their respect to the king, and handed him the presents as the gift of the emperor.  He accepted the presents graciously, and looking up to heaven said, “It is now two years since I learnt from observation of the stars that you were sent by the great King of kings to seek for these lands.  Wherefore your arrival is the more agreeable to me, inasmuch as it has already been foreseen from the signification of the stars.  And since I know that nothing happens to man, which has not long since been ordained by the decree of Fate and of the stars, I will not be the man to resist the determinations of Fate and the stars, but will spontaneously abdicate my royal power, and consider myself for the future, as carrying on the government of this island as your king’s viceroy.  So bring your ships into the harbour, and order the rest of your companions to land in safety, so that now after so much tossing about on the sea, and so many dangers, you may securely enjoy the comforts of life on shore, and recruit your strength; and consider yourselves to be coming into your own king’s dominions.”  Having thus spoken, the king laid aside his diadem, and embraced each of our men, and directed such refreshments as the country produced to be set on table.  Our men, delighted at this, returned to their companions, and told them what had taken place.  They were much delighted by the graciousness and benevolence of the king, and took up their quarters in the island.  When they had been entertained for some days by the king’s munificence, they sent envoys thence to the other kings, to investigate the resources of the islands, and to secure the good will of the chiefs.  Tarante was the nearest; it is a very small island, its circumference being a little over six Italian miles.  The next is Matthien, and that also is small.  These three produce a great quantity of cloves, but every fourth year the crop is far larger than at other times.  These trees only grow on precipitous rocks, and they grow so close together as to form groves.  The tree resembles the laurel as regards its leaves, its closeness of growth, and its height; the clove, so called from its resemblance to a nail [Latin, clavus] grows at the very tip of each twig; first a bud appears, and then a blossom much like that of the orange; the point of the clove first shows itself at the end of the twig, until it attains its full growth; at first it is reddish, but the heat of the sun soon turns it black.  The natives share groves of this tree among themselves, just as we do vineyards:  they keep the cloves in pits, till the merchants fetch them away.  The fourth island, Muthil, is no larger than the rest.  This island produces cinnamon; the tree is full of shoots, and in other respects fruitless, it thrives best in a dry soil, and is very much like the pomegranate tree.  When the bark cracks through the heat of the sun, it is pulled off the tree, and being dried in the sun a short time becomes cinnamon.  Near Muthil is another island,