METALS, MINERALS, AND STONES.
GOLD is temperate in quality, it wonderfully strengthens the heart and vital spirits, which one perceiving, very wittily inserted these verses:
For Gold is cordial; and that’s the reason,
Your raking Misers live so long a season.
However, this is certain, in cordials, it resists melancholy, faintings, swoonings, fevers, falling-sickness, and all such like infirmities, incident either to the vital or animal spirit.
Alum. Heats, binds, and purges; scours filthy ulcers, and fastens loose teeth.
Brimstone, or flower of brimstone, which is brimstone refined, and the better for physical uses; helps coughs and rotten flegm; outwardly in ointments it takes away leprosies, scabs, and itch; inwardly it helps yellow jaundice, as also worms in the belly, especially being mixed with a little Salt-petre: it helps lethargies being snuffed up in the nose.
Litharge, both of gold and silver; binds and dries much, fills up ulcers with flesh, and heals them.
Lead is of a cold dry earthly quality, of an healing nature; applied to the place it helps any inflammation, and dries up humours.