40 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. 102 



many other sections in the hot country of the Spanish Main. There 

 used to be also an abundance of Indian corn, which is the wheat of 

 the Indies ; they made their wine for drinking from yucca and from 

 Indian corn, and the Indians do so today, as well as from other fruits 

 and roots of which there is abundance on the island. As for wheat 

 and other Spanish products, they neither existed here nor do they 

 grow, for the soil is too rich, although up in the sierras and other 

 temperate parts of the island they would grow well. They have wild 

 grapes in quantity, though they did not know how to make wine 

 from them. 



100. They have most of the kinds of fruit that grow in the Indies, 

 such as various sorts of plantains (bananas), which are a great help 

 for every occasion and need, since they ripen the whole year round ; 

 mammees, which are like large quinces, but with the coloring and 

 flavor of peaches ; the pineapple is a delicious fruit, growing on plants 

 like thistles; the alligator pear (aguacate) is a very delicious fruit; 

 there are various sorts of guavas, wild and cultivated, which look 

 like pears ; there are also coco-plums and other kinds of fruit, of 

 which we shall describe the characteristics and the appearance in due 

 season. 



101. Over all the island there is abundance of game — wild pigeons 

 and ringdoves, turtledoves of several species, guinea hens, pheasants, 

 paujies, turkeys, and other game birds. In the rivers there is abun- 

 dance of delicious fish of various sorts. They have tough and valu- 

 able timber, both for shipbuilding and for other uses, and numerous 

 kinds of fruits, roots, and herbs of great efficacy in all sorts of dis- 

 eases ; they gather quantities of excellent cassia. 



102. The island contains mines very rich in gold of the highest 

 grade, like those of Cibao, and others, from which in early days 

 great wealth was derived ; the same is true of the rivers, in which, 

 among numerous valuable nuggets, an Indian woman came upon 

 one which weighed 3,300 castellanos, as is related by Gomara, 

 folio 45. There are mines of silver, copper, cobalt (azul; lapis 

 lazuli?) and other minerals, but for lack of labor the mines are not 

 exploited nor the rivers used for washing ore, as was done at the 

 start when there were natives. Consequently through depopulation 

 no benefit is derived from all this wealth ; indeed, the mountain 

 ranges of this island are paved with minerals and veins of gold, 

 silver, and other metals. 



