At The First Sight Of Our Men, Whom They Knew, They
Would Fain Have Put Off Their Boat Again, But
I would not permit them,
causing them to be reminded of their former behaviour to our men, when
in their
Hands; and when I thought them sufficiently terrified, I
ordered them to be told, that they should now see how far our nation
differed from the cruelty of Turks, who had most barbarously and
injuriously used our men, without giving any cause of offence, whom they
had betrayed by fair promises, yet I should now dismiss them without
harm. They immediately departed, making many fair promises of sending us
refreshments. They accordingly sent off next day a boat loaded with
fish; but we were too far off for them to reach us, as we were obliged
to put the Calicut ship to leeward towards the Red Sea.
[Footnote 363: In Purchas called Abdraheman; perhaps the name was Abd
Arrahman. - Astl. I. 421. c.]
The morning of the 14th, the wind at east, we descried another ship of
like burden with the former bound for Aden, which, about ten o'clock,
a.m. we forced to come to anchor. I learnt that she was from Pormean,
a town not far from Kuts Nagone,[364] a place tributary to the Great
Mogul, who had despised our king, and abused our nation. The nakhada
of this ship was a Banian; and being fearful, if any other ship should
approach Aden, I must either leave the one or the other, I therefore
made haste to search her by my own people. With great labour, before
darkness overtook us, we had out of her six packs of coarse dutties,
of six corges a pack; other thirty-six bales, containing thirty-six
corges of coarse dutties; one small bale of candekins-mill, or
small pieces of blue calico; with about thirty or more white bastas,
and a little butter and lamp oil. So far as we could discover for that
night, the rest of her lading consisted of packs of cotton-wool, as we
term it, which we proposed to examine farther next day.
[Footnote 364: According to the editor of Astley's Collection, I. 421.
d. Kuts Nagone is a place in the peninsula of Guzerat, not far from the
western cape. The western cape of Guzerat is Jigat Point; but no such
places are to be found in our best modern maps, and the only name
similar is Noanagur, on the south side of the Gulf of Cutch; whence
Kuts-Nagone in the text may be a corruption of Cutch-Noanagur. - E.]
This day Moharim aga, who was now mir, or governor of Aden, sent me a
present of eggs, limes, and plantains; but I sent back word by the
messenger, that the various intolerable injuries done to my friends and
nation at this place last year, had occasioned my present approach, to
do my nation and myself what right I might, to the disturbance and
injury of the Turks; and as my coming was not to ask any favour from
them, I would not accept any of their dissembled presents; for, as they
cut our throats when we came to them in friendship, we could expect no
favour now when we came in declared enmity.
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