preserve dead bodies from corruption and there are some Balsoms which do not preserve dead bodies but preserve living bodies from corruption that they shall not be troubled with Ulcers or Aposthems c. Now where is there a Physician who hath such a Remedie in readiness which can so preserve us from putrifaction that no part of our living body shall putrifie that can do as this herb of which I now speak Now I will teach you a way of Compounding which is thus Add to the first Balsome described before Treakle and the best Mithridate with some other Diaphoreticks then having put them into a glass close stopped set the glass in warm dung there to digest some time viz. a month and then use it Moreover know this that you may distill a water from this Herb and the flowers of it in Balneo Mariae which distilled water can do the same things as the St. Johns wort it self But this water is not so powerfull and it is to be used only for such wounds which are not very dangerous or difficult It may be both taken inwardly and applyed outwardly But the former Balsoms of the S. Johns wort can cure any broken bones or any bruise or clotted blood in the body Thus I have thought good to declare this my experience of St. Johns wort that vain Receipts may be rejected and true Remedies may be used But indeed such is the madnesse of Bath keepers Surgeons c. that they would rather destroy a whole Army of men then to leave their old mad Remedies TREATISE V. Of the Vertues of the Load-stone CHAP. I. The Vertues of the Load-stone and how it should be used WEe see in the Load-stone an attractive power wherby in a wonderfull manner beyond humane understanding it draws to it self Iron and Steel and other things This operation of the Load-stone may be plainly seen and it cannot be unknown to any Physician Why then doth not the Physician consider this Whether or no there may not be other uses of the Load-stone But Physicians are so greedy of gain that they neglect all such experiences which they cannot well excuse seeing they have such an excellent subject as this in their hands and they cleerly see the operation of it with their eyes and yet should be so dull and slow in knowing it and in finding out the Vertues of it And if I should collect out of antient Writers all that they have said of the vertues of the Loadstone yet I should do no great matter for he who writes of the Loadstone must shew what things should be added to the Loadstone and what things can correct it so that I shall go beyond all those Physicians in this These Doctors and Apothecaries do often even to my loathing repeat to me that I reject the Authority of antient Writers But why should I follow those who have no experience for you see that what they write of the Load-stone it is nothing Now see what I write and weigh my writings with their writings in even scales If I had not been a guide to my self in getting experience I should have continued blind and without any knowledg in Physick for all that I can have out of these antient Writers And therefore I am not to be blamed if I leave them seeing I seek after greater secrets then they did Experience hath taught me this that I should follow it and not them I intreat the Reader to bear with this discourse which I confesse is not pertinent to the subject in hand viz. concerning the Load-stone But I have thought good to premise this admonition The antient Writers do tel us that the Loadstone draws iron to it c. This is indeed true and it needs no Writer when every fool knows it Now I ask if it be enough to write such things as every clown seeth or if it be not better to add that which the clown seeth not Indeed I think it is lawfull and fitting that I do so for a sleepy sluggish foot is not to tread in this path That is a shamefull Philosophie that hath nothing in it but what is known already by every clown But I speak by experience the Mistresse of true knowledg and according to that knowledg which I have by experience I affirm not onely that the Loadstone is a stone in which there is an attractive power to draw to it iron and steel for this is manifest to every one but I add That In the Loadstone there is an attractive power whereby it can draw to it any material disease in the body of man The old humorists have fained many things concerning the four humours whereby they have brought many base errours into Physick But I say that we may know diseases more readily by the planets then by humours Neverthelesse they still sing the same song concerning humours Experience teacheth that the Load-stone drawes all materiall diseases out of their own places to it with all the excrements which are joyned to those diseases Now it must be explained what those materiall diseases are Those diseases I say are material diseases which the Loadstone draws to it as it draws iron or steel and of this kind are these diseases following viz. the fluxes of women as Whites or extraordinary flowing down of the monthly Courses c. all fluxes of the belly and every other disease which runs out of its center into a circle may be brought back again into its center viz. by the the Loadstone And all the severall streams of Fluxes which come from the same root or fountain may be brought back again to their fountain by the Loadstone Now these are the vertues which I say are in the Loadstone not regarding the tales of other Writers whether they be ancient or modern But to keep close to the matter in hand I will shew you now where the Loadstone should be laid and my counsel to you is this that you lay the Load-stone upon the center or root of the dâ—sease where the disease hath had its first being As for example if the overflowing of the monthly courses or the whites trouble a woman then the Loadstone should be laid upon the root of the disease where the strength of the disease lurks and whence the disease had its beginning and then the disease shall cease If any flux of the belly trouble you then lay the Loadstone upon the place where the root of this flux lurketh so it shall be stop'd and so likewise in other diseases which from their root have spread themselves through the whole body Now if the Loadstone be laid upon their root then by its vertue the disease shall be brought back to its root again and shall stay there By the same vertue of the Loadstone all excrements and superfluities in the body are restrained and kept within their own place whence they may easily be driven out by a fit medicine through their natural passages being thereto furthered by a good digestion but
doubtless his cures and Physical Experiments which he hath left to us in his Writings the best part of which are in the following Treatises are very good as the experiences of many since his death who have tryed them do testifie to us viz Crollius Baptista Vanhelmont Dorneus and many other famous Physicians who have followed his way altogether yea those that profess that they will not follow his way do nevertheless use most of his Medicines in their Practise as their Writings and Apothecaries can witness it And Paracelsus in his life time gave proof thereof for he did such cures which never any Physician hath done the like He commonly cured those Diseases which all other Doctors accounted incurable the truth of which is well known in all Germany where he practiced for he was Physician to the most part of the Peers and Princes of Germany and many other Nations during his life as all who knew any thing of Paracelsus yea even his enemies do acknowledge it so that he cannot be defrauded of this praise See Sennertus his Book De Consensu dissensu Peripateticorum Chymicorum and therefore I do admire that any should put thâ—s scandal upon Paracelsus to say that he was a Mountebank since all even his enemies do confess that he did such great and strange Cures And certainly Basil which is one of the most famous Universities of the World would never have chosen him to be their Publique Professor of Physick if he had been a Mountebank or a weak man He was chosen to be their Professor when he was but thirty years of age and there taught Physick publickly many years and many came thither to hear his Physick Lectures from all parts of Germany from Spain Italy France Hungaria Poland Denmark c. See Sennertus in the aforesaid Book We also see many learned men approve of his way in the practice of Physick and have followed it whereby it appears that this man was no Mountebank as some do enviously and falsly scandalize him Reader I thought it fitting to bint these things to thee to prevent or remove thy prejudicial thoughts of Paracelsus which may be bred by those false scandals which are too common in the mouthes of those who know not the truth of these things lest by thy prejudicial thoughts of him thou be deprived of the benefit of those things which thou mayest meet with for thy good in these ensuing Treatises The Treatises of the Dispensatory I have given you in Paracelsus own words I have onely for thy benefit divided the Treatises into Chapters and to the Chapters I have added the Contents of them But his Chirurgery I have abreviated giving you onely the cures with the marks of those Ulcers and Aposthumes for which he hath appointed the Cures Very few of the remedies in the following Treatises are Chymical but they are such as any may themselves easily make them Paracelsus Chymical Medicines you shall have also shortly in English altogether with their Preparations fully and clearly explained W. D. The Table and Contents of this BOOK TREATISE I. OF the Medicinal Vertues and Preparations of Hellebore Chap. 1. There are two kindes of Hellebore viz. Younger and Elder the younger is for young people and the elder for old people pag. 1 Chap. 2. Hellebore a singular Medicine for prolonging life How it was used by the ancient Physicians pag. 6 Chap. 3. The cure of the Falling-sickness with black Hellebore and the several ways of preparing it pag. 10 Chap. 4. The cure of the Gout with black Hellebore pag. 17 Chap. 5. The cure of the Palsie and Hydropsie and other diseases with black Hellebore pag. 21 Treatise II. Of the strange vertues of Arsmart Chap. 1. How the Arsmart should be used for any Wound or Ulcer pag. 26 Chap. 2. What other diseases are cured by Arsmart viz Inflammations Tooth-ach c. pag. 32 Treatise III. Of the vertues and preparations of CORALS Chap. 1. What kinde of Coral is best The vertue of it against Spirits Melancholy vain Phansies c. pag. 39 Chap. 2. The vertues of Coral more particularly with their proofs shewing these operations of Coral to be true and natural pag. 44 Chap 3. The marks of the best Coral How it should be prepared and exalted the vertues of its Essence pag. 49 Treatise IV. Of the vertues and preparation of St. Johns-wort Chap. 1. The vertues of St. Johns-wort for phantastick Spirits worms and wounds pag. 54 Chap. 2. When the St. Johns-wort must be pulled out of the ground and how it must be used against Phantastick Spirits pag. 59 Chap. 3. How the St. Johns-wort should be prepared for wounds bruises Fractures of the bones and Ulcers and how it should be used when it is prepared pag. 62 Treatise V. Of the vertues of the Load-stone Chap. 1. The vertues of the Load-stone and how it should be used pag. 69 Chap. 2. In this chapter you have the vertues of the Load-stone more particularly for several diseases pag. 76 Treatise VI. Of the Preparations and Medicinal Vertues of Turpentine of Ebbony and of Mummy Chap. 1. The difference of the wilde and the planted Larch-tree and that the natural place of the Larch-tree maketh much for the good of the Turpentine pag. 83 Chap. 2. That the right Turpentine is equal to the Indian Balsom in its preserving Vertue and how it hath this vertue by the influence of the Stars and by the Elements is fully explained pag. 87 Chap. 3. The vertues of Turpentine pag. 94 Chap. 4. The preparations of Turpentine pag. 98 Of Ebbony Wood. Chap. 1. The preparations and vertues of Ebbony-wood pag. 104 Chap 2. The vertues of Mummy pag. 108 Treatise VII Of the secrets and wonderful Medicinal vertues of Vermin Chap. 1. The Medicinal vertues of Serpents p. 111 Chap. 2. The Medicinal vertues of Serpents pag. 114 Chap. 3. The medicinal vert es of Serpents pag. 116 Chap. 4. Preservatives to keep us from the harm of Serpents Adders and Snakes pag. 118 Chap. 5. The medicinal vertues of the Toad and Spider pag. 121 Chap. 6. Paracelsus compared with other Physicicians pag. 123 Ch. 7. The Medicinal vertues of Earth-worms pag. 126 Chap. 8 The Medicinal vertues of the Earth-worm and of the Crab-fish Cancer pag. 128 Chap. 9. The vertues of the Crab-fish Cancer pag. 131 Chap. 10. The cure of those marks in the body which the patient hath from the mothers womb pag. 135 Treatise VIII Concerning common Salt and Brimstone their medicinal Vertues and Preparations Chap. 1. pag. 139 Treatise IX Of the Medicinal and Chymical Vertues and Preparations of Coperas Chap. 1. The kindes of Coperas and the marks of the goodness of Coperas pag. 161 Chap. 2. The Medicinal vertues of Coperas unprepared and of Coperas calcined pag. 166 Chap. 3. Of the true Spirit and true oyl of Coperas how they are made and what are their vertues pag. 171 Chap. 4. Of the red oyl of Coperas commonly called The
this stopping of a flux doth not take away the disease wholly the only advantage of it is this that excrements and superfluities are more perfectly digested in the place of their root and more ripened for evacuation Thus if you use the Load-stone for the Collick you shall prevent the Cramp which is oft-times caused by the Collick For that matter which is the cause of the disease is confined to the place of its root whence it is evacuated and where it is fully ripened according to Natures method by which seasonable maturation and evacuation both the Collick and the Cramp are carried away with it To give you much in few words which you shall esteem of as a most precious Treasure it is this Shut up the Disease within its center or root that it go not out thence afterward digest it and ripen it there Now how you may shut up the disease within its root you have heard before that it is done by the Load-stone but it is to be ripened by other Medicines Thus the disease whether it be good or bad is cured according to the course of Nature It is a shame for Physicians to endeavour to drive out dâ—seases as fluxes c. before they be fully ripened Thereby they shew their ignorance that they know not how to stay diseases in their own places and there to ripen them and thence to expell them when they are ripe Indeed such is the ignorance of the most part of Physicians that they can neither do the one nor the other all their skil is to cure in one part and to kill in another In the same manner the Hydropsie may be stayd within its Center there to be digested and thence expell'd Indeed there are severall wayes of curing the Hydropsie one is by the Load-stone another is according to the nature of the Hydropsie c. So that it holds true that there may be severall medicines for one disease Let us then observe what Nature can do and how it doth it and that not only in inward diseases but also in outward diseases which belong to the Surgeon as the Rupture and the falling down of the fundament So by the same old running sores are brought back to their root and afterward may be purged out by the right passages being ripe and not crude and unprepared Then a Physicians main work is this to bring a disease into its center and afterwards to use those Medicines which can do that which ought to be done that is to ripen the disease and then to expell it CHAP. II. In this Chapter you have the vertues of the Load-stone more particularly for several diseases NOw that you may rightly understand the use of the Loadstone you must know that in the Loadstone there is a belly and a back by the one it drawes things to it by the other it drives things from it And first to speak of the Fluxes of women how they are to be stopped and stayed in their center The way is thus The back of the Load-stone must be placed towards the end of the line the belly of it towards the beginning of the line both parts being so placed that their concavities may be right over against one another And this is to be done not onely for the overflowing of monthly Courses and for the Whites but also for all kindes of Fluxes of the belly however they come Now the Flux being thus shut up in its center or root whence it floweth then you must use medicines which will open the Flux In case of a weak stomack which cannot digest any thing but sends down the meat indigested and crude if you can but bring the stomack to keep the meat till it come to a right digestion then there will follow a naturall evacuation Here observe that that which is naturall cannot be restrained but must have its course only that which is unnaturall may be stop'd and kept in its place till it becometh naturall And as it hath been said of the belly so may we do in the diseases of the Mother and so all may be brought to a perfection of their natural digestion and then to the naturall course of evacuation Mark this addition for the stomack guts and mother To bring them to their right digestion you must use fit remedies which are not to be mentioned here I have done it elsewhere abundantly So likewise for fits of the Mother the Mother must be pull'd downward from that place to which it moves by the belly of the Loadstone which must be downwards and the back of the Loadstone must be laid upwards and this will make the Mother to stay in the place of its root that it shalnot move upwards Afterwards we must use other medicines proper to the Mother as the Pearl of Corals and Mica nigra so the fits do cease and the cure is perfected And so for the Falling-sicknesse in all the kinds of it you must consider whence it ariseth where it hath its first movings as it alwaies moves upward to the top of the head therefore you must carry the Load-stone about you in this manner viz. with the belly of it downwards and the back of it upwards and that not onely in one place but also for the four quarters of the body there must be a Loadstone laid in every quarter So the disease shall be drawn from the head to its center But you must use Triagummatum outwardly to comfort and strengthen the heart and you must take inwardly Esse essentisicatum and other Cordials After the same manner the Cramp is cured for when you have returned it to its root then you must annoint the part diseased with the oyl of Salt The Ancient Physicians with their companions have vainly spoken much concerning the way of turning these defluxions which fall down into the eyes ears mouth nose and other externall parts of the body making way to themselves by Fistulaes Ulcers c. but all their counsels and instructions in that businesse are nothing worth for they could never find out the true ground of this mystery of returning diseases to their root where they have their beginning and so they trusted the whole businesse of Curing Diseases to their Clysters and Purgations But this Load-stone is the chiefest of all Medicines for Turning of defluxions returning them to their fountains If first the back of the Loadstone and then the belly of it to be laid towards the root of the disease accordingly as the place will permit where the Loadstone is to be applyed then every defluxion wheresoever it is in any passage to get out of the body shall return back again to its first fountain or root and when it is in its fountain then it is to be rectified digested and ripened there and after it is so ripened to be driven out thence You erroneous Physicians consider what you do when you would turn defluxions yet crude and not ripened whereas no defluxion can be turned to any
vinegar in which Coperas is dissolved let it dry and sprinkle it again and thus doe four or five times when it is thus prepared it will search to the bottome of the sore But the best way of preparing this calcined Coperas is thus distill the water off from the Coperas the grounds remaining is calcined Coperas put the water distilled to the said grounds distill it again do thus so often till no water will come from the grounds If you use this for any sore you will find it to be very subtil and piercing In curing sores you must consider well the degrees of sores and that which will not yeild to the calcined Coperas must bee cured by the oyle or water of Coperas So that if wee can do no good by the calcined Coperas wee must not therefore despair but we must prepare it further by distillation and in so doing wee may bring this medicine to that height that it can cure all kinds of sores as Canker wolf fistuls c. CHAP. III. Of the true Spirit and true oyle of Coperas how they are made and what are their Vertues ALchimy hath discovered many excellent secrets to physicians whereby great cures have been done and therefore physicians formerly when they entred upon the study of medicine they also studied Alchimy because it is the mother of many worthy physical secrets These two Arts viz. Medicine and Alchimy as companions were studied together till those talkative cheaters the humorists poisoned Medicine and made that virgin to be a strumpet and so must remain so long as they prevail for when ignorant men take upon them the profession of an art which they know not that Art certainly doth suffer violence and must be wronged Thus Alchymy hath been wronged in many things especially in Coperas how many deceitful oyls and spirits of Coperas have we in stead of that true oyl and true spirit of Coperas which the ancient physicians used they had the true spirit of Coperas and they exalted it to the highest degree whereby they perfectly cured any falling sicknesse in men women or children but others since who were unskilfull in Alchymy thinking to take a better way have endeavoured to draw out the spirit and to exalt the vertues of the Coperas otherwise and so leaving the first secret way of the Ancients which they lost they laboured to draw the oyle out of the calcined Coperas but in vain for what they draw out of it is of no use for that which cureth the falling sickness must have a subtle piercing spirit The true spirit or true oyl of Coperas hath such a piercing searching nature that it goeth through the whole body and nothing can escape it and when it meets with the disease it resists it and overcomes it in its own place now a physician cannot certainly know the seat and center of the disease and therefore he hath need to have such remedies as will search through the whole body and find out the disease and this is the reason why Humorist-doctors can never cure this disease and so they shame their profession because they have not the right remedies which can do it I can certifie this that the oyl which the common Alchymists draw out of the calcined Coperas which the Apothecaries call the spirit of Vitrial it hath nothing of a subtle or piercing nature in it it is a meer earthly dead thing which hath no profitable operation It is much to be lamented that through unskilfulness the true way should be suppressed and the false should be thus received in its stead I am perswaded that the divel doth this for this end that the sect of the Humorist-Doctors may be prevalent and that the diseased may not re-enjoy their health But to return to my purpose I will now shew you how you may get the true oyl and the true spirit of Coperas and how the Ancients found out the spirit first they distilled a water from the Coperas this water they distilled alone circulated it till it was fully corrected as their way teacheth and this water they used for many diseases both inward diseases as falling sicknesse c. and outward diseases and thereby they performed wonderful cures then they took this water so corrected and they powred it upon the grounds which remained in the first distillation and they distilled it again from the grounds thus they did eight or ten times with a strong fire whereby the wet spirits were united to the dry spirits so firmly that by continuall distilling the dry spirits at last came out with the wet spirits then they took these two spirits thus firmly united and put them in a glasse vessel where they exalted them to the highest degree these two spirits together thus exalted the Ancients found them to have greater operation then the foresaid water alone and with this one medicine they could do more then the Humorist-Doctors can do with all the medicines they have Artists do adde to this medicine sublimed wine to make it more piercing Now I will shew you my way which I use and commend it to all physicians especially for the falling-sickness which is cured only by this spirit of Coperas my way is thus I put so much spirit of wine to the Coperas as the Coperas will drink in then I distil a water from the Coperas and so I proceed in the same manner as is said before when the medicine is perfected I adde to it these things following viz. to one ounce of the spirit of Coperas I adde two ounces of the corrected spirit of Tartar and two drams of the warer of Treakle camphorated The patient who is troubled with the falling-sickness should take this medicine before his fit come upon him he may take it twice or thrice a day so much of it as the physician shall appoint Nature cannot afford a better medicine then this for the falling sickness My way of preparing this medicine is the same which was used by the Ancients I only addâ— the spirit of wine before I distill it and I adde to the medicine when it is perfected these things which I have named This precious spirit of Coperas is not only good for the falling-sicknesse but also for all diseases of the like nature as sounding extasie c. It is also good for all obstructions and inward imposthumes for fits of the mother and falling down of the mother Physicians might find out many other excellent vertues in this spirit of Coperas if they were diligent in searching them and if they would shew themselvs good and faithful physicians and careful of the health of their patients cursed be all those physicians who regard only their own gain and not the health of their patients especially those patients who are afflicted with that sad disease the falling-sickness I hope all good people will approve of what I have done here and truly I have described the way of preparing this spirit