All
Their Cloth, Girdles, Fishing Lines, And Other Such Things, Are Made
From The Bark Of Certain Trees, Very Neatly Manufactured.
They fabricate
likewise all such iron implements as they use very artificially; such as
the heads of their darts,
Fish-hooks, _hooking_ irons, _ironheads_, and
great daggers, some of these last being as long as a bill hook, or
woodcutters knife, very sharp on both sides and bent like a Turkish
cymeter, and most of the men have such a dagger hanging on their left
side. Their targets are made of the same materials with their cloths,
very closely wrought, very large and of an oblong square form, somewhat
longer than broad, so that when they kneel on the ground the target
entirely covers their whole body. Their bows are short and tolerably
strong, as much as a man is able to draw with one finger, and the string
is made of the bark of a tree, made flat, and a quarter of an inch
broad. I have not seen any of their arrows, as they were all close
wrapped up, and I was so busily engaged in traffic that I had not
leisure to get them opened out for my inspection. They have also the art
to work up their gold into very pretty ornaments.
When the captain had taken his seat on the stool, I sent him as a
present two ells of cloth and two basins, and he sent back for our
weight and measure, on which I sent him a weight of two angels, and
informed him that such was our price in gold for two ells, or the
measure I had already sent him. This rule of traffic he absolutely
refused, and would not suffer his people to buy any thing but basins of
brass or latten; so that we sold that day 74 brass basins for about half
an angel weight each, and nine white basins for about a quarter of an
angel each. We shewed them some of all our other wares, but they did not
care for any of them. About two o'clock, P.M. the chief returned again,
and presented me a hen and two great roots, which I accepted, and he
then made me understand by signs, that many people would come from the
country that night to trade with me, who would bring great store of
gold. Accordingly about 4 o'clock there came about 100 men under 3
chiefs, all well equipped with darts and bows; and when they came to us,
every man stuck his dart into the ground in token of peace, all the
chiefs having their stools with them, sat down, after which they sent a
youth on board our boat who brought a measure of an ell, a quarter and a
sixteenth, making us understand that they would have four times that
measure in cloth for the weight in gold of an angel and 12 grains. I
offered him two ells for that weight, for which I had before demanded
two angels; but this he despised, and stuck to the four measures, being
5-1/4 ells. When it grew late and I motioned to go away, he came to four
ells for the above weight, and as he and I could not agree we went back
to the ships. This day we took for basins 6 ounces a half and an eighth
of gold.
In the morning of the 6th, we well manned our boats and the skiff, being
in some fear of the Portuguese, who had taken away a man from the ships
in the year before; and as the negroes had not canoes, we went near the
shore to them. The young man who had been with us the night before was
again sent to us, and he seemed to have had intercourse with the
Portuguese, as he could speak a little of that language, and was quite
expert in weights and measures. At his coming he offered us, as before,
an angel and 12 grains for four ells, giving us to understand, if we
would not deal on these terms, we might go away, which we did
accordingly; but before going away, I offered him three ells of rotten
cloth for his weight, which he would not accept. We then went on board
our ships, which lay a league off, after which we went back in the boats
for sand ballast. When the chiefs saw that our boats had now no
merchandise, but came only for water and sand, they at last agreed to
give the weight for three ells. Therefore, when the boats returned to
the ships, we put wares into both, and, for greater expedition, I and
John Saville went in one boat, while the master, John Makeworth, and
Richard Curligin, went in the other. That night I took for my part 52
ounces of gold, and those in the other boat took 8-1/4 ounces, all by
the above weight and measure. When it grew late we returned to the
ships, having taken that day in all 5 pounds of gold.
We went on shore again on the 7th, and that day I took in our boat 3
pounds 19 ounces[246], so that we had sold most of the cloth we carried
in the boat before noon, by which time many of the negroes were gone,
and the rest seemed to have very little gold remaining; yet they made
signs to us to bring them more latten basins, which I was not inclined
to, not wishing to spend any more time there, but to push forwards for
Don Johns town. But as John Saville and John Makeworth were anxious to
go again, I consented, but did not go myself. They bartered goods for
eighteen ounces of gold and came away, all the natives having departed
at a certain cry or signal. While they were on shore, a young negroe who
could speak a little Portuguese came on board with three others, and to
him I sold 39 basins and two small white saucers, for three ounces of
gold.
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