One belief, dating back to Pliny, was that fumes from eating garlic and onions could destroy the magnetism in a compass, rendering it useless. Even after William Gilbert disproved this in 1600, there were reports of helmsmen on British ships being flogged for eating garlic.[1] However, this belief was far from universal. In 1558 Giambattista della Porta reported "When I enquired of mariners whether it were so that they were forbid to eat onyones and garlick for that reason, they said they were old wives fables and things ridiculous, and that sea-men would sooner lose their lives then abstain from eating onyons and garlick."[5]