ico September 1748. 



i 



the country thereabouts, peaches were found 

 growing wild in great quantity. * 



Sept. 27th, THE tree which the Englffi here 

 call Perjim:n, is the Diofpyros Virginiana of Lin- 

 naeus. It grows for the greateft part in wet 

 places, round the water pits. I have already 

 mentioned, that the fruits of this tree are ex- 

 tremely bitter and (harp before they are quite 

 ripe, and that, being eaten in that ftate, they 

 quite contract one's mouth, and have a very dif- 

 agreeable tafte. But as foon as they are ripe, 

 which docs not happen till they have been quite 

 foftened by the froft, they are a very agreeable 

 fruit. They are here eaten raw, and feldom any 

 other way. But in a great book, which contains 

 a description of Virginia, you meet with differ- 

 ent ways of preparing the Perjimon, under the 

 article of that name, Mr, Bartram related, that 

 they were commonly put upon the table amongft 

 the fweet-meats, and that fome people made a 

 tolerably good wine of them. Some of thefe 

 Perfimon fruits were dropped on the ground in 

 his garden, and were almoft quite ripe, having 

 been expofed to a great degree of the heat of the 

 fun. We picked up a few and tailed them, and 

 I muft own that thofe who praifed this fruit as 

 an agreeable one, have but done it juftice. It 



* 'Thomas Herriot, fervant to Sir Waller Raleigh, who was em- 

 ployed by him to examine into the protiuitions of 'North America* 

 makes no mention of the peach among the other fruits he de- 

 cribes ; and M. du Pratz, who has given a very good account of 

 "Louijiana. and the Mijflijtppi, fays, that the natives got their 

 peaches from the EngUjh colony of Carolina* before the French 

 ieukd there. P. 



really 



