In The Course Of
That Year Or The Next, Albuquerque Stood Over To Discover The Coast Of
Arabia, Which He Explored, And Doubled The Cape Of Rosalgate, Which Is
Under The Tropic Of Cancer.
In 1509, Diego Lopez de Sequiera went from Lisbon for India with four
ships; and stopping at the island of Madagascar was almost a year on his
voyage.
Arriving at Cochin in the month of May, the viceroy gave him
another ship, in which he went to Malacca in September passing between
the islands of Nicubar and many others. He went also to Sumatra; to the
cities of Pedir and Pacem; and all along that coast to the island of
Puloreira, and the fiats of Capacia; thence he stood over to the city of
Malacca, in lat. 2 deg. N. where the people took and slew some of his men.
After this he returned to Cochin, having discovered five hundred leagues
in this voyage. The island of Sumatra is the first land in which we knew
of mens flesh being eaten, by certain people in the mountains called
Bacas, who gild their teeth. In their opinion the flesh of the blacks is
sweeter than that of the whites. The flesh of the oxen, kine, and hens in
that country is as black as ink. A people is said to dwell in that
country, called _Daraqui-Dara_, having tails like sheep[20]. There are
likewise springs of rock oil or bitumen. In the kingdom of Pedir,
likewise, there is said to be a river of oil; which is not to be wondered
at, as we are assured there is also a well of oil in Bactria. It is
further said that there is a tree in that country, the juice of which is
a strong poison if it touch a mans blood; but if drank, it is a sovereign
antidote against poison. They have here also certain gold coins, called
drachms, brought, as they say, into their country by the Romans[21],
which seems to have some resemblance to truth, because beyond that
country there are no gold coins.
In 1508, Alphonso de Hojeda went with the license of King Ferdinand, but
at his own charges, to conquer the province of Darien, in the Terra Firma
of the new world. Landing in the country of Uraba, he called it Castilia
del Oro, or Golden Castile, because of the gold found in the sand along
its coast. He went first from the city of San Domingo, in Hispaniola,
with four ships and three hundred soldiers, leaving behind him the
bachelor Anciso, who afterwards compiled a book of these discoveries. He
was followed by a fourth ship with provisions and ammunition, and a
reinforcement of 150 Spaniards. Hojeda landed at Carthagena, where the
natives took, slew, and devoured seventy of his men, by which his force
was much weakened. Some time after but in the same year, Diego de Niquesa
fitted out seven ships in the port of Beata, intending to go to Veragua
with 800 men; but coming to Carthegana, where he found Hojeda much
weakened by his losses, they joined their forces, and avenged themselves
of the natives. In this voyage Niquesa discovered the coast called Nombre
de Dios, and went into the sound of Darien, on the river Pito, which he
named Puerto de Misas. Coming to Veragua, Hojeda went on shore with his
soldiers, and built there the town of Caribana, as a defence against the
Caribbees; being the first town built by the Spaniards on the continent
of the new world. He also built another at Nombre de Dios, and called it
Nuestra Seniora de la Antigua. A town was built at Uraba, in which
Francis Pisarro was left with the command, who was there much annoyed by
the natives. They likewise built other towns, the names of which I omit.
In this enterprize the Spaniards did not meet with the success they
expected.
In 1509, Don Diego Columbus, the second admiral of New Spain, went to the
island of Hispaniola with his wife and household; and she, being a noble
woman, carried with her many ladies of good families, who were there
married; by which means the Spaniards began to multiply in their new
colony, and Hispaniola became famous and much frequented. Columbus
likewise reduced Cuba into order, and took measures for its colonization,
where he placed one Diego Velasques as his lieutenant, who had
accompanied his father in his second voyage of discovery.
In April 1511, Alphonso de Albuquerque went to Malacca from Cochin; and
finding certain Chinese about to return from Malacca into their own
country, he sent a Portuguese along with them, named Duarte Fernandes,
with letters for the king of the Mantias, now called Siam. They passed
through the Straits of Cincapura, and sailed northwards along the coast
of Patane to the city of Cuy, and thence to Odia, the chief city of the
kingdom, in 14 deg. N.[22]. The king of this country received Duarte with
great honour, as he was the first Portuguese who had been in these parts,
and sent back ambassadors along with him to Albuquerque. They travelled
overland to the westwards, till they came to Tanacerim, on the Bay of
Bengal, in 12 deg. N. where they embarked in two ships and sailed to Malacca.
The inhabitants of Siam, through which they travelled, eat of all kinds
of beasts, and even of what we repute to be vermin. The people of this
country are reputed the most virtuous and honest of any in those parts of
the world, and pride themselves much on their poverty and chastity; yet
have a strange practice of carrying round bells within their foreskins,
which is not permitted to the king and priests. They do not rear any
poultry or pigeons about their houses. The kingdom is 250 leagues in
length and 80 in breadth[23].
Elephants are so numerous in this country, that on going to war, the king
is said to carry 30,000 into the field, besides others which are left in
the several garrisons.
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