Owing To
These Circumstances, The People Were Afflicted With The Same Disease In
Their Gums, From Which They Had Formerly Suffered Such Great Distress In
The River Of Good Signs[70], On The Outward Voyage.
Their arms and legs
also swelled, and many tumours broke out over their bodies, proceeding
from a pestilent stinking humour, which threw them into a flux, of which
thirty persons died.
From the continuance of calms and contrary winds,
and the mortality among the people, the whole company became amazed, and
believed they should never be able to get out from their present
distressing situation; insomuch, that they solicited the general to
return to Calicut, or some other part of India, and submit to what God
might appoint, rather than to die on the sea of these terrible diseases,
for which there was no remedy, especially as both provisions and water
began to fail. De Gama reasoned with them to little purpose, as they had
been now four months at sea, and there hardly remained, sixteen persons
in each ship able to do duty, some of whom even were afflicted with the
diseases of which the others had died. It is even said that Paulo de la
Gama and Nicholas Coello had agreed to return to India, if any wind
should spring up that would have served for the voyage.
At length a favourable wind sprung up unexpectedly, and in sixteen days
they came in sight of land on Wednesday the 2d of February 1499, at which
the mariners were much rejoiced, and soon forgot all their past troubles
and dangers. As they came near the land towards evening, the general gave
orders to keep their heads out to sea during the night, to avoid rocks or
shoals. As there were no person on board who knew where they were, a Moor
alleged they had steered direct for Mozambique; saying there were certain
islands 300 leagues from the shore, and directly over against that place,
where the natives were continually subject to the disease which had been
so fatal to our men. When morning came, they stood towards the land, when
they came before a large and goodly city, surrounded with walls, having
fair and lofty houses, and a large palace on a height in the middle of
the city, seeming to be a magnificent building. This city is called
Magadoxo, and stands on one side of the Gulf of India on the coast of
Ethiopia[71], an hundred and thirteen leagues from Melinda, the situation
of which I shall explain hereafter. Knowing this to be a city of the
Moors, he would not stop at this place, but commanded many shots of
ordnance to be fired as he sailed past. Not being sure how far it was to
Melinda, and fearing to overshoot that port, he lay too every night; and
on Saturday the 5th of February, lying over against a village of the
Moors, named Pate[72], 103 leagues from Magadoxo, there came off eight
_terradas_, or boats of that country, filled with soldiers, and making
direct for our fleet, from whence we shot off so many pieces of ordnance,
that they soon fled back to the shore, and our people could not follow
for want of wind. Next Monday, being the 7th of February, the fleet
arrived at Melinda. The king immediately sent off his congratulations to
the general on his arrival, with a present of fresh provisions. De Gama
sent Fernan Martinez on shore to return the compliments of the king, to
whom he sent a present. On account of the great number of sick on board,
the fleet stopped here for ten days, during which time he caused a land-
mark to be erected on shore, with leave of the king, as a token of
friendship. Having provided provisions and water for the ships at this
place, he departed on the morning of Wednesday the 17th of February,
taking with him an ambassador from the king of Melinda, to negotiate a
treaty of perpetual peace and friendship with the king of Portugal.
Considering that there were not sufficient men remaining for navigating
all the ships, the general and the other captains agreed to burn one of
them, and the San Rafael was chosen to be sacrificed, because she was all
open, and had not been brought aground at Anchediva when the other two
were repaired. Accordingly, after taking out all her stores and
merchandize, which employed them during five days, she was burnt at
certain shoals, called the Shoals of St Raphael[73]. During these five
days, the fleet procured a considerable quantity of hens from a village
on the coast called _Tangata_. Leaving this place, the two remaining
ships came on the 20th February to the island of Zenziber, which is in
six degrees of S. latitude, at ten leagues distance from the continent.
This is a considerable island, having other two in its neighbourhood, one
called _Pemba_, and the other _Moyfa_. These islands are very fertile,
having abundance of provisions, and great quantities of oranges. The
inhabitants are Moors, who are by no means warlike and have few weapons,
but are well clothed in silk, and cotton vestments, which they purchase
at Mombaza from the merchants of Cambaya. The women are ornamented with
jewels of gold and silver, the former being procured at Sofala, and the
latter from the island of St Lawrence, or Madagascar. Each of these three
islands has a separate king, who, with all their subjects, are of the
Mahometan religion.
When the king of the island of Zenziber was informed of the arrival of
our ships, he sent immediately to compliment the general, accompanied
with great presents of the fruits and other productions of the country,
and requested his friendship, to which the general gladly agreed and sent
suitable answers. After remaining here eight days for refreshments, the
general departed on the 1st of March, and came to anchor beside the isle
of St George in the bay of Mozambique.
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