The Principal Navigations, Voyages, Traffiques and Discoveries of the English Nation — Volume 08: Asia, Part IHakluyt, Richard
History
The Principal Navigations, Voyages, Traffiques and Discoveries of the English Nation — Volume 08: Asia, Part I
Hakluyt, Richard
Discoveries in geography -- English; Voyages and travels
Also in that contree, and in othere also, men fynden longe apples to selle,
in hire cesoun: and men clepen hem apples of paradys; and thei ben righte
swete and of gode savour. [Footnote: Melons.] And thoghe zee kutte hem in
never so many gobettes or parties, overthwart or end longes, evermore zee
schulle fynden in the myddes the figure of the Holy Cros of oure Lord Jesu.
But thei will roten within 8 days: and for that cause men may not carye of
the apples to no fer contrees. And thei han grete leves, of a fote and an
half of lengthe: and thei ben covenably large. And men fynden there also
the appulle tree of Adam, that han a byte at on of the sydes. And there ben
also fyge trees, that baren no leves, but fyges upon the smale braunches;
and men clepen hem figes of Pharoon. Also besyde Cayre, withouten that
cytee, is the feld where bawme growethe: and it cometh out on smale trees,
that ben non hyere than a mannes breek girdle: and thei semen as wode that
is of the wylde vyne. And in that feld ben 7 welles, that oure Lord Jesu
Crist made with on of his feet, whan he wente to pleyen with other
children. That feld is not so well closed, but that men may entren at here
owne list. But in that cesonne, that the bawme is growynge, men put there
to gode kepynge, that no man dar ben hardy to entre. This bawme growethe in
no place, but only there. And thoughe that men bryngen of the plauntes, for
to planten in other contrees, thei growen wel and fayre, but thei bryngen
forthe no fructuous thing: and the leves of bawme ne fallen noughte. And
men kutten the braunches with a scharp flynston or with a scherp bon,
[Footnote: Flintstone and bone.] whan men will go to kutte hem: For who so
kutte hem with iren, it wolde destroye his vertue and his nature. And the
Sarazines clepen the wode Enonch balse; and the fruyt, the whiche is as
Quybybes, thei clepen Abebissam; and the lycour, that droppethe fro the
braunches, thei clepen Guybalse. And men maken alle weys that bawme to ben
tyled [Footnote: Tilled.] of the Cristenemen, or elles it wolde not
fructifye; as the Sarazines seyn hem self: for it hathe ben often tyme
preved. Men seyn also, that the bawme growethe in Ynde the more, in that
desert where the trees of the sonne and of the mone spak to Alisaundre. But
I have not seen it. For I have not ben so fer aboven upward: because that
there ben to many perilouse passages. And wyte zee wel, that a man oughte
to take gode kepe for to bye bawme, but zif he cone knowe it righte wel:
for he may righte lyghtely be discoyved. For men sellen a gome, that men
clepen turbentyne, in stede of bawme; and thei putten there to a littille
bawme for to zeven gode odour. And some putten wax in oyle of the wode of
the fruyt of bawme, and seyn that it is bawme: and sume destyllen clowes of
gylofre and of spykenard of Spayne and of othere spices, that ben well
smellynge; and the lykour that gothe out there of, thei clepe it bawme: and
thei wenen, that thei han bawme; and thei have non.
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