The principal nauigations, voyages, traffiques and discoueries of the English nation. [vols. 1-3] made by sea or ouer-land, to the remote and farthest distant quarters of the earth, at any time within the compasse of these 1600. yeres: deuided into three seuerall volumes, according to the positions of the regions, whereunto they were directed. The first volume containeth the worthy discoueries, &c. of the English ... The second volume comprehendeth the principall nauigations ... to the south and south-east parts of the world ... By Richard Hakluyt preacher, and sometime student of Christ-Church in Oxford.

Of the island of Sylan: and of the mountaine where Adam mourned for his sonne Abel.

I Passed also by another island called Sylan, which cont••ineth in cōpasse aboue ii. M. miles: wher∣in are an infinit number of s••rpents, & great store of lions, beares, & al kinds of rauening & wild beasts, and especially of elephants. In the said country there is an huge mountaine, whereupon the inhabitants of that regiō do report that Adam mourned for his son Abel y^e space of 500. yeres. In the midst of this moūtain there is a most beautiful plain, wherin is a litle lake cōteining great plēty of water, which water y^t inhabitants report to haue proc••ed••d frō the teares of Adam & Eue: howbeit I proued that to be false, because I saw the water flow in the lake. This water is ful of hors-leeches, & blood-suckers, & of precious stones also: which precious stones the king taketh not vnto his owne vse, bu•• once or twise euery yere he permitteth certaine poore people to diue vnder the water for y^e said stones, & al that they can get he bestoweth vpon them, to the end they may pray for his soule. But y^t they may with lesse danger diue vnder the water, they take limons which they pil, anointing themselues throughly with the iuice therof, & so they may diue naked vnder y^e water, the hors-le••ches not being able to hurt them. From this lake the water runneth ••u••n vnto the sea, and at a low ebbe the inhabitants dig rubies, diamonds, pearls, & other precious stones out of the shore: wherupon it is thought, that y^e king of this island hath greater abūdance of pretious stones, then any other monarch in the whole earth besids. In the said country there be al kinds of beasts and foules: & the people told me, that those beasts would not inuade nor hurt any stranger, but only the natural inhabitants. I saw in this island fouls as big as our country geese, hauing two heads, and other miraculous things, which I will not here write off. Traueling on further toward the south, I arriued at a certain island called Bodin,* 1.1 which signifieth in our language vnclean. In this island there do inhabit most wicked persons, who deuour & eat raw flesh cōmitting al kinds of vn∣cleannes & abominations in such sort, as it is incredible. For the father eateth his son, & the son his father, the husband his owne wife, & the wife her husband: and that after this maner. If any mans father be sick, the son straight goes vnto the sooth-saying or prognosticating priest, r••questing him to demand of his god, whether his father shall recouer of that infirmity or no? Then both of them go vnto an idol of gold or of siluer, making their praiers vnto it in maner folowing: Lord, thou art our god, & thee we do adore, beseeching thee to resolue vs, whether such a man must die, or recouer of such an infirmity or no? Then the diuel answereth out of y^e foresaid idol: if he saith (he shal liue) then returneth his son and ministreth things necessary vnto him, til he hath attained vnto his for∣mer health: but if he saith (he shal die) then goes y^e priest vnto him, & putting a cloth into his mouth doth strangle him therewith: which being done, he cuts his dead body into morsels, & al his friends and kinsfolks are inuited vnto the eating thereof, with musique and all kinde of mirth: howbeit his bones are solemnely buried. And when I found fault with that custome demanding a reason thereof, one of them gaue me this answere: this we doe, least the wormes should eat his flesh, for then his soule should suffer great torments, neither could I by any meanes remooue them from that errour. Many other nouelties and strange things there bee in this countrey, which no man would credite, vnles he saw them with his owne eyes. Howbeit, I (before almighty God) do here

make relation of nothing but of that only, whereof I am as sure, as a man may be sure. Concer∣ning the foresaid islands I inquired of diuers wel-experienced persons, who al of them, as it were with one consent, answered me saying, That this India contained 4400. islands vnder it, or with∣in it: in which islands there are sixtie and foure crowned kings: and they say moreouer, that the greater part of those islands are wel inhabited. And here I conclude cōcerning that part of India.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Or, Dadin.