[Footnote 232: Nunsary is a small river, with a town of the same name, 16 or 18 miles south of the Taptee.--E.]
Near the castle of Surat is the Alphandica, where are stairs down to the river for landing and shipping goods, and within the alphandica are store-rooms for keeping goods till they are cleared; the customs being two and a half per centum for goods, three for provisions, and two for money. Without the gate of the alphandica is the great Gondoree or Bazar, being the market-place for all kinds of merchandize. Right before this gate is a tree with an arbour, where the fokeers, [faquiers,] or Indian holy men, sit in state. Between this and the castle, at the entrance of the green, or atmeidan, is the market for horses and cattle. A little lower, and on the opposite side of the river, is a pleasant small town named Ranele, inhabited by a people called Naites, who speak a different language, and are mostly seamen. The streets of this town are narrow, with good houses, each of which has a high flight of steps to its door. The people are very friendly to the English, and have many pleasant gardens, which attract many to pass much of their time there. On the trees round this village there are an infinite number of those great bats we saw at St Augustine in Madagascar, which hang by their claws from the boughs, and make a shrill noise. This bird is said by the people to engender by the ear, and to give suck to their young.
The winter begins here about the 1st of June, and continues till the 20th September, but not with continual rains as at Goa; having only heavy rain for six or seven days every full and change of the moon, with much wind, thunder and lightning. At the breaking up of the winter, there is always a cruel storm, called tuffoon, fearful even to men on land. This is not equally severe every year, but once in two or three years at the most. The monsoons, or periodical winds, serve here for going to the south in April and September, and for Mocha in February and March. From the south, ships come here in December, January, and February, and from Mocha about the 5th September, after the rains. From Ormus they sail for the coast of India in November: But none dare pass without a licence of the Portuguese, for which they exact whatever they think proper, erecting, by their own authority, a custom-house on the seas, confiscating both ship and goods to the taker, if they do not produce a regular pass.
SECTION 4. Journey to Agra, and Observations by the Way; with some Notices of the Deccan Wars.
The 18th January, 1610,[233] I departed from Comuariaw, or Cumraie, a small village 3 coss from Surat, to Mutta, a great aldea, 7 coss. The 21st to Carode, 8 coss, a large country town, having the Surat river on the north. This place has a castle, with a garrison of 200 Patan horse, who are good soldiers. The 22d to Curka, 12 c. a great village with a river on its south side. In the way between Carode and Curka, or Kirkwah, is Beca, or Behara, a castle with a great tank and a pleasant grove. 23d to Necampore, a large town under the Pectopshaw, 10 c. In this way begins a great ridge of mountains on the right hand,[234] reaching towards Ahmedabad, among which Badur occupies several strong-holds, which all the force of the king of the Moguls has not been able to reduce. These mountains extend to Boorhanpoor, and on them breed many wild elephants. The 24th to Dayta, 8 c. a great town, having to pass in the midway a troublesome stony rivulet. This town has a castle, and is almost encompassed by a river, being situated in a fertile soil. The 25th to Badur, 10 c. a filthy town full of thieves, where is made a kind of wine of a sweet fruit called mewa, but I found it unwholesome except it be burnt.
[Footnote 233: In this journal, conjectural emendations of names from Arrowsmith's excellent map of India, are given in the text as synonima, to avoid perpetual notes; and the distances are always to be understood as cosses, given exactly as in the original, without correction. It must, however, be noticed that the names in the text are often so corrupt, or different from those now in use, that it is often impossible to trace the route.--E.]
[Footnote 234: The Vindhaya mountains are obviously here meant; but they are on the left hand of the route between Surat and Boorhanpoor.--E.]
This is the last town of note in the land of Pectopshaw, who is a small king or rajah of the Gentiles, keeping on the tops of inaccessible mountains, which begin at Curka, and extend to many cosses distance. He holds possession of two fair cities, Salere and Muliere, where the mamudies are coined. Each of these towns has two mighty castles, the roads to which only admit of two men abreast, or an elephant at most; having also on the way eighty small fortresses dispersed among the mountains to guard the passage. On the tops of these mountains there is good pasture and abundance of grain, with numerous fountains or streams, which run thence into the plains. Akbar besieged him for seven years, and was in the end obliged to compound with him, giving him Narampore Dayta and Badur, with several other aldeas, for safely conducting his merchants along this plain; so that he is now in peace with the king, to whom he sends presents yearly, and leaves one of his sons in Boorhanpoor as a pledge of his fealty. He is said to have always in readiness 4000 mares of an excellent breed, and 100 elephants.
Leaving Badur on the 26th, I went 7 coss to Nonderbar, or Nundabar, a city, short of which are many tombs and houses of pleasure, with a castle and a fair tank. The 27th to Lingull, 10 c. a beastly town, with thievish inhabitants, a dirty castle, and a deep sandy road near the town. 28th 10 c. to Sindkerry, or Sindkera, a great dirty town. On the way, the governor of Lingull, with others as honest as himself, would have borrowed some money of me; but finding I would only give him powder and shot, he desisted, and allowed our carts to pass without farther trouble. Beyond Sindkera runs a small river of brackish water, by drinking of which I got the bloody flux, which continued with me all the way to Boorhanpoor. The 29th 10 c. to Taulneere, or Talnere, a thievish road, but a fair town with a castle and river, which is not passable in the rains without a boat.[235] The 30th 15 c. to Chupra, or Choprah, a great town. I rested here two days on account of the rains; in which time came the governor of Nundabar with 400 horse, without whose company I could not have continued my journey without danger, as Khan-Khana had been defeated and obliged to retire to Boorhanpoor, after losing the strong and rich town of Joulnapore, or Jalnapoor, on which the Deccaners became so insolent, that they made inroads as far as the Taptee, plundering many of the passengers.
[Footnote 235: The author seems not to have been aware that this was the Taptee, or river of Surat.--E.]