the Hiftory of Plants. 
i<Jn 
Chap, i <?. Of (juaiacum, or Indian ‘PocJ^wood, 
Gu.iin.ti arbor is rtmtdas. The Dejirif>ti\. 
A branch of theGuaiacum tree. 
G Vaiacum, which fome call Lignum S an- 
num : others, Lignum vita , is a well 
kown wood, though of a tree v nkriown, 
or at lead not certainly knowne • for this fi- 
gure which 1 here giue you out of Clufius,yias . 
gotten,andthehi(torie framed as you fhall 
neare by his own words, taken out of his sebo- 
/favponthe 2 1 Chapterof Mon.xrdns . About 
the beginning (faith he) of the yeare t6o 1 . 1 
receiued from Peter Garret a branch of a foot 
long, which he writ was giuen himbya cer- 
taine Surgeon lately returned from America, 
for a branch of the tree Guaiacum : which if 
it be a branch of the true Guaiacum, then hath 
NicoLu Monardus (leightly enough let downe 
the hiflorie of this tree. I thusdeferibed this 
branch which was fent me. 
This branch was a foot long, very writhen, 
and diftinguifhee with many knots, fcarfe at 
the lower end equalling the thickneffe of a 
writing pen or goofe quil, hailing an hard and 
yellowifh wood, and a wrinkled barke o an 
afh colour : at the vpper end it was diuided 
into (lender branches, whereof fome yet retai- 
ned their leaues, and other fome the floures 
and the rudiment of the fruit: the leaues, or 
more truly the wings or foot-ftulkes of the 
leaues grew vpon (lender branches one againft 
another, each winged leafe hailing foure or 
fixe little leaues, alwaies growing by couples 
one againft other, as in the Mafticke tree ; and thefe were thickifh, round, and 'diftinguifhed with 
many veines, which by reafon of their drinefle*(as I obferued) would eafily fall off,leauing the 
footftalks naked, and onely retaining the markes whereas the leaues had beene. In the knots of 
the vpper branches there grew as it were fwellings, outof which together grew fix, eight, ten, or 
more (lender foot-ftalkes, fome inch long, each carrying a floure nor great, confiding of fix little 
leaues (but whether white, yellow, or blew, I could not by reafon of the drinefle iudge:)out of the 
middleofthe floure grew many little threds, and in fome the rudiment of the fruit began to ap- 
peare, hailing two cels, almoft fhaped like the feed-veflell of the co nmon Shepheards purfe. 
Thus much C/«/?«r,whoafterwards receiued the fruit from two or three, but the moftperfeft 
from the learned Apothecarie lobn Pon.t of Verona: they are commonly parted into two parts or 
cels, yet he obferued one with threerhe found longifh (tones in them almoft like thofe o iEnonymus, 
and they confided ofa very hard and hairy fubftance like to that of the Date (tones, containing a 
fmooth kernel of a yellowifh colour. 
Now will I giue you the deferiptions of c Monardus then,what I haue obferued my felfe of this 
wood, which I muftconfefleis very little, yet which may giue fome light to the ignorant. Ofthis 
wood (faith CMomirdns) many haue written many waies, faying that it is either Ebonie,ora kinds 
of Box, or calling it by fome other names. But as it is a new kindeoftree, not found in thefe regi- 
ons, or any other of the whole world deferibed by the Antients, but only thofe of late difeouered; 
fo this (hall be a new tree to vs : howeuer it be, it is a large tree of the bignes of the Ilex,ful of bran- 
ches, hauinga great matrix or blackifh pith, the fubftance of the wood being harder than jpiame r 
the barke is thicke, gummie or fat, and when the wood is dry falleth eafily off: the leaues arefmal 
and hard : the floure yellow : the which is followed byaround follid fruit, containing in it feeds 
like thofe of the Medlar. 
It growes plentifully in the Ifles o'tSnnCloDmingo s 
Another 
