ll freedom to pass quietly, assuring them of
kind usage, provided they were not enemies to our sovereign or his
subjects. A more general pass was afterwards granted by us for the quiet
and free departure of all junks and other vessels, with their cargoes,
mariners, and passengers.

On the 10th, the captain of the Dabul junk invited us to a banquet at
his house, where we found the governor with about fifty principal
persons, besides attendants, all of whom rose up to bid us welcome.
Coffee, sherbet, and tobacco, were served round, with various fruits, as
plums, apricots, and mangoes, and thinking these had been the feast, we
were about to depart; but the governor and the Dabul captain desired us
to remain, that we might _eat bread and salt with them_, which we did.
The feast at last made its appearance, though late, being about sixty
dishes of meats, baked, roasted, broiled, stewed, and boiled, but all
mingled with rice and various kinds of sallads, in the fashion of India.

Our cargo consisted mostly of bad wares, which had lain in India till
they were nearly spoiled, and so hung long upon our hands; wherefore we
importuned the governor to dispeed our sales, which he charged the
broker to do with all expedition. We also had leave granted to come and
go between the ship and the shore at our pleasure, without demanding
leave, contrary to the usual custom of the port, the water bailiff being
ordered to give us no molestation. On the 20th, it was noticed that the
monsoon had changed. The 24th, the scrivano observed to us that our
sailors, on coming ashore, were in the custom of selling _baftas_ and
sword-blades in the bazar. He said the governor had promised liberty for
the goods of these poor fellows to pass free of custom, and therefore
they might freely bring them ashore for sale, but must sell them at our
house, and not in the public bazar, which was a disgrace to us and our
nation.

On the 31st, our ship was in great danger of being burnt. Some one
happened to be smoking on the spritsail yardarm, when the burning
tobacco fell out unobserved into a fold of the sail, where it burnt
through two or three breadths, and was long smelt before it could be
found. After this, smoking was strictly prohibited, except in the
cook-room or the captain's cabin. At this time, for the recovery of our
sick men, the exploration of the coast, and procuring ballast instead
of lead taken out of the ship for sale, it was concluded to send t