The estates, empires, & principallities of the world Represented by ye description of countries, maners of inhabitants, riches of prouinces, forces, gouernment, religion; and the princes that haue gouerned in euery estate. With the begin[n]ing of all militarie and religious orders. Translated out of French by Edw: Grimstone, sargeant at armes.

¶ The Riches.

[ VII] IF this Island makes any benefit of her cotton and such like things, it is disbursed in that which they haue brought from forraine countries. Yet the great Maister who enioies [ E] the reuenues of this Island makes ten thousand duckats yerely: & to the end he may shew himselfe more liberall vnto all men, they giue vnto him certaine thousands of crownes out of the treasure of the order, and besides, he hath a good Commaundarie in euery nation, which is of great reuenue. Moreouer if the Knights get any thing from the enemy, he hath alwaies the tenth part of the bootie; and it is well knowne their prises are very great euery yere.

As for the order it is exceeding rich, considering the good Commaundaries they hold in Christendome: and without doubt, the treasure of the order growes great, both by the reuenues, and also by the spoiles which the Knights make in their incursions. And seeing they are to maintaine war continually, it is conuenient they should enioy goodly [ F] reuenues, the which doe come vnto them by the bountie of princes: and therfore euery yeare, all the Bailifes, Priors, and Commaunders are bound to giue in a certificate of their goods and reuenues to the prouinciall Chapter, and they pay the charges where∣unto they are bound to the publicke treasure of the religion, according to the value

[ A] of the commandarie, for the which there is a knight deputed by the order to be Recei∣uor, to whom those duties are payed euerie yeare at the feast of S. Iohn Baptist. You must vnderstand, that no man is receiued to the profession of this order, but he must pay a dutie, which they call the passage of the publique treasure, which amounts to the v••••ue of aboue one hundred and fiftie crownes for knights, and a hundred for those that are cal∣led brothers seruants, and if after his passage, he hath not giuen them, he that receiues them for the order, must make them good, notwithstanding any dispensation, and whe••∣as any one hath satisfied this dutie, they cannot denie him his right of antiquitie. The goods of knights dying, come also to the publique treasure, vnlesse they haue any gold [ B] or siluer vessell which were proper to the seruice of the Church; for those things are left vnto the Church, according to the ordinance of Deodat de Gozon. But whenas the officers which follow the great maister, as the Seneshal, Chastelain, & other knights which serue him, die, their goods go not to the publique treasure, but they come to the great maister.