THE LOVE-APPLE. 291 



is larp;e, tlie flesh sweet and succulent, and the 

 juice (IclifrhtfuUy cool. Hasselquist, however, re- 

 commends caution in the use of this gourd, " for," 

 says he, " it chilled my stomach like a bit of ice *." 

 It is a native of the south of Europe, of Egypt, and 

 the Levant, and of South America. In the penin- 

 sula of Araya, where sometimes rain does not fall 

 for fifteen months, water-melons weighing from fifty 

 to seventy pounds are not uncommon t- It was 

 introduced into England about the same time with 

 the common melon. 



Egg-plant and Love-apple. 



Love-apple — Solanuni lycopersicum. 



The love-apple, or tomata, is a native of the tropical 

 parts of South America ; but as it now thrives well in 

 the warmer countries of Europe, and will, if the plants 

 are forwarded in a hot-bed in the early part of the 

 season, produce fruit with as much certainty in this 

 country, upon a warm border, it may be considered 

 as naturalized in the temperate regions. It is an 

 annual : the leaves and flowers have some resem- 



• Travels in the Levant, p. 257, 8vo. 

 f Humboldt, Voyages, liv, iii., chap, viii. 



