To dye cloth black, they make use either of a kind of alfaroba, which I
have described elsewhere to be like the Egyptian tree acacia, of a
well-known Paraguayrian herb, or of a rich, black clay. Though cotton
will take a black dye, it will not hold it long; consequently the cotton
dresses which we wore in Paraguay, became almost of no colour, and the
blackness, by degrees, faded away. The Spanish ladies of St. Iago, and
the Chiquito Indians have the art of dying cotton with a very lasting
black, a secret unknown to every one else.
A NAMELESS FRUIT AFFORDING
A GREEN COLOUR.
Walking in a wood on the banks of the Narahage I discovered a shrub,
before unknown to me, covered with leaves of such a very bright green
that I felt an inclination to taste them. I found them sweeter than
sugar, and thought to use them for sweetening the herb of Paraguay.
Applauding myself vastly, for what I thought so useful a discovery, I
gave a leaf to the Spaniard, my companion, to taste; but he prudently
declared, that he should take care not to eat, or even touch that
strange plant. The Indian old women were consulted on this affair: they
told us that these leaves were used for dying things green, but were
very poisonous.