60 Sthe HISTORY of the Book I. 
are but a Few Houfes about the Fort, the Inhabitants 
keeping their Effe&s on the neighbouring Continent : But 
notwithftanding the Narrownefs of the Place, there are 
Monafteries of Jefuits,- Dominicans of St. John de Dios , 
befides the chief Church and that of the Mifericordia. 
The Merchandize brought to this Place by the Ships of the 
Company, are bought at a let Price by the Royal Faftory, 
which afterwards fend them to Chelimani , the Mouth of 
the River of Senna running three hundred Miles along 
the Coaft, in Galliots and fmall Veffels, becaufe of the 
Flats from Chelimani the Goods are fent up the River, 
againft the Stream, in Almandies or little Boats, which 
■are ten Days going up, and about five coming down. It 
Is very difficult going up for thofe who are not well ac- 
quainted with the- Shallows and Windings of the River. 
Cafres y or Blacks , refort to this Port from Provinces and 
Kingdoms three or four Months Journey diftant, to buy 
or take up Goods upon Trull for fo much Gold, which 
they never fail to bring pundtually the next Year, unlefs 
Death prevents them. This Trade yields above Cent, per 
Cent. So that the Portugueze may be faid to have another 
India in Africa. Senna is a little Town on the Right- 
hand of the River, inhabited by fifty Portugueze Families, 
who make it populous enough, by the great Mumher of 
Blacks they keep. Thefe till the Ground, and dig in the 
Mines, and by that means maintain their Mailers inftead 
of being kept by them. 
About fifteen Days Journey from hence lies So f ala , 
where the Portugueze have likewife an Ellablifhment, fub- 
jedl however to the General of Mofamhique j and here a 
prodigious Trade is driven on, of which the Potugueze 
are, or might be, Mailers. It confills chiefly in Gold, 
of which there are greater Quantities here than in any 
other Country in the World, fince the annual Produce of 
this Market is computed, by the bell Judges, at Forty- 
fix thoufand Ounces. There are vaft Quantities of Spanifh 
and Canary Wines, Oil, Silks, Linnens, Cottons, Coral, 
and other European Goods fold here, which are carried by 
the inhabitants of the little Kingdom of Sofala , through 
all the great Empire of Monotnotapay which the Portu- 
gueze ftile the Empire of Gold, from the prodigious 
Quantities of that precious Metal which is brought to 
them from thence. There are, likewife, fome other very 
rich Commodities brought hither by the Negroes, fuch as 
the moll excellent Ebony in the World ; great Quantities 
of Ivory, abundance of fine Mats, which are much 
efteemed in the Indies , and a great Number of Slaves *, fo 
that Goa , and all the reft of the Portugueze Settlements, 
are furnifhed from hence. One may juftly wonder that, 
confidering the Value of this Settlement, and its conve- 
nient Situation, the Dutch had not made themfelves Ma- 
kers of it long ago, as well as of all the other Places be- 
longing to the Crown of Portugal on this Coaft. 
In the Year 1 605, they attempted Mofamhique with very 
little Succefs, which, however, did notdilcourage them ^ as 
it mull be allowed, that where there is a Profpedt of Gain, 
the Dutch are not eafily difcouraged : And, therefore, in 
1607, they attacked it a fecond Time with greater Force, 
but with the fame Ill-luck as before, except that they 
made themfelves Mailers of a rich Portugueze Fleet, which, 
in fome meafure, paid the Expence of the Expedition. 
This rich Trade, however, is much fallen off by t*he 
Arabs making themfelves Mailers of Monbaza , and other 
Places, which gives them an Opportunity of liipplying 
the Africans with European Goods, which they purchafe 
in different Parts of the Indies. 
As for the Share which the Portugueze Hill retain, the 
Gold obtained thereby is fent to Goa and to Ditty where 
it is coined into fmall Pieces, called St. fhomas'fy which 
are not worth above Half a Crown of our Money •, and it 
Is obferved that this Coin is of a worfe Touch, that is, of 
a bafer Allay than any other in the Indies , which is another 
Sign of a declining Trade ; for the Sarafins, which were for- 
merly coined at Ormuz , when in the Portugueze Hands, 
were elleemed the beft Gold in the Indies but they are 
now become extremely fcarce ; and the St. EhomaAs are faid 
£0 be coined in lefs Quantities every Year. 
3 r. Thefe Poffellions are faid to produce fo little to the 
King of Portugal , that it has been more than once de- 
bated in the Council of that Prince, whether It would not 
be for the Intereft of the Crown, to abandon them ail to- 
gether with drawing their Artillery and Effects, and we 
are likewife told, that it is not any political, but purely a 
religious Motive, that has hindered this Meafure from be- 
ing taken, the Priefts having fuggefted that, in that cafe 
a Multitude of Souls would be loft to the Church. We 
fhall the lefs wonder at this, if we confider, that fuch as are 
beft acquainted with the Eaft- India Trade allures us, that a 
Engle Merchant and a fingle Ship of a reafonable Burthen, 
may carry on as great a Commerce as what, at prefent[ 
fubfifts between Lisbon and Goa. This Matter how- 
ever deferves fome Explanation. There are yet a cr re at 
many Ships employed from Goa , Diu , and Damany to 
the Coafts of Perfia y Pegu , Maniky and China y but they 
are moftly on the Account of Indian Merchants, there be- 
ing fcarce a Portugueze Trader at Goa able to furniffi a Car- 
go of the Value of Ten thoufand Crowns-, and it is very 
much doubted, whether, I in the whole of their Trade", 
they employ above Two hundred thoufand Crowns J fo 
that it is not at all ftrange that, one Year with another, 
there are not above two Ships fent diredlly from Goa to 
Lisbon y and thofe not a fourth Part fo rich as when they an- 
nually fent twenty. 
Yet there has been a late Regulation made at Goa for 
the Prefervation and promoting of Trade, which thofe 
who underftand that Subjedl beft, agree compieated its 
Ruin. This is an exclufive Company, which has the foie 
Right to the Commerce of Mofamhique and Macao y which 
Company has taken upon itfelf the Payment of the Royal 
Officers, who are alfo Two-thirds concerned therein, which 
has given fuch a Blow to the natural Commerce of Goa y 
that the beft Part of the Indian Merchants that were left, 
are now retired from thence. To fay the Truth, it was 
the great Share the Viceroys, Governors, and other Offi- 
cers, always took in Commerce, without contributing any- 
thing thereto, except protecting the Merchants from theVi- 
olence committed by themfelves on fuch as did not admit 
them to a Share in their Trade, that firft deftroyed the ex- 
tenfive Commerce they enjoyed. And, upon this Subject, 
the Wits of the Indies have framed a very pretty Allegory “ 
They fay, that when the Portugueze came firft there, they 
had a Sword in one Hand, and a Crucifix in the other 
but that they might fill their Pockets the fafter, they 
quickly difpenfed with the firft, and foon after laid down the 
laft, by which they have loft all. But though their Power 
and their Commerce are To much declined, their Pride is 
as great as ever, infomuch that they refufe the Natives of 
the Country, who are called Canarins y the Privilege of 
wearing Stockings, though they employ them as Phyfici- 
ans. Lawyers, and Merchants, by which many of them 
are fo rich that they keep a Dozen or Fourteen Slaves, and 
are in much better Circumftances than the Portugueze 
themfelves. 
The Revenues of the Church have fuffered very little 
by this furprizing Change in the State, there is hardly 
a Monaftry that does not receive four or five thoufand 
Crowns out of the Trealury, at the fame time the Sol- 
diers ftarve and mutiny for want of Pay, which is fo 
much the harder upon the Government, becaufe the Re- 
verend Fathers know very well how to take care of 
themfelves, infomuch that it is affirmed, the Jefuits in 
Goa have a better Revenue than the Crown of Portugal. 
It is not eafy to know what becomes of the Money thefe 
Churchmen raife ; but it is very evident, that the Wealth 
they poftefs, together with the Eftablilhment of the Inqui- 
fition at Goa % is fuch a dead Weight on the Settlement, as 
mull fooner or later deftroy it. The wileft of the Portu- 
gueze in Europe underftand this very well, and would be 
glad to fee fome proper Remedy applied, not from any 
Prejudice againft the Church or Chuichmen, which is far 
enough from being the Vice of that Nation, but out of 
pure Regard to the Crown, and to the Nation j and one 
would think, that the Clergy themfelves, inftead of grafp- 
ing at more, ought to be willing to part with fome Propor- 
tion of what is already in their Hands, in order to render 
the State more able to protedl them in the Pofleffion of the 
Remainder. Befides, there is nothing clearer, than that 
the eretfling of religious Houfes is diredly oppofite to the 
very 
r O' 
