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inhabitants make bread/' He relates, that 

 " it is reported that when the sun goes down, 

 those heads close up with leaves, and sink 

 under the water, where they remain shut 

 until the morning, when they appear above 

 the surface and open, continuing this course 

 until they are ripe, when the flowers (that 

 are white) fall off of themselves. This lotus," 

 says he, " has a root as big as a quince, co- 

 vered with a black rind or bark, much like 

 the husk of a chesnut. The substance 

 within is white, and delicious to eat, par- 

 ticularly boiled in water or roasted in embers. 

 The bread made from the seeds of this lotus/' 

 says Pliny, " is worked with water or milk. 

 There is not any bread in the world (says 

 report) more wholesome and lighter than this, 

 so long as it is hot; but once cold, it is 

 hard of digestion, and becomes weighty/' 



This plant was introduced into this 

 country by the late Sir Joseph Banks, in 

 1787, and is of the Polyandria Monogynia 

 Class. 



