HERB - "Hortulus" - "Pennyroyal" - long post

[RAISYA@aol.com]

First, I have to disagree with the opinion given in Blunt's introduction, that
Strabo should not be used alone to refer to the author.  Walahfrid refers to
himself as simply Strabo at the beginning and in the closing dedication, and I
suspect Blunt's opinion is based on modern ideas about surnames rather than
9th century ones.  I prefer to respect the author's choice and use Strabo.
It's obviously a matter of opinion, though.  But I really envy your possession
of a copy, because there were only 1500 copies, it took me months to track
down and get the loan of this one.

Now, back to the poems, here's another one.

"XIX.  Pennyroyal

	The humble scale of my song will not allow me
To embrace in fleeting verse the many virtues
Of pennyroyal.  They say that Eastern doctors
Will pay as much for it as we pay here
For a load of Indian pepper.  Since such a people,
Rich as they are, blessed with gold and ebony,
Who give to an eager world a wealth of marvels -
Since they will buy at such a price, so greedily,
Our pennyroyal, who can doubt its power
To allay a host of troubles?
							Oh, how wise,
How good is God!  Let us praise Him as we ought.
>From no land He withholds His bounty; what is rare
Beneath this sky, under another lies
In such abundance as the cheapest trash
We have among us here:  some things we scorn
Rich kingdoms pay great prices for.  And so
One land helps another; so the whole world,
Through all its parts, makes one family.
	Believe me, my friend, if you cook some pennyroyal
And use it as a potion or a poultice, it will cure
A heavy stomach - that you can take for truth.
Some things are only hearsay, but custom and usage
Allow us to blend them in with lofty truth - like this
When the sun is blazing down on you in the open,
To prevent the heat from harming your head, put a sprig
Of pennyroyal behind your ear...
								Ah me!
If my impatient Muse were not now forcing me 
To take in sail and make at last for harbor,
Many another flower could I gather for you."


============================================================================
Go to http://lists.ansteorra.org/lists.html to perform mailing list tasks.