RALPH FITCH ad. 



1583-91. 



middle; and when he marcheth, many of them goe 

 before him, and the rest come after him. They are 

 of the race of the Chingalayes, which they say are the 

 best kinde of all the Malabars. Their eares are very 

 large ; for the greater they are, the more honourable 

 they are accounted. Some of them are a spanne long. 

 The wood which they burne is Cinamom wood, and it 

 smelleth very sweet. There is great store of rubies, 

 saphires, and spinelles in this Hand : the best kinde of 

 all be here; but the king will not suffer the inhabi- 

 tants to digge for them, lest his enemies should know 

 of them, and make warres against him, and so drive 

 him out of his countrey for them. They have no 

 horses in all the countrey. The elephants be not so 

 great as those of Pegu, which be monstrous huge : but 

 they say all other elephants do feare them, and none 

 dare fight with them, though they be very small. 

 Their women have a cloth bound about them from 

 their middle to their knee : and all the rest is bare. All 

 of them be blacke and but little, both men and Blacke people 

 women. Their houses are very little, made of the 

 branches of the palmer or coco-tree, and covered with 

 the leaves of the same tree. 



The eleventh of March we sailed from Ceylon, and 

 so doubled the cape of Comori. Not far from thence, Cap^ f^ 

 betweene Ceylon and the maine land of Negapatan, '^^°^^' 

 they fish for pearles. And there is fished every yere 

 very much ; which doth serve all India, Cambaia, and 

 Bengala, it is not so orient as the pearle of Baharim in 

 the gulfe of Persia. From cape de Comori we passed 

 by Coulam, which is a fort of . the Portugals : from Coukm. 

 whence commeth great store of pepper, which commeth 

 for Portugall: for oftentimes there ladeth one of the 

 caracks of Portugall. Thus passing the coast we arrived 

 in Cochin the 22 of March, where we found the Cochin. 

 weather warme, but scarsity of victuals : for here 

 groweth neither corne nor rice: and the greatest part 

 commeth from Bengala. They have here very bad water, 



