92 September 1748. 



who was ninety-one years of age, faid, that in. 

 his youth, the bears had been very frequent 

 hereabouts, but that they had feldom attacked 

 the cattle : that whenever a bear was killed, its 

 flefli was prepared like pork, and that it had a 

 very good tafte. And the flefh of bears is ftill 

 prepared like ham, on the river Morris. The 

 environs of Philadelphia, and even the whole 

 province of Penfyhania in general, contain very 

 few bears, they having been extirpated by de- 

 grees. In Virginia they kill them in feveral dif- 

 ferent ways. Their flem is eaten by both rich 

 and poor, fince it is reckoned equal in goodnefs 

 to pork. In fome parts of this province, where 

 no hogs can be kept, on account of the great 

 numbers of bears, the people are ufed to catch 

 and kill them, and to ufe them inftead of hogs. 

 The American bears, however, are faid to be lefs 

 fierce and dangerous than the 'European ones. 



Sept. 26th. THE broad plantain, or Plantago 

 major 9 grows on the high-roads, foot-paths, 

 meadows, and in gardens, in great plenty. Mr. 

 Bartram had found this plant in many places on 

 his travels, but he did not know whether it was 

 an original American plant, or whether the Eu- 

 ropeans had brought it over. This doubt had 

 its rife from the fava^es (who always had an 

 extenfive knowledge of the plants of the country) 

 pretending that this plant never grew here before 

 the arrival of the Europeans. They therefore 

 gave it a name which fignifies, the EngliJJmans 



rous, the black fpecies is merely phytlvorous. In cafe therefore 

 both fpecies are found in North America, it would be very eafy to 

 account for their being bath carnivorous and not. F. 



foot ; 



