It is true that there
were creepers and orchids, but not in such numbers as in Brazil, and
the trees, too, stand far wider apart. We saw some splendid
specimens, towering to a height of above a hundred feet. The
objects which interested us most were the ebony and kolim trees.
The timber of the first is of two kinds, a layer of brownish-yellow
surrounding the inner stem, which composes that portion especially
known as ebony.
The kolim-tree diffuses an excessively strong odour, similar to that
of onions, indicating its site at some distance off. The fruit
tastes extremely like onions, and is very often used by the common
people, but its odour and taste are too strong for Europeans. I
merely just touched a piece of fresh rind, and my hands smelt of it
the next morning.
We beat about the forest for some hours without meeting the game of
which we were in search. We once thought that we had found the
lair, but we soon found that we were mistaken. One of the
gentlemen, too, affirmed that he heard the growl of a bear; it must,
however, have been a very gentle growl, as no one else heard it,
although we were all close together.
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