Here is a newe Boke, called the defence of age / and recouery of youth / translated out of the famous Clarke and ryght experte medycyne Arnold de Noua Villa / very profytable for all men to knowe.

THe cōseruaciō of youth and withstandyng of age, consysteth in the mayntenynge of the powres, the spyrites, & the naturall heate of the body in theyr state and temperancy: & in the cōfortyng and repayrynge of theym beynge defertyue. For so longe as the powres, the spyrytes and the naturall heate of mannes body are not debylitate nor wekened, so longe (I saye) neyther shall y^e skynne wrynkle, for the debylyte of y^e natural heate de••lynynge to coldenes and drynes throughe the which the fode & norisshement of the body is corrupted & hyndered: is cause of rorrugacyon or wrynklyng of y^e skynne. For the meate beynge fyrste dygested in the stomacke, and then shortly after sent in to euery parte of the body, is dygested agayne of y^e naturall heate of the same parte, where it is receyued: than yf that this naturall heate be by any occasyon corrupted or destroyed: the foode also is sent to the same place, shall be lykewyse

corrupted, & then so ensueth corrugacyō of y^e skynne, & hore heares, as ye maye se in y^e auncyent & aged men, when they be colde & drye, for horenes cōmeth of y^e defecte of naturall heate, the which defendeth the body frō age, age properly doth make mā colde & drye, & therfore they be of ly••el blode, and the powres & natural heate in them very weke, & vnable to cōcoctyng & dygestyng of meate, wherfore there increace great plēty of humidites and crude rawe humours, & therfore the thre sprytes & the thre digestions in age be decayde, & in thē rayneth y^e debilite of heate, & this foloweth with y^e course of tyme, y^e whiche course may be somwhat let & defēded by Phisicke, & by auoyding of suche accidentall causes as do induce age, as sorowe, study, heuynes, desperacion, ouer moch venery, labour, traueyl, or rest, & whē age by any of these causes is come, then to amputat or cut awaye the cause by thynges apropriat. And for the preseruacyō of the powres, is no better

thynge then a syrupe made of wyne and suger, myxte togyther. iii. partes of wyne, &. ii. partes of suger dronke with fayre water, or borage water. This syrupe is both meate and drynke, and in it be two thynges confycte togyther, whiche are moste frendly to nature, & when the powres be weke they nede such thynges as may cōforte them, both meates, drynkes, and other spyces, and moystynge medycynes, and this is a very secrete thynge. Corrugacyon and reuelynge of the skynne requyre suche thynges, as do clense & make playne & smoth skynne, w^t certayne oyles, waters, & oyntementes. Goodlynes and fresshenes of coloure, is by fedinge vpon such meates & drynkes, as do engender good & laudable blode, & are lyght of dygestyon, and by such thynges, as do clense y^e blode corrupted, and the other powres is, ouermoch euacuacyon, or to often lettynge of blode, or suche other lyke thynges. These thynges may be amended with thus, earynge of

chekyns, and chekyn broth, with due rest and slepe, and also with swete and odoryferous thynges, and suche other lyke.

Thynges engenderynge euyl and rotten flume, be fruytes, fysshe, all thynges made of mylke, & such other, of the whiche be engendred watery humours, not dygestyble in the membres, & then in the same membres it causeth horenesse, and wryncles. But amonge all other thyng{is} there is nothynge, the which so strongly doth cause a man to loke oldely, as feare and desperacion. For because in that passyon and effectyon, all the naturall hete of the body doth resort inwarde, and forsaketh the outwarde partes, and y^t most chefely, when the mānes complexyon is disposed to the same, and that is the cause that many beynge ••os••e, turmoyled, and vexed, with this worldly stormes so day••ly theyr heer waxe hore, or whyte.

Nowe thynges that do resyste or put away these causes, are chosē the ioyce of Pomegranate, & chefely golde, & the ioyce

of Borage, & of fumytorye, & specyally grene and puryfyed, and y^e vertue of the rote of Playntayne and suche other.

The rotten fleume is destroyed with the vse of Myrabolaues composed, and Aloe rosatum, and Agaryke, thynges to be had at the Apothecaries. And y^• wher with properly both melancolye & fleume be expelled out of the body, is Eleborus niger, called in Englysshe Beares foote, prepared by a certayne maner vnto few knowen. For in the rectifying of y^e maly cyousnesse of this herbe, standeth all the secrete of his operacyon, for by hym a man shal be altered from euyl cōplexion to good, and it restoreth youth agayne, but it is not conuenyent for delycate bodyes and noble complexyous, & therfore I wyl say lytel of hym. Beware ye neuer entermedle with this herbe, without the aduysement and coūceyll of some experte and well learned Physycyon.

Also ••••anthos composed with suger, the whiche properly doth consume the

fleume and melaneoly being in the heed, and it tarieth and letteth the hore heres coroborateth and strengneth the censes, and prolōgeth the lyfe, & chefely when a quātite of it is disolued in aqua vita wel and craftely made, & somtyme it is disolued in wyne, & lyeth ī it. ii. or. iii. dayes, & then strayned, & so vsed conueniently, accordyng to the coūceyll of a Physycyon.

Other thynges also there be, whiche quycken & maketh lusty y^e body, as Diacameron, Mirabolany, Chebuly composed, which by theyr property do consume and waste the flematycke super fluytyes of the stomacke & do comforte hym, and do clarify the blode and be of great force agaynst melancoly, and thuse of those do comforte youth, and causeth a man to waxe yonge agayne, & defendeth a man from hore heares, also the decoction of sene with Diaboraginatum, & the whey of gotes mylke and such other. And one of the chefe thyng{is}, wherby age is defended and youth prolōged, is once in a moneth

to haue a vomyte, to expel the fleumatyke humour, and once in a weke to receyue aclyster, and specyally that composed of the ioyce of Mercury, walwort elder, and bete w^t halfe an ounce of yeropegara, the whiche is a great secrete.

And also subiction made with yeropigra, or Cassia fistula, and the ioyce of fresshe Roses, preparate with sugre, is a goodly easer of nature, mynystred wysely, and it is a blessyd medycyne to make a▪ man soluble, and therwith also it comforteth the pryncypal membres in man, and altereth the euyll dysposiciō of man to good, it openeth opilatiōs or stoppynges. It cōforteth the herte, and clenseth it, and to speke of the prayse of this medycyne wolde requyre a longe processe.

Other thyng{is} also destroyinge and consumyng the humours, which cause age are those temperate Spyces knowen to euery body, Cloues, Cinam••me, Liquiryce, and such other, but most pryncypally, when they are conficte & incorporate

with good wyne, and so (beyng fyrst somwhat watered) receyued and dronken.

Also it is not vnknowen, howe that pylles made of myrtha, be of an excellēt goodnesse in the conseruacyon of helth & lyfe, for it withstandeth putrefactiō rectifieth and sincereth that which is redy to putrefaction, wherfore this Myrtha is confycte with suche thynges as deade bodyes are incered with all, to defende the corse from putrefactiō. And the fore sayd spyced wyne, when it is receyued of man, it spredeth it selfe abrode in y^e partes of the body and comforteth all the partes of the body, and dryeth vp the superfluous humydyties of the body, also the powder of the same spyces vsed with meate, profyteth wonderfully.

Howebeit, yf the man be of a dry dysposycyon, then shall it be nedefull to adioyne to these spyces, some more temperate thynge, as the ioyce of Pomegranates, Rose water, Sugre, Lyckeryce, Resyus, and such lyke. Diacamerō restoreth

dygestyon, los••e and comforteth it, and Trifera passeth all declynynge, somwhat more to calidite. The naturall hete then & the meate cōmyng to the membres beyng decayed or corrupted, which cōmeth of putryfyed colour, furthwith ensueth corrugacyon, and olde lokynge as ye may se in such as are scaby, in any parte of theyr body, for that parte beynge enfected, it semeth ryuyled and olde skynne. The infection beyng once departed agayne, the skynne sheweth it selfe fayre, smothe, and yongly, and to those golde preparate is s••uerayne, & the wyne of Pomegranate, and this is specyal good for the lepry. And this wyne of granates taken and receyued howe ye lyst, hath properte to extenate the humours, and to alaye the hete of the lyuer, and to comforte all partes of mans body offended with heate, and it is good agaynst wekenes of herte, fortyfyeth the mouth of the stomacke, & comforteth the herte. Also Mirabolani Rebul•• conditi be very

good both in hote and colde dyseases they comforte the stomacke, and dryeth vp the superfluous moystenes of the same, and be sydes this they helpe the melancolicke people, they clarefy and make clere the blode, and the spyrytes, neyther is there any thynge more excellent for that purpose then these.

Also borage wyne made (in tyme that grapes be gathered & pressed) with must is pryncipally good for melācoly, faynte herted, and mad people, for it clēseth the blode, & taketh away euyl fantasies, and comforteth all the regetyue power, and encountreth all corrupcion. The electuarye also of the Myrabolans vsed, is a thynge ryght often proued and alowed, to the conseruacion of helth, and prolongynge of the lyfe, and to waxe yonge agayne, for it comforteth the stomacke, & maketh it apte & lusty, & cōsumeth y^e wa trynesse lefte of the fore fode, & the vse of this electuarye withstandeth age, & causeth mā to lyue longe by the help of god.

Agayne certayn suffumigations and sauours made of conuenyent thynges, and accordynge as the man nedeth, is very profytable. ☞ ❧

Bathynge also temperatly without any great sweatyng so y^t onely the skynne be mundefyed and clensed frō fylthynes, is holesome and profytable, for therby y^e powres are opened, and the superfluous humidities lurkynge within the skynne, be wasted and dryed vp. ☞ ❧

But the vse of good wyne in the whiche such spyces, as we haue spoken of before, haue ben steped, and the vertue of theym in it resolued, temperatly taken with a lytell water myxte therwith in due season, shall passe and enter in to all the hydde wayes of the body, and it shall drye vp all the euyll humydyties, & cōforteth all the inwarde partes, & perfectely doth open all maner of opilactiō or stoppynge, the whiche is secrete for the aparycyon or openynge of places opilat, or stopped, causeth y^e lyuely spyryt{is} to rūne

throughout euery parte of the body, and causeth the naturall heate for to waxe stronge, and to be of great force, but opilacion or stopping causeth the contrary, for the naturall hete beynge conculcate, or strangled, not hauyng the fre passage throughe euery parte, is therby debylytate and wekened, and so not suffycyent and myghtye to seperate the pure from the vnpure, wherupon the superfluous humydyties rotten & putrefyed be in the body moche increased, and therby consequently ensueth wrynkelinge of the flesshe and skynne, and age at hande.

An other also stronge meane there is to defende age, and to recouer youth agayne, by abstynence, and conuenyēt for bearynge of your quantyte of meate, vnto such tyme as the body be brought very lowe, and made very spare, and then to restore, and norysshe it agayne with laudable, holesome, and good fode, whiche hath a propertye, to engender cleare and pure blode▪ ☞ ❧

This poynte also do they obserue the which make fat Oxen: whose flesshe the more it waxeth leane and bare, y^e more also dothe it be come tender and yonge, and the better afterwerde do they lyke and batten, and ye may also se the practyse of this in suche as be lately recouered from syckenesse. ❧ ❧

But to be shorte, he y^t wyll refrayne age, and conserue youth, let hym not be neclygent in chosyng of his meate, that it be suche, as maye brede good, cleare, fat, thycke and viscous blode, and then may he withstande well age.

And when that suche humydytyes, or moystenesse, whiche are in the body, and crude humoures are increased in man, then hath he nede of such thynges whiche do extenate and exiccat those superfluous moystenes, and such thynges as may dygest the crude or rawe humours, syncere and depure the hole body.

Amonge other thyng{is}, suche as waxe aged, haue great nede of calefactyon,

and humystation, that is to saye▪ warmynge, and moystynge, of both equally by meates, and drynkes, and medycynes conuenyent, by exercyse, and gladnesse.

Nowe that he maye kepe his body it such temperancy, that he may lyue with out y^e horryble daūger of greuous syckenes, and the better able to serue almyghty God, to whom be all honoure.

Imprynted by me Robert wyer / dwellynge in saynt Martyns parysshe / at the sygne of saynt Iohn̄ Euangelyst / besyde Charynge Crosse. †