Book II. Travels in India. i 5 i 



CHAP. XX'. 



Of Coral, and Jellow Amber, and the places where it is found. 



COral, but little valu'd in Europe, is highly efteem'd in all the three other parts 

 of the World; and there are three places where they fifh for it upon the Coaft 

 of Sardigna. That of Arguerrel'xs the faireft of all. The fécond place is calPd 

 Boz.a ; and the third is neer the Ifland of St. Peter. There are two other places 

 upon the Couft of France, the one neer the Baftion of France -, the other at Ta~ 

 barque. There is alfo another Fifhery upon the Coaft of Sicily, neer Trepano, but 

 the Coral is fmall, and iil-colour'd. There is another upon the Coaft of Catalogua, 

 neer Cape de Jghfiers ; where the Coral is large, and of an excellent colour, but; 

 the branches are {horr. There is a ninth Fifhery in the Ifland of Majorque, much 

 like that neer the Illand of Corfica. And thefe are all the places in the Mediter- 

 ranean-Sea, where they fiih for Coral ; for there is none at all in the Ocean. 



Becaufe that Coral grows under the hollow Rocks where the Sea is deep, thé 

 Fifhers fix two (pars of wood a-crofs, fattening a great piece of Lead in the mid- 

 dle to make it fink : after that they wind carelefly about the fpar good ftore of 

 tufted Hemp, and faften the wood to two Cords, one end whereof hangs at the 

 Poop, the other at the Prow of the Veffel. Then letting go the wood with the 

 ftream or current by the fides of the Rock, the Hemp twifts it felf among the 

 Coral, fb that fometimes theyftand in need of five or fix Boats to pull up the 

 wood again: and if one of the Cibles fhould chance to break with the ftrefs, all 

 the Rowers are in danger to be loft. While they tear up the Coral thus by force, 

 there tumbles as much into the Sea as they fetch up : and the bottom of the Sea 

 being generally very ouzy, the Coral will be eaten as our fruits are eaten by the 

 worms ; id that the fooner they get it out of the mud, the lefs it will be wa- 

 fted. 



This puts me in mind of one thing that i faw at Marfcilks in a Shop where 

 they dealt in Coral. It was a great piece of Coral, as big about as a man's fift, 

 which becaufe it was a little worm-eaten, was cut in two pieces. When it was 

 fo cut, there was a worm that ftirr'd, and had life, and liv'd for fome months after, 

 being again put into the hole. For among fome branches of Coral there engen- 

 ders a kind of fpongy-matter, like our honey-combs, where thefe worms lye like 

 bees. 



Some think that Coral is foft in the Sea, though in truth it be hard. But this 

 indeed is as true., that in certain months of the year you may fqueze out of the 

 end of a branch a kind of milky-fubftance; and this perhaps may be a kind of 

 feed, which falling upon any thing that it firft meets with in the Sea (as if it light 

 upon a dead Skull, the blade of a Sword, or a PomgranateJ produces another 

 branch of Coral. And I have feen a Pomgranate, and had it in my hand, that had 

 fallen into the Sea, about which the Coral had twin'd at leaft half a foot high. 



They fifh for Coral from the beginning of April to the end of fufy ; to which 

 purpofe there are employ 'd above 200 Veffels, fome years more, and fome years 

 lefs. They are built all along the River of Genoa, being very fwift. Their fails 

 are very large for more fwiftnefs, fo that there are no Gallies can reach them. 

 There are feven men and a boy to every Barque. They never fifh above forty 

 miles from the Land, where they think there are Rocks, for fear of the Pyrats, 

 from which they make all the Sail they can when they fee them, and eafily fcape 

 them through the nimblenefs of their Veffels. 



I have one obfèrvation to make concerning Coral, in refpecl: of the Eaftern- 

 people. The faponners make little account of Jewels or Pearls 5 valuing nothing 

 fo much as a good grain of Coral, wherewith they pull the ftring that fhuts their 

 Purfes, fuch as we had formerly in England. So that they ftrive who fhall have 

 the fairelt grain of Coral hanging at the end of the Silk-ftring that draws_ their 

 Purfes. For this reafon a piece of Coral as big as an egg, fair and clean without 

 any flaw, will produce what any man will ask in reafon for it. The Portuguefes 



