It Is Likewise Credibly Reported, That The People Of China See Their King Very Seldom, Or Not At All, And May Not Even Look Up To The Place Where He Sits.

When he goes abroad, he is carried in a great chair or _serion_, splendidly gilded, on which is made a small house with a lattice to look through, so that he cannot be seen but may see about him.

While he is passing, all the people kneel with their faces to the ground, holding their hands over their heads, and must not look up till he is past.

In China, when in mourning, the people wear white thread shoes and straw hats. A man mourns two years for his wife, the wife three years for her husband, the son a year for his father, and two years for his mother. During the whole time of mourning the dead body is kept in the house, the bowels being taken out, filled with _chaunam_ or lime, and put into a coffin. When the time expires, it is carried out with much playing and piping, and burned. After this they pull off their mourning weeds, and may marry again when they please. All the people of China, Japan, and Cochin-china, write downwards, from the top of the page to the bottom using a fine pencil made of dogs or cats hair.

_Laban_ is an island among the Javas, whence come the diamonds of _the new water_. They are there found in the rivers, as the king will not allow them to be dug for in the rock. _Jamba_ is another island among the Javas, from whence also diamonds are brought. In this island the king has a mass of earth growing in the middle of the river, which is gold; and when he is in want of gold, they cut part of this earth and melt it, whereof cometh gold. This mass of earth is only to be seen once a year, in the month of April, when the water is low. _Bima_ is another island among the Javas, where the women labour as our men do in England, and the men keep the house or go where they will[427].

[Footnote 427: All the names of these islands among the Javas, or isles of Sunda are unintelligibly corrupt. - E.]

The 28th of March 1588, I returned from Malacca to Martaban, and thence to Pegu, where I remained the second time till the 17th of September, and then went to Cosmin where I took shipping; and escaping many dangers from contrary winds, it pleased God that we arrived in Bengal in November. I had to remain there, for want of a passage, till the 3d February 1589, when I embarked for Cochin. In this voyage we suffered great hardships for want of water; for the weather was very hot, and we were many on board, merchants and passengers, and we had many calms. It pleased God that we arrived in Ceylon on the 6th of March, where we staid five days, to furnish ourselves with water and necessary provisions.

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