ftreets, are continually annoying a foreigner; and landed on the island of Afcenfion, where the fun hatches the eggs of the tortoises, and in a fhort time ruins the conftitution of the most healthy.'

The Author has given us feveral defcriptions of animals and plants, which are particularly accurate and fcientific. We fhall felect fome of thefe, with other extracts, for the fatisfaction of our readers, from which they will be able, in fome measure, to judge of the abilities of the writer, and the merit of the work.

3° 47′ N. L. We caught the dog-fish, which is reckoned the molt voracious animal of prey. Authors have already de- ' fcribed feveral kinds of them, though not very clearly. The reafon thereof is probably that fome forts are no where to be found but in great feas, where they can be but feldom examined by inquifitive people; whence all forts are called by the fame name, becaufe they all look alike at a distance. Very feldom does an opportunity offer of comparing feveral forts together, that fpecific marks might be afcertained, which otherwife is difficult, as their fins do not conftitute the only difference. The dog-fish most commonly met with about the line is the fqualus conductus, fqualus canicula, (Lin.' Syft. Nat. p. 399. n. 8.) or the greater dog-fish.

Its length is five feet; the body is of a bluish grey above, and white below; the head is flat, with a fhort, half-round forehead the lower jaw has four rows of ferrated teeth; the mouth is lunular, large, about an inch from the point of the head the tongue is thick, round before, and dentated: the eyes were covered on both fides with a skin after its death, excepting one crofs ftripe, which was to be feen in the middle. The ventral fins are near the anus; they are broad, fhort, blunt, and in fome measure connected: the anal fin is fhort, and in the mid-way between the anus and the tail. At the tail there is a triangular cavity. The pectoral, ventral and anal fins are white, with black points; the others are of the fame colour with the body, but they have white points. It is viviparous, and is caught on very large hooks, which have a joint not far from the hooks, faftened to ftrong ropes: on this hook you put a large piece of bacon, or half a chick, or fomething which the fifh fwallows greedily. It is very tenacious of life; and will move about, though its head or tail be cut off; from the wound the blood gufhes as out of a fpout; nay, even if the bowels be taken out of its belly, it lives more than an hour, as we faw when we caught it. In its belly were bonnets, fepiæ, and whole chicken with feathers, which we had thrown over board when dead. When a dog-fifh is caught, it flounces about the deck; and people must take

great

great care, for with its teeth it is faid to bite off a leg with great eafe, at leaft it would not be fafe to try the experiment. When the feamen want to get into a boat where these fish frequent, they must take care not to put their feet into the water; for I once faw a dog-fifh attempting to fwallow a large wooden quadrant, but it was not able to do it, as it was too broad, and therefore only left the marks of its teeth on it. It is owing to its great greedinefs that the feamen are able to catch it they cut off its fins, and then throw it again into the fea; befides many other cruel tricks, which I thall pafs over.

If a failor dies in a place where dog-fifhes haunt, he is fure to be buried in the bellies of fome of them. Large dog-filhes are never eaten, and small ones but feldom, and in cafes of Receffity only. They are cut into flices, which are squeezed in water, till no train-oil remains in them; after being thus wafhed, it is boiled or roafted, and eaten with butter: the part towards the tail is the best: the forepart is feldom caten. The skin and fins are made ufe of in polishing, and are called Shagreen; they are found in plenty in the Chinese apothecaries fhops, and in other places. In the head, above the eyes, in two cavities, is a thick white matter, which, the fkin being taken off, is taken out, dried, reduced to powder, and used as an emmenagogue. This dog-fifh had two companions.'

June 7th, 37° 30'. S. L.-About eight o' clock at night, we heard, at feveral times, a deep and harsh noife. We fuppofed this was the voice of fome large fifh. Some faid that they faw its way, and that it fhone a little in the dark. This light might probably arife from the violent motion which its fwift paffage gives to the water; for in the night fomething fhone about our fhip; yet this might also be occafioned by many forts of little worms, dead fifhes, and other putrified bodies.'

This latter conjecture is confirmed by the conclufive experiments of Mr. Canton, defigned to prove, that the luminous appearance of the fea arifes from the putrefaction of its animal fubftances. See Review for last month, p. 329.

The Author landed at Java, and gathered feveral plants, which he has minutely defcribed. We fhall felect his defcription of the coccus nucifera as a fpecimen. Coccus nucifera (Palma Indica major, Rumphius, tom. I. p. 1.) called Calapa in the Javan language, is a very high, but not very thick palmtree, with a rough bark, and a ftem, which is undivided up to the crown. On the bark grows a white flower-like mofs. The

True fhagreen is part of the fkin of a wild afs, and is brought from Turkey.

Dd 4

Cocoa

cocoa-nuts, which hung at the top, looked like cabbages, and were fomewhat triangular: the exterior fhell of the nut is yellow, when it begins to ripen, and grows brown: it confifts of an outer-cafe, like hemp, and is ufed as such, and therefore is commoly pulled off before the nut is fold; excepting a narrow ftripe,' which is left to fhew how ripe the nut is ; and accordingly is either green, or yellow, or brown. Yet thefe nuts may be had quite perfect if they are ordered, and in that state they contain the greatest plenty of fresh water. The fibrous fhell is used for matches and ropes, but the latter foon rot in fresh water. The next fhell below this is white before it is ripe, but it afterwards becomes brown and very hard: near the talk it is fomewhat angulated. The Java people make ufe of it to put their brown fugar and other things in, People going to the Eaft Indies make drinking vefiels and punchladles of it and befides this, fome very pretty little bafkets. Oppofite to the bafe, or to the part where the ftalk is fastened, are three little holes, but only one of them is eafily opened. The innermoft fhell, which fits clofe to the hard fhell, is white, and not much harder than a turnip before it is boiled: it may be eaten raw, and has a tafle of fweet almonds; and for that reafon feamen mix it with cinnamon, and make a fort of almond milk with it. It may be alfo used as a fallad, when prepared with vinegar, falt, and oil. The nut is filled with a pale fweet water, which turns four if it is not drunk foon after the nut is opened. Every nut contains about a pint, or fomewhat more, of this water. We used it for fome weeks, whilft it was fresh, inftead of tea. It is faid, that this juice, if it is used as water to wash one's felf, gives a fine complexion. When the nut grows old, the water congeals into a spungy white kernel, from which, after the hell is opened, fome leaves fpring up, which keep very long, without putting the nut into the ground, or watering it. A hundred nuts coft a pefo duro, or Spanish dollar. The trees flood along the fhore in low places, and were very plentiful. Authors fay very circumftantially, that this tree affords clothes, meat and drink, houles or huts, utenfils or houfehold implements, and other inftruiments to the natives. To the laft mentioned purpose the ftem is of use; out of the branches they make the arched entrances into their huts, to which they faften flowers on their weeding-days: the leaves are made ufe of for thatching, fails, baskets, brooms, and may be wrote upon with bamboo nails; the kernel and water of the nut afford them their meat and beverage: the outward fhell affords clothing, paintingbrushes, &c. If an incifion is made into any bough, a clear juice runs from the wound in the night time, which makes fyrup and vinegar, if properly prepared. Without this juice

of

of cocoa no arrack can be made: and the Chinefe, for this reafon, are obliged to buy this liquor here. The Indians breakfast on the kernel of the cocoa-nut, fagoe-bread, and dried fish but those of higher rank add fome boiled rice. The fhell is ufed, like areca, for chewing; but first they mix it with betel and chalk: it is likewife put into water, and afterwards they make a milk of it, which they call Santar, in which they boil herbs, cabbage, rice, and fifhes: this milk turns four in one night. If it is mixed with a certain quantity of water, and boiled in pot, it lofes its white colour; and when all the water is gone off, a pure oil remains, which, it is faid, is as clear and sweet as oil of olives; it is ufed as butter, and is a very nutritive food. Both men and women anoint themselves. with cocoa oil, both against certain difeafes, and because it is fashionable to have black hair. The ladies of Java and Balaya mix part of the root of turmerick (Cucunna, Linn.) with it, which gives a luftre to their complexions. The Portuguese doctors prescribe cocoa oil with fyrup of violets against coughs and afthmas, and order gouty people to rub the parts affected with it, &c. The roots are used against dyfenteries and fevers. The ftrangury and the gonorrhea virulenta are healed by means of the flowers taken out of the fpatha and eaten with lontaris or a reddifh fugar. If fresh cocoa nuts are roafted, and grow cold again, or when they are expofed to dew, they are faid to put a ftop to agues and the like difeafes: it might be of ufe to try this receipt in the Eaft India voyages. In Malabar the kernels of the ripe nuts are dried by the fun, and exported into other countries by the name of Copra; and oil is preffed out of it, with which all forts of weapons are rubbed to prevent their rufting.'

The Author at length arrives at Canton, the celebrated mart of China. He particularly defcribes its fituation, buildings, and inhabitants.

Both the old and the new city, he fays, have the name of Canton; the latter is not fortified: the old town, which has been built many centuries, has high walls and several gates: each gate has a centinel, in order that no European may get in, except under particular circumftances, with the leave of people of note; in this cafe you are carried into the city in a covered chair, and thus you do not get a fight of any thing worth notice in the place. Three fourths of this fortified town (which, as we are told, is inhabited on one fide by the Tartars, on the other by Chinefe) is furrounded by the fuburbs. On the outfide of that part of the city which is open to the country, is a fine walk between the wall and the ditch. The plantations begin close to the ditches; they are moftly on low grounds, contain all forts of greens, roots and rice, and reach as far as you can fee. The dry hills ferve for burying-places, and paf

tures

tures for cattle. The city wall confifts of hewn fand-ftones, is covered with all forts of little trees and plants, viz. ficus Indica, urtica nivea, &c. and on the top of them are centryboxes; however, the watch is fo ill obferved, that ftrangers paffing by are often welcomed with fuch a volley of ftones that their lives are endangered; as happened to an Englishman, during my stay. It is faid, that on the walls are fome eight or nine pounders; at least it is certain, that at eight o'clock at night their report is heard. I had no opportunity of measuring the circuit of the city, but it seemed to me to be above a Swedish mile (about fix miles three quarters English).

The fuburbs of Canton (in which the Europeans live during the time they trade there) are much greater than the fortified city.

The ftreets are long, feldom ftrait, about a fathom wide, paved with oblong fand-ftones without any gutters. The ftones are full of holes, that the water may run off; for at least part of the town is built on piles.-No carriage is 'to be met with in the city; and whatever is brought from one place to another, fuch as hogs, ducks, frogs, fnails, roots, greens, &c. is all carried on men's fhoulders in two bafkets, hanging on the extremities of a pole. Living fish were carried about in buckets: the Chinese keep them in the following manner :-The fish are put into large water veffels in the streets, but each veffel . ftands under a fpout which comes out of the wall, out of which the water runs continually, but flowly, upon the fish: and for this reafon they were always to be got quite as fresh as if they had been juft caught.-The ladies are continually confined.-People of the fame trade commonly live in the fame ftreet together. The factory-ftreet has merchant-fhops, joiners, japanners, and workers in mother of pearl.

In the markets, where the people every day run about like ants, they fell fruit, garden herbs, fish, bacon, &c.

A pagoda, or idol-temple, is near one of these markets. In this they offer incenfe to their idols, which the Europeans call Yos, from the Portuguefe dios, and which are represented by one or more gilt pictures of feveral fizes, according as their faint looked when he was alive. The honours they bestow on him are in confequence of his writings, or of any other fervices he has done to the public. Thefe pictures, together with fome foliage on the fides, are in the place of an altar table. Both upon the altar, and upon particular tables, are flower-pots, incenfe, and all forts of meat and drink. They offer the fame facrifices in private houses; for every body has his own idol. The priests are called l'au-fing by the Chinese, and Bonzes by the Europeans. They go with their heads bare and fhaved, drefs in fteelcoloured filk coats with wide fleeves, which look like furplices, and wear rofaries about their necks. When they officiated on

the