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“ Their Winter also is more fierce then ours, every man prouiding against 
the same, as if he had a voyage of so many moneths to passe by Sea, their 
ships are brought into harbour, their houses can scarce harbour the Inha- 
bitants against the violent stormes, which choake the Riuers with Sand, and 
make the Seas vnnauigable. I leaue the causes of these things to the further 
scanning of Philosophers ; the effects and affects thereof are strange. The 
Sea roareth with a dreadfull noyse : the Windes blow with a certaine course 
from thence: the people haue a Melancholike season, which they passe 
away with play. In the Summer the Wind bloweth from the Land, begin- 
ning at Midnight, and continuing till Noone, neuer blowing aboue ten leagues 
into the Sea, and presently after one of the clock vntill midnight, the con- 
trary winde bloweth, keeping their set-times, whereby they make the Land 
temperate, the heat otherwise would bee vnmeasurable.” 
Yan Linschoten, who visited Southern India in 1583 or 
thereabouts, says : — 
“ The Summer beginneth in September and continueth till the last of April, 
and is alwaies cleare skie and faire weather, without once or very little 
raining : Then all the ships are rigged and made ready to sayle for all 
places ; as also the Kings Armie to keepe the Coast, and to convoy Mer- 
chants, and the East windes beginne to bio we from off the Land into the 
Seas, whereby they are called Terreinhos, that is to say, the Land ivincles. 
They blowe very pleasantly and cooly, although at the first, by hanging of 
the weather they are very dangerous, and cause many great diseases, which 
doe commonly fall in India , by the changing of the time. These winds blowe 
alwaies in Summer, beginning at midnight, and continue till noone, but they 
never blowe above ten miles into the Sea, from off the coast, and presently 
after one of elocke, until midnight the West winde bloweth, which commeth 
out of the Sea into the Land and is called Virason. These winds are so 
sure and certain at their times, as though men held them in their hands, 
where they make the Land very temperate, otherwise the heate would be 
unmeasurable. 
“ is likewise a strange thing that when it isWinter upon the coast of India, 
that is from Diu to the Cape de Comorin , on the other side of the Cape de 
Comorin , on the coast called Choramandel it is clean contrary, so that there it 
is Summer, and yet they lie all under one height or degrees, and there is but 
seventy miles by land betweene both coasts, and in some places but twenty 
miles, which is more, as men travel overland from Cochin to Saint Thomas 
(which lieth on the same coast of Choromandel), and comming by the Hill of 
Ballagatte, where men must pass over to go from the one coast to the other : 
on the one side of the Hill to the top thereof it is pleasant clear sunne 
shining weather, and going down on the other side there is raine, winde, 
thunder and lightning, as if the world should end and be consumed ; which 
is to be understood, that it changeth from the one side to the other, as the 
time lalleth out, so that on one side of the Hills it is Winter, and on the 
other side Summer ; and it is not only so in that place and Countrie, but 
