The merchandise brought by the Portuguese in their ships from the districts where they trade and traffic is as follows.

First, they carry from Malaca to Goa a great quantity of cloves, nutmeg, and mace; also tin—­which is the finest that is obtained from those parts, and which they also carry to China, for the tin of that country is not so fine.  They carry tortoise-shell and many pearls.

From Zeylao, a great quantity of cinnamon, the finest of diamonds, and other precious gems.

From Bengala, abundance of very fine cotton; quantities of sugar and rock sulphur; and a quantity of rice—­for which, if it were not for Bengala, Yndia would suffer.

From Mocambique, ivory and brasil-wood.

From Ormuz, which is in Persia, they bring excellent horses, and very fine carpets; many larins, [65] each one a trifle smaller than one of our reals; many clusters of dates; camlets, [66] and many agras; and benecianos, [67] each of which is worth about one of our escudos of eleven reals.

From the kingdom of Pegu, they carry a quantity of fine lac in loaves, and other things.

From Siam, excellent silver, and arquebus-balls; much and very fine benzoin; almond cakes; a quantity of oil of ginger, and of cocoa, and brasil-wood; lead; and a quantity of rice.

From Conchinchina, aguila-wood, [68] and another wood called calambac, [69] which is very valuable.  It is black and contains oil, and is worth fifty cruzados among the Portuguese; while in its own kingdom, it passes weight for weight with silver. [The ship also carries] lead, pepper, and some yellow silk.

From the kingdom of Champa is brought the abovesaid wood, and it is even finer than that of Conchinchina.  They carry another kind of black wood from which the Chinese make certain little sticks one cuarto [i.e., one-fourth vara?] long with which they eat.  This kingdom has nothing else [to trade].

From Cambay, they bring the finest incense that those districts furnish.  It is worth three taes per pico.  They bring it from Far, which is Arabia the Blest [la Felice], and also from the island of Samatra, which the Portuguese call by another name Dachen.

From Timor, white sandal wood, which grows in no other part, while they bring the red from Santo Tome.

From Borney they bring camphor, which is the best which is usually found.  It passes in its own kingdom weight for weight with silver.  They also bring a great quantity of wood of the same tree for tables and writing desks, and it is very beautiful and sweet-smelling.

From the islands of Ternate, Tidore, and three or four others, the spice of the clove.

From the island of Banda, and from other islands, nutmeg and mace.  From the same island they bring certain very beautiful birds which have no feet or claws.  They have a very long tail with very beautiful feathers, and resemble young herons.