Page 389

Joseph Banks's Descriptions of Places

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Batavia (continued) sorts are so bad that the natives themselves can hardly eat them when ripe, but use them as an acid when just full grown. One sort Calld by them Mangha Cowani has so strong a smell that a European can scarce bear one in the room; these however the natives are fond of. The best sorts for eating are first, Mangha Doodool, incomparably better than any other, next Mangha Santock and Mangha Gure, and besides these three I know no other which a European would at all be pleasd with. 7. Of Bananes here are likewise innumerable kinds, 3 only of which are good to eat as fruit, viz. Pissang Mas, Pissang Radja, and Pissang Ambon, all of which have a tolerably vinous taste; the rest however are usefull in their way, some are fried with batter, others boild in Lieu of Bread, which is here a dearer article than meat &c. One of the sorts however deserves to be taken notice of by Botanists, it being contrary to the nature Voyaging Accounts © Derived from State Library of NSW Transcription of Banks's Journal page (vol. 2) 463, February 2004 Published by kind permission of the Library To cite this page use: https://paulturnbull.org/project/southseas/journals/-banks_remarks-389.html