ALL Physicians whom we ought most to confide in, do conclude and have determined it as a most undoubted Truth, to cure with [Page 2] contraries, and preserve with Cordials, according to that confirm'd Aphorism of contraria contrariis curantur: Similia si­milibus, conservantur.

Paracelsus, Theophrastus, Bom­bastus, Van-Helmont, and some of their late conceited Disci­ples, without taking any notice of this distinction, do morbum morbo curare: and venture to attempt the putting out of fire with fire: Or, curing hot Dis­eases with hot Medicines, and consequently cold Diseases with cold. Hippocrates, Galen, and their more aged Off-spring; on the other hand judge it more reasonable and practicable to put out fire with water; and to subdue the cold effects of water, by heat or fire: and to this end, if the Disease be hot and dry, as a Fever, they ad­vise [Page 3] such Food and Physick, as is cold and moist; and hot and dry Meats and Medicines to subdue a disease that is moist and cold; never neglecting (as is supposed by the Chymist) to supply Nature, though not the Disease, with convenient, de­lightful, and proper Cordials, always remembring, not to nou­rish, but to oppose a Disease, with things that remove, or al­ter it by their qualities.

We are much beholden to the temperament and qualities of things, for the preservation of our health, and curing Dis­eases, nor is there, through the benignity and bounty of God, any accident or distemper, but hath its remedy assigned it, by the matter, form, temperament or qualities of Medicines, knew we but certainly how, and when [Page 4] to apply them: and therefore it is, that Physiology, and all the five parts of Physick, are more absolutely necessary, than the most exalted, and accurate Medicines of the Chymist: and though by some (who know the vulgar neither do, nor will know any thing but what is vulgar) the Galenist and Chy­mist are represented, as two distinct, different and inconsi­stent things, yet 'tis certain, they both serve but to make up one intire Artist: And I could tell you Eugenius not only of some Physicians, but some also of your own profession, that can compare, if not out-do the greatest Don and Heroes (as they think themselves) of the Chymical and Hermetick Sect: And because you may depend upon it for a Truth, that all [Page 5] Diseases and Remedies, may as well and better be compre­hended under some of the sim­ple or compound Qualities, than any other invented Idea, Name or Notion whatever of the conceited Chymist, to this very end, the foregoing Chapters in the first Part, have given you a practical account of such things, as do preserve by their agreement with Nature, and cure by their contrariety to the Disease; and not to advise people to a Diet, that is an­swerable to their Disease and Physick they are prescribed, is to ruine them: nor are they by any but conceited Practiti­oners and Humorists, to be left at large, to feed as they think sit on old Cheese, Red-herring, or to inflame themselves with the more subtil and penetrating [Page 6] Spirits of Brandy, Punch and Aqua Vitae, which, though at first they seem to content Na­ture, and exalt the Archeus, or vital and natural heat of our bodies, yet they so alter also the natural tone, temper and fer­ments of the pancreas, blood and stomach, that (in a little time) they leave them languid, faint and vappid: By these things the Chymist may for a while, seemingly make his Ar­cheus or Nature blaze the bet­ter; but (like a Torch with often beating) it will certainly burn out the sooner: and 'tis rare to find any accustomed Brandy, or Aqua vitae Bubber, when once sick ever to reco­ver, because the frequent use of such things, make all other Cor­dials useless and invalid in time of sickness, and when Nature [Page 7] should stand most in need of them. Besides, they either at first so inflame the vital Spirits, as to produce such acute, sharp, and sudden Diseases, as Fevers, Apoplexies, and the like, or else in time (as one fire puts out a­nother) they extinguish the vital heat and moisture, and thereby occasion such chronick and fatal Diseases, as Gouts, Dropsies, Palsies, Hecticks, Scorbuts, Consumptions, and death it self.

In short, our blood and spi­rits may as well be too much a­gita [...]ed as idle, and the vola­til Salts may stand in as much need of fixing, as the fixed Salts of volatizing, nor is their less danger in one than the other: and how the Chymist, only with his hot fiery Cordial Spirits at one and the same time, can [Page 8] serve two such different Ma­sters, I understand not, and must herein submit to better judgements than my own, and surely, such a modest and man­nerly condescention, as this would have better become Mempsis, than an unmanly dis­daining others to magnifie him­self; nothing being more in­tolerable and base, than inur­banity: Nor can I but wonder with what confidence he can pretend (as he does, page 187) to subdue the irregular passions, and reform the sinful inclinati­ons of others by his Medicines, when, after so many thousand Doses, as he says he has taken himself, (only to animate others) as yet he has not conquer'd his own: his prevaricating in this is enough on all occasions, to call in question his integrity, [Page 9] and to make him suspected a—Chymist: Nor are we so much to confide in the loud Hyper­bolies of his Medicines, and great brags that are daily made of Pantamagogons, Alexi-stoma­chons, &c. As to some few well digested institutions, that may practically relate to the six non-Naturals, and a Directory for Diet.

Like Food, like Flesh, like Meat, like Medicine, was once almost grown proverbial: and some old Philosophers, by the continual succession of new mat­ter by Aliments; have not only affirmed; that from sick men we may become sound men: but of late the Chymists have so improv'd, and advanced the Notion in behalf of their Ae­therial, and supernatural Spi­rits, that we may (say they) [Page 10] also become new men; and one of the best and most accom­plish'd of the Chymical Cabal (meaning Mempsis) has under­taken (on condition his Maje­sty will be gracious to that pro­fession) not only to cure his Subjects of Incontinency, A­theism, Profaneness, and all manner of Sin and Debauche­ry: But will make them also Just, Devout, Loyal and Reli­gious, only by cokesing, tame­ing, and tickling the Archeus with his Hermetick and Chymi­cal preparations: and to grati­fie farther, his sacred royal Ma­ster for so great a kindness he engages (to use his own words, pag. 187. of his [...]) by the powerful operation of his [...] (i. e. in plain Eng­lish his profound skill in Phy­sick) to convert Quakers, Cata­baptists, [Page 11] Independents, Separatists, Schismaticks & the multitude of Phanaticks to the Church of Eng­land. Do this, & thou shalt have my consent, not only to be ho­nest George, Doctor George, and George the Doctor: But Sir George, St. George, and George the Saint.

But in good earnest I wish, dear Doctor, thou hadst con­ceil'd the Divine and Moral operations of thy Medicines, upon the hearts and consciences of poor Mortals, because in these his Majesties Dominions thou canst now never more hope for any practice and employ as a Medicaster: for surely the pro­fane Cavalier he'l not meddle with thee, for fear of being made a Schismatick, a religious Rebel or Round-head: Nor will I'm sure the devout Phana­tick, for fear of being damn'd [Page 12] for an Atheist, a debauch'd and honest Royalist: now then or never recant, and own the Do­ctrine of Contrarieties: now, now or never is the time to make it appear and convince the ignorant Heretical, Repro­bate, and unconverted Galenist, that thy Chymical and Her­metick Physick, can at one and the same time work such con­trary effects, as to make the Serpent (thy self dear Doctor) a Saint; a Royalist, a Round­head, and a Rebel a Royalist; Now I say is the time, the very time for thee, O Mempsis, to work these wonders; or else, (with pity and compassion I speak it) thou must, I, thou must pack up, and be gone into some of those horrid regions, where people are neither for God nor the King; for King nor Parliment, [Page 13] no, nor for my Lord Mayor, nor Common-council.

I wish also, that the Doctor had not intimated, and suggest­ed to his Majesty that in good conscience (for the good service he has done himself, and Royal Father of blessed Memory) he ought, or can do no less than o­verthrow, or at least new Mo­del, and purge with his reform­ing Physick, his College of Phy­sicians, and two famous Univer­ties, Cambridge and Oxford.

But above all things, after all thy glorious boasts and brags of Loyalty, thou wert be­witch'd to petition the Parlia­ment for no less (in effect) than his Majesties; there own, and the peoples lives and liberties: for what difference is there be­twixt their being ruin'd, and their erecting a College for Memp­sis, [Page 14] with immunities for him, his Heirs and Assigns to dis­pense all the Medicines, that must be made use of in his Ma­jesties Dominions.

This George, however rea­sonable, and necessary it seems to thy self; yet, after thou hast fluttered a little longer like a Feather in the wind, thou wilt find that the Parliament will let thee drop, and take no more notice of thy Phanatick Freeks and frisking Seminalities of thy brain, than if a Tom-tit-mous, an Owl, or a Jack-daw had flown over Westminster. Let Wisdom baul, and utter her voice never so loud: let her scream and tear her throat in pieces; 'tis (as thou sayst George) all one, as if thou shouldst vo­ciferate Neptune to forbear swallowing up Ships, since 'tis [Page 15] his Nature to do such dirty and mischievous tricks: All which the Lord Mayor, and Court of Aldermen taking into their con­sideration, and that there's no hope, that either the King or Parliament will accommodate thee with a College; our Se­nators and City Heroes are at this time preparing one for thee at Moor-gate.

And now, seeing he is so hardly dealt with; let his Ma­jesty, his two Houses, his Nobi­lity and Gentry; the Bishops and Clergy; the Lawyers and Laity; the whole City, Town and Country look to it as they will, 'tis to be feared, that what­ever Chymick and Hermetick Physick can do, shall be done to have the same effects on them as on himself: and (if Heaven helps not) convert them all to [Page 16] non conformity, faction and se­dition.

This zealous Mempsis in a­nother place of his Evangeli­um Chymicum (for all he says is Gospel) has a hymn to his Creator (and by the way let me solemnly tell him, I wonder how he dare concern so great a God! in his little designs) for putting it into the hearts of rusticks and Mariners, with their Punch, Brandy, and A­qua vitae bottles, to teach sot­tish Galenists, the use and ex­cellencies of his well distilled Spirits, and the foolery of their dull Julips, fulsom and fruit­less Apozems, Bochets, Cullices and Gellies, as you may read at large in several Paragraphs and Pages of his Book.

But to leave these extrava­gancies, and flurts of the Hy­pocondres: [Page 17] Lets hear what Ga­len upon Hippocrates says con­cerning this affair of Aliments: ‘This grave Philosopher in his Book De Elementis, tells us, that by a dissent of the first qualities (not from the Pun­ctum latens, the little Atoms in the Archeus, and Seminal Idaeas in the Materia primâ,’ as our inspired Mempsis will have it) but from the dissent of these first Qualities, says our Author, which proceeds immediately from the Elements themselves, and the Aliments; man is born for the Physician, and were it not for the defects proceeding from these two, man could ne­ver dye.

From the four Elements, come the four Qualities of heat, cold, driness and moisture: from these arise the tem­peraments [Page 18] of Aliments; and from our Aliments, come the four humours, call'd Choler, Phlegm, Blood and Melancho­ly; and out of these humours the parts; and from those parts the whole, or what we call a humane body: and when any of these four temperaments or humours are extinct, deprav'd or hurt in Quantity, Quality, or Motion, then follows Sick­ness and Death: So that in effect, Life and Death, and e­very mans temper and constitu­tion, depends more or less up­on the Aliments he feeds on; and the humours themselves are nothing more than the ef­fect of food, v. .g Choler is the fomes of blood made of Ali­ments over digested and con­cocted, and serves to ferment, agitate, or brisk up the con­stipated [Page 19] Ideas of the Archeus. Flegm is made of Food, (for want of natural heat) not e­nough concocted, and bridles choler, and keeps the blood and humours from burninig, tames, and fixes the Spirits, and makes the body, cool, fat, moist and soluble. Blood is made of Food, perfectly elaborated to augment and nourish the parts: good Food makes good Blood; and good Blood makes good Flesh: So that in effect, Flesh and Blood is only good Food. Melancholy is the Ter­ra damnata: The Devil, the thick and drossie part of Food and Blood; and was intended by Nature to bridle the [...], the fomes or froth of sperm and spirits; to temper rage and lust, to compose the thoughts and imaginations: [Page 20] but being deprav'd, it works contrary effects, as we see in our friend Mempsis.

From this little representa­tion of man, an intelligent, and considering person may find out as easily, as by the Idaeas, Atomes, or Magots in the Archeus, how we come by Diseases, our dis­solution and death; and also how necessary, a direct and due diet, such a diet as may answer to the four tempera­ments, and humours of our bodies, choler, phlegm, blood, and Melancholy: how neces­sary this (I say) is for the pre­venting, and curing Diseases; as might be farther amplified, but that I must avoid prolixity, that the Book may not be too chargeable for the poor: Or else it might be made evident, that a diet may be collected, [Page 21] not only to heat, cool, dry and moisten, but also to

And all things else, that Pharmacy it self can ne­cessarily lay claim to, to­wards the conservation of man. But this will not consist with a short essay, and therefore as concisely, as the subject will permit, I shall only add a descripti­on of the Nature, Use and Vertues of an Artificial [Page 22] Bath, and stove hereun­to annex'd; with which, our Ambrosiopaeas, and a proper Diet may be per­formed as much as can rea­sonably be expected from the means.

What a help it is to Na­ture, to throw off by sweat those saline, acid, sulphure­ous, and corrosive particles of blood, which are the root of all Diseases, is manifested by the daily experience of such as are daily relieved by it, in Gouts, Scorbuts, Hecticks, the Evil, Palsies, and the [Page 23] like: as it helps thus to discharge the Serum Sal­sum, the salt, sharp and watery parts of blood by the skin; how far this, I say, may extend it self, both for the preventing and curing many potent Diseases, when Diet and other Remedies are de­ficient, and cannot do it, I leave to the bounty of a prudent and liberal conception.

It is so contriv'd that 'tis impossible for the pa­tient to take cold, to faint or sweat beyond their [Page 24] strength, and own incli­nations; nor is there any nuissance in it, that is in­cident to Stoving, or sweat­ing in other Baths.

Place here the Figure.