The 11th of March we departed from Ceylon and doubled Cape Comorin.  Not far from thence, between Ceylon and the main-land of India at Negapatnam, they fish for pearls every year, whence all India, Cambaya, and Bengal are supplied.  But these pearls are not so orient [are not so round or of so fine a water] as those of Bahrain in the gulph of Persia.  From Cape Comorin we went to Coulan, a fort of the Portuguese, whence comes great store of pepper for Portugal, as frequently one of the caraks is laden here.  We arrived at Cochin on the 22d of March, where we found the weather very warm, and a great scarcity of provisions, as neither corn nor rice grows here, having mostly to be supplied from Bengal.  They have here very bad water, as the river is far off; and by this bad water many of the people are like lepers, and many have their legs swollen as big as a mans waist, so that they can hardly walk.  The people here are Malabars, of the race of the Nairs of Calicut, who differ much from the other Malabars.  These have their heads very full of hair, bound up with a string, above which is a great bush of hair.  The men are tall and strong, and excellent archers, using a long bow and long arrows, which are their best weapons; yet they have some fire-arms among them, which they handle very badly.

In this country pepper grows, being trained up a tree or pole.  It is like our ivy berry, but something longer, like an ear of wheat.  At first the bunches are green, but as they become ripe they are cut off and dried.  The leaf is much smaller and thinner than that of ivy.  The houses of the inhabitants are very small, and are covered with the leaves of the coco-tree.  The men are of moderate stature, but the women very little; all black, with a cloth about their middles, hanging down to their hams, all the rest of their bodies being naked.  They have horribly great ears, with many rings set with pearls and other stones.  All the pepper sold in Calicut, and the coarse cinnamon [cassia] grow in this country.  The best cinnamon comes from Ceylon, and is peeled from fine young trees.  They have here many palmers, or coco-nut trees, which is their chief food, as it yields both meat and drink, together with many other useful things, as I said formerly.

The nairs belonging to the Samorin or king of Calicut, which are Malabars, are always at war with the Portuguese, though their sovereign be at peace with them; but his people go to sea to rob and plunder.  Their chief captain is called Cogi Alli, who hath three castles under his authority.  When the Portuguese complain to the Samorin, he pretends that he does not send them out, but he certainly consents to their going.  They range all along the coast from Ceylon to Goa, and go in parties of four or five paraos or boats together, in each of which are fifty or sixty men, who immediately board every vessel they come up with, doing much harm on that coast, and every year take many foists and barks belonging to the Portuguese.  Besides the nairs, many of the people in these paraos are Moors.  The dominions of the Samorin begin twelve leagues from Cochin and reach to near Goa.