Ch. VIH. SOUTH AMERICA. 77 



cocos is drawn a milk like that of almonds, and at 

 Carthagena is ufed in dreffing rice. 



Though lemons, of the kind generally known in 

 Europe, and of which fuch quantities are gathered in 

 fome parts of Spain, are very ftarce ; yet there are fuch 

 numbers of another kind, called lutiles or limes, that 

 the country is, in a manner, covered with the trees that 

 produce them, without care or culture. But the tree 

 and its- fruit are both much lefs than thofe of Spain, 

 the height of the former feldom exceeding eight or ten 

 feet ; and from the bottom, or a litle above, divides 

 into feveral branches, whofe regular expanñon forras 

 a very beautiful tuit. The leaf, which is of the fame 

 ihape wiih that of the European lemon, is lefs, but 

 fmoother ; the fruit does not exceed a common egg in 

 magnitude; the rind very thin ; and it is more juicy, 

 in proportion, than the lemon of Europe, and infinitely 

 more pungent and acid ; on which account the Euro- 

 pean phyficians pronounce it detrimental to health; 

 though, in this country, it is a general ingredient in 

 their made di flies. There is one iingular .ife to which 

 this fruit is applied in cookery, it is a cuftom with 

 the inhabitanis not to lay their meat down to the ñre 

 above an hour at lartheft, before dinner or lupper ; 

 this is managed by ñeeping it for fome time in the 

 juice of thefe limes, or fqueezing'three or four, ac- 

 cording to the quantity of meat, into the water, if they 

 intend boiling ; by which means the fleili becomes fo 

 foftened as to admit of being tl^oroughly dreifedin this 

 ihort fpace. The people here value themfel ves highly 

 on this preparative, and laugh at the Europeans for 

 fpending a morning about what they difpatch fo ex- 

 peditioufly. 



This country abounds in tamarinds ; a large branchy 

 tree, the leaf of a deep green ; the pods of a middle 

 fize, and flat ; the pulp of a dark brown, a pleafant 

 tafte, very fibrous, and is called i)y the fame name as 

 the tree itfelf. In the middle of the pulp is a hard 



feed. 



