Henry Middleton might be forgotten for
that quarrel had originated between two drunken men, and had been
improperly followed up by the former aga, for which he had now been five
months displaced. In regard to trade, he could not permit any great
matter till he received directions from his master, Jaffar Pacha, to
whom he had written, and expected an answer in ten or twelve days;
desiring me to allow my people in the meantime to come ashore freely, to
buy what they wanted, and to sell small matters, that the inhabitants
might see we were in peace and amity, and that the past was forgotten.
These speeches made good what I had formerly suspected, concerning the
doubts the India ships might entertain of our being here, unless they
understood we were friends; and their staying away would prove a great
injury to every officer of the port. Besides, we were purposely so
placed at anchor, that no laden ship could come into the port but must
ride under our guns; by which I reckoned we were sure of trade, either
ashore or aboard, and by thus holding the town in awe, I might venture
our boats and people the more freely on shore, to procure any thing our
ships might need.

We were royally feasted by the governor, the dinner consisting of all
sorts of wild fowl, poultry, goat's-flesh, mutton, cream, custards,
various made dishes, and sundry confections, all served in vessels of
tin, different from our pewter, made goblet-fashion, with feet, and so
placed in piles, one above the other, that they reached a yard high, yet
each dish could be served from without removing the others. All these
meats were served up at once, before we sat down. Our drink was simple
water, or boiled with an herb called _Cauhaw_,[415] giving it a somewhat
bitter taste. Dinner being over, the governor led me into an inner room,
where he was attended by four little boys, who were his catamites. Being
here seated on a crimson velvet carpet, all the rest of the room covered
with rich carpets, one of these boys, having in his hand a linen napkin,
ushered in two other boys, one of whom carried a silver chaffing-dish,
with burning coals, and the other a dish with sundry rich perfumes, as
ambergris, lignum aloes, and others. The governor desired me to permit
the boy to cover my head close with the napkin, after which the other
boy held the chaffing-dish with perfumes under my head, that I might
receive the perfume, which was very pleasant. The governor, and two
princ