E toa-cafuarina. Equifetifolia.
This is one of the beft woods they have j it is very hard and heavy, and coloured
like mahogany. They make their clubs, lances, cloth-beaters, and feverai
other knick-nacks and utenfils of it.
' Tooneenna. Hernandia-ovigera.
Of the wood of this tree they make a fort of very fmall canoes', and feveral other
n eceflary utenfils.
E hooe-rorro- Cueurbtta-pruriens.
The fruit of this tree is about the fize of a fmall orange, very hard,, and quite
round, ferving them, inftead' of bottles, to put their monoe or oil im
Moemoe.. Ehyllanthii&-qnceps~
The only, thing remarkable about this plant is the leaves,, which ihut up-at:
night, from whence its name, which fignifies ileepy..
E aowte. . Mprm-papyriferus'. _
This is the ffirub from which they make their fineft and moil beautiful cloth ;
and is probably the fame with that Of which they make paper in China. They
never let it grow old, but cut it down when it is about-a man’s height, ftripping
the bark' off and laying-it to foak in water., Of this they-make their cloth either
thick or thin as they pleafe. _ They plant it in beds.,, and take great pains in the
cultivation of it* .
Eroa. yljrtica-arginted^ or 'Urtica-candicans'.
Of the ilalks o f this nettle, beaten out, they make their beft lines fon their fift£
hooks, which has the quality of not rotting with falt-water j they alfo make beks,
or girdles of it, but very feldom garments^ their, beft feins are alfo made of it-
- E tootboe. ' : ¥efopaa-perfpicua-.
O f the bark of this tree, -foaked in* water, they make that gummy fubftanee
which they put upon their dark-eoloured cloth to make it glofly, and keep out the
rain. The fruit of .this, tree is a fort of nut, which yields a very fat kernel* o f
which they make their black dye, ufed in Tataowing, by burning them and receiving
the fmokfe,. ' Strung upon a ?eed os ftiefe. they fcrve inftead o f candles,, and
give a very good light,.
^ „ ’ I
E óoroó. ,v ; Sitodium-altile.
This tree, which yields the bread-fruit fo-often mentioned, by the voyagers to-
the South-feas, mayjuftlybe idled the StafF-of-life to thefe iflandersj For from it
they draw moft o f ¡their fuppprt. This treé grows tq between , thirty and forty
feet high, has large pal mated leaves, of a deep grafs-gree-n on the upper- fide,,
but paler on the under j and- bears, male and female flowers, which come out fingle
at the bottom or j,oint of each leaf. The male flower fades and drops off; the.
female, or duller of females, fwell and yield the fruit, which often weighs three
or four pounds, and is as big as a perfon’s head when full grown. It is'of a greets-
colour j the rind is - divided into a number of polygonical féátions ; the general
ihape adittle longer than round, and white on the infide, with a pretty large eoVe.
The fruit, as well as the, whole plant,- is full of a white clammy Juice, which ifluea
plentifully from any part that is cut : it .delights in a rich. fo.il, and feldom gjfcws*
i f ever, on the low ifland? c. it is a very handfome tree' to- look at, o f a beautiful
verdure,, and well cloathed with- leaves,, bearing a vaft quantity of fruit,, which
appears to hang in bunches, and,, ¡by its.great weight, beiid? down the branches -
it bears,fruit a' gréât part of the year,/ and there arefétferal forts- of it*, fome fmalîér
and; others larger,. which-are, ready tptplufek. at/different, feàfon&. ' They geueraJIw
plu'ok it before it is ripe,, ufing-a long, flick, with a fork at the end of it-for thispor-
pofe y and, before they roaft it, forape all the rind off with a ihell ¿ .and*.then; when
large,, cut it in quarters ; and, having prepared.one of their, ovens in the ground^
with hot ftones- in it, ' they lay the fruit upon thefe, having previoufty put a layer o f
the leaves between, and then another layer over them, and^ above that, more hot
ffónes, covering-up;the whole elofe- with earthy and, m-two or three hours time, it
is done j it then appears very inviting, moré fo than thé fihfeft loaf I ever fowj the.
infide-is very white, and the oiitfide a pale brown f it taftes very* farinaceous, and iV’
perhaps,- the moft agreeable and'beft foeeedafreum. for bread'ever yet known,, and,
in many refpetfs, exceeds it. "■ When thu^ baked, it bril'y keeps three or four
days, another contrivance being ufed for keeping it; theytáke the Baked fruit, cut mit
all'the cores', and, with a ftone-mallet, mafh ii !fo • a pulp ih a wooden; trouglf,.
or tray. This pulp they put in- a- Kofe that' is dugr'in ffie ground and lined with
leaves y- this is-clbfe-covered arid leff a proper* tihiétill ¡tforméñ^ an^.becomes;.
four, at which tíme‘they take-if up, and xnafcë-itfota-'Me'Ibafresr uéichrtíieW
wrap up-iu,. the leaves, and,,, in. this; Hate,, it is. baked, and called by them mahey
. and;