A voyage to East-India. Wherein some things are taken notice of in our passage thither, but many more in our abode there, within that rich and most spacious empire of the Great Mogol. Mix't with some parallel observations and inferences upon the storie, to profit as well as delight the reader. / Observed by Edward Terry minister of the Word (then student of Christ-Church in Oxford, and chaplain to the Right Honorable Sr. Thomas Row Knight, Lord Ambassadour to the great Mogol) now rector of the church at Greenford, in the county of Middlesex.

SECTION IV.

Of the discommodities, inconveniences, and annoyances, that are to be found or met withall in this Empire.

AS the Poets feigned that the Garden of the Hesperides (wherein were Trees that bare Golden apples) was guarded by a Serpent: so there are stings here, as well as fruits; all con∣sidered together may not unfitly be resembled by those Locusts mentioned, Re. 9. 7, 8, 10. verses, who had the Faces of men, and the haire of wo∣men, and Crowns as of Gold on their heads, but they had too, the teeth of Lyons, and the tayles of Scorpions, and there were stings in those tayles. Here are many things to content and please the enjoyers of them, to make their life more com∣fortable, but withall here are Teeth to tear, and stings to Kill: All put together, are nothing but a mixture made up (as indeed all earthly things are) of good, and bad; of bitter, and sweet; of what contents, and of what contents not.

The annoyances of these Countryes are, first many harmfull beasts of prey, as Lions, Tygres, Wolves, Jackalls, with others; those Jackalls seem to be wild Doggs, who in great companies run up and down in the silent night, much disquieting

the peace thereof; by their most hidious noyse. Those most ra••enous creatures will not suffer a man to rest quietly in his grave, for if his body be not buried very deep they will dig him thence, and bury as much of him again, as they can consume, in their hung••y bellyes. In their Rivers are many Crocodiles, and—Latet anguis in herbâ, on the land, not a few overgrown snakes, with other vene••••ous, and pernicious creatures. In our houses there we often see Lyzards, shaped like unto Crocodiles, of a sad green co∣lour, and but little creatures, the fear of whom presents its self most to the eye, for I do not know that they are hurtfull. There are many Scorpions to be seen, which are oftentimes felt, which creep into their houses especially in that time of the raines, whose stinging is most sensible, and deadly, if the patient have not presently some oyl that is made of Scorpions, to annoint the part affected, which is a suddain, and a certain cure. But if the man can get the Scorpion that stung him, (as sometimes they do) the oyly sub∣stance it affords, being beaten in peeces, sudden∣ly applyed, is a present help. The sting of the Scor∣pion may be a very fit resemblance of the sting of Death, the bitterness and angu••sh whereof no∣thing can asswage; and cure so well, as a serious consideration, and a continuall application of the thoughts of Dying. Facile contemnit omnia, qui cogitat se semper moriturum, that man may

trample upon every thing, whose meditations are taken up with the thoughts of his change. He cannot dye but well, who dyes dayly, dayly in his preparations for death, though he dye not pre∣sently.

The Scorpions are in shape like unto our Cra∣fishes, and not bigger, and look black like them, before they are boyled: they have a little round tayl which turns up, and lyes usually upon their backs, at the end whereof is their sting, which they do not put in, and l••t out of their bodyes, as other venemous creatures doe, but it alwayes appeares in their tayles ready to strake; it is very sharp, and hard, and not long, but crooked like the talon of an Hawk.

The aboundance of Flyes (like those swarmes in Egypt Ex. 8. 21.) in those parts did likewise very much annoy us, for in the heat of the day their numberless number was such, as that we could not be quiet in any place for them, they beeing ready to fly into our cupps, and to cover our meat assoon as it was placed on the table, and therefore we had alwayes some of the Na∣tives we kept there, who were our servants, to stand round about us on purpose while we were eating, with Napkins to fright them away. And as in the day one kinde of ordinary flyes troubled us; so in the night we were likewise very much disquieted with another sort called Musqu••etoes, like our Gnatts, but somewhat less, and in that

season we were very much troubled with Chin∣ches, another sort of little troublesome and of∣fensive creatures, like little Tikes, and these an∣noyed us two wayes, as first by their biting, and stinging, and then by their stink. From all which we were by far more free when we lodged in tents (as there we did much) than when we a∣bode in houses; where in great cities and towns, (to adde unto the disquiets I before named) there were such an aboundance of large hungry Ratts, that some of us were bitten in the night as we lay in our bedds, either on our toes or fin∣gers, or on the tipps of our eares, or on the tops of our noses, or in any part of our bodies besides they could get into their mouths.

The winds in those parts (as I observed be∣fore) which they call the Mo••t soone, blow con∣stantly one way, altering but few points, six months Southerly, and six months Northerly. The months of April, May, and the beginning of June, till the rain falls, are so extremely hot, as that the winde when it blowes but gently, re∣ceives such heat from the parched ground, that the reflection thereof is ready to blister a mans face that receives the breath of it, And if God did not provide for those parts, by sending a breeze or breath, or small gale of winde daily, which somewhat tempers that hot sulphureous air there were no living in that Torrid Zone for us English, who have been used to breath in a tē∣perate

climate; and notwithstanding that bene∣fit, the air in that place is so hot to us English, that we should be every day stewed in our own moisture, but that we stirre very little in the heat of the day, and have cloathing about us as thin as we can make it. And no marvail, for the coldest day in the whole year at noon (un∣less it be in the time when those raines fall) is hot∣ter there than the hottest day in England.

Yet I have there observed most strange and suddaine changes of heat and cold within few houres, as in November and December the most temperate months of their year (as before) and then at midnight the air was so exceeding fresh and cold, that it would produce a thin Ice on the water, and then as we lay in our Tents, we would have been very glad of the warmth of a Rugg upon us, and the Noon of that following day would be so extreme hot, as that it was troublesome then to keep on the thinnest cloath∣ing.

Sometimes there, the winde blowes very high in those hot and dry seasons, not long before the rain begins to fall raising up into the air a ve∣ry great height, thick clouds of Dust and Sand, which appear like dark clouds full of moy∣sture, but they deceive like the bro••k in Job 6. 15. that hath no water in it. These dry showers (which Almighty God threatens to send among a people as an heavy judgment, Deut. 28. 34.

When he will make the rain of a land pouder and dust) most grievously annoy all those amongst whom they fall, enough to smite them all with a present blindness; filling their eys, ears, nostrills and their mouths are not free if they be not also well guarded; searching every place as well with∣in as without our tents or houses, so that there is not a little Key-hole, of any trunk or cabinet, if it be not covered, but receives some of that dust into it, the dust forced to finde a lodging any where, every where, being so driven and for∣ced, as it is, by the extreme violence of the winde.

But there is no place nor Countrey under Hea∣ven, nor yet ever hath been, without some dis∣commodities. The Garden of Eden had a Serpent in it, Gen. 3. He that made all things by his ab∣solute command, hath so mixed, and tempered, and ordered all things here below by his infinite wisdom, that either too much Heat, or too much Cold; Either the barrenness of the soyl, or the unwholesomeness of the air, or some thing else, ministers matter of exception more or less against every place, that the sons of men might hence learn, that there is no true and perfect content to be found in any Kingdom, but in that of Hea∣ven: For while we are here, trouble and peace, mourning and joy, comfort and discontent come all of them by courses and successions, so that there is no weeding up of those tares, no remo∣ving

of those Annoyances from the life of man.

And so having observed what is truth, and what is enough to be said of the inconveniences and annoyances, as well as of the commodities and contentments which are to be found in those parts, I come now to speak of the people that in∣habit there. And because many particulars will necessarily fall within the compass of this part of my observations, which would more w••ary my Reader if they should be presented unto him in one continued discours••▪ I shall therefore (as I have begun) break this into Sections, and pro∣ceed to speak