COCOA-NUT TREE. 
211 
toddy. Mr. Percival tells us, that in the island of 
Ceylon they procure this luxury by making a slit 
over-night, with a knife, in the top of the tree 
where the leaves shoot up ; and that they hang a 
chatty or earthen pot from the branches, so as to 
receive the juice, which immediately begins to distill, 
and continues to do so till next morning, when the 
pot is removed. 
This liquor makes a wholesome and cooling 
drink while it continues fresh ; but this is not 
long, as it contains a quantity of sugar, and of 
course in the warm climate of Ceylon it soon fer- 
ments. In the course of twenty-four hours it be- 
comes acid, and after a time proves intoxicating. 
This circumstance, however, does not lessen its va- 
lue in the eyes of the inhabitants, who are then en- 
abled to distill from it a spirit, which is said to be 
used by our English soldiers when they cannot pro- 
cure arrack. 
The manner in which the inhabitants reach the 
tops of the cocoa trees, for the purpose of procuring 
the toddy , is thus described by Mr. Percival : “ It 
is surprising to see with what dexterity the natives 
climb those high, straight, and slender trees. They 
have many ways of facilitating their ascent. Some- 
times they tie pieces of the long leaf, twisted to- 
gether with ropes of hay, around the body of the 
tree, leaving the distance of about two feet between 
each piece, and thus forming for themselves a sort 
of ladder. Frequently they embrace the tree with 
p 2 
