[Sidenote:  A very strange thing hardly to be beleeued.] The Nairi and their wiues vse for a brauerie to make great holes in their eares, and so bigge and wide, that it is incredible, holding this opinion, that the greater the holes bee, the more noble they esteeme themselues.  I had leaue of one of them to measure the circumference of one of them with a threed, and within that circumference I put my arme vp to the shoulder, clothed as it was, so that in effect they are monstrous great.  Thus they doe make them when they be litle, for then they open the eare, and hang a piece of gold or lead thereat, and within the opening, in the whole they put a certaine leafe that they haue for that purpose, which maketh the hole so great.  They lade ships in Cochin for Portugale and for Ormus, but they that goe for Ormus carrie no Pepper but by Contrabanda, as for Sinamome they easilie get leaue to carrie that away, for all other Spices and drugs they may liberally carie them to Ormus or Cambaia, and so all other merchandize which come from other places, but out of the kingdom of Cochin properly they cary away with them into Portugale great abundance of Pepper, great quantitie of Ginger dried and conserued, wild Sinamon, good quantity of Arecca, great store of Cordage of Cairo, made of the barke of the tree of the great Nut, and better then that of Hempe, of which they carrie great store into Portugale.

[Sidenote:  Note the departing of ships from Cochin.] The shippes euery yeere depart from Cochin to goe for Portugall, on the fift day December, or the fift day of Ianuary.  Nowe to follow my voyage for the Indies:  from Cochin I went to Coulam, distant from Cochin seuentie and two miles, which Coulam is a small Fort of the king of Portugales, situate in the kingdom of Coulam, which is a king of the Gentiles, and of small trade:  at that place they lade onely halfe a ship of Pepper, and then she goeth to Cochin to take in the rest, and from thence to Cao Comori is seuentie and two miles, and there endeth the coast of the Indies:  and alongst this coast, neere to the water side, and also to Cao Comori, downe to the lowe land of Chialon, which is about two hundred miles, the people there are as it were all turned to the Christian faith:  there are also Churches of the Friers of S. Pauls order, which Friers doe very much good in those places in turning the people, and in conuerting them, and take great paines in instructing them in the law of Christ.

The fishing for Pearles.

[Sidenote:  The order how they fish for pearles.] The Sea that lieth betweene the coast which descendeth from Cao Comori, to the lowe land of Chiaoal, and the Iland Zeilan, they call the fishing of Pearles, which fishing they make euery yeere, beginning in March or Aprill, and it lasteth fiftie dayes, but they doe not fishe euery yeere in one place, but one yeere in one place, and another yeere in another place of the same sea.  When the time of this fishing