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These leaves arc used in Paraguay, La Plata, Chili, Peru and Qailo Indistinctly at all hour, of ihc day. by 

 pnlhns a liandful mto a kind of tea-pot called mate, ^vhieh has given its name to the herb) and frou. the spout 

 of tins the hot hqnul ,s imbibed. Sou.e mix sugar with it, and others add a few drops of lemon juice ■ and 

 by pounng b..h hoiling water, the infusion may be renewed. 200,000 arrohas, equal to 5 millions lbs., are 

 annually ol.tau.cd from Paraguay, IIQ arrobas of which go to Chili, from whence Lin.a and Quito are 



^j^^siii,pl,ed ; the rest is expended in the vice-royalty of Buenos Ayres. 



The Jesuits planted a great number of these trees round all their towns and settlements ; but their example 

 I-. been smce httle followed, nor has the Government adopted those provident measures, which nnght er.sure 

 the propagation and preservation of so valuable a tree. It might even be extended to other parts of^B^e con- 

 tment, for, to carry it as far as Assumption, now costs as much as its primary value. At ;;;sent the groves are 

 situated n, deserts often exposed to the invasions of the uncivilized tribes : these have sometimes destroyed the 



^^^ b,hourers, w ho also frcciuently contract disorders and undergo severe hardships. By plantations being forn.ed 

 '" inhal3ited paits, such difficulties wouM be^'^voided, the gathering would cost less from wonren and children 

 benig eurployed, and the destructive mode of collecting the leaves might he improved." 



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"The lea, or Herb of Paraguay, is the leaf of a species of Ilex, about the size of a middling apple-tree 

 It tastes, when green, like mallow leaves; and in shape it nearly resembles the leaf of the oran^e-trei '' The 

 seeds are hke those of the Ivy. The leaves are roasted or dried, and almost pulverized, before thty are packed 

 up. There are three kinds of it in its prepared state, though produced but by one plant. Caa is the dis- 

 Unetive Indian appellation of the plant ^and the three sorts are called- caa-cuys, caa-mini, and eaa-guazn the 

 last ben.g denominaterl by the Spaniards, ycrva de palos. The caa-cuys Is the first bud of the leaf ^vhen 

 scarcely developed; the caa-mini Is the full-gro^vn leaf stript off from its ribs before roastin- and the caa 

 guazu IS that roasted without any preparation. The caa-cuys will not bear transportation, no"^- will it keep so 

 long as the other two sorts, which arc sent in great quantities from Paraguay to Tucuman, Peru and Chili 

 The aromatic bitterness which the herb possesses, when prepared, is more po^verful on the spot where it 

 grows, and is partly dissipated by carriage. The principal harvest of this herb is made in the eastern part of 

 Paraguay, and about the mountains of Maracayu, but it is cultivated in the marshy valleys that intervene 

 betw^een the hills, and not on the eminences themselves. The people of South America boast of Innumerable 

 vu-tues, which they attribute to this plant. It is certainly aperient and diuretic; but the other qualities 

 ascribed to It are doubtful. It is used by infusion. Few of the chapetones use it, but the Creoles are passion- 

 ately fond of it, and never travel without a supply of it. They never fail to drink the infu.sion at every meal 

 and never eat till they have taken some of this favourite beverage. It is not drunk in the same manner as tea 

 in Europe : the herb is put into a calabash, which is fixed upon a stand, and generally mounted ^vith silver: 

 this they call mat^. They most usually sweeten It with sugar, but they sometimes add lemon-juice. Boilin- 

 water is then poured on it, and It is drunk off directly, for, if suffered to remain long, the liquor would 

 become as black as Ink. To avoid swallowing the pulverized herb itself, which swims on the surface, they 

 use a silver pipe called bombitla, the top of w^hieh is perforated with several lioles, through ivhich they suck 

 the liquor. A whole party is supphed by handing round the same bowl and pijje from one to another, and 

 filling up the vessel with hot water as fast as It is drunk out. The repugnnnee of Europeans to drink after all 

 sorts of people, in a country where syphilitic diseases are very prevalent, has occasioned the introduction of 

 small glass pipes, with which each person is sometimes provided. In the mine-ccmntries the use of this herb 

 is more particularly universal, from the opinion that prevads amongst the Spaniards, that the wines there are 

 prejudicial to healtli. Like opium, it produces some singular and contrary effects ; it gives sleep to the restless, 

 and spirit to the torpid. Those who have once contracted the habit of taking it, do not find it an easy matter to 

 leave it ofl", or even to use it in moderation, though, when taken to excess, it brings on similar disorders to those 

 uhich are produced by llie immoderate use of strong liquors."— m/fOC-j^Y^- Hisfor// of Buenos A>jres,p. 494. 



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