Chapter 4

"Tamen hoc tolerabile, si nonEt furere incipias, ut avunculus ille NeronisCui totam tremuli frontem Cæsonia pulliInfudit."102

"Some nimbler juice would make him foam and rave,Like that Cæsonia to her Caius gave,Who, plucking from the forehead of the foalThe mother's love, infused it in the bowl:The boiling blood ran hissing through his veins,Till the mad vapour mounted to his brains."

These concoctions were publicly sold at Rome, their ingredients consisting of herbs of various kinds, in the culling and testing of which the shepherds were often employed. The remora, or sucking-fish, certain bones of the frog, the astroit, or star-fish, and the hippomanes were also used. Horace informs us that dried human marrow and liver were also had recourse to:

"Exsucta uti medulla et aridum jecurAmoris esset poculum."103That his parch'd marrow might compose,Together with his liver dried, an amorous dose.

Del Rio104and Wallick105assert that to the above were likewise added nail-parings, sundry metals, reptiles, and the intestines of particular birds and fishes, and evensemen virileandsanguis menstruus.106During the concoction of these filthy, disgusting, and abominable compounds, the Infernal Deities were earnestly invoked.

Of all the above ingredients the most famous was the hippomanes, which, according to Wier, was a piece of flesh upon theforehead of a young colt, of a black or brown colour, in size and shape like a fig, which the mare is said to bite off as soon as she has foaled, the mare forsaking her offspring when prevented from so doing; hence the hippomanes, which was in reality nothing more than a caul or part of the omentum attached to the head of the foal, as it is also sometimes to that of infants, was thought to be particularly effective in conciliating love, especially when calcined or reduced to powder, and swallowed in some of the blood of the person beloved. This superstition is, however, in some degree excusable, if it be considered that, even in the present day, many persons in our own country firmly believe the human caul to have the power of saving its possessor from drowning; and that in the good old times, it was regarded as a visible indication that Providence had designed the infant so furnished for the service of religion, such children, whether male or female, being destined, in consequence, for the cloister.

Virgil thus mentions it as one of the ingredients of the philter that Dido caused to be made for her previously to her committing suicide:

"Falcibus et messæ ad Lunam quæruntur alienisPubentes herbæ, nigri cum lacte veneni.Quærituret nascentis equi in fronte revulsusEt matri præruptus amor."107

"Herbs are brought, by moonlight mow'dWith brazen scythes, big, swol'n with milky juiceOf curious poison,and the fleshy knotTorn from the forehead of a new foal'd coltTo rob the mother's love."

The following curious account of the wonderful effects of thehippomanes, and which fully justifies the etymology of that word, is given by Pausanias:

"Among these (offerings) you may behold those of Phormis Menalius.... His gifts in Olympia are two horses and two charioteers, one of which horses the Ælians assert to have been made by a magician, of brass, into which metal he had previously infused thehippomanes, and which, in consequence, possessed the power of exciting in horses a mad desire for coition. The horse so made by the magician was, both in size and shape, inferior to many horses which are dedicated within Altis, and was rendered still more deformed by having no tail. Horses desire connection with this image not only in spring, but every day throughout the year, for, breaking their bridles or running away from their drivers, they rush into Altis and attack the horse in a manner much more furious than if it was the most beautiful mare, and one they were acquainted with. Their hoofs, indeed, slip from the side of the image, but nevertheless they never cease neighing vehemently and leaping furiously on the figure till they are driven off by the whip or by some other violent means, for till such methods are applied, it is impossible to disengage them from the brass."108

Many formula for love-potions may be found in the work of Albertus Magnus, who, among other things, particularly recommends "the brains of a partridge calcined into powder and swallowed in red wine," a remedy which is also much insisted upon by Platina, who, in praising the flesh of the partridge, says, "Perdicis caro bene ac facile concoquitur, multum in se nutrimenti habet, cerebri vim auget,genituram facilitat ac demortuam Venerem excitat."109

"The flesh of the partridge, which is of good and easy digestion, is highly nutritious; it strengthens the brain, facilitates conception, and arouses the half-extinct desire for venereal pleasures." Mery110confidently prescribes, for the same purpose, thepartes genitalesof a cock prepared and administered in like manner.

The following compositions enjoyed a vast reputation during the 17th century:

Fortuna Veneris.—"Take of pismires or ants (the biggest, having a sourish smell, are the best) two handfuls, spirits of wine one gallon; digeste them in a glasse vessel, close shut, for the space of a month, in which time they will be dissolved into a liquor; then distil them in balneo till all be dry. Then put the same quantity of ants as before; do this three times, then aromatize the spirit with cinnamon. Note, that upon the spirit will float an oil which must be separated. This spirit (continues the inventor) is of excellent use to stir up the animal spirits insomuch that John Casimire, Palsgrave of the Rhine, and Seyfrie of Collen, general against the Turks, did always drink thereof when they went to fight, to increase magnanimity and courage, which it did even to admiration."

"This spirit doth alsowonderfully irritate them that are slothful to venery."111

Aqua Magnanimitatis.—Take of ants or pismires a handful of their eggs two hundred, of millepedes (wood-lice) two hundred, of bees two hundred and fifty; digeste them together, the space of a month, then pour off the clear spirit, and keep it safe. This water or spirit is of the same value as the former.112

But, quitting these "fond conceits," as honest old Burton113calls them, and investigating the subject upon acknowledged and recognised principles, it will be found that, as the ancient philosophers and naturalists regarded the semen as the purest and most perfect part of our blood, the flower of our blood and a portion of the brain, so the sole object of all aphrodisiacal preparations should be to promote its copious secretion.

Before, however, proceeding to indicate the means most conducive thereto, it may prove interesting to the reader to be informed what were the opinions of some of the most celebrated philosophers of antiquity, upon the semen. "Let us first," says Montaigne,114know whether, at least, all they (physicians) agree about the matter whereof men produce one another.... Archesilaus, the physician, whose favourite and disciple Socrates was, said that men and beasts were formed of a lacteous slime, expressed by the heat of the earth. Pythagoras says that our seed is the foam or cream of our better blood. Plato, that it is the distillation of the marrow of the back-bones; and raises his argument from this: that that part is first sensible of being weary of the work. Alcmeon, that it is a part of the substance of the brain, and that it is so, says he, is proved by its causing weakness of the eyes in those who are over-immoderately addicted to that exercise. Democritus, that it is a substance extracted from soul and body. Aristotle, an excrement drawn from the aliment of the last blood which is diffused over all our members; others, that it is a blood concocted and digested by the heat of the genitals."

But, to return from this digression. Under whatever point of view thesemen verilebe considered, whether as containing,according to some physicians, all the parts of the fœtus, under the name of organic molecules, or as being, in the opinion of others, merely destined to fecundate the female egg, it will be equally true that the semen is a fluid impregnated with a vivifying principle regarded as the most important (validissimum) of our humours, by Hippocrates, who, in support of this his opinion, adduces the fact of our becoming debilitated, however small the quantity we may lose of it in the venereal act.115

Zeno, the father of the Stoic philosophy, called the loss of semen the loss of part of the animating principle; and that sage's practice was conformable with his principles, for he is recorded to have embraced his wife but once in his life, and that out of mere courtesy.

Epicuras and Democritus were nearly of the same opinion as Zeno; and the Athletæ, that their strength might be unimpaired, never married. The Rabbis, in their anxiety to preserve their nation, are said to have ordered, with a view of preventing a loss of vigour, that a peasant should indulge but once a week, and a merchant but once a month, a sailor but twice a year, and a studious man but once in two years; and for the same reason, Moses forbade indulgence before battle.

"Les êtres," says a writer in the Dictionnaire des Sciences Médicales,116"qui font le plus abus de leurs facultés intellectuelles et sensitives extérieures, sont les moins capables d'un coït fréquent, tandis que les idiots, les crétins, l'exercent bien davantage. De même, l'âne, le cochon se livrent plus stupidement à l'acte de propagation et repandent beaucoup plus de sperme que des espèces intelligentes; enfin les animaux à petitcerveau, tels que les poissons, montrent une extrême fécondité."

If now, it be asked what will best promote the secretion of the seminal fluid, or, in other words, which is the best aphrodisiac, it may be confidently answered, the use of a substantial nourishment, such as medical men designate as an analeptic diet. Food of this description, without fatiguing the gastric organs, furnishes an abundant chyle, from which is elaborated a rich blood, and in which the secretory organs find materials of an excellent quality, and in an almost constant proportion with the regular consumption of their products. All food of easy and quick digestion is an analeptic, whence it follows that the same substance which is an analeptic to one person, may prove indigestible and innutritious for another. The numerous treatises upon digestion render it unnecessary to specify here the different aliments most proper for convalescents, suffice it to say, generally, that those meats in which azezome is found are the most nutritious. This animal principle is that extractive matter of animal fibre which produces the red appearance of uncooked meat; it is also that which forms what is called thebrownof roasted meats, gives the flavour to broths and soups, the peculiar smell to boiled meat, and constitutes the much admiredgoutof game and venison. It is not found in the flesh of young animals, which is said, with reason, to be, on that very account, less nutritious. It is only when they have attained the adult age that it appears in them; it is abundant in beef, mutton, kid, hare, pigeon, partridge, pheasant, woodcock, quail, duck, goose, and generally, in all animals having dark coloured flesh. Mushrooms and oysters also contain some, but in a very small proportion.

Food in which this principle exists appears to impress upon the membrane of the stomach an increase of activity; thedigestion is easy, and from a small mass of alimentary substance an abundant chyle is obtained. The chyliferous vessels derive a very great proportion of reparative materials; there is found but little excrementitious residue, the blood is enriched and its course accelerated, while the impulsive force of the heart and arteries is strong and more lively. Under the influence of this regimen a greater quantity of heat is developed and, in a given time, there is a greater absorption of oxygen than during a vegetable one; the respiration is performed more freely, the organs increase in size, but it is then a genuine embonpoint; nutrition is, in reality, more active, it is not a deceptive turgidity; the energy of the secretions and exhalations is redoubled, cutaneous perspiration becomes more abundant, and the glandular apparatus fulfil their functions with greater facility. A man who adopts this food becomes consequently very well fitted to make the sacrifices exacted by the calls of love, to which he is then more frequently solicited.

The mollusca in general, and testaceous animals in particular, have been considered as endowed with aphrodisiac properties. Juvenal attributes this quality to oysters which, together with mussles, have in this respect become vulgarly proverbial.

"Quis enim Venus ebria curat?Inguinis et capitis quæ sint discrimina nescitGrandia quæ mediis jam noctibus ostrea mordet."117

"For what cares the drunken dame?(Take head or tail), to her 'tis much the sameWho at deep midnight on fat oysters sups."

Wallich informs us that the ladies of his time had recourse, on such occasions, to the brains of the mustela piscis. The Sepia octopus was also in great repute, and Plautus, in his play of Cisina, introduces an old man who has just been purchasing some at the market.

Appuleius, the celebrated author of theMetamorphoseon de Asino aureo(Metamorphoses of the Golden Ass), and who lived in the 2nd century, under the Antonines, having married a rich widow, was accused by her father Æmilian, before Claudius Maximus, pro-Consul of Asia, of having employed sorcery and charms in order to gain her affections (a parallel case with that of Shakespear's Othello). The love-potions alleged to have been administered were asserted to be chiefly composed of shell-fish, lobsters, sea hedge-hogs, spiced oysters, and cuttle-fish, the last of which was particularly famed for its stimulating qualities. Appuleius fulley exonerated himself in his admirableApologia ceu oratio de Magica, so esteemed for the purity of its style as to have been pronounced by Saint Augustine (De Civitate Dei, lib. xviii. c. 20) ascopiosissima et disertissima oratio. The reason adduced by Æmilian for believing that Appuleius had chiefly used fish for the purpose was, that they must necessarily have great efficacy in exciting women to venery, inasmuch as Venus herself was born of the sea.

Venette118supports this view when he says:

"Nous avons l'expérience en France que ceux qui ne vivent presque que de coquillages et de poissons qui ne sont que de l'eau rassemblée, sont plus ardents à l'amour que les autres, en effet, nous nous y sentons bien plus y portésen Caresme qu'en tout autre saison parce-qu'en ce temps là nous ne nous nourrissonsque de poissons et d'herbes qui sont des aliments composés de beaucoup d'eau.

Should this be true, the Infallible (?) Church must have committed an astounding blunder in thinking to mortify, for six weeks, the sinful lusts and affections of its dupes, by confining them, for the above period, to the exclusive use of such articles of food.

There are also some aliments which, although not included in the class of analeptics, are, nevertheless, reported to possess specific aphrodisiacal qualities; such are fish, truffles, and chocolate.

The following anecdote relative to this property in fish is related by Hecquet:119

"Sultan Saladin, wishing to ascertain the extent of the continence of the dervishes, took two of them into his palace, and, during a certain space of time, had them fed upon the most succulent food. In a short time all traces of their self-inflicted severities were effaced, and theirembonpointbegan to re-appear.

"In this state he gave them two Odalisques120of surpassing beauty, but all whose blandishments and allurements proved ineffectual, for the two holy men came forth from the ordeal as pure as the diamond of Bejapore.121

"The Sultan still kept them in his palace, and, to celebrate their triumph, caused them to live upon a diet equallyrecherché, but consisting entirely of fish. A few days afterwards they were again subjected to the united powers of youth and beauty, but this time nature was too strong, and the too happy cenobites forgot, in the arms of voluptuousness, their vows of continence and chastity."

This peculiar property in fish has been attributed to the presence of phosphorus, which is known to exist somewhat plentifully in their substance, and has also been discovered in their roes in a simple state of combination. Now, phosphorus is one of the most powerful stimulants: it acts upon the generative organism in a manner to cause the most violent priapisms; but this principle does not act alone, and there must also be taken into account the different seasonings and condiments which form the basis of most culinary preparations to which fish are subjected, and which are all taken from the class of irritants.

The prolific virtues of fish have, no doubt, been greatly exaggerated, and it is certain that too much importance has been given to the observation made (rather upon slight grounds) by travellers as to the abundant population of ichthyophagic nations; nor would it be difficult to adduce facts to prove to the incredulous that the continuous use of fish excites lasciviousness in such persons only as are constitutionally inclined thereto.

The following instances sufficiently establish the aphrodisiacal qualities of phosphorus. A drake belonging to a chemist having drunk water out of a copper vessel which had contained phosphorus, ceased not gallanting his females till he died. An old man to whom a few drops only of phosphoric ether had been administered, experienced repeated and imperious venereal wants which he was compelled to satisfy. Leroy and Battatz, two celebrated French physicians of the last century, tried the effects of phosphorus upon themselves, with similar results. Sensations of the same kind are said to be experienced by persons whose occupation requires the frequent handling of this drug. It may thus be considered as satisfactorily proved that the above substance is essentially an energetic stimulant of the genital organs; but, should still further evidence be required,it may be found in the fact that the administration of it, even in small doses, has been productive of the most horrible and fatal results, instances of which are recorded in many medical works both foreign and English, but more particularly in those of Brera, Magendie, and others.

The erotic properties of truffles and mushrooms are considered by most writers as better established than those of fish. The ancient Romans were well acquainted with truffles, and obtained them from Greece and Africa, especially from the province of Libya, the fungi found there being particularly esteemed for their delicacy and flavour. In modern times, also, the truffle is regarded as thediamondof the kitchen, being highly valued for its capability of exciting the genesiac sense, it being a positive aphrodisiac which disposes men to be exacting and women complying.122

The following instance of its effects is given by Brillat Savarin,123to whom the circumstances were communicated, in confidence, by the lady who was the subject of them:

"Je soupai," says she, "un jour chez moi en trio avec mon mari et un de ses amis dont le nom était V——. C'était un beau garçon et ne manquant pas d'esprit et venait souvent chez moi, mais il ne m'avait jamais rien dit qui put le faire regarder comme mon amant, et s'il me fesait la cour, c'était d'une manière si enveloppée qu'il n'y avait qu'une sotte qui eut pû s'en fâcher. Il paraissait, ce jour là, destiné á me tenir compagnie pendant le reste de la soirée, car mon mari avait unrendezvous et devait nous quitter bientôt. Notre souper avait pour base une petite volaill truffée. Les truffes étaient délicieuses, et quoique je les aime beaucoup, je me contins, nonobstant; je ne bus aussi qu'un seul verre de Champagne, ayant quelque pressentiment que la soirée ne se passerait pas sans évènement. Bientôt mon mari partit et me laissa seule avec V—— qu'il regardait comme tout à fait sans conséquence. La conversation roula d'abord sur des sujets indifférents, mais elle ne tarda pas à prendre une tournure plus sérieuse et plus intéressante. V—— fut successivement flatteur, expansif, affectueux, caressant, et voyant que je ne faisais que plaisanter de tant de belles choses, il devint si pressant que je ne pus plus me tromper de ses prétensions. Alors, je me reveillai comme d'une songe et me défendis avec autant plus de franchise que mon cœur ne me disait rien pour lui. Il persistait avec une action que pouvait devenir tout à fait offensante; j'eus beaucoup de peine de la remener, et j'avone, à ma honte, que toute espérance ne lui serait pas interdite. Enfin, il me quitta, j'allai me coucher et dormis tout d'un somme. Mais le lendemain fut le jour du jugement; j'examinai ma conduite de la veille, et je la trouvai repréhensible. J'aurais du arreter V—— dès les premières phrases, et ne pas me prêter à une conversation qui ne présageait rien de bon. Ma fierté aurait dû sonner, crier, me fâcher, faire, enfin, tout ce que je ne fis pas. Que vous dirai je, Monsieur, je mis tout cela sur le compte des truffes, et je suis réelement persuadée qu'elles m'avaient donne une prédisposition dangereuse, et si je n'y renonce pas (ce qui eut été trop rigoureux) du moins je n'en mange jamais sans que le plaisir qu'elles me causent ne soit mêlé d'un peu de défiance."

The mushroom was also equally well known as the truffle to the ancient Romans for its aphrodisiacal qualities. Thus, Martial says:

"Quum sit anus conjux et sint tibi mortua membra,Nil aliudbulbisquam sater esse potes."124

"If envious age relax the nuptial knot,Thy food be mushrooms, and thy feast shalot."

This bulb was believed by the ancients to be so decided a stimulant, that it was always served up, together with pepper and pine-nuts, at the wedding dinner.

An immoderate use of chocolate was, in the 17th century, considered so powerful an aphrodisiac that Jean Franco Raucher strenuously enforced the necessity of forbidding the monks to drink it, adding that if such an interdiction had been laid upon it at an earlier period, the scandal with which that sacred order had been assailed would have been prevented. It is a singular fact that, fearful of losing their character, or, what, perhaps, was dearer to them, their chocolate, the worthy cenobites were so diligent in suppressing Raucher's work that four copies only of it are said to be in existence.

The history of the middle ages abounds with complaints of the lubricity, gluttony, and drunkenness of the monks, vices which are described as being their ruin, in the fallowing pithy distich:

"Sunt tria nigrorum quæ vestant res monachorum,Renes et venter et pocula sumpta frequenter."125

"Three things to ruin monks combine—Venery, gluttony, and wine."

A monk who was a great enemy to adultery, was one day preaching against it, and grew so warm in his argument, and took so much pains to convince his congregation of his own abhorrence of it, that at last he broke out in the following solemn declaration:

"Yea, my brethren, I had rather, for the good of my soul, have to do with ten maids every month, than, in ten years, to touch one married woman!"

The celebrity they acquired in the field of Venus may readily be imagined from a quatrain that was affixed in a conspicuous part of the Church of St. Hyacinthe, and which runs thus:

"Femmes qui désirez de devenir enceinteAddressez cy vos vœux au grand Saint Hyacinthe,Et tout ce que pour vous le Saint ne pourra faireLes moines de céans pourront y satisfaire."126You ladies who for pregnancy do wishTo great St. Hyacinthe your prayers apply,And what his Saintship cannot accomplishThe monks within will surely satisfy."

It would have been well had these holy men been contented with these, comparatively, venial indulgences. The following macaronic epigram, however, shows that they were but too much addicted to theAmour Socratique:

"Let a friar of some order tecum pernoctareEither thy wife or thy daughter hic vult violare,Or thy son he will prefer, sicut fortem fortis,God give such a friar pain in Inferni portis."127

But the open violation of their monastic vows, especially that of chastity, sometimes subjected monks to very severe punishment, a singular instance of which is recorded by Thevet,128who, on account of the inimitable quaintness of his language and style, must be allowed to tell his own story:

"Phillippus Bourgoin, grād prieur de l'Abbaye de Cluny, voyant l'insolence, riblerïes et putasseries que menoient certains religieux de l'abbaye de Cluny les fist appeller particulièrement, leur demonstra le tort qu'ilz se faisoient et à la saincteté de leur ordre, et appercevant qu'ilz continuoient leur train, en pleine voute ou assemblée, qu'ils font en leur chapitre, leur denonça, pu'estāt en son oratoire Sainct Hugues s'estoit apparu à luy, le chargeant de leur fair entendre qu'ilz amendassent leur vie, ou autremĕt, qu'ilz tomberoient en son indignation, les ayant en telle verdeure envoya querir des maistres opérateurs sécretment en son logis et māda querir une nuict tous les plus mauvais garçons de Moynes, les uns après les autres, qui n'estaient plutôt entrez au logis du Prieur qu'ō leur bādoit les yeux, et aprèsles maistres leurs nettòiét bragardementleurspetites boursettesde ce qui les faisoit hennir après leurs voluptéz et après les renvoiet en leurs chambres,plus legiers de deux grains qu'ilz n'etoiét auparavant, les ayant chappônez. Après telle exécution le bruict courut qu'ō avoit veu Sainct Hugues se pourmêant près de l'enfermerie de l'abbaye, qui fist croire aux pauvres Moynes hongres, que par adresse autre qu'humaine, ils avoiêtainsi esté estropiezde leur virilité."

To these poor monks may, however, be applied the sly remark of Hume, upon a similar act of cruelty perpetuated, though for a far more innocent cause, by Geoffry, the father of Henry II., upon the prior and chapter of Seez in Normandy, viz., that "of the pain and danger they might justly complain, yet, since they had vowed chastity, he deprived them of a superfluous treasure."129

If the properties of ambergris be less potent than those of phosphorus, they are certainly less fatal. According to Boswell,130three grains of the former suffice to produce a marked acceleration of the pulse, a considerable development of muscular strength, a greater activity in the intellectual faculties, and a disposition to cheerfulness and venereal desires. The same author also says that it is a medicine which can, for a short time, restore an effete old man to juvenility.131The ancients reposed great confidence in the virtues of this drug, employing it as a renovator of the vital powers and of the organs, whose energy had been exhausted by age or by excess; and throughout the East this perfume still maintains a reputation for life-preserving qualities.

Madame Du Barry,132the infamous mistress of Louis XV., is reported to have availed herself of its aphrodisiacal qualitiesin order to stimulate the jaded appetites of her royal paramour. "L'attachement du roi pour Madame Du Barry133lui est venu des efforts prodigieux qu'elle lui fit faire au moyen d'an baptême (lavement) ambré dont elle se parfuma intérieurement tous les jours. On ajoute qu'elle joignit à cela un secret dont on ne se sert pas encore en bonne société."

Piquant as is this anecdote, the key to it is equally so. "Les mouches cantarides, i diabolini l'essence de giroflée, les baptêmes ambrés, etc., sont des inventions de notre siecle dont la débilité eut été incurable sans ces secours, l'auteur ne peut rendre lesecret de la mauvaise société, dont se sert la Comtesse, sans blesser la bonne, tout ce qu'il peut dire décemment est que ce secret est un diminutif des erreurs philosophiques."134

The old pharmacopœia are amply furnished with formula of which amber constitutes the base. These recipes are generally designated by names which, to a certain extent, indicate the particular use to which they are destined by their makers; thus, France formerly boasted her "Tablettes de Magnanimité," or "Electuaire Satyrion," and "Un poudre de joie." Troches, or odoriferous lozenges, to which the ancients gave the pretty name of "Avunculæ Cypriæ," were, and perhaps are still, sold in Paris under that of "Seraglio Pastilles." Ambergris forms the basis of these, as it also does of the Indian pastilles called "Cachunde," and which were equally in repute. Zactus Lusitanus135states that they were composed of bole Tuccinum, musk, ambergris, aloes-wood, red and yellow sanders (pterocarpuscarpus santalinus) mastic, sweet-flag (calamus aromaticus) galanga, cinnamon, rhubarb, Indian myrobalon, absynth, and of some pounded precious stones, which, however, impart no additional quality to the composition. Speaking of this composition, the Encyclopœdia Perthensis describes it as "a medicine highly celebrated among the Chinese and Indians; it is composed of ambergris and several other aromatic ingredients, perfumes, medicinal earths, and precious stones. It imparts a sweetness to the breath, is a valuable medicine in all nervous complaints, and is esteemed as a prolonger of life andan exciter to venery.136

Rivière137gives us the following formula for a potion whose virtue is indisputable. "Take of amber, half a drachm; musk, two scruples; aloes, one drachm and a half; pound them all together, pour upon the mass a sufficient quantity of spirits of wine so that the liquor may cover it to the height of about five fingers' breadth; expose it to sand heat, filter and distil it, close it hermetically, and administer it in broth in the dose of three or five drops. This liquor is also advantageous when mixed with syrup, prepared as follows:—Take of cinnamon water, four ounces; orange and rose water, each six ounces, and sugar candy q.s.

Musk taken internally is said by many physicians to be almost equal to ambergris for its aphrodisiacal qualities. Externally applied, this substance produces very singular phenomena. Borelli details the case of a man "qui s'étant frotté le penis avec du musc avant de se livrer à l'exercise des fonctions genitales, resta uni avec sa femme sans pouvoir s'en séparer.Il fallait, dans cette position lui donner une quantité de lavements afin de ramoller les parties qui s'étaient extraordinairement tumifiées."138Diermerbreek and Schurigius gave similar instances. The effects of musk are, therefore, almost equal to those produced by certain plants, as recorded by Theophrastus: "Esse herbas quæ vel adsexagesimum coitumvim præstant sed at demum secernitur sanguis."139Weickard says that by means of this drug he resuscitated the genital power in a man who had nearly completed his eightieth year.

But, of all aphrodisiacs, the most certain and terrible in its effects are cantharides, commonly known as Spanish flies. That they exercise a powerful and energetic action upon the organization and stimulate, to the utmost, the venereal desire, is but too true. The effects, however, which these insects, when applied as a blister upon the skin, are known to produce, are insignificant when compared with their intense action upon the stomach when taken internally; nor is it the stomach only which is affected by them: the bladder experiences an irritation exceeding even that caused by the severest strangury. To these succeed perforation of the stomach, ulcers throughout the entire length of the intestinal canal, dysentery, and, lastly, death in the midst of intolerable agonies. Medical works abound with observations concerning the fatal effects of cantharides when unduly administered, whether from ignorance or for exciting the venereal appetite. The two following cases are recorded by Pabrol in his "Observations Anatomiques":

"En 1752 nous fumes visiter un pauvre homme d'Organ en Provence atteint du plus horrible satyriasis qu'on saurait voir et penser. Le fait est tel. Il avait les quartes, pour en guerirprend conseil d'une sorcière, laquelle lui fait une potion d'une once de semences d'orties, de deux drachmes de cantharides, d'une drachme et demi de caboule et autres, ce qui le rendit si furieux à l'acte vénérien que sa femme nous jura son Dieu,qu'il l'avait chevauchée, dans deux mois, quatre vingt sept fois, sans y comprendre plus de dix fois qu'il s'étaitcorrompu lui-même. Dans le temps que nous consultions, le pauvre homme spermatisa trois fois à notre présence, embrassa le pied du lit, et agitant contre lui comme si c'eust été sa femme. Ce spectacle nous étonn et nous hâta à lui faire des remèdes pour abattre cette furieusse chaleur, mais quel remède qu'on lui eust faire, se passa-t-il le pas."

"Un médecin à Orange, nommé Chauvel avait été appellé en 1758 à Caderousse, petite ville proche de sa résidence, pour voir un homme atteint d'une maladie du même genre. A l'entrée de la maison il trouve la femme du dit malade, laquelle se plaignit à lui de la furieuse lubricité de son mari,qui l'avait chevauchée quarante fois pour une nuit, et avait toutes les parties gonflées, étant contrainte les lui montrer afin qu'il lui ordonnast les remèdes pour abattre l'inflammation. Le mal du mari étant venu d'un breuvage semblable à l'autre que lui fut donné par une femme qui gardait l'hôpital, pour guérir la fièvre tierce qui l'affligeoit, de laquelle il tomba dans une telle fureur qu'il fallait l'attacher comme s'il eust été possédé du diable. Le vicaire du lieu fut présent, pour l'exhorter à la présence même du Sieur Chauvel, lesquels il priait le laisser mourir avec le plaisir, les femmes le plièrent dans un linsseuil mouillé en eau et en vinaigre, où il fut lassé jusqu'au le lendemain qu'elles allaient le visiter, mais sa furieuse chaleur fut bien abattue et eteinte, car elles le trouvèrent roid mort, la bouche béante, montrant les dents, et son membre gangréne."

Paré also relates that a courtezan, having sprinkled the meat given by her to one of her lovers, with pounded cantharides, the wretched youth was seized with a violent priapism and loss of blood at the anus, of which he died.

Ferdinand the Catholic, of Castile, owed his death to the effects of a philter administered to him by his queen, Germaine de Foix, in the hope of enabling him to beget an heir to the crowns of Aragon, Navarre, and Naples. "Plusieurs dames," says Mignot,140"attachées à la Reine, lui indiquèrent un breuvage qu'il fallait, disoit on donner à Ferdinand pour ranimer ses forces. Cette princese fit composer ce reméde, sous ses yeux, et le présenta au roi qui désirait, plus qu'elle, d'avoir un fils. Depuis ce jour, la santé de Ferdinand s'affaiblit, au point qu'il ne la recouvra jamais."

The life of the celebrated Wallenstein, one of the heroes of the "Thirty Years' war," was far a long time endangered from the effects of a potion administered to him by his countess. "De retour dans sa patrie, il (Wallenstein) sut inspirer une vive passion à une riche veuve de la famille de Wiezkova, et eut l'adresse de se faire préféré à des rivaux d'un rang plus élevé; mais cette union fut troublée par l'extrême jalousie de sa femme; ou prétend même qu'elle fit usage de philtres que pensèrent compromettre le santé de son mari."141

Cardinal Dubois,142the favourite and minister of Philip Duke of Orleans, Regent of France, during the minority of LouisXV., gives the following amusing account of a love potion, to the powerful effects of which he considered himself indebted for his existence. "An old bachelor, of Brivas, had engaged to marry a young lady of only sixteen years of age. The night before the wedding he assembled the wise heads of his family for the purpose of consulting upon the best means of enabling him to perform his part creditably in the approaching amorous conflict. Opinions were divided; some maintained that nature was adequate to the occasion at any age, while others recommended a certain preparation in the Pharmacopeia, which would amply supply the defect of youth in a sexaginary husband. The old gentleman chose, without hesitation, the surest and speediest of these two chances of success. The prescription was sent to the shop of my worthy father, who was an apothecary in the town, and he accordingly immediately set to work, and made up a draught which would have awakened desire even in Methusaleh himself. This valuable philter was not to be sent to the party till the next day. It was late, and my mother," continues the Cardinal, "desired her husband to retire to rest and he, tired with his day's work, quickly undressed himself, blew out his candle, and deposited himself, like a loving husband, by the side of his dear spouse. Awakening in the middle of the night, he complained of being excessively thirsty, and his better half, roused from her slumbers, got up in the dark, and groping about for something wherewith to quench his thirst, her hand encountered the invigorating philter, which it truly proved to be, for I came into the world precisely nine months after that memorable night."143

Although love-potions and philters, as well as the other preparations had recourse to, for animating and arousing theorgans for reproduction frequently owe, as we have shewn, their advantages to cantharides, and are, but too often productive of terrible effects, yet it cannot be denied that when administered by a skilful, cautious, and experienced physician, they have restored the desired vigour when all other means have failed.

The flesh of the Schinck (scincus), an amphibious animal of the lizard species, and sometimes of the land lizard, or crocodile, is said, when reduced to powder and drunk with sweet wine, to act miraculously in exciting the venereal action; it is also prepared for the same object in the form of the electuary known by the name of Diasatyrion. Ælius recommends that in order to cause the erection of the virile organ, the flesh of this animal should be taken from the vicinity of its genital apparatus.144It is a well known fact that the Egyptian peasants carried their lizards to Cairo, whence they were forwarded,viâAlexandria, to Venice and Marseilles. This species of lizard, which feeds upon aromatic plants, was also used as an aphrodisiac by the Arabs, and the well known anti-poisonous quality of its flesh had caused it, in more ancient times, to be employed as an ingredient in the far-famed Mithridates, or antidote to poison. Browne informs us145"that in Africa, no part of the Materia Medica is so much in requisition as those which stimulate to venereal pleasure. TheLacerta scincusin powder, and a thousand other articles of the same kind, are in continual demand." The plant Chervri (sandix ceropolium) is also accounted as capable of exciting amorous propensities, so much so that Tiberius, the Roman emperor, the most lascivious, perhaps, of men, is said to have exacted a certain quantity of it fromthe Germans, by way of tribute, for the purpose of rendering himself vigorous with his women and catamites; and Venette says that the Swedish ladies give it to their husbands when they find them flag in their matrimonial duties.146

But it was upon the plant called Satyrion (orchis mascula) that those who required aphrodisiacal remedies rested their most sanguine hopes. This plant, Theophrastus assures us, possesses so wonderful a property of exciting venery that a mere application of it to the parts of generation will enable a man to accomplish the act of love twelve times successively. Speaking of this plant, Venette147says that the herb which the Indian King Androphyl sent to King Antiochus was that it was so efficacious in exciting men to amorous enjoyment as to surpass in that quality, all other plants, the Indian who was the bearer of it assuring the king "qu'elle lui avait donné de la vigueur pour soixante dix embrassements," but he owned "qu'aux derniers efforts ce qu'il rendait n'était plus de semence."

Matthoile, however, observing that those persons who made use of it did not appear much given to lasciviousness, concluded that we had lost the true satyrion of the ancients; but, it is nevertheless certain, notwithstanding so adverse an opinion, that this plant long preserved its reputation, and was recommended by all botanists for its aphrodisiac potency. Of all the species of this plant the one popularly known as dog-stones is reputed to possess the greatest virtue.

The Turks have also their Satyrion (orchis morio), which grows upon the mountains near Constantinople, and which theymake use of to repair their strength, and stimulate them to the generative act. From this root is made the salep of which the inhabitants of Turkey, Persia, and Syria, are extremely fond, being looked upon as one of the greatest restoratives and provocatives to venery in the whole vegetable world. But besides the aphrodisiacal qualities attributed to this plant by the above people, they give it credit for other ones, which good opinion experience has confirmed, and therefore whenever they undertake a long voyage, they never omit to carry it with them as a specific against all diseases. Modern practitioners likewise commend its restorative, mucilaginous and demulcent qualities as rendering it of considerable utility, particularly in sea scurvy, diarrhœa, dysentery, and stone or gravel. In addition to this property, salep also possesses the very singular one of concealing the taste of sea water, hence to prevent the dreadful calamity of perishing by thirst at sea it has been proposed that the powder of this plant should form part of the provisions of every ship's company.

Borax is likewise considered to possess peculiar aphrodisiacal qualities. "Il pénètre," says Venette, "toutes les parties de notre corps et ouvre tous les vaisseaux, et par la ténuité de sa substance,il conduit aux parties génitalestout ce qui est capable de nous servir de matière à la semence."148

The plant Rocket (Brasica eruca) has likewise been especially celebrated by the ancient poets for possessing the virtue of restoring vigour to the sexual organs, on which account it was consecrated to and sown around, the statue of Priapus; thus Columella says:—

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