a juice or sap runs out into vessels placed to receive it. Thus they procure at each wound, every night and morning, a cupful of most precious liquor, which sometimes they boil till it becomes strong as brandy, so as to make people drunk like strong wine, which it resembles in taste and flavour. They likewise procure sugar from this tree, but not very sweet. This tree produces fruit continually, as at all times there are to be seen upon it both old ripe fruit of the past season, and green fruit of the present year. It does not begin bearing till five years old, and only lives for twenty five years. It thrives best in sandy ground, and is planted or set out like our walnuts; and is so much valued, that it is to be found all over the country for at least two hundred miles. This country also produces other fruits, from which they make good oil. For the cultivation of rice they till the ground with oxen as we do, and at the season for sowing they have a holiday, on which they testify their joy by singing and dancing to the sound of all kinds of instruments of music. To ensure, as they conceive, a favourable produce, ten men are disguised like so many devils, who dance to the noise of their music; and after the festivities of the day, they pray to the devils to send them a plentiful crop. When any merchant of these idolaters is sore afflicted with disease and near death, then certain persons who are accounted physicians among them ore called to visit the person in extremity. These persons accordingly come to his house in the dead of night, dressed like devils, and carrying burning sticks in their mouth and hands. And there, with mad cries and boilings, and with the jangling of certain instruments, they make such a horrible noise in the ears of the sick man, as is enough to make a healthy man sick. This is the only remedy these pretended physicians offer to their sick persons, being merely to present to him when at the point of death the resemblance of him whom, worse than devils, they honour as the vicegerent of the deity. When any one hath so engorged himself with eating as to be sick at stomach, he takes the powder of ginger, mixed in some liquid to the consistence of syrup, which he drinks, and in three days he recovers his former health.