The Sweating Sickness

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The text is taken from the 1912 Cambridge edition of Caius's Complete Works. The editor's general introduction says:

In this volume no attempt has been made to produce a facsimile reprint. Even if such a design had been entertained, the great variety of form in which the original editions were issued would have made it impossible to carry out the re-issue with any uniformity. Obvious misprints have been corrected, but where a difference in spelling in the same work or on the same page--e.g. baccalarius, baccalaureus--is clearly due to the varying practice of the writer and not to the printer, the words have been left as they stood in the original. On the other hand the accents in the very numerous Greek quotations have been corrected.

Numbers in parentheses (2, 3, 4...) were printed in the gutter; they probably represent leaves of the 1552 original. Bracketed corrections are from the 1912 text.

Sidenotes are shown in brackets. Superscripts are shown with ^ marks. Typographical errors are listed at the end of the e-text.

The usual disclaimers apply. Do not try this at home.]

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A boke or coun- seill against the disease commonly called the sweate or swea- tyng sicknesse

made by Jhon Caius doctour in phisicke

uery necessary for everye personne and much requi- site to be had in the handes of al sortes, for their better instruction, preparation and defence, against the soub- dein comyng, and fear- ful assaultyng of the same disease

1552

TO THE RIGHTE HONOURABLE WILLIAM EARLE OF PENBROKE, LORDE HARBERT OF CARDIFE, KNIGHT OF THE HONOUR- ABLE ORDRE OF THE GARTER, AND PRESIDENT OF THE KYNGES HIGHNES COUNSEILL IN THE MARCHES OF WALES: JHON CAIUS WISHETH HELTH AND HONOUR.

In the fereful tyme of the sweate (ryghte honourable) many resorted vnto me for counseil, among whome some beinge my frendes & aquaintance, desired me to write vnto them some litle counseil howe to gouerne themselues therin: saiyng also that I should do a greate pleasure to all my frendes and contrimen, if I would deuise at my laisure some thing, whiche from tyme to tyme might remaine, wherto men might in such cases haue a recourse & present refuge at all nedes, as then they had none. At whose requeste, at that tyme I wrate diuerse counseiles so shortly as I could for the present necessite, whiche they bothe vsed and dyd geue abrode to many others, & further appoynted in my self to fulfill (for so much as laye in me) the other parte of their honest request for the time to come. The whiche the better to execute and brynge to passe, I spared not to go to all those that sente for me, bothe poore, and riche, day and night. And that not only to do them that ease that I could, & to instructe them for their recouery: but to note also throughly, the cases and circumstaunces of the disease in diuerse persons, and to vnderstande the nature and causes of the same fully, for so much as might be. Therefore as I noted, so I wrate as laisure then serued, and finished one boke in Englishe, onely for Englishe men not lerned, one other in latine for men of lerninge more at large, and generally for the help of them which hereafter should haue nede, either in this or other countreis, that they may lerne by our harmes. This I had thoughte to haue set furth before christmas, & to haue geuen to your lordshippe at new-yeres (3) tide, but that diuerse other businesses letted me. Neuertheles that which then coulde not be done cometh not now out of season, although it be neuer so simple, so it may do ease hereafter, which as I trust this shal, so for good wil I geue and dedicate it vnto your good Lordshippe, trustyng the same will take this with as good a mind, as I geue it to your honour, whiche our Lorde preserue and graunt long to continue.