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.
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