There is a greater variety of trees on the small flat spots behind the beaches.  Amongst these are two that bear a kind of plum of the size of prunes, the one yellow, called karraca, and the other black, called maituo, but neither of them of a very agreeable taste, though the natives eat both, and our people did the same.  Those of the first sort grow on small trees, always facing the sea; but the others belong to larger trees that stand farther within the wood, and which we frequently cut down for fuel.

A species of philadelphus grows on the eminences which jut out into the sea; and also a tree bearing flowers almost like myrtle, with roundish spotted leaves of a disagreeable smell.  We drank the leaves of the philadelphus as tea, and found that they had a pleasant taste and smell, and might make an excellent substitute for the oriental sort.

Among other plants that were useful to us, may be reckoned wild celery, which grows plentifully in almost every cove, especially if the natives have ever resided there before; and one that we used to call scurvy-grass, though entirely different from the plant to which we give that name.  This, however, is far preferable to ours for common use, and may be known by its jagged leaves, and small clusters of white flowers on the top.  Both sorts were boiled every morning, with wheat ground in a mill, and with portable soup, for the people’s breakfast, and also amongst their pease-soup for dinner.  Sometimes they were used as sallad, or dressed as greens.  In all which ways they are good; and, together with the fish, with which we were constantly supplied, they formed a sort of refreshment, perhaps little inferior to what is to be met with in places most noted by navigators for plentiful supplies of animal and vegetable food.

Amongst the known kinds of plants met with here, are common and rough bindweed; night-shade and nettles, both which grow to the size of small trees; a shrubby speedwell, found near all the beaches, sow-thistles, virgin’s bower, vanelloe, French willow, euphorbia, and crane’s-bill; also cudweed, rushes, bull-rushes, flax, all-heal, American nightshade, knot-grass, brambles, eye-bright, and groundsel; but the species of each are different from any we have in Europe.  There is also polypody, spleenwort, and about twenty other different sort of ferns, entirely peculiar to the place, with several sorts of mosses, either rare, or produced only here; besides a great number of other plants, whose uses are not yet known, and subjects fit only for botanical books.

Of these, however, there is one which deserves particular notice here, as the natives make their garments of it, and it produces a fine silky flax, superior in appearance to any thing we have, and probably, at least, as strong.  It grows every where near the sea, and in some places a considerable way up the hills, in bunches or tufts, with sedge-like leaves, bearing, on a long stalk, yellowish flowers, which