ABSTRACT
Nature herself is able to accomplish nothing without the nourishment that generates good blood. The important contribution of food to the mendicant vocation is implied by the attention it received in the regulations. The question of balance was the crux of the matter, not harming the body or the soul through the extremes of excessive fasting, inadequate diet or greed but supplying enough food to maintain health. Humbert had instructed that bread was to be available both in the regular refectory and in the infirmary where the infirmary assistant ordered the quantity required for the sick. More than one kind might be offered and the supply for the sick was to take priority, suggesting that ensuring adequate supplies for the sick could prove problematical. Chickens were frequently bought for sick friars. As Terence Scully has pointed out in his survey of mediaeval food, it was nearly always the meat of first choice for the sick and was usually easily available.
