TO Differtatton on the H'tflory of Sugar, 



iage here alluded to, becaufe it is evident that Alexander of 

 Aphrodifias thought jaccbarum to be the fame as that fiib- 

 ftance called at prefent mamia; for he favs, Mellis coagulum. 

 eji quod faccbar Indi • ppetlant quod idem in monte hihani 

 Jieri cerium eji. But Libanon produces fruit-trees, and not 

 cants that yield fugar. And we are told by Galen, that (uch 

 abimdancc of honev was found on the leaves of the trees and 

 <hriibs of Mount Libanon, that the hu{bandinen ufed to fing, 

 *' Jupiicr rams honey *." Alexander of Aphrodifias, there- 

 fore, alluded to manna, which he called faccharum, ox fac- 

 cbar ', but manna, though it has an affinity to fugar, is a 

 fubfiMuce toiallv different. 



But it is poffible that the antients may have been ac- 

 quainted wiih fugar, to which they gave fome other name; 

 and there are even learned men who think that fusar is to be 

 underrt(x)d in various pallages of the Greek and Roman au- 

 thors, where they Ipeak of honey procured from reeds, of 

 Indian fdt, and of a fweet liquor obtained froni the roots of 

 cane*. There can be no doubt that the antients confidered 

 their /Iz charum as a kind of honey. Whatever was fweet, 

 the antients callpd honey; ard for this rcafon, latter ao-es 

 beftowed the fame appellation on every thing endowed with 

 peculiar fweetnels In ttiis manner, manna is called dro- 

 melt by Athenaeusf, or rather Amyntas : bcfides, from 

 manna diluted with water in the fame manner as honey, 

 they made a kind ol beverage Which they praifcd as being 

 fweeter than honey. No wonder then if they thought JaC'-. 

 chayum^ vvbch was found in fpontaneous concretions upon 

 reeds, and collefted in that form, lo be, as well as manna, 



is preferved in the library of our univerfity a very fcarce Frepcii tranfla- 

 tion, entitled, Les Proikmc: d' Altxandre .-.p'^rodije — trudiuts de Grcc en 

 Franccis par M. llcrct, a Paris 1555, ^vo. vvhert the prectdrng paffai;e is 

 thus tranllated, p. 93 : — Ce qu'on aj:pel!L' fucre d'lnde eftun lopin de niiel 

 fait p T le ibleil coagulant la rotcc, puis I3 convcr jA en douctur cc niiel, 

 Cc que ccrtaintment it fait au mont dc Librn. Ce fucre premicrtmciit tft 

 fclanchi, puis dcvicnt friable, et prefque femblable aux motes de fci. Aulfi 

 ha il puiffa'.ice Ht nettoier et purger lemblabU- au miel. Mais s'il eft cuit 

 comme le miel dt nolhe p;>.Vs il ne ptut purger amfi que s'il n'cftoit cuit; 

 toutefois fi on le mange en cede facon, il eft plus propri: a ncurir. Comp. 

 Fabricii Mibliolb. CWieca, vol. iv. p. 74, 



' Galenui d'^ Alinifiii. Fa.uha!. III. 3S. p. 119. torn. ii. Bafii. 1559: — 

 Meminj me ahquando cum srtatc fuptr arborum ac frutitum herl)arum- 

 quc folia mcl quam pluritni:m fuilTct repertum, agricolas vtlut Ijdcntcs 

 ctciniijTc Jupiter mcUt pluit. Apud nos vero raio id contingit, in montc 

 autem Lit'ino quotrinni'; pci (xpe. Itaque coria fuper tcrram extendcntes 

 ac arhnres txcutientes, quod hu eis defluit, excipiunt, et ollas ac fidtilia 

 mellc implent, voc^ntque id mel rofcidum er atiium, ifn-cuiXi xai aFfc>f«(X». " 



t Lib. xi. Dtip!ioli>pli. edit. Cafauboni 1597, foi. p. 500.; iheo- 

 phrafti Op'-ra, tdit. Hi\i\Cn: Lr'rdurii ^«/. 1613, foL p. 474. 



^ kind 



