Magnus writeth that an Egge engendereth in manne as muche good blood as is the bignesse of the yolke whiche tourneth almoste all into bloud I haue yet made no memorie of sicke folkes whiche of necessitie haue nede of new laied Egges by the ordinaunce of the Phisitions whose freendship you shall entertaine for the same purpose The number of the whiche sicke folkes I am sure in the saied Citée will daiely surmounte a thousande persones without speakyng of them that kéepe a certain diet as well to encrease the lustes of their pleasures in Venerie as also to restore that which somtyme by excessiue wantonnesse thei haue diminished of their strengthe and health For these also shall haue neede of your marchandize You maie therefore by this deduction bée assured of the vent and sale and deliueraunce of your Egges daie by daie as muche as your Hennes shall doe their endeuour orderly to furnishe your Customers Now lette vs retourne to our accompt You can gather no lesse euery daie of your xij hundreth Hennes then eight hundreth Egges whiche are twoo terces or thirde partes of the number Leauyng the other terce or thirde parte of your Hennes in the meane tyme to reste and repose theim selues For the season is not euery daie agreable for all Hēnes to laye Specially in the middest of Winter and other tymes neare vnto that But you shall then helpe them in giuyng them Fenegreke commōly called the dredge of Horses And also Barly halfe sodde For these thinges kéepe thē in naturall heate and cause them to laye Eight hundreth Egges by supputation Arithmeticall at sixe Frenche pence the péece will yeld L. Souses for the hundreth Whiche in number producte maketh xx Frankes or Frenche poundes a daie Whiche is for the saied eight hundreth seuen score Frankes the wéeke and seuen chousande thrée hundreth Frākes the yere of honest profite Let vs diuise the charges And that whiche then remaineth wée will call the gaines and profite For the Lawiers saie that wée call nothyng profite sauyng what remaineth after the charges deducted as the famous Lawier Papiniā hath well defined in the xxiij boke of the Pandectes vnder the title of repetitiō of dowrie after the mariage dissolued First for the pension of the woorke man and his House for euery daie xx Souses whiche by the yere commeth to thrée hundreth thrée score and fiue Frankes I here vnderstand yeres of the Sunne consisting of thrée hundreth thrée score and fiue daies For fower Seruauntes or maides xx Souses the daie which is for eche of them for wages meate and drinke fiue Souses to finde theim selues amountyng in the yere to the like summe of thrée hundreth thrée score and fiue Frankes You knowe how greately sobrietie is to bee commended in seruauntes bothe menne and women whiche kicke when thei bée fatte as doe Monkes in the mewe and murmure when thei bée full
to knowe who should bee successour to the Empire after Valens fauourer of the damnable secte of the Arrians Praiyng the saied Philosophers to giue aunswere accordyng to their Arte and experience whiche thei had of suche thynges Who were verie diligente to satisfie their requeste as commonlie menne of letters are not ingrate to communicate to others the fruites of their garden Therefore Iamblicus and Libanius chose a place verie plaine and equall of conuenient largenesse and caused fine pouder or ashes to bee sifted therein In the whiche pouder thei wrote the xxiiij letters of the Alphabet equallie distaunt the one froÌ„ th' other one little cubite asunder whiche is a foote and a halfe These xxiiij letters so written and ordred made a figure pentagon or of fiue angles hauyng fiue equall distaunces Vpon euery of the whiche letters thei laied tenne graines one of Wheate and an other of Barleye The figure beyng set in order thei toke a Corke â—aied to hym these wordes Cocke enuious Cockeielous Cocke proude Eate the grain and leaue the letter Then makyng a greate whisperyng in maner of a Charme thei lette the cocke so charmed eate certaine of the graines liyng vpon the letters The which letters then ioyned togither and set in order according to the graines whiche laâ—e on theÌ„ these letters were founde T H E O D. And were thereby contented to searche no further And by this Diuination by the Cocke the saied Philosophers gaue aunswere that the successour of the Empire should bee one Theodosius or Theodorus or Theodoius wherof Valens beyng aduertised was greatly displeased fearing least his children should bee depriued of the Empire And therefore putte to death all the greate Lordes whiche were so named Iambliucs had euill fortune and shortly after was poisoned Vopiscus Lampridius and Zonare which haue written the liues of the Emperours of the Easte and Weste will make you wise in this Prognostication Not without reason I haue rehearsed vnto you this little Cubite For if you figure Pentagon were directed by the greate Cubite whiche is of nyne foote accordyng to the whiche the Arke of Noe was measured as some Speculatours haue affirmed you might faile in you Diuination and shall not come to the knowledge of that you desire Neuerthelesse for asmuche as suche Diuinations be deceptes and inchauntmentes of the eyes and senses hauyng in them no substaunce of truthe but rather of lyes you shall giue no faithe thereto For falshoode is euer ouercome by by truthe as by example allegorike Iosephus in his Historie of the Antiquitie of the Iewes in the seconde Booke and fifth Chapiter declareth As also is written in Exodus Capit. vij Where the Rodde of Moises was by the finger of God tourned into a verie Serpent and deuoured the fantastike Serpentes of the Magicians of Pharao And the Authours of the saied Magique finallie receiued their rewarde as did Iamblicus and as did Arphaxat the Magician of Persia who was striken with a Thumderbolte As was also the Bailise of Mascon whom the Deuill caried awaie as our Chronicles witnesseth And also as were Mathotin and Hollere Magicians of the Gothes whiche were ouerwhelmed as writeth Olaus Magnus in his Historie of the Northe Regions in the third booke Likewise Oddo a Magician of Denmarke who was drouned And infinite others came to the like euill ende But now to retourne to our Hennes To entreate theim and gouerne them well you must haue fower seruauntes or maides with large eares well to conceiue and vnderstande your commaundementes And the feete of Hartes with diligente expedition to execute the same And trustie right hande to bée faithfull loyall obedience and of fewe wordes For as saieth the Terentian Parmeno it is greate faute in seruauntes to bee babbelers and not to keepe their maisters counsaill Their office shal be to bryng the Hennes into their bouses euery daie at fiue of the Clocke in the Eueuyng in SoÌ„mer And at three of the Clocke in Winter Also that thei bee diligente to close the entries and Windowes of the Henne houses that in the night the Foxe naturall enemie to Hennes Weasells or Polecattes maie haue no accesse And in the Mornyng to open the entrees and windowes that thei maie come foorthe And then to make cleane the Pearches and Lathers Also to refreashe their Pottes and Troughes with cleane water For filthie and corrupte water engendereth the pippe and other sicknesses In the daie also the saied seruauntes muste be myndfull to visite the Paniers if thei be furnished with Haye and to refreshe them if neede bee The whiche muste be doen euery weeke for engenderyng of Life Wormes and Vermine whiche make the Hennes leane and cause them to scrache In like maner thei muste bée diligente in gatheryng the Egges And by accompt to deliuer theÌ„ to a woman whiche shall laye them in older vpon faire wheate strawe in a place of large and free ayre to bée kept freshe and cold The same seruauntes after that in the Mornyng thei haue giuen theÌ„ their feadyng of Barly and Otes and sometyntes also Fetches or Tares shall caste â—mong theim some drie Horse-dounge to the ende that the Hennes maie labour the more to searche their meate with serapyng For sucke exercise is wholsome for theim Then aboute Noone thei shall feede them againe callyng them with loude voice that thei maie be acquainted wiâ—h the call of their kepers whom thei will sone knowe as did the Sparrowe of Lesbia Caâ—â—lliâ—â—a The Parratte of Corinna Ouidinna The Thrustle of Agrippina the wife of the Emperor Claudius The Rauen of the Shomaker of Roome whiche gaue the good Morowe to the Emperours Tiberius Germanicus and Drusur And was bought for xx Sesterns amountyng to the summe of v. hundreth crounes of our money by the supputatioÌ„ of Budaus after the rate of xxv crounes one Sesterne And in like maner shall thei doe a little before thei bryng them to rouste If your yarde containe twoo Acres inclosed you maye thereof Plowe halfe an Acre in some corner where the HeÌ„nes maie sometymes in the daie scrape the grounde and tomble them selves in the duste or sande wherein thei take greate pleasure You shall Plowe or hardle the saied lande once in the moneth that it become not to hard that the HeÌ„nes maie easely raise it without hurtyng their clawes You maie also caste certaine seedes vppon the Plowed ground and couer it with the hardle that the Hennes maie take both more pleasure and labour in discoueryng it For the HeÌ„nes through idlenesse become grosse and heauie and will cease from laiyng When your Housebandrie shall bee thus well ordered you muste practise in the Citée of Paris with ten or twelue Phisitions dwellyng in sundrie places of the saied Citée Not of the beardlesse and delicate Apollinaries whiche care for nothyng but glorie and ciuill flatterie to get riche Wiues But of the bearded AEsculapians suche as was the Famous Florentine a man of singuler knowledge and experience in his doughter
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