TRAVELS IN BRAZIL. 



than in Europe, because the root contains more 

 aqueous parts. Besides the ipecacuanha, the woods 

 of S. Joao Baptista contain many other valuable 

 medicinal roots, such as anda-agu, the bicuiha {My- 

 ristica officinalis^ Mart.), the piriguqja, bictua, 

 salsa, raiz preta (Chiococca anguifuga *, Mart.) ; 

 the use of which is introduced among the Portu- 

 guese no less than among the Indians. One of 

 the greatest ornaments is the sapacdya, or pot-tree 

 (^Lecythis Ollaria, L.) ; its immense stem is above 

 a hundred feet high, and spreads into a majestic 

 and vaulted crown, which is extremely beautiful 

 in the spring when the rose-coloured leaves shoot 

 out, and in the flowering season, by the large white 

 blossoms. The nuts, which have a thick shell, 

 are of the size of a child's head, with a lid which 

 is loose all round, and which at length, when the 

 weight of the fruit turns it downwards, separates, 

 and lets the seed fall out. In a high wind it is 

 dangerous to remain in the woods on account of 

 these heavy nuts falling from so great a height. 

 The seeds are collected in great quantities by the 

 Indians, who are extremely fond of them, and 

 either eat them raw, or preserve them roasted and 

 pounded, in pots, and the shells themselves are 

 used as drinking cups. The inhabitants of the 



* Respecting the Brazilian ipecacuanha, see Martin's Spe- 

 cimen Materiae Medicae Brasiliensis, Dissert. I. in the Memoirs 

 of the Academy of Munich, 1823. 



