The palmito is like to the date tree, and as I thinke a kinde of it, but wilde. In all parts of Afrique and America they are found, and in some parts of Europe, and in divers parts different. In Afrique, and in the West Indies they are small, that a man may cut them with a knife, and the lesser the better: but in Brazill, they are so great, that with difficultie a man can fell them with an axe, and the greater the better; one foote within the top is profitable, the rest is of no value; and that which is to be eaten is the pith, which in some is better, in some worse.[63]
The plantane.
The plantane is a tree found in most parts of Afrique and America, of which two leaves are sufficient to cover a man from top to toe. It beareth fruit but once, and then dryeth away, and out of his roote sprouteth up others, new. In the top of the tree is his fruit, which groweth in a great bunch, in the forme and fashion of puddings, in some more, in some lesse. I have seene in one bunch above foure hundred plantanes, which have weighed above fourescore pound waight. They are of divers proportions, some great, some lesser, some round, some square, some triangle, most ordinarily of a spanne long, with a thicke skinne, that peeleth easily from the meate; which is either white or yellow, and very tender like butter, but no conserve is better, nor of a more pleasing taste. For I never have seene any man to whom they have bred mis-like, or done hurt with eating much of them, as of other fruites.[64]
The best are those which ripen naturally on the tree, but in most partes they cut them off in braunches, and hange them up in their houses, and eate them as they ripe. For the birds and vermine presently in ripning on the tree, are feeding on them. The best that I have seene are in Brasill, Placentia. in an iland called Placentia, which are small, and round, and greene when they are ripe; whereas the others in ripning become yellow. Those of the West Indies and Guynne are great, and one of them sufficient to satisfie a man; the onely fault they have is, that they are windie. In some places they eate them in stead of bread, as in Panama, and other parts of Tierra Firme. They grow and prosper best when their rootes are ever covered with water; they are excellent in conserve, and good sodden in different manners, and dried on the tree, not inferior to suckett.[65]
The cocos, and their kindes.
The coco nutt is a fruit of the fashion of a hassell nutt, but that it is as bigge as an ordinary bowle, and some are greater. It hath two shells, the uttermost framed (as it were) of a multitude of threeds, one layd upon another, with a greene skinne over-lapping them, which is soft and thicke; the innermost is like to the shell of a hassell nutt in all proportion, saving that it is greater and thicker, and some more blacker. In the toppe of it is the forme of a munkies face, with two eyes, his nose, and a mouth. It containeth in it both meate and drinke; the meate white as milke, and like to that of the kernell of a nutt, and as good as almonds blancht, and of great quantitie: the water is cleare, as of the fountaine, and pleasing in taste, and somewhat answereth that of the water distilled of milke. Some say it hath a singular propertie in nature for conserving the smoothnesse of the skinne; and therefore in Spaine and Portingall, the curious dames doe ordinarily wash their faces and necks with it. If the holes of the shell be kept close, they keepe foure or six moneths good, and more; but if it be opened, and the water kept in the shell, in few dayes it turneth to vineger.
They grow upon high trees, which have no boughes; onely in the top they have a great cap of leaves, and under them groweth the fruite upon certaine twigs. And some affirme that they beare not fruite before they be above fortie yeares old, they are in all things like to the palme trees, and grow in many parts of Asia, Afrique, and America.[66] The shels of these nuts are much esteemed for drinking cups, and much cost and labour is bestowed upon them in carving, graving, and garnishing them, with silver, gold, and precious stones.
In the kingdome of Chile, and in Brasill, is another kinde of these, which they call coquillos, (as wee may interpret, little cocos) and are as big as wal-nuts; but round and smooth, and grow in great clusters; the trees in forme are all one, and the meate in the nut better, but they have no water.
Another kinde of great cocos groweth in the Andes of Peru, which have not the delicate meate nor drinke, which the others have, but within are full of almonds, which are placed as the graines in the pomegrannet, being three times bigger then those of Europe, and are much like them in tast.
Cyvet catts.