The Different Names Given To These Ships, As Say,
Seume, Merkeb, Sambouk, Dow, Denote Their Size; The Latter Only, Being
The Largest, Perform The Voyage To India.
The ships are navigated
chiefly by people from Yemen, from the Somawly coast (opposite to Aden,
[P.23] between Abyssinia and Cape Guardafui,) and by slaves, of which
latter three or four are generally found in every ship. The crew receive
a certain sum for the voyage, and every sailor is, at the same time, a
petty trader on his own account; this is another cause of the resort of
foreigners to Djidda during the trade winds, for persons with the
smallest capitals can purchase goods in retail, at the first hand, from
the crews of these ships. No vessels of any kind are now constructed at
Djidda, so scarce has timber become; indeed, it is with difficulty that
means are found to repair a ship. Yembo is subject to the same
inconvenience. Suez, Hadeyda, and Mokha, are the only harbours in the
Red Sea where ships are built. The timber used at Suez is transported
thither overland from Cairo, and comes originally from the coast of Asia
Minor: The canvas used all over the Red Sea is of Egyptian manufacture.
The cordage is of the date-tree. Ships coming from the East Indies have
cordage made of the cocoa-nut tree, of which a quantity is also brought
for sale. That employed at Hadeyda and Mokha comes partly from Yemen,
and partly from the African coast.
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