The 1st
December, The Fleet Departed, Holding A Courses W.S.W. Along The Coast
Of Arabia, And Sailing 40 Miles Cast Anchor Before Night At A Place
Called Mikaiya, And Took In Water.
The 2d, continuing along the coast
of Arabia, we proceeded W.S.W. 30 miles in the day, and 10 in the night.
The 3d, 40 miles by day and 50 in the night.
The 4th, 70 in the day and
30 in the night. The 5th, we went 60 miles farther, and by nine o'clock
in the night cast anchor off the town of Adem or Aden.
[Footnote 233: About the distance rather vaguely indicated in the text,
is a place called Dhofar on the coast of Yemen, and perhaps the text
ought to have been D'Afer. - E.]
On the 6th, the Pacha sent in the morning for a renegado Turk, formerly
a Christian and a person of some note, and without assigning any cause
ordered his head to be cut off. The reason was they all murmured, and
the Pacha feared this man might accuse him of negligence or cowardice,
and was therefore determined to be beforehand with him. This man had
formerly been in the service of the sheikh of Aden, and was afterwards a
captain at Diu, when the former king Badur was slain by the Portuguese.
The widow of Badur being possessed of a great treasure and desirous of
retiring to Mecca, was persuaded by this man to embark with him in a
galleon, with which he treacherously sailed to Egypt, whence he carried
the treasure to Constantinople and presented it to the sultan; who,
because of his conversance in the affairs of India, made him commander
of a galley, and ordered him to return to India with the fleet under
Solyman Pacha: And as the expedition succeeded so ill it now cost him
his life. Being desirous to secure Aden, the Pacha caused 100 pieces of
cannon of different sizes to be landed from the fleet, among which were
two passe-volants that had been taken out of the Venetian gallies at
Alexandria. He likewise landed an ample supply of powder and ball, and
left a Sanjak with 500 Turks and five foists[234]. Thinking himself
now out of danger from the pursuit of the Portuguese fleet, the Pacha
removed from the half galley and returned to the maon. On the 19th,
every thing being arranged at Aden, the fleet took in water, which
occupied them during three days; and on the 23d we sailed from Aden with
a good wind, steering W. by S. and between the evening and morning
proceeded 100 miles. The 24th at the 5th hour of the day, the fleet
entered the straits of the Red Sea, and lay all night at anchor. On the
25th, being Christmas, we departed three hours before day, and sailing
to the N.W. with a scant wind, we ran 50 miles and came to a castle
called Mokha.
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