Woods. 
DESCRIPTION of the Island of Bourbon, or 
Mascarenne. 
"J^his Island is situated in 21 degrees of South latitude 
from the Equinoctial line ; it contains sixty & four 
leagues in circumference, & 15 to 16 in length; it is very 
mountainous, & the mountains are very high. There are 
nevertheless some fine flat tracts near the sea coast, & 
indeed in the mountains, which are fit to be inhabited. 
The soil here is very good, & produces abundantly 
everything which one plants in it. 
All this island is fill’d with very agreeable woods, 
through which it is easy to pass. One does not meet 
there with many Thorns, Thickets & Bushes, & the perfume 
there is sweet, there being trees in blossom all the year. 
The greatest part of these woods are as follows :—The 
Black-Wood, a sort of Ebony; True Ebony, Red-Wood, 
& Wood with veined timber; these woods are very 
beautiful to work. Besides, there are also all sorts of 
good woods, both for carpentry & for sawing, to make 
planks & other things. They find here again the Benjoin , 
from which they distil some Benjoin gum of good odour. 
These trees of Benjoin are large, stout & straight, & good 
for use. The Pcilmistes , from which they take the cabbage 
or head, which is very good either for eating raw, in soup, 
or fried. 
Lataigniers. These are another sort of Palmiste . The 
leaves of these trees are very large, such that two men can 
put themselves under the shade of one of these leaves, & 
by this means shelter themselves from rain & bad weather. 
They make use of these leaves to cover the huts or houses, 
by means of which these houses are soon cover’d. 
There’s, besides, a sort of wood which they name 
