‘The travels of Sig. Pietro della Valle, a noble Roman, into East-India and Arabia Deserta. In which, the several countries, together with the customs, manners, traffique, and rites both religious and civil, of those Oriental princes and nations, are faithfully described: In familiar letters to his friend Signior Mario Schipano. Whereunto is added a relation of Sir Thomas Roe’s voyage into the East-Indies’ [‎378] (399/508)

37 § AVoya^eto E A S T-IN D ! A,
amounted to no lei's then 10000 1. fieri.) that in a few days he
would have two Copies made by that prelented to him fo
like, that the Embafladour (hould no|: know his own. He're-
fufed the great wager, but told the King he would adventure
his judgment on it : Two Copies taken from that Original were
within few days after made, and brought and laid before the
Embafladour , in the prefence of the Ring 5 the Embafladour
viewing them long, either out of Courtlhip to pleafethe Kine
or elfe unable to make a difference 5 twixt the Pidures being all
exquiiitly done, took one of them which was new made ^ for
that which he had formerly prefented, and did after profefs'that
he did not flatter, but miftake in that choice. The truth is
that the Natives of that Monarchy are the befi: Apes for imitati
on in the world, fo full of ingenuity that they will make any
new thing by pattern, how hard foever it feem to be done 5 and
therefore it is no marvel, if the Natives there make Shooes
and Boots, and Clothes, and Linen, and Bands and Cuffs of our
Englifh Faftiion, which are aU of them very much different
from their Fafhions and Habits, and yet make them all exceeding
neatly. x ®
They have Markets, which they call Bazars, to fell and buy
their Commodities in all their great Towns twice every day, a
little before, and an hour after Sun-rifing in the morning, andVo
a lutle before and a little after Sun-fet at night. The other parts
of the day being too hot for thofe great confluences of people
to meet together 5 and thofe are the feafons we Englifh -men
there make ufe of, to ride abroad and take the air, the reft of
the day we ufually fpend in our houfes. The people there fell
almoft all their Provifions, as very many other things, by
. ^ OY foreign Trade of this people, it is ufually once a year
into the Red Sea to a City called Moha in Arabia the happy, about
thirty leagues from the mouth of it 5 It is a principal Mart for all
Indian Commodities, but the Staple and moft principal there
vented is their Cotten-cloth, either white, or ftained, and their
Cotten-wooll. Hither they come from Grand Cairo in Egypt, as
rom many other parts of the Turks Dominions, to trafique 5 hi-
t ei they come from Prefier Johns Country which lyes on the
other fide of the Arabiae Gulf (for fo the Red Sea is there cal-
ied) and not above fourteen leagues over at the City Aloha,
. he Ship or Cfor fbitis called} that ufually goes from
fur at to Moha hoi: an exceeding great burden, fome of them I
believe fourteen or fifteen hundred Tuns, or more, but thofe
ugeyeflels are very ill built, like an over-grown Liter, broad
and thort, but made exceeding big, on purpofe to waff Paflen-
gers roi ward and backward: which are Mahometans, who go on
puipoie to vifit Mahomets Sepulchre, at Medina neer Mecha, but
many- miles htyoud Moha, The Paflengers, and others in that
molt capacious Vefiel that went and returned that year I left In
dia.
*