The New Orleans Democrat., 1876-07-16
A FEW SKETCHES.

cesses of his own brain, and his famous
river merely n little pleasantly Of his.
/ Or course. none OF his stories are tc
be believed. We only wish to recall q
few strange plants, well known here a
century ago, TO whose existence and to
whose miraculous powers, respectable
and veracious historians and travellers
IKE. MN. Baudry, des Lozieres, Perrin
du Lac, Bossu, Milhet, Labbatt and
others testify.
Sir John Vaudeville, the greatest OF
MEDIEVAL travellers, and TO whom, with
Marco Polo, we owe the first pictures OF
CHINA, was, as to truth, very much like
his namesake, the Shakespearian Sir
John. He was the first European who
ever set eyes upon the cotton plant.
which in his time was n much more
wonderful plant than 1t is days.
And did notice." he continued, that
1t hath hornes, and that when the men
did pull the wool from off its backe, it
did bah plaintively like sheep, as If it
much mlsliked this rough sheering."
This tree wool, bultnae- coHe the Ger
mans call it TO this day, is domesticated
among us, but we doubt " neither any
body, save Sir John, ever heard it bah.
1t Is strange that louisiana who owes
50 much to King Cotton, should have
been selected rs the place to introduce
an animal called the cotton animal that.
according to nj M. Beauvos, grand ma
turalist and botanist OF the National
Institute at Paris, and Baudry des I,o-
zieres, was to dethrone and Danish that
monarch and abolish forever the culti-
walton OF the cotton plant, or vegetable
cotton, as they styled it.
nj. Baudry DIES Lozieres Second vow
age to Louisiana, vol 2, D. 81 gives
thorough description Of this animal.
1t span the purest and finest white cot
ton, utterly impervious to the rain, and
as perfect, in every respect, as could
possibly be imagined.
" repeat" saws an anonymous cor
respondent Of Lozieres, 81 repeat that
this animal cotton is tree from all the
1Ifiiculties that cucumber the cultiva-
ton or vegetable cotton. It Is clean.
not filled, like the latter, with dust
contains no seed or other extraneous
matter that has to be removed; it can
DO carded, spun, woven, without the
are, the time, the labor, the machinery
hat vegetable cotton demands. In
ine, it is preferable in every point of
view, and must, in time, entirely super
;ede cotton. 1t is abundant and cheap |
y raised; within two hours 1 picked up
around my house as much as one hun |
And what was the basis Of this cotton?
What the food from which this cotton /
'llk-worm wove and spun his thread /
sweet potatoes and tapiocal Just think /
II lady dressed in distilled sweet !
potatoes,
A few porte-mouches, q few ichneu-
non flies, a few potatoes, and these |
Gentlemen promised that our fields /
hould be whitened. as 'twere, by the
nows OF Arveiron but, somehow, his
ory does not mention how the scheme |
ell through, and we were satisfied with I
Sir John Mandevlle's sheep-bush.
1t was in medicinal plants, though,
nat louisiana most luxurated, fact
hat gave, US an ill-reputation. 1t was
argued that God had not
logically strewed his bounties upon |
his earth, but had placed natural rene
lies for certain diseases, in just such
'laces as these diseases were most com
non. Upon which theory, Carli and
since his day, has credited
america with the foulest and most in
amous Of diseases, simply because in
he forests Of America grew the only
liant that cured it.
Ii this were so Louisiana must have
een eminently unhealthy, for she was
very medicine chest of wonderous
The very Mississippi was
lediclne to the Indian, mild invigo-
atlng purgative; the mosquito played
ne part OF cupper and bleeder to pre-
ent our malarial fevers; and a thou
and plants and roots cured everything. h
III that was necessary was to drop
own like dog and chew away at the /
rasS.
Among the medicinal plants, MN.
ossu and Perrin du Lac, both bear
,stimony TO the miraculous cures Of the
IEe-ine. rGcl1e 5egae., goats tong