A 



upper part of tl:e cap ; whereas, the fmaller fort.'; pro- 

 duce tlieir fruit from between the tubercles, round 

 the middle of the plant : and in feme figures of the 

 larger forts of tl:efe plants, the fruit is reprefented as 

 coiifin-^- out near the crown of the plants fo that if a 

 ficihul botanlft v/as to examine thefe plants in the 

 i^laccs of their growth, there would probably be found 

 a much greater variety of them than is at prefent 



known. 



'ilicfe ftrange pbnts commonly grow upon the fleep 



fides of rocks in the warmed parrs of America, where 

 they feem to be thruft out of the apertures, having 

 litilV or no earth to fupport them j their roots flioot- 

 dov/n into the fiffurcs of the rock to a confidera- 



in 



blc depth, fo that it is troublefome to get the plants 

 up, elpecially as they are fo ftrongly armed with 

 thorns as to render it very dangerous to handle them ; 

 and as thefe plants delight in thofe rocky places, they 

 feldom live long when they are tranfplanted into better 



foil by the inhabitants of thofe iflands. 

 I'he o-rcat forts were fome years fince brought over 

 to England in much greater plenty than of late-, but 

 then tiie greateft part of them were deftroyed, by the 

 unikilfulnefs of thofe perfons who had the care of them 

 in the voyage ; for, by giving them water, they ge- 

 nerally caufed them to rot before they were taken out 

 of the fliips ; and fome of thofe which have appeared 

 to be found, have been {o replete with moilture, as 

 to rot foon after tliey have been placed in the ftoves ; 

 therefore whoever propofes to bring thefe plants from 

 abroad, fliould be very careful to take up their roots 

 as entire as pofTible, and to plant them in tubs filled 

 with (tones and rubbifli, mixing very little earth with 

 it, and to plant three or four plants in each tub, in 

 proportion to tlieir fizes -, for if they are placed clofe 

 together, it will fave room -, and as they do not in- 

 creafe their growth during their paflfage, there need 

 not be any room allowed them for that purpofe. 

 There fliould be feveral pretty large holes bored thro' 

 the bottom of thefe tubs, to let the moifture pafs off; 

 and if thefe plants are planted in the tubs a month 

 before they are put on board the fhip, they will in tliat 

 time have made new roots, which will be the moft 

 fecure method to have them fucceed -, but, during 

 their continuance in the country, they fliould have 

 no water given them, and after they are put on board 



the fliip, they muft not have any moifl:ure whatever ; 

 tlicrefore it will be a good method to cover the plants 

 with tarpaulin, to keep off the fpray of the fea in bad 

 weather, and expofe them at all times to the open air 

 when the fea is calm. By obferving thefe directions, 

 the plants may be brought to England in good health, 

 provided they are brought in fummer. 

 Some of the large fort which have been brought to 

 England, have been more than a yard in circumfe- 

 rence, and two feet and a half high, including their 

 caps ; but I have been informed by feveral perfons 

 who have refidcd in the Wefli-Indies, that there are 

 plants near twice as large. 



Tlie third fort w^as brought into England by the late 

 Dr. William Houftoun, who procured the plants 

 from Mexico ; but as they were long in their pailao-e, 

 and had received wet, they were decayed before they 

 arrived in England ; but from the remains of them 

 which were left, they appeared to be the mofl: finou- 

 lar of all the fpecies yet known. This has two or- 

 ders of thorns -, one of which are fl:rait, and fet on 

 at the joints in clufters, fpreading out from the center 

 each way like a fl:ar ; and in the middle of each cluf- 

 ter is prodv^ced one broad flat thorn near two inches 

 in length, which fl:ands ereft, and is recurved at the 

 point, and is of a brownifli red colour. Thefe 

 thorns are, by the inhabitants of Mexico, fet in 

 gold or filver, and made ufe of for picking their teeth, 



and the plant is by them called Vifnaga, i. e. tooth- 

 pick. 



The fort with fpiral ribs, as alfo that with white 

 ipines, I received from Antigua, with the common 

 fort -, but whether thefe are only accidental variedes, 

 ariiing trom the lame feeds, or real different fpecies, 



1 cannot take upon me to determine ; Hnce, in tin? 

 country, they are very rarely propagated by feed-? j 

 nor could I obferve, in the feveral years that I have 

 had thefe plants' under my care, there was the lealt 

 difpofition in either of them to produce fruity when,- 

 at the fame time, the common large fort produced 

 plenty of fruit out of their caps every year, from the 

 leeds of which I have raifed fome young plants ; 

 but although fome of thefe have grown to a con- 

 fiderable fize, yet none of them have as yet pro- 

 duced caps, therefore no fruit can be yet expected 

 from them. , '• 



The fifth fort produces quantities of fruit annually ; 



and as the feeds grow very readily, it is now very 



common in thofe gardens where there are fl:oves to 

 keep them ; for if the fruit is permitted to drop upon 

 the earth of the pots, and that is not difliurbed, there 

 will plenty of plants come up without any farther 

 trouble ; and thefe feedling plants may be taken up 

 as Toon as they arc of a proper fizc to remove, and* 

 planted fix or feven of them into a fmall halfpenny 

 pot, where they may fl:and one year ; by wliich time 

 they will be large enough to be each planted into a 

 feparate pot, and afterward they will make great pro- 

 grefs, efpecially if they are plunged into a hot-bed of 

 tanners bark in fummer; for although this fort is 

 much miore hardy than the large kind, and may be 

 preferved in a moderate ftove, yet the plants will not 

 make near the progrefs as thofe which are kept in a 

 greater degree of heat. .This fort will condnue 

 many years with proper care, and the plants v/ill grow* 

 to be a foot high or more ; but when they are fo tall, 

 the lower part of them is not fo fightly, their green 

 being decayed, and the fpines changed to a dark dirty 

 colour, they appear as if dead, fo that the upper part 

 of thefe old plants only feem to have life ; whereas 

 the plants of the middling fize appear healthy from 

 top to bottom. . iThe flowers of this fort appear in 

 July and Augufl:, and are fucceeded by the fruit- 

 quite round the plant, which are of a fine fcarlet co- 

 lour, and condnue frefli upbri the plants tlirough the 

 v/inter, which renders theni very beautiful at that 

 feafon. And in the fpring, when the fruit flirivels 

 and becomes dry, the feeds will be ripe, and may 

 then be rubbed out, and fown upon the furface of the 

 earth in fmall pots, which fliould be plunged into a 

 hot-bed of tanners bark to bring up the plants. 

 The fixth fort is but little larger than the fifth, grow- 

 ing nearly in the fame form ; but this produces a 

 great number of young plants from the fides, by w^Ifich 

 it is increafed. This fort produces tufts of a fofc 

 v/hite down upon the knobs, and alfo between them 

 at every joint, which makes the whole plant appear 

 as if it was covered with fine cotton. Tiie flowers of 

 this fort are produced from between the knobs round 

 the fides of the plants, which are In fliape and colour 

 veiy much like thofe of the fifth fort, but laro-er. 

 Thefe flowers are not fucceeded byanyfruit, at lead all 

 thofe which I have under my care, have not produced 

 any, although they have produced plenty of flowers 

 for fome years ; but from the fame places where the 

 flov/ers have appeared, there have been young plants 

 thrufl: out the followin^r feafon. Thefe young plants 



I have taken off, and after laying them to dry for two 

 or three days, I have planted them, and they have 

 fucceeded very well. 



All the fpecies of this genus are plants of a fingular 

 fl:ru6ture, but efpecially the larger ^kinds of them, 

 which appear like a large flefliy green Melon, with 

 deep ribs, fet all over with fl;rong fliarp thorns ^ and 

 when the plants are cut through the middle, their 

 infide is nothing but a foft, green, flefliy fubftance, 

 very full of moift'ure. . And I have been afllired by 

 perfons of credit, who have lived in the Weft-Ir.dies, 

 that in times of great drought, the cattle repair to 

 the barren rocks, which are covered with thefe plants, 

 and after having ripped up the large plants witli their 

 horns, fo as to tear off^ the outfide fl<in witli the thorns, 

 they have greedily devoured all the flefliy moifl' parts 

 of the plants, which has afforded them both meat 



an -I 



