A voyage from England to India, in the year MDCCLIV. And an historical narrative of the operations of the squadron and army in India, under the command of Vice-Admiral Watson and Colonel Clive in the years 1755, 1756, 1757; including a correspondence between the admiral and the nabob Serajah Dowlah ... Also, a journey from Persia to England, by an unusual route. With an appendix, containing an account of the diseases prevalent in Admiral Watson's squadron: description of most of the trees, shrubs, and plants of India ... also a copy of a letter written by a late ingenious physician, on the disorders incidental to Europeans at Gombroon in the Gulph of Persia ... / By Edward Ives.
- Edward Ives
- Date:
- 1773
Licence: Public Domain Mark
Credit: A voyage from England to India, in the year MDCCLIV. And an historical narrative of the operations of the squadron and army in India, under the command of Vice-Admiral Watson and Colonel Clive in the years 1755, 1756, 1757; including a correspondence between the admiral and the nabob Serajah Dowlah ... Also, a journey from Persia to England, by an unusual route. With an appendix, containing an account of the diseases prevalent in Admiral Watson's squadron: description of most of the trees, shrubs, and plants of India ... also a copy of a letter written by a late ingenious physician, on the disorders incidental to Europeans at Gombroon in the Gulph of Persia ... / By Edward Ives. Source: Wellcome Collection.
![*755‘ hot a climate, may be rather reckoned an inconvenience, for hereby the free \circulation of the fea-breezes, fo necelfary to refrefh the men on board the fliips, is greatly obftrufled. The trade of this port is very inconfiderable *, and it is manifeft that the foie view of the Dutch in fortifying this and the feveral bays and rivers round the ifland, is to prevent other nations from fettling here, or having any commerce with the natives. Idle ifland of Ceylon is very large, being 250 miles long, and 200 broad. The inner part of it is in poflelTion of the natives, who are of the Gentoo reli¬ gion, and they call their king the king of Candy. The Dutch having taken care to fecure to themfelves the whole fea-coaft, endeavour to reconcile him to their converting the rich -fpices of his country to their own advantage, by making him frequent pirfents; but fometimes they have found him very refradory, and their fucceeding in this important point has been attended with great difficulties. ' There are many trees of different kinds to be met with on this ifland, fuch as the euphorhium^ tulip-tree^ ebony^ redwood, cajjia, cocoa-nut, cotton, lime, man.goe, citron, and black and yellow teak', thefe laft have a moft beautiful grain, but are fo hard as to be very deftrudive to the cabinet-maker’s tools. But the tree peculiar to this ifland, and which has proved the fource of inex- hauftible riches to the Dutc]^, is the Cinnamon, which grows wild in every wood on thefouth weft part n^d.'c Columbo, but there are few to be found near Trinconomale. This tree is propagated by a bird’s eating of the fruit, part of which he difcharges again, and afterwards the feeds of it take root. It grows fomewhat like our common hazel j the leaves refemble thofe of the laurel, but with this difference, that they have only three fibres in their compofition. According to fome, it has three barks; but all agree that it has two. What they ftrip from trees of a middling growth, is the beft Cinnamon. The very young trees are not fit for rinding, and the old ones they cut down for firewood. From the root of this tree, the Camphor a is extraded. But the greateft quantity of this laft drug is brought from Sumatra, where it is fold in fmall flat cakes, at the enormous price of 4/. fterling an ounce. One pound of this genuine gum, Mr. Dhomas was told, will produce an hundred pounds of fuch as is brought to us from the Indies after adulteration. Coffee alfo grows wild here •, as do the trees and plants which produce Balfam. Capivi, Dacca, Gambogiiim, Cinquenornale. Not having heard of this laft before, Thomas imagined it to be a name given by the natives to a certain drug. A Dutch furgeon refiding here, ffiewed him a balfam or oil extraded from it-by diftillation, and which he affured him was a very good medicine in a paralytic numbnefs. This gentleman alfo prefented liim with a fample of a gum growing here, which he called Badule he](https://iiif.wellcomecollection.org/image/b30410678_0080.jp2/full/800%2C/0/default.jpg)
