Onore, The First
Of These, Is In The Dominions Of The Queen Of _Battacella_, Or
_Batecolah_, Who Is Tributary To The King Of Bijanagur.
There is no
trade at this place, which is only a military post held by a captain
with a company of soldiers.
After this you go to another small castle of
the Portuguese called Mangalore, in which there is only a small trade in
rice. Thence you go to a little fort called Bazelore[141], whence a
great deal of rice is transported to Goa. From thence you go to a city
named Cananore, which is within a musket-shot of the capital of the king
of Cananore who is a Gentile[142]. He and his people are wicked and
malicious, delighting in going to war with the Portuguese; yet when at
peace they find their interest in trading with them. From this kingdom
of Cananore is procured great store of cardomums, pepper, ginger, honey,
cocoa-nuts, and _archa_ or _areka_. This is a fruit about the size of a
nutmeg, which is chewed in all the Indies, and even beyond them, along
with the leaf of a plant resembling ivy called _betel_. The nut is
wrapped up in a leaf of the betel along with some lime made of oyster
shells, and through all the Indies they spend a great deal of money; on
this composition, which they use daily, a thing I could not have
believed if I had not seen it continually practised. A great revenue is
drawn from this herb, as it pays custom. When they chew this in their
mouths, it makes their spittle as red as blood, and it is said to
produce a good appetite and a sweet breath; but in my opinion, they eat
it rather to satisfy their filthy lusts, for this herb is moist and hot,
and causes a strong expulsion.
[Footnote 141: This must be Barcelore, and ought to have been named
before Managalore, as above 50 miles to the north, between Goa and
Managalore. - E.]
[Footnote 142: This passage ought to have stood thus "The fort of
Cananore belonging to the Portuguese, only a musket-shot from the city
of that name, the capital of" &c. - E.]
From Cananore you go Cranganore, which is a small fort of the Portuguese
in the country of the king of Cranganore, another king of the Gentiles.
This is a country of small importance of about a hundred miles extent,
full of thieves, subject to the king of Calicut, who is another king of
the Gentiles and a great enemy to the Portuguese, with whom he is
continually engaged in war. This country is a receptacle of foreign
thieves, and especially of those Moors called _Carposa_, on account of
their wearing long red caps. These thieves divide the spoil they get
with the king of Calicut, who gives them leave to go a-roving; so that
there are so many thieves all along this coast, that there is no sailing
in those seas except in large ships well armed, or under convoy of
Portuguese ships of war.
Enter page number
PreviousNext
Page 139 of 441
Words from 72291 to 72809
of 230997
