He would many times (I have heard say) sitt among the boyes at St. Maries church in Cambridge ( ☞ and just so would the famous attorney-generall Noy, in Lincoln's Inne, who had many such froliques and humours).
I remember Mr. Wodenoth, of King's College, told me, that being sent for to ... ... he told him that his disease was not to be found in Galen or Hippocrates, but in Tullie's Epistles, Cum non sis ubi fueris, non est cur velis vivere.
I thinke he left his estate to the apothecarie. He gave to the chapell of Clare-hall, a bowle[550], for the communion, of gold (cost, I thinke, 2 or 300 li.), on which is engraved a pelican feeding her young with the bloud from her breast (an embleme of the passion of Christ), no motto, for the embleme explained it selfe.
He lies buried in the south side of St. Marie's chancell, in Cambridge, wher is a decent monument, with his body halfe way, and an inscription, which gett.
He was much addicted to his humours, and would suffer persons of quality to wayte sometimes some houres at his dore, with coaches, before he would recieve them. Once, on the rode from Cambridge to London, he tooke a fancy to a chamberlayn or tapster in his inne, and tooke him with him, and made him his favourite, by whom only accession was to be had to him, and thus enriched him. Dr. Gale[BO], of Paul's schoole, assures me that a French man came one time from London to Cambridge, purposely to see him, whom he made stay two howres for him in his gallery, and then he came out to him in an old blew gowne; the French gentleman makes him 2 or 3 very lowe bowes downe to the ground; Dr. Butler whippes his legge over his head, and away goes into his chamber, and did not speake with him.
He kept an old mayd whose name was Nell. Dr. Butler would many times goe to the taverne, but drinke by himselfe. About 9 or 10 at night old Nell comes for him with a candle and lanthorne, and sayes 'Come you home, you drunken beast.' By and by Nell would stumble; then her master calls her 'drunken beast'; and so they did drunken beast one another all the way till they came home.
[551]A serving man brought his master's water to doctor Butler, being then in his studie (with turn'd barres) but would not bee spoken with. After much fruitlesse importunity, the man told the doctor he was resolved he should see his master's water; he would not be turned away—threw it on the Dr's. head. This humour pleased the Dr. and he went to the gent. and cured him—<from> Mr. R. Hooke.
A gent. lying a-dyeing, sent his servant with a horse for the doctor. The horse being exceeding dry, ducks downe his head strongly into the water, and plucks downe the Dr. over his head, who was plunged in the water over head and eares. The Dr. was madded, and would returne home. The man swore he should not; drew his sword, and gave him ever and anon (when he would returne) a little prick, and so drove him before him—<from> Mr. ... Godfrey.
[552]Some instances of Dr. Butler's cures:—from Mr. James Bovey.—The Dr. lyeing at the Savoy in London, next the water side, where was a balcony look't into the Thames, a patient came to him that was grievously tormented with an ague. The Dr. orders a boate to be in readinesse under his windowe, and discoursed with the patient (a gentleman) in the balcony, when on a signall given, 2 or 3 lusty fellowes came behind the gentleman and threw him a matter of 20 feete into the Thames. This surprize absolutely cured him.