Early English Meals and Manners Part 44

NOTES.

[Transcriber's Note:

Numbering of linenotes does not always correspond exactly to a word's place in the main text. References that are off by only a line or two have not been corrected.]

l. 11-12. John Russell lets off his won't-learns very easily. w.i.l.l.yam Bulleyn had a different treatment for them. See the extract from him on "Boxyng & Neckweede" after these _Notes_.

l. 49. See the interesting "Lord Fairfax's Orders for the Servants of his Houshold" [after the Civil Wars], in Bishop Percy's notes to the Northumberland Household Book, p. 421-4, ed. 1827.

l. 51. Chip. 'other .ij. pages ... them oweth to chippe bredde, but not too nye the crumme.' _H. Ord._ p. 71-2. The "Chippings of Trencher-Brede" in Lord Percy's household were used "for the fedyinge of my lords houndis." _Percy H. Book_, p. 353. [["_Non comedas crustam, colorem quia gignit adustam_ ... the Authour in this Text warneth vs, to beware of crusts eating, because they ingender a-dust cholor, or melancholly humours, by reason that they bee burned and dry. And therefore great estates the which be [_orig._ the] chollerick of nature, cause the crustes aboue and beneath to be chipped away; wherfore the pith or crumme should be chosen, the which is of a greater nourishment then the crust." _Regimen Sanitatis Salerni_, ed. 1634, p. 71. Fr.

_chapplis_, bread-chippings. Cotgrave.]]

l. 52. _Trencher._ The College servant 'Sc.r.a.pe Trencher,' R. Holme, Bk.

III., Chap. iv., p. 099 [199], notes the change of material from bread to wood. [[Note renamed and moved from l. 94; see Corrigenda]]

l. 56. _Trencher bread._ ITEM that the _Trencher Brede_ be maid of the Meale as it c.u.mmyth frome the Milne. _Percy Household Book_, p. 58.

l. 66. Cannell, a Spout, a tap, a c.o.c.ke in a conduit. _Epistomium. Vne canelle, vn robinet._ Baret.

l. 68. Faucet. Also he [the yeoman of the Butler of Ale] asketh allowaunce for tubbys, treyes, and _faucettes_, occupied all the yeare before. _H. Ord._ p. 77.

l. 74. _Figs._ A. Borde, _Introduction_, a.s.signs the gathering of figs to "the Mores whych do dwel in Barbary," ... "and christen men do by them, & they wil be diligent and wyl do al maner of seruice, but they be set most comonli to vile things; they be called slaues, thei do gader grapes and _fygges_, and with some of the _fygges_ they wyl wip ther tayle, & put them in the frayle." Figs he mentions under Judaea. "Iury is called y^e lande of Iude, it is a n.o.ble countre of ryches, plenty of wine & corne ... _Figges_ and Raysions, & all other frutes." In his _Regyment_, fol. M. iii., Borde says of 'Fygges ... They doth stere a man to veneryous actes, for they doth auge and increase the seede of generacion. And also they doth prouoke a man to sweate: wherfore they doth ingendre lyce.'

ll. 74-95. _Chese._ 'there is iiij. sortes of Chese, which is to say, grene Chese, softe chese, harde chese, or spermyse. Grene chese is not called grene by y^e reason of colour, but for y^e newnes of it, for the whay is not half pressed out of it, and in operacion it is colde and moyste. Softe chese not to new nor to olde, is best, for in operacion it is hote and moyste. Harde chese is hote and drye, and euyll to dygest.

Spermyse is a Chese the whiche is made with curdes and with the Iuce of herbes.... Yet besydes these .iiij natures of chese, there is a chese called a Irweue [rewene, ed. 1567] chese, the whiche, if it be well ordered, doth pa.s.se all other cheses, none excesse taken.' A. Borde, _Reg._ fol. I. i. See note on l. 85.

l. 77. In his chapter _Of Prunes and Damysens_, Andrew Borde says, Syxe or seuen Damysens eaten before dyner, be good to prouoke a ma{n}nes appetyde; they doth mollyfie the bely, and be abstersyue, the skynne and the stones must be ablated and cast away, and not vsed. _Regyment_, N.

i. b. [[Note renamed and moved from l. 177; see Corrigenda]]

l. 78, 83. The Bill-berry or _Windberry_, R. Holme, Bk. II., p. 52, col.

1; p. 79, col. 1; three Wharl Berries or Bill-Berries ... They are termed Whortle Berries or _Wind Berries_, p. 81, col. 2. -- xxviii. See the prose Burlesques, _Reliq. Antiq._, v. 1, p. 82. Why hopes thu nott for sothe that ther stode wonus a c.o.ke on Seynt Pale stepull toppe, and drewe up the strapuls of his brech. How preves thu that? Be all the .iiij. doctors of _Wynbere hylles_, that is to saye, Vertas, Gadatryme, Trumpas, and Dadyltrymsert.

l. 79. _Fruits._ These officers make provysyons in seasons of the yere accordynge for fruytes to be had of the Kinges gardynes withoute prises; as cherryes, peares, apples, nuttes greete and smalle, for somer season; and lenten, wardens, quinces and other; and also of presentes gevyn to the Kinge; they be pourveyours of _blaundrelles_, pepyns, and of all other fruytes. _H. Ord._ p. 82.

l. 80. Mr Dawson Turner's argument that the "ad alb.u.m pulverem" of the Leicester Roll, A.D. 1265, was white sugar pounded (Pref. to Household Expenses, ed. 1841, p. li., proves only that the _xiiij lib. Zucari_ there mentioned, were not bought for making _White powder_ only.

ll. 81-93. _Crayme._ 'Rawe crayme undecocted, eaten with strawberyes, or hurttes, is a rurall mannes ba{n}ket. I haue knowe{n} such bankettes hath put me{n} i{n} ieobardy of theyr lyues.' A. Borde, _Regyment_, fol.

I. ij.

l. 82, l. 93. Junket. The auncient manner of grateful suitors, who, hauing prevailed, were woont to present the Judges, or the Reporters, of their causes, with Comfets or other _Jonkets_. Cotgrave, w. _espice_.

l. 85. Cheese. Whan stone pottes be broken, what is better to glew them againe or make them fast, nothing like the Symunt made of Cheese; know therfore it will quickly build a stone in a drie body, which is ful of choler adust. And here in Englande be diuers kindes of Cheeses, as Suff.

Ess.e.x, Banburie .&c. according to their places & feeding of their cattel, time of y^e yere, layre of their Kine, clenlinesse of their Dayres, quant.i.tie of their b.u.t.ter; for the more b.u.t.ter, the worse Cheese. _Bullein_, fol. lx.x.xv.

l. 89. _b.u.t.ter._ A. Borde, _Introduction_, makes the _Flemynge_ say,

b.u.t.termouth Flemyng, men doth me call.

b.u.t.ter is good meate, it doth relent the gall.

[[Note on l. 52 originally printed here: see Corrigenda.]]

l. 94. _Posset_ is hot Milk poured on Ale or Sack, having Sugar, grated Bisket, Eggs, with other ingredients boiled in it, which goes all to a Curd. R. Holme.

l. 94. _Poset_ ale is made with hote mylke and colde ale; it is a temperate drynke. A. Borde, _Reg. G._ iij.

l. 105. Hot wines & sweet or confectioned with spices, or very strong Ale or Beere, is not good at meales, for thereby the meat is rather corrupted then digested, and they make _hot and stinking vapours_ to ascend vp to the braines. Sir Jn. Harrington. _Pres. of Health_, 1624, p. 23.

l. 109. Reboyle. 'If any wynes be corrupted, _reboyled_, or unwholsome for mannys body, then by the comtroller it to be shewed at the counting bourde, so that by a.s.sent all suche pypes or vesselles defectife be dampned and cast uppon the losses of the seyd chiefe Butler.' _H. Ord._ p. 73.

l. 109. Lete, leek. 'Purveyours of Wyne ... to ride and oversee the places there as the Kinges wynes be lodged, that it be saufely kept from peril of _leeking_ and breaking of vessels, or lacke of hoopinge or other couperage, and all other crafte for the rackinge, coynynge, rebatinge, and other salvations of wynes, &c.' _H. Ord._ p. 74.

SWETE WYNES, p. 8, l. 118-20.[*]

[Footnote *: See _Maison Rustique_ or The Country Farme, p. 630-1, as to the qualities of Sweet Wines.]

a. Generally:

Halliwell gives under _Piment_ the following list of wines from MS.

Rawlinson. C. 86.

_Malmasyes_, _Tires_, and _Rumneys_, With _Caperikis_, Campletes[], and _Osueys_, _Vernuge_, _Cute_, and _Raspays_ also, Whippet and Pyngmedo, that that ben lawyers therto; And I will have also wyne de Ryne, With new maid _Clarye_, that is good and fyne, _Muscadell_, _Terantyne_, and _b.a.s.t.a.r.d_, With _Ypocras_ and _Pyment_ comyng afterwarde.

MS. Rawl. C. 86.

[Footnote : See _Campolet_ in "The Boke of Keruyng."]

And under _Malvesyne_ this:

Ye shall have Spayneche wyne and Gascoyne, _Rose coloure_, whyt, _claret_, rampyon, _Tyre_, _capryck_, and _malvesyne_, Sak, _raspyce_, alycaunt, _rumney_, _Greke_, _ipocrase_, new made _clary_, Suche as ye never had.

Interlude of the Four Elements (no date).

Of the wine drunk in England in Elizabeth's time, Harrison (Holinshed's Chron. v. 1, p. 167, col. 2, ed. 1586) says, "As all estates doo exceed herin, I meane for strangenesse and number of costlie dishes, so these forget not to vse the like excesse in wine, in so much as there is no kind to be had (neither anie where more store of all sorts than in England, although we have none growing with us, but yearlie to the proportion of 20,000 or 30,000 tun and vpwards, notwithstanding the dailie restreincts of the same brought over vnto vs) wherof at great meetings there is not some store to be had. Neither do I meane this of small wines onlie, as _Claret_, White, Red, French, &c., which amount to about fiftie-six sorts, according to the number of regions from whence they come: but also of the thirtie kinds of Italian, Grecian, Spanish, Canarian, &c., whereof _Vernage_, _Cate_, _pument_, _Raspis_, _Muscadell_, _Romnie_, _b.a.s.t.a.r.d_, _Tire_, _Oseie_, _Caprike_, _Clareie_, and _Malmesie_, are not least of all accompted of, bicause of their strength and valure. For as I haue said in meat, so the stronger the wine is, the more it is desired, by means wherof in old time, the best was called _Theologic.u.m_, because it was had from the cleargie and religious men, vnto whose houses manie of the laitie would often send for bottels filled with the same, being sure that they would neither drinke nor be serued of the worst, or such as was anie waies mingled or brued by the vintener: naie the merchant would haue thought that his soul{e} should haue gone streight-waie to the diuell, if he should haue serued them with other than the best."

On Wine, see also Royal Rolls, B.M. 14 B. xix.

. Specially: The following extracts are from Henderson's _History of Ancient and Modern Wines_, 1824, except where otherwise stated:--

1. _Vernage_ was a red wine, of a bright colour, and a sweetish and somewhat rough flavour, which was grown in Tuscany and other parts of Italy, and derived its name from the thick-skinned grape, _vernaccia_ (corresponding with the _vinaciola_ of the ancients), that was used in the preparation of it (See Bacci. Nat. Vinor. Hist., p. 20, 62). It is highly praised by Redi.[*]

[Footnote *: Vernage was made in the Genoese territory. The best was grown at San Gemignano, and in Bacci's time was in great request at Rome. The wine known as Vernaccia in Tuscany was always of a white or golden colour. _Henderson_, p. 396.]

2. _Vernagelle_ is not mentioned by Henderson. The name shows it to have been a variety of Vernage.

3. l. 118. _Cute._ "As for the _cuit_ named in Latin Sapa, it commeth neere to the nature of wine, and in truth nothing els it is, but Must or new wine boiled til one third part and no more do remain; & this _cuit_, if it be made of white Must is counted the better." _Holland's Plinies Nat. Hist._, p. 157. "(of the dried grape or raisin which they call Astaphis).... The sweet _cuit_ which is made thereof hath a speciall power and virtue against the Haemorrhois alone, of all other serpents,"

p. 148. "Of new pressed wine is made the wine called _Cute_, in Latin, _Sapa_; and it is by boiling the new pressed wine so long, as till that there remaine but one of three parts. Of new pressed wine is also made another _Cute_, called of the Latines _Defrutum_, and this is by boiling of the new wine onely so long, as till the halfe part be consumed, and the rest become of the thicknesse of honey." _Maison Rustique_, p. 622.

'Cute. A.S. _Caeren_, L. _carenum_, wine boiled down one-third, and sweetened.' c.o.c.kayne, Gloss. to Leechdoms.