“The load-stone you all know hath great and hidden vertue, without which the seas that compas the world ar not navigable, nor the bounds nor circles of the earth cannot be knowen. Mahomett, the Percians proffit, his tombe of steell hangs in their Repatta at Darbent most miraculously”—Caused the waiters to bringe a chaine of nedells towched by his load-stone, hanged all one by the other.—“This faire currell (coral) and this faire turcas you see; take in your hand; of his natur arr orient coullers; put them on my hand and arm. I am poisoned with disease: you see they shewe their virtue by the chainge of their pure culler into pall: declares my death. Reach owt my staff roiall; an unicorns horn garnished with verie fare diomondes, rubies, saphiers, emeralls and other precious stones that ar rich in vallew; cost 70 thousand marckes sterlinge of David Gower from the fowlkers of Ousborghe.[469] Seek owt for som spiders.” Caused his phiziccians, Johannes Lloff, to scrape a circle thereof upon the tabell; putt within it one spider and so one other and died, and some other without that ran alive apace from it.—“It is too late, it will not preserve me. Behold these precious stones. This diomond is the orients richest and most precious of all other. I never affected it; yt restreyns furie and luxurie and abstinacie and chasticie; the least parcell of it in powder will poysen a horse geaven to drinck, much more a man.” Poynts at the ruby. “Oh! this is most comfortable to the hart, braine, vigar and memorie of man, clarifies congelled and corrupt bloud.”—Then at the emerald.—“The natur of the reyn-bowe; this precious stone is an enemye to uncleanness. The saphier I greatlie delight in; yt preserves and increaseth courage, joies the hart, pleasinge to all the vitall sensis, precious and verie soveraigne for the eys, clears the sight, takes awaye bloudshott and streingthens the mussells and strings thereof.”—Then takes the onex in hand.—“All these are Gods wonderfull guifts, secreats in natur, and yet revells [reveals] them to mans use and contemplacion, as frendes to grace and vertue and enymies to vice. I fainte, carie me awaye till an other tyme.” Some believed that when precious stones were worn to relieve or prevent disease, it was important that the different stones should be worn on different parts of the body. According to one authority, the jacinth should be worn on the neck; the diamond, on the left arm; the sapphire, on the ring-finger; the emerald, or the jacinth, on the index-finger; and the ruby or turquoise, on either the index-finger or the little finger.[470] There is, however, little reason to assume that these rules were generally known and observed.