C 690 ) 
People Till, comes not to above a Tenth part of their 
Ground ; and where they do Till, it hinders not that 
within haU a Year the Ground is over-grown as before, 
for they do not root up the Shrubs, but only cut, or 
fometimes burn them fomewhat clofe to the Earih, 
(6 they fpring again in a very little timt ; this is fuflSci- 
ent for their planting the Corn, which they do by ma- 
king little Holes in the Earth at a competent Diftance, 
and putting Seeds into them. 
it may be that if thofe Shrubs were deftroyed, the 
Matter might be mended, v^hich yet is not to be hop'd 
for, but by bringing the People to fbme kind of Indu- 
ftry, and that will not be eafy ; they are io wholly gi- 
ven to Lazinefs, and fo entirely bred up in it, that there 
mafi be the greateft Change imaginable, before they be- 
come any whit tolerable ; a Man may fee their Temper 
by this, that though their Tillage be very eafy, and the 
Earth yields many Hundreds for One, yetfo little is the 
ufe they m.ake of it, that one fcarce Year brings them 
to danger of Starving, and though there be People 
enough, and every Man has Power of choofing what he 
will, that is not already tilfd by fbme other, yet not 
the Tenth P^rt, as we have faid, is imployed : So that 
a Man would wonder what came in the French Man's 
Head to fancy them Induftrious ; bur fubtile they are, 
and diligent to cheat any Man that is not cautious e- 
nough to avoid it. _^ 
So that the Fault of the Wood is (by the Lszineft of 
the People) without any Remedy. But there may be 
fomethiog in the Earth it klf; the Water which they 
have here in Pits (Rain Water for the mod part, but yet 
ftrain'd through the Earth) has a kind of Tafle mist 
' of Sweet and Subacid, if I underftand what I fay, I am 
told 'tis of Vitriol, whether that be mifchievous, you 
know better than I do. 
Bat 
