is I was too early for the milk, it being three
months later the last year when I cut them. Hereon, seeing one upon
another shrub, which by its rusty colour I judged might have hung all
the winter, I opened that, and found it full of milk; but putting some
of it into my mouth, it was as sour as any vinegar I ever tasted in my
life. So, thinks I (and said so too; for, as I told you before, I always
spoke out), here's sauce for something when I want it; and this gave
me a hint to store myself with these gourds, to hang by for vinegar the
next winter.

By this time I had come almost to my rill, when I entered upon a large
plat of ground miserably over-run with weeds, matted together very
thick. These choked up my wheels in such a manner that I could neither
free them with my hands, nor get either backwards or forwards, they
binding my cart down like so many cords; so that I was obliged to cut my
way back again with my hatchet, and take a sweep round in the wood, on
the outside of these weeds.

In all my life I never saw anything of its size, for it was no thicker
than a whipcord, so strong as this weed; and what raised my wonder was
the length of it, for I drew out pieces of it near fifty feet long, and
even they were broken at the end, so that it might be as long again for
aught I know, for it was so matted and twisted together, that it was a
great trial of patience to untangle it; but that which was driest,
and to me looked the rottenest and weakest, I found to be much the
strongest. Upon examination of its parts, I discovered it to be
composed of an infinite number of small threads, spirally overlaying and
enfolding one another.

As I saw but few things that I could not find a use for, so this I
perceived would serve all the common purposes of packthread; a thing I
was often in want of. This inclined me to take a load of it home with
me. Indeed the difficulty of getting a quantity in the condition I
desired it, puzzled me a little; for, says I, if I cut up a good deal
of it with my hatchet, as I first designed, I shall only have small
lengths, good for little, and to get it in pieces of any considerable
length, so as to be of service, will require much time and labour. But
reflecting how much I needed it, and of what benefit it would be,
I resolved to make a trial of what I could do; so, without more
hesitation, I went to work, and cutting a fibre close to its root,
I extricated that thread from all its windings, jus