Part I. Travels into //'^Levant. i i i 
who may make in all three thoufand Souls, very poor, and ill clad. They are 
much addided to Swimming, and fifliing up Sponges from the bottom of the 
Sea, or the Goods of Ships that have been cafl: away j and Batchelours are not 
married in thislfland, unlefsthey can dive at leaft eight fathom deep into thé 
water, and of this they muft give proof : So that when a Papas, or any other 
cVthe richefl: men of the Ifland, would marry his Daughter, he pitches upon To vvhomtbg 
a day whereon he promifcs his Daughter to the belt Swimmer ; and the day ^^"^'î^ ^''^ 
being come, the young Men ftrip themfelves Hark naked before all the People, ^v^^^j' 
the Maid herfelf being prefent, and throw themfelves into the water, where he 
that ftays longeil under, obtains the Maid in Marriage. Thefe are a fort of 
People that feëm to be Fifli, rather than Men. They pay the Grand Sigmor 
their Tribute in Sponges, and from them all Tnrkie is furnifhed. This Ifle 
hath no Haven for great Veifels, but only for fmall Barks, wherein they go to 
Chio, and fell Honey, Wax , White-wine as clear as water, which comes 
away by Urine as foon at it is drank , and fuch like Commodities. Their 
Vineyards are here and there among the Rocks. But the World is turned toplie- 
turvie in this Ifland \ for the Women are the Miftreffes there : So foon as the 
Husband is arrived from anyplace, the Wife goes to the Sea-fide, and takes 
the Oars and other implements and carries them home, after which the 
Husband difpofes of nothing without her leave. In thetime oftheEmperours 
of Conjiantinofle^ Perfons of Quality that deferved Banilhment, were lent to 
this Ifland j the Inhabitants whereof are well-ftiaped and ftrong. 
But to return to Sea again, we did what lay in our power to pafs that Ifland, 
and take Harbour at Stamhto ^ but a South-eall wind blowing foon afcer, 
hindred us from that ; and though we beat and tack'd to and agen till the even- 
ing, we gained no ground, fo that we refolved to turn back again, and did fo an 
hour btfore night, finding that the South-eaft wind began to blow frefher and 
freftier. In the Night-time we had much Lightning : However while I v^^as 
attentively conlidering Samos^ I faw a light on ftiore, which feem'd to me to be A Lighe 
a Candle i and having ask'd an honelt ^fw^^w Catholick of C/?/o fwith whom I which no bo* 
had made friendlhip) what it was? Hemade meanfwer. That that Light was '^^ 
feen every night in the fame place ^ that having patl that way ten or twelve 
times in the night-time, he had always feen it j that neverthelefs there was 
neither Houfe nor Tree there j that many had gone oftentimes in fearch of it, 
but could never find it, feeing it very well at a diflance, but lofing fight of it 
aflbon as they came near^ and that about the place where the Light is feen, 
there is an arcient Chriftian Church all ruinous, which makes people think 
that there is fome Myftery in it. I thought the man had jeer'd me, when he 
told me all thefe things, and therefore I went to the Captain's Cabin, where 
having asked him the fame queftion (though he was a Turk) he told me the 
fame things the honeft Chiot did, who was Patron of the Saigne, and a Greek, 
which made me more attentively confider that Light ; I ey!d it for the fpace of ^ 
an hour, and it feemed to me to be about two hundred paces from the Sea-fide, 
on that part of the Ifland which looks Weftward, oppofite to the Ifle of 
Nacaria or Ni caria : I [aw it rife and fall like a Candle, and I remember that 
the Monks of Niamm, of the Ifle ofChio^ told me jufl fuch another thing, 
concerning the Foundation of their Church. Having well confidered that Light, 
I went to flecp about eleven of the clock, and the wind blew freflier about mid- 
night, with fo thick a darknefs, that one could not fee fix fteps on head j and 
in the mean time we were in a dangerous place, betwixt SamoszTid Nicaria^ fo 
that we had caufe to fear the Saiqne might run foul of one of thefe two places. 
There fell afterward a great deal of rain, but fuch ftrong gufts of wind with 
it, as gave the Sea-men enough to do ^ and befides that, we had great claps of 
Thunder, which doubling horribly betwixt thefe Iflands, made with the beating 
of the waves', a fearful noife : In the mean time the Ship made much water, 
which created no fmall trouble to the Sea-men, who had already their hands 
fufl on''t. Another danger threatned us befides, for they had left thtCaique in 
the Sea, towed at the S<^/<^«a ftern, which being forced by the violence of the " 
wind, knocked its head fo hard againll the Saique^ that it might have ftarted a 
plank, and funk her down to rights, many Veflels being loft fo, even in the 
Port i neverthelefs their was no hoifting of it up, though it had ftrucken fo 
often 
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