NATURAL HISTORY. 



371 



from the cliafF, by exposing it to the 

 wind. Sometimes (though rarely) 

 swarms of a large sort of locust or 

 grasshopper, called in Spanish Inn- 

 gosta, come from Barbarj', and will 

 spread instant devastation among 

 the fields of corn. The peasantry, 

 armed with sticks and besoms, kill 

 them, or chase them away : but 

 they deposit their eggs, and there- 

 fore the young locusts in the }^ear 

 following are collected and burnt. 



The lands are not rented in the 

 Canaries. The landlord furnishes 

 the seed and implements of husban- 

 dry, and receives one half of the 

 produce, besides a certain quantity 

 of wheat for each head of cattle 

 which he lends to the tenants. 

 Bread is eaten only by the richer 

 inhabitants. The bulk of the peo- 

 ple live much on gqfio, which is 

 only parched grain ground by a 

 little hand-mill, of which every cot- 

 tage possesses one. The Canarian 

 carries to the field his gqfio in his 

 liag ; and, as hunger prompts, he 

 rolls it into little balls with water, 

 and makes his miserable meal. 

 Those who aspire to better fare eat 

 salt fish and potatoes. The poor 

 inhabitants of Palma and Gomere 

 are sometimes reduced to the ne- 

 cessity of making cakes of the roots 

 of the pleris aquilina, or male fern, 

 which they dig in the mountains. 

 Lupines are a choice food for cat- 

 tle, but they are previously soaked 

 in water, and boUed, with the addi- 

 tion of salt. 



A large quantity of wine is ex- 

 ported from Teneriffe, yet the vine- 

 yards are not managed with either 

 skill or attention. The press con- 

 sists of a long beam or lever, to the 

 extremity of which a heavy stone 

 can be attached by means of a 

 screw. The farmers, however, 



well understand the mode of clari-- 

 fying their wines, and fortifying 

 them with brand}'. 



Oh the successful CuUivation of the 

 true Rhubarb in England, bijMr. 

 Thomas Jones. From the Trans~ 

 actions of the Societij for the En~ 

 couragemeut of Aiis, ManufaC' 

 tures, and Commerce. 



Sir, 



THE certificate which accompa- 

 nies this communication, will 

 inform the society that I have plant- 

 ed, in the year 1799> 4053 plants 

 of the rheum palmatum, or true 

 rhubarb ; I once more, therefore, 

 present myself as a claimant. Each 

 time I have made my appearance 

 in this character, I have pledged 

 myself to future and more consider- 

 able exertions ; for every distinc- 

 tion with which they have honoured 

 me, has been viewed in no other 

 light, than that of a powerful in- 

 centive to perseverance ; and I 

 need not add, how much gratifi- 

 cation it will afford me, if the so- 

 ciety, by their decision on the pre- 

 sent occasion, continue to me their 

 good opinion. 



The period I ha"e devoted to 

 the cultivation of this valuable drug 

 has now become of a sufficient 

 length to prove experimentally the 

 truth or falsehood of my theories. 

 Happy am I in reflecting, and hap- 

 pier still in communicating to the 

 society, that since I last had the 

 pleasure of addressing them, I have 

 additional reason for satisfaction. 

 In my former papers (see Transac- 

 tions of the Society, vol. xi. xv. 

 and xvi.) having been, perhaps, 

 more than sufficiently minute in de- 

 scribing my system of cultivation, I 

 shall now only notice the nature of 



B b 2 



