He was a studious boy who had read much.

He had heard of the water palm of the Hawaiian and other South Sea Islands.

Might not the water palm be found in Mexico also?
In any event, he had never heard of a palm that was poisonous.

They were always givers of life.
He raised the machete and slashed the stem of the palm at a point about five feet from the ground.

The wound gaped open and a stream of water gushed forth.