Wherefore, Having Received
What Was Useful For My People, I Had Sent Back What I Considered The
Things To Be Worth.
There came off also a boat, with store of fresh
fish, which I caused to be bought, always making the bringer to eat part
of what he brought, for fear of poison.
The 27th April we descried a sail plying to the eastwards, between us
and the shore, which, being detained by the pinnace, proved to be a
jelba belonging to Shaher, bound homewards with grain and other
commodities, among which was some opium, and having several pilgrims
from Mecca, as passengers on their way home. We purchased from them nine
and a half pounds of opium as a trial, and dismissed them. The 30th I
stopt two vessels, both belonging to a place on the Abyssinian or
African coast, called Bandar Zeada; one laden only with mats, and the
other having sixty-eight fat-rumped sheep, which we bought from them,
and dismissed them.
The 8th May we plied towards the bab under easy sail, with a pleasant
wind at N.E. by E. At ten a.m. we descried land on the African coast,
looking at first like an island, but soon perceived it to be the main.
From thence we steered N.W. towards the bab, which, by estimation, was
then about ten leagues distant; and near four p.m. we descried the
straits, when we lingered off and on to spend the night. At day-light
next morning we made sail towards the bab. On entering the strait we
descried a sail astern, coming direct for the strait, on which I struck
my top-sails to wait for her, and sent off my pinnace to take
possession. The pinnace returned with the Nakhada and Malim, whom I
examined, and found them to be subjects of the Great Mogul, belonging to
a place called Larree,[365] situated at the mouth of the great river
of Sindi. I luft up along with this ship into a bay, on the east side of
the straits, where we came to anchor in seven fathoms. I then sent my
merchants aboard to examine her loading, which consisted of divers packs
and fardels of cloth, seeds of various kinds, leather, jars of butter,
and a great quantity of oil, some for eating and some for lamps. As this
vessel had many passengers, and I could not keep her for want of water,
I took out of her the likeliest packs of Indian cloth to serve our
purposes, with some butter and oil for our own use, and then allowed
her to proceed for Mokha.
[Footnote 365: Bander Larry, or Larry Bunder, on the Pity river, the
most north-western branch of the Delta of the Indus, or Scinde
river. - E.]
About three p.m. I descried a ship of 200 tons opening the east land of
the straits, and immediately following her a vessel of huge size, her
main-yard being forty-three yards long.
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