The perillous and most unhappy voyages of John Struys Through Italy, Greece, Lifeland, Muscovia, Tartary, Media, Persia, East-India, Japan, and other places in Europe, Africa and Asia. Containing, I. Most accurate remarks and observations of the distinct qualities, religion, politie, customs, laws and properties of the inhabitants: II. A due description of the several cities, towns, forts, and places of trust, as to their site and strength, fortifications by nature, or art, &c. with other things worthy of note: and, III. An exact memorial of the most disastrous calamities which befell the author in those parts (viz) by ship-wrack, robberies, slavery, hunger, tortures, with other incommodities and hardships. To which are added 2 narrativs sent from Capt. D. Butler, relating to the taking in of Astrachan by the Cosacs. Illustrated with divers curious plates, first designed and taken from the life by the author himself. Rendered out of Nether-dutch by John Morrison·

The TRANSLATOR to the READER.

Ingenuous Reader,

HISTORY, which is the Light of Truth and Life of Memory, hath two Eies, viz, Chronology and Topo∣graphy: That, giving Evidence of Things and Acti∣ons as to the Time, This, as to the Place.

Among Histories (saith an incomparable Doctor) Itineraries have the preheminence, in which we have the most memorable Things and Events faithfully related ex 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, (as he phrases it) or, from Eie-wittness:

The Utility and Certainty whereof may be mesured from the Reputation and Conscience of the Relater.

AND these, as they are more delectable to read, because ever in∣terspersed with Actions as well as Things, so they are more to be valued in respect of their Credit. Thucydides that most excellent Historian was highly accounted of by Dionysius Halicarnasseus, Cicero, Fabius, and others famous in the World; but abov all by Demosthenes the noble Orator of Athens, who to make his works the more familiar to him∣self, is affirm'd by Lucian to have copied them 8 times over; and all this for his Faithfullness and Credit, being himself a chief Captain in the Peleponesian Warrs, and an Eie-wittness from the Beginning to the End. Even so is Strabo justly preferred before Pomponius M••la, Ptolomy and other Geographers, for that he is said to have written about no Place but what himself had seen, as partly may be gathered out of those words of Blancan Strabo eruditissimè ac fusè orbis situm, cujus magnam par∣tem peragraverat, descripsit. And what a veneration has the World for that of R. Benjamin, the famous Iewish Geographer? not onely for his elegant manner of describing Things memorable and worthy of Remark (in which, saith Neander, he was second to none) but that

he took little or nothing upon Credit, having himself travailed thrô the most considerable part of the World, and consequently (with the help of his great Judgment and Experience) able to correct the Mistakes of others, who had made too bold Conjectures. Experience every Age makes a new Discovery of old Errors, and Mercator often givs Ptolomy the Lie.

— Aetas semper aliquid adportet novi. — Seris venit usus ab annis.

SUCH Observations as pertain to various Regions and Diversity of Countreys may also seem to giv a more general Satisfaction, and to be of greater Utility than Descriptions peculiar to one place; Semper laudata fuit historia quae non unius regionis cancellis constringitur; sed quam latè terrarum termini extenduntur, expatiatur. They are L'Empereur's Words.

BUT as it is not needfull that I should make many instances of such Observations in general, as to their Usefullness, so I shall not weary my Readers Patience further than what I shall say to these in particular, which is the only reason I have to use the formality of a Preface, that might as well have bin left out, if som few reasons had not urg'd me to the contrary, but chiefly to anticipate what I presage som will object against them, aswell as in consideration of what a Great Man in the last Age said, Non tutum est ullum emittere Librum nisi satel∣litio munitum: as if he would say, 'Tis not safe to put forth any Book unless guarded with a File of Musquetiers.

OUR Traveller without doubt will frustrate the expectation of som, in not giving a more ample account of every Countrey he has seen, by an accurate noting down of the Religion, Politie, particular Rites and Customs of the Inhabitants, nor making a further scrutiny as to the Antiquity and Original Descent and Offspring of the People as som have don. 'Tis undeniably so, for I find him more busy in recording

the circumstances of his own personal condition, and what befell him in remote Places, than remarking the State and Quality of the Land and People, nor do I hold it consistent with the Duty of him that would be a faithfull Interpreter to do that Office for him; notwithstanding the Freedom som has assumed in another Language (or shall I say, Another Work) to leav out more than 70 intire Paragraphs, in several places thrô the Book, and supplied the vacancy by transcribing out of other Jour∣nals, which I am confident is not to be found either in the Authors Autograph, or Printed Copy.

THE Gentleman's reason, I conceiv, was because the Matter of what he thought good to ommit was not so solid, containing som homely Passages not to be taken notice of, and consequently would not endure such soaring Language, as things more sublime and im∣portant would, for, Ex quovis ligno non fit Mercurius. Nor had it bin less warrantable for me to have don the like, and tacitly to have passed over such humble Matter as would rather challenge an expression of homely Sentences than festivity of Style, which the friendly Reader will find I'me no where guilty of.

THIS Journal, I am bound to say (notwithstanding the main Ad∣vantages our Author wanted, both in Estate and Parts, which you'l readily inferr no Traveller ought to be without, that would bring his Observations upon the public Theater of the World) have never∣theless found a gremious entertainment amongst all sorts of Men, being already published in several Languages: nor can I find any reason to fear, but, as it is for a more universal Perusal taught to speak English, 'twill be as acceptable to our own Nation, as it has bin abroad in other Countreys, where they are in general more inclined to read Fictions and Fables, than true Philology, and such as may justly be convinced by that of an obscene, but witty Poet:

Qui legis Oedipodem calligantèmque Thyestem, Colchidas & Scyllas, quid nisi monstra legis? Quid te vana juvant miserae ludibria chartae? Hoc lege, quod possis dicere jure, Meum est.

OBSCENE indeed inclusivly, but justifiable enough in this, for, as the great Casaubon in his modest Answer to the Epistle of Cardinal Du Perron saith, E felle mero mel merum interdum existit, so there is nothing so corrupt or putrid, but that somthing sound may be extracted from it.

CERTAINLY the Discrepance of Mens Fancies must be notedly great, if the Price and Perusal of this small Volum should seem too great and laborious to the Buyer and Reader, which has cost the Author so much Time and Pains in Travail, for the greatest part of Six and Twenty years, during which time he has bin attended with continual Perils on the one hand and unspeakable Sufferings on the other: by Land in per∣petual Jeopardy of his Person for Robbers, Cannibals, Ravenous and venemous Animals; by Sea for Pyrats, Shipwracks, &c. and by both, subject to Hunger, Thirst, Scorching Heats, Colds, Sickness, and other unavoidable Extremities and gravaminous Solitudes; besides the lamentable Condition of Slavery, in which I found him both among Turks, Tartars and Persians, yet after all returned home in safety, and at this present here in London.

IT is a thing no less customary than unmannerly among som, who will hold all things for forged and false, except what themselvs see, and would have all themselvs say to be received for Oracles. 'Tis not long ago that a young Sycophant (and one perhaps, who thought himsel•• somthing prejudic'd) affirmed that the Pourfiles of those Persian Citie and others, were but imaginary Fictions, and that, I beleev, be¦cause the Etcher had set the Letter [In.] for [Invenit] after his Name as who should say, but that every Engraver and Etcher understood s••

much Latin, as rightly to distinguish between Pinxit, Invenit, Sculp∣sit, Fecit and Excudit, which they often use promiscuously for each other: but besides my knowledge of our Travailers ability in Drawing, I have other reasons to give credit to him, as to his faithfull Delineation of those Places, which, for this time being so narrowly circumscribed, I am forc'd to ommit.

THE first Voyage perhaps may not affoard such satisfaction as som will expect, and by consequence give the Reader no Appetite to go forward; but he whose leisure will permit him to go forward, will in the 2d and 3d Voyages find amends for what is defectiv in the first.

IT was intended also to publish his 4^th. Voyage with this, which has not as yet bin printed in any Language, but finding the Authors leisure not answerable to those Intentions, we shall deferr it for the next Edi∣tion, if this prove but so acceptable, as to give occasion for another: which we know is not usual with Books of this nature, that serv no more than for once reading, and not for a dayly recourse.

IN the first Voyage we find him imbarqued for Genoa in a new Ship, which, with another, was built for that State at Amsterdam in the year 1647. From Genoa he went to the East-Indies, where by the way he gives a very exact Description of the Salt-Islands, Sierra Liones, Madagas∣car, Syam, (with the most horrible Massacre committed upon the greatest Personages in that Kingdom) then proceeds on his Voyage for Iapan, where he gives you an account of that Island and Formosa.

IN the second the most remarkable is the Ingagement between the Venetians and the Turks, by Sea, in which the former fought a signal Victory. In this Voyage I also find a very accurate Description of the Greek Islands, as they are now peopled, with several Footsteps of An∣tiquity.

IN the third, and last as yet extant, he goes to Moscovia to serve the Czar aboard a new Ship which was built on the Wolga, whereby

the way he gives you a Description of Lifeland and its Inhabitants, as also Moscovia and the Imperial City Moscou; then proceeding forward he comes at last to the Wolga, where setting sail for Astrachan, notes punctu∣ally what every day occurred. Arriving there he gives you an account of the Insurrection and Proceeding of the Cosac-Rebels, and the occasion why he and his Company fled over the Caspian Sea; with the great hard∣ship they suffered till they got ashoar, where besides many cruel Tor∣ments were made Slaves by the Tartars, in which condition he con∣tinued till he was redeemed by order of the Governour and Council for the Dutch East-India Company at Batavia, whither he travailed thrô Persia, and being by order of the said Company sent home aboard the Ship Europa, which was taken by the English in the last Dutch Wars; he himself was sent for Ireland with about 300 more of his Countrey∣men. Where arriving imbarques himself for England, and so home.

St. Albans Iuly 30, 1683.

I.M.

Notes

• Blancan. in Chronol. Mathem.
• Erasm. de Utilit. Colloqu.
• Martial. in his 10th Book of Epigrams.