raised from the seed of the mango is also very great; and of these, while some possess the highest excellence, there are others in which the flesh of the fruit is so fibrous and ill flavoured, as to resemble, as is commonly said, nothing so much as a mixture of 'tow and turpentine.'

THE MANGOSTAN-Garcinia mangostana.

The Mangostan, or Mangustin, is one of the most delicious fruits that grows; and the tree (Garcinia mangostana) on which it is produced, is one of the most graceful and beautiful anywhere to be met with. It is a native of Sumatra, and also of the Molucca, or Spice islands, from which it has been transplanted to Java, and some other parts of the eastern Archipelago. The stem, which is of a variegated brownishred colour, rises to the height of about twenty feet; the branches come out in regular order, and give the head of the tree the form of a parabola; and the leaves are entire, about eight inches long, and four broad at the middle, of a beautiful green on the upper side, and a fine olive on the under. The flower resembles that of a single rose, with some dark red petals. The fruit is round, about the size of an ordi

nary orange; and has a little cap on the extremity, under which it is plaited into rays. The shell of the

fruit, which is at first green, but changes to brown marked with yellow spots, has some resemblance to that of a pomegranate, but is thicker and softer, and the contents are more juicy. The pulp is divided internally by thin septa, like those in an orange, and the seeds are lodged in the divisions. The flavour of the pulp is said to be that of the finest grape and strawberry united; but those who have tasted the fruit in perfection, and attempted to convey to others some idea of the impression that it had made on them, are not agreed as to what it resembles. Abel says that "he and his companions were anxious to carry with them some precise expression of its flavour; but after satisfying themselves that it partook of the compound nature of the pine-apple and the peach, they were obliged to confess that it had many other equally good but utterly inexpressible flavours."

There are two other species of this tree. These are the Celebes mangostan (Garcinia celebica), and the horny mangostan (Garcinia cornea). The first is found wild in the woods of Celebes, near Macassar, whence it has been transplanted to Amboyna, Java, and other places; but the fruit, which is rather larger than that of the true mangostan, does not always ripen. The corneous species is found in the high remote mountains of Amboyna: it is a lofty tree, though not of very great diameter. The fruit is so excellent as nearly to equal the true mangostan. The wood is very hard, heavy, and tough, and of the colour of horn, from which latter circumstance the specific name is given to it.

THE DURION-Durio zibethinus.

The durion, which is pretty generally diffused over the south-east of Asia, is accounted next to the mangostan; and, in the opinion of some, is superior to it. However excellent the taste may be, the durion is revolting to those unaccustomed to it; for it has a strong smell, which is said to arise from sulphuretted hydrogen. Yet this quality is soon forgotten, after the palate becomes familiar with it. Though of the most nutritious quality, and the most dainty taste, the durion never palls upon the appetite or injures the digestion: its effects are directly opposite.

The tree which produces the durion is about the size, and something in the form, of a pear-tree; but the leaves are in shape like those of the cherry, only they are entire and smooth at the edges. The flowers are large, and of a yellowish white. The fruit is large, in some of the species as large as a man's head; and, externally, it is not unlike the bread-fruit.

It has a hard rind, covered with warts and tubercles. When ripe, it becomes of a brownish yellow, and opens at the top. It must then be eaten fresh from the tree, as it putrifies in less than twenty-four hours.

Internally, the fruit contains five large longitudinal cells, in each of which are the seeds, about the size of pigeon's eggs, and from one to four in each cell. The remainder of the cells is filled with the pulp. which is the delicious part of the fruit. It is of the consistence of thick cream, of a milk-white colour, highly nutritious, and blending the flavour and qualities of a delicate animal substance with the cool acidity of a vegetable. This compound flavour is peculiarly its own, and cannot be imitated by any process of cookery. The Spanish Mangia blanco, pullets' flesh distilled with vinegar, is said to come

the nearest to it.

The durion is a particular favourite with the natives of the Eastern archipelago; and there are many varieties of it. They all, however, belong to three principal ones :-The Borneo durion is found in the island after which it is named. It grows to so great a size, that one fruit is a load for a man. The Cassomba, which has a smoother rind, is more orange in the colour, more elongated in the shape, and contains fewer seeds and more pulp. The Babi is a small, but very delicious sort. The kernels or seeds of the durion, when roasted, have nearly the same taste as chesnuts. It has not been found in a wild state; but in the countries where it will grow and ripen at all, it is easily cultivated. So highly is it esteemed, that it is the most costly fruit in the archipelago a single durion being worth more than a dozen of the choicest pine-apples.

The Lanseh, and the Jamlee, fruits of Sumatra,

are esteemed most highly by the natives-the former next to the durion.

THE MALAY APPLE-Eugenia malaccensis.

This, though an inferior fruit to the durion, is attractive by its fragrance-its smell being that of a rose. The Malay apple belongs to a numerous genus of plants, there being a great number of species very generally diffused over the tropical countries. The fruit of all the species is a fleshy rind, inclosing one or two large seeds. The Malay apple varies in size from about an inch in diameter to the bigness of a man's fist. The skin is yellowish, thin, and shining; the nut large, and without any hard shell; and the pulp very wholesome and agreeable. The tree that produces it has a brown stem, about twenty feet high, very full of branches at the top; the young leaves are bright purple, and the old ones green.