lB6 STUDIES OF NATURE. 



It Is farther remarkable, that mod of thefe ve- 

 getables emit a very pleafingfmell; among others, 

 trie poplar and the birch, efpecially in the Spring; 

 and that a great number of aromatic plants thrive 

 by the water's-fide, as mint, fvveet marjoram, cipe- 

 rus, the fweet-fmelling-ruih, the iris, the calamus 

 aromaticits : and, in the Indies, the fpice-plants, 

 fuch as the cinnamon-tree, the nutmeg, and the 

 clove. Their perfumes muft contribute very pow- 

 erfully to diminifh the mephitic exhalations, which 

 are natural to marfhy and humid places. They 

 have 3 likewife, many ufes relatively to animals, 

 fuch as affording a (hade to the fifties which refort 

 thither, in queft of a fhelter from the fcorching 

 heat of the Sun. 



But one conclufion we may certainly deduce, 

 in favour of our improvements in culture, from 

 the obfervations now made ; namely this, that in 

 the cultivation of plants, the pedicle of whofe 

 leaves prefents no imprefs of a canal, it is necef- 

 fary to water them copioufly ; for, in this cafe, 

 they are naturally aquatic. The nafturtiurn, the 

 mint, and the fweet-marjoram, confume a prodi- 

 gious quantity. But when plants are provided 

 with a canal, they muft be watered more fparingly, 

 for this demonftrates them to be originally natives 

 of the mountains. The deeper this canal is, the 



lefs 



