Leaving Diu, I went on to Damann, the second city belonging to the Portuguese in the territory of Guzerat, and distant from Diu 120 miles. This place has no trade of any importance, except in rice and wheat, and has many dependent villages, where in time of peace the Portuguese enjoy the pleasure of a country retirement, but in time of war they are all spoiled and plundered by the enemy, so that then they derive very small benefit from them. The next place is Bassen, a small dirty place in comparison with Damann, which supplies Goa with rice and wheat, besides timber for the construction of ships and gallies. At a small distance from Bassen is a small island named Tana, well peopled with Portuguese, Moors, and Gentiles. This place affords nothing but rice, but contains many manufacturers of armesies? and weavers of girdles made of wool and cotton, black and red like moocharie?
Beyond this is Chaul on the continent, where there are two cities, one belonging to the Portuguese, and the other to the Moors; that which belongs to the Portuguese is lower than the other, commands the mouth of the harbour, and is very strongly fortified. About a mile and a half from this city is that of the Moors, belonging to their king Zamaluco, or Nizam-al-mulk. In time of war no large ships can go to the city of the Moors, as they must necessarily pass under the guns of the Portuguese castles, which would sink them. Both cities of Chaul are sea-ports, and have great trade in all kinds of spices, drugs, raw silk, manufactures of silk, sandal-wood, Marsine, Versine[125], porcelain of China, velvets and scarlets, both from Portugal and Mecca[126], with many other valuable commodities. Every year there arrive ten or fifteen large ships, laden with great nuts called Giagra[127], which are cured or dried, and with sugar made from these nuts. The tree on which these nuts grow is called the Palmer tree, and is to be found in great abundance over all India, especially between this place and Goa. This tree very much resembles that which produces dates, and no tree in the world is more profitable or more useful to man; no part of it but serves for some useful purpose, neither is any part of it so worthless as to be burnt. Of its timber they build ships, and with the leaves they make sails. Its fruit, or nuts, produce wine, and from the wine they make sugar and placetto[128]. This wine is gathered in the spring of the year from the middle of the tree, where there is then a continual stream of clear liquor like water, which they gather in vessels placed on purpose under each tree, and take them away full every morning and evening. This liquor being distilled by means of fire, is converted into a very strong liquor, which is then put into buts with a quantity of white or black Zibibs, and in a short time it becomes a perfect wine. Of the nuts they make great quantities of oil. The tree is made into boards and timbers for building houses. Of the bark cables and other ropes are made for ships which are said to be better than those made of hemp. The branches are made into bed-steads after the Indian fashion, and into Sanasches? for merchandise. The leaves being cut into thin slips are woven into sails for all kinds of ships, or into thin mats. The outer rhind of the nut stamped serves as oakum for caulking ships, and the hard inner shell serves for spoons and other utensils for holding food or drink. Thus no portion whatever of this Palmer tree is so worthless as to be thrown away or cast into the fire. When the nuts are green, they are full of a sweet water, excellent to drink, and the liquor contained in one nut is sufficient to satisfy a thirsty person. As the nut ripens, this liquor turns all into kernel.
[Footnote 125: Formerly noticed as a species of velvet; but the words marsine and versine were inexplicable in the days of Hakluyt, and must so remain.--E.]
[Footnote 126: The velvets and scarlet cloths from Mecca were probably Italian manufactures, brought through Egypt and the Red Sea.--E.]
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[Footnote 127: These great nuts must necessarily be the cocoa nuts, and the palmer tree, on which they grow, the cocoa palm.--E.]
[Footnote 128: Possibly molasses are here meant.--E.]
From Chaul, an infinite quantity of goods are exported for other parts of India, Macao, Portugal, the coast of Melinda, Ormuz, and other parts; such as cloth of bumbast or cotton, white, painted, and printed, indigo, opium, silk of all kinds, borax in paste, asafoetida, iron, corn, and other things. Nizam-al-Mulk, the Moorish king, has great power, being able to take the field with 200,000 men, and a great store of artillery, some of which are made in pieces[129], and are so large that they are difficultly removed, yet are they very commodiously used, and discharge enormous stone bullets, some of which have been sent to the king of Portugal as rarities. The city of Abnezer[130], in which Nizam-al-Mulk resides, is seven or eight days journey inland from Chaul. Seventy miles[131] from Chaul toward the Indies, or south, is Dabul, a haven belonging to Nizam-al-Mulk, from whence to Goa is 150 miles[132].
[Footnote 129: Probably meaning that they were formed of bars hooped or welded together, in the way in which the famous Mons meg, long in Edinburgh Castle, and now in the tower of London, was certainly made.--E.]
[Footnote 130: Perhaps that now called Assodnagur in the Mahratta country, about 125 miles nearly east from Chaul.--E.]