y walled: and as it were a mile and an
halfe distant from this is the city of Moores, gouerned by their king
Zamalluco. In the time of warres there cannot any great ships come to the
city of the Moores, because the Portugals with their ordinance will sincke
them, for that they must perforce passe by the castles of the Portugals:
both the cities are ports of the sea, and are great cities, and haue vnto
them great traffique and trade of merchandise, of all sorts of spices,
drugges, silke, cloth of silke, Sandols, Marsine, Versin, Porcelane of
China, Veluets and Scarlets that come from Portugall and from Meca: with
many other sortes of merchandise. There come euery yeere from Cochin, and
from Cananor tenne or fifteene great shippes laden with great Nuts cured,
and with sugar made of the selfe same Nuts called Giagra: the tree whereon
these Nuts doe grow is called the Palmer tree: and thorowout all the
Indies, and especially from this place to Goa there is great abundance of
them, and it is like to the Date tree. In the whole world there is not a
tree more profitable and of more goodnesse then this tree is, neither doe
men reape so much benefit of any other tree as they doe of this, there is
not any part of it but serueth for some vse, and none of it is woorthy to
be burnt. With the timber of this tree they make shippes without the
mixture of any other tree, and with the leaues thereof they make sailes,
and with the fruit thereof, which be a kinde of Nuts, they make wine, and
of the wine they make Sugar and Placetto, which wine they gather in the
spring of the yeere: out of the middle of the tree where continually there
goeth or runneth out white liquour like vnto water, in that time of the
yeere they put a vessel vnder euery tree, and euery euening and morning
they take it away full, and then distilling it with fire it maketh a very
strong liquour: and then they put it into buts, with a quantity of Zibibbo,
white or blacke and in short time it is made a perfect wine. After this
they make of the Nuts great store of oile: of the tree they make great
quantity of boordes and quarters for buildings. Of the barke of this tree
they make cables, ropes, and other furniture for shippes, and, as they say,
these ropes be better then they that are made of Hempe. They make of the
bowes, bedsteds, after the Indies fashion, and Scauasches for merchandise.
The leaues they cut very small, and weaue them, and so make sailes of them,
for all man