But They Are Very
Loathsome Objects, Their Breasts Hanging Down To Their Waists.
The hair
both of the men and women is short and frizzled.
With these people
copper serves as gold, and iron for silver. Their dwellings are small
tents, removable, at pleasure; and their language is full of a strange
clicking sound, made by doubling their tongues in their throats. 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. They have
grapes also, yet only make wine from the dried raisins. In Surat there
are many fair houses built of stone and brick, having flat roofs, and
goodly gardens, abounding in pomegranates, pomecitrons, lemons, melons,
and figs, which are to be had at all times of the year, the gardens
being continually refreshed with curious springs and fountains of fresh
water. The people are tali, neat, and well-clothed in long robes of
white callico or silk, and are very grave and judicious in their
behaviour. The sabander assured us that we had slain 350 of the
Portuguese; but we heard afterwards, that above 500 were killed or
maimed. Our general sent letters for England by land, but the messenger
and his Indian attendant were poisoned by two friars. A second letter
was entrusted to a mariner, which reached its destination.
We anchored in the road of Acheen on the 12th April, 1613, where we were
kindly received by the king. On the 2d of May, all the strangers then at
Acheen were invited to a banquet at a place six miles from the town, and
on this occasion two elephants were sent for our general. To this place
all the dishes were brought by water by boys, who swam with one hand,
while each carried a dish in - the other; and the drink was brought in
the same manner. When the guests had satisfied themselves with tasting
any of the dishes, which indeed they must of all, the remainder was
thrown into the river. In this feast there were at least 500 dishes
served, all well dressed. It continued from one o'clock till five; but
our general, who was wearied with sitting so long in the water beside
the king, was dismissed an hour before the other guests. The captain or
chief merchant of the Dutch factory, either by taking too much strong
drink, or from sitting too long in the cold water, caught an illness of
which he died soon after.
The 2d June we were entertained by a fight of four elephants with a wild
tyger, which was tied to a stake; yet did he fasten on the legs and
trunks of the elephants, making them to roar and bleed extremely. This
day, as we were told, one eye of a nobleman was plucked out by command
of the king, for having looked at one of the king's women, while bathing
in the river. Another gentleman, wearing a sash, had his head cut round,
because it was too large. Some he is said to throw into boiling oil,
some to be sawn in pieces, others to have their legs cut off, or spitted
alive, or empaled on stakes.
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