An Historical Relation of the Island Ceylon in the East Indies: Together with an Account of the Detaining in Captivity the Author and Divers other Englishmen Now Living There, and of the Author's Miraculous EscapeKnox, Robert
History
An Historical Relation of the Island Ceylon in the East Indies: Together with an Account of the Detaining in Captivity the Author and Divers other Englishmen Now Living There, and of the Author's Miraculous Escape
Knox, Robert
Sri Lanka -- Description and travel -- Early works to 1800; Sri Lanka -- Social life and customs
[This water will brighten rusty Iron, and serve instead of
Ink.] Another use there is of this water. It is this: Let any rusty
Iron ly a whole night in it, and it will become bright; and the water
look black like Ink, insomuch that men may write with it. These Trees
grow but in some Parts of the Land, and nothing near so plentiful
as Cinnamon. The Berries the Drugsters in the City there, do sell in
their Shops.
[The Dounekaia] The Dounekaia gauhah, a shrub, bears leaves as broad
as two fingers, and six or eight foot long, on both sides of them set
full of Thorns, and a streak of Thorns runs thro the middle. These
leaves they split to weave Matts withal. The Tree bears a bud above a
span long, tapering somewhat like a Sugar-loaf. Leaves cover this bud
folding it about, like the leaves of a Cabbage. Which leaves smell
rarely sweet, and look of a lovely yellow colour like gold. This
bud blowes into divers bunches of Flowers, spreading it self open
like a Plume of Feathers, each Flower whitish, but very small. The
Roots of this shrub they use for Ropes, splitting them into Thongs,
and then making them into Ropes.
[The Capita.] The Capita gauhah, is a shrub never bigger than a
mans arm. The Wood, Rind and Leaves have all a Physical smell; and
they do sometimes make use of it for Physic. The Leaf is of a bright
green, roundish, rough, and as big as the palm of an hand. No sort
of Cattel will eat it, no, not the Goats, that will sometimes brouze
upon rank poyson. There is abundance of these Trees every where, and
they grow in all Countreys, but in Ouvah. And this is supposed to be
the cause, that the Ouvah Cattle dy, when they are brought thence
to any other Country. They attribute it to the smell of this Tree,
of such a venomous nature it is to Beasts. And therefore to destroy
their Fleas, or to keep their houses clear of them, they sweep them
with Brooms made of this shrub. 'Tis excellent good for firing, and
will burn when it is green. There are no other coals the Goldsmiths
use, but what are made of this wood.
[Rattans.] Rattans grow in great abundance upon this Island. They
run like Honey-suckles either upon the Ground, or up Trees, as it
happens, near Twenty fathom in length. There is a kind of a shell or
skin grows over the Rattan, and encloseth it round. Which serves for
a Case to cover and defend it, when tender. This Skin is so full of
prickles and thorns, that you cannot touch it. As the Rattan growes
longer and stronger, this Case growes ripe, and falls off prickles
and shell and all.
[Its Fruit.] It bears fruit in clusters just like bunches of Grapes,
and as big. Every particular Berry is covered with a husk like a
Gooseberry, which is soft, yellow and scaly, like the scales of
a Fish, hansome to look upon. This husk being cracked and broken,
within grows a Plum of a whitish colour: within the Plum a stone,
having meat about it. The people gather and boyl them to make sour
pottage to quench the thirst.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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