Chap. II. to the EAST-INDIES. . 7 
Having doubled the Point of this Creek we came be- 
fore an inhabited Place, furnifhed with Houles like thofe 
of our own Country, where we thought to come to an 
Anchor » but finding no Bottom but from fifty to thirty Fa- 
thom Water, upon a rocky Ground, we flood to Sea, del- 
pairing of Anchorage upon that Hand. In the mean 
time the Tide carried us Weft ward along the Coaft, to a 
Point where we came in Sight of a Ship, and having fent 
out our long Boat with ten Mufketeers, we underftood it 
to be a Mecca Ship of forty T uns, that upon our Appear- 
ance upon that Coaft, had run all their Goods on Shore, 
taking us to be Dutch Ships. The Captain fhewed me 
two Letters, one from an Englijh Captain called Martin , 
and another from Captain Bannar , intimating to all their 
Countrymen, that they had taken in feveral Relrefhments 
at that Place, efpecially Fruits, but little Meat ; that they 
had found no Water there ; that linnen Cloth and Paper 
was a proper Commodity for that Place, and advifing them 
to take Care of difobliging the Iflanders, who tho’ they 
appeared friendly enough, were capable to do them a great 
deal of Injury. 
Having alked the Arabian Matter where I could find 
the beft Conveniency for coming to an Anchor, he told 
me, the Place of Anchorage lay to the Windward of their 
Ship, but withal, advifed me to fetch a Pilot from the 
Shore, by reafon that the Road is furrounded with Rocks 
and Banks, and the Inhabitants of the Ifland being great 
Sorcerers, and having the Wind at their Command, could, 
upon Occafion, change it to our Difadvantage. Purfuant 
to his Advice, I fent my Boat afhore along with him, 
and in the Afternoon he returned with two of the Inhabi- 
tants, who were Negroes, and brought our Ship fafe to 
Anchor before Sun-fet. In the mean time I fent the A- 
rabian Matter back to his own Ship, with full Affurances 
of the Innocency of our Defign, and the friendly Difpofi- 
tion of the French , together with a Letter to the fame 
Purpofe, addreffed in Spanijh to the King. 
On the feventeenth, the King fent fome of his chief Fa- 
vourites to allure us of his Friendlhip, and Readinefs to 
fupply us with the Product of his Country. I acknow- 
ledged my Obligations to the Prince, and fent him a Pre- 
fent of a filver-hilted Hanger, a couple of very pretty 
Knives, a Ream of Paper, and a Looking-glafs, which 
he received with Pleafure, and returned me a Complement 
of a young Kid and fome Fruit. At the fame time I de- 
fined the Arabian Captain, who was then alhore, to buy 
fome Provifions for me, promifing to fend fuch Commo- 
dities as were proper to be given in Exchange ; but the 
Captain fent me Word, that the Inhabitants of that Ifland 
were of fuch a particular Humour, that they would not 
ftrike a Bargain of half a Rial Value in a Day’s Time, for 
that they would not buy half a Yard of Cloth without call- 
ing all their Relations and Neighbours to concert the Mea- 
fures of the Bargain. I was likewife informed by a ■ Portu- 
guese, that a Portugueze Carrack had been loft upon that 
Ifland about three Years before, and by that Means the 
Inhabitants were fo over-flock’ d with Rials, that they put 
no Efteem upon that Coin. 
Accordingly I found, that tho’ they had vaft Quanti- 
ties of Fruits, they would not fell them to our Men for 
Money, but only for Paper, white Cloth and Knives ; in 
fine, I perceived, that it would coft me a Fortnight’s At- 
tendance to make up two Pipes of Peafe, which I want- 
ed, tho’ I did not defign to ftay above three or four Days. 
The eighteenth, having defcried a couple of Ships of that 
Country, I brought the Cadtains a Board, who acquainted 
me, that they came from the Ifland of Majotta , were laden 
with Rice and dried Fielh, and bound for Monbaze. Next 
Day they fupplied me with as much Rice, Peafe, and hung 
Beef, as would ferve us for four Months, and I was glad 
of the Opportunity, for I could buy nothing from the In- 
habitants without an infinite Lofs of Time ; befides, I be- 
gan to fufpecft the Honefty of their Intentions, for the 
Day before, when we were founding for Anchorage, fome 
of the Inhabitants gave us a Signal to come to a Place where 
we fipied a long Ridge of Rocks, and had certainly been 
loft, if we had anfwered the Signal ; and upon that fcore, 
I prefumed, that the Advantage they had made by the 
Numb, 4^. 
Shipwreck of the Portugueze Cafrick tempted them td 
with us the like Fate. 
The twentieth I thought to have taken up fome frefti 
Water on Shore, but finding it blackifh, and hard to be 
put on Board, by reafon of the great Waves.* and obferv- 
ing withal, that the Ship road in the midft of Shelves, i 
dropped that Defign, and weighed Anchor oft the twenty- 
firft by break of Day. The Arabian Captain underftanck 
ing that I defigned to double Cape Comorrin , had advifed 
me to flop at the Ifle of Soccotora for fix Weeks, to avoid 
the ufual Storms upon the Coaft of Malabar. I would 
gladly have taken one of their Pilots along with me, td 
fhew me the Coafting of that Ifland, but they pleaded the 
Difference of the Religion, and our Mens eating of Pork, 
for an Excufe. 
14. This file of Nangajija extends itfelf from North to 
South about fifteen or fixteen Leagues, with about three or 
four Leagues in Breadth. We could obferve no Anchor- 
rage round it but that where our Ship rode, which lies 
upon the N. N. W. Point in n° 80' S. Lat. but the mid- 
dle of the Ifland is in 12. 0 . In that Place we rode at 25 
or 30 Fathom Water, upon a Ground of Sand ; but 
within a Piftol Shot of us there lay Flats, which had 
not above two Feet Water at low Water, and rocky 
Ground all about. It is a very dangerous Road, and hard 
to be found by Strangers. Indeed, among many Incon- 
veniencies, it has thefe Advantages, that the Tide always 
runs againft the Wind, fo that the Ships ride eafy, and 
that caufes a kind of perpetual Calm at Sea, becaufe the 
Wind then takes the Land. Befides the Incon veniency 
of Anchorage, it is likewife a very improper Place to take 
in frefh Provifions, for its Water is very bad, and the In- 
habitants are fo over cautious, that they will be two Flours 
in marketing to the Value of Five-pence ; fo that Majotta 
is upon that fcore infinitely preferable to it. 
The Ifland itfelf affords a pleafant Profpefil, efpecially 
to the Northward, for on that Side the Mountains rife 
gradually, being covered with feveral forts of Trees, and 
below, upon a clear Creek of Sand, along the Sea-thore* 
there Hand a great many Houfes, flickered with an infi- 
nite number of Cocoa, Orange and Citron Trees. Their 
Oranges are very fmall, but very fweet and delicious, re- 
fembling both in Shape and Tafte thofe of China. The 
Inhabitants are Negroes, and call their Ifland Nangajija . 
They are all very zealous Mohammedans , and marked with 
a hot Iron, upon the Temples, and middle of their Fore- 
head. They are neither fo handfome, nor fo well fliaped 
as the Negroes of St. Laurence. The Ifland is governed 
by fifteen petty Kings, of whom the King of the Place 
where is the Anchorage, is the ftrongeft, and beft allied. 
Thefe Kings war with one another, and fell their Prifoners 
of War to the Portugueze , and other Nations. 
Their Fighting conflfts in throwing of Stones, beating 
one another with Sticks, burnt at the End, and flinging 
Sand in one anothers Eyes. We faw no Arms among 
them but what the King had, and thofe were Fuzees and 
Piftols, with which the Englijh preferred him fometime 
ago, which he valued mightily. They are reckoned great 
Sorcerers, but are civil and refpe&ful enough to Strangers, 
unlefs it be when they fee a Stranger Hand upright and 
make Water, for then they ridicule him with a prodigious 
Shouting. The Arabian Ships, which they call Pengays , 
are ftrangely built, for the Planks are neither nail’d nor 
caulk’d, but fewed together with a fort of Thread made 
of the Rind of Cocoa Tree, and tarred, or pitched above 
the Seams, fo that they are very leaky, and there are al- 
ways five or fix Men employed to heave out the Water; 
befides, that they always obferve the Trade-Winds, fo as 
to fail right before the Wind, for they wont venture to 
fet their Side to the Windward. They are undeck’d, and 
carry about fifty or fixty Tuns. When we weighed An- 
chor in this Road, we flood N. N. E. and without the 
Points of the Land met with violent Tides, bearing to 
the Weftward, i. e. S. S. W. At Night we defcried an- 
other fmall Ifland to the Sea-ward, which muft be that 
called in the Maps Juan de Caftraval , and lies fifteen 
Leagues N. E. and a Quarter N.- from Nangajija . 
8 Y 15. 
