Chap. II. from J. B. T A v E r n i e r. , $$f 
: works, but in long Walks,, lovely Fruit-trees, and large 
Bafons of Water. 
When a Stranger comes to the Gates, a Soldier fearches 
him, to fee whether he has any Salt and Tobacco about him, 
that the King may not be defrauded of the Duties, and 
then fends to the Deroga about his Admiffion, which caufes 
a Delay of a Day or two. Sometimes when the King fits 
to do Juftice, all that have Bufinefs ftand below, juft 
againft the Balcony ; but the People are kept back, with a 
Row of Poles about the Height of a Half-pike. Every 
Monday the Nobility mount Guard, and continue eight 
Days, fome of them have five or fix thoufand Men under 
their Command, with ten or twelve Elephants, and thirty 
or forty Camels. The Soldiers have no Cloaths, but three 
or four Ells of Calicut, with which they cover their Bodies 
half Way behind and before. They wear their Hair long, 
and tie it on a Knot on the Crown, as the Women do. They 
wear Broad-fwords like the Switzers , which ferve as well lor 
a TJiruft, as a Blow, and hang them in a Girdle. Their 
Mufiket Barrels are neater and better than ours, becaufe 
their Iron is better. Their Cavalry carry Bows and Ar- 
rows, a Buckler, and a Battle- Ax, and a Elead-piece, and 
Jacket of Mail, which hangs down from their Head-piece 
to their Shoulders. There are twenty thoufand com- 
mon Women allowed by the Deroga; they pay no Tax, 
but are a Means of fpending much Tati, which is a fweet 
Drink, on which the King lays a fevere Impoft. They are 
encouraged in their Practices. They are to dance every 
Friday before the King’s Balcony, if the King be prefent; 
if not, an Eunuch difmiffes them. They ftand well dreffed 
at their Doors in the Day-time, and fet up a Candle or 
Lamp for a Signal in the Night, to draw in Men who are 
not expofed to Scandal, by converfing with them. 
The common People give their Wives great Liberty, 
being obliged by Promife, at their Marriage, to let them 
walk in ' the Streets, vifit their Neighbours, and drink 
Tari; a Liquor which the Indians love very much. 
When any one is found guilty of Theft, he is pu- 
nifhed by cutting off both his Hands, which is a Punifh- 
ment ufed almoft all over the Indies. The Tradeffnen 
6 f the Town, and Hufbandmen that cultivate the Lands, 
are Natives ; but the Trade is chiefly maintained by the 
* EngUJh and Dutch Factories, who buy up for the Compa- 
nies Chints, and other Cloths, which they vend in other 
Parts of the Indies. They bring alfo from Majlipatan , 
upon Oxen, Cloves, Pepper, Cinnamon, Silver, Copper, 
• Tin, Lead, and other Goods, which they know to be molt 
marketable. All the Men and Women at Golconda are well 
proportioned,, arid of comely Stature, and fair enough in 
their Countenances ; but the Country People are fwarthy. 
The moll current Monies of this -Kingdom are the Pagods, 
■Rupees, and Pechas, of the Mogul: The Pagods are Pieces 
©f Gold, of which there are two forts, the old and the new; 
the old are worth five Rupees; and the new not above four. 
The Rupees and Pechas are alfo worth more at Golconda 4 
than in MoguUftan. The greateft Plenty of Diamonds is 
in this Kingdom, and therefore it may be called the Coun- 
try, of Diamonds. The Caftie of Golconda is two Leagues 
From the City-; it is of a large Compafs, and the Walls - of 
It are built of Stones, three Loot in Length, and as much 
in Breadth ; and it is furiounded with deep Ditches, divided 
•into Tanquies, which are filled with fair and 'good Water. 
All the Strength it has confifls in five round Towers, which 
iiave a great many Cannon mounted upon them for their 
Defence, it has feveral Gates, but two only are opened, 
■and thefe are guarded by Indians. No Strangers may go 
In without a Permiffion from the Governor, unlefs he be 
Acquainted with fome Officer of the Court. The King has 
a large Palace m it; and well fituated for a good Air, and 
lovely Profpedt, and moll Part of the Lords have Houfes 
hear it. There are feveral Bazars in it, where all things 
nerieffary for Life may be had. 
• i 8 : . The King of Golconda^ who now reigns, is a Shias 
by Religion, and bears the Name of Abdoul-C out ou- Shah. 
Lie was the Son of a Bramin. 'Lady, and fucceeded his Fa- 
ther, though not the eldeft'Son, becaufe he was more loved 
By : the Queen, who carried his Brothers to be imprifoned, 
ttrid at laft poifoned. He' keeps five hundred thoufand Sol- 
diers in Pay, yet is tributary to “the Great Mogul. He 
t: -TLu u b , -56. 
hath only three Daughters, the tide ft of which Is married 
to one of the Kinfmen of the Grand Chiek of. Meccd.j 
the fecond to Sultan Mohammed , eldeft Son- of Aurengzeb , 
and the third to Mirza- abdul- Coffin g. the King’s Coufin, 
.-who has Male Children by her. The King of Golconda has 
vaft Revenues, for he is Proprietor of all the Lands of his 
Kingdom, which he leafes out to thofe that offer the moft, 
except fuch as he gives to his Favourites for a certain Time. 
The Cuftoms that Merchants Goods that pafs through his 
Country, and of the Ports of Mefipaian and MadraJpatan, 
yield him much, and there is hardly any fort of Provifions 
in his Kingdom, from which he hath not fome confider- 
able Duties by Way of Excife. 
The Diamond Mines raife him a great Revenue, and all 
fuch as he allows to dig in them. Thefe that are to- 
ward Majlipatan pay him a-Pagod every Hour they work 
there, whether they find any Diamonds or not ; but his 
chief Mines are in divers Places in Carnaie towards Vijia- 
pour , where he has fix thoufand Men continually at work, 
who daily find near three Pounds Weight, and no bod/ 
digs there but for the King. This Prince wears upon the 
Crown of his Head a Jewel almoft a Foot long, which is 
faid to be of ineftimable Value. It is a Rofe of great Dia- 
monds, three or four Inches Diameter, on the Top of which 
there is a little Crown, and out of it iffues a Branch fa~ 
fhioned like that of a Palm-tree ; but it is round, and the 
Palm Branch, which is crooked at the Top, is a good Inch 
in Diameter, and about half a Foot long. It is made up 
of Sprigs, which are, as it were, the Leaves of it, and 
each of them have at the End a lovely long Pearl, fhaped 
like a Pear. At the Foot of this Pofey there are two Bands 
of Gold in tire Falhion of Table Bracelets, in which are 
inchafed large Diamonds, fet round with Rubies, which, 
with great Pearls that hang dangling on all Sides, make art 
exceeding fair Show ; arid thefe Bands have Clafps of Dia- 
monds to fallen the Jewels to the Head. Befides this 
Jewel, he hath other confiderable Pieces, and fuch Numbers 
of precious Stones, that if there were Merchants who could 
give him the Worth of them, he would have prodigious 
Sums of Money, and be the richeft King in the Indies. 
The Omrahs are the great Lords of the Kingdom, who 
are Perfians , and all rich ; for »they have not only great 
Pay of the King yearly, but large Gifts of Lands and Vil- 
lages from him, befides the Advantages of the Soldiery % 
for they do not lift half the Number they have Pay to 
maintain. They generally make a very handfome Figure ; 
for when they go through the Town, an Elephant or two 
goes before them, on which three Men, carrying Banners, 
are mounted ; fifty or fixty Troopers, well mounted and ac- 
coutered, follow them ; and after thefe Trumpeters and 
others playing on Fifes on Horfeback ; after thefe comes 
the Omrah on Horfeback, with thirty or forty Footmen 
about him, and his Palankin carried by four Men, with 
other Porters for Change ; and all this Pomp is brought up 
with a Camel or two, with Men beating on Timbrels on 
their Backs. Sometimes the Omrah will take his Palan- 
quin, and then his Horfe is led. 
The Palanquins are fometimes covered with Silver, and 
the Bamboos are tipped with Silver at both Ends. They 
lie at Eafe in them, fmoaking Tobacco, or chewing Beetle, 
or Areca, according to the Cuftom of the Indians , who hold 
them to be excellent for the Stomach, and the Sweetnefs 
of the Breath. The lefifer Omrahs have not fo great art 
Equipage, bur all have a Train proportionable to their Re- 
venue. The Winter in Golconda begins in June with Rains, 
and fome Thunder and great Winds, and lafts to the End 
of Olfober , in which time the Air is cold only in the Night 
and Morning. The Days are as warm as ’tis in May in 
France but the Rains caufe prodigious Floods, which 
beat down the Houfes, and deftroy many People. The 
hot Sealon begins in February. The Rains make the Land 
very fertile ; they have abundance of Fruits and Vines, and 
two Crops of Rice and other Grains every Year. Tile 
Wines they make are ufually white. 
1 9 • From Golconda there are two Roads to Majlipatan , 
one more dired, which the Merchants ufually take, and 
the other by the Diamond- Minds, called Coulour , or Gam, 
which fuch Merchants generally travel, whofe Curiofity or 
Bufinefs leads them thither, though it be the fart heft Way 
10 D bf 
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