THE MANGOSTAN. 



sra 



g-etlier, is one of the oliief dainties of the vege- 

 table world. 



The mango is never brought from India to this 

 country in any other state than the green fruit 

 pickled, from which no idea of the flavour can 

 be formed. The ripe fruit is very perishable; 

 and when it begins to decay it is offepsive, and 

 tastes strongly like turpentine. It is not easy 

 even to seoui-e the vegetative power of the nut 

 or kernel during the voyage from India, unless 

 it be inclosed in wax; and the plants are with 

 difficulty preserved as objects of curiosity. 



In the Transactions of the Horticultural So- 

 ciety for 1826, there is an account of some man- 

 gos, raised by Earl Powis, at Walcot Hall, in 

 Shropshire. "The mango," says Mr Sabine, the 

 secretary to the society, in his very able paper 

 upon the subject, "is well known to all travel- 

 lers who have visited the tropical parts of the 

 world, as being by far the best fruit that is gen- 

 erally produced in those regions, and as that 

 which is the most uniformly grateful to an Eur- 

 opean palate. In such climates, it is cultivated 

 wherever the arts of civilization have penetrated; 

 and it may there be said to hold the same station; 

 among other fruits, as the apple possesses among 

 those of northern regions. Like the apple, the 

 number of varieties raised from the seed of the 

 mango is also very great; and of these, while 

 some possess the highest excellence, there ai'e 

 others in which the flesh of the fiiiit is so fibrous 

 and ill-flavoured, as to resemble, as is commonly 

 said, nothing so much as a mixture of 'tow and 

 turpentine.' " 



The Mangostan, (garcinia mangostana). The 

 mangostan, or mangustin, is one of the most 

 delicious fruits that grows; and the tree on 

 which it is produced, is one of the most grace- 

 ful and beautiful anywhere to be met with. 

 It is a native of Sumatra, and also of the Mo- 

 lucca, or Spice islands, from which it has been 

 transplaSited to Java, and some other parts of 

 the eastern Archipelago. The stem, which is 

 of a variegated brownish-red colour, rises to 

 the height of about twenty feet; the branches 

 come out in regular order, and give the head 

 of the tree the form of a parabola; and the 

 leaves are entire, about eight inches long, and 

 four broad at the middle, of a beautiful green on 

 the upper side, and a fine olive on the under. 

 The flower resembles that of a single rose, with 

 some dark red petals. The fruit is round, aboiit 

 the size of an ordinary orange; and has a little 

 cap on the extremity, under which it is plaited 

 into rays. The shell of the fi-uit, which is at 

 first green, but changes to brown marked with 

 yellow spots, has some resemblance to that of a 

 pomegranate, but is thicker and softer, and the 

 contents are more juicy. The pulp is divided 

 internally by thin septa, like those in an orange, 

 and the seeds are lodged in the divisions. The 



flavour of the pulp is said to be that of the finest 

 grape and strawberry united; but those who have 

 tasted the fruit in perfection, and attempted to 

 convey to others some idea of the impression 

 that it had made on them, are not agxeed as to 

 what it resembles. Abel says that "he and his 

 companions were anxious to carry with them 

 some precise expression of its flavour; but after 

 satisfying themselves that it partook of the com- 

 pound nature of the pine apple and the peach, 

 they were obliged to confess that it had many 

 other equally good but utterly inexpressible fla- 

 vours." 



There ai-e two other species of this tree. These 

 are the Celebes mangostan C garcinia celebica,) 

 and the horay mangostan (garcinia cornea. J 

 The first is found wild in the woods of Celebes, 

 near Macassar, whence it has been transplanted 

 to Amboyna, Java, and other places; but the 

 fruit, which is rather larger than that of the true 

 mangostan, does not always ripen. The corneous 

 species is found in the high remote mountains of 

 Amboyna : it is a lofty tree, though not of very 

 gi'eat diameter. The fruit is so excellent as nearly 

 to equal the true mangostan. The wood is very 

 hard, heavy, and tough, and of the colour of 

 horn, from which latter circumstance the specific 

 name is given to it. 



All the sorts may be propagated from seed, 

 layers, and even cuttings; but layers come soonest 

 into bearing, producing fruit generally the second 

 year. The seedlings of the purple-fruited soit, 

 will produce fmit the first year. All the species 

 will bearfi-uit even iu large pots; but, according 

 to Sabine, the best method is to plant them in a 

 corner of the bark bed. They flourish best in a 

 temperature from 60° to 70°. 



The Durion, (durio zibethinus.) Polyadcl- 

 phia poli/andria of Linn. 



The durion, which is pretty generally difi^used 

 over the south-east of Asia, is accounted next to 

 the mangostan; and, in the opinion of some, is 

 superior to It. However excellent the taste may 

 be, the durion is revolting to those unaccustomed 

 to it; for it has a strong smell, which is said to 

 arise from sulphuretted hydrogen. Yet this 

 quality is soon forgotten, after the palate becomes 

 familiar with it. Though of the most nutri- 

 tious quality, and the most dainty taste, the 

 durion never palls upon the appetite or injures 

 the digestion : its effects are directly opposite. 



The tree which produces the durion is about 

 the size, and something in the form of a pear 

 tree; but the leaves are in shape like those of the 

 cherry, only they are entire and smooth at the 

 edges. The flowers are large, and of a yellowisli 

 white. The fruit is large, in some of the species 

 as lai'ge as a man's head; and, externally, it is. 

 not unlike the bread fi-uit. It has a hard rind, 

 covered with warts and tubercles. When ripe, 

 it becomes of a brownish yellow, and opens at 

 S A 



