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NOVEMBER, 1881.)
EXTRACTS FROM INDIKOPLEUSTES.
323
like the hog-deer of that country, wild and un. unicorns ; and again in the blessings of Balaam tameable. In the royal palace, however, they bring wherewith he blessed Israel, he says twice over : up one or two from the time when they are quite God led him out of Egypt even as the glory of the young, and make them tame that the sight of them unicorn, thus bearing witness to the strength and may amuse the king. In his presence they place boldness and glory of the animal. before them milk or water to drink contained in 7. The Khoirolaphos or Hog-deer, and a pan, but, then, owing to the great length of their
the Hippopotamus. feet, breast, and neck they cannot possibly stoop The hog.deer I have both seen and eaten. The to the earth and drink unless by making their two hippopotamus however I have not seen, but I forelegs straddle. When they make them strad- have had in my possession teeth of it so large dle they can of course drink. I have written this that they weighed about thirteen pounds. These from my own personal knowledge.
teeth I sold here. I saw many both in Ethiopia . 4. The Agriobous or Wild Ox.
and in Egypt. This is an animal of great size and belongs to
8: Piperi-Pepper. India, and from it is got what is called the toupha, This is a picture of the pepper tree. Each wherewith the captains of armies decorate their separate plant clings for support to some tall tree horses and their standards when taking the field. which does not yield fruit, being very weak and They say of it that if its tail be caught by a tree slender like the delicate tendrils of the vine. Each it no longer stoops, but remains standing through cluster is enveloped within a couple of leaves. its unwillingness to lose even a single hair. On It is perfectly green like the colour of rue. seeing this the people of the neighbourhood ap
9. Argellia or the cocoanut-tree. proach and cut off the tail, and then the creature There is another tree of this sort called argellia, flies off when docked entirely of its tail.
that is-the tall nut-trees of India. It differs in 5. The Moskhos or Musk-deer.
no respect from the date-palm except in being This is a small animal, and is called in the taller and thicker and having larger les res. It pronative dialect the Kastours. Those who hunt it duces no other fruit than two or three and as many pierce it with arrows, and having confined the nuts. The taste is extremely sweet and pleasant, blood which collects at the navel, they cut the being like that of the kernels of green nuts. navel off, that being the part which has the The nut is at first full of a deliciously sweet water pleasant fragrance known to us under the name which the Indians therefore drink instead of wine. of musk.
This very sweet beverage is called rhongkhosoupha. 6. The Monokerós or Unicorn
If the fruit is gathered at maturity, then so long This animal is called the unicorn, bat I have as it keeps its quality, the water in the course of never set eyes upon it. - I have however seen time hardens upon the shell, while the water in the four brazen statues of it in Ethiopia, where they centre retains its fluidity till it finally disappears. were set up in the royal palace-un edifice adorned If however it be kept too long without being opened, with four towers. From these statues I bave thus the concretion on the shell becomes rancid and delineated the animal. They say of it that it is a unfit for human food. terrible beast and invincible, having its power all | 10. Phóké, Delphis, Khelon&—The Seal, the lodged in its horn. When it perceives that its
Dolphin and the Tortoise. pursuers are many and that they are on the point When at sea we use the seal, dolphin and of catching it, it springs down from the top of tortoise for food should they chance to be caught." bome precipice, and during the descent through The dolphin and tortoise we kill by cutting their the air turns itself in such a way that the whole throat, but we cut not the throat of the seal, shock of the fall is sustained by the horn which but despatch him with blows as we do large receives no damage thereby.* The scripture refers fish. The flesh of the tortoise, like that of the to this peculiarity, which says : save me from the sheep, is dark-coloured; that of the dolphin like mouth of lions and my humility from the horns of the pig's is dark coloured and rank; that of the unicorns; and again, the one beloved as the son of seal like the pig's, is white, but not rank.
* This is still ita Indian name.
. The initial must have dropped out as the word no 8. The ibex in waid to fall in such a way that ita hornsdoubt transliterates the native term for the cocos, narikel. sustain the foroo of the impact.
According to the recipe for making hare-soup"First catch your bare."
