A General History & Collection of Voyages and Travels ... - Nauticus

which is not more remarkable for the beauty of its plumage than for the sweetness of its note. Theflesh is also most delicious, and was the greatest luxury the woods afforded us.Of the fan-tail there are different sorts; but the body of the most remarkable one is scarcely largerthan a good filbert, yet it spreads a tail of most beautiful plumage, full three quarters of a semicircle,of at least four or five inches radius.For three or four days after we arrived in Pickersgill harbour, and as we were clearing the woods toset up our tents, &c. a four-footed animal was seen by three or four of our people; but as no twogave the same description of it, I cannot say of what kind it is. All, however, agreed, that it wasabout the size of a cat, with short legs, and of a mouse colour. One of the seamen, and he who hadthe best view of it, said it had a bushy tail, and was the most like a jackall of any animal he knew.The most probable conjecture is, that it is of a new species. Be this as it may, we are now certain thatthis country is not so destitute of quadrupeds as was once thought.The most mischievous animals here are the small black sand flies, which are very numerous, and sotroublesome, that they exceed every thing of the kind I ever met with. Wherever they bite they causea swelling, and such an intolerable itching, that it is not possible to refrain from scratching, which atlast brings on ulcers like the small-pox.The almost continual rains may be reckoned another evil attending this bay; though perhaps this mayonly happen at this season of the year. Nevertheless, the situation of the country, the vast height, andnearness of the mountains, seem to subject it to much rain at all times. Our people, who were dailyexposed to the rain, felt no ill effects from it; on the contrary, such as were sick and ailing when wecame in, recovered daily, and the whole crew soon became strong and vigorous, which can only beattributed to the healthiness of the place, and the fresh provisions it afforded. The beer certainlycontributed not a little. As I have already observed, we at first made it of a decoction of the spruceleaves; but finding that this alone made the beer too astringent, we afterwards mixed with it an equalquantity of the tea plant (a name it obtained in my former voyage, from our using it as tea then as wealso did now,) which partly destroyed the astringency of the other, and made the beer exceedinglypalatable, and esteemed by every one on board. We brewed it in the same manner as spruce-beer,and the process is as follows: First, make a strong decoction of the small branches of the spruce andtea plants, by boiling them three or four hours, or until the bark will strip with ease from off thebranches; then take them out of the copper, and put in the proper quantity of molasses, ten gallons ofwhich is sufficient to make a ton, or two hundred and forty gallons of beer; let this mixture just boil,then pot it into the casks, and to it add an equal quantity of cold water, more or less, according to thestrength of the decoction, or your taste: When the whole is milk-warm, put in a little grounds ofbeer, or yeast, if you have it, or any thing else that will cause fermentation, and in a few days thebeer will be fit to drink. After the casks have been brewed in two or three times the beer willgenerally ferment itself, especially if the weather is warm. As I had inspissated juice of wort onboard, and could not apply it to a better purpose, we used it together with molasses or sugar, to makethese two articles go farther. For of the former I had but one cask, and of the latter little to spare forthis brewing. Had I known how well this beer would have succeeded, and the great use it was of tothe people, I should have come better provided. Indeed I was partly discouraged by an experimentmade during my former voyage, which did not succeed then, owing, as I now believe, to somemismanagement.Any one, who is in the least acquainted with spruce pines, will find the tree which I havedistinguished by that name. There are three sorts of it; that which has the smallest leaves and deepestcolour, is the sort we brewed with; but doubtless all three might safely serve that purpose. The teaplantis a small tree or shrub, with five white petals, or flower- leaves, shaped like those of a rose,having smaller ones of the same figure in the intermediate spaces, and twenty or more filaments or