There
Is A High Hill, Called The Table Mountain, Which Covers All The
Adjoining Territory For An Hundred Miles.
The natives, who are quite
black, behaved to us very peaceably, but seemed to have no religion, yet
their skins were slashed or cut, like the priests of Baal; and one
seemed to act as chief, as he settled the prices for the whole.
Some of
our people went a considerable way into the country, and discovered many
bays and rivers.
When at Surat, the Guzerats took some of our sea-coal to send to their
sovereign, the Great Mogul, as a curiosity. At this place there came
against us a Portuguese squadron of four galleons, attended by
twenty-five or twenty-six armed barks or frigates, commanded by an
admiral named Nuno de Accunna, and having all red colours displayed, in
token of defiance. When advised by the sabander to keep between us and
the shore, he proudly answered, That he scorned to spend a week's
provisions on his men in hindering us from trade, as he was able to
force us to yield to his superior force in an hour. After three fights,
they sent one of their frigates against us, manned with six or seven
score of their best men, intending to set us on fire, but they were all
sunk.
Medhaphrabad,[93] formerly a fine walled city, has been entirely
ruined in the wars of the Moguls. It has still a strong castle, held by
a refractory chief of the Rajapoots, and was besieged by the nabob,
having fifty or sixty thousand men in his camp. The nabob dwelt in a
magnificent tent, covered above with cloth of gold, and spread below
with Turkey carpets, having declared he would not desist from the siege
till he had won the castle. He sent a horse, and two vests wrought with
silk and gold, to our general Captain Best, with four vests for four
others. On the 23d and 24th of December, we fought again with the
Portuguese, in view of the whole army of the Moguls, and forced them to
cut their cables and flee from us, being better sailing vessels than
ours.
[Footnote 93: Called Madafaldebar in the preceding section, and there
supposed to be the place now named Jaffrabat, on the coast of
Guzerat. - E.]
I rode from Swally to Surat in a coach drawn by oxen, which are
ordinarily used in this country for draught, though they have plenty of
excellent and handsome horses. On the way I was quite delighted to see
at the same time the goodliest spring and harvest combined I had ever
seen any where, often in two adjoining fields, one as green as a fine
meadow, and the other waving yellow like gold, and ready to cut down;
their grain being wheat and rice, of which they make excellent bread.
All along the road there were many goodly villages, full of trees which
yield a liquor called toddy, or palm-wine, which is sweet and
pleasant, like new wine, being strengthening and fattening.
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