The nauigations, peregrinations and voyages, made into Turkie by Nicholas Nicholay Daulphinois, Lord of Arfeuile, chamberlaine and geographer ordinarie to the King of Fraunce conteining sundry singularities which the author hath there seene and obserued: deuided into foure bookes, with threescore figures, naturally set forth as well of men as women, according to the diuersitie of nations, their port, intreatie, apparrell, lawes, religion and maner of liuing, aswel in time of warre as peace: with diuers faire and memorable histories, happened in our time. Translated out of the French by T. Washington the younger.

Of the great perils and daungers wee were brought into by the meanes of certain christian slaues that were escaped.

Chap. 7.

VPon the Thursday being the xvi. day of the said moneth of Iuly, a christian slaue of one of the Foystes which had rob∣bed Cotignac, being by subtill means escaped, cast himself in∣to the Sea to swim to our gally: but a Turk of another gallie e••¦pying hym did likewise cast himselfe into the Sea, & in swim∣ming followed him so swiftly that he mounted vpon his back and without the succour of our maryners, who pulled him be∣ing half dead into our gallie, had drowned him: too whom in∣continent came running diuers other Turkes to recouer him, & amongest other his maister, who despayring that his slaue should not remain a liue any long time, was contented & left him with vs for x. crownes, & from time to time alwaies came away into our gallies diuers other, & amongst the rest a young nephew of the captain Coste, being slaue vnto a very rich mer¦chāt of Alger, Who was perceiued by certain Turks, as he was climing into the chief gallie, who straighwayes came running

with diuers other with great and furious cryes for to recouer him.* 1.1 After which time the Turkes and Moores began to con∣spire openly against vs, for too endamage vs, by reson whereof the Ambassadour foreseeing the great dangers into which hee or his, might fall, went twise to the king to haue his dispatch & leaue, to the end to follow on his voyage, on the other side the Rais and Azappis of the gallies persisted instantly too haue a∣gaine their slaues, affirming that since our arriuall they hadde lost aboue xx. of them: wherefore vpon Sunday the xix. these Rais accompanied with a number of others, came againe into our gallies to demaund their slaues, and especially the nephew of the captain Coste, whō they affirmed to be within the chief gallie, vsing very rude and outragious words towards the Am∣bassadour: who excused himselfe, and assured them that hee knew nothing therof & that he did not think that any of their slaues were gotten into his gallies, which he said he would not permit: notwithstanding for their more satisfaction to search a new within his gallies & galliots, assuring himselfe that they should not find any of their slaues. To whom, for the present they would giue no eare: for that their intent was to haue our gallies discharged on land, and so haue good means to saccage vs, which the Ambassadour wel perceiuing wold not agree vn∣to thē, but to the contrary dispatched the knight De la Seure, Cotignac, and me, to go and declare vnto the king of the great wrong & iniurie that was done vnto him. But wee were not so soone on land, the knight De la Seure did instantly request me in al diligence to return to his galliot for a seruice him great∣ly emporting touching the slaues, of the losse wherof the com¦plaint was made, which I willingly accomplished. And as I was againe returning to the land•• the more to augment our quar∣rels, and the suspitions which the Turkes had conceiued of vs, there came incontinent another slaue into my boat with a co∣fin ful of figs and reysons, which he said he would carry to the master of our gallie, which I would not permit vnto him, con∣sideryng the danger such people put vs into. But a Turk which was in another boat perceiuing this, came incōtinētly into my boat, and by strokes with a staffe chased the slaue into his, cau∣sing

him to mount into a galliot, and vppon the sodayne, alte∣ring his purpose, brought him backe againe into my skiffe, which in spite of my hearte hee forced too passe along by the poupe of the gallie royal, into whiche hee made the slaue too climbe, & whatsoeuer I could to the contrarie they hoysed me vp by the armes into their gallie: as also they did to the master of my skiffe, whiche presently and in my presence was made fast by the leg to a chaine, and so they kept me as prisoner, fu∣riously threatning me, that I should not get out of their hands before they had again al their slaues: notwithstāding I alwaies shewed an assured countenance, making vnto them protestati∣ons and remonstrances of the wrong and iniurie, they did too our Ambassadour and his, and that their master and ours were mightie and sufficient enough to take vp the matter, so as in the end they agreed to let me depart, but kept my poore ma∣ster, who perceiuing me departing, thought himselfe vndone, and I was fayne euen alone aswell as I could my selfe too rowe my skiffe to our gallie, to giue the Ambassador to vnderstand of all that had hapned vnto me, which troubled him very sore: & forthwith he sent me a land, therof to aduertise the knight De la Seure, and Cotignac, to the intent they should informe the king thereof, whom I found on the way comming back a∣gayn with the Caith (which is their high Priest) hauing charge to do the excuses in the name of the king, and shew that it was not he, that thus troubled vs, but the Iustice of the towne ouer whom he had no authoritie, (for that Alger is as it were orde∣red as a particular common wealth). This notwithstanding the other persisted in the demaunding of their slaues, and too the contrary, the Ambassadour sought by al means to appease them with good cheere & presents of siluer, praing them once againe to view and search his gallies aboue and below, which they did curiously enough, and finding nothyng of that they sought for: yet coulde not perswade them selues, and aboue al they sayde that in the Admirall and Galliot there lay manye of theyr slaues hydden, and in that opinion they departed for that time, not forgetting to take with them the siluer that was giuen vnto them in secret. In the meane space we saw al along

the mollehead the people with the souldiers both Turkes and Moores, looking for nothing more then an opportunitie too saccage vs, & therefore we set our selues in good order, and all the night kept very good watch. The nexte day the king cau∣sed all hys people to put themselues in armes, and sent a great number of Harquebusiers and archars, whiche were placed as well vpon the poupes and foreships of his gallies, Foystes, and Galliots, as vppon the shore all alongst the mollehead:* 1.2 he cau∣sed also to be charged and bent all the Artillerie aswell of the towne as of the gallies, against our Gallies, and this doone in most furious maner, they came to demaund their slaues of vs, which seeing the knight de Seure and Cotignac beeing yet a∣land dyd of new endeuour themselues to speak vnto the king which they could not do, for he woulde neither see them nor heare them speak: and they finding the whole towne in armes were greatly amased. All which being seene and vnderstanded by the Ambassadour, & to eschew the perill wherin he saw him selfe & his to be: caused him to be set a shoare, & went straight to the pallace to seeke to speake to the kings owne person, but it was in vaine, for the accesse vntoo him was denied, & (which was worse) the king sent his lieuetenant, & other captaines in∣to our gallies to haue the captain Coste & his nephew Erasme to be put vnto the chain in steed of his other nephew, whiche was stollen away, notwithstanding that the euening before he was sent back againe to his master by a Turk who gaue to him his Tulbant & his gowne because he shuld not be knowē of o∣thers,* 1.3 for that he had promised him that none shuld do him a∣ny harm: al this notwithstanding the vttermost remedie to ap∣pease them was to deliuer vnto them Erasme whom forthwith they condemned to be hanged & stifled vpon the maste of the gallie, which presently they would haue done if the Ambassa∣dour through his prudence (as of long time knowing the insa∣tiable auarice of these barbarous people hadde not appeased theyr force and rage with great summes of money, promising thē moreouer y^t in their presence Erasme should bee put to the chaine & not be let out before they came to Cōstātinople. By these meanes & like promises hee was rēdred vnto thē hauing

receiued many Bastonados of the Turke) and incontinent ac∣cording to the conuentions, put vnto the chaine, where he re∣mayned not long. All this notwithstanding they were not ap∣peased, for the number of the souldiers and armed men did stil increase, which made vs too feare that they would do some in∣iurie to the Ambassadour being yet a land, or at the least keep him prisoner, which they would fayne haue done, and in deed with all rigour forced him to ascend into the gallie royall from which they woulde not suffer him to depart, without first (ouer and aboue all that it had cost him) hee shoulde giue them for theyr losses and interest, two hundreth crownes, whiche were paide downe in readie money. Nowe the brute Barbaries were not so soone departed, but wee weighed our ankors, too escape theyr handes, and dyned in the Rhode: and afterwards by force of oares we came surging along by the East and by South beyond the cape of Matafus,* 1.4 which is thirtie miles from Alger, where we tarryed vntill the morning attending a good wynde. But before I passe further I thought it good to make a briefe rehearse of the foundation, force, and situation of the citie of Alger, wyth the manner, religion, and apparrell of the inhabitantants thereof, so muche as by sight I could compre∣hend, and vnderstand of the inhabitauntes & other that haue written thereof.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Conspiracie of the Turkes a∣gainst vs.
• * 1.2

  The Turkes rose in arm••s against vs.
• * 1.3

  Erasme ne∣phew vnto cap¦taine Coste was deliuered vnto y^e Turkes ••o appease thē.
• * 1.4

  Cape of Ma∣tafus.