Huaca, Alfilerilla, Bodega, Alfalfa, Camote, Orchata, Pepino (1825 or 1829)

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HISTORICAL AND DESCRIPTIVE NARRATIVE
OF TWENTY YEARS' RESIDENCE IN SOUTH AMERICA
by W. B. Stevenson
in three volumes
London:  Longman, Rees, Orme, Brown and Green
1829

   NYU has the 1829 edition.  OED used the 1825 edition.
   For "verruga."  One OED citation in a three-volume work from the 1820s.
ONE!
   There's lots to record here.  No one else has gone through this work in
175 years?


VOLUME ONE
Pg. 14:  Our food chiefly consisted of fresh mutton, jirked beef, fish, or
poultry, cut into small pieces and stewed with potatoes or pompions, seasoned
with onions, garlic and cayenne pepper, or capsicum.  Out breakfast, at about
sunrise, was composed of some flour or toasted wheat, coarsely ground, or
crushed, and mixed with water, either hot or cold, as it suited the palate of the
eater.

Pg. 14:  At the lower end of the stone is generally placed a clean lamb skin,
with the wool downwards, which received the flour, called by the indians
_machica_.  Our dinner (Pg. 15--ed.) (made up of the stews or messes which I have
mentioned) was generally served at noon in calabashes, or gourds cut in two,
being three inches deep, and some of them from twelve to twenty inches in
diameter.  Our supper, which we took at eight o'clock, was milk, with _machica_, or
potatoes.
   I cannot refrain from describing a favourite preparation of milk, called
by the natives _milcow_.  Potatoes and a species of pompion, _zapallo_, were
roasted, the insides of both taken out, and kneaded together with a small
quantity of salt, and sometimes with eggs.  This paste was made into little cakes,
each about the size of a dollar, and a large quantity was put into a pot of
milk, and allowed to boil for a quarter of an hour.  I joined the indians in
considering it an excellent dish.

Pg. 17:  The principal out-door diversion among the young men is the
_palican_: this game is called by the Spaniards _chueca_, and is similar to one I have
seen in England called bandy.  Molina says it is like the _calcio_ of the
Florentines and the _orpasto_ of the Greeks.
   (OED has neither "palican" nor "chueca"--ed.)

Pg. 35:  The afternoon was spent in rambling about the neighbouring country
and picking myrtle berries, which are delicious, and called by the people
_mutillas_.  They are about the size of a large pea, of a deep red colour and of a
peculiarly sweet and aromatic flavour.  They are sometimes prepared by
crushing them in water and allowing them to ferment for a few days, which produces a
pleasant beverage called _chicha de mutilla_.  We found abundance of wild
grapes, (which though neither large nor sweet were very palatable) some few plums,
and plenty of apples, pears and peaches.  On our return to the miller's house
we were presented with _mate_, which is a substitute for tea, and is used
more or less in every part of South America, but since the present revolution it
has become less prevalent, partly because the custom of drinking tea _a la
Inglesa_ is more (Pg. 36--ed.) fashionable, and partly because a regular supply
of the herb cannot be procured from Paraguay, where it grows, and from whence
it derives its name.  The _mate_ is prepared by putting into a silver or gold
cup about a teaspoonful of the herb of Paraguay, to which are added a bit of
sugar, sometimes laid on the fire until the outside be a little burnt, a few
drops of lemon juice, a piece of lemon peel and of cinnamon, or a clove.  Boiling
water is poured in till the cup is full,...

Pg. 43:  The indians prepare the maize of winter, whilst in the green state,
by boiling the cobs, from the cores of which are taken the grain, which is
dried in the sun and kept for use.  It is called _chuchoca_, and when mixed with
some of their hashes or stews is very palatable,  Another preparation is made
by cutting the corn from the core of the green cobs, and bruising it between
two stones until it assumes the consistency of paste, to which sugar, butter
and spices, or only salt is added.  It is then divided into small portions,
which are enclosed separately within the inner leaf of the cob or ear and boiled.
These cakes are called _umitas_.  The dry boiled maize, _mote_, and the
toasted, _cancha_, are used by the indians instead of bread.  One kind of maize,
_curugua_, is much softer when roasted, and furnishes a flour lighter, whiter,
and in greater quantity than any other kind.  This meal mixed with water and a
little sugar is esteemed by all ...
   (These terms aren't in OED?--ed.)

Pg. 46:  The yellow flowered, known to us by the name of pumpkin or pompion,
and here called _zapullo_, are excellent food, whether cooked with meat as a
vegetable, or made into custard with sugar and other ingredients.  That the
gourd is a native of South America seems to be supported by several striking
circumstances.  The seeds and shells are found in the graves, or _huacas_; the
plant was universally met with among the different tribes of indians at the time
of their discovery; Almagro states that on his passage down the Maranon some
of the indians has calabashes to drink with; and lastly, those who bring their
produce from the woods of Maynas to Cusco, Quito and other places, always use
gourd shells.
   The pimento, guinea, or cayenne pepper, _capsicum_, is much cultivated and
valued by the natives, who season their food with it.  Although at first very
pungent and disagreeable, strangers gradually habituate themselves to, and
become fond of it.  There are several varieties.
   (OED has 1847 for "huaca"--ed.)

Pg. 47:  The beef is savoury, owing perhaps to the prevalence of aromatic
herbs, more particularly a species of venus' comb, called by the indians _laiqui
lahuen_, by the Spaniards _alfilerilla_; and trefoil, _gualputa_.
   (OED has 1889 for "alfilerilla"--ed.)

Pg. 53:  The whole of the provisions of an Araucanian army consists of the
_machica_, or meal of parched grain.
   (The revised OED mentions "machica" in its--1931 first citation--entry of
"maque choux"--ed.)

Pg. 66:  The ponchos, particularly those of good quality called
_balandranes_, would find a ready market in Peru or Chile.
   (OED mentions "balandran" in 1992--ed.)

Pg. 94:  Barley, maize, _garbansos_, beans, _quinua_, and lentils are also
cultivated for exportation, and yield heavy crops.  Potatoes, radishes and other
esculents, as well as all kinds of culinary vegetables and useful herbs are
raised in the gardens.  The _zapallo_ is very much and justly esteemed, being,
when green, equal to asparagus, and when ripe, similar to a good potatoe.
   (OED has 1759, then 1841 for "garbanzo"--ed.)

Pg. 96:  It is then hung on lines or poles, to dry in the sun, which being
accomplished, it si made into bundles, lashed with thongs of fresh hide, forming
a kind of network, and is ready for market.  In this operation it loses about
one third of its original weight.  The dried meat, _charqui_, finds immediate
sale at Lima, Arica, Guayaquil, Panama and other places.
   (OED has 1760-72, then 1845 for "charqui"--ed.)

Pg. 98:  The _huaso_ (or laso thrower) extending the opening formed by
passing the thong through the noose, lays hold of the laso, and begins to whirl it
over his head, taking care that the opening does not close.
   ("Huaso" is not in OED--ed.)

Pg. 101:  The melons and _sandias_, water melons, are also very large, and
are extremely nice, particularly the latter, to which the natives are partial.
   (OED has 1648, then 1902 for "sandia"--ed.)

Pg. 103:  The _maqui_ is another tree, bearing a fruit like a _guind_, or
wild cherry, from which a pleasant fermented beverage is made, called _theca_.
The people are fond of the fruit, and parties go into the woods to gather it.

Pg. 121:  There is a custom-house at Talcahuano, and the necessary officers
for collecting the importation and exportation duties; barracks for the
garrison belonging to the small battery, a house for the residence of the commanding
officer, a parish church, also about a hundred houses, with several large
stores, _bodegas_, for corn, wine, and other goods.
   (OED and Merriam-Webster both have 1846 for "bodega"--ed.)

Pg. 121:  The bay abounds with excellent fish; the most esteemed are the
_robalo_;...
   (OED has "rowball" from 1803, but no "robalo" citation in English--ed.)

Pg. 122:  The _corbina_ is generally about the size of the robalo, though
sometimes much larger;...
   (OED has 1787 for "curvina," then 1842 for "corvina"--ed.)

Pg. 125:  Crawfish, _camarones_, are sometimes caught of the enormous weight
of eight or nine pounds each, and are very good.
   (OED has 1880 for "camaron"--ed.)

Pg. 162:  The principal produce of the valley of Lima is sugar cane, lucern,
_alfalfa_, maize, wheat, beans, with tropical and European fruit, as well as
culinary vegetables.
   The sugar cane is almost exclusively of the creole kind: fine sugar is
seldom made from it here, but a coarse sort, called _chancaca_, is extracted, the
method if manufacturing which will hereafter be described.  The principal
part of the cane is employed in making _guarapo_;...
    (OED and M-W have 1845 for "alfalfa"--ed.)

Pg. 169:  _Camotes_, commonly called sweet potatoes, and by the Spaniards
_batatas_, are produced in great abundance, of both the yellow and purple kinds.
   (OED has 1842 for "camote"--ed.)

Pg. 169:  Although the _arracacha_ which is grown in this valley is neither
so large nor so well tasted as that which is produced in a cooler climate, it
is nevertheless an exceedingly good esculent.
   (OED has 1823, then 1832 as its two citations for "arracacha"--ed.)

Pg. 170:  The _tomate_, love apple, is very much cultivated, and is in
frequent use both in the kitchen and for confectionary, and produces a very
agreeable acid.
   Capsicum, cayenne pepper, _aji_, is abundant; I have counted nine
different sorts, the largest, _rocotos_, about the size of a turkey's egg, and the
smallest, which is the most pungent, not thicker than the quill of a pigeon's
feather; the quantity of this spice used in America is enormous; I have
frequently seen a person, particularly among the indians, eat as a relish, twenty or
thirty pods, with a little salt and a piece of bread.  One kind called _pimiento
dulce_ is made into a very delicate salad, by roasting the pods over hot
embers, taking away the outer skin, and the seeds from the inside, and seasoning
with salt, oil, and vinegar.

Pg. 225:  Pork is sold in one part; in another all kinds of salted and dried
meats, principally brought from the interior; these are _charque_, jerked
beef; _sesina_, beef salted and smoked or dried in the sun: hams, bacon, and
frozen kid from the mountains, which last is most delicate eating: there are
likewise many kinds of sausages; salt fish, principally _bacalao_ from Europe;
_tollo_, _congrio_, and corbina.  The fish market is in some seasons abundantly
supplied from the neighbouring coasts with corbina, _jureles_, mackerel, _chita_,
plaice, turbot, peje rey, lisa, anchovies, &c., and most excellent crayfish,
_camarones_, from the rivers, some of which are six or seven inches long.
   (OED has 1760-72, then 1890 for "jurel"--ed.)

Pg. 227:  In the vicinity stands a _fresquera_, vender of iced lemonade,
pine-apple water, _orchata_, almond milk, pomegranate water, &c. which offer
another opportunity for gallantry.
   (OED has 1859 for "horchata"--ed.)

Pg. 300:  The walking dress of the females of all descriptions is the _saya y
manto_, which is a petticoat of velvet, satin, or stuff, generally black or
of a cinnamon colour, plaited in very small folds, and rather elastic; it sits
close to the body, and shews its shape to the utmost possible advantage.
   (OED has 1841 for "saya"--ed.)

Pg. 224:  The _Palta_, alligator pear or vegetable marrow, is sometimes
round, and sometimes pear shaped;...
   ("Palta" is not in OED--ed.)

Pg. 334:  The _pacay_ is a moderately sized tree; its fruit is contained in a
large green pod--there are several varieties--the pod of one is sometimes
more than a yard long and three inches broad.
   (OED has 1866 for "pacay"--ed.)

Pg. 335:  The _palillo_ is the delicate custard-apple, which is very sweet
and fragrant.
   ("Palillo" is not in  OED--ed.)

Pg. 337:  The _pepino_ is an egg-shaped fruit, and smells like a cucumber.
Here are several varieties, and when ripe they have a sweet but peculiar taste,
between the raw vegetable and fruit: they are considered unwholesome, and
often called _mata serranos_, mountaineer killers; because these people when they
come down to the coast east large quantities of them, on account, perhaps, of
their cheapness: they bring on intermittent fevers, dysentery, &c.  The
_pina_, pine-apple, is not cultivated in Lima;...
   (OED Additions 1993 added "pepino."  The first citation is 1890--ed.)

Pg. 340:  The inhabitants of Lima have many dishes peculiar to the place.
The Spanish _olla podrida_, called _puchero_, is found almost on every table: it
is composed of beef, mutton, fowl, ham, sausage, and smoked meats, mixed with
cassava root, sweet potatoe, cabbage, turnips and almost any vegetables, a
few peas, and a little rice--these are all well boiled together, and form the
standing family dish: bread or vermicelli soup is made from the broth.  _Lahua_
is a thick porridge from the flour of maize boiled with meat, particfularly
fresh pork or turkey, and highly seasoned with the husks of the ripe capsicum.
_Carapulca_ consists of dried potatoes, nuts, or garabansas, parched and (Pg.
341--ed.) bruised, and afterwards boiled to a thick consistency with meat,
like the lahua.  _Pepian_ is made from rice flour, and partakes of the
ingredients of the lahua and the pepian; it is a very favourite dish, and the natives
say, that on being persented to the pope by an American cook, he xclaimed,
_felice indiani, qui manducat pepiani_!  _Chupi_, which is made by cooking
potatoes, cheese and eggs together, and afterwards adding fried fish, is a favourite
dish, not only on days of abstinence, but during the whole year.  Guinea pigs,
_cuis_, make a very delicate dish; they are roasted, and afterwards stewed
with a great quantity of capsicum pods, pounded to the consistency of paste;
sometime potatoes, bruised nuts, and other ingredients are added.  This is the
favourite _picante_, and to my taste is extremely delicate.  Many more dishes,
peculiar to the country, are seen on the tables, all of which are seasoned with
a profusion of lard, and not a small quantity of garlic and capsicum.

(Just a great book.  This is getting long, so I'll end Part One here--ed.)