200 



HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. 



Part I. 



of pepper, American coffee, capsicum or Guinea pepper, and the wild cinnamon 

 (Laurus canella). Several medicinal plants of high estimation grow here spontaneously, 

 and in great abundance, such as the contrayerva, tlie Indian pink, the mechoacan, 

 the jalap, the amyris which yields the gum elemi, and the guiacum. Besides the 

 Brazil wood, this country furnishes for ornamental use, or for the purpose of dyeing, 

 logwood, fustic, mahogany, ebony, rose-wood, satin-wood, and many others. Among 

 its ornariiental plants are the Brazilian myrtle, the scarlet fucshia, and the amaryllis 

 formosissima. 



1209. The genuine Ipecacuanha root {Cephaelis ipecacuana) grows wild in groups on the woody moun- 

 tains of Serra de Mar, north from Riode Janiero to Bahia. The roots are pulled up by the negroes in the 

 rainy season, dried in the sun, tied in bundles, and sold to the dealers of roots in Rio. The savages use an 

 infusion of these roots as a vomit, much in the same way as we do. {,Spix and Martius' Travels in Brazil, 

 ii. 221.) 



1210. The pot tree {Lecythis ollaria) is one of the greatest ornaments of the woods ; its immense stem 

 is above a hundred feet high, and spreads into a majestic ana vaulted crown, which is extremely beau- 

 tiful in the spring when the rose-coloured leaves shoot out, and in the flowering season, by the large white 

 blossoms. The nuts, which have a thick shell, are of the size of a child's head, with a lid which is loose 

 all round, and which at length, when the weight of the fruit turns it downwards, separates, and lets the 

 seed fall out. In a high wind it is dangerous to remain in the woods on account of these heavy nuts fall- 

 ing from so great a height. The seeds are collected in great quantities by the Indians, who are extremely 

 fond of them, and either eat them raw, or preserve them roasted and pounded, in pots, and the shells 

 themselves are used as drinking cups. {Spix, vol. ii. p. 222.) 



1211. Several species of Bromclia, or PauUinia, afford thread called gravata and imb6, which is prepared 

 by maceration as in Sicily from the Agave Americana, and wove into cloth, or twisted into ropes and 

 cordage. 



1212. Mandiocca {Jatropha) is cultivated for the flour made from its roots : the Mandubi bean, for its 

 seeds : Paraguay tea, which is used as a substitute for that of China, and broad beans, tobacco, maize, 

 and other plants of Europe. 



1213. The live stock of Brazil are chiefly horned cattle, which are abundant, and hunted 

 merely for their hides : of these hides 20,000, it is said, are annually sent to Europe. 

 These cattle are taken and killed more for tlie sake of their hides and tallow than their 

 flesh ; though great quantities of the latter are applied to the use of such ships as sail 

 from Pernambuco, Bahia, Todos os Santos, and Rio de Janeiro, to Guinea. The places 

 which are chiefly frequented for procuring these cattle are Rio Grande and Rio Paraiba, 

 lying to the northward of Pernambuco; and they are inhabited by Indians, called 

 'lapuyes; many of whom send annually large droves of cattle through the Tupipue 

 nation. 



1214. The musk, ox, deer, bear, hog, hare, and other useful animals, abound in the 

 forests ; and there is some danger also from those of a noxious description, to guard 

 against which the natives light fires, 2O8 

 and when they can afford it sleep 

 in hammocks suspended from the 

 trees. (Jig. 208.) 



1215. Cayenne or French Guiana, 

 is a fertile country, and has been 

 long well cultivated by the colonists. 

 The climate is salubrious ; the sur- 

 face of the country is not moun- 

 tainous, but abounds in hills and 

 forests ; the soil is in general un- 

 commonly fertile ; and the produc- 

 tions it yields are of excellent quality. 

 The Cayenne pepper {Capsicum annuum, and other species) is a noted produce of this 

 country, and with sugar, cocoa, coffee, indigo, maize, cassia, and vanilla, form the chief 

 articles of its commerce. The interior parts, though much neglected, and remaining 

 obstructed by thick forests and underwood, feed nevertheless a great numbtr of horses, 

 sheep, goats, and cattle, which roam at pleasure : the beef and mutton are reckoned ex- 

 cellent. (Maison Rustique de Cayenne, ^c, Paris, 1763.) 



1216. Surinam is 



a low moist country, 

 which has been in 

 part studded with 

 wooden houses, (^g. 

 209. ) and well culti- 

 vated by the Dutch. 

 The climate is hot, 

 but tempered by the 

 sea breeze. The 



surface of the country is little varied by inequalities. The uncultivated parts are 

 covered with immense forests, rocks, and mountains ; some of the latter enriched with 

 a great variety of mineral substances ; and the whole country is intersected by very 

 deep marshes or swamps, and by extensive heaths or savannahs. The soil is, In general. 



