Solomon's botanical works had ftill been pre- 

 ferved, it is probable we mould have met 

 with trees of much larger dimenfions, than 

 thofe, which either Maundrel, or Van Egmont 

 dneafured. 



One of the nobleft trees on record, is a 

 chefnut upon mount ^Etna, called the Caf- 

 tagna de cento cavalli. It is ftill alive, but 

 has loft much of it's original dignity. Many 

 travellers take notice of it. Brydone was one 

 of the laft who faw it. His account is dated 

 about fixteen, or feventeen, years ago. It had 

 then the appearance of five diftindt trees. 

 The fpace within them, he was aflured, had 

 once been filled with folid timber, when the 

 whole formed only one tree. The poffibility 

 of this he could not at firft conceive ; for the 

 five trees together contained a fpace of two 

 hundred and four feet in circumference. At 

 length however he was convinced, not only 

 by the teftimony of the country, and the 

 accurate examination of the canon Recupero, 

 a learned naturalift in thofe parts, but by the 

 appearance of the trees themfelves, none of 

 which had any bark on the infide. This 



chefnut 



