of Litter or Sedans carried by two men upon their Shoulders with a bar They bring up their Elephants with much care and are at great charge about them They delight much in Hawking and Hunting Their Greyhounds are somewhat less then ours but they tame Tigers and Leopards whereof they make use in hunting and these surprise their prey at a sudden leap but they never pursue it They are particularly industrious at the catching of River-fowl by means of the Skin of a tame Duck which being fill'd with Hay they swim even with the Water and drawing the Decoy-duck after them they insensibly get among the others and take them by the feet without ever frighting them They are very expert at the Bow which they make of a wild Oxes horn and the Arrows of a very light kind of Cane nay they are so excellent at it that sometimes they will take a Bird flying They delight much in Chess and have also a kind of Game at Cards They are lovers of Musick though there be no great Harmony in their own But above all things they are besoâ—â—ed with judiciary Astrology in so much that they never undertake any business of consequence but they first consult the Minatzim They have some of Aristotle's Works translated into the Arabian tongue which they call Aplis as also some Treatises of Avicennas for whom they have a very high respect because he was born at Smarcanda under the jurisdiction of Tamerlam Their Writings are not ill and their Productions are not void of Eloquence They keep a Register of all the remarkable Actions that are done among them and have such an exact account thereof as might serve to write a History of the Countrey Of their Language there are many Dialects but it is easie enough to be learnt and they write as we do from the left hand to the right Most of any quality about the Mogul's Court speak the Persian tongue nay some but very few speak also the Arabian The most common Diseases of those parts are the bloudy Flux and burning Feavers and the Remedy they ordinarily make use of against them is Abstinence They have good store of Physitians but no Surgeons Barbers of which Profession there is a great number are they who let bloud and apply Leeches In the Kingdom of Guzuratta Winter begins towards the end of Iune and lasts till September but there are not such continual Rains there as at Goa for it rains only in certain Intervals and particularly at new and full Moon The North-wind blows constantly for six moneths together and the South-wind for as many The hottest moneths in the year are April May and the beginning of Iune during which the sultriness of the weather is such that it were insupportable were it not that some Winds rise ever and anon which moderate the excessive heats but with that convenience they bring along with them an inconvenience which is their raising such an extraordinary Dust that it deprives a Man of the sight of the Sun There is a vast Trade driven in many Commodities all over the Kingdom of Guzuratta but particularly in Cotton and Linnen Cloaths which are in fairness and fineness equal to those of Holland as also in several Silk-stuffes as Contoms which are of several colours Satins Taffatas Petolas Commerbands Ornis of Gold and Silk which Women commonly make use of to cover their Faces withall Brocadoes Tapistry or Alcatifs Chitrenges or streaked Carpets to lay over Chests and Cabinets quilted Coverlets of Silk or Cotton which they call Geodris or Nalis Tents Perintos or Neuhar which they make use of instead of Couches Cadels or Bed-steads Cabinets of Lacque Chess-boards of Tortoise-shell Seals Beads Chains Buttons and Rings of Ivory Amber Rock-Crystal and Agat The best Indico in the world comes from about Amadabath from a Village call'd Chrichees whence it derives the name The Herb of which they make it is like that of yellow Parsnip but shorter and more bitter sprouting forth into branches like a Reed and growing in kind years six or seven foot high the Flower is like that of a Thistle and the Seed like that of Fenu-greek It is sown in Iune and cut in November and December It is sown but once in three years and the first year the leaves are cut off within a foot of the ground The stalks are taken away and the leaves are set a drying in the Sun and that done they are set a soaking for four or five dayes in a Stonesâ—trough containing about six or seven foot water which is ever and anon stirred till such time as the Water hath suckt out the colour and vertue of the Herb. That done they let out the Water into another Trough where they suffer it to settle for one night The next day all the Water is taken away and what is left in the bottom of the Trough is strain'd through a course Cloath and is set a drying in the Sun And this is the best Indico but the Countrey people adulterate it by mixing therewith a certain Earth of the same colour And whereas the goodness of this Drug is discovered by its lightness they have the cunning to put a little Oyl into it to make it swim upon the water The second year the stalk which was left the year before shoots forth other leaves but they are not so good as those of the first Yet is this preferr'd before Gyngey that is wild â—udico It is also the second year that they suffer some part of it to grow up to seed That of the third year is not good and consequently not sought after by forraign Merchants but is imploy'd by the Inhabitants of the Countrey in the dying of their Cloaths The best Indico is almost of a violet colour and hath somewhat of its smell when it 's burned The Indâ—sthans call it Anil and after it hath been in the ground three years they suffer the Land to lye fallow for one year ere they sow it again Most of the Saltpeter which is sold in Guzuratta comes from Asmer sixty Leagues from Agra and they get it out of Land that hath lain long fallow The blackest and fattest ground yields most of it though other Lands afford some and it is made thus They make certain Trenches which they fill with their Saltpetrous Earth and let into them small Rivulets as much water as will serve for its soaking which may 〈◊〉 the more effectually done they make use of their feet treading it till it become a Broath When the Water hath drawn out all the Saltpeter which was in the Earth they take the clearest part of it and dispose it into another Trench where it grows thick and then they boil it like Salt continually scumming it and then they put it into earthen pots wherein the remainder of the Dregs goes to the bottom and when the Water begins to thicken they take it out of these pots to set it
confident their ordinary increase will never fail them Thence it comes that so much excellent ground lies fallow producing only Hay whereof they mow no more than will serve their Cattel There is so great difference between this soyl and that of the Province of Allentaken in Livonia though there lies only the River Narva between them that as soon as a man is over he perceives it Muscovy and the Northern Provinces of Livonia have this common with Inguermannia and Carelia that they sow not their Corn till within three weeks of Midsummer for the cold having as a man might say pierc'd to the Centre of the earth it must have leasure to unfreeze but the Wheat is no sooner in the ground but it puts forth and the heat of the Sun which as we said is alwayes above the Horizon advances and ripens it So that Sowing and Harvest is all over in two moneths Wherein the Muscovites have this advantage over the Livonians that they put in their Wheat dry and ready to be thrash'd whereas the Livonians are forc'd to use fire to dry it by the help of a great Oven built in the midst of a Barn where they put their sheaves upon beams lay'd a-cross till such time as the heat hath so dry'd them that beating them with a stick the Grain falls out so as that there is no need of thrashing or treading it as they do in the East There is yet this further inconvenience that the Wheat thus dry'd is not good for seed and many times the Barns take fire which spreads into the houses about them and consumes all In those Provinces which are not so much towards the North especially neer the City of Mosco their are excellent fruits as Apples Cherries Plums and Goos-berries I have seen Apples in beauty and colour much like those which are called Appians and so transparent that holding them between your sight and the Sun you may easily tell the Kernels 'T is true this fruit having not time to bake in the Sun it being rather a moderate slow heat than an excessive scorching that consumes the superfluous moisture will not keep as it would do in Germany and other more Southerly Countreys but the Commentator upon the Maps of Atlas is nevertheless mistaken when he sayes after the Baron of Herberstein and Guagnin that the cold is so great in Muscovy that the Countrey cannot produce Apples or other Fruits that are worth sending up to the Table They have also all manner of Pulse Pot-herbs Asparagus Onions Garlick Roots Cowcumber Citruls or Gourds and Melons and of these last abundance excellent good and so big that at my being in Muscovy in the year 1643. a friend presented me with a Melon that weigh'd forty pound The Muscovites are very expert in the ordering of their Melons They steep the seed for the space of 48. hours in Cow's milk or an infusion of fair water and Sheep's dung their beds they make of Horse dung as it is carried out of the Stable six foot deep and then cover them with the best mold in which they make flat Trenches about a foot and a half broad They thrust the seed so deep into the bed as that it may not only be secur'd from the cold and receive the benefit of the Sun-shine but also have the advantage of the heat which the dung sends up from below covering it in the night and some times all day long with bells of the Country-glass or talk They do not transplant them but are careful to take away what is superfluous and do what other things are commonly practis'd in other places about that plant We were credibly inform'd that near Samara between Wolga and the Doa there is a kind of Melons or rather Gourds that are form'd like a Lamb whereof this fruit represents all the members being fasten'd to the ground by the stalk which is as it were its navel As it grows it changes place as far as the stalk will give way and as it turns makes the grass to wither The Muscovites call this browzing or feeding adding that when it is ripe the stalk withers and the fruit is cloath'd with a hairy skin which may be dress'd and used instead of Furr They call this fruit Boranez that is to say the Lamb. They shew'd us some of those skins taken off the covering of a bed and swore they came from that fruit but we could hardly believe it They were covered with a soft frizling Wooll not unlike that of a Lamb newly wean'd or taken out of the Sheep's belly Iulius Scaliger makes mention of it Exerc. 181. and sayes this fruit grows till the grass fails it and that it dies not but for want of nourishment He adds that no Beast will feed on it but the Wolf and that it is us'd as a bait to take him which the Muscovites also confirmed It is not long that they have had Flowers and sweet Herbs the Great Duke Michael Federouits being the first that bestow'd any expence in Gardening which he did with very good success Nor is it long that they have had any other than wild Roses Peter Marcellis Commissary from the King of Denmark and Duke of Holstein brought the first Provence-Roses thither The Holand and German Merchants have but lately planted Asparagus there which take very well and are as big as a mans thumb Nor have the Muscovites been long acquainted with Lettice and other Salad-herbs and laugh'd at the Strangers who fed on them but now they begin to like them There are no Hazel-trees nor Vines in Muscovy but the Dutch bring such quantities of several sorts of Wine thither by the way of Archangel that there is no want of any There is also within these few years some brought in from Astrachan upon the River of Wolga Muscovy abounds in Hemp and Flax and there is so much Honey and VVax even in the VVoods that besides what is spent in Hydromel and in Wax-Candles in this Commodity consists the greatest part of the commerce which the Muscovites have with Strangers to whom they put off yearly above twenty thousand Quintals or hundred weight of Wax All Muscovy being but a continued Forest those places only excepted where they have fir'd the Woods in order to agriculture it must needs be very well furnish'd with all sorts of Venizon and Fowl Whence it comes that Heath-cocks Feasants of several kinds and Patridges are very cheap as also wild Geese and Ducks Herons and Swans are not much esteem'd much less Thrushes Fildevars Quails Larks and other small Birds which the Country people will not take the pains to look after There are no Storks in Muscovy nor yet in Livonia but abundance of Birds of prey as Faulcons Tassels c. In the more Northerly Provinces there are white ones which are much esteem'd because of their ratity There is all sorts of Venison Deer excepted Of Elks and wild Boars abundance
Horse Having Travell'd about two Leagues we found a Scotch-man of our retinue whose name was Alexander Chambers dead in the Waggon though at the Loading of the Baggage he seem'd to be so well as that it was conceiv'd he might have gone through the Journey which occasion'd us to make a Halt to dispose of the Body into the ground We buried him at the bottom of a little Hill cover'd all over with Hyacinths on the left hand near the High-way Having got half a League further we came to the Sepulchre of another Saint named Pyr Mardechan in the Country of Fakerlu where we were forc'd to take up our Quarters in the open Air and without Tents making a shift in that manner to pass over one of the sharpest Nights we had in all our Journey by reason of the Storm which came attended by Lightning Thunder Wind Rain Snow and Frost the Ambassador Brugman being desirous to outvy the Thonder with our Artillery which he caus'd to be several times discharg'd The next day the same Ambassador having observ'd that several pieces of Canon were left behind because there were not Camels enough to bring them away and that the Horses were too weak to draw them would needs fall out with the Mehemander and was so transported with Passion that he came to Railing and Spetting when he nam'd the Chan and the Calenter and said that the Chan had not been so good as his Word and had ly'd in all he said but that he should resent it and that he would either have his Life or the other should have his Some were of opinion that he would stay there till the pieces we had left at Scamachie were brought up but upon the Remonstrances of some others that the place was too incommodious that we had nothing over our Heads that we should want both Wood and Provisions and that the sick Persons would not be able to endure the Cold it was resolv'd we should go on which we did and came after two Leagues travel to a Caravansera called Tachâ—si and having gone two Leagues further we were got to the top of the Mountain of Schamachie Upon the top of the said Mountain there is a fair Plain and an even and fertile ground though in Winter and at the beginning of the Spring Rain Snow and hard Weather are no strangers there and bring the same inconveniences along with them as they do in some parts of Europe But as soon as we were come to the brow or descent of the Mountain we saw a clear Sky a chearful Sun and discover'd a Country wholly cover'd with Verdure in a spacious Plain which reaching above ten Leagues without any excrescency so much as to the height of two foot represented to us as it were in a Map the Course and Conjunction of those two Rivers Araxes and Cyrus which the Writings of Antient Historians and Geographers have so highly celebrated This descent was above half a league but easie and not very steepy so that those who went fore-most looking behind them saw the last of our company descending as it were out of the Clouds We took up our Lodging that night in certain Ottacks or Huts which the Tartarian Shepherds had set up there near their Flocks Mar. 30. we got four leagues along the Plain as far as the Village of Kasilu We met in our way with a company of Sheep-herds and Cow-herds who march'd with their Houses and all their Houshold-stuff their Wives and Children all as it were shuffled together in Wagons or pack'd up upon Horses Cows Asses and other Creatures not ordinarily us'd in carriage after a very odd manner and such as represented a very Fantastick kind of Transmigration Ever after that day we had nothing but fair weather a Sky clear and without any cloudiness save that when we travell'd over the Mountains we might in the Morning see the Heavens a little over-cast but as soon as the Sun appear'd all was dispell'd March the last we travell'd two leagues along the River side to a Village named Tzauat upon the right side of the Kur or the River which the Antients called Cyrus all the Houses whereof were built of Reeds and Canes and cover'd with Earth About a quarter of a league above this Village is the Conflux or meeting of this River with that of Araxes which is now called Aras at thirty nine degrees fifty four minutes Elevation the Cyrus coming from West-north-west and the Aras from South-west These Rivers after they are met together are about four hundred paces in breadth Their water is black and deep and the brink on both sides pretty high All along the River side and all the Meadow grounds of the Province of Mokan were cover'd with Liquorice the stalk whereof is many times as big as a man's arm and the juyce beyond all comparison sweeter and more pleasant than that of Europe The River Kur serves for a common Frontier to the two Provinces of Schiruan and Mokan and there is a Bridge of Boats over it near Tzawat We pass'd over it the second of April and found on the other side of the River another Mehemandar whom the Chan or Governour of Ardebil had sent to meet us and to conduct us in the pursuance of our Journey as far as the chief City of his Government He had brought along with him for the carriage of us and the Baggage forty Camels and three hundred Horses in regard the way we were then to come into being very bad by reason of the continued Mountains and Valleys we could not have made any use of our Waggons He supply'd us with Provisions in abundance allowing us every day ten Sheep thirty Batmans of Wine and Rice Butter Eggs Almonds Raisins Apples and all sorts of Fruits as much as we pleas'd On Sunday after Sermon we departed taking our way along the River Aras for above a League We lodg'd that night within half a League of the River at the entrance of a great Heath in Hutts which the Mehemandar had purposely ordered to be provided for our convenience April the third we pass'd over the Heath which reaches about four Farsangs or Persian Leagues and we were lodg'd again that night in Hutts as we had been the night before We had seen all that day in great Herds a kind of Deer which the Turks call Tzeiran and the Persians Ahu which have some resemblance to our Harts save that they are rather Red than Fawn and their Horns have no Brow-anclers but are smooth and lye backward like those of wild Goats They are very swift and there are not any of that kind as we were told but what are in the Province of Mokan and about Schamachie Karrabach and Merrage April 4. we were forc'd to leave the way of the Heath though much the nearer and to take another which brought us by a great compass of above six Leagues to a Torrent called Balharu out of this
crackers but what diverted us most of all was that out of those Lanthorns there came a piece of Linnen which being folded together and ty'd up in knots had in each of those knots several squibs crackers and serpents which having much ado to get out made an admirable shew by the windings which the fire made through all the folds of that piece of cloath Others carried in their aprons a certain composition into which some that pass'd by let fire fall as it were negligently whereupon he who carried it shaking his apron there came out a great number of Stars which burnt a long time upon the ground In these Fire-works the Persians make use of white Naphte which is a kind of Petreolum but in regard this Drugg is seldome found in Europe there may be used to the same effect the spirit of Turpentine rectify'd We saw also at a great distance in the air certain flames which vanish'd as soon in a manner as they appear'd I conceive these flames proceeded from a certain Drugg which the Muscovites call ' Plaun which is a yellow powder made of a certain herb commonly found upon the ground in the Forests that are planted with Pines and Birch and is properly called in Latin Acanthus in French Branche ursine in English Bears-foot or Bears-britch Every stalk of this herb hath on it two Buttons which are ripe in August and then the Muscovites are very carefull to gather them dry them in an Oven beat them and keep the powder which comes from them in Ox-bladders to be sold by the pound It is us'd also in Medicine as being a drier and is administred with good success in Wounds and the Itch. But the Muscovites use it for the most part in their Divertisements putting it into a Tin-box made like a Pyramid into which they thrust that end of a Torch which is not lighted and by that means make the powder come out which being very small immediately fastens on the flame and is lighted and disappears almost at the same time so that continually thrusting in the Torch a man makes ever and anon a new flame which is very lively and makes the nobler shew in that it is not accompany'd with any smoke This powder will not take fire if it be not stirr'd after the foresaid manner for if it be cast upon burning coals or if a lighted candle be thrust into it it would not take fire These Fire-works entertain'd us so long that it was after mid-night ere we came to our Quarters where we found not any thing colder than the Hearth for out of a presumption that the Governour would have treated us at Supper there had been nothing provided at home The next day very betimes in the Morning before the Sun was to be seen over the Horizon the Persians made a Procession which was to represent the interment of Hossein In this Procession there were carried a great many Eschders and Banners and there were led several excellent Horses and Camels cover'd with blew Cloath in which were to be seen many Arrows quilted as if they had been purposely shot into it representing those which the Enemies had shot at Hossein Upon these Horses rid so many Boyes who had before them empty Cossins upon which they had cast a little Straw or Hay and they represented the great affliction of the Children of Hossein Upon some of those Horses they had set fair Turbants Cimitars Bows and Quivers full of Arrows As soon as the Sun was up there might be seen in the base-Court a very great number of men who let themselves Blood in the arms in so great quantity that a man would have thought there had been many Oxen kill'd there The young Lads slash'd and cut themselves above the Elbow and clapping the Wounds with their hands they made the Blood spurt out all over the Arm and about the Body and in that condition they ran up and down the City This was done in remembrance of the effusion of the innocent Blood of Hossein out of a perswasion that by this action they expiated some part of their sins which perswasion is the stronger in as much as they are prepossess'd with an opinion that those who dye during this Festival are infallibly saved They speak also with the same assurance of their Salvation who dye during the Festival of Aly and in their Lent As concerning the City of Ardebil which the Turks call Ardevil and may be found in Maps under the name of Ardonil it lies in the Province of Adirbeitzan by the antients called Media Major the chief Cities whereof are Ardebil Tabris or Tauris Merrague Natschan Miane Urumi Choi Salmas c. Ardebil is one of the most antient and most celebrious Cities of all the Kingdome not only by reason of the residence which several Kings of Persia made there but also particularly upon this accompt that Schich Sefi Author of their Sect liv'd and dy'd there Some are of opinion that it may be conjectur'd from the History of Quintus Curtius that it is the City which he calls Arbela In this Citie are to be seen the Tombs and Monuments of the Kings of Persia and it is a place of so great Traffick that it may be justly numbred among the most considerable of all the East The Turkish Language is much more common among the Inhabitants than the Persian I found the elevation of the Pole there to be at thirty eight degrees five minutes and the longitude to be 82. degrees 30. minutes It is seated in the midst of a great Plain which is above three Leagues about and compass'd of all sides by a high Mountain like an Amphitheatre the highest part whereof called Sabelhan which lies West-ward from the City is alwayes cover'd with Snow Towards the South-South-West lies that Mountain of the Province of Kiban which is called Bakru It is from these Mountains it proceeds that the Air there is sometimes extremely hot somtimes extremely cold insomuch that even in August they begin to be sensible of the inconveniences of Autumn as also to be troubled with those Epidemical Diseases which reign there every year and commonly carry away a great number of persons Nor was our Quarters free from them For besides the great number of servants who fell sick the Ambassador Brugman and our Physician lay in of a Feaver but especially the latter who was reduc'd to that lowness that there was no hope of Life In the greatest heat of the day and exactly at noon there rose a kind of a Whirle-wind which fill'd the whole City with dust but it lasted not above an hour The rest of the day and night is calm which gave occasion to the Persian Proverb Saba Ardebil Nimrus Kardebil that is In the morning Ardebil at noon full of dust Yet is it not the cold quality of the Climate but its Situation that hinders the earth there to produce Wine Melons Citrons Orenges and Pomegranates which are
that end sent them forty gallant Horses out of his own Stables the Saddles and Harnesses whereof were adorn'd with great plates of Gold The Ambassadors made use only of two and also ordered the Gentlemen and the principal Officers to ride on Horse-back but the rest went a-foot in the following order First march'd three men or Horse-back two whereof were in compleat arms having Flowers and other Workmanship of Gold The third was arm'd only as a Horse-man with Back Breast and Pot yet all very rich After him march'd forty Persons having every one a Case of Pistols the best that could be had in the Low Countries with their Holsters the laps whereof were Embroider'd Next four men carrying two rich Cymitars the sheaths whereof were of yellow Amber garnish'd with Gold in very rich Cases Next two men with Walking staves done about with Amber which the Persians esteem above Gold in very rich Cases Four men carrying so many great Candlesticks of Amber Two others carrying a Cabinet of white and yellow Amber Four others carrying a Cabinet of Ebony garnish'd with Silver having within it in Golden Boxes several Druggs Essences and Magisteries and the coverings thereof beset with fine stones which signify'd what Magistery there was in every Box. And whereas it is the custom of the Country that Ambassadors are oblig'd to make some Presents from themselves and upon their own accompt the Ambassador Crusius sent in an Arquebuss the stock whereof was of Ebony which cock'd it self by letting down the Cock A vessel of Rock Chrystal done about with Gold and beset with Rubies and Turqueses a Cabinet of Amber and a small striking Clock The Ambassador Brugman presented the King with a gilt brass Candlestick that had thirty branches having a striking Watch within the body of it a pair of gilt Pistols in very rich Holsters a very fair Hour-glass a Watch in a Topaze case a Bracelet of Diamonds and Rubies and a Writing whereby were presented the two pieces of Canon which we had left at Ardebil Every one had his place assign'd him to the end that all things might be presented to the King with the observance of some Order but the Persians never observe it in any Ceremony insomuch that they were no sooner got into the street but they were all in disorder and march'd with such â—onfusion that the Ambassadors Retinue could not make the Procession they expected First there should have march'd three Sergeants with Halberds in the Head of fifteen Musketiers After them the Mashal or Steward alone in the Head of the Gentlemen who march'd three a breast Then three Trumpeters with silver Trumpets and after them march'd the Guards four a-breast immediately before the Ambassadors who had on both sides eight Halberteers and behind them the two Interpreters The eight Pages follow'd on horse-back in very rich Liveries and after them the rest of our people marching three a-breast and eight deep The Ambassadors being come in this order attended by a great number of Kisibachs and Persian Gentlemen on Horse-back whom the King had sent to them through the Maidan to the Gates of the Palace-Royal they were there received by Iesaul Senhobet who is as it were the Introductor or Master of the Ceremonies He commanded those who carried the Presents to make way for the Ambassadors whom he conducted into a Hall where the Divanbeki or Judges are wont to meet for the Administration of Justice and intreated them to rest themselves till he had acquainted the King with their arrival About half an hour after several great Lords came to give the Ambassadors notice that the King expected them We were brought through a spacious Court which was of greater length than breadth and in which there was on both sides about six paces distance from one Wall another lower Wall built close to a row of Tzinnar-Trees and all along that lower Wall stood the Musketiers and the other Guards in a file on both sides The Guards were distinguish'd from the Musketiers by the Coiffure they wore about their heads which was pointed and set out with plumes of Feathers of several Colours They call this kind of Courts or Walks Cheywan and they afford a very delightful prospect At the end of this Court there was a great Hall having light coming in of all sides which was the place design'd for our audience It is called Diwan Chane as being the place where the King administers Justice in Person there being a great difference between the Custom of Persia and that of Muscovy where the Great Duke hath a particular Hall wherein he gives audience to Ambassadors whereas the King of Persia does it in those places where he accidentally is either about other business or for his Divertisement Near the said Hall and under those Trees between the two Walls there were to be seen fifty excellent Horses with their covering-Cloaths of Brocado or Embroider'd with Gold and Silver and among those some Arabian Horses ready to be back'd with their Saddles and Harness cover'd all over with plates of Gold and beset with abundance of precious stones All the Horses stood in the open Air fasten'd by one of the hinder feet to a stake struck in the ground and they were most of them of an Isabella Colour about the Belly and Legs There stood hard by Pails of Vermilion Gilt for the watering of them Not far thence there were two great Cisterns four foot square for the cooling of Wine This Hall was rais'd three steps from the ground and was eight fathom broad and twelve in length There was at the entrance into it a Partition like an Alcove with Curtains drawn before it of red Cotton which were taken up and let down with silk strings When they were drawn up they rested upon the Chapters of certain wooden Pillars made Cylinder-wise Embellish'd with Branch-work Painted and Gilt as were also the Walls On the left hand as you came in there were some pieces of Painting done in Europe and representing certain Histories The floor was cover'd all over with Tapistry whereof the ground-work was of Gold and Silver and in the midst of the Hall there was a Fountain and in the Basin of it abundance of Flowers Citrons Orenges Apples and other Fruits which swom upon the water About the sides of the Basin there were a great number of Gold and Silver Flaggons and Bottles which either had Garlands or Flowers about them or posies in their Mouths The King sate upon the ground having a satin Cushion under him behind the Fountain with his back to the VVall. He was about seven and twenty years of Age handsome Bodied having a gracefull Aspect and of a clear and smooth Complexion somewhat Hawk-Nos'd as most of the Persians are and he had a little black Hair upon the upper lip There was nothing extraordinary in his Habit save that his Cloaths were of Brocadoe and that at his Coiffure there was a Plume of
and Cotton sufficient to cloath the Inhabitants This Island was heretofore divided into ten Kingdoms but Men making this Voyage only for Traffick they are contended to visit those only next the Sea and omit to travel further into the Country where doubtless Riches are to be found unknown to the maritime Inhabitants The Portuguez give us account only of two Mediterranean Kingdoms which they call Andragidan and Arunau as also those of Achim Pedir Pacem Camparam Zâ—nde and Mancabo all on the Sea-side and on this side the Line The Hollanders for advance of their Commerce in the Isle of Iava have discovered the Kingdom of Polymbam beyond the Line and have made there a most firm establishment as may be seen in their Relations The Portuguez have there nothing at all but have freedom of Trade except hindred by the Hollanders The King of Achim hath united to his Crown the Kingdoms of Pedir and Pacem with almost all the Northern Coast of the Isle but he that reigned there in 1596. when the Hollanders first sailed into those parts was a Fisher-man that usurp'd the Crown and in the Siege of Polymbam was slain leaving only one Son of five moneths of age under the government of his Father in Law Which young Prince dying his Grandfather succeeded to the Crown and that was he the Hollanders treated with in the year 1668. The City of Achim stands in a wide Plain upon the side of a very broad River but so shallow that the least Boats get in with difficulty It hath neither Gates nor Walls the Houses all built on piles and covered with Coco-leaves The Castle or Palace Royal stands in the middle of the Town which on two sides hath most excellent pleasant Forrests well stored with Apes Herns and all manner of Birds The Natives are flat-fac'd and of an Olive colour they cover their body with a Cotton or Silk Shirt and their head with a light Turbant of the same stuffe Children go stark naked only Girls have their secret parts hidden with a Silver-plate The Inhabitants of Guzuratta Malabar Negupatam Bengalan and Pegu and all Strangers that live among them cloath themselves after the same manner The Castle is fortified with a good Wall and Pallisado and well flanked so as the Artillery commands all the Avenues and streets of the Town The Houses in the Castle are built of the same matter and same form of those of the Town by reason the River which often overflows drowns them sometimes to the first story The piles that support them are gayly wrought and the Houses covered with Canes They enter into the Castle by seven Gates one within another which are neither curious nor strong Without the Kings special Licence none but the Life-guard and Women enter the Pallisado all others must sue for Audience or expect till the King sends for them Such as present themselves to him do him reverence with their hands joyn'd and lifted above their head crying Daula tuaâ—con that is Long live the King He never recreates himself but with Women or appears in publick but either to see Cock-fighting to bathe in the River or hunt the Elephant He is serv'd only by Women or Eunuchs He uses his Subjects as slaves and governs by four Sabanders who are next in authority to him His Laws are fevere and punishments extreamly cruel so as one shall there meet a multitude of people without either hands or feet and have been so mutilated for miscarriages not worth the name of Crimes The King of Achim as almost all that inhabit the Coast of Sumatra is a Mahumetan for which reason I shall not need to say any more of their Religion only that they begin their Lent with the new Moon in the twelfth moneth and end it at the new of the next moneth observing abstinence all day during that time till night Whence it comes that their impatience to see the end of their Lent makes them still gaze in the West fixing their eyes up to the Heavens to find the new Moon which is no sooner seen but they fall to feasting and jollity for the remainder of that night In Sumatra they get no Corn but Rice sufficient of which the Inhabitants make good varieties particularly Cakes with Oyl they have plenty likewise of Beef and Buffles Goat and Mutton though none but the King hath priviledge to breed Sheep Oranges Lemmons Bonana Tamarindes Batalas Reddish Sprinage and Lettice in great abundance they drink Water or Arac made of Rice or Cocoes There is in Sumatra a Tree in the Malayan Language called Singadi in Arabia Gurae the Canarians call it Parizaticco the Persians and Turks Gul the Decanins Pul and the Portuguez Arbor triste de dia. It puts forth an infinite number of branches very small and full of knots from every knot comes two leaves like a Plumb-leaf save that they are as sweet as Sage and are covered with a beautiful white Every leaf hath its bud which opening thrusts forth small heads whereof each hath four round leaves and from each head comes five flowers composing as it were a Nosegay in such manner as the fifth is seen in the middle of the rest The flowers are white as Snow and a little bigger then the Orange-flower blows immediately as the Sun is set so suddenly that they are produced as 't were in the cast of an eye This fecundity lasts all night till the return of the Sun makes both the flowers and leaves drop off and so strips the tree that least greenness is not to be found upon it nor any thing of that admirable odour which perfum'd the Air and comprehended all that Asia affords of sweetness The tree keeps in this condition till the Sun hath left the Horizon and then it begins to open its womb again and deck it self with fresh flowers as if in the shades of night it would recover it self out of the affliction which it is put into by that Planet whose return enlivens the rest of the Universe There is not in the Island a Tree more common then the Cocoes and in regard 't is general through the Indies I will give here a brief description of it and first tell you there are four sorts thereof That which bears the fruit called Cocoes which are the Nuts of the Country is the most considerable not only of any Tree in this Country but indeed of any other part of the world This Tree not above a foot diameter grows in body exceeding high having not a branch but at the top where it spreads as the Date-tree The fruit comes not out of the branches but beneath out of the body in bunches or clusters of ten or twelve Nuts The flower is like that of a Chesnut and it grows only near the Sea or upon the River side in sandy ground and nevertheless grows so lofty that except the Indians who by practice climb it with as much agility and
custom they have to make Entertainments for the Women distinct from those of the Men. They all came and wondered not much that the Mistress of the house was not to be seen in regard her Husband told them that she was busie in the Kitchin but dinner being well-nigh past and the Guests perceiving the Woman appear'd not they intreated him to send for her which he promised to do Whereupon rising from the Table and going into the Room where she was ty'd to the Ladder he unbound her put a Shrowd about her and put into her hands a Box of Lacque wherein were the Privy-members of her Gallant cover'd with Flowers charging her not to open the Box and saying to her Go and present this Box to our common Relations and see whether I may upon their meditation grant you your life She came in that equipage into the Hall where they sate at dinner and falling on her knees presented the Box with the precious Reliques within it to the Kindred but as soon as they had opened it she swounded Her Husband perceiving it went to her and to prevent her returning again now that she was going cut off her Head which raised such an horror in the Friends that they immediately left the Room and went to their several homes To prevent these disorders they have in their common Inns upon the Road as also in certain places in Cities the convenience of furnishing Travellers with a kind of Women who are for the most part Slaves but very well clad in Silk and make no difficulty to proffer themselves to keep men company all night These have the Custom of Masters of Ships and common Sea-men that are Forreigners but if they will bid at a little higher Game and be more sure of their enjoyments they may buy a concubine with whom they contract for the time they are to stay in the Country allowing them five or six pence a day towards their diet a Garment or two certain pair of Shooes of Cordevant and about eight or ten Crowns for the Father or Master who lets her out We are so far from charging this Nation with being over-superstitious that on the other side we affirm that there is no mark of Devotion to be observed among them Those who are conceived to have very much go once a moneth to their Pagodes and pronounce several times the word Nammanda which is the name of one of their Gods but they are never seen praying to God neither morning nor evening nor at any time of the day There is a certain Sect among them which hath Priests who preach thrice a year to which Sermons all those of the same perswasion resort There are also some who make use of another kind of Ecclesiasticks especially in their long diseases wherein they have prayers made which last twenty four hours with such a noise that they stunne such as come near them who yet cannot understand one word they say not only in regard they pronounce ill and confusedly but hence that whatever they compose as well in matter of Religion as Medicine and the other Sciences is couched in such high and obscure terms that many times they understand them not themselves Notwithstanding this irreligion there are in Iapan an incredible number of Pagodes or Mesquites some of which have fifteen or twenty Priests belonging to them They are distinguished from the Laicks in that their Heads are shaved as also by their cloathing in as much as they go in a kind of Cassock made like the Frocks worn by some Country people but upon Holidayes they go in a sort of long Garments which they sold up under the left Arm like a Cloak Their principal employment is to pray before their Gods and to bury the dead or at least the ashes of such bodies as have been burnt They are divided into several Sects and consequently have so many different wayes of doing their Devotions especially on the Anniversary dayes of the deceased which they call Bom on which the Priests are employed in praying and singing Letanies in making Processions about a Chappel set about with Wax-lights much after the same manner as is done in some parts of Europe Their Sepulchres are near their Pagodes covered with great Stones two or three foot high on which such as go to do their Devotions there cast Flowers or branches of Trees and put into a little Pit made in the ground some fair Water and a little Rice which is taken away thence by the poor Persons of Quality erect a little Pillar near their Sepulchres and grave thereon their names with a certain Elogy which serves for an Epitaph Their Ecclesiasticks are divided into twelve principal Sects of which eleven eat not of any thing that hath had life and make a Vow of Chastity with so strict an Obligation for the observance thereof that if they break it though in never so small a point they are put to the most cruel death that ever was heard of For the Priest who hath broken his Vow is put into the ground up to the Waste near the High-way and all that pass by who are not nobly descended are obliged to give a little stroke upon his Neck with a wooden Saw which being very blunt makes the Wretch languish three or four dayes together This course is taken with them upon this account that being permitted to use Sodomy they may forbear Women The Priests of the twelfth Sect live after another rate For it is lawful for them to feed on any thing that Earth or Water affords as also to marry and yet this Sect which they call Icko whence the Priests whereof it consists are named Ickois is accounted the holiest and most perfect of them all He who is Head of this Sect is also Supream Head of all the Clergy of the Country and is in so great veneration among his followers that they do not only carry him in a Palanquin but indeed do him such honours as are almost Divine All the Priests depend on the Dayro who still hath the same power over the Ecclesiasticks as he had heretofore joyntly with the secular power Only such Pagodes as belong to these last have a settled Revenue and enjoy many Priviledges and Immunities granted them by the Emperours All the other Pagodes are maintain'd by what is given them either by way of Alms or the Gratifications that they get from those who imploy them about Prayers for the dead wherein the main part of the exercise of their Religion consists Some among them believe that the Soul is immortal that the Body is reduced to its first Principle and becomes Dust and Ashes but that the Spirit is either raised to eternal joy or condemn'd to an endless grief and that at its return into this World it shall find good or evil according to what it had done during this life Others make no distinction between the Souls of Men and those of Beasts and as
their Voyages They express little Devotion and respect for their Idol's For being extreamly addicted to consult Incantations and Charms in all their affairs of great Importance in so much that they will not undertake a journey nor marry nor indeed do any business of consequence till they have consulted them If they prove not according to their expectations they raile at their Gods call them Dogs and reproach them with all baseness But when their indignation is a little over they change their reproaches into flattery and kindness ask them pardon promise them what they least intend to perform and then return to their Incantations again If they are otherwise answered then before they flatter and praise their Gods but if they are still threatned with misfortune they give them both ill words and blows throw them down tread upon them beat them drag them into the dirt burn them with a candle or whip them till the Spell favours them and then they offer to them Ducks Geese Poultry boild Rice c. Their great Sacrifices consist of offering to their Gods the head of a boil'd Hog adorn'd with flowers and 〈◊〉 and a Jar of Wine Their way of Incantation is performed by two pieces of Wood about the bigness of a Wall-nut whereof one side is flat the other round like a half bowl These they cast upon the ground and if it happen that both or one fall so as that the round side be downwards they take it for a very ill omen but they cast them so often that they must at last fall as they would have them Another way they have and that is by casting into a Pot several pieces of Wood each whereof hath a certain Character upon it and they have them drawn out by a Child and as they are taken out they turn over a Book till they come to a Page that begins with the Character drawn out of the Pot and they accommodate the words they find in the Page to the thing whereof they would know the event by the said drawing out of the Characters They also invoke the Devil and the gestures of those who are employed in these Invocations are such as a man would say they were really possessed nay there have been some Christians so simple as to believe it The Chineses believe that the Heavens the Earth and Water have been from all eternity but that heretofore they were so confounded together that it must be the work of a Divinity to reduce them into order They call the God who did this Tayn and affirm that in the beginning he of nothing created a man whom he called Panzon and a woman whom he namen Panzona That Panzon in like manner of nothing created another man named Tanhom and his thirteen brethren and that this Tanhom was so learned that he gave names to all things that were Created That Tanhom and his brethren had diverse Children but particularly that the second whom they call Teyencom had twelve sons and that his eldest whose name was Tubucom had nine That their Race hath lived upon the Earth above ninety thousand years but that at last Tayn kill'd all the Males for their Rebellion That at that time the heaven fell but that Tayn raised it again and created another man named Lotzitzen who had two horns in his forehead ou◠of which came forth a pleasant scent from whence were begotten males and females and that all now alive are descended from Lotzitzan who as they affirm lived nine hundred years That the Heaven begot also another man named Atzion by a very extraordinary production inasmuch as his Mother whom they call Lutim was got with child by looking on the head of the Lyon in the Zodiack and that she was brought to bed in the City of Tengcheu in the Province of Xantung That many Ages afterwards one named Vsao taught Architecture and began to build houses and make cloathes That Huntzui his successor found out fire and taught people how to boil and roast meat as also how to buy and sell and make contracts That a woman named Hautzibon had conceived by setting her foot in the step of a man and brought forth Ocheutey who first made marriages and invented several musical instruments That Ezonlom his Son was the first Teacher of Medicine and Judiciary Astrology and the first who made use of the Plough and the Spade They affirm also that he was wont to feed on a Sallad of seven of the most venemous Herbs could be found and that instead of receiving any harm thereby it kept him alive four hundred years and that he left a son from whom are descended all the ancient Kings of China They believe the Immortality of the Soul and affirm that the Heaven communicates its Eternity thereto and that after this Life it shall enjoy eternal bliss or be eternally tormented according to the good or evil done in this World They believe also a kind of Purgatory and that there is a certain place where Souls are to be cleansed from the impurities they derived from the bodies which they had informed and that as to this particular the Suffrages of their Friends and Relations may procure them some refreshment Whence it comes that in August they have a Day appointed for Prayers and supplications to be made for the Deceased but instead of performing these Ceremonies in their Pagodes they do them in the private Houses of such as are inclined to this kind of Devotion To that end three of their Religious men go to the House appointed and exhort the Family to make the Prayers requisite for the purging of those sins which obstruct the Beatitude of their deceased Relations Of these three Religious men one carries a little Drum another certain Images and the third a small Bell. Having set the Images upon the Altar they Incense them while in the mean time some others are busied in setting on five or six Tables certain Dishes of Meat for the Saints and Souls of the Deceased and that done they fall a-dancing and singing certain Hymns which the younger of the Religious men writes down on Paper and afterwards lays on the Altar Assoon as he is returned to his place they fall a-singing again till such time as he who says the Service strikes his Image against the Table whereto the others answer with their heads and that done they burn the Images before the Altar Having spent the night in this kind of Devotion which is not begun till after Sun set the Religious men and those of the House make good chear with what they find on the Tables and had been set there for the spirits of the other World and thus they procure the purgation of the Souls departed Most of them do also believe the Transmigration of Souls but few speak of it with any rational ground They have four Orders of Religious men whereof some are clad in black some in white and some in a dark