- E.]

From Goa I went to Cochin, in a ship that was bound for Pegu, and intended to winter at San Thome; but on my arrival at Cochin I learnt that the ship with my three bales of cotton cloth was cast away, so that I lost my 800 seraphins or ducats.

On our voyage from Cochin to San Thome, while endeavouring to weather the south point of Ceylon, which lies far out to sea, the pilot was out in his reckoning, and laying-to in the night, thinking that he had passed hard by the Cape of Ceylon; when morning came we were far within the Cape, and fallen to leeward, by which it became now impossible to weather the island, as the wind was strong and contrary. Thus we lost our voyage for the season, and we were constrained to go to Manaar to winter there, the ship having lost all her masts, and being saved from entire wreck with great difficulty. Besides the delay and disappointment to the passengers, this was a heavy loss to the captain of the ship, as he was under the necessity of hiring another vessel at San Thome at a heavy charge, to carry us and our goods to Pegu. My companions and I, with all the rest of the merchants, hired a bark at Manaar to carry us to San Thome, where I received intelligence by way of Bengal, that opium was very scarce and dear in Pegu; and as there was no other opium but mine then at San Thome, for the Pegu market, all the merchants considered me as a very fortunate man, as I would make great profit, which indeed I certainly should have done, if my adverse fortune had not thwarted my well-grounded expectations, in the following manner: A large ship from Cambaya, bound for _Assi_ [Acheen?] with a large quantity of opium, and to lade pepper in return, being forced to lay-to in crossing the mouth of the bay of Bengal, was obliged to go _roomer_[169] for 800 miles, by which means it went to Pegu, and arrived there one day before me. Owing to this circumstance, opium, which had been very dear in Pegu, fell to a very low price, the quantity which had sold before for 50 _bizze_ having fallen to 2-1/2, so large was the quantity brought by this ship. Owing to this unfortunate circumstance, I was forced to remain two years in Pegu, otherwise I must have given away my opium for much less than it cost me, and even at the end of that time I only made 1000 ducats by what had cost me 2100 in Cambaya.

[Footnote 169: The meaning of this ancient nautical term is here clearly expressed, as drifting to leeward while laying-to. - E.]

After this I went from Pegu to the Indies[170] and Ormuz, with a quantity of _lac_. From Ormuz I returned to Chaul, and thence to Cochin, from which place I went again to Pegu.

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