of the Kingdom of Algiers. 4.29 
the natives eat them as we would eat an apple, without any con- 
diment. 
A pot-herb much used in Barbary is the Hibiscus esculentus : 
the tender seed-vessels are cut in small pieces and boiled, or 
stewed with meat: it is a tasteless vegetable. Very different is 
the Capsicum annuum, whose pods are used abundantly : the green 
fruit of Capsicum grossum is eaten raw with oil and vmegar, and 
forms a dish, either served alone or with slices of tomato or love- 
apple: this last-mentioned plant is very extensively cultivated 
both by natives and colonists. 
A great many plants are used by the Arabs to season their 
dishes, amongst which we may mention coriander, whose green 
leaves have a strong smell of bugs; both leaves and seeds are 
used. Parsley, basilic, sweet savory, chervil, fennel, mint, mar- 
joram, are all in great demand. The Arabs he live in tents, and 
have no gardens, procure their pot-herbs from the plains, which 
furnish them with Cynara Cardunculus, Cynara acaulis, Atrac- 
tylis gummifera (of this plant they eat the midribs of the 
leaves), Ammi majus, Ferula communis, Borage, and a host of 
other plants. 
I will now mention the principal fruits properly so called : 
they are not so varied nor yet generally so delicious as in Europe. 
The apricot must hold the first rank : the tree grows without any 
care or even pruning, and ripens its fruit in June. There are 
several kinds of apricot, of which the best is one called Chachi : 
it is very juicy, and the flesh adheres to the stone. The kind 
called Boreulbi is considered very inferior ; it resembles the one 
commonly cultivated in England. The peach and nectarine are 
less abundant, although with only the care of properly pruning, 
and the proper choice of varieties, they would be as good as in 
Europe. 
The fig-tree is a native of the country, and in certain districts 
is cultivated to a great extent. The early figs, or bakhor, ripen 
in June, and the second crop in August and September : it is 
only this last kmd which is dried, the bakhor being too watery 
for the purpose. There are many varieties of fig, and they are ail 
good; one kind which ripens in September and October, called 
Verdarola by the Spaniards, is much esteemed, as well for its 
luscious taste as for its late ripening. Fig-trees are propagated 
from branches about a yard long, stuck in the ground: these, 
if they live, bear fruit about the third year. Pomegranates are 
abundant, and the tree, when covered with scarlet flowers, is a 
most beautiful object : the fruit ripens in September, and may be 
kept through the winter. When of a good kind, it is a most 
delicious fruit ; otherwise it is very insipid. 
The jujube-tree is very common, and the fruit ripens in Octo- 
