In such cases, compound medicines may be approved, and Arnoldus in his 18. Aphorisme, doth allow of it. If Simples cannot, necessity compels us to use compounds; so for receits and magistrals, dies diem docet, one day teacheth another, and they are as so many words or phrases, Quæ nunc sunt in honore vocabula si volet usus. Ebbe and flow with the season, and as wits vary, so they may be infinitely varied.

Quisque suum placitum quo capiatur habet,

Every man as he likes, so many men so many minds; and yet all tending to good purpose, though not the same way. As arts and sciences, so Physick is still perfected amongst the rest; Horæ musarum nutrices, and experience teacheth us every day many things which our predecessors knew not of. Nature is not effœte, as he saith, or so lavish, to bestow all her gifts upon an age, but hath reserved some for posterity, to shew her power, that she is still the same, and not old or consumed.

Birds and beasts can cure themselves by nature, naturæ usu ea plerumque cognoscunt, quæ homines vix longo labore & doctrinâ assequuntur, but men must use much labour and industry to find it out: But I digresse.

Compound medicines, are inwardly taken, or outwardly applyed. Inwardly taken, be either liquid or solid: liquid, are fluid or consisting. Fluid, as Wines and Syrrups. The wines ordinarily used to this disease, are Wormewood-wine, Tamarisk, and Buglossatum, wine made of Borage and bugloss. The composition of which, is specified in Arnoldus Villanovanus, lib. de vinis of Borage, Bawm, Bugloss, Cinamon, &c. and highly commended for its vertues,

it drives away Leprosy, Scabs, cleers the blood, recreates the spirits, exhilarates the mind, purgeth the brain of those anxious black melancholy fumes, and cleanseth the whole body of that black humour by urine. To which I adde, saith Villanovanus, that it will bring mad men, and such raging Bedlams as are tied in chains, to the use of their reason again.

My conscience bears me witness, that I do not lye, I saw a grave matron helped by this means; she was so cholerick, and so furious sometimes, that she was almost mad, and beside her self, she said and did she knew not what, scolded, beat her maids, and was now ready to be bound till she drank of this Borage wine, and by this excellent remedy, was cured, which a poor forrainer, a silly beggar taught her by chance, that came to crave an alms from door to door.

The juyce of Borage, if it be clarified, and drunk in wine, will do as much, the roots sliced and steeped, &c. saith Ant. Mizaldus art. med. who cites this story verbatim out of Villanovanus, and so doth Magninus a Physitian of Millan, in his regiment of health.

Such another excellent compound water I find in Rubeus de distill. sect. 3. which he highly magnifies out of Savanarola, for such as are solitary, dull, heavy or sad without a cause, or be troubled with trembling of heart. Other excellent compound waters for melancholy, he cites in the same place; If their melancholy be not inflamed, or their temperature over hot. Evonimus hath a pretious Aqua vitæ to this purpose, for such as are cold.

But he and most commend Aurum potabile, and every writer prescribes clarified whey, with Borage, Bugloss, Endive, Succory, &c. of Goats milk especially, some indefinitely at all times, some thirty dayes together in the spring, every morning fasting, a good draught. Syrupes are very good, and often used to digest this humour in the heart, spleen, liver, &c. As Syrupe of Borage, (there is a famous Syrupe of Borage highly commended by Laurentius to this purpose in his Tract of melancholy) de pomis of King Sabor now obsolete; of Thyme and Epithyme, Hops, Scolopendria, Fumitory, Maidenhair, Bizantine, &c.

These are most used for preparatives to other Physick, mixt with distilled waters of like nature, or in Julips otherwise. Consisting, are conserves or confections; conserves of Borage, Bugloss, Bawm, Fumitory, Succory, Maidenhair, Violets, Roses, Wormwood, &c. Confections, Treacle, Mithridate, Eclegms, or Linctures, &c.

Solid, as Aromatical confections; hot, Diambra, Diamargaritum calidum, Dianthus, Diamoschum dulce, Electuarium de gemmis, lætificans Galeni & Rhasis, Diagalinga, Diacimynum, Dianisum, Diatrion piperion, Diazinziber, Diacapers, Diacinnamonum: Cold, as Diamargaritum frigidum, Diacorolli, Diarrhodon Abbatis, Diacodion, &c. as every Pharmacopœa will shew you, with their tables or losings that are made out of them; with Condites and the like.

Outwardly used as occasion serves, as amulets, oyls hot and cold, as of Camomile, Stæchado’s, Violets, Roses, Almonds, Poppy, Nymphea, Mandrake, &c. to be used after bathing, or to procure sleep. Oyntments composed of the said species, oyls and wax, &c. as Alablastritum Populeum, some hot, some cold, to moysten, procure sleep, and correct other accidents.

Liniments are made of the same matter to the like purpose: Emplaisters of herbs, flowers, roots, &c. with oyls, and other liquors mixt and boiled together. Cataplasms, salves, or pultises made of green herbs, pounded, or sod in water till they be soft, which are applied to the Hypocondries, and other parts when the body is empty;

Cerotes, are applyed to several parts, and Frontals, to take away pain, grief, heat, procure sleep. Fomentations or spunges, wet in some decoctions, &c. Epithemata, or those moist medicines, laid on linnen, to bath and cool several parts misaffected. Sacculi, or little bags of herbs, flowers, seeds, roots, and the like applied to the head, heart, stomack, &c. odoraments, balls, perfumes, posies to smell to, all which have their several uses in melancholy, as shall be shewed, when I treate of the cure of the distinct Species by themselves.