Water-Fowls resembling Ducks and Swans.Here is a sort of Bird very much resembling a Duck, but not very plentiful. And another sort of Fowl as big as a Duck, cole black, which liveth altogether upon Fish. It is admirable to see, how long they will remain under water, and at what a distance they will rise again. Besides these, there are many other kinds of Birds, much larger than Swans, which keep about the Ponds and Marshes to catch Fish, but the people eat them not: Nature hath endowed them with an admirable understanding, that they are not to be catched by the Allegators, tho there be many of them in those waters.
Peacocks.The Peacocks in rainy weather are sometimes hunted and caught by Dogs; for their Feathers being wet, they are uncapable of flying far.
The King keeps Fowl.The King hath Geese, Ducks, Turkeys, Pigeons, which he keeps tame, but none else may. Turkeys he delights not in, because they change the colour of their heads: Neither doth he kill any of these to eat, nor any other creature of what sort soever, and he hath many, that he keeps tame.
Their Fish.They have no want of Fish, and those good ones too. All little Rivers and Streams running thro the Valleys are full of small Fish, but the Boyes and others wanting somewhat to eat with their Rice, do continually catch them before they come to maturity: nay all their Ponds are full of them, which in dry weather drying up, the people catch multitudes of them in this manner. How they catch them in Ponds.They have a kind of a Basket made of small Sticks, so close that Fish cannot get thro; it is broad at bottom, and narrow at top, like a funnel, the hole big enough for a man to thrust his Arm in, wide at the mouth about two or three foot; these baskets they jobb down, and the ends stick in the mud, which often happen upon a Fish; when they do, they feel it by the Fish beating it self against the sides. Then they put in their hands and take them out. And rieve a Rattan thro their gills, and so let them drag after them. One end of this Rattan is stuck in the fisher’s girdle, and the other knotted, that the fish should not slip off: which when it is full, he discharges himself of them by carrying them ashore. Nay every ditch and little plash of water but anckle deep hath fish in it.
The great River, Mavela-gonga, abounds exceedingly with them. Some of them as big as Salmons. But the people have little understanding in the way of taking them. How they catch Fish in the River.In very dry weather, they stretch a With over the River, which they hang all full of boughs of Trees to scare the Fish. This With thus hung they drag down with the stream, and to Leeward they place Fish-pots between the Rocks, and so drive Page 29the Fish into them. Nets or other wayes they have few or none.
Their Manner of Fishing.
Fish kept and fed for the Kings Pleasure.At a Passage-place near to the City of Candy, the Fish formerly have been nourished and fed by the Kings order, to keep them there for his Majesties pleasure; whither, having used to be thus provided for, notwithstanding Floods and strong Streams, they will still resort: and are so tame, that I have seen them eat out of mens hands; but death it is to them that presume to catch them. The people passing over here, will commonly feed them with some of their Rice, accounting it a piece of charity so to do, and pleasure to see them eat it. In many other places also there are Fish thus fed and kept onely for the Kings Recreation: for he will never let any be catched for his use.
Serpents. The Pimberah of a prodigious bigness.Of Serpents, there are these sorts. The Pimberah, the body whereof is as big as a mans middle, and of a length proportionable. It is not swift, but by subtilty will catch his prey; which are Deer or other Cattel; He lyes in the path where the Deer use to pass, and as they go, he claps hold of them by a kind of peg that growes on his tayl, with which he strikes them. He will swallow a Roe Buck whole, horns and all; so that it happens sometimes the horns run thro his belly, and kill him. A Stag was caught by one of these Pimberahs, which siesed him by the buttock, and held him so fast, that he could not get away, but ran a few steps this way and that way. An Indian seeing the Stag run thus, supposed him in a snare, and having a Gun shot him; at which he gave so strong a jerk, that it pulled the Serpents head off while his tayl was encompassing a Tree to hold the Stag the better.
The Polonga.There is another venomous Snake called Polongo, the most venomous of all, that kills Cattel. Two sorts of them I have seen, the one green, the other of a reddish gray, full of white rings along the sides, and about five or fix foot long.