And He Engaged To Write
To The Great Turk And The King Of Algiers To Use Our Ships And Goods In
A Friendly Manner.
Also, that if any Englishmen should be hereafter made
captives and brought into his dominions, that they should on no account
be sold as slaves.
Whereupon, declaring the acceptance by her majesty of
these conditions, to confirm the intercourse of trade between our
merchants and his dominions, I engaged to satisfy him with such
commodities as he stood in need of, to furnish the wants of his country
in all kinds of merchandize, so that he might not require any thing from
her majesty contrary to her honour and law, or in breach of league and
amity with the Christian princes her neighbours. That same night I
presented him with a case of combs[302], and requested his majesty to
give orders for the lading of the ships back again, as I found there was
very little saltpetre in the hands of John Bampton. He answered that I
should have all the aid in his power, as he expected there was some
store in his house at _Sus,_ and that the mountaineers had much in
readiness. On my request that he would send orders for that to be
brought, he promised to do so.
[Footnote 302: This seems rather a singular present to the emperor of
Morocco. - E.]
The 18th day I was with him again and continued till night, when he
shewed me his house, with the amusement of duck-hunting with water
spaniels, and bull-baiting with English dogs. At this time I reminded
him of sending to _Sus_ about the saltpetre, which he engaged to do; and
on the 21st the Alcayde Mammie departed on that errand, accompanied by
Lionel Edgerton and Rowland Guy, carrying with them, on our account and
the king's, letters to his brother Muley Hamet, the Alcayde Shavan, and
the viceroy. The 23d the king sent me out of Morocco with a guard, and
accompanied by the Alcayde Mahomet, to see his garden called
Shersbonare; and at night of the 24th I was sent for to court to see a
Morris dance, and a play acted by his _Elchies._ He promised me an
audience on the next day being Tuesday, but put it off till Thursday,
when he sent for me after supper, when the Alcaydes Rodwan and Gowry
were appointed to confer with me; but after a short conversation, I
requested to be admitted to the king to receive my dispatch. On being
admitted, I preferred two bills, or requests, of John Bampton respecting
the provision of saltpetre, also two other petitions for the quiet trade
of our English merchants, together with petitions or requests for the
sugars which had been agreed to be made by the Jews, both for the debts
they had already incurred to our merchants, and those they might incur
hereafter, as likewise for the proper regulation of the ingenios. I also
moved him to give orders for the saltpetre and other affairs that had
been before agreed upon, which he referred me to be settled by the two
alcaydes. But on Friday the alcaydes could not attend to my affairs, and
on Saturday Rodwan fell sick. So on Sunday I again made application to
the king, and that afternoon I was sent for to confer upon the bargain
with the alcaydes and others, but we could not agree.
Upon Tuesday I wrote a letter to the king for my dispatch, and was
called again to court that afternoon, when I referred all things to the
king, accepting his offer of saltpetre. That night the king took me
again into his galley, when the water spaniels hunted the duck. On
Thursday I was appointed to weigh the 300 gross quintals of saltpetre;
and that afternoon the _tabybe_ came to my lodging, to inform me that
the king was offended with John Bampton for various reasons. Late on
Sunday night, being the 7th of July, I got the king to forgive all to
John Bampton, and he promised to give me another audience on Monday.
Upon Tuesday I wrote to the king for my dispatch, when he sent _Fray
Lewes_ to me, who said he had orders to write them out. Upon Wednesday I
wrote again, and the king sent me word that I should come on Thursday to
receive my dispatches, so that I might depart without fail on Friday the
12th of July.
According to the kings appointment I went to court on Friday, when all
the demands I had made were granted, and all the privileges which had
been requested on behalf of the English merchants were yielded to with
great favour and readiness. As the Jews resident in Morocco were
indebted in large sums to our men, the emperor issued orders that all
these should be paid in full without delay or excuse. Thus at length I
was dismissed with great honour and special favour, such as had not
ordinarily been shewn to other Christian ambassadors. Respecting the
private affairs treated on between her majesty and the emperor, I had
letters to satisfy her highness in the same. To conclude, having the
same honourable escort for my return from court that I had on my way
there, I embarked with my suite, and arrived soon after in England, when
I repaired to court, and ended my embassy to her majestys satisfaction,
by giving a relation of my services.
SECTION XIV.
_Embassy of Henry Roberts from Queen Elizabeth to Morocco in 1585,
written by himself_[303].
Like the former ambassador, Edmund Hogan, Mr Henry Roberts was one of
the sworn esquires of the person to Elizabeth queen of England, and the
following brief relation of his embassy, according to Hakluyt, was
written by himself. This, like the former, does not properly belong to
the present portion of our arrangement, but seemed necessary to be
inserted in this place, however anomalous, as an early record of the
attentions of the English government to extend the commerce and
navigation of England, the sinews of our strength, and the bulwark of
our glorious constitution.
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