Ch.VI. south AMERICA. 51 



Among the variety of vegetables, which grow under 

 the ihade of the trees, and along the funny borders of 

 the woods, the mofl common is the ícníiiivé; on 

 tourbing one of the leaves of which, all thofe on the 

 fame brancli imtnediateiy clofe againit each other. 

 After a ihort interval, they begin gradually toopen and 

 feparate from each otherj till they arc entirely ex- 

 panded. The fenfitive is a fmall plant about a foot 

 and a half or two feet in height, with a flender ilem, 

 and the branches proportionally weak and tender. The 

 leaves are long, and iland fo clofe together, that all on 

 one branch may be coniidered as a iingle leaf, four or 

 five inches in length, and ten lines i.i breadth ; which, 

 being fubdivided into the other itill fmaller, forms in 

 each of them the true leaf, which is about four or five 

 lines in length, and not quite one in breadth. On 

 touching one of thefe fmall leaves, all of them imme- 

 diately quit their horizontal pofition, and fly into a 

 perpendicular direction, cloiing their inward fuper- 

 ficies, fo that thofe, which before this fenfitive riiotion 

 made two leaves, now feem as but one. The vulgar 

 name of this plant at Carthagena being improper to be 

 mentioned here, we fhall omit it ; in other parts it is 

 more decently called la vergonczu, the bafhful, and la 

 don9ella, the maiden. The common people imagine 

 that this eíFecíl: is cauied by pronouncing its name at 

 the infiant of the touch ; and are amazed that a plant 

 fhould have the wifdom of fhewino; its obedience to 

 what was ordered, or that it was too much afFedted by 

 the injury offered it to conceal its refentmcnt. 



We afterwards meet with this plant at Guayaquil, 

 where the climate feems to be better adapted to it than 

 that of Carthagena ; for it is not only more common, 

 but grows to three or four feet in height, the leaves 

 and every part in proportion. 



In the woods about Carthagena are f )und a great 

 quantity of bejucos of a diíFtrent magnitude, figure, 

 and colour, and fome of the fiems flat. One fpecies is 



E 2 particularly 



