292 Mr. masson’s Botanical 'Travels. 
them for their flefh, which they efteem equal to pork, 
their fat being much of the fame quality. The 
manner in which the Hottentots catch thele animals 
is as follows : the banks of the rivers, as I have already 
obferved, are covered with almoit impenetrable woods ; 
thefe animals in the day time lodge themfelves in the 
deepell places of the river, and when night comes, 
make excurfions into the adjacent fields to graze, taking 
their courfe through paths, which they have made in 
the woods. In thefe paths the Hottentots dig large pits, 
which they cover over with boughs of trees and grafs; 
then hunting them out of the fields, the animals make 
full-fpeed towards the river, and fall into thefe pits ; from 
whence they are unable to get out, on account of their 
great weight, and then the men come up with their 
lances and kill them. We found here a new palm, of the 
pith of which the Dutchman told us the Hottentots make 
bread; but we could get no fatisfa£tory account of their 
method of making it. We obferved tw T o l'pecies; one 
about a foot and a half diameter in the ftem, and about 
twelve feet high, with entire leaves; they appeared to be 
very old, and leldom bore fruit. The other fort had no 
item, with the leaves a little ferrated, and lying flat on 
the ground, which produced a large conical fructification 
about eighteen inches long, and a foot or more in cir- 
cumference; lquamofe,and under each of the f quanta, is 
an oval nut, about the fize of a chefnut, of a beautiful 
red colour, but infipid tafte. The male plant is fimilar 
to 
