This Made The Journey Very Oppressive To
Us, As Within Two Hours After The Sun Rose We Were Hardly Able To Endure
The Heat.
Lahore is a great and goodly city, being one of the fairest and
ancientest in India.
It stands on the river Indus or Sinde;[149] and
from this place came the most valuable of the Portuguese trade when they
were at peace with the Moguls, as it formed the centre of all their
traffic in Hindoostan. They here embarked their goods, which were
carried down the river to Tatta, and were thence transported by sea to
Ormus and Persia; and such native merchants as chose to go that way
between India and Persia, paid them freight. They had also a great trade
up this river, in pepper and other spices, with which they furnished
that part of India. At this time, the merchants of India assemble at
Lahore, where they invest a great part of their money in commodities,
and, joining in caravans, they pass over the mountains of Candahar into
Persia; by which way it is computed there now pass yearly twelve or
fourteen thousand camel loads, whereas formerly there did not go in this
way above three thousand, all the rest going by way of Ormus. These
merchants are put to great expences between Lahore and Ispaban, besides
being exposed to great cold in winter and fervent heat in summer, and to
bad and dangerous roads, usually spending six or seven months in the
journey, and they estimate the charges of each camel's load at 120 or
130 rupees. In this way Persia is furnished with spiceries, which are
brought all the way from Masulipatam by land. We remained in Lahore from
the 24th of April to the 13th of May, refreshing both ourselves and our
horses, and providing servants and necessaries for the journey. We also
procured here recommendatory letters from an ambassador to the king of
Persia.
[Footnote 149: Lahore is upon the Ravey, the second of the five rivers
forming the Indus, counting from the east, and was the Hydroates of the
ancients. The Indus proper, or Nilab, is considerably farther west. - E.]
We left Lahore on the 13th May, proposing to overtake a caravan which
set out two months before, and went that day eleven c. to a small town
named Chacksunder. The 14th to Non-serai, fifteen c. The 15th to
Mutteray, eight c. The 16th to Quemal khan, nineteen c. The 17th to
Herpae, sixteen c. The 18th to Alicasaca, twelve c. The 19th
Trumba, twelve c. and this day we overtook a small caravan that left
Lahore eight days before us. The 20th to Sedousehall, fourteen c. The
21st to Callixechebaut, fifteen c. The 22d to Multan,[150] twelve c.
This is a great and ancient city, having the river Indus at the distance
of three coss. All caravans must remain here ten or twelve days, before
leave can be procured from the governor to proceed, on purpose that the
city may benefit by their stay.
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