In The Middle Of A Great
Nook Or Bay, Is A Perfectly Flat Island Almost Level With The Sea And
Exactly round, being about a quarter, of a league in circuit, upon which
the city of Swakem is built; not
One foot of ground on the whole
island but is replenished with houses and inhabitants, so that the whole
island, is a city. On two sides this insular city comes within a
bow-shot of the main land, that is on the E.S.E. and S.W. sides, but all
the rest is farther from the land. The road, haven, or bay surrounds the
city on every side to the distance of a cross-bow shot, in all of which
space, ships may anchor in six or seven fathoms on a mud bottom. All
around this bay there is a great shoal; so that the deep water is from
the edge of the city all round to the distance of a bow-shot, and all
beyond is full of shoals. In this bay there are three other islands on
the land side to the north-west. The two which lie farthest in are
small, but that nearest to the channel is about as large as the city.
Between this island and the main sea, there is a large and very long
channel, having seven fathoms water, all along which a great navy might
safely ride at anchor, without any danger of annoyance from the city,
whence only their masts could be seen. When the moon appears in the
horizon it is full sea, and as the moon advances it ebbs till the moon
comes to the meridian, when it is dead low water; and thence it begins
again to flow till the moon sets, when it is again full sea. The entire
ebb and flow of the sea at this city does not exceed a quarter of a
yard. The most that it rises along the coast is a yard and a half, and
in some places less than three quarters of a yard. But when I made this
observation it was neap tide.
[Footnote 292: This is to be understood of 1541, when visited by De
Castro. Since the Turkish conquest, Mokha and other places have greater
trade. - Purch.]
SECTION VI.
Continuation of the Voyage from Swakem to Comol.
We remained in the haven of Swakem from the 1st to the 9th of March
1541, when an hour before sunset we weighed from before the city, and
anchored for the night at the mouth of the channel. We weighed again on
the 10th, and came again to anchor at night, when the dew was
wonderfully great. On the 11th it blew a storm from the north, so
violent that it raised great mountains of sand along the sea coast,
after which it dispersed them, and the air remained obscured by the sand
as if it had been a great mist or smoke. We remained at anchor all this
day, and on the 12th we left this channel two leagues beyond Swakem,
and being without the channel we made sail. About a league and a half
from the coast there were so many rocks, shoals, and flats, on which the
sea continually broke, that we had to take in our sails and row for
three hours, till we got beyond these shoals, after which we again made
sail. At evening we came to anchor within the bank by a very narrow
channel, a league beyond that we had been last in, and three leagues
from Swakem, but the channel within the entrance was large, with clean
ground, and perfectly secure in all winds.
The 13th we went out of this channel an hour before day, and about a
cannon-shot to seaward we saw a long range of shoals with broken water,
seeming to stretch in the same direction with the coast. At eleven
o'clock the wind turned to the N.N.W. and as our course was N.W. we were
unable to make way, and had to fasten our vessels to the rocks on these
shoals, where we lay about three hours. About two o'clock afternoon the
wind freshened at N.N.E. and we made sail N.W. But coming to the bank
landward, we took in our sails and rowed into a channel within the bank,
where we came to anchor. This channel is very narrow and winding, being
about seven leagues beyond Swakem, whence the coast to this place runs
N. and S. and then N. by W. and S. by E. I went ashore on the 15th to
observe the order and flowing of the tide, and found it was full sea
when the moon was two hours past the meridian, and was dead ebb two
hours after the moon set. I found likewise that the ebb and flow of the
tide at this place was 22 cubits[293]. The 16th we left this channel,
with the wind at north, and cast anchor half a league out at sea. The
17th we entered a very good harbour named Dradate or Tradate, the
coast from Swakem here winding N. by W. and S. by E. distance 10
leagues. The land behind the shore is all very low in that space, but
three leagues back from the coast it rises into great and high
mountains. This harbour of Tradate, in lat. 19 deg. 50' N. 10 leagues
beyond Swakem, is one of the best in the world. The entrance is about a
falcon-shot across, and grows narrower inwards, but has 20 fathoms water
in its whole length with a mud bottom; and a quarter of a league within
the land there is a famous watering-place at certain wells, where is the
best water and in greatest plenty of any place on all these coasts. The
19th we sailed at day-light, and advanced 3-1/2 leagues that day, having
many shoals to seaward of us, and the coast for these 3-1/2 leagues
trended N. and S. On the 20th at sunrise the wind blew from the N. and
the sea was rough, for which reason we had to seek shelter within the
shoal, entering by a very narrow and difficult channel.
Enter page number
PreviousNext
Page 136 of 217
Words from 137891 to 138941
of 221361
