Accordingly The Master Sent For The Skiff, In Which The Coffin
Was Transported By Water To The Place Appointed, While
We went there by
land, and carried it thence to the burial-place; the purser walking
before, and all the
Rest following after the coffin, which was covered
by a Holland sheet, above which was a silk quilt. We were attended by a
vast number of the natives, both young and old, curious to see our
manner of burial. After the corpse was interred, we all returned to the
factory, where we had a collation, and then our people returned to the
ship. I had almost forgotten to remark, that we had much ado to get any
native to dig the grave in which a Christian was to be buried, neither
would they permit the body to be conveyed by water in any of their
boats.
At this time the king commanded that all the streets in Firando should
be cleaned, and that gutters should be made on each side to convey the
water from them, all the streets to be new gravelled, and the
water-channels to be covered with flat stones. This work was all done in
one day, every one performing so much of it as was in front of his own
house, and it was admirable to see the diligence every person used on
this occasion. Our house was not the last in having this task performed,
as our landlord, the Chinese captain, set a sufficient number of men to
do the work.
The 30th, some other merchants of Miaco came to look at our commodities,
who offered twelve tayes the fathom for our best stammel, or red
cloth; but they went away without making any bargain. At this time we
had very heavy winds, both by day and night, so that we were in fear of
another tuffoon, on which account all the fishers hauled their boats
ashore, and every one endeavoured to secure the roofings of their
houses. A week before this, a bose, bonze or conjurer, had predicted
to the king that this tempest was to come. About this time our surgeon,
being in his cups, came into a house where a bose was conjuring for a
woman who wanted to know if her husband or friends would return from
sea. So when the bose was done, the surgeon gave him three-pence to
conjure again, and to tell him when our general would return to Firando.
In the end, the bose told him that the general would return within
eighteen days, pretending that he heard a voice answer from behind a
wall, both when he conjured for the woman, and now when he conjured for
the surgeon.
On the 2d of October, the master sent me word that some of the men had
run away with the skiff. These were John Bowles, John Saris, John
Tottie, Christopher Evans, Clement Locke, Jasper Malconty, and James the
Dutchman. While in the way to the king to get boats to send after them,
our Dutch jurebasso came running after me, and told me our people were
on the other side making merry at a tippling-house. On this information
I returned to the English house to get a boat for the master to go and
look them out, but they proved to be three others, William Marinell,
Simeon Colphax, and John Dench, who had hired a boat and gone to another
island, not being allowed to walk by night in Firando. By this mistake
our deserters had the more time to get away. This night, about eleven,
the old king's house, on the other side of the water, took fire, and
was burnt to the ground in about an hour. I never saw a more vehement
fire for the time it lasted, and it is thought his loss is very great.
The old king is said to have set it on fire himself, by going about in
the night with lighted canes, some sparks from which had fallen among
the mats and set them on fire.
I went next day to visit the old king, giving him to understand, by
means of his governor, that I was extremely sorry for the misfortune
that had befallen him, and would have come in person to give all the
assistance in my power, but was doubtful if my presence would have been
acceptable, being a stranger; and begged leave to assure him, that he
should find me ready at all times, even with the hazard of my life, to
do him every service in my power. He gave me many thanks for my good
will, saying, that the loss he had sustained was as nothing in his
estimation. On my return to our house, I was met by the young king going
to visit his grandfather. Before noon, we had word that our runaways
were upon a desert island about two leagues from Firando, of which I
gave notice to both kings, requesting their aid and council how we might
best bring them back. They answered, that they would fetch them back
dead or alive, yet would be loth to kill them, lest we might want hands
to navigate the ship back to England. I returned many thanks for the
care they had of us, yet sent them word we still had a sufficiency of
honest men to carry our ship to England, even although we should lose
these knaves. In fine, the king fitted out two boats full of soldiers to
go after them, with positive orders to bring them back dead or alive,
which I made known to our master, who wished much to go along with them,
and did so accordingly.
9. Continuation of Occurrences at Firando, during the Absence of the
General.
On the 4th of October, a report was current in Firando that the Devil
had revealed to the bose, [bonzes] or conjurers, that the town was to
be burned to ashes that night, on which criers went about the streets
the whole night, making so much noise that I could hardly get any rest,
giving warning to all the inhabitants to extinguish their fires.
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