Page:The History of the American Indians.djvu/373

 An Account of the Chikkafah Nation. 361

Hazel-nuts are very plenty, but the Indians feldom eat them. Black haws grow here in clufters, free from prickles: and pifllmmons, of which they make very pleafant bread, barbicuing it in the woods. There is a fort of fine plums in a few places, large, and well-tafted ; and, if tranfplanted, they would become better. The honey-loctifts are pods about a fpan-long, and almoft two inches broad, containing a row of large feed on one fide, and a tough fweet fubftance the other. The tree is large, and full of long thorns j which forces the wild beafts to wait till they fall off, before they can gather that part of their harveft. The trees grow in wet four land, and are plenty, and the timber is very durable. Where there is no pitch-pine, the Indians ufe this, or the fafiafras, for potts to their houfes, as they lad for generations, and the worms never take them. Chinquapins are very plenty, of the tafte of chefnuts, but much lefs in fize. There are feveral forts of very wholefome and pleafant-tafted ground nuts, which few of our colonifts know any thing of. In wet land, there is an aromatic red fpice, and a fort of cinnamon, which the natives feldom ufe. The Yopon, or CufTeena, is very plenty, as far as the fait air reaches over the low lands. It is well tailed, and very agreeable to thofe who accudom themielves to ufe it : inftead of having any noxious quality, according to what many have experienced of the Eaft-India infipid and coftly tea, it is friendly to the human fyflem, enters into a conteft with the peccant humours, and expels them through the various channels of nature : it perfectly cures a tremor in the nerves. The North-American tea has a pleafant aromatic tafte, and the very fame falubrious property, as the CufTeena. . It is an evergreen, and grows on hills. The bumes are about a foot high, each of them containing in winter a fmall aroma tic red berry, in the middle of the ftalk : fuch I faw it about Chriftmas, when hunting among the mountains, oppofite to the lower Mohawk Caftle, in the time of a deep fnow. There is no vifible decay of the leaf, and October feems to be the proper time to gather it. The early buds of faffafras, and the leaves of ginfeng, make a mod excellent tea, equally pkalant to the tafte, and conducive to health. The Chinefe have fenfe enough to fell their enervating and flow-poifoning teas, under various fine 'titles, while they themfelves prefer Ginfeng-leaves. Each of our colonies abounds with ginfeng, among the "trills that lie far from the fea. Ninety-fix fettlement, is the lowed place where I have feen it grow in South Carolina. It is very plenty on the fertile parts of the Cheerake

A a a mountains ,

�� �