New Jerfey, "Raccoon. 271 



where they lie for a week till they are quite foft : 

 then they pour water on them, and in that ftate 

 they are left to ferment of themfelves, without 

 promoting the fermentation hy any addition. 

 The brandy is then made in the common way, 

 and is faid to be very good, efpechlly if grapes 

 (in particular of the fweet fort) which are wild 

 in the woods, be mixed with the pedimon fruit. 

 Some perfimons are ripe at the end of September, 

 but moft of them later, and feme not before No- 

 vender and December , when the cold firft over- 

 comes their acrimony. The wood of this tree 

 is very good for joiners inftruments, fuch as 

 planes, handles to chiffels, &c. but if after being 

 cut down, it lies expofed to fuafhine and rain, it 

 is the firft wood which rots, and in a year's time 

 there is nothing left but what is ufelefs. When 

 the perfimon trees get once into a field they are 

 not eafily got out of it again, as they fpread fo 

 much. I was told, that if you cut off a branch, 

 and put it into the ground, it ftrikes root ; but in 

 very ftrong winters, theie trees often die by froft, 

 and they, together with the peach trees, bear 

 cold the leaft of any. 



Nov. 23d. SEVERAL kinds of gourds and 

 melons are cultivated here : they have partly been 

 originally cultivated by the Indians, and partly 

 brought over by Europeans. Of the gourds there 

 was a kind which were crooked at the end, and 

 oblong in general, and therefore they were called 

 crocked necks (Crocknacks ;) they keep almoft 

 all winter. There is yet another fpecies of gourds 

 which have the fame quality : others again are 

 cut in pieces or flips, drawn upon thread, and 



dried ; 



