féete two hundreth in hys handes and two hundreth on his shoulders so being loden or charged wyth sixe hundreth waight went vpon a ladder Plinie wryteth to haue séene one named Athanatus to haue a iacke on his backe waying fiue huÌ„dreth waight going to a play with shooes on his féete waying fiftie pounde waight a piece Milo set his foote in a place from which place there was no man able to make him goe backe or remoue If that he helde a staffe in his hand there was no man able to take it away or wrythe it out of his fist For running there hath bene many light and nimble men that would runne a thousande a hundreth and threscore furlongs a day and more Also there are some y t haue their sight very singuler We reade of a man called Strabo of the country of Sicilia that is toward the East to recken couâ—npt the shippes that parted from Carthage for to enter into the South sca. Cicero did recite that he did see the Ihades of Homer in verse written being included in a Nutte shell so small were the figures Marmecides made a Cart or Wagon so little that a flye did couer it And he made a ship that a Bée might couer with both hir wings For a truth there haue bene people that haue heard battayls fighting fiftie Leagues of for they haue counted the tyme hours of the assaults The memorie hath bene very singuler to some Cyrus Kyng of Persie had the memorie to know and call euery one of his army by their names Methridates the king did talke one day to his people in .xxij. languages without stutting or stammering Others léese their memory by faÌ„tastes or otherwise haue forgotten their vnderstanding Messalla the orator did forget by grieuous sicknesse his scieÌ„ces yea his owne name in such sorte that he knewe not froÌ„ whence he was Maruellous was the memorie of Iulius Cesar the which named to foure scribes or wryters at one tyme and in the meane time he read writ and hearde and if he had no other affaires he wolde name to seauen He sought 52. battayles And Marcellus 40. Cesar in his battayles is reputed to haue slaine of his enimies 1192. thousande men Pompeus did spoile and take from the pirates and sea robbers against whom he was sent by the Romaines 876. ships Moreouer Cesar had this coÌ„stancie that the letters that Scipio did send him for to betray Pompeus he cast into the fire without reading them Cato was accused to the Senatours 42. tymes and alwayes absolued Sicinus dictator of Rome sustayned sixe score battayles he had fiue fortie woundes before and not one behinde Sergius was a worthy warrior he deliuered Cremona from the siege kept Placentia toke in Fraunce twelue Castles and Townes He had his right hande cut off and he made one of yron with the which he fought foure battayles Pitifull thinges are founde worthie of memorie thorowe all partes among the which it commeth to my remeÌ„brance of a woman taken in Rome for to dye for offence and being put into straight Prison there to be famished hir daughter had lycence of the Iayler to goe sée hir euery day but shée was searched for feare least shée should bring hir mother foode In the ende it was found that euery day she did giue hir mother sucke with hir breastes and for to satisfie hir shee came dayly The Senators hauing intelligence therof did pardon the mother for the vertue that was in the daughter and did appoynte them a lyuing during their lyues Marucllous are the operations of humaine creatures amoÌ„g others onely of paintings that doe resemble the lyuing so nere that there resteth nothing but y e speach The king Attallê° bought a table or picture of a Painter whiche cost a hundreth Markes Cesar bought two for eyght hundreth Markes Mans age hath bene reputed greate among the auncients which do name Princes and kings to haue lyued eyght huÌ„dreth yeares and a thousand yeares but it is by the varietie of yeres for some make the Sommer a yeare and the winter another yeare and others make thrée monthes a yeare as the Arcadians you muste not stay nor iudge things by the constellation of the firmament For in one preseÌ„t houre many are born as well seruaunts as maysters kings and magistrates whose fortunes are al dyuers contrarie Many examples we haue of sickenesses Publius Cornelius Rufus in dreaming to haue loste his sight became blinde lost his sight Some there are that liue but til middle age and others that dye in their youth and nature doth giue a man nothing better than short life To liue long the senses vnderstaÌ„ding become blunt the whole meÌ„bers féele dolor the sight the hearing and the going fayle the téeth also the instruments of meats therefore age is but payne and there is a tyme prefixed to liue We reade no better example than of Zenophilus the Musitian that lyued a hundreth fiue yeares without sicknesse The signes of death are to laugh in the â—uror grief of the malady or sicknesse to be buâ—e in folding or doubling the clothes of hys bed with his handes to voyde from one in sléeping behinde a fearefull looke with other things and therefore séeing that by experience we sée innumerable signes of death therefore there is no certaintie Sickenesses are dyuers both to olde and yong Sirius died by the multitude of Serpentes procéeding from his body Some haue had an Ague all their lyfe time Mecaenas was seueÌ„ yeres in the end of his dayes without sléepe Antipater lyued long without sickenesse sauing that euery yeare on that day that he was borne he had the Ague We reade of one that lyued 157. yeares that slept in his age 57. yeares and weakened as thoughe he had slept but one houre Others that haue returned a foote from their graue when they were borne to be buried PoÌ„peus caused a mans heade to be smitteÌ„ off which when it was layde againe to the body did speake an houre both to the maister of the house and to manye others of the house Death bringeth repentance Some die for ioy men in the hearing of ioyfull newes of victoryes and women to sée their children The father of Iulius Cesar dyed in putting on his hose felte before no harme Some in drinking some in wryting and others in dyuers maners as we daylye sée by experience Aunciently the vse was among the Romaines to bury the deade but for the often battayles of the Romaines that had all the worlde in their subiection they vse to burne the deade Among men Liber Pater found first the meanes to sell and buy also Diademes for kings for triumphes The Lady Ceres founde the meanes to sowe corne and to grinde it and therefore shée was called a Goddesse For before they vsed Acornes The Assirians founde firste the meane to write letters but the inuention hath bene since the beginning of the world Two brethren in Athens found
they be pulled out The eyes of man principallys doth shewe loue furor folly and wisedome Great eyes signifie small wit or discretion The heart lyueth first and dyeth last A man hath eight ribbes on a side the Hog ten the Serpent thirtie Among foules the Batte hath téeth no other Man groweth til he be xxi yeres olde Bloud preserueth the life of euery person that being gone no remedy but death They that haue the thickest and fattest bloude are the strongest They that haue it most fine and cleare are the wysest They that haue least are fearefull The bloud of an asse is most fattest The bloude of a Bull will sone ware harde The bloude of Déere and Goates is not thicke nor hardneth noâ— Man alone will chaunge his colour euen in a moment The man that is hairye is inclined to fleshely lust If a mannes haire doth not growe nor his bearde it is a signe that he is barren so is the woman that hath no haire growing on hir bodye The haire of a mannes bearde commeth not as the grasse in the fielde that is mowed but it procéedeth from the roote There is no Male that hath any appearance of breastes but man a womaÌ„ hath two in hir stomacke the Cowe hath foure in hir belly Goates and shéepe two the Sowes ten some twelue Euery Pigge knoweth the dugge that they haue bene nourished with Whales and Sea calues nourishe their yong ones with milke of their breastes A womans milke is vnprofitable before the seuen monthes A Cowe hath no milke before she hath had a calfe The Asse hath milke when she beginneth to beare And to let the yong Asse take the Dames milke before two dayes is daungerous Certaine Dames of Rome did bathe them selues in Asses milke for it maketh their skin smoth and whyte Milke of Goates is worsse to make chese than the milke of Kyne The milke of beastes hauing aboue foure breastes is vnprofitable to make chéese and that of two breastes is better The chéefest and best chéeses are made in Italy Zoroastes liued twentie yeres with chéese without féeling age Man hath two feete of one length and measure and two armes with two handes The thombe the little finger are of one measure the other two also of a measure and that in the midst is longer Euery finger hath thre ioynts and they shutte or bowe inwarde and not outward the thombe hath but two that bowe in like maner The Ape is the beast that moste approcheth the fashion of féete handes nose and eares to maÌ„ for with the foreféete he fedeth and hath the bowels lyke to mannes At three yeares man hath taken halfe his growth of hight He hath the knées and armes contrary in bowing the one forwarde the other backwarde Beastes that ingender their like bow their knées backewarde and those that make egges forwarde Nayles grow vnto eche one yea vnto deade men as well as their beardes Birdes that haue elawes one at the héele streatch their féete toward their tayle in flying All beastes haue féete in nuÌ„ber equall Flyes haue sixe and so haue Locustes or Grashoppers that leape bycause that their hinder féete are long The genitores of Wolues Foxes and â—aÌ„mes are of bone Boares haue them ioyning and shéepe haue them hanging The tayle of fishes serueth to conduct them and so it doth to other beastes and all haue tayles except man and the Ape Those beastes haue voice that haue lungs and artiers Others make but a sounde or noyse and murmure inwarde A Childe neuer rendreth voyce till he be wholly out of the mothers wombe They that sonest speake latest goe The boyces of men are dyuers as well as their similitudes and likenesse and we vnderstand them before we sée them The voyce of men is more grauer than the voyce of women Members that growe out of tyme are vnprofitable as the sixte finger There was one that had two eyes behinde the heade but he saw nothing It is a vaine thing sayth Arisrotle to iudge any person by signes Often tymes commeth iudgementes of short life that is to weâ—e few téeth very long fingers colour like to lead and other things The contrary signes of long life is to crooke the shoulders on one hande two strikes along to haue more thaÌ„ xxxij téeth great eares Great fore heades signifieth a stoute and manly courage little fore heade lightnesse a round fore heade wrath If the browes be straight it signifieth imbecilitie If they bende towards the nose hastinesse If they bende towards the chéekes signifieth a mocking person If they bende wholy towarde the eyes malice and enuy Long eyes signifie malice The greatnesse of y e eares signifieth a foolishe babler The breath of a Beare is naught worsse a LioÌ„s The Serpent flyeth the breath of the Elephant and the burning of Hartes hornes The hony Bées oile being cast on them dye The Scithians in their warres temper their Dartes heades in humaine bloude and in Uipers poyson and if they strike any therewith there is no remedye but death The best foode for man is to eate but of one meate at one time or meale the accumulating of sauours is pestiferous and Wine maketh a smelling or stinking breath if it be not tempered With greate difficultie shall a man digest that whiche is taken gredely excessiuely or hastily There is more payne in the stomacke to digest in Sommer than in Winter and in age more than in youth The vomytings that are made after excesse maketh the body colde are hurtfull to the eyes and teeth A mans body groweth waxeth grosse to vse swéete things fatte meates and good drinkes A man maye easely liue seauen dayes without drinke Butter asswageth hunger and thirst neuerthelesse thinges excessiuely taken are hurtefull and therefore it is good to deminishe that away which hurteth The. xij booke treateth of swéete smelling trées TRees haue lyfe whiche they take of the earth There are manye straunge trées in dyuers countreys which vnto some are vnknowen In some places they water fine trées at the â—oote with wyne the which profiteth muche the rootes The Parthians which haue trées bearing wooll of the whiche is made fine cotton cloth as it is sayde haue a trée bearing Apples but y e fruit is not to be eateÌ„ but they haue a meruellous smell so haue the barkes the whiche being in your Chest among your apparell casteth a sweete sauour or smell and this trée hath alwayes fruit some growing some dying and some ready to gather and the graftes of this trée will take in no other countrey In India there is both wood and trées that will not burne in the fire There hath also bene séene a Figge trée of a great height the braunches of the same trée to spread sixty paces and it hath leaues so brode that the sunne beames can not by any meanes enter betwene and therfore the fruit of this trée can not dye but the shadow of the same is very delectable There
A Summarie of the Antiquities and wonders of the worlde abstracted out of the sixtene first bookes of the excellente Historiographer Plinie vvherein may be seene the wonderfull workes of God in his creatures translated oute of French into Englishe by I. A. ¶ Imprinted at London by Henry Denham for Thomas Hacket and are to be solde at his shop in Lumbert streate The Translator to the Reader FOr asmuch gentle Reader as the works of God are maruelous not onelye in vs his creatures whom he hath fashioned and formed like to his similitude but also in others as beastes foules fishes trées plantes such like whose miraculous works although vnto vs some things séeme vncredible yet if we did consider y e omnipotencie of God vnto whom nothing is vnpossible doubtlesse we should not runne into so many daungers of sinne as we daily do And therfore I thought good somwhat to profite my countrey with that small talent that God hath lent me in translating out of French into our Englishe tongue parte of the Secretes of that notable Historiographer Plinie abstracted out of the sixtene first bookes of his natural history wherin is contained wonderfull straunge things vnto vs of the diuersitie of couÌ„treyes the commodities thereof wyth the most monstrous and vggly shape of men inhabiting the said countreys which though it some vnto vs as fables lyes yet as I sayd before nothing is impossible vnto god For as his hande hath made all things yea and straunge things which vnto vs is wel knowen so can he also make forraine thinges which vnto vs are vnknoweÌ„ But least it shoulde seeme to the Reader that I shoulde affirme that whiche I doe not knowe therefore I referre it vnto the learned reader to this end that he may iudge the truth And whereas Plinie commendeth the notable wit pollicie strength and memorie of dyuers Romaines so might I in like case of many of our owne countrey whose notable pollicie tried strength sharpenesse of witte and perfect memorie vnto vs is well knowen to be equal with those Romaines of whom Plinie doth recite But I omitte that for prolixitie folowing mine aucthour neyther adding nor diminishing As touching the rest conteyned in this booke whereof we haue heard somewhat séene by experience I doubt not but the Readers will verefâ—e the same And therefore I refer al things vnto the gentle Reader whome I desire to iudge indiffereÌ„tly Fare well To my Lorde the right reuerende Cardinall of Meuldoâ— Bishop of Orleauns and Mayster of the Kings Oratorie Blaysse of Changy his most humble Seruaunt wysheth health COnsidering with my selfe the incomparable benefyte of good spirits most souerain prelate thorowe whose most worthy diligeÌ„ce meanes a moste aboundaunt and plentifull fruite is â—owen thorowe the vniuersal worlde not onely by the meanes of the Greeke and latine Rethoricke but also by y e celelebration of our french tongue the which dayly more and more most aboundantlye flourisheth I could not by any meanes restrayne the heate of of my good wil but that in this present worke being a traduction of Plinie thy most Illustrious name shoulde be spoken of to the ende that with more diligence it might be brought to light and presented before the eyes of those cleare beholders that in good erudition learning haue most sound and perfecte knowledge among the which foreseeing that thy nature is inclined to support and maintain those that are the louers of Muses I haue therfore boldened my selfe to dedicate or direct vnto thee this newe traduction it is a little labour of my father which after his deceasse among other of hys workes is falleÌ„ into my hands It is a summe of the secretes of Plinie abstracted out of the sixtene first bokes of his naturall historie so that the matter is so requisite and necessary to man that I thinke the publishing thereof to be very delectable to the Readers And bicause I would not defraud the author of this same so profitable a traduction I am constrayned to cause it to be opened vnder the title of a most mightie and soueraigne prelat to put it forwarde For I thought it not good to preferre any one to thy magnificence which hath such an ardente zeale towardes those that battayle or warre vnder the standarde of Pallas Receyue therefore my good Lorde this my fathers worke and accepting it in good parte excuse thys mine enterpryse esteeming that of a good will and due obedience this presente worke most worthy vnto thy noble priesthod is derected The Secretes of the sixtene first bookes of Plinie natural Historian PLinie the naturall Historiographer was borne vnder the Emperor Tyberian and dyed vnder Titus the Emperour that destroyed Ierusalem after the death and passion of oure Lorde Iesus Christ in which tyme he did attribute his workes In the first booke which is briefe he maketh his preambles In the seconde he treateth of the worlde and of other matters He describeth that the worlde is alone and rounde naturally vnmoucable althoughe that there are certayne places moueable and that maye moue by the concauites of the earth being full of wynde There are foure Elementes the earth the water and the fyre aboue the ayre néere to the first firmament Which is fyre naturall and therefore there néedeth no woode to continue the same Under the earth are the planets which are called strayers and yet they moue lesse than the others but it is of the mutation of their influences and of the firmament among the which is the Sunne rector and guider of the other planets principall gouernour of nature The other stars are not atributed as some doe thinke as the greatest and clearest to the rich and the least to the pore and the obscure and darke Starâ—es to those that of nature are infected For we haue no suche societie with the stars that they shoulde die with vs and therefore they are equally deuyded seruing to ech one The mone hath hir planet comming before hir as the Sunne hath the day starre she doth encrease and diminish and sometimes is at the full and sometymes she hath hornes euen as the Sunne doth giue and take awaye hir clearenesse The earth is betwene them both the Mone is in the first heauen the Sunne in the fourth and when the one is highe the other is lowe and the other stars are more higher in the skie and therefore they seme lesse than the Mone The obscuritie and darâ—knesse of the Mone commeth by the humours of the earth that is drawne or sâ—uked vp from the earth By y e geometrie of this world y e Stade which is sorty roddes doth containe 125. paces the which are 525. fote Sometimes there hath bene séene in the appearance thre Sunnes and thre Moones In the ayre it rayneth sometimes naturally stones sucke vp by the vapours of y e earth sometymes Frogs and sometime bloud in diuers figures The Heliotropium in his floure doth turne euery day and follow the sunne The Ant
their yong ones as sone as the femall findeth them lost she smelleth their way and ruÌ„neth after them when shée is spyed of those that haue hir yong ones they lette one of them fall the which she taketh vp and caryeth it to hir repayre in the meane tyme they escape with the rest and bring them to their shippes Camels they are dryuen to pasture toward the East as we doe shéepe Wilde Dogs haue handes féete almost lyke men In the north parte there are maruellous swift beastes which haue the vpper lippe so long that when they will feede they go backward The Woulfe before he be séene will easely draw froÌ„ a man his breath they couple not with the females but. xij dayes in the yeare There are wilde wolues which in eating of their pray if they turne once about forget their pray and goe againe to séeke another Among the Serpents the Bassalicke doth infecte and kill people with his looke There are innumerable kindes of others whereof some haue double heades at both endes for to cast venime For the byting of an Aspis there is no remedy but to cutte that that he hath touched The Cocodrils are ingendred in Nylle a Ryuer of Egipt which haue foure féete the skinne very harde and they haue no mouing but the vpper lippe and they make as many egges as Géese and they haue sharpe clawes for their defence in the day they remaine on the earth and the night in the waters wheÌ„ they open their throte in sléeping there are little birdes called Trochilos that will picke clense their teeth in the which thei take great delight The Stork doth shew the maner how to take glisters for by hir nature shée filleth hir necke with water and behind with hir becke maketh infusion into hir belly for to clense hir And manye other beastes naturallye knowe the hearbes that for them are most proper The Swallow knoweth howe to finde an hearbe called Chelidonia which serueth for hir yoÌ„g ones when their eyes are endomaged Of little beastes we finde Cities destroyed and people driuen away In Spaine with Conies In Thessaly w t Moles In Fraunce with Frogs In Affricke with Locustes In the Ile of Ciclados with Rattes In Italy with Ser pents In Ethiopia with Scorpions Hyaena is sayd to be a beast of doubte nature Male and Female they will hearken at the Cottes of the sheepeheards and learne the proper name that a man is called by and calling him when the man is come forth they will strayght way kill him and they will call dogs They are founde in Affrica which is the cause of so many wylde Asses that they ingender the Males do correcte the yong ones by byting they wyll â—utte the trées along the Ryuers as wyth a knife they haue tayles like to fishes Déere that are oppressed with Dogges if they can finde no water for their refuge then they retyre to man the females beare eight wéekes and often tymes two and for to bring them forth they séeke secrece places not nere the hye wayes accustomed by men The Hinde teacheth hir yong ones to runne to feare and to leape the Males that haue left y e Females haue their mussell blacke when they knowe them selues heauye they séeke secret places they will stande still to heare the cry of the Dogs they runne with the winde to take away the smel of y e trase they reioyce to heare whistling and to heare a noyse of singing Moreouer the Harte is simple and all things are to him maruellous if that he see a man with a bowe or a crosseâ—owe he looketh more on them than on the man the Males haue hornes and in the spring time they cast their hornes that day that they léese theyr hornes they hyde them selues as all astonyed and sorowfull as they that haue lost their armours It is sayde that the right horne can not be found for that they hyde them in the ground At the burning of the hornes the serpents flye away their hornes growe till they be thrée score yeares olde and the sayde tyme passed there commeth vp others like and then they neuer fal after that there is no knoweledge of their age but their age is knowen by their téeth they being without hornes féede in the night and when their hornes beginne to come they wyll but te and runne against the trées they liue a hundreth yeares they neuer haue the Feuer or Ague and therfore some dames alwayes delight to break their fast with Uenson by y e v hich meanes they haue lyued a huÌ„dreth yeres without hauing the Ague Camelion lyueth not but by the ayre and chaungeth his colour according to the thing he toucheth sauing whyte and redde they ingeÌ„der in Affrica and in India The Beares doe ioyne with the Females in the beginning of Winter not as other foure footed beastes doe for the Male the Female lye downe embracing and after that they doe retyre in sundry caues and the Female doth bring forth hir yong ones within thirtie dayes and moste commonlye bringeth fiue which haue the skinne white deformed without haire and eyes and there appeareth but their clawes in licking of them they are figured There is nothing so little séene of man as to sée the Beare bring forth hir yong shée hydeth hir foure monthes and the Male fortie dayes they couch or lye vpon soft leaues and the firste fouretene dayes they sléepe so soundlye that you shall scarce waken them with strokes then they fatten much and their fatte or grease is coÌ„uenable to many medicines also to kepe haire from sheading They being wakened for the most part stand vp liue with the licking of their fore feete they warme their yong agaynste their breasts they haue little bloude about the heart and lesse in the bodye they haue little eyes and as feble or weake heades as the Lyon hath stroÌ„g therfore they defend their heades with their fore féete when they fall and leape from the Rocks or when they are bayted with dogges The Dogs among all other beastes that vnto vs are common are most faythfull We haue true histories of men that haue bene defended from théeues by their Dogges others haue fought to reuenge their maysters death and constrayned the murtherer to coÌ„fesse the déede Two hundreth Dogs did rescue by force the king Garamantus being taken by the handes of his enimies Many people haue assembled dogges together for the warre We reade of Dogges that haue caste them selues into the fire when in times past their Maisters body haue bene burned We reade also of a Dog of Nicomedes the king of Bythinia to haue almost torne the Queene in pieces for that she played familiarly with the king the Dog thinking it had bene for harme A Senatour of Rome was defended by his Dogge on a night retourning to hys house from the handes of those that would haue put him to death At Rome a prisoners Dogge woulde neuer departe from the Prison