With such devotion, that men now attend
Not houres appointed, but whole ages spend
In these idolatries rendring more due

Then blindfold zeale e're tendred to the true.

Sloth, Pride, and Pleasure cleave so neare the skin,
They make each single birth a treble twin :
Incorporate so in body and in blood,

To thousand vices, but small grains of good:

Let but conceit thrast forth a strange attire

In France, it sets three kingdomes straight a fire;

Which leave not burning till they have wasted downe
Lordships and patrimonies of renowne."

Thus does W. B., Esquire, introduce, in not very melodious verses, his little book "to the reader." Its object, as he intimates, is twofold: to furnish people with such information with regard to diet as may enable them to eat and drink without injury to their health; and secondly to store them with a certain quantity of what we may call "table talk," for we should be led to suppose by his book that his contemporaries were not in general very expert at afterdinner conversation. Like much of the popular literature of the age to which it belongs, W. B.'s book is not entirely original, for he tells us in his preface that it is founded upon, if not mainly translated from, an older book of a similar character in Latin. It is divided into three parts, according to the three divisions which the subject naturally takes in the hands of this writer. "The use of this book," he tells us, "is, to make a man able to judge of the disposition and state of his own body, of the effects, natures, and dispositions of those things we daily feed our bodies with. The next is, to give us a general insight and brief knowledge of emperors and kings, or men of greatest place and eminency that are most notified in the world for virtue or vice. All these interlaced, with excellent positions, witty questions, and answers upon divers and sundry arguments, the perfect use and insight whereof doth accomplish a man for discourse, behaviour, and argument at the table of our superiors." "Moderate mirth at our tables," he tells us in another place, "beautifieth the body, enlighteneth the mind, and causeth a good digestion in the stomach, delighteth ourselves and our company, and encreaseth knowledge; and with this opinion likewise, it seems altogether convenient and fitting, that our discourse at the table should either concern the nature of those meats and drinks we furnish our tables with, or the natures and conditions of those that accompany us at our tables, or ingenious positions and questions, to exercise our wits at our tables, or of

such pleasant conceits and jests as do exhilerate our company and cause mirth at our tables." With W. B.'s book before us, we may safely subscribe to all this, and even to the "moderate" character of the "mirth" which he seems to have considered sufficient for

the purpose.

The first book, accordingly, treats of what we eat and drink, with an introductory chapter or two on man and his habits. It was the age of large and noble dwelling-houses, and the following chapter is very pertinent on this point:

"CHAP. III.-How to chuse out a place fitting for the erecting of a convenient habitation for the pleasure, rest, and solace of Man, and the exercise of this his admirable composition and facultie.

"First, single out a convenient place or soyle, where you meane to erect your edifice or building, not farre distant from some running river, fountaine, or other water, and bordering neare some thicket or grove; or shadowed with elmes, or other trees, for they are a very delectable object to the eye; for they many times besides, breake the heat of the sunne, and the rage of the winds, and are convenient both for shelter and sight. And likewise as in these, so you must be regardfull, that the ayre wherein your scituation should be, be not corrupt and damped by the exhalation of fogges, and other vapours suckt up by the sunne from fennes and marishes, and other low and rotten grounds there neare-unto neighbouring. For the ayre is a great preserver, or drawer-on of health or sicknesse, and hath a powerfull hand in the state of every man's bodie; and is the originall cause of many dangerous diseases, and much continued health.

"And for the foundation thereof, it is necessary and convenient, that it be placed upon a dry and sandy ground, of some fit height and elevation, with the windowes towards the sunne-rising, except the prospect otherwise perswade you.

"All these things being thus considered and effected, compasse in a plot of ground convenient for a garden, which stored with variety of sweet hearbs and flowers, yeelds much content and profit, both for the pleasure and health of man. To the which, not impertinent, wrote that doctor, who thus versified his direction :

"Aer sit mundus, habitabilis, ac luminosus,

Infectus neque fit, nec olens fœtore cloaca.

Which is thus Englished:

A builder that will follow wise direction,

Must first foresee before his house he make,
That the ayre be cleare, and free from all infection,

And not annoy'd with stench of ditch or lake.

"And as for the scituation, to the former directions I adde, that a care be had that the wayes be good, and faire; and that there bee convenient woods, waters, and suchlike; not being ore-topt with too high hils to hinder prospect, or to pen in too much heat or cold; causing thereby too sudden changes: after this, for the building I thus advise briefly, let it be rather usefull then sumptuous, like inchanted castles built in the ayre, out of which

knights errant were wont to rescue captiv'd ladies: thus furnished with a convenient seat and building, then let the studious of health be observant what meats and drinkes are most nutritive, and what time most convenient to be taken as they hereafter follow."

With regard to the hours of eating, W. B. seems to judge that generally the best time for each individual to eat is when he is hungry, but he does not appear to object to the general arrangement in his time of the hours of the day set apart for the usual meals. Bread and wine he considers the two first and noblest articles served to the table. With regard to the former, he gives us directions (as is not unfrequently his custom) in rhyme:

"Bread is the staffe of life, of all the rest,
Fine manchet is the whitest, and the best;
Physicians, of all breads, this maxime hold,
Too new, are neither wholesome, nor too old."

Of mead, W. B. gives only a partial approval; of ale he judges. as follows:

"That which is made of wheat, mixed with parsley and other hearbs, is adjudged best of all men; as that which is onely puft up with forcible ingredients, to shew a strength in weaknesse, wherein no vertue or goodnesse remaineth else, is accounted worst. Of which one writeth,

"Ale for antiquity may plead and stand

Before the Conquest, conquering in this land;
Beare that is younger brother to her age,
Was then not borne, nor ripe to be her page;
In every pedling village, borough, towne,

Ale plaid at football, and tript all lads downe:

And though shee's rivall'd now by Beere her mate,

Most doctors wait on her, that shewes her state."

With regard to flesh-meat in general, our writer delivers his opinion in the form of a story in verse:

"Two men being once put to their choyce of meat,

The one would grosse, the other finer eat:

The one chose beefe and mutton for his share,
The other partridge, plover, pidgeon, stare;
These and no other might they feed or take,
For certaine yeares, and for experience sake:
The time expir'd, they both were brought to view,
To see of these th' effects that would ensue :
The first thus dieted with homely fare,
Was fat and frolicke, th' other leane and bare :

And he cry'd beefe, still looking huge and big,

Th' other, weak and bare, exclaim'd on pig

And his wing'd dainties, whose sweet meat were sowre
To him, eat up of those he did devour."

The particular judgments of the different kinds of meat and vegetables are mostly taken from the old physicians, and are hardly worth quoting. W. B. approves of the flesh of kids, as among the best of all meat, but he condemns lamb, and even disapproves of beef, though he thinks veal is "exceeding good and commendable." In fact, perhaps guided by the fashion of his age, he seems to be prejudiced against all the coarser meats, and to prefer those which are finer and more delicate. "Hog's flesh," he says, "is more naturall to the constitution of man then many other creatures." Passing over his judgment of poultry, we will observe that he appears to have a decided partiality for eggs, of which he tells us that "the egges of hennes and partridges are better than any other," and that "after those the duck-egge taketh place." One advantage of egges, he tells us, is that, as the whole eatable part is contained in a hard shell, they receive no disparagement from the dirtyness of the cook :—

"An egge you well may take, and cracke, or cut,
Though meat you doe forbeare, drest by a slut.

Or thus:

An egge, an apple, and a nut,

May be eaten with a slut."

We shall not follow W. B. through his various observations of the different kinds of fish, vegetables, and fruits. The list of the latter is a numerous one. Of saffron, an article now almost forgotten, we are told that "it being put into a cup of wine, and drunken therein, much exhilerateth the heart and cheareth the countenance." And with regard to another class of vegetable productions, he produces the following pithy but not over-elegant lines :-

"If leekes you like, but doe their smell disleeke,

Eat onyons, and you

If

shall not smell the lecke:

you of onyons would the scent expell,
Eat garlicke, that shall drowne the onions smell:
But against garlicks savour, at a word,

I know but one receit, and that's...

The second book consists of remarks, taken almost entirely from the writings of the ancients, on the different orders and conditions "of those that may accompany us at our tables ;" and as there are few of us who are often honoured with the presences of" Emperours," "Kings," "Princes," or even of " the Bishops of the Gentiles," we will pass over these chapters without further remark than that,

under the head of "Physicians," we are favoured with the following couplet :

"Who takes his meales by physicall direction,

Shall lose his health as well as his complexion."

We come now to the third book, which relates to conversation at table, and furnishes us with philosophical and other themes of discussion, with knotty questions, and even with riddles, for afterdinner occupation. Thus, to begin with the commencement, we have a fair number of questions, discussed pro and con, such as, "Whether ayre be more necessary to life than meat,"-"Whether evill meat or evill ayre hurt the body more,"-" Whether wee may walke or sleepe presently after meat,"-"Why wee can containe hotter meats in our mouthes than wee can hold in our hands," "Why those of moyst stomackes desire little yet are capable of much drinke." The following is the answer to this last

question:

"Next is demanded, why the moyst stomacke, though it little desire, yet is capable of much drinke? To the which is answered, that by reason of the humour and moysture it hath, it is stretched like unto the belly, and therefore is of larger capacity than otherwayes the dry and therefore the Scythians, English, Dutch, Polanders, and Danes drinke much by reason of the moisture of their stomackes, and the capacity thereof: whereas in Spaine and other hot countreyes, contrariwise they drinke often, but little, by reason of the heat of their stomackes, which through much drynesse is hardened, and of little receit."

After a score of questions of this kind, we have various other subjects connected with diet discussed more or less briefly, and among the rest, a question which seems to have been much debated among the physicians at that time, namely, whether it were not good to get drunk with wine once a month?

:

First, it is demanded whether, according to Avicen in his Canticles, and Rasis likewise, it be physicall to be drunke with wine once a month? To the which is answered, with the commenter upon the Canticles, that their opinion is erroneous which so affirme for although wine, according to Galen, is the most agreeable to man's nature, in respect of the naturall heat and nearnesse it hath with our bloods, being in degree thereto, as oyle to the light or fire: yet as much and superfluous oyle puts out the fire and light, so much wine our naturall heat; and as it is more agreeable to our natures being thinne and cleare, so notwithstanding, it is more hurtfull to the animall and sensible heat, and the organs thereof; that is, to the braine and sinewes : and therefore Galen concludeth, that water is better than wine, especially for those that have weake nerves."