EXPEDITION TO SURINAM. 



a moft beautiful orange or golden colour,, being crowned 

 with a fea-green tuft, of the fame leaves as the mother 

 plant, and which when put in the ground produces an- 

 other pine-apple in the fpace of about eighteen months. 

 The delicious tafte and flavour of this fruit has in the 

 fpace of half a century become fo well known, that I have 

 introduced it merely to notice its plenty in the country I 

 write of; for fo fpontaneoufly indeed do the former grow 

 in this climate, and of fuch different kinds, without any 

 cultivation, that on many eftates they ferve as a common 

 food for hogs. 



The mujk and water melons grow alfb plentifully in this 

 country ; the firft is of a globular form, large, like the 

 crown of a fmall hat, ribbed, buff colour, orange and 

 green. The pulp is yellow, firm, fweet, and fucculent; 

 ftill it is eaten with fugar, but more frequently with 

 black pepper and fait — the fmell of this fruit is ex:- 

 cellent. 



The water-melon is of an oval or cylindrical fhape, its 

 colour is a bright poliflied green, and partly a very pale 

 buff ; the pulp of this fruit is a pink colour, and of a 

 mellow watery fubftance ; its tafte is fweet, exceedingly 

 cooling, and of a moft agreeable flavour. 



Both the above melons are of the cucumber kind, grow- 

 ing on rough ftalks, with large leaves, that creep along 

 the ground. It is remarkable that the water-melon, which 

 may be freely eaten in all diftempers without the leall 

 pernicious confequence, thrives belt in very dry and fandy 



places* 



