The Date Tree.
This is a species of palm, which produces the sweet fruit which is brought to us from Smyrna, and other ports in the Mediterranean, and which is well known under the name of date.
In the regions between Barbary and the Great Desert, the soil, which is of a sandy nature, is so much parched by the intense heat of the sun’s rays, that none of the corn plants will grow; and in the arid district, called the land of dates, the few vegetables that can be found are of the most dwarfish description. No plants arise to form the variety of food to which we are accustomed; and the natives of these districts live almost exclusively upon the fruit of the date tree. A paste is made of this fruit by pressing it in large baskets. This paste is not used for present supply, but is intended for a provision in case of a failure in the crops of dates, which sometimes occurs, owing to the ravages committed by locusts.
The date in its natural state forms the usual food; and the juice yielded by it when fresh, contains so much nutriment as to render those who live upon it so extremely fat. As, by the Moors, corpulence is esteemed an indispensable requisite of beauty, the ladies belonging to the families of distinction among them, nourish themselves, during the season, solely with the fresh fruit, and by continuing this regimen during two or three months, they become of an enormous size.
The date palm flourishes very generally on sandy soils in the hot countries of Asia and Africa. Not always, however, is the soil that supports it, barren as the one I have described. It is frequently found by streams, and as the tired traveller sees its foliage waving afar, he hastens towards it, hoping to find a stream of water. Sometimes its tall stem is surrounded by beautiful climbing plants, and the most brilliant flowers flourish beneath its shadow.
This palm frequently attains the height of sixty feet, and stands perfectly upright, unlike, in this respect, some other species of palm, whose slight forms yield to the winds. It was to this tree that the Psalmist alluded when he said, “The righteous shall grow as the palm tree,”—firm and unmoved by the shocks of temptation and the storms of adversity. The clusters of dates are sometimes five feet in length, and, when ripe, are of a bright gold color, over which the summit of the tree is crowned with a beautiful foliage.
