that they vsed in fishing, which is this. There are three or foure Barkes that make consort to∣gether, which are like to our litle Pilot boates, and a litle lesse, there goe seuen or eight men in a boate: and I haue seene in a morning a great number of them goe out, and anker in fifteene or eighteene fadome of water, which is the Ordinarie depth of all that coast. When they are at an∣ker, they cast a rope into the Sea, and at the ende of the rope, they make fast a great stone, and then there is readie a man that hath his nose and his eares well stopped, and annointed with oyle, and a basket about his necke, or vnder his left arme, then hee goeth downe by the rope to the bottome of the Sea, and as fast as he can hee filleth the basket, and when it is full, he shaketh the rope, and his fellowes that are in the Barke hale him vp with the basket: and in such wise they goe one by one vntill they haue laden their barke with oysters, and at euening they come to the village, and then euery company maketh their mountaine or heape of oysters one distant from another, in such wise that you shall see a great long rowe of mountaines or heapes of oy∣sters, and they are not touched vntill such time as the fishing bee ended, and at the ende of the fi∣shing euery companie sitteth round about their mountaine or heape of oysters, and fall to ope∣ning of them, which they may easilie doe because they bee dead, drie and brittle: and if euery oyster had pearles in them, it would bee a very good purchase, but there are very many that haue no pearles in them: when the fishing is ended, then they see whether it bee a good gathering or a badde: there are certaine expert in the pearles whom they call Chitini, which set and make the price of pearles according to their carratts, beautie, and goodnesse, making foure sortes of them. The first sort bee the round pearles, and they be called Aia of Portugale, because the Por∣tugales doe buy them. The second forte which are not round, are called Aia of Bengala. The third sort which are not so good as the second, they call Aia of Canara, that is to say, the king∣dome of Bezeneger. The fourth and last sort, which are the least and worst sort, are called Aia of Cambaia. Thus the price being set, there are merchants of euery countrey which are rea∣die with their money in their handes, so that in a fewe dayes all is bought vp at the prises set ac∣cording to the goodnesse and caracts of the pearles.
In this Sea of the fishing of pearles is an Iland called Manar, which is inhabited by Chri∣stians of the countrey which first were Gentiles, and haue a small hold of the Portugales being situate ouer agaynst Zeilan: and betweene these two Ilands there is a chanell, but not very big, and hath but a small depth therein: by reason whereof there cannot any great shippe passe that way, but small ships, and with the increase of the water which is at the change or the full of the Moone, and yet for all this they must vnlade them and put their goods into small vessels to ligh∣ten them before they can passe that way for feare of Sholdes that lie in the chanell, and after lade them into their shippes to goe for the Indies, and this•• doe all small shippes that passe that way, but those shippes that goe for the Indies Eastwardes, passe by the coast of Coromandel, on the other side by the land of Chilao which is betweene the firme land and the Iland Manor: and going from the Indies to the coast of Coromandel, they loose some shippes, but they bee emp∣tie, because that the shippes that passe that way discharge their goods at an Iland called Peri∣patane, and there land their goods into small flat bottomed boates which drawe litle water, and are called Tane, and can run ouer euery Shold without either danger or losse of any thing, for that they tarrie in Peripatane vntill such time as it bee faire weather. Before they depart to passe the Sholdes, the small shippes and flat bottomed boates goe together in companie, and when they haue sailed sixe and thirtie miles, they arriue at the place where the Sholdesare, and at that place the windes blowe so forciblie, that they are forced to goe thorowe, not hauing any other refuge to saue themselues. The flat bottomed boates goe safe thorow, where as the small shippes if they misse the aforesayd chanell, sticke fast on the Sholdes, and by this meanes many are lost: and comming backe from the Indies, they goe not that way, but passe by the chanell of Manar as is abouesayd, whose chanell is Oazie, and if the shippes sticke fast, it is great chance if there be any danger at all. The reason why this chanell is not more sure to goe thither, is, because the windes that raigne or blowe betweene Zeilan and Manar, make the chanell so sha∣low with water, that almost there is not any passage. From Cao Comori to the Iland of Zei∣lan is 120. miles ouerthwart.