From this expression it may be inferred, that besides his
mercantile speculations in jewels, Cesar Frederick was a lapidary.
- 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. Once more I lost the opportunity
of becoming rich, as on this voyage I only took a small quantity of
opium, while I might have sold a large quantity to great advantage,
being afraid of meeting a similar disappointment with that which
happened to me before. Being now again resolved to return into my native
country, I went from Pegu to Cochin, where I wintered, and then sailed
for Ormuz.
[Footnote 170: Here, and in various other parts of these early voyages,
India and the Indies seem confined to the western coast of the
peninsula, as it is called, or the Malabar coast. - E.]
SECTION XX.
_Some Account of the Commodities of India_.
Before concluding this relation of my peregrinations, it seems proper
that I should give some account of the productions of India.
In all parts of India, both of the western and eastern regions, there is
pepper and ginger, and in some parts the greatest quantity of pepper is
found wild in the woods, where it grows without any care or cultivation,
except the trouble of gathering it when ripe. The tree on which the
pepper grows is not unlike our ivy, and runs in the same manner up to
the top of such trees as grow in its neighbourhood, for if it were not
to get hold of some tree it would lie flat on the ground and perish. Its
flower and berry in all things resemble the ivy, and its berries or
grains are the pepper, which are green when gathered, but by drying in
the sun they become black. Ginger requires cultivation, and its seeds
are sown on land previously tilled. The herb resembles that called
_panizzo_, and the root is the spice we call ginger. Cloves all come
from the Moluccas, where they grow in two small islands, Ternate and
Tidore, on a tree resembling the laurel. Nutmegs and mace come from the
island of Banda, where they grow together on one tree, which resembles
our walnut tree, but not so large. Long pepper grows in Bengal, Pegu,
and Java.
All the good sandal-wood comes from the island of Timor. Camphor, being
compounded, or having to undergo a preparation, comes all from China.
That which grows in canes[171] comes from Borneo, and I think none of
that kind is brought to Europe, as they consume large quantities of it
in India, and it is there very dear. Good aloes wood comes from
Cochin-China; and benjamin from the kingdoms of _Assi_, Acheen? and
Siam. Musk is brought from Tartary, where it is made, as I have been
told, in the following manner. There is in Tartary a beast as large and
fierce as a wolf, which they catch alive, and beat to death with small
staves, that his blood may spread through his whole body.
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