■ Great part of the country is covered with a luxuriant verdure,
and our natural hiftorians were gratified by the novelty,
if not the variety of the plants. Sow-thiftle, garden
night-fhade, one or two kinds of grafs, the fame as in England,
and two or three kinds of fern, like thofe of the Weft
Indies, with a few of the plants that are to be found in
almoft every part of the world, were all, out of about four
hundred fpecies, that have hitherto been defcribed by any
botanifts, or had been feen elfewhere during the courfe of
this voyage, except about five or fix which had been gathered
at Terra del Fuego.
Of eatable vegetables there are but few ; our people, indeed,
who had been long at fea, eat, with equal pleafure
and advantage, of wild celery, and a kind of crefles, which
grew in great abundance upon all parts of the fea-fhore. We
alfo, once or twice, met with a plant like what the country
people in England call Lamb's quarters, or Fat-hen, which we
boiled inftead of greens; and once we had the good fortune
to find a cabbage tree, which afforded us a delicious meal;
and, except the fern-root, and one other vegetable, totally
unknown in Europe, and which, though eaten by the natives,
was extremely difagreeable to us, we found no other
vegetable production that was fit for food, among thofe that
appeared to be the wild produce of the country; and we
could find but three efculent plants among thofe which are
raifed by cultivation, yams, fweet potatoes, and coccos. Of
the yams and potatoes there are plantations confifting of
many acres, and I believe that any fhip which fhould happen
to be here in the autumn, when they are dug up, might
purchafe them in any quantity.
Gourds are alfo cultivated by the natives of this place, the
fruit of which fumilhes them with veflels for various ufes.
We
We alfo found here the Chinefe paper mulberry tree, the 177°.
fame as that of which the inhabitants of the South Sea 1— „—!
iflands make their cloth; but it is fo fcarce, that though the
New Zealanders alfo make cloth of it, they have not enough
for any other purpofe than to wear as an ornament in the
holes which they make in their ears, as I have obferved
before,
But among all the trees, fhrubs, and plants of this country,
there is not one that produces fruit, except a berry
which has neither fweetnefs nor flavour, and which none
but the boys took pains to gather, lhould be honoured with
that appellation. There is, however, a plant that ferves the
inhabitants inftead of hemp and flax, which excels all. that
are put to the fame purpofes in other countries. Of this
plant there are two forts ; the leaves of both refemble thofe
of flags, but the flowers are fmaller, and their clutters more
numerous j in one kind they are yellow, and in the other a
deep red. Of the leaves of thefe plants, with very little preparation,
they make all their common apparel; and of thefe
they make alfo their firings, lines, and cordage for every purpofe,
which are fo much ftronger than any thing we can
make with hemp, that they will not bear a comparifon..
From the fame plant, by another preparation, they draw
long (lender fibres which fhine like filk, and are as white
as fnow: of thefe, which are alfo furprifingly ft'rong, the
finer clothes are made; and of the leaves, without any other
preparation than fplitting them into proper breadths, and
tying the (trips together, they make their fiftring nets; fome
of which, as I have before remarked, are of an enormous
fize.
A plant, which with fuch advantage might be applied» to
fia. many ufeful and important purpofes,. would certainly be
x. a great.: