Isatis herba

There will perhaps be those who will disapprove of my undertaking, and who will wonder why I have taken up the labor of describing Woad, a plant very well known to the inhabitants of these lands, and why I have done so outside the duties of my office. However, they will, I hope, cease to wonder or criticize this action of mine once they have learned the probable reasons by which I was primarily led to venture into this business. No one, however, is of such a wretched mind as to be ignorant that God, the Best and Greatest, the creator and governor of all things, has granted to each region certain peculiar gifts above others; just as some regions are granted metallic veins, others fertility of fields, others an abundant yield of wine, and others the brewing of long-lasting beers of the best flavor and healthy nourishment.