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thin as the finest parchment; between these 

 two there is a space of about a quarter of an 

 inch all the way, which is filled up with a 

 soft pulpy substance, of a tart but agreeable 

 taste, which is what we use as the fruit: this, 

 and the stones which are enclosed in the inner 

 pod, are fastened together by a great many 

 slender fibres from the woody stalk which 

 runs through the pod, and conveys the vinous 

 juice, that afterwards hardens, into the viscous 

 matter of the pulp. Lunan says, the tree is 

 exceedingly common in Jamaica, where it 

 grows to vast bulk; and he gives the follow- 

 ing account of preparing the fruit. " The 

 pods are gathered when full ripe, which is 

 known by their fragility, or easy breaking 

 on a small pressure between the finger and 

 the thumb. The fruit is taken out of the pod, 

 cleared from the shelly fragments, and placed 

 in layers in a cask; and the boiling syrup 

 from the teache, or first copper in the boiling- 

 house, just before it begins to granulate, is 

 poured in till the cask is filled: the syrup 

 pervades every part quite to the bottom, and, 

 when cool, the cask is headed for sale. The 

 more elegant method is with sugar, well cla- 

 rified with eggs, till a clear transparent syrup 

 is formed, which gives the fruit a much plea- 

 santer flavour. 



