334 OSBECK'S VOYAGE. 



out of the fuburbs, to get rid of our dis- 

 agreeable retinue. 



We left the city with its wall on the right, 

 and faw on both fides of the road only plough- 

 ed grounds, or great narrow clay fields, cover- 

 ed with rice, Nymphaa Nelumbo, and Sagitta- 

 ria bulbis oblongis \ The laft mentioned plant 

 is juft like our SwediJJo arrowhead above the 

 ground, it only grows larger, which may be 

 owing to the culture ; the roots of the Chinefe 

 fort are the fize of a clenched fift, and are 

 oblong, and the Swedijh are round, and not 

 much larger than peafe. 



We change the quality of the ground by 

 draining the water, and other arts, till we 

 make it agreeable to our few forts of corn ; 

 but the Chinefe make ufe of fo many plants 

 for their fubfiftence, that they can fcarce have 

 any fort of ground, but what will fit fome one 

 of them. Thus they do not improve the 



1 The Chinefe call it Succoyee-fa. It is larger than ours : 

 the ftem and the flower-iialks are hexagonal, and pretty 

 ftrong : the leaves have eleven red nerves, of which the 

 middle ones are ramofe on both fides : the leaves under the 

 flowers (BraHete) are oval-pointed : the flowers are urn- 

 bellated> and commonly thirty- three in number. 



field 



