The merchants map of commerce wherein the universal manner and matter relating to trade and merchandize are fully treated of, the standard and current coins of most princes and republicks observ'd, the real and imaginary coins of accounts and exchanges express'd, the natural products and artificial commodities and manufactures for transportation declar'd, the weights and measures of all eminent cities and towns of traffick in the universe, collected one into another, and all reduc'd to the meridian of commerce practis'd in the famous city of London / by Lewis Roberts, merchant.

CHAP. XCIII. Of Musulipatan, and the Trade thereof, with the Coast of Chormandel.

* 1.1THE Coast of Chormandel beginnneth from the Cape Negapatan to the Town of Musulipa∣tan, between which said places is found a place called St. Thomas, where the Apostle Thomas is said to have preached salvation to these Nations, and whose Tomb is had still in great reverence to this day among the Native Christians of this Countrey: besides which is found the Towns of Petipoli and Armagon, where the English of late have setled Factories that have depen∣dency on the Factory of Musulipatan; under which therefore I will include the Trade of this Coast.

Musulipatan by reason of the commodious situation, is the most eminent place of Trade of this Coast, where the English have to that purpose planted a Factory, both for providing and lading hence the Commodities of this Countrey; this place is seated on the same Coast, or ra∣ther Istmus, as Goa is with the Cities before-mentioned, which are seated to the Eastward, as the Coast of Malabar is to the Westward: the pleasantness of the adjoyning River running down from Bisnagar the Metropolis of this Countrey, and the goodness of the Haven, with the wholesomness of the Soil and the temperancy of the Air, adds much to the excellency of it in matter of Trade and concurrency of Merchants; to which if we add the industry of the Inha∣bitants and the fruitfulness of the Countrey bearing many Commodities naturally, it is not to be reckoned as the least or the worst part of Trading in India.

* 1.2From this place and Coast then is found a great Trade to be driven into Bengala, Pegu, Siam, Malacca, and to India; and the principal Commodities that this City is noted to be famous for, are those excellent fine Cotton Linnens, made here in in great abundance, and of all colours, and interwoven with divers sorts of Loom-works and Flowers, very fine and cunningly wrought, and therefore much worn in India, and better esteemed there than Silk, as indeed being both found finer and richer, and used by the greatest women in those parts for their clothing, wherein is found interlaced oftentimes threds of Silver and Gold, and divers others rare fabricks of Cotton, &c.

* 1.3The current usual Coins in Musulipatan, Armagon, Petiboli, St. Thomas, and all alongst the Coast is the Pagode of Gold, and the Mahomody and Fanan of Silver, and are thus va∣lued:

• A Pagode is worth 15 Fanans, or in English 8 s. sterling.
• A Fanan is 9 Cashees, or as some call them Cupans about 6¾ d. sterling.
• A Mamody is 32 Pices, or as in some places they are called Docres.
• A Rial of •• Spanish is here 5 Mamodies or 9 Fanans, or 5 s.
• And 10 Rials •• is here current for 6, and sometimes for 6½ Pagods.
• And 10 R. •• are called in these parts a Sear incirca 50 s. sterling.

* 1.4But in Armagon it is observed they have this difference.

• Rials of •• 11 are accounted for 8 Pagods.
• One Pagode is accounted worth 20 Fanans.
• And 5 Pagodes here are accounted but 4 in Musulipatan.

The Pagode by this account may be said to be in value about 8 d. sterling, equivalent with the Chequin of Venice, or the Xeriff of Egypt, or Sultany of Turkey, and the Mamody accounted for 12 d. sterling, and the Fanans about 6 d. ¾ or 7 d. per piece.

* 1.5Their common Weight used along this Coast is the Candil, which in gross Goods is most accounted for 20 Maunds.

A Maund is 40 Sear or 22½ Masies, or 26 l. 14½ ounces English.

A Sear is 17 Kashee, which thus answers with England.

The Sear is two-fold, the small Sear is of 16 Mass, and found to be about 10 l. English, or as some observe it 10⅛ l. and the great Sear is accounted as above.

And the Candil of 20 Maunds of 26 l. 14½ ounce Averdupois, brings it to be English pound Sotile 538 l. incirca.

But this finds some disagreement with the weight of Petiboli, for their Candil is 20 Maunds, found to be but 26 l. English, in all 520 l.

A Maund is here counted for 5 Visko, 5 l. 3 ounces English.

One Visco (or as the Portugals call it Fisco) is accounted 8 Sears, which is found to be 10 ounces ¼ Averdupois incirca.

Further Observations I find not of the Trade of Mesulapatan, saving that the Governour of this City, having setled a Trade with the English, and that they should pay for Custom 4 per cent. he afterwards raised the same to be 12 per cent. till Anno 1614. one Floris, and other English surprized the chief Customer being the Governour's Son, and brought him aboard their Ship then in Port, who thereupon came to a new composition, restored the over-plus taken, and setled it for the future at the first agreed rate of 4 per cent. as now it standeth.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Musulipatan, and the Trade of the Coast Chormandel.
• * 1.2

  Commodi∣ties of the Coast of Chormandel.
• * 1.3

  Coins cur∣rent in Mu∣silapatan and Coast of Chormandel.
• * 1.4

  Armagon.
• * 1.5

  Weights current in Musulapa∣tan, and Coast of Chormandel.