18.9. 9. Of the Soil of America.
The cause of there being such a number of
savage nations in America is the fertility of the earth, which
spontaneously produces many fruits capable of affording them
nourishment. If the women cultivate a spot of land around their
cottages, the maize grows up presently; and hunting and fishing put the
men in a state of complete abundance. Besides, black cattle, as cows,
buffaloes, &c., thrive there better than carnivorous beasts. The
latter have always reigned in Africa.
We should not, I believe, have all these advantages in Europe if the
land was left uncultivated; it would scarcely produce anything besides
forests of oaks and other barren trees.
