in our country) wherein are fet garnets, turquois, rubies and pearls, &c. They alfo wear rings about their legs and hands, and fometimes a good many together, which in their stepping and working, flip up and down about their hands and feet, and fo make a great noise. So much I thought convenient to relate of the inhabitants of these countries and defarts, as I have feen and found it.

After we had paffed through the great defarts, and began to come pretty near unto Ana, our mafter landed early in the evening in a very pleafant place which was about a league and a half on this fide of the town where we staid all night; for the river is very dangerous to navigate because of it's fwift current and fome rocks that lie between the mountains. This place was so pleasant by reafon of it's fruitful trees, viz. olive trees, orange, citron, limon, pomegranate, and chiefly date trees, that the like I had not feen before in my travels, and hard by it was a very thick wood of date trees, whereinto I went with fome of our company, and found fo great a quantity of fruit that they did not esteem them at all, and among them we found two new forts different from them that use to be brought to us in our countries, viz. quite red, and yellow ones, by Serapio called Hayron, in his 69th chapter; which although fomething less than ours, yet are very good, . and of a delicate taste.

For

The next morning we recommended the ship to the master, and walked (the fhip being pretty well laden) to the town. By the way we found concerning fruitfulnefs fo great a difference, that we could really fay, we were come from the barren and defolated Arabia (which hitherto had continued from Dir, nay very near from Aleppo) into the well cultivated and fruitful one. juft in the very entrance there appeared fields fown with cotton, which was as tender and woolly, as one could any where find: Then delicate fields of corn which grew very high, and was full ripe, and fit to be cut down: Then trees that stood round about full of fruit, so that we had a very pleafant walk to the town. this way I faw no ftrange plants at all, only in the corn the Moluchi of the Arabians, whereof I have made K

In

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mention before, which is esteemed to be the Corcorum. Plinii; and alfo another, which becaufe of it's height is eafily feen; this is very like unto the Sefamum, only that the ftalk is longer and fatter, the leaves are rougher, and the uppermoft ones are cut in three different ones, which is not to be feen in the uppermost leaves of the Sefamum, the leaves whereof are more like unto willow leaves both in length and colour: Between the leaves that ftand fingly about the ftalk one above the other, fprout out ftately flowers, which are yellow without, and intermix'd with red veins, and of a purple brown colour within, and have a long ftyle or pointel in the middle thereof; when thefe are fallen off, there grow long pods out of them, about a finger long and think, which are hairy without, pointed towards the top, and have five distinctions within, wherein the feeds are contained (which are very like unto the fort of malva that is called Abutilon) and are placed in good order one above the other. I did very much enquire after this plant, but they know no other name for it, but Lubie Endigi, that is, Indian kidney-beans: But according to my knowledge, I rather take it to be the Trionum, whereof Theophrastus maketh mention in feveral places.

The town Ana is by the Euphrates divided into two parts, or rather into two towns, whereof the one is not very big, and subject to the Turk, and is very well guarded with old walls, and fo furrounded by the river, that you cannot go into it but by boats, but the other that lieth on this fide belongeth to the King of Arabia, is very great, and very ill provided with walls and ditches, fo that you may go in and out by night, as in all other towns belonging to him. This, and alfo the whole province, is called Gimel, and is fifteen days journey diftant from Aleppo, and goeth down a great way the river, fo that we had a good hour to go before we came to the house of our mafter, which was near the harbour, where our fhip did lie. The houses are built with brick and ftone walls, and very well done; and we could hardly fee one on either fide but what had a garden to it, planted with dates, lemon, citron and pomegranate trees, with delicate fruit in it. At the other

fide on the left in Mefopotamia, I faw nothing but fome fummer houses ftanding about the hills. By the way before we came to Ana, I obferved very well that fome of our company (to whom I was by an outlandish man recommended) left me, and began to contrive with the mafter, who was born in that town, to accufe me by a second hand, that they might not be feen in it, as a fpy before the magiftrates, pretending that I obferved all towns and places accurately, and had a mind to betray them at my opportunity; which they chiefly did to frighten me, and so to get the fooner fome good booty out of me. In order whereunto, fome of them went to the Sub-Bafhaw, and obtained prefently of him to fend one of his fervants with them, which came to me in the long street, having fome iron chains and fetters in his hands, which he let hang down upon the ground, and led me along; fo that I prefently understood that they had an ill intention against me, which they intended to execute. So I went along with him to fee what they would do with me; when they came to the harbour, they gave me leave to go into the fhip, and to stay there until I heard more of them. So they soon agreed together, and told me, chiefly one of them that was on horfeback in a long furr'd coat, that if I would be at liberty, I muft pay to the Sub-Bafhaw 500 ducats. When I was confidering these things, and faw myself alfo quite left alone, and their demands fo extraordinary unreafonable, and found myfelf in this great neceffity and danger, it came into my mind, that there was another magiftrate in the other town Ana, at the other fide of the river, which was a Turkish one, to whom I would make my complaint of their unjuft and unreafonable impofition, to fee whether I might not find help and affiftance of them; wherefore I provided myfelf with my pass, and fitted myself fo in cloaths that I might be able to fwim, fo that if they fhould affault me to take hold of me, I might foon make my escape over the river without any oppofition or hindrance. length, when they expected iny anfwer, and the money, I told them my intention plainly and clearly, which put them into greater fright and fear than they had put me in before. Wherefore they gave over their

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unjuft

unjuft demands, and defired of the 500 ducats, no more but a fingle one, which they were forced to give to the fervant of the Sub-Bafhaw for the pains he had taken.

CHAP. VI.

Which way we travelled from Ana farther to old Babylon, by fome ancient towns called Hadidt, Juppe, Idt, and farw more pleafant, fruitful and well cultivated fields on each fide than before.

FTER the defigned ftorm that should have befallen

A

me was over, and I by the power of the almighty God delivered, as it hath pleafed him to do with a great many more, which would be too long to relate all here, we immediately departed from thence on the 15th of October. A little below it we found a fruitful and well cultivated country, and fome fine houses ftanding here and there fo near together, that before we paffed one we could fee another, which had alfo their orchards and kitchen gardens, and round about them fine woods of date trees and many others, which I could not difcern because it was too far off; so that we found a great alteration, and our wilderness, wherein chiefly at a distance from the river, we hardly faw a tree in a whole day, changed at the lower end of the town into a fertile foil: Wherefore our voyage was very pleasant to us, for we had also less danger to fear from the Arabians. But our mafter was very much troubled, because the river was often ftopp'd up at the fides with great ftones that made the river fwell, for there was a great number of large and high water engines or wheels, therefore thefe ftones were laid to lead the ftream to them to make them work, for it often happened that two of them ftood clofe together, which took up fo much of the river, that we had hardly room to pass by them in the middle of the ftream, wherefore he was

forced

forced to have great care, to find the right way where he might pafs without danger. The reafon why thefe water-wheels are fo much in ufe is, because this river doth not over flow (as the river Nilus) to water the grounds, neither doth it rain enough here fufficiently to moiften the feeds and garden-plants, that they be not burnt by the great heat of the fun, wherefore they must look out for fuch means, as will fupply this want. To do this they erect water-wheels (whereof three or four ftand behind one another) in the river, which go night and day, and dip up water out of the river, which is emptied into peculiar canals, that are prepared on purpofe, to water all the ground. But if the places lie not conveniently, or the fhore be too high to erect such wheels, they make instead of them bridges and peculiar engines, that are turned by a couple of bullocks, to bring the water up, with great leathern buckets, which are wide at top and narrow at bottom. This land being fo fruitful, we foon found, to our great pleasure, great quantities of delicate fruit, fold for a small matter of money, and among the reft chiefly Indian musk-melons, that were very well tafted.

When we came farther we had generally even ground at both fides, and not a few fields, the most part whereof were fown with Indian Millet, for they fow more of this than of wheat or barley, for the fand is pretty deep, wherein the corn would not grow fo well. This Millet was juft fit to be cut down, and in fome places they had it in already. It fhoots up into a high ftalk about fix, feven, or eight cubits high, the leaves thereof are like unto the Indian corn, or fugar-reeds, which I took it for at first, and that because the inhabitants did chaw it as well as the fugar-canes, because of the sweet and pleafant juice (which is more in the upper part of the cane, whereas that of the fugar-canes, is more in the lower) which they draw out of it, untill I faw at length their white hairy tops fprout out, which are large and not unlike to the Italian Millet. Thefe are full of whitish grains each of which sticks between two broad flying leaves, of the bignefs of thofe of the Orabus, yet fomewhat more compreffed at the fides. Hereof they bake very well-tafted bread and cakes, and fome of them are

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rowled