tender
epithet; Pliny mentions the Strawberry as one of the native fruits of
Italy; Linnaeus declared he kept himself free from gout by eating
plentifully of the fruit; and Hoffman says he has known consumption
cured by the same means.

From Shakespeare we learn that in his day the fruit was grown in
Holborn, now the centre of London. Gloster, when contemplating
the death of Hastings, wishes to get the Bishop of Ely temporarily
out of the way, and thus addresses him:--

"My Lord of Ely--when I was last in Holborn
I saw good Strawberries in your garden there;
I do beseech you send for some of them."

In Elizabeth's time doctors made a tea from the leaves to act on the
kidneys, and used the roots as astringent.

All former Herbalists agreed in pronouncing strawberries
wholesome and beneficial beyond every other English fruit. Their
smell is refreshing to the spirits; they abate fever, promote urine,
and are gently laxative. The leaves may be used in gargles for
quinsies and sore mouths, but, "if anyone suffering from a wound in
the head should partake of this fruit, it would certainly prove fatal,"
in accordance with a widespread superstition.

So wholesome are Strawberries, that if laid in a heap and left by
themselves to decompose, they will decay without undergoing any
acetous fermentation; nor can their kindly temperature be soured
even by exposure to the acids of the stomach. They are constituted
entirely of soluble matter, and leave no residuum to [539] hinder
digestion. It is probably for this reason, and because the fruit does
not contain any actual nutriment as food, that a custom has arisen of
combining rich clotted cream with it at table, whilst at the same time
the sharp juices are thus agreeably modified.

"Mella que erunt epulis, et lacte fluentia fraga":--

"Then sit on a cushion, and sew up a seam;
And thou shalt have Strawberries, sugar, and cream."

Cardinal Wolsey regaled off this delicate confection with the Lords
of the Star Chamber; and Charles Lamb is reported to have said,
"Doubtless, God Almighty could have made a better berry, but He
never did."

Parkinson advised that water distilled from strawberries is good for
perturbation of the spirits, and maketh the heart merry.

The fruit especially suits persons of a bilious temperament, being "a
surprising remedy for the jaundice of children, and particularly
helping the liver of pot companions, wetters, and dramme