The Principal Navigations, Voyages, Traffiques and Discoveries of the English Nation — Volume 09 eBook

This eBook from the Gutenberg Project consists of approximately 478 pages of information about The Principal Navigations, Voyages, Traffiques and Discoveries of the English Nation — Volume 09.

The Principal Navigations, Voyages, Traffiques and Discoveries of the English Nation — Volume 09 eBook

This eBook from the Gutenberg Project consists of approximately 478 pages of information about The Principal Navigations, Voyages, Traffiques and Discoveries of the English Nation — Volume 09.
draweth neere, then they send very good Diuers, that goe to discouer where the greatest heapes of Oisters bee vnder water, and right agaynst that place where greatest store of Oisters bee, there they make or plant a village with houses and a Bazaro, all of stone, which standeth as long as the fishing time lasteth, and it is furnished with all things necessarie, and nowe and then it is neere vnto places that are inhabited, and other times farre off, according to the place where they fishe.  The Fishermen are all Christians of the countrey, and who so will may goe to fishing, paying a certaine dutie to the king of Portugall, and to the Churches of the Friers of Saint Paule, which are in that coast.  All the while that they are fishing, there are three or foure Fustes armed to defend the Fishermen from Rouers.  It was my chance to bee there one time in my passage, and I saw the order that they vsed in fishing, which is this.  There are three or foure Barkes that make consort together, which are like to our litle Pilot boates, and a litle lesse, there goe seuen or eight men in a boate:  and I haue seene in a morning a great number of them goe out, and anker in fifteene or eighteene fadome of water, which is the Ordinarie depth of all that coast.  When they are at anker, they cast a rope into the Sea, and at the ende of the rope, they make fast a great stone, and then there is readie a man that hath his nose and his eares well stopped, and annointed with oyle, and a basket about his necke, or vnder his left arme, then hee goeth downe by the rope to the bottome of the Sea, and as fast as he can he filleth the basket, and when it is full, he shaketh the rope, and his fellowes that are in the Barke hale him vp with the basket:  and in such wise they goe one by one vntill they haue laden their barke with oysters, and at euening they come to the village, and then euery company maketh their mountaine or heape of oysters one distant from another, in such wise that you shall see a great long rowe of mountaines or heapes of oysters, and they are not touched vntill such time as the fishing bee ended, and at the ende of the fishing euery companie sitteth round about their mountaine or heape of oysters, and fall to opening of them, which they may easilie doe because they bee dead, drie and brittle:  and if euery oyster had pearles in them, it would bee a very good purchase, but there are very many that haue no pearles in them:  when the fishing is ended, then they see whether it bee a great gathering or a badde:  there are certaine expert in the pearles whom they call Chitini, which set and make the price of pearles [Marginal note:  These pearles are prised according to the caracts which they weigh, euery caract is 4. graines, and these men that prise hem haue an instrument of copper with holes in it, which be made by degrees for to sort the perles withall.] according to their carracts, beautie, and goodnesse, making foure sortes of them.  The first sort bee the round pearles, and they be called Aia
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The Principal Navigations, Voyages, Traffiques and Discoveries of the English Nation — Volume 09 from Project Gutenberg. Public domain.