BOOK XIII. IX. 49-xi. S3 



in Judaea and the Gyrenaic district of Africa ; the 

 dates in Egypt, Cyprus, Syria and Seleucia in 

 Assyria do not keep, and consequently are used for 

 fattening swine and other stock. It is a sign that 

 the fruit is spoilt or old if the white excrescence by 

 which the dates are attached to the cluster has 

 fallen off. Soldiers of Alexander were choked by 

 eating green dates ; this effect was produced in the 

 Gedrosi country by the quahty of the fruit, and 

 occurs elsewhere from eating it to excess, for fresh 

 dates are so sweet that people will not stop eating 

 them except because of the danger. 



X. Syria has several trees that are pecuhar to it other Synan 

 beside this date ; in the class of nuts the pistachio is ■^'""" ""^^** 

 well-known : it is reported that taken either in food 



or in drink it is a remedy for snake-bite. In the fig 

 class Syria has the Carians and smaller flgs of the same 

 class called cottana, also the plum « that grows on 

 Mount Damascus and the myxa, both now accHma- 

 tized in Italy. In Egypt the myxa is also used for 

 making wine. 



XI. Phoenicia has a small variety of cedar that re- Tfw 

 sembles a juniper. It is of two kinds, the Lycian and ce^r. 

 the Phoenician, which have different leaves ; the 

 one with a hard, prickly, pointed leaf is called the 

 oxycedros, while the other is a branchy tree and the 

 wood is full of knots and has a better scent. They 

 bear fruit the size of a myrtle-berry, with a sweet 

 taste. The larger cedar also has two kinds, of which 

 the flowering one bears no fruit, while the one that 

 bears fruit does not flower, and in its case the previous 

 fruit is replaced by a new one. Its seed is Hke that 



of the c}^ress. Some people caU this tree the cedar- 

 pine. From it is obtained the resin held in the highest 



129 



