EXPEDITION TO SURINAM. . 115 



fields are even overftocked with rice, caffava, yams, plan- chap. 

 tains, Sec. They make fait from the palm-tree afiies, as 

 the Gentoos do in the Baft Indies, or frequently fupply the 

 want of it with red pepper. 



We here fopnd concealed near the trunk of an old tree 

 a cafe-bottle filled with excellent butter, which the rangers 

 told me they made by melting and clarifying the fat of the 

 palm-tree worms : this fully anfwers all the purpofes of 

 European butter, and I found it in fa6l even more deli- 

 cious to my tafte. The pijiachio or pinda nuts they alfo 

 convert into butter, by their oily fubfiance, and frequently 

 ufe them in their broths. The palm-tree wine they hava 

 always in plenty; they procure it by making deep incifions 

 of a foot fquare in the fallen trunk, where the juice being 

 collecSted, it foon ferments by the heat of the fun ; it is not 

 only a cool and agreeable beverage, but fufficiently ftrong 

 to intoxicate. The manicole or pine-tree affords them 

 materials for building ; they fabricate pots from clay 

 found near their dwellings ; the gourd or callebaffe tree 

 procures them cups ; the filk grafs plant and maurecee- 

 tree fupplies materials for their hammocks, and even a 

 kind of cap grows naturally upon the palm-trees, as well 

 as brooms ; the various kinds of nebee fupply the want 

 of ropes; fuel they have for cutting; and a wood called 

 bee-bee ferves for tinder, by rubbing two pieces on each 

 other ; it is alfo elaftic, and makes excellent corks ; candles 

 they can make, having plenty of fat and oil; and the wild 

 bees afibrd them v/ax, as well as excellent hcMiey. 



Q 2 Gloaths 



