My Affairs Being Thus Utterly Overthrown, I Determined, With The Advice
Of My Friends, To Know Exactly What I Had To Rest Upon, And Either To Be
Well In Or Well Out.
I therefore made ready and presented a petition to
the king, representing how I had been dealt with by Abdul Hassan who had
himself appropriated what his majesty had been pleased to order for my
living:
That the expences of my residence at court for so long a time,
at his majesty's command, and under promises to provide for me, would be
my utter ruin; wherefore, I humbly entreated his majesty to take my case
into his gracious consideration, either to establish me as formerly, or
to grant me leave to depart. In answer to this, he gave me permission to
go away, and commanded a safe conduct to be given me, to pass freely and
without molestation throughout his dominions. On receiving this
passport, I came to make my obeisance, and to take my leave, when I
entreated to have an answer to the letters of my sovereign. On this
Abdul Hassan came to me from the king, and utterly refused in a
disdainful manner; saying, that it was not meet for so great a monarch
to write a letter to any petty prince or governor. To this I answered,
that the king knew more of the mightiness of the King of England than to
suppose him a petty governor.
I went home to my house, using all my endeavours to get my goods and
debts gathered together, meaning to purchase commodities with the money
remaining, and exerted every diligence to get out of the country,
waiting only for the return of Nicholas Ufflet from Lahor with some
indigo then in charge of William Finch, who was determined to go home
over land, as he had no hope of our ever being able to embark at Surat.
I would willingly have gone home by the same route, but it was well
known that I could not travel through Turkey, especially in company with
a female.
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