Page:A short history of social life in England.djvu/121

Rh thirteenth centuries. Wounded Crusaders brought to England news of new methods and practice in the art of medicine and surgery; Franciscan and Dominican Friars had given a fresh impetus to medical learning in this country, but Roger Bacon, the most learned Englishman of his day, devoted too much of his time to the creation of tinctures and elixirs for the renewal of youth. Indeed, all the medieval doctors devoted much attention to this subject, which was of prior importance in these days. Here is one of their receipts:—

"To make the hair golden, take of elder bark, flowers of broom, yolk of egg, and saffron, equal parts; boil them in water; skim off what floats on the surface and use as pomade."

And here is another:—

"A Marvellous Balsam.—Take thrice distilled turpentine, lign-aloes, ambergris, and musk, equal parts, rub them up to a liquid ointment and distil nine times. Used on the face it will preserve youth, heal all wounds, marvellously clear the eyes, and preserve the body from all forms of putrefaction."

The following hints to medieval doctors show how little medical knowledge they really possessed:—